The Sun Family Sets Sail

For those who practiced martial arts, the first step toward becoming a Martial Master was breaking through the three thresholds of blood and qi.

The three thresholds grew harder to break through with each one.

With ordinary aptitude and no supplements of food or medicine, breaking through even one threshold was essentially the end of the road.

Anyone who could break through the second blood and qi threshold would be considered outstanding among dozens of crewmen.

Hearing Liu Changle's question, Wei Luo merely shook his head lightly.

[Folding Waves Fist Progress: 52%]

Over the past half month, relying on the Great Thousand Revelation to test right from wrong while practicing his fist techniques, his boxing had nearly reached the sixty-percent mark—minor accomplishment.

But in terms of blood and qi, he was still far behind.

His innate frame was somewhat poorer than others', so his blood and qi grew more slowly.

For instance, if someone else could absorb sixty percent of a bowl of Bone-Strengthening Soup's medicinal power, Wei Luo could only absorb a little over forty percent—perhaps even less.

Over time, his blood and qi naturally accumulated more slowly.

What he surpassed others in was his fist techniques.

Surge Force, Linked Waves Force, Whirling Force—aside from Layered Wave Force, he had basically completely mastered the use of all three kinds of force.

Layered Wave Force, meanwhile, was the core of the Folding Waves Fist. Even now, Wei Luo hadn't so much as touched upon its edge.

It wasn't just him. Wei Luo had once asked Zhao Xiu, and even the old hands who had stayed in the courtyard for years didn't know how to use Layered Wave Force.

Wei Luo felt that this should be related to the Visualization Diagram in Master Qin's possession.

And if he wanted to continue down the martial path, he had to become Master Qin's disciple.

It wasn't as if he hadn't considered deducing the locations of a few more Treasure Fish, but he had tried twice, and the results hadn't been ideal.

[Treasure Fish obtainable within twenty li of Pingjiang Town]

[Time required: Three days]

[Downstream of Pingjiang Town, Treasure Fish appear in the seventeenth tributary every full moon. "Fierce Fish" also appear there. Three fishermen have already been buried in fish bellies.]

The result of the second deduction had been much the same. Catching Treasure Fish meant taking risks.

The day before yesterday had been the full moon, but Wei Luo hadn't taken a boat out to catch Treasure Fish.

Fierce Fish—this was new information provided by the Great Thousand Revelation.

Wei Luo guessed that it should have been the same species as the thing he had encountered while catching Treasure Fish last time.

That Fierce Fish had only been half a meter long, yet it had nearly done him in. He couldn't guarantee that nothing would happen if he went after Treasure Fish this time.

Besides, Zhang Chi and the others were a lesson written in blood.

Just as Wei Luo was thinking this, the sound of carriages and horses suddenly stopped outside the courtyard.

Steward Li entered from outside with several people.

"In three days, the Sun Family will dispatch a Treasure Ship to Falling Geese Gorge. Everyone, make your preparations."

"When the time comes, the Sun Family will provide bait every day. Whether you can seize your fortune depends on your own capabilities!"

Before long, all the crewmen had gathered together, and Steward Li announced the news.

"We've waited so long—we're finally setting sail! Great!"

"It's been months. I've spent all my money already. I can finally earn a proper sum."

"I hope we catch more Treasure Fish this time. If I can keep one, maybe I'll become Master Qin's disciple!"

"..."

Most of the veteran crewmen were extremely excited upon hearing the news, rubbing their hands together in anticipation.

Wei Luo had heard many times about the Sun Family sending out Treasure Ships to catch Treasure Fish.

According to Zhao Xiu, the Sun Family had its own methods for luring Treasure Fish. Every voyage was a grand affair, and catching a hundred or so Treasure Fish at once was perfectly normal.

One reason Zhao Xiu had come to the Sun Family Estate to practice martial arts was that their families had long been friends. The other reason was this.

According to Zhao Xiu, those who caught Treasure Fish had a chance to keep them for themselves. Wei Luo had long been interested.

Steward Li then roughly explained the arrangements for this voyage.

This time, they were heading to a remote stretch of water nearly a hundred li from Pingjiang Town, where there were vast numbers of Treasure Fish.

