Several days passed, and it was time for the White Horse Gang to collect its protection money again.
Lord Leopard led his men onto Yongning Street, swaggering and showing off their might.
Most of the neighbors swallowed their anger and paid up.
Lin Qing was no exception. After politely handing over the money and offering a few flattering words, he sent Chen Bao on his way.
When it was the turn of Old Fan's family, Old Fan had finally managed to scrape together the three hundred coins.
"Lord Leopard, I've got this month's protection money ready. Please take a look." Old Fan smiled obsequiously.
"Mm." Chen Bao nodded languidly and pocketed the three hundred coins.
Then he slapped Old Fan across the face.
"Smack!"
The blow sent Old Fan sprawling, his vision swimming with stars.
"Lord Leopard, what..."
Old Fan clutched his cheek. He dared not speak his anger, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
"You paid for this month. What about last month?"
"Six hundred coins, principal and interest."
Chen Bao's voice was cold.
Lin Qing's heart tightened.
He heard something unusual in Chen Bao's words.
Could Old Fan's family have offended Chen Bao?
Just then, the other neighbors watching could only whisper among themselves.
"Ah, Old Fan's son really doesn't know how to behave."
"Exactly. If Fan Kui hadn't offended Lord Leopard's son, Old Fan's family wouldn't be getting picked on at every turn."
"Fan Kui's too honest for his own good. He saved that young woman's virtue, but now his whole family... sigh!"
"Shh, keep your voices down. Lord Leopard's son is still sitting in jail."
Old Fan's heart sank at Lord Leopard's words.
He gritted his teeth. "Lord Leopard, tell me what it'll take for you to leave us alone."
Chen Bao only sneered, his gaze settling on the house behind Old Fan.
"I can leave you alone. This house of yours is quite nice."
"How about lending it to my brothers for a few days?"
"Never! Keep dreaming!"
A wooden basin flew out of the house.
Chen Bao's face darkened, and he swiftly dodged to the side.
Old Fan's wife and Fan Kui came charging out, clubs in hand.
"I'll fight you bastards to the death!"
Fan Kui roared.
He swung his club at Chen Bao's head.
"Fuck your mother!"
Thud!
Lord Leopard simply kicked straight out, sending Fan Kui flying several meters. Fan Kui writhed on the ground in pain.
Lin Qing's heart tightened.
Judging by the explosive force of that kick alone, Chen Bao was definitely a Tendon Opening martial artist. No wonder he dared to openly bully and extort people.
"Brothers, beat them half to death!"
Chen Bao laughed in fury, and his gang members swarmed forward.
They rained punches and kicks on Old Fan and his family.
Cries, pleas, and curses rang out all at once.
In the end, they dragged Old Fan's family of three out of the run-down carpenter's shop, their faces bruised and swollen, their bodies trembling. They tossed their few battered belongings into the street.
"You ungrateful wretches! If you can't pay next month, get the hell off Yongning Street and sleep in the street!"
Chen Bao spat and swept his icy gaze over the watching neighbors. More than a few glared back at him.
But the moment they met his vicious stare, they lowered their heads without thinking.
Chen Bao's lips curled into a mocking sneer. He seemed quite pleased by the sight of no one daring to stand up to him.
"If you won't submit, we'll beat you until you do. You really think the White Horse Gang runs a charity?" Chen Bao sneered, then continued collecting protection money.
The neighbors were all furious, but none dared speak up.
Could they count on the authorities to intervene?
That would be even more useless.
The White Horse Gang would simply put forward a scapegoat, who would be out of jail after a few days.
And if anyone reported them, they would only be beaten even more savagely.
Standing outside Benevolent World Hall, Lin Qing watched Old Fan's family huddled miserably in the corner. His fists clenched inside his sleeves.
It wasn't that he lacked compassion. He had even given them rice the last time.
But he knew full well that the protection money was a rule the White Horse Gang had established.
If he stepped in now, he wouldn't help Old Fan's family. He would only put himself and Benevolent World Hall in danger.
Once he set a precedent, other neighbors who couldn't pay would count on him too. How would he deal with that?
In this world, where the strong preyed on the weak,
even the little kindness one could afford had to be built on the foundation of self-preservation.
Lin Qing could only turn away in silence and return to the shop.
He shut the door, sealing off the sobs from the street corner.
