After beating them, Lu Chen said nothing and walked away.
The gang's silver was all stored in an unremarkable blue-brick house deep in Huaijiao Alley. It stood alone, with thick walls and an iron door but no windows. Gang members guarded it day and night.
Four accountants worked inside: the Small Knife Society had sent two, Lu Chen had hired one, and the last was his trusted aide, Miao Lao San.
Though Miao Lao San couldn't read, he had a naturally shrewd mind and was a skilled accountant.
Even so, Lu Chen still checked the accounts himself every night, resting only once he was sure they were correct.
Lu Chen returned from the martial hall and first went to the account room to withdraw a hundred taels of silver. Then he shut himself in his room to draw cards.
He still focused on the Proud Snow Cold Plum martial arts pool.
Before drawing, he made a few ten-pulls from the basic card pool, Entering the Jianghu. He got some inventory slots and two trait card slots.
As for the Red Pill Sect's exclusive martial arts pool, Lu Chen had no plans to draw from it for the time being.
That pool was expensive. Even a single draw cost one tael of silver, yet it still didn't offer anything worthwhile.
The day before yesterday, he had spent nine taels on a ten-pull, but the result had been rather disappointing.
Good grief, he hadn't drawn a single martial arts card. He'd gotten only eight Secret Medicine cards and two Martial Arts Fusion cards.
There were three types of Secret Medicine cards:
[Energy Medicine · Small]: After taking it, dispels most fatigue and boosts the spirit for ten breaths.
[Stamina Medicine · Small]: Restores some strength for a short time. Especially effective for healing external injuries and blood loss.
[Exclusive Secret Medicine · Small]: A secret concoction of the Red Pill Sect, with strange and unpredictable effects. It may unleash hidden potential or alter the body.
Lu Chen had tried the first two kinds of Secret Medicine—the Energy Medicine and the Stamina Medicine—and found them quite effective.
That last Exclusive Secret Medicine sounded downright sinister just from its description.
Lu Chen felt wary and hadn't dared to try it.
He steadied himself and continued pouring silver into the Proud Snow Cold Plum pool.
Ten-pull after ten-pull, he gradually collected attribute points and scattered martial arts experience, until the hundred taels of silver were nearly gone.
At last, a brilliant golden light appeared among the gleams of the card pool.
A golden legend!!
[Plum Blossom Bone-Tempering Technique]
Description: This technique is a secret of the Plum Blossom Sect, one of the three core techniques in the Foundation chapter of the sect's supreme manual, the Proud Snow Cold Plum Canon. It has never been passed on to outsiders; only true disciples of the sect are qualified to learn it.
Requirements:
1. One must have crossed the threshold of External Force and developed an initial flow of qi-force.
2. One must have cultivated Plum Blossom Fist—or another foundational fist art of the same lineage—to the realm of Peak Perfection.
Seeing the gleaming gold martial arts card, Lu Chen's eyes lit up.
But when he looked down at the requirements, half of his excitement immediately ebbed away.
Martial arts had four realms: Rudimentary Proficiency, Minor Achievement, Realm of Great Accomplishment, and Peak Perfection.
Lu Chen's Plum Blossom Quick Fist had only reached Minor Achievement, still far from Peak Perfection.
He had the gold card, but couldn't use it right away.
Just as Lu Chen was regretting that, a sudden thought struck him.
Right, wasn't there a Martial Arts Fusion card? Could he fuse Plum Blossom Quick Fist with this Plum Blossom Bone-Tempering Technique?
He immediately tried it.
But the fusion card didn't react at all. It seemed the idea wouldn't work.
Lu Chen had no choice but to give up on that shortcut. He put away the card and began counting up what he'd gained.
Card draw statistics:
Total draws: 740.
Basic card pool [Entering the Jianghu]: 100 draws.
Martial arts card pool [Proud Snow Cold Plum]: 640 draws.
Aside from attributes, he'd drawn more trait cards than anything else this time.