Though Steward Li didn't reveal the exact details, everyone knew there had to be risks involved.

Going out by boat to fish was voluntary, but martial arts training required silver. How could one earn money without taking risks?

Once Steward Li finished speaking, the crewmen eagerly registered their names.

"We've waited so long—we can finally set sail and catch Treasure Fish! With my family's inherited skills, I'll definitely catch more than everyone else!"

Having just signed up, Liu Changle couldn't help fantasizing, looking as though he was ready to make a grand show of it.

Wei Luo couldn't help shaking his head with a laugh.

The Liu family had been fishing folk for generations, but catching Treasure Fish was naturally different from casting nets on the river. They couldn't be lumped together.

It was Wei Luo's first time taking part in one of the Sun Family's fishing expeditions, so he didn't know the exact situation either.

After thinking it over briefly, Wei Luo felt it would be better to ask someone familiar with it.

He turned to look nearby. Not far away, Zhao Xiu, Shen Wu, Li Yue, Sun Qianchuan, and two crewmen at the Second Refinement were discussing something.

Ever since Shen Wu had been accepted as Master Qin's disciple, Sun Qianchuan had spent quite a bit of money on him. Almost every day after fist practice ended, he would take Shen Wu and the others to Willow Lane in the inner city for food, drink, and entertainment.

After these days, Shen Wu had practically been pulled into Sun Qianchuan's small circle.

The Zhao Family and the Sun Family had long been family friends, so Zhao Xiu got along quite well with them too.

"After that incident, I thought your Sun Family wasn't planning to set sail this year."

Zhao Xiu said with a smile. Even though Sun Qianchuan had told him this news two days ago, he still couldn't help feeling excited now.

Half a year ago, when the Sun Family's ship had been returning, it encountered something strange, causing the Sun Family's only Force Refinement expert to fall ill and die.

Such an incident had undoubtedly dealt the Sun Family a tremendous blow, which was why the voyage had been suspended for half a year.

Sun Qianchuan sighed as well. "The Hun River is full of strange dangers. Who knew my eldest uncle would contract some bizarre illness after just one trip on the river?"

The Force Refinement expert who died had been his eldest uncle, but there wasn't much sorrow in Sun Qianchuan's eyes.

The Sun Family was so large that someone would always have to shoulder the burden.

As for who would shoulder it, everyone within the Sun Family was currently vying for the position.

Sun Qianchuan cleared his throat before finally explaining why he had gathered them.

"Everyone, I won't beat around the bush. As long as you're willing to listen to me, I guarantee you'll all make a fortune. If we're lucky, you might even get a share of a couple of Treasure Fish when we return."

"I've already arranged the people distributing the bait. When the time comes, we will only receive more bait than others, never less."

The more bait they had, the greater the chance of attracting Treasure Fish.

Hearing this, everyone grew somewhat excited, increasingly convinced that following Sun Qianchuan promised a bright future.

Sun Qianchuan was doing this precisely to win people's hearts. Given enough time, these people would become his support.

He was indeed a young master of the Sun Family, but the Sun Family had three branches, with many young masters and young ladies. He was merely one among them.

If he wanted to become the patriarch who controlled the Sun Family in the future, he naturally had to plan early.

After the excitement faded, Zhao Xiu thought for a moment and made another suggestion.

"Why not let Wei Luo and Liu Changle join us too? They're both pretty decent."

But Sun Qianchuan frowned at that.

"I don't think that's a good idea. Their innate frames are truly average."

Sun Qianchuan said no more, but his attitude was already perfectly clear.

At this moment, Shen Wu also curled his lips into a smile.

"Brother Zhao likes making friends far and wide, but those two truly aren't from the same social standing as us. Their talents are ordinary. The Second Refinement is probably already their limit, so they're not worth getting close to."

Zhao Xiu frowned and glanced at Shen Wu, but said nothing.

He was talking about others not reaching the Second Refinement, but wasn't Li Yue, standing right beside him, also only at the First Refinement?

Shen Wu had simply gotten carried away now and looked down on others.

"Alright, it's settled then. The few of us will advance and retreat together this time."

Zhao Xiu still wanted to say something, but Sun Qianchuan directly made the final decision.