Longer Lifespan

"Congratulations, Junior Brother Xu Yang. You've surprised everyone once again." Sun Tao came over with a smile.

Just when everyone thought Xu Yang would be left far behind by Lu Ren, he had actually succeeded in gathering qi. Who knew how many people in the Inner Courtyard had cried out that he'd gotten lucky.

"Greetings, Senior Brother Sun Tao!" Xu Yang cupped his hands.

Sun Tao beamed. "Now that you've made it, why wait to join the Inner Courtyard? Junior Brother Xu Yang, come with me to see Master."

Xu Yang nodded and followed Sun Tao into the Inner Courtyard.

"I told you he couldn't compare to Senior Brother Lu Ren. When Senior Brother Lu Ren gathered qi, so many senior brothers from the Inner Courtyard came to see him. But when Xu Yang broke through, only Senior Brother Sun Tao showed up. That proves none of the other senior brothers have any faith in him."

Only after Xu Yang's figure had disappeared completely did Luo Dehu dare speak again.

"What a bootlicker. Looks like Senior Brother Xu Yang went too easy on him with that slap."

Qiu Wenjie snorted and quickly turned to leave Wei Yuan Hall.

He had to tell his father that Xu Yang had gathered qi.

"He actually succeeded in gathering qi!"

Qian Jiaxing stood beside Luo Dehu, regret churning in his heart.

If he hadn't picked a side so completely, he could have stayed on good terms with both Xu Yang and Lu Ren. But now, Xu Yang wouldn't even speak to him.

To be honest, he'd actually liked Xu Yang better.

Xu Yang had treated him like a friend, while Lu Ren treated him like a lackey. They were worlds apart.

A lackey who was no longer useful could be kicked aside at any moment, but a friend would always stand by your side.

"Your gathering qi so quickly truly exceeded my expectations. But your Bone Root is average. If you want to go further, you'll have to work hard to earn money."

Lin Cheng sat in his chair, studying Xu Yang with a hint of surprise.

"This disciple understands!" Xu Yang cupped his hands.

"The Huang Family has already ended its agreement with you. If you have nowhere else to go, you can ask your Senior Brother Sun Tao for help. If someone tries to recruit you and you want to learn more about them, you can ask him, too.

"Your foundations are shallow. Think everything through before you act..."

This time, Lin Cheng finally seemed a little like a master, offering Xu Yang plenty of advice.

But when it came to joining a faction, he still had to wait and see what the Qiu Family decided.

If the Qiu Family hired him as an attendant, he would naturally serve them. He would have to wait for them to make their choice.

If the Qiu Family couldn't afford to hire him, then he would consider other factions.

"Junior Brother Xu, come over. I'll introduce you to the senior brothers of the Inner Courtyard."

Xu Yang had barely left Lin Cheng when Sun Tao led him into a pavilion and began introducing him to the Inner Courtyard disciples gathered there.

By the time they'd made the rounds, Xu Yang had met nearly all of them—about eleven or twelve people.

But Sun Tao said these weren't all the disciples in the Inner Courtyard. Many couldn't come to Wei Yuan Hall every day because of their duties, while some had already left Qingyuan County.

The disciples weren't exactly cold toward Xu Yang, but neither were they warm. They were far less welcoming than they'd been when Lu Ren broke through.

"Junior Brother, if you're looking for work, you can come to me anytime," Sun Tao reminded him.

Xu Yang thanked him, found a place to sit, and quietly felt the changes in his body.

Gathering qi in a single leap was like the difference between clouds and mud. His body had changed in all sorts of ways.

[Remaining Lifespan: 60]

Even the lifespan shown on his Status Panel had changed from "57" to "60," giving him three extra years in one go.

"Greetings, Uncle and Fifth Master!"

The first people Xu Yang saw weren't Qiu Yongqiang, but his maternal uncle Zhou Shunchang and Huang Jin.

"Good, good! I knew you could do it." Zhou Shunchang excitedly took Xu Yang's hand.

Now that Xu Yang had become a martial artist, Zhou Shunchang could finally say he'd done right by his late sister.

They talked for a while before Zhou Shunchang's excitement finally settled.

Only then did Huang Jin step forward.

The Huang Family still wouldn't hire Xu Yang as an attendant, but out of gratitude for the support they'd given him before, they had prepared five taels of silver as a congratulatory gift.

