Sparring

Leaving White Cloud Martial Hall, Jiang Che headed west along the street.

Abyss-Facing City was divided into the Inner City and the Outer City.

The Inner City was where the children of prominent families lived. Its high walls were tightly guarded, and ordinary folk could not enter or leave at will.

The Outer City was where ordinary people earned their living. It was divided into the East, West, South, and North Districts.

The East District, where White Cloud Martial Hall was located, was mostly filled with escort agencies, martial arts halls, and apothecaries. Public security there was fairly good.

The West District, on the other hand, was where merchants gathered. Rice shops, cloth stores, tea houses, and taverns stood side by side, making it far livelier than other places.

This was Jiang Che's destination today.

As for the South and North Districts, large numbers of gangs gathered there. They were the poorest, filthiest, and most chaotic areas.

Upon reaching the west side of the city, Jiang Che first went to Wonderful Heart Studio and bought brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. Then he went to a general store and added a simple table and chair set, spending half a tael of silver in total.

He felt around in his pocket. There was almost nothing left.

"I just hope I can earn it back..."

He sighed.

Half a tael of silver was already no small sum for ordinary people.

But compared with the medicinal supplements that cost several taels or even more than ten taels at a time, it was still a drop in the ocean.

Still, if he wanted to make money, he had to put up some capital first.

Carrying the writing supplies, table, and chairs, Jiang Che arrived at West Market Street.

This was the busiest street in the West District.

The street buzzed with voices and bustle.

All kinds of small stalls lined both sides of the road.

There were vendors selling straw sandals, fortune tellers, sellers of candied hawthorns, cloth merchants, and even a man performing with a monkey.

Several women stood before a cloth stall, tugging at bolts of fabric as they haggled.

A group of children ran past laughing, cotton candy held high in their hands.

Compared with the bleak, filthy South District, this place was practically another world.

Finding an open space at a street corner, Jiang Che set up his table, laid out his brushes and ink, then wrote several neat characters and placed them on the table to attract business.

Once everything was ready, he cleared his throat and called out loudly.

"Letter-writing service! Five coins per page! Fair prices, honest dealings for young and old alike!"

He had already asked around. Five coins per page was the market rate, not expensive at all.

Yet after shouting for half the day, not a single person came to ask.

"Everything is difficult at the start..."

Jiang Che muttered to himself with a bitter smile.

Suddenly, an officer appeared by the notice board at the end of the street.

He first posted a notice, then beat a gong and shouted:

"This person disappeared last night! Anyone who provides clues will be rewarded one tael of silver!"

The crowd immediately gathered around.

Thinking of how his own parents had also disappeared, Jiang Che could not help squeezing into the crowd to gather some information.

"Another one disappeared? More than a dozen notices have been posted this month already!"

"Those without money cannot even afford to put up notices. The actual number of missing people is probably even higher..."

"Could they have been carried off by a Black Beast?"

"Those who disappeared outside the city are one thing, but what about those who vanished inside the city? Can Black Beasts climb over city walls?"

Amid the discussion, a tall, thin man dressed like a scholar said mysteriously:

"I heard from my brother-in-law, who works at the Yamen, that recently, there have been... unclean things in the city!"

Seeing everyone prick up their ears, he deliberately paused.

"Tell us already!"

"What unclean things?"

The scholar lowered his voice.

"That thing can turn into someone familiar to you, then speak with you. If you fall for it... your soul will be hooked away!"

"What nonsense!"

"Who are you trying to fool?"

Seeing that no one believed him, the scholar's face turned red. "Believe it or not!"

With a flick of his sleeve, he pushed out of the crowd.

Jiang Che returned to his stall, but his heart remained unsettled.

"One disappearance after another really is unusual... even if it sounds a little absurd."

He recalled the strange phenomenon when his master practiced boxing. The force of his punches surged, faintly stirring the air.

Perhaps this world truly possessed extraordinary power.

"What if it's true..."

His heart tightened, and his fingers clenched until they turned white.

If those "unclean" things really were behind it, then his parents... might never be found again!

"Forget it, don't think about it!"

Jiang Che viciously shook his head, as though trying to fling away his distracting thoughts.

There was no use thinking too much right now. Better to focus on what was in front of him first.

After quite some time, Jiang Che finally received his first customer.

The man was tall and fat, wearing a pointed felt hat. He appeared to be a merchant from out of town.

He looked Jiang Che over from head to toe. Seeing that the youth was young and not dressed like a scholar, he hesitated.

"Young brother, can you really write letters?"

Jiang Che did not explain. He simply picked up his brush and wrote several large characters that danced like dragons and flew like phoenixes.

