Chen Zhuo frowned and turned around. The person approaching was a handsome, fair-skinned young man. Chen Zhuo immediately lost interest.
"Boring. Go play in the mud."
With that, he left the drill ground without looking back.
Zhou Sheng stood there, stunned, and took a long moment to recover.
Play in the mud?
Me?
After he came to his senses, a nameless fury surged from the depths of Zhou Sheng's heart and shot straight to his head.
As he watched Chen Zhuo's retreating figure, his anger made his already fair face grow even paler.
"Want the Red Mud Paste or not? If you don't, go play in the mud."
Hearing a voice suddenly sound behind him, Zhou Sheng spun around and glared furiously at the person behind him.
But as soon as he saw who had spoken, a slap landed squarely on his face, leaving his head spinning.
His legs went weak, and he dropped onto his backside.
"You think you're good enough?"
Sun Fei glanced coldly at Zhou Sheng on the ground, then looked up and saw that Chen Zhuo had already gone far away.
He sighed deeply to himself. Without another glance at Zhou Sheng, he turned and left.
A fight had broken out?
The White-Uniform Runners nearby all turned their attention toward them.
But when they saw that one side was Sun Fei and the other was Zhou Sheng, they quickly looked away again.
Both were men they couldn't afford to offend.
"Sun Fei... Chen Zhuo..."
Zhou Sheng dug his slender, fair fingers hard into his palm. Drops of blood seeped through the gaps before he even noticed, gradually staining the dirt beneath him red.
"Senior Brother was right. Even if Huang Yuan'er can't find a chance to make a move against me for now, once the Autumn Hunt begins, I'll be in a precarious position."
Time was short. Chen Zhuo had no time to indulge a child like Zhou Sheng in some sort of arena match.
He took the Red Mud Paste back to the small courtyard and began clearing out the empty room at the very back.
Before long, he had thrown out all the unnecessary odds and ends, leaving only a bed and a broken cabinet.
The room was plain, but still far better than the eight-person bunkhouse where he had lived before.
Chen Zhuo drank the Blood-Strengthening Soup. The Blood Vitality Pill he'd taken that morning hadn't been entirely used up either, and he was exceptionally energetic.
After tidying the room, he didn't rest. He went straight out into the courtyard and planted himself firmly in his stance.
The advantages of working in the kitchen immediately became clear.
Aside from the busy stretches before mealtimes, he could practice martial arts to his heart's content without interruption.
The four major stages of Body Refining were Skin-Grinding, Tendon-Tempering, Bone-Entering, and Blood-Transmutation.
After Tendon-Tempering came Bone-Entering.
Once a fighter reached Bone-Entering, his tendons and bones rang in unison. Only then could his martial arts truly be said to have entered the hall, and he would have made a modest achievement in the Body Refining realm.
Old Zhao, the previous head of the Black-Uniform Squad, had been a Bone-Entering martial artist.
Chen Zhuo had never seen Huang Yuan'er truly fight, so he didn't know his actual realm.
But Huang Yuan'er had taught him martial arts for over a month, so he had some idea of his abilities.
"He should be stronger than Old Zhao. There's a good chance he's already reached Blood-Transmutation."
As Chen Zhuo settled into his stance, he silently weighed things over.
If he wanted to make sure that morning's scene never happened again, he had to become stronger than Huang Yuan'er—stronger beyond imagination.
[Realm: Body Refining (Tendon-Tempering)] [Training Method: Iron Cloth Shirt: 88/150 (Proficient)] [Fighting Style: Zhengyang Blade Technique (Incomplete): 1/50 (Perfect)] [Technique: Dissection Technique: 0/20 (Uninitiated)]
Chen Zhuo glanced at the panel, rubbed Red Mud Paste onto both hands, cast aside distracting thoughts, steadied his breathing, and began practicing the Iron Cloth Shirt.
Black veins bulged across his body, each one twisting and coiling like a black dragon.
As he slapped himself, the dark veins vibrated with faint rumbling sounds and gradually took on a glossy sheen.
It was as if he were forging iron, hammering his body into something ever stronger.
