"Good!"
Lu Yuan smiled and nodded. Then, without hesitation, he strode straight to the 170-pound stone lock.
"No way... Is he going to lift the 170-pound stone lock too?"
"If I remember right, he's only been at Song Academy for three days. And he can already lift 170 pounds?"
"Hard to say. Maybe his constitution is about the same as ours, but you never know—he could have been born with extraordinary strength."
Everyone watched Lu Yuan with curious expressions, waiting to see what he would do next.
"Putting everything else aside, just based on his looks, he's got us beat hands down!"
"There's no arguing with that. He wins!"
A few boys with dark skin and rather distinctive features couldn't help voicing their envy.
Lu Yuan paid no attention to the crowd's chatter. He bent down, gripped the stone lock in front of him with both hands, and heaved with all his might.
Under the crowd's disbelieving gazes, he struggled more than Chen Pi had, but still managed to raise the 170-pound stone lock above his head.
He even held it there for a full three breaths before slamming it heavily onto the ground.
"Lu Yuan, you lifted 170 pounds too. Third place!"
Before Hong Lei could speak, Fang Chang spoke up first and quickly recorded the result.
Lu Yuan smiled and nodded. He had noticed Fang Chang addressing him differently, but didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
He was only an Outer Courtyard martial apprentice, while Fang Chang was already a direct disciple of the Inner Courtyard. Calling him Brother Yuan in front of so many people would obviously be inappropriate.
"He really did it!"
"I've been training for more than half a month, and I can only lift a 160-pound stone lock. He's only trained for three days, and he can already lift 170 pounds. Could he actually be a genius?"
"Master Song couldn't have made a mistake when he examined his bones. Maybe he was just born a little stronger."
The crowd couldn't help looking at Lu Yuan with astonishment.
"Lu Yuan, congratulations!" Chen Pi said with a smile.
"Same to you!" Lu Yuan replied with a grin.
Neither of them had taken first place, but second and third were good enough.
"Damn it... My third place got snatched by that kid!"
Across the way, Chen Yong clenched his fists, his face dark.
He had thought third place was in the bag, and that he'd get a portion of meat every day. He'd never expected a dark horse to come out of nowhere and steal his spot.
"Wu Yu, Chen Pi, Lu Yuan—from tomorrow onward, each of you can have a free portion of meat every day. We'll test you again in ten days. I hope you can hold on to your places."
After giving Fang Chang a meaningful glance, Hong Lei continued smiling at Wu Yu, Chen Pi, and Lu Yuan.
At that, the crowd, who had been feeling rather dejected, immediately brightened.
With an extra portion of meat each day, Wu Yu, Chen Pi, and Lu Yuan would surely make faster progress than the rest. But with ten days to go, the others still had a chance.
If nothing else, they could grit their teeth, eat some meat on their own, and train harder, sweating more to make up the difference.
Even if they couldn't beat Wu Yu in first place or Chen Pi in second, they still had a real chance of surpassing Lu Yuan in third.
"Lu Yuan, next time, I'll take back third place for sure!"
Chen Yong especially had now made Lu Yuan his target, the one he had to surpass in ten days.
Hong Lei said nothing more and turned to enter the Inner Courtyard.
The others dispersed as well, returning to their own training.
"Lu Yuan, I didn't expect that even though your constitution isn't as good as mine, your progress wouldn't be much slower. At this rate, you should be able to get the Five Animals Fist started in two or three months at most," Fang Chang said with a smile as he walked over.
"About that," Lu Yuan said with a smile, neither confirming nor denying it.
Two or three months would be more than enough to get the Five Animals Fist started. He could probably reach minor mastery, or even major mastery or perfection.
"Good. I'll do my best to get the better of Hong Lei in the Inner Courtyard as soon as possible. You hold down the fort in the Outer Courtyard and keep this bunch of fools in line. In six months, all of Song Academy will belong to the two of us!"
Fang Chang patted Lu Yuan's shoulder, then lowered his voice.
Lu Yuan smiled and nodded without saying much.
No matter how he looked at it, he would support Fang Chang as the next head of Song Academy.
After a few more words, Fang Chang turned and went into the Inner Courtyard.
Lu Yuan didn't waste any time and continued practicing the Five Animals Fist.
[Five Animals Fist: Beginner (50/200)]
As expected, when he finished this round of practice, his proficiency had reached 50.
Even if he continued at the same pace, he would need only three more sessions at most to reach minor mastery.
After greeting Chen Pi, Lu Yuan left Song Academy.
Night fell, and the moon vanished behind the windblown clouds.
After Lu Yuan and Little Nannan finished their vegetable pancakes and coarse-grain porridge, he tucked away the things he'd prepared the day before and headed out.
"Be careful, no matter what!"
"Big Brother, Nannan will wait for you to come back!"
Hearing their voices behind him, the resolve in Lu Yuan's eyes deepened. The threat had to be snuffed out as soon as possible.
Before long, he arrived outside a house in Spring Water Alley.
"My lords, together again tonight?"
"Of course. Hurry up and get over here. Your Master Diao is in a raging mood tonight!"
"Heh heh... Brother Diao, I want to try it from behind tonight!"
The bitter wind howled outside, while inside, spring was in full bloom.
"Ah..."
"Hah..."
After a stretch of ragged breathing, the room soon fell quiet.
"Brother Diao, should we take care of that woman, Madam Yang, tonight, or wait a few days until the market's better?"
The shorter, stockier middle-aged man waved the naked woman away, then turned to ask the tall, thin man beside him.
"These days, the market gets worse by the day. No point waiting—we'll take care of her tonight. As for that little girl, keep her for a while. Some rich old man might take a liking to her."
The tall, thin man thought for a moment, then added, "And don't waste the sickly one. Send him to Mother Sun's bun shop."
Once they had finished discussing it, the two men got up, dressed, and headed for the door.
But the moment they opened it, a large cloud of white powder suddenly flew at them.
"Damn your mother! You dare try a sneak attack on your Master Diao?"
The tall, thin man clapped both hands over his eyes and cursed loudly.
"Hero, don't hit us! We're with the Black Tiger Gang!" the short, stocky man shouted, hastily rolling on the ground.
But no one answered them. Only fists, falling like raindrops, pounded down on their bodies.
Thud! Thud! Thud...
"W-wait! I surrender..."
"Hero, Brother Diao has three taels of silver on him. You can have it all..."
Thud! Thud! Thud...
Before you continue