Inner Perimeter

Today, Lin Qing was practicing martial arts in the courtyard.

He gripped a horizontal blade, executing his technique throughout the courtyard.

With a single sweep of the blade, he kicked up the gravel on the ground.

In that very instant, he unleashed the full force of his strength, his blade flashing outward to manifest over a dozen shadows.

Snap! Snap! Snap!

The dozen stones in the air were shattered instantly by the edge of Lin Qing's blade.

The Wave-Breaking Blade Technique, as the name implied, was meant to cleave waves in two.

Its primary characteristic was its swift and violent nature.

Many of the techniques for exerting force were quite similar to the Iron Wire Fist.

Because of this, Lin Qing's recent progress in his blade technique had been quite astonishing.

With a flicker of his mind, the Dao Record displayed his progress automatically.

[Wave-Breaking Blade Technique (Pure Mastery)]
[Experience Points: 5698/10000]

[Iron Wire Fist (Supernatural Mastery)]
[Experience Points: 8580/20000]

"With the blood-imprint bonuses cultivated from these two martial arts, my Skin Refining Realm is nearly perfected; I am likely just one final step away."

Lin Qing pondered inwardly.

Currently, his realm far surpassed his physical blood-energy.

If he wanted to accelerate the accumulation of blood-energy, consuming medicinal powders for the second barrier would be far more effective.

However, medicinal powders for the Tendon Opening Realm were not easy to find.

At the very least, none of the pharmacies within Qingping County sold such concoctions.

Even if they existed, they were sold privately, consumed internally by gangs, martial arts schools, and the great clans.

The prescriptions themselves were not hard to find, however; he had discovered several suitable for tendon opening in books.

But every one of these prescriptions required the tendons of exotic beasts as a medicinal catalyst, with deer tendons being among the most suitable.

There was no news of such things being sold in Qingping County.

The only breakthrough would have to be that Brick Kiln Black Market.

It was no wonder that the black market there was always bustling with people.

Presumably, most of them were in the same predicament as he was.

"Though the black market is somewhat dangerous, I have no choice but to go."

Lin Qing reached a conclusion in his heart.

Most of the martial arts resources in the city were monopolized, leaving very little for ordinary people, and in terms of wealth and manpower, he could not compete with the disciples of those great clans.

During this time at Benevolent World Hall, he had earned several dozen taels, and he had recently tallied his savings.

His total net worth now amounted to nearly two hundred taels.

If one did not consider the path of martial arts, this massive sum would be enough for an ordinary family to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.

When he stepped out, the weather was somewhat cold, with a light breeze carrying falling flurries of snow.

As usual, Lin Qing changed into an inconspicuous gray cotton coat and slightly altered his appearance.

With the silver tucked into his robes, he carefully headed toward the abandoned brick kiln outside the city.

Along the way, he habitually maintained his vigilance.

Yet for some reason, he felt uneasy today, as if eyes were watching him from the shadows.

Several times, he took the opportunity to adjust his footwear or observe the roadside vegetation to suddenly turn back, his gaze sweeping sharply across the path and woods behind him, yet he discovered no suspicious figures.

There was only the rustling of wind through withered leaves and the occasional strange cry of insects and birds in the distance.

Is it an illusion, or has the pressure been too great lately?

Lin Qing frowned, suppressing the strange feeling in his heart, and quickened his pace.

He arrived at the Black Market Blacksmith Shop with practiced ease; ever since he had been robbed that one time, he had returned to the black market several times, and his Kirin Spike had been improved once more.

It had been forged with Black Pattern Steel and featured a retractable spike head.

The time for the forging to be completed was nearly at hand.

The burly man with a burn scar on his face continued to hammer iron in silence. Upon seeing Lin Qing, he merely raised his eyelids and tossed over an object wrapped in coarse cloth from beneath the counter.

"Reforged it for you. Check the quality."

Lin Qing nodded, unwrapping the cloth to reveal a pair of dark, cold-glinting Kirin Spikes.

Forged from refined iron, the handles featured retractable Kirin Spikes that would snap out with a flick of the wrist, the edges ground to an exceptional sharpness.

He gripped them in his hands; they had a solid weight, and the curve fitting his knuckles was just right.