[Iron Cloth Shirt +1]
He soon completed one full set of the Iron Cloth Shirt.
To Chen Zhuo's delight, he had used nearly half as much energy as before.
At last, the benefits of improving his realm were becoming clear.
"I've got nearly two more hours to practice."
Chen Zhuo looked up at the sun's path and estimated the time. He decided to strike while the iron was hot.
He had time, and he wasn't worried about getting tired. How could he not practice?
As the air grew stuffy and hot, Chen Zhuo began practicing again in the small courtyard beside the kitchen.
Again and again.
His veins vibrated, producing a series of low, buzzing sounds.
For a while, the noise even drowned out the cicadas in the trees.
After leaving the drill ground, Zhou Sheng didn't return to the Black-Uniform Squad. Instead, he left the Yamen.
In the northern part of Baiyun County's inner city stood a vast estate of roughly three hundred mu.
Long River Gang members, broad-shouldered and fierce-looking, came and went.
With a dark expression, Zhou Sheng hurried over, ignored the greetings of those around him, and walked straight into Huang Mansion.
He crossed the front courtyard and passed through the Wind and Rain Corridor. Then, catching the faint scent of powder drifting from the rear courtyard, he felt the gloom on his face ease slightly.
"Smack."
"Smack."
"Smack."
The sound of a whip reached his ears. As if reminded of something, a strange blush appeared on his face, and his breathing grew heavier without him realizing it.
He hurried into the rear courtyard and looked closely. The scene was exactly what he'd expected, and ripples stirred in his heart.
A thin whip danced before his eyes. The one being whipped was none other than the newly appointed head of the Black-Uniform Squad, Huang Yuan'er.
The one holding the whip was Xiao Liu, the kitchen Dunzi who had tried and failed to frame Chen Zhuo that morning.
"Smack."
The whip came down, leaving a thin streak of blood across Huang Yuan'er's back.
Yet it was as if he'd lost all feeling. He didn't even furrow his brow, and instead let out a series of strange sounds.
"Put some muscle into it."
Even as Huang Yuan'er took the whipping, he still thought the force was too weak.
Xiao Liu panted and pleaded, "Head Huang—no, Young Master Huang, I really can't go on. Please, let me live."
Xiao Liu's face was pale, and his forehead was covered in sweat. He didn't seem to be bluffing.
"That's enough."
Huang Yuan'er suddenly waved his hand, his face betraying no emotion.
At his words, Xiao Liu's body slackened, and he collapsed to the ground.
"Rest well."
"Thank you for sparing my life, Young Master Huang. Thank you, Young Master Huang..."
Huang Yuan'er didn't look at Xiao Liu. He simply beckoned to the side.
Several burly servants came over, grabbed Xiao Liu as he kowtowed, and tossed him straight into the nearby pond.
Xiao Liu cried out in terror. "No! Don't..."
But in an instant, the fish in the pond devoured him completely, leaving not even scraps of bone behind.
"Useless."
Only after dismissing him with a casual scolding did Huang Yuan'er notice Zhou Sheng's arrival. He asked blandly, "What brings you here all of a sudden?"
"I need your help."
"Oh? What is it? Let's hear it."
Zhou Sheng didn't beat around the bush with Huang Yuan'er, but he didn't immediately answer his question either.
Instead, he studied the fine whip marks on Huang Yuan'er's body and smiled knowingly. He stepped forward, bent down, and picked up the whip from the ground.
At the sight of this, Huang Yuan'er smiled with satisfaction.
"That's more like it..."
"Smack."
The whip cracked again, and Huang Yuan'er moaned with pleasure.
"Mmm... yes, yes, that's just the right force."
As the whip fell, a faint flush gradually appeared on Zhou Sheng's face.
In a gentle voice, he asked, his breath sweet as orchids:
"How can I quickly improve my martial arts cultivation?"
Huang Yuan'er shut his eyes tightly, savoring the perverse pleasure in his heart.
But he seemed to know in advance what Zhou Sheng wanted, and simply beckoned. A servant beside him immediately brought over a basin of crimson liquid.
"Ah... if you want to break through quickly, of course..."
"Blood-Transmutation."
Before you continue