Tendon Training Like a Bow, Tough as Nails

Night.

Moonlight was veiled by dark clouds, casting little light upon the ground.

Tall trees loomed in the cold moonlight, their forms twisted and grotesque.

A night breeze stirred, and they seemed to writhe like a host of demons, adding to the eerie atmosphere.

Rustle, rustle!

Leaves thrashed endlessly, stretching and distorting like countless demonic tendrils.

Liang Qisheng's solitary figure moved silently through them, his steps light, carrying no sound as he advanced.

This was because his Black Tiger Fist frame had been honed into his very marrow.

After several transformations, his gait was like a tiger treading the earth.

Though his body might weigh a thousand pounds, his landing was soundless, always poised to unleash explosive force.

"Who?!"

Suddenly, Liang Qisheng's swiftly moving body halted in place.

His ear twitched slightly, but his body remained utterly still.

His gaze was deep, his expression grave, as he stared ahead in silence and spoke coldly.

"Impressive. You're a tough nut to crack, indeed."

"I waited for you on this path you had to take, hoping to catch you off guard. I didn't expect a slightly heavier breath to give me away."

A figure leaped down from a tree trunk and landed in the middle of the road.

"I'm very curious about your origins. How could a hunter from deep in the mountains possess such skill, such nerve, such bearing?"

"...I'll give you a chance. Join my Nine Harmony Hall and sign a servant's contract, and I'll let you live..."

A sliver of moonlight fell upon his face, revealing his features clearly.

"Manager Lin of Nine Harmony Hall!"

Liang Qisheng's eyes narrowed as he recognized the man.

His expression showed some surprise, yet it also felt within expectations.

It was unexpected that the man would come personally over just a few dead clerks.

But when it came to the cycle of cause and effect, it was fitting for him to end it.

"That day you came to the pawnshop to pawn a tiger skin, I saw that you were skilled in martial arts."

"Your aura was restrained, your build tiger-like with a wasp waist, your foundation solid, and you were young—you had a promising future ahead."

Manager Lin of the Nine Harmony Hall pawnshop stood straight in the middle of the road, speaking with some regret.

Then his tone shifted, his expression turning cold. "It was just a few dead clerks. I was willing to let it slide, but one of them was my wife's distant cousin. My wife nags me day and night, driving me mad. So I have no choice but to wrong you..."

"So you knew what they were doing?"

Liang Qisheng's eyes were icy.

"Turn a blind eye—others cause the trouble, others do the evil, but you take the lion's share of the gains. When something goes wrong, there's a scapegoat. Either way, you keep your hands clean?!"

Liang Qisheng let out a cold laugh, his hand silently moving to the chopping knife at his waist.

"If he's your wife's cousin, why did you just say you'd spare me if I entered servitude?"

His tone carried mockery and chill.

"That's right. If you're willing to join my Nine Harmony Hall, I'll spare your life."

"As for that cousin of my wife's, he's just a distant relative. If trading one life for a trusted right-hand man can recruit talent for Nine Harmony Hall, then his death is worthwhile!"

Manager Lin naturally heard the mockery in Liang Qisheng's words but paid it no mind.

He knew Liang Qisheng's hand had touched the knife at his waist, yet he remained unmoved.

"They say the mountains breed fierce tigers and savage leopards, but it seems your Nine Harmony Hall is the one that acts with tyranny."

"The magistrate can set fires, but the common folk can't even light a lamp."

As these words left his mouth, Liang Qisheng's tone became utterly resolute.

Even facing a martial artist stronger than himself, he showed no sign of backing down.

"Good, very good."

"I greatly admire this unyielding spirit of yours."

Manager Lin clapped his hands, his face showing appreciation.

Liang Qisheng's display did not change his expression.

Since he had appeared here, it meant he had no intention of letting Liang Qisheng go.

Offering him two choices was merely an offhand remark.

Success or failure—either way.

To him, it was merely a matter of going through the motions, not affecting the final decision.

"This old man only regrets that a fine talent like you is buried here."

"Blame only yourself for doing the wrong thing and offending the wrong person. Today, you will die here."

His earlier words had shifted Shopkeeper Lin's mindset somewhat; he hadn't expected the seemingly young Liang Qisheng to strike at the crux of the matter so incisively.

So he stopped wasting words and directly issued a threat laced with lament.

"In the end, isn't it still a fight?"

"All that nonsense—you might as well have been taking off your pants to fart. Completely unnecessary."

Liang Qisheng hit the nail on the head.

His expression turned serious as he slightly lowered his stance, assuming the posture of the Black Tiger Fist.

As the saying goes, when an expert makes a move, you know if they have it or not.

The Black Tiger Fist stance Liang Qisheng assumed made his body seem to sway, yet in truth, he was like a prowling tiger, his steps firmly gripping the ground, already on guard.

His legs and torso formed a coordinated posture, searching for an opening in his prey, ready to pounce at any moment.

"I'll give you one more chance. Submit to my Nine Harmony Hall, and your lineage shall never rebel."

Watching his movements, Shopkeeper Lin's expression showed a hint of appreciation as he spoke with a slight frown.

Without a doubt, in his eyes, this Liang Qisheng, though young, possessed such ability.

A mere deep-mountain hunter with such perseverance—truly a talent.

Such a man had a promising future; killing him would be a real pity.

But as a man of Nine Harmony Hall, he could not allow anyone to challenge its authority.

Even the servants and attendants of Nine Harmony Hall had their lives decided by the Hall alone—outsiders had no such right.

"Submit to you? And never rebel for generations?"

"...Isn't that less about taking my servitude and more about making my descendants slaves to your Nine Harmony Hall?"

Hearing Shopkeeper Lin's terms, Liang Qisheng let out a mocking laugh.

A martial artist values an imposing spirit, standing firm as a pine, refusing to yield even under immense pressure.

Like a bamboo shooting straight into the sky without falling, standing tall even amidst raging storms and blizzards.

Once he broke his spine and became another man's slave, even in the future, he could never climb the true peak of martial arts.

He had lived a second life. Though he feared death, he feared the loss of personal freedom even more.

Since he was alive in this world, he naturally wanted to carve out his own path—at least, before he reached a dead end, he would not submit to any person or force.

"You're still young. You don't know who the backer behind Nine Harmony Hall is, nor what kind of influence it holds in Stone Martial County."

The Nine Harmony Hall shopkeeper shook his head slightly, as if sighing over Liang Qisheng's fate, and finally made his decision.

"Since you remain stubbornly deluded, I have no choice but to kill you, to eliminate any future threat."

Boom!

A vibrating sound rang through the air as the Nine Harmony Hall shopkeeper's hands transformed into eagle claws.

The large tendons on his back quivered violently, and an intangible pressure surged forward.

With a stomp of his foot, his body shot straight into the air.

His claws descended, like a hunting falcon dropping from the sky, diving straight for its prey.

"Skin, flesh, sinew, bone—this Nine Harmony Hall shopkeeper is at least at the sinew-training level of a martial artist, a full tier above me."

Just from hearing the taut vibration of those tendons, he could tell his opponent's strength surpassed his own.

In fact, it was very likely a whole realm higher.