Martial World Heroes Ranking

Right after that, the conditions required for the system to upgrade to Tier Three appeared in Mo Chen's mind.

He immediately felt his teeth ache.

"Upgrading to Tier Three actually requires one hundred taels of silver and five taels of gold?"

That requirement was a little steep.

Being able to scrape together the money for the Tier Two upgrade had been purely because he was lucky enough to run into a badly injured thief.

But now that the system's upgrade to Tier Three required one hundred taels of silver and five taels of gold, could he really stay lucky forever?

"I'll take it one step at a time."

Mo Chen shook his head.

Still, the system upgrade had brought enormous benefits.

The number of equipment pieces he could wear had increased from one to two.

Mo Chen immediately and eagerly equipped the Human Skin Mask.

In an instant, he was astonished to find that his body had grown several degrees lighter, while his feet felt as though they were stepping on springs.

Whoosh!

With one step, he shot four or five meters away in the blink of an eye.

Seeing such a startling boost in speed, Mo Chen was overjoyed.

"The Human Skin Mask can not only disguise me—it also boosts my speed and reaction ability!"

Originally, after cultivating the White Snake Nine Transformations Palm to Great Perfection, his body's reaction speed and movement speed had already improved enormously.

Now that he wore the Human Skin Mask, he had gained another 120% speed bonus.

This directly doubled his speed.

"I haven't cultivated any lightness skill yet. If I do, I'll definitely become even faster."

At that thought, anticipation rose in Mo Chen's eyes.

Merely imagining himself soaring over eaves and scaling walls with such dashing flair made his blood boil.

However, the Human Skin Mask's most important attribute was still its disguise.

Mo Chen returned to the alley. With a thought, a layer of skin-like membrane swiftly covered his face.

Once the membrane had completely covered every inch of his facial skin, Mo Chen's current appearance was replaced by a cold, handsome face with sword-like brows and starry eyes.

"I wonder whether I can restore my peerless looks from before..."

Mo Chen raised an eyebrow and looked around, but after failing to find anywhere he could look in a mirror, he could only give up reluctantly.

After getting familiar with the Human Skin Mask, Mo Chen found another bookstore and asked about books on martial arts.

"Martial arts manuals?"

The bookstore owner shook his head.

"My apologies, sir, but we truly don't have any martial arts manuals here. Ordinary martial artists wouldn't casually put such things up for sale."

Seeing Mo Chen's disappointed expression, the owner added with a smiling face.

"However, our shop has a Martial World Heroes Ranking brought back from the Prefectural City. Would you be interested in taking a look, honored guest?"

Mo Chen became interested and nodded. "Sure, bring it out for me to see."

"Certainly!" The owner smiled faintly, turned around, took out a thin booklet from behind the counter, and presented it to Mo Chen.

Mo Chen accepted it and examined it.

On the thread-bound booklet, one large line of characters and one smaller line were written vertically.

Martial World Heroes Ranking, Martial Suppression Office Ranking.

He opened the first page.

[The martial world surged with wind and clouds, heroes and great men emerging in endless streams. One blade, one sword, one lone boat—roaming the world at will, spirits soaring high. We martial artists should advance without fear, blade in hand and horse beneath us, our boldness streaking across the sky like a rainbow. Who could contend with us!]

Below was the signature—Printed by Heavenly Moon Tower.

"Heavenly Moon Tower..." Mo Chen silently committed the name to memory.

That opening alone stirred a hot-blooded impulse and longing for the martial world within him.

There was no need to think about it—the content that followed surely would not disappoint.

Sure enough, the second page went straight to the point.

The Martial Suppression Office Heroes Ranking contained a total of one hundred spots.

The top ten were almost all disciples of the Martial Suppression Academy.

First place: Tantai Xiasang, true disciple of the Martial Suppression Academy. Cultivation: Five Elements Realm Great Perfection.

Last place: Shen Jiyun, inner disciple of Great Harmony Martial Hall. Cultivation: Condensing Astra Realm Great Perfection.

Mo Chen merely gave the ranking a rough glance before the sects, factions, and cultivation realms listed within caught his attention.

Those at the Body Tempering Realm could not even make the ranking.

"Shopkeeper, how much is this booklet? I'll take it!"

Even now, Mo Chen had no clear idea what level his own strength had reached.

