Letting Go

Lu Hao did not know that Bai Qiuyao had considered pulling him out of the arena the moment he was injured. In his eyes, these were just minor wounds; since he had decided to walk the path of a martial artist, he would inevitably be injured in the future.

As the saying goes, sweat more in peacetime to bleed less in wartime.

If he couldn't even handle these small injuries, what kind of martial artist would he be? He might as well go home and grow sweet potatoes.

"This isn't a major injury, let alone a hidden one. Since I chose the path of a martial artist, I've prepared myself for injury. Please don't be afraid of me getting hurt; if I don't get hurt now, I'll face even harsher situations later."

Although Lu Hao understood his mother's intentions, he didn't want to keep hiding behind her forever. Could he really hide for his whole life? If he backed down now, he would regret it three years later.

Could he really just watch his parents die in front of him three years from now?

"..."

Bai Qiuyao froze. Although she knew her approach was wrong, was there truly any mother who could harden her heart?

However, she also understood that acting this way was truly harming Lu Hao.

"...Fine. From now on, you will come here alone. I will prepare resources for you, and I will have Viper only intervene when you are on the verge of death. Under other circumstances, he will not step in. The rest is up to you."

Although Bai Qiuyao was a mother, she was also a martial artist. She knew that the path of a martial artist was forged in sweat and blood. Since she had already begun to obstruct Lu Hao's progress, she should step back and let go, allowing Lu Hao to grow on his own. This was the best way to help him; otherwise, she would be using the excuse of "doing what's best for the child" to drive him to his doom.

"Mm, don't worry, Mom. I will be careful of my own safety."

Seeing Bai Qiuyao entrust the protection task to Viper, Lu Hao breathed a sigh of relief. After all, if he wanted to grow, he had to fight and get injured.

If his mother couldn't bear to see him hurt, she would inevitably interfere. To Lu Hao, that wouldn't be help—it would be poison disguised as help.

It was fortunate that his mother had brought it up herself; otherwise, it would have been difficult to resolve if things had turned messy later.

The two did not continue the topic. Bai Qiuyao watched the battle on the stage and began to guide Lu Hao, pointing out every move and technique, whether he should have used them, and how he should have executed them.

That evening, after returning home, Lu Hao continued to practice his blade techniques, incorporating the situations he had encountered in actual combat along with his own insights. His blade technique progressed rapidly.

Before bed, he used a Blood Vitality Pill to temper his lower limb bones, exhausting his blood vitality completely.

The next day, Lu Hao went to the Duel Arena alone. Upon arriving, he skillfully took out a common Blood Vitality Pill as an entrance fee and went inside.

He found Viper, who had already been instructed by his mother.

"Your mother spoke to me. From now on, I am only responsible for ensuring you stay alive. As for injuries, that is none of my business. Kid, what kind of opponent do you want today?"

Viper looked at Lu Hao with a teasing smile. Bai Qiuyao had paid ten million to have him protect Lu Hao until he entered Martial University, with the only condition being that he kept Lu Hao alive.

In his view, this was a guaranteed win. Lu Hao's father was a grandmaster, and helping out this time might even expand his network significantly.

"Uh... what is your surname, senior?"

Lu Hao was about to say something when he realized he still didn't know the middle-aged man's name, only his nickname, Viper. He couldn't just call him Viper, could he?

"Heh, I forgot to introduce myself. My surname is Wang. You can just call me Uncle Wang. Don't look at me like I'm just hanging around this small place; I was a student at a Martial University when I was young, but I suffered an injury later on and came back here to start a business."

"This Duel Arena of mine is a semi-official enterprise. After all, it serves as a place for prodigies to hone their skills and helps keep the martial artists in society from causing trouble, so the government maintains an attitude of neither cracking down on it nor endorsing it."

"Your mother asked me to protect you until you enter university. I don't care what you do during this period; I only guarantee your life. Everything else is up to you, so calling me 'Uncle' won't be a loss for you."

"Then, Uncle Wang, please arrange three matches for me. All of them can be high-stage rank-one opponents."

"Good kid, you've got ambition. Three high-stage rank-one opponents right off the bat. I like your spirit. Go ahead and fight; you'll definitely get hurt, but I guarantee you won't die."

As Uncle Wang agreed, Lu Hao watched the battles on the stage while waiting for his turn.

In the evening, Lu Hao dragged his limp arm toward home, reviewing the three battles of the day in his mind as he walked.

The first two matches were nothing special; aside from seeing a trick or two, there wasn't much to note.

The injury to his arm was caused by the last high-stage rank-one opponent he faced today. This martial artist had tempered his upper limb bones and used a spear as his weapon.

Lu Hao fought him for dozens of rounds, and only after paying the price of having his arm pierced through was he able to defeat him. If the opponent hadn't surrendered quickly, Lu Hao might have even killed him.

This rank-one martial artist's greatest strength was his defense with that spear. Even after Lu Hao leaped into the air, he couldn't bypass the spear to attack the man himself, so he had no choice but to adopt a strategy of trading injury for injury.

After the match, Lu Hao took a healing pill to restore his arm slightly before heading home.

As soon as he arrived, his mother saw his limp arm. She fought back tears, checked him carefully to ensure there was nothing life-threatening, and then went to cook dinner for him.

From the sofa, Lu Hao could clearly hear the sound of chopping mixed with sobbing. It made him feel terrible, but there was no other way. To become stronger, these were things he would have to experience sooner or later.

Moreover, to win in the final grand scheme of things, or at least to protect his parents, he had to work hard, and then work even harder.

At the dinner table, his mother didn't mention his arm again. She knew she couldn't stop her son, and doing so would only hinder his progress. Instead, Bai Qiuyao talked about many things happening at the bureau.

This included the various crimes committed by those martial artists, which was a way for Lu Hao to adapt in advance. After all, judging by his current situation, it wouldn't be long before he started taking on missions at the bureau.

She wasn't worried about Lu Hao's life since he had Viper protecting him, but she was deeply concerned about his mental state after facing such cruel martial artists. Some of the cases she had seen in her ten-plus years as a bureau chief were things she couldn't even bear to look at.

They were truly inhuman acts that an ordinary person couldn't even imagine. She could only hope that Lu Hao wouldn't be affected by these dregs of society when the time came.

After dinner, because of his arm, Lu Hao didn't practice his blade techniques. Instead, he practiced his leg techniques. The last martial artist he fought today had leg techniques that were nearly at the minor success stage, and his unique application of them had given Lu Hao many ideas.

Sure enough, actual combat was the fastest way to progress.