Zhang Sheng's Plea, A Condition: A Fixed Location for Producing Exotic Beast Meat? Iron Claw Skill

In the deep alleyway.

A blood-soaked figure walked forward with small, unsteady steps.

The person who arrived was none other than Zhang Sheng of the Robbery Gang!

Shi Wen's pupils constricted slightly; he could not understand why Zhang Sheng, who had been perfectly fine just last night, had ended up in such a state tonight.

Zhang Sheng's face was devoid of color. He reached a spot a few meters in front of Shi Wen, suddenly dropped to one knee, and gritted his teeth. "I beg you, brother, please avenge me!"

Shi Wen said indifferently, "Avenge you for what?"

"Last night, while I was sparring with you, brother, I sustained some injuries. I never expected that the gang members who had originally betrayed that wretch Chen Shuisheng would betray me this time as well. They lured in external enemies to wound me severely. I only escaped after a bloody battle, and knowing you were here, I came to ask for your help!"

Zhang Sheng gnashed his teeth, wishing he could tear that person into ten thousand pieces.

"What does that have to do with me?" Shi Wen stood the wooden stake upright and began practicing, his fists and elbows alternating in motion. "If you don't leave now, I'm going to beat you to death."

"If you are willing to avenge me, brother, I am willing to hand over twenty percent of the Robbery Gang's monthly profits to you!" Zhang Sheng gritted his teeth. "Those who practice martial arts require resources for cultivation. Without resources, even those with the greatest natural talent are like a boat sailing against the current; if they do not advance, they will retreat!"

"Twenty percent? That's too little."

Although Shi Wen was somewhat tempted, he still shook his head.

He only wanted to practice his martial arts in peace right now and had no desire to get involved in other people's affairs.

"Brother, twenty percent is not a small amount!" Zhang Sheng said. "My small gang has to pay tribute to the officials and the Black Whale Gang, and I have to support a group of brothers. Plus, I need nourishment myself, the expenses..."

"That is your business."

Shi Wen coldly interrupted him. "If there is nothing else, you may leave."

"Thirty percent, thirty percent is the absolute maximum!" Zhang Sheng took a deep breath and said, "Thirty percent of the Robbery Gang's profits, all for you. As long as you avenge me, brother, I am willing to acknowledge you as my big brother. From this day forward, the Robbery Gang will be your vassal!"

"Not interested."

Shi Wen's fists hammered against the wooden stake like a torrential storm, unmoved by Zhang Sheng's words.

"I will give you thirty-five percent of the monthly profits, and in addition to that, I will give you the location of a Strange Beast!" Although Zhang Sheng was somewhat unwilling, he still spoke. "You must know how great the benefits of Strange Beast meat are, right, brother?"

"For those who walk the path of martial arts, ordinary meat cannot sustain the body's functions. Only by nourishing oneself with medicinal herbs or Strange Beast meat can one maintain bodily functions and even push their martial arts to the next level. I know where that Strange Beast is, and outsiders absolutely do not know!"

Upon hearing this.

Shi Wen's fist shadows paused, and he turned his gaze toward Zhang Sheng.

He frowned and asked, "You know the whereabouts of a Strange Beast?"

"That's right. I stumbled upon it by chance while traveling in the wilderness. It's just that the place is rather strange, and I intended to wait until I broke through to the Blood-Coagulation Realm before going to claim it, but I never expected this to happen."

Zhang Sheng said, "If we can go to that place and harvest the Strange Beast meat, I estimate we could obtain several hundred catties of it at once!"

"This Strange Beast meat can be produced continuously. With regular and reasonable harvesting, we can obtain a certain share of Strange Beast meat every month."

"Some of the famous chambers of commerce, large gangs, and even the government within the city have fixed sources for Strange Beast meat, and this is the foundation upon which a faction can rise!"

When Zhang Sheng said this, he could not help but feel a sense of desolation.

It was clear he was not willing to reveal this location to an outsider.

But having been betrayed, if he could not survive, how would he be any different from that Chen Shuisheng of the Thief Gang?

Sooner or later, he would end up dead!

Shi Wen pondered, his heart moved.

The importance of Strange Beast meat went without saying!

Martial artists were like bottomless pits; without the nourishment of Strange Beast meat, how many meals would one have to eat every day just to maintain their bodily functions?

The expenses for buying Strange Beast meat were also immense.

Money would eventually run out, but the source of Strange Beast meat that Zhang Sheng spoke of could actually be developed and utilized continuously.

This point truly exceeded his expectations.

After a moment of silence, Shi Wen said, "Others can betray you, and you could betray me too!"

Zhang Sheng remained silent for a long time.

Although he was somewhat unwilling.

He still took a bamboo tube from his hand. "Brother, I have a pair of Stone-Brown Parent-Child Gu here. This pair of Parent-Child Gu usually remains motionless like stones and can go without food or water for several years."

"If the Parent Gu is threatened, the Child Gu will struggle with all its might. If the Parent Gu dies, the Child Gu will frantically bite everything in sight!"

"If you are worried, I will swallow the Child Gu, and you can use the Parent Gu to control me. How about that?"

"Bring it here and let me see."

"Alright!"

Subsequently, a pair of gray, curled-up insects appeared in Shi Wen's hand. Their skin was hard, resembling stone.

The two insects were completely motionless.

He poked the round Parent Gu with his finger.

The centipede-like Child Gu suddenly opened its blood-red maw to bite him, its sharp hundred legs waving frantically—it was truly hideous!

Shi Wen's pupils constricted slightly as he looked at this man in his twenties.

