Martial Arts Hall

Daily Settlement: 800 punches thrown, three hours of stance training completed. Body aching and numb. Rating: D-minus.

Obtained: One wisp of blood energy. Can enhance physique, increase personal strength, and build the foundation for the martial path.

Black Stone Martial Hall, Martial Arts Arena.

A young man stood in the middle of the sand pit, swaying as if about to collapse. He suddenly snapped his eyes open, gasping for air.

Zhou Yun looked at his hands as memories flooded his mind like a tide, making his temples ache.

What followed was a wave of soreness throughout his entire body and a lingering numbness slowly fading from his chest.

"Am I... a transmigrator?"

In an instant, Zhou Yun realized the truth, looking at the surroundings that were both strange and familiar.

"The Zhou family, fishermen from near Black Stone County. The only one with a First Form Bone, sent to Black Stone Martial Hall after draining the family's entire savings, and even owing a debt of three silver taels to the Sea Whale Gang?"

"And because he worked too hard, he died of sudden cardiac arrest in the middle of the night, providing the opportunity for my transmigration."

Zhou Yun gave a bitter smile; his predecessor had died exactly the same way he had in his past life—from overwork.

It was just that in this chaotic world, where war raged and demons ran rampant, those car and mortgage loans had been replaced by taxes and corvée labor that were even more crushing.

His family had been fishermen for three generations, and they had to hand over forty percent of their catch in taxes every year. Recently, for some reason, the Emperor of Great Jing had increased the tax by another twenty percent.

The vast majority of the common people were on the brink of starvation, forced to forage for roots and tree bark in the wilderness every day just to survive until the next sunrise.

Only by practicing martial arts could one be exempted from a portion of these taxes and labor.

Furthermore, with the status of a martial artist, one could hold an official post or become a guest retainer for a wealthy family, earning a monthly salary.

Unfortunately, the martial path required both talent and wealth; one could not succeed without either.

In the Zhou family of over a dozen people, he was the only one with the lowest-tier First Form Bone, possessing a glimmer of hope to become a Bright Force martial artist. That was why the whole family had bet their lives on this single chance.

"If I followed the original owner's talent, it would likely take two or three years just to reach the threshold of Bright Force, but I seem to have a cheat."

Zhou Yun recalled the voice in his head—a Daily Settlement System that granted rewards based on his daily performance rating, categorized into Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow, with further subdivisions of high, medium, and low.

That wisp of blood energy was currently hovering in his dantian, slowly filling his limbs and stretching his stiff bones, bringing waves of warmth.

"Zhou Yun, why are you still in the arena? Hurry up and wash my clothes, or I'll tell my big brother to go to your house and collect the debt tomorrow!"

Before Zhou Yun could think further, a cold voice interrupted him.

A young man dressed in fine silk snorted, scolding him impatiently:

"With your First Form Bone, your blood energy will be too thin to even attempt the Bright Force breakthrough. You're just wasting time on the martial path. Having to come from the Inner Courtyard to this place just to find you is a complete waste of my effort."

As he spoke, he fanned the air with disgust, as if the very air of the Outer Courtyard was an eyesore.

Zhou Yun regained his composure and remembered who stood before him: Lu Meng, the younger brother of the Sea Whale Gang leader.

In the martial hall, disciples with a Three-Form Bone or higher could enter the Inner Courtyard, becoming one-in-a-hundred elites who officially enjoyed a twenty-percent tax exemption.

Lu Meng possessed a Three-Form Bone and was only one step away from the Bright Force breakthrough; he was one of the few geniuses sent to Black Stone Martial Hall by the Sea Whale Gang.

Usually, because the Zhou family owed the Sea Whale Gang money, the original owner would wash Lu Meng's clothes in exchange for extensions on the debt.

Indeed, the Zhou family could no longer afford the payments, and the interest was beginning to snowball.

"Senior Brother Lu, please wait a moment. I'll be right there."

Zhou Yun did not lash out; instead, he offered a fawning smile and bowed.

"Remember to be quick. I need those clothes to meet Miss Shen the day after tomorrow. They're worth at least one guan of copper coins; you must not make any mistakes."

After saying this, Lu Meng left the Outer Courtyard without looking back, muttering as he walked:

"If you had just married your cousin off to my brother as a concubine, the interest on your debt would have been waived. How foolish..."

