Borrowing Money to Train, a First-Tier Firewood Knife!

Mo Chen arrived at the Procurement Office.

Wu Hongbing was drinking with a servant from the Procurement Office.

Seeing Mo Chen enter, he shot him a sidelong, amused grin. "Well, well? Isn't this someone from the woodshed?"

Mo Chen cupped his hands politely. "Brother Wu, I came to borrow some money."

"Oh?" Wu Hongbing's eyes lit up as he chuckled. "Borrow money from me? You know the rules, right?"

Mo Chen nodded. "Nine out, thirteen back."

"Not bad. Nine out, thirteen back. How much do you want to borrow?"

Mo Chen hesitated, then gritted his teeth and named the amount. "Twelve taels, for two years."

This startled both Wu Hongbing and the servant beside him.

"Good heavens, you're just a woodshed servant. Borrowing that much money? Can you even pay it back?"

Mo Chen said, "Brother Wu, just tell me whether you'll lend it or not. My indenture contract is in the Lu Residence. I can't run away."

Wu Hongbing rose and walked over, circling Mo Chen as he sized him up. Only then did he sneer. "As long as you dare to borrow, there's no amount I'd dare not lend."

"However... for twelve taels of silver, I can only give you one year. If you can't repay it after a year, I have plenty of ways to make you pay!"

Ignoring his threat, Mo Chen nodded calmly. "Fine! No problem."

Wu Hongbing smiled faintly and returned to the tea table. "Good lad, come here! Write the IOU!"

Mo Chen finished writing the IOU, took eleven taels of silver, and left the Procurement Office.

Back in the Chore Servant Courtyard.

Many people were already asleep.

Mo Chen lay down on his bed as well, took a deep breath, and opened the system's Martial Arena.

"Exchange! One year of Fierce Tiger Fist training!"

[ Ding, exchange successful! ]

As the system's voice fell, Mo Chen's consciousness shifted, and he arrived in the Martial Arena.

[ You studied and trained diligently, secretly watching others practice their fists every day, constantly comparing and analyzing. Three months later, the Fierce Tiger Fist reached the minor accomplishment stage. ]

[ Two months later, while chopping firewood, you encountered a fierce tiger. In a desperate flight with death brushing past you nine times out of ten, you observed the truest sight of a tiger descending the mountain and hunting its prey. Something stirred within you, and you sank into deep thought. ]

[ Seven months later, you continuously recalled the tiger's pursuit. At last, you fused your insights into your fist technique and comprehended Tiger Intent. With one punch, the muscles throughout your body united as one, breaking through to major accomplishment! ]

Current cultivation realm: Body Tempering Realm, First Level, Flesh Tempering Stage!

Mo Chen opened his eyes, somewhat surprised. "You can actually encounter fierce tigers in the Martial Arena too?"

It seemed he had misunderstood all along.

Before this, he had thought cultivating in the Martial Arena was like locking himself in a little dark room to train martial arts in seclusion.

But in truth, his life in the Martial Arena was incredibly rich.

Even something like encountering a fierce tiger while chopping firewood could happen. Could he encounter a flood dragon in the future as well?

As long as it doesn't let me die during the cultivation process, it's fine.

Mo Chen could neither laugh nor cry.

Feeling the increase in muscular strength brought by the Fierce Tiger Fist breaking through to major accomplishment.

Mo Chen's heart surged with excitement.

"My Fierce Tiger Fist has now reached major accomplishment, and I've entered the Flesh Tempering Realm. With one punch, I possess the strength of one ox! A true thousand-jin heavy punch!"

In the past, he would never even have dared to dream of such strength.

Yet now, it had become reality.

Practicing martial arts did not seem particularly difficult for him.

He wondered just how poor the aptitude of those courtyard guards was. They trained for three or five years at a time, yet could not even break through to major accomplishment.

"I can cultivate the Fierce Tiger Fist to major accomplishment in one year. My talent should be quite good, right..."

Mo Chen was somewhat pleased with himself.

Compared with the talents of all those courtyard guards, no matter how he thought about it, he could at least count as a martial arts prodigy.

After a bout of wild thoughts.

He drifted into sleep without realizing it.

The next day.

After returning from Cloud Deer Mountain with firewood.

Mo Chen found a blacksmith shop in the city and entered.

"Shopkeeper, do you sell firewood knives?"

The shopkeeper was a middle-aged blacksmith, around forty years old, with an exceptionally burly build.