Though the merchant knew few characters, he could still tell good from bad. His eyes immediately lit up.

"Not bad, not bad! Hurry and write it for me!"

The merchant was a chatterbox. He went from his old mother's health to his son's studies, not even leaving out trivial matters involving the chickens and ducks at home.

Jiang Che listened as he wrote, and in the end filled three entire pages of letter paper.

"That will be fifteen coins."

The merchant took the letter paper. Seeing the handwriting was neat and beautiful, without a single correction, he nodded in satisfaction and took out copper coins from his clothes to hand over.

Jiang Che weighed the copper coins in his hand, feeling rather pleased.

He had finally opened for business.

Afterward, two more customers came. At first, they too were skeptical, but after Jiang Che showed them his handwriting, they no longer hesitated.

One wrote a ten-coin letter, while the other wrote a five-coin one. Including the merchant's fifteen coins, he earned thirty coins in total that day.

"After deducting the wear on my brushes, ink, and paper, I made around twenty-five coins..."

Jiang Che calculated.

"At this rate, I can earn back my investment in twenty days. That's not bad."

Seeing that it was getting late, he suddenly recalled the scholar's words about "unclean" things. He hurriedly packed up his stall and rushed home.

Early the next morning, Jiang Che arrived at the martial arts hall.

The hall master, Luo Kun, was once again practicing boxing in the courtyard.

This time, Jiang Che had learned his lesson and quietly stepped back several paces.

He found a position where he could clearly see the moves without being affected by the force of the punches.

"I wonder if I can see more intricacies while in the Flow State?"

The thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

Jiang Che had always been a man of action. He immediately focused all his attention on observing Luo Kun's movements.

In an instant, the surroundings fell silent, and even the sound of the wind became distant.

When he looked up, Luo Kun's figure seemed to have enlarged several times over, while his movements became as clear as if played in slow motion.

Compared with yesterday, he could now capture many more subtle changes in movement.

The difficult points in the forms that had once troubled him now suddenly became clear.

"It really works!"

Jiang Che was overjoyed.

Not long after, Luo Kun finished his form and, as usual, sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion with his eyes closed.

Jiang Che also let his attention scatter, withdrawing from the Flow State so as not to overtax his mind.

After stepping forward and cupping his fists in greeting, Jiang Che began to warm up.

Once his muscles and bones had loosened up, he concentrated again, entered the Flow State, and began practicing White Cloud Fist.

Luo Kun's every move replayed in his mind as Jiang Che continuously adjusted his own movements.

His fist forms grew smoother and smoother, and the transitions between moves became increasingly natural. He even faintly began to possess an air of completion.

Only after practicing until he was exhausted did Jiang Che stop to rest.

By then, the other apprentices had arrived one after another.

Luo Kun opened his eyes, his sharp gaze slowly sweeping over everyone. Though he was not angry, he inspired awe.

The disciples all lowered their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.

"Today, you will practice in pairs!"

Luo Kun shouted loudly, hidden force within his voice making everyone's eardrums tremble.

As usual, everyone grouped themselves according to strength.

Zhang Xiong and Gong Yulei were the strongest, so they formed a pair.

Jiang Che was still paired with Zhao Xisheng.

Though his boxing was proficient, his build was thin and weak.

Zhao Xisheng had strength, but his moves were unfamiliar.

The two had always been evenly matched.

After exchanging fist-cupping salutes, they began to spar.

"Hm?"

After only two moves, Zhao Xisheng noticed something strange.

Though Jiang Che's boxing had always been standard, it usually lacked a bit of force, and Zhao Xisheng could manage with brute strength alone.

But today, Jiang Che's fists and kicks carried an indescribable momentum, forcing him into a flustered scramble.

"Ah!"

With one careless mistake, Zhao Xisheng took a punch to the shoulder, staggered, and fell to the ground.

"Again!"

But after only a few more moves, he took another hit to the ribs, doubling over in pain with a scream.

"Ow! No more, no more! Did you take the wrong medicine or something? How did you suddenly become so strong?"

"Jiang Che, let me have a go at you!"

A deep, muffled voice suddenly cut in.

A heavily bearded Wang Dayong strode over.

He was actually around the same age as them, only he looked older than his years.

Born with immense strength, his overall ability at the martial arts hall was second only to Zhang Xiong and Gong Yulei.

Yet he usually loved using sparring as an excuse to bully his fellow disciples.

For that reason, the other apprentices in the courtyard did not like him much.

Jiang Che frowned, but he did not back down.

He assumed his stance.

"Please."

Perfect. He also wanted to test his current abilities.