The white and green ones were mostly useless and took up space, so Lu Chen tossed them without hesitation.
He'd drawn fourteen purple trait cards.
Lu Chen took out the Trait Fusion cards he'd saved up and fused them all at once. He picked the two with the best effects and put them in his slots.
Traits (3/3):
[Ice Soul Bone-Eroding Force · Purple] (Attack Fusion Trait)
Effect: Increases attack speed by 30%. Attacks inflict frostbite, slow the target, and deal continuous ice damage. Can pierce some protective qi-force and inflict additional damage to bones and internal organs.
[Frost-Piercing Mountain-Breaking Golden Body · Purple] (Defense Fusion Trait)
Effect: Greatly reduces damage taken and increases the speed of self-healing. Automatically reflects part of the damage when attacked.
[Plum Bone · Gold] Effect: Increases base defense by 100%. While in cold winds, low temperatures, or icy and snowy conditions, this defense bonus doubles, rising to 200%.
Lu Chen's attributes had improved significantly.
The experience bar for Plum Blossom Quick Fist had also risen to "Minor Achievement 79%."
The qi-force in his dantian had grown much stronger too. Before, it hadn't been enough to fully cover even a fist. Now, when he circulated it, it could protect half his body.
Lu Chen was certain that if he fought the guard who had stood beside Han Qiu again now—
Even without forming a Seal, with his current attributes and traits, he would definitely win!
That afternoon.
The families of the four young masters and misses Lu Chen had beaten down at the martial hall couldn't let it go. They gathered their people and came storming over to demand justice.
These families were all well-known in Wen'an County. To avenge their humiliation, they had joined forces and even enlisted an External Force martial artist.
They had already learned that Lu Chen had only just entered the External Force realm.
Meanwhile, the man they'd hired had broken through years ago and had one foot in the threshold of the first Seal. They said he was about to form his Seal any day now.
Surely dealing with a newly advanced Lu Chen would be a piece of cake.
But when they came to blows, everyone was dumbfounded.
That "almost-one-Seal" expert—
He could barely hold his ground against Lu Chen. In only a few exchanges, Lu Chen knocked him to the ground cleanly and left him in a sorry state.
The heavily organized revenge visit ended with their "powerful reinforcement" being publicly beaten to a pulp.
The four families' representatives lost all face. Amid the crowd's mocking laughter, they helped their injured man away and slunk off.
Two days later.
The local martial arts circles and the martial halls from Wenwu County hoping to relocate here finally settled on the rules.
There would be five bouts. The side to win three first would be the victor.
Four bouts would be between disciples of the two sides. In the final bout, the two hall masters would have to fight in person.
When the people from Wenwu County chose their opponents, they were rather cautious, deliberately picking local Wen'an martial halls that weren't very famous and had only average strength.
Clearly, they were determined to win and didn't want any unexpected complications. They had avoided a tough opponent with deep roots like Plum Blossom Martial Hall.
When Master's Wife heard the news, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled a little. She let out a soft sigh of relief.
The challenge was set to take place on the shore of Yunmiao Lake, in the outskirts of West City.
It was the depths of winter, and the lake had long since frozen over like a mirror. The surrounding mountains were stark and quiet, with a bleak beauty all their own. The open grounds were ideal for the contest.
Once the news spread, plenty of people in the city heard there would be a spectacle. They called their friends and headed out of town.
Before long, quite a crowd had gathered by the lake, with voices murmuring here and there.
Many vendors were quick to catch the scent of an opportunity. They came early with carrying poles and pushcarts, found spots nearby, and set up stalls along the shore.
Some boiled wontons, others cooked noodles, and still others sold lamb offal soup. Steam billowed up, and the aromas carried far.
There were also vendors carrying bundles of straw to sell candied hawthorns, their bright red fruit strung together in tempting clusters.
The martial contest was underway on one side, while business bustled on the other. The place was lively beyond compare.
Lu Chen also came to Yunmiao Lake with Master's Wife and her two daughters.
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