Immediately, Lin Qing tried throwing a few punches into the air, creating a faint whistling sound. Then, with a flick of his wrist, the Kirin Spikes hidden within the brass knuckles shot out violently.

Clearly, the destructive power was beyond doubt.

If he were to suddenly land such a blow while sparring with an opponent, it would likely pierce their throat in one strike.

Even if they were trading blows, this suddenly protruding Kirin Spike could easily take off a few fingers.

"Good craftsmanship."

Lin Qing nodded with satisfaction and readily paid the remaining balance.

He wore the Kirin Spikes directly on his hands, hidden beneath his sleeves.

This would become one of his trump cards.

Designed to catch anyone off guard.

"No need for money this time. What do you call yourself? I've made quite a few of these Kirin Spikes and have been selling them directly."

The scarred man pushed the silver back, gesturing to the Kirin Spikes hanging on the wall.

Lin Qing was stunned; his invention already had imitations?

He still accepted the silver, however, and said in a low voice, "Just call me A-Mu."

"And you?" Lin Qing asked in turn.

"Call me Iron Slave."

The scarred man sighed, a profound look flashing in his eyes.

"Alright, Brother Iron Slave." Lin Qing nodded, not intending to pursue the matter of this man using his invention.

After all, once anything is brought into the world, as long as it is useful, large-scale imitation is inevitable.

Seeing that he wasn't pursuing it, and given Lin Qing's politeness, Iron Slave replied courteously, "In the future, if you come to me for forging, I'll give you a twenty percent discount across the board. To say nothing else, there aren't many blacksmiths in Qingping County who can compare to me."

"Thank you." Lin Qing nodded.

Subsequently, he began searching the Black Market for the medicinal herbs needed to refine Tendon Strengthening Powder.

In addition to a few rare herbs, this included the precious sinew of an exotic beast, the Silver Flower Deer.

He stopped in front of several stalls, whispering and haggling with the shrewd-eyed vendors.

He specifically chose herbs that looked worn or had a poor appearance from being picked.

Relying on his absolute mastery of medicinal properties, he was always able to acquire herbs that looked ordinary but were actually rich in essence at a relatively reasonable price.

After one round, he had spent nearly thirty taels of silver, purchasing a large bundle of herbs.

If all these herbs were refined into Tendon Strengthening Powder, he estimated the profit would at least triple.

However, this powder was exactly what he needed for his current cultivation breakthrough.

So, he had no intention of selling it to anyone for the time being.

Lin Qing carefully scanned the Black Market, but the dried deer sinews he saw were of slightly poor quality and the prices were not cheap either.

A single dried sinew from a Silver Flower Deer cost fifty or sixty taels, and the medicinal potency was only average; Lin Qing was naturally unwilling to be such a sucker.

Two quarters of an hour later, Lin Qing stood before a stall, his eyes showing hesitation.

There were seven or eight dried deer sinews laid out in front of the stall, looking to be of decent quality, but the price was sixty taels each.

The vendor had a bamboo hat covering his face; seeing Lin Qing hesitate, he didn't speak, simply reading a book to himself.

At this moment, a thin man wearing a black cloth mask, clearly looking like a broker, sidled up to him.

"Brother, are you looking to purchase deer sinew?"

The thin man lowered his voice as he spoke.

"Hmm, and what of it? Do you have some?"

A low, hoarse voice sounded, which was quite unpleasant to the ear.

Ever since learning his lesson last time, Lin Qing had taken a herb that could make his throat hoarse for a short time before entering the Black Market.

"I do, brother. Everything you see here on the outskirts of the Black Market is not particularly rare. If you want to find more and better herbs, you need to head to the inner circle."

As he spoke, the thin man pointed toward a path where people were coming and going.

There were actually guards stationed there.

Lin Qing had once tried to explore inside, but he was unable to enter on the grounds that he lacked a token.

He had asked those guards, but they had ignored him entirely.

"Can you take me inside?" Lin Qing asked.

"Of course. I, Ma Xiaoliu, am very familiar with this Black Market."

The thin man nodded, revealing a smile.

"Is there any way to get in without an introduction?" Lin Qing inquired.