Second Refinement (Revised)

How powerful