Lin Wan had seen it all too. She could only sigh.
She said nothing more.
Benevolent World Hall's business had been good lately, but if they weren't careful and offended the wrong people,
disaster could strike in an instant.
The world was a furnace,
and all living things were charcoal.
Several days passed.
Iron Thread Fist Martial Hall welcomed another batch of new faces.
At the same time, among the seven or eight disciples who had joined around the same time as Lin Qing, three or four were leaving the martial hall with simple bundles in hand.
Their faces were downcast.
Lin Qing met one of them at the entrance, a sturdy, honest-looking young man who had joined more than ten days before him.
"Brother Da Niu, what's going on?" Lin Qing asked in surprise.
Da Niu looked up, his face full of disappointment and resentment. His eyes were a little red. "Brother Lin Qing, I'm leaving. It's been nearly three months, and I still can't sense my qi and blood. I haven't even found the threshold to Skin Refining."
"My family nearly emptied its savings to send me here. We really can't afford next month's tuition."
"I have to find work to help support them..."
His voice was low, carrying the helplessness of a shattered dream.
The other disciples who were leaving were in much the same situation.
The path of martial arts was a brutal process of elimination. Constitution, comprehension, resources, and perseverance were all indispensable.
Most people were stopped before they ever got to the starting line.
Lin Qing watched their desolate figures disappear into the distance and sighed inwardly.
He had made it this far through his own hard work and the help of the Heavenly Dao Record.
The financial support from Benevolent World Hall's improved business had also been crucial.
Otherwise, he might have been forced to give up this path just like Da Niu.
He subconsciously checked his progress:
[Iron Wire Fist (Well-Versed)]
[Experience: 3365/5000]
He was already close to breaking through to the next realm.
That made him treasure the opportunity before him all the more. He didn't dare slack off for even a moment.
After preparing a month's supply of Blood Nourishing Powder,
he devoted even more time to training.
Every day, without fail, he practiced his stance, the Twelve Bridge Hands, and methods for tempering his skin.
But that day, news spread through the martial hall, causing quite a stir.
A disciple named Wang Cheng, who had joined at around the same time as Lin Qing, had successfully broken through and entered the Skin Refining Realm.
Lin Qing was a little surprised. Wang Cheng's constitution was only slightly better than his own, ranking somewhere above average.
But he was famous throughout the martial hall for his astonishing perseverance, earning the nickname Tough Wang Cheng.
He was always the first to arrive at the martial hall to train.
And when he left, he was always the last to go.
But he was a man of few words, spending nearly all his time practicing.
While others rested, he held his stance. While others chatted, he practiced his fist. It was as if he didn't know what fatigue was.
Now he had broken through first, becoming the first among the new disciples to cross the threshold of martial arts.
Lin Qing looked at the dark-skinned young man still training hard on the practice ground and sighed inwardly.
What a grind...
He marveled to himself, feeling an invisible pressure.
On the path of martial arts, there was no such thing as the hardest worker. There was only someone who worked harder.
He took a deep breath and pushed aside his distracting thoughts.
Then he devoted himself even more intently to his own training.
Over the following days, Lin Qing trained diligently, never letting up.
With the help of Blood Nourishing Powder, he could clearly feel his qi and blood growing fuller by the day.
His Iron Wire Fist techniques also grew increasingly polished.
One evening, most of the martial hall's disciples had already left.
Lin Qing was still in a corner of the practice ground, repeatedly drilling Fierce Tiger Climbs Mountain and Hungry Eagle Pounces on Prey, two of the Twelve Bridge Hands.
His feet drove into the ground as power surged from his waist and hips. His arms stretched out like iron bridges, whistling through the air as the iron rings clattered.
Under the friction of the rings, the skin on Lin Qing's arms grew visibly red.
A current of heat surged through his body. His churning qi and blood seemed to break through an invisible barrier and flow into his skin.
A sense of toughness rose from the skin of his arms.
Lin Qing let out a low shout without thinking. His right fist shot out like a cannonball, striking the Iron-Clad Wooden Post used for testing strength.
"Thud!"
A far deeper, heavier boom rang out than before.
The hard wooden post shuddered slightly, and the iron sheathing bore a clear, indented fist mark.
[Iron Wire Fist (Mastery)]
[Experience: 1/10000]
The Skin Refining Realm—he had made it!
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