He felt a measure of surprise in his heart.

To possess such methods, the other party's background was certainly not simple.

Yet, with the control of the Mother-Child Gu, he figured this man would not dare to betray him easily.

Moreover, his own financial foundation was shallow; if he relied solely on his remaining silver, he would quickly exhaust his resources.

If someone provided him with a fixed amount of money every month, along with a steady supply of exotic beast meat for nourishment, his speed in cultivating martial arts should increase significantly.

Thinking of this, Shi Wen casually tossed the child-worm toward Zhang Sheng. "Eat it, and I will help you."

"Understood!"

Although Zhang Sheng was unwilling, he swallowed the child-worm into his belly.

Shi Wen reached out to prod the mother-worm, and Zhang Sheng suddenly clutched his stomach, curling up on the ground and rolling in agony. His face twisted into a grimace, and large beads of sweat poured down his forehead.

Only then did Shi Wen return the mother-worm to the bamboo tube.

He asked, "What is the background of the person who injured you, and what style does he use?"

Zhang Sheng sat on the ground, gasping for air, and spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor. "Big Brother, that man goes by the nickname Iron-Clad Child Meat Mountain. He is at the peak of the Blood-Tempering Realm and practices the hard-style Iron-Clad Skill. His skin is thick, his flesh is tough, and he has immense strength. His style focuses primarily on charging and ramming, but his weakness is his slow speed. With your methods, Big Brother, you will surely be able to force him back!"

Indeed, he was thinking not of killing, but of forcing him back.

Someone who practiced full-body hard-style techniques was tough-skinned and difficult to break through, with endurance far beyond that of an ordinary person.

Coupled with the protective Iron-Clad Skill and his proficiency in grappling and ramming, he was extremely troublesome.

If one were caught in his grapple, they would lose half their life even if they didn't die!

"Iron-Clad Skill?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Wen became immediately interested.

Tonight, after he had practiced the Iron Whip Leg to the minor completion stage, his blood-qi had grown several times over.

He secretly speculated that the growth of blood-qi was related to the parts of the body being tempered, so he wanted to find martial arts that could temper other parts of the body to test if this was true.

And the Iron-Clad Skill sounded exactly like the kind of hard-style martial art that could temper many different parts of the body!

If I can obtain the Iron-Clad Skill, I wonder how many times my overall blood-qi could grow?

Shi Wen pondered in silence and said, "Teach me your martial art."

"Teach you?"

Zhang Sheng was stunned, then said, "Big Brother, how about we wait until we've driven off Iron-Clad Child Meat Mountain? Time is too tight right now; you might not be able to learn it."

"Although this is a low-tier martial art, it is not easy to grasp!"

"It's fine, teach me."

"Very well!" Seeing that he could not dissuade Shi Wen, Zhang Sheng had no choice but to take a stance. He said in a deep voice, "Watch closely, Big Brother. This martial art is called the Iron Claw Skill, also known as the Eagle Claw Skill. It emphasizes being as soft as a leather strap and as hard as a steel hook!"

"In combat, it emphasizes the balance of hardness and softness, requiring one to sink their qi into the dantian and channel their strength through the entire body!"

"In daily practice, one must use hard-style methods to temper the claws and use medicinal baths for nourishment, training the palms until the skin is thick and tough. By channeling blood-qi, one can easily tear through flesh and blood. When practiced to the peak, one can tear apart stone tablets with bare hands!"

"The core techniques are grabbing, seizing, locking, hooking, and tearing; it is a close-quarters combat style!"

"There are not many moves: there is the breathing method, the standing eagle claw, the horse-stance tearing claw, the eagle claw grapple, and so on..."

Following this, Zhang Sheng began to perform the Eagle Claw Skill in the open space.

As his hands moved, they whipped up a sky full of afterimages, and every strike tore through the air with a dull thud—it was not bad at all!

Shi Wen watched silently, asking Zhang Sheng for pointers.

Afterward, he clumsily performed a set.

[Iron Claw Skill: Entry (1/30)]

As a line of text appeared on the Extreme Seal, a flood of memories regarding the various techniques and applications of the Iron Claw Skill surged into Shi Wen's mind.

At the same time, his palms felt subtly thicker.

So, the Iron Claw Skill emphasizes channeling qi to the dantian and focusing intent on the fingertips; it is a method for rapid neutralization of the enemy!

Hooking the wrist, locking the throat, separating tendons and dislocating bones...

Suddenly, Shi Wen stomped on the ground, his hands turning into hooking afterimages as he flashed forward, executing the entire set of the Iron Claw Skill!

His hands were exceptionally agile, and his grabs caused the air to explode with sharp cracks; the momentum was quite impressive.

Zhang Sheng, standing to the side, was dumbfounded, unable to describe the emotions in his heart!

His own natural talent and comprehension were mediocre; he had reached his current level only through grueling practice.

But this man had practiced it only once, and he was already more ferocious than he himself had been after half a year of training?

No wonder the world often used natural talent and comprehension to distinguish martial artists. He had never wanted to believe it, but seeing this today, talent truly could crush all mediocrity!

"If I were to fund this person with all my might, I wonder if I could use his strength to return and seize control of the situation?"

Zhang Sheng suddenly thought of something, a glimmer of excitement flashing in his eyes as his previous dissatisfaction vanished into thin air!

"Not a bad martial art."

Shi Wen retracted his stance and exhaled a breath of stale air.

He took out his waterskin, took a sip, and said, "Take me over to see it now."

"Very well!"

Zhang Sheng hurriedly led the way...