Zhou Yun kept smiling until Lu Meng's figure vanished from sight, at which point his upturned lips slowly leveled out.

Cousin Zhou Ningyue paid one silver tael for my martial arts tuition; I must remember this kindness.

Zhou Yun recalled a few memories, but as for Lu Meng's aggression? It had already been cast to the back of his mind.

He walked to the laundry room, where many Outer Courtyard disciples were already washing clothes—some their own, others belonging to Inner Courtyard disciples like Lu Meng.

Disciples like Zhou Yun, with only a First Form Bone, were technically Outer Courtyard members, but very few ever reached the Bright Force level. Many were forced into debt to the Inner Courtyard disciples or were simply trying to curry favor.

The laundry room was not just a place to wash clothes; it was a small hub for gossip.

"Brother Yun! Over here!"

A young lad holding a wooden basin waved his hand.

Zhang Hu, a neighbor from home and a childhood friend. He was also sent by the Zhang family with a First Form Bone, though he's even slightly less talented than the original owner.

He also owes the Zhang family a debt of one silver tael? The original owner really was drowning in debt.

As memories surfaced in Zhou Yun's mind, he felt more grounded and responded naturally: "What is it, Hu-zi? Have you made progress in your martial arts?"

"It's not that, Brother Yun. I've found a way."

Zhang Hu pulled Zhou Yun aside, whispering, "A senior brother in the Inner Courtyard has some extra Blood Coagulation Pills. He said if five people pool together one guan of copper coins each—five guan total—one of us is guaranteed to get a Blood Coagulation Pill!"

"This is a Blood Coagulation Pill we're talking about; a single one can increase the chances of breaking through the barrier by twenty percent, and even during daily martial arts practice, it can significantly boost one's vitality."

Zhou Yun frowned, but he still listened as his childhood friend continued.

"Brother Yun, a twenty percent probability for five people—even if our luck is terrible, let's agree right now: we each take one, absolutely no more, and we stop once we have our share!"

Zhang Hu was incredibly excited, as if he could already see a clear path to martial success ahead: "At most five strings of cash; such a good opportunity, if we miss it, we'll never see it again!"

Zhou Yun remained silent, simply picking up Lu Meng's clothes from the side and beginning to wash them.

"Brother Yun, say something! This job is definitely not a losing deal. Even if we don't use it ourselves, we could sell it outside for at least one tael of silver!"

Zhang Hu suppressed his excitement, his voice trembling: "We both come from poor backgrounds; opportunities to turn our lives around are rare. If we rely solely on bitter training, when will we ever be able to break through to Bright Force?"

Zhou Yun still didn't speak; he picked up the rice paste from the side, added clear water to it, smeared it onto the clothes, and placed them in a wooden bucket to soak.

"Zhou Yun! Do you intend to wash clothes for that Lu Meng for the rest of your life?!"

Zhang Hu was agitated, and the wooden basin in his hands clattered to the ground, causing many Outer Courtyard disciples to look over.

He gritted his teeth, let out a muffled breath, moved the wooden basin to the other side, and as if venting his anger on the clothes, began to beat them fiercely with a wooden mallet.

After a long while, once everyone in the laundry room had left, Zhou Yun spoke slowly.

"Huzi, I understand how you feel. If it were me from a few days ago, I might have joined you in this deal."

Yes, if Zhou Yun weren't a transmigrator and didn't have a cheat, he might truly have taken the risk, spending his entire savings to gamble on a chance.

"But think carefully: could such a good thing really fall to the likes of us?"

Zhou Yun's words practically exposed the trap. Blood Coagulation Pills were incredibly precious; even Bright Force martial artists would never have enough, so how could they possibly bestow them upon Outer Courtyard disciples like them?

He didn't believe the senior brothers in the Inner Courtyard were saints; it was highly likely just a gimmick to squeeze the last bit of value out of these Outer Courtyard disciples.

"But, that's a connection through the Inner Courtyard senior brothers..."

Zhang Hu was stunned, seemingly sensing something, yet he remained unwilling to give up.

"Besides, you practice martial arts all day; where would you even get a string of spare cash?"

Zhou Yun didn't say much more, patting him on the shoulder: "Think thrice before you act."

Having said that, he turned and left toward the Outer Courtyard disciples' dormitory.

Zhang Hu stared at the wooden basin in Zhou Yun's hands, lost in thought.