Hearing Mo Chen's question, he continued hammering iron while pointing toward the corner with a turn of his head. "There are firewood knives all over there. Pick whichever you like."

"Alright!" Mo Chen nodded and went over to choose.

The firewood knives on the ground were divided into two piles. One pile was newly forged, while the other was somewhat old and worn.

There were only three in the worn pile. One of them was a broad, pitch-black firewood knife with a chip in its blade.

Mo Chen did not look at the newly forged firewood knives. Instead, he turned his gaze directly toward the three old ones.

The moment he looked, his attention was immediately drawn in.

Sure enough, among the three old firewood knives, the broad, pitch-black chipped firewood knife emitted a faint black glow.

[ Black Iron Firewood Knife ]

[ Grade: First Tier ]

[ A firewood knife passed down through five generations. Its origins can no longer be traced. Over more than a century of chopping firewood, it gradually developed something strange. ]

[ Equip requirement: None ]

[ Attributes: Firewood-Chopping Knife Technique beginner level, Strength +120%. Special bonus: 1% critical hit chance! ]

"Damn! A critical hit?" Mo Chen was pleasantly surprised.

Just from the literal meaning, he could understand what this attribute did.

A critical hit, as its name implied, could unleash twice the original destructive power during battle.

Although the critical hit chance was only one percent, who knew when it might deliver a pleasant surprise?

"Excellent! This firewood knife is a little treasure!"

Aside from coming with a beginner-level Firewood-Chopping Knife Technique, it also increased strength by 120%.

With critical hits added on top, if he made a move and got lucky, he could even unleash the immense force of four oxen! Comparable to a strike from a Bone Tempering Realm martial artist.

Mo Chen forcefully suppressed the excitement in his heart, took a deep breath, and turned to ask, "Shopkeeper, how much are these firewood knives?"

Without turning his head, the shopkeeper said, "One hundred copper coins each!"

Mo Chen nodded. He knew ironware was expensive in Great Mystic.

He had heard that war was about to break out at the border, all for the sake of a rich, massive iron ore vein.

"What about these three old ones?"

Mo Chen pointed at the three old knives beside them.

The shopkeeper turned back for a look, somewhat puzzled. "You want old chipped knives with such severe wear too?"

Mo Chen gave a bitter smile. "I'm poor!"

The shopkeeper nodded in understanding. "Fifty copper coins each. If you want all three, just give me one hundred and forty copper coins."

These old firewood knives had originally been left behind by farmers who traded in their old knives to offset the cost of new ones. If no one wanted them, he had planned to melt them down and forge them anew.

Mo Chen shook his head. "I don't need that many. I'll only buy one."

The shopkeeper said, "Then forty-eight copper coins."

Mo Chen nodded, paid without hesitation, then picked up the Black Iron Firewood Knife and left the blacksmith shop.

By then, the sky had already darkened.

Knowing that the city gates were about to close, Mo Chen did not plan to leave the city that night.

Instead, he found an empty alley and eagerly took out the Black Iron Firewood Knife.

"Equip!"

The Black Iron Firewood Knife before his eyes instantly vanished.

At the same time, the system panel popped up.

This time, it was no longer the attribute panel, but five item slots.

[1] Common Iron Axe (Equipped).

It was precisely Li Dazhuang's old, ungraded axe.

[2] Black Iron Firewood Knife (Unequipped).

"Hm? Unequipped?"

With a thought from Mo Chen, the Black Iron Firewood Knife instantly appeared in his hand. His arm sank, and his strength abruptly surged by a great deal.

At the same time, a Firewood-Chopping Knife Technique appeared in his mind.

Then, the Common Iron Axe changed from equipped to unequipped, and a cooldown countdown of twelve hours appeared after it.

"So this means... although I can only equip one weapon, I can store five weapons at the same time?"

Thinking of this possibility, Mo Chen's heart stirred.

Even if he could only switch weapons once every twelve hours, it gave him endless room for maneuver.

"When I get the chance, I must find more tiered equipment!"

Tiered equipment all possessed strange attribute bonuses.

If he owned five at once, he would have even more attribute choices.

Just thinking about it made Mo Chen feel incredibly fired up.

Hiding in the alley.

Mo Chen discovered another use for the item slots.

Besides holding spare equipment, they could apparently store other things as well.

For example, silver, a small stone from the ground, and so on.

"Isn't this storage space?"

Mo Chen had not expected such an unexpected delight, and he could not help but rejoice.

Afterward, he familiarized himself with the Black Iron Firewood Knife's strength increase for a while before returning to the Lu Residence to rest.