"To be honest, I still had faith in you. Lu Ren has talent, but he's too arrogant and conceited. I'm afraid my Huang Family will end up sewing a wedding gown for someone else." Huang Jin sighed.

But he wasn't part of the Huang Family's main lineage, so he didn't have much say.

Xu Yang, too, had mixed feelings about Lu Ren.

In just two months, the shy boy who'd stammered whenever he spoke had become someone willing to stoop to anything. Afraid the Huang Family might change its mind, he'd had people smear Xu Yang the moment he broke through.

Luo Dehu really was a piece of work.

"I may not be with the Huang Family, but if you ever need anything, you can come to me," Xu Yang said solemnly.

Though the Huang Family had broken their agreement, he didn't resent them. Instead, he was grateful for their kindness.

Without the Huang Family, the Tri-Union Gang might have persecuted him to death.

Zhou Shunchang and Huang Jin soon left.

A little later, Qiu Wenjie came to find Xu Yang and told him that Qiu Yongqiang was waiting outside.

The Qiu Family was small and had no business dealings with Wei Yuan Hall, so Qiu Yongqiang couldn't come and go as he pleased the way Huang Jin could.

When they met, Qiu Yongqiang congratulated him again, then bluntly admitted that the Qiu Family couldn't afford to hire him. They couldn't come up with ten taels of silver a month.

However, they were willing to keep giving him three taels a month to help him train.

Xu Yang was quite satisfied with this outcome.

He hadn't wanted to tie himself to any particular family in the first place. Whether it was the Huang Family or the Qiu Family, he'd only felt obliged to honor his promises because they'd helped him. Now things had worked out just as he'd hoped.

If he'd truly wanted to become an attendant of the Huang Family, he could have gathered qi before Lu Ren. The main reason he'd broken through a few days later was that he hadn't wanted to serve the Huang Family, so he'd deliberately delayed for a few days.

Great families were rife with dirty dealings. Besides, he'd been raised up from the bottom by the Huang Family. If he joined them, he'd always be a rung beneath them, and it would be difficult to speak with them as an equal. Whenever a dispute arose, people would accuse him of being ungrateful.

If he chose another faction to serve, the resources might not be as good as what the Huang Family could offer, but he'd have more freedom to act.

That day, he didn't stay at Wei Yuan Hall until nightfall. He left in the afternoon.

"Ah Yang!"

Not long after he left the city, Zhang Daniu's voice rang out behind him.

"Ah Yang, long time no see!" Zhang Daniu hurried to catch up. "I heard you were working in the city, so I went to your house a few times, but I never saw you.

"I asked Xiao Qing where you worked because I wanted to come find you, but she wouldn't tell me no matter what.

"By the way, where are you working? I've never run into you."

Seeing him again, Zhang Daniu was more enthusiastic than ever. He rattled off one thing after another, as if he'd forgotten how he'd once distanced himself from Xu Yang.

"I wasn't working. I've actually been training at Wei Yuan Hall."

Now that he'd successfully gathered qi, there was no need to hide that he was training.

"Training at Wei Yuan Hall? No wonder you never said anything."

Zhang Daniu froze. "Where did you get the money?"

"A wealthy family in the city, the Huang Family, saw that I had some talent and paid to send me to Wei Yuan Hall."

At that, Zhang Daniu fell silent for a long while.

He'd heard about the selection. He'd even regretted hearing about it too late to take part.

With a hint of bitterness—and what sounded like concern—he said, "I heard the Huang Family is stingy. If you can't become a martial artist, you might have to pay them back. Ah Yang, take my advice. Training in martial arts isn't something people like us should even dream about. You'd be better off living an ordinary life."

Xu Yang glanced at him. "I've already become a martial artist."

"You... became a martial artist..."

Zhang Daniu was struck as if by lightning. Only then did he notice that Xu Yang was already taller than him, and carried an awe-inspiring air just like the martial arts masters he'd seen at the blacksmith's shop.

"Ah..."

He wanted to call him "Ah Yang," but his throat felt dry, and he couldn't get the words out.

"Our paths split here. We'll talk another time."

Xu Yang pointed to the fork in the road before them, took one branch, and strode home.

Zhang Daniu stood rooted to the spot. Even after Xu Yang's figure had disappeared, he still couldn't come to his senses.

"Daniu, what are you standing here for? Lost your wits?"

He Laosan's voice suddenly sounded behind him.

Zhang Daniu turned around, his voice bitter. "Laosan, Ah Yang... Ah Yang has become a martial artist..."