This booklet was practically a guidebook tailored specifically for him.

The owner smiled broadly and held up one finger.

"Honored guest, this booklet isn't expensive. It only costs one tael of silver."

"One tael of silver?!"

Mo Chen had just been about to take out his money when he froze on the spot.

"Damn it! Why don't you just rob me? You're selling a few sheets of paper for that much?"

The owner did not get angry. He simply stood behind the counter and replied with a smile.

"Honored guest, I truly am not overcharging you. Whether in the Martial Suppression Office or here in Rice Terrace County, every copy of the Martial World Heroes Ranking costs one tael of silver. If you truly find it too expensive, you need not buy it."

Mo Chen lowered his head to look at the booklet in his hand, gritted his teeth, and said, "Make it cheaper. If you make it cheaper, I'll buy it."

The owner shook his head. "My apologies, honored guest. It is not that I am unwilling to lower the price, but that after Heavenly Moon Tower finished printing them, they stipulated that every copy must be sold for one tael of silver. If any are sold for less or more than that price, Heavenly Moon Tower will hold our shop accountable."

Mo Chen rolled his eyes speechlessly. "If you really sell it cheaper, and neither you nor I say anything, how could Heavenly Moon Tower possibly know..."

The owner still shook his head. "No! Honored guest, you are gravely mistaken. You probably do not yet know how terrifying Heavenly Moon Tower is. Once you do, you will not say such things."

"Oh?" Mo Chen raised an eyebrow. "What, if you sell it cheaper, can Heavenly Moon Tower kill you?"

The owner's expression changed. "Honored guest, since you know the consequences, please stop making sport of this old man."

Hearing that, Mo Chen stared wide-eyed and sucked in a sharp breath.

"No way! Heavenly Moon Tower will really kill people for selling it too cheaply?"

In the end, Mo Chen still took out one tael of silver and bought the Martial World Heroes Ranking.

Because of that, the name Heavenly Moon Tower was deeply etched into Mo Chen's heart.

After being busy all noon, the sun had already begun to slant westward.

Only after relaxing did Mo Chen feel the emptiness in his stomach.

"Time to eat first."

He casually found a noodle shop and ordered six bowls of plain noodles.

He wolfed them down so fiercely that the waiter looked at him as if he had seen a starving ghost. Only after eating until he was eighty or ninety percent full did Mo Chen leave the noodle shop, patting his round, bulging stomach.

"Ever since my cultivation broke through to the Sinew Tempering Realm, my appetite has become terrifying!"

Martial artists needed large amounts of food to replenish their bodies' qi, blood, and nutrients.

During the first few days after he had just begun learning the Fierce Tiger Fist, Mo Chen's appetite had not increased very noticeably.

However, after last night's cultivation deduction, his appetite had changed drastically.

That was why he had eaten six baskets of buns and drunk two bowls of tofu pudding that morning.

For lunch, he had eaten another six bowls of plain noodles.

"I need to make money! I still need to find a way to make money. Even if it isn't for martial arts, just feeding myself in the future will eat me into poverty."

Mo Chen walked down the main street, rubbing his bulging belly as he sighed.

Of course, the Lu Residence would never allow a mere menial servant like him to eat as much as he pleased.

If he wanted to eat his fill, he would at least have to become the chief guard of the Lu Residence.

But Mo Chen did not want to pin his hopes on the Lu Residence. He still needed to find his own way.

He walked while looking around.

Mo Chen did not linger long in Rice Terrace County.

After purchasing some cloth and daily necessities, he found the carriage house again, hired a horse carriage, and headed for Mo Family Village.

"In my memories, after Father died, Uncle pushed through all objections before giving me the Lu Residence's position—the stable chance to eat my fill."

Sitting in the carriage, Mo Chen pondered his family circumstances.

Their family had only two children, one daughter and one son.

His elder sister had married early, and in this era they rarely met. Mo Chen had almost no impression of her.

As for his other relatives, there was only Uncle's family in Mo Family Village.

"Once I get back to the village, if nothing else works, I'll leave them some silver."

It was nothing more than looking after a few relatives. Though Mo Chen did not feel much affection for them, he did not consider it any trouble either.

Sitting in the carriage, Mo Chen took out the Martial World Heroes Ranking and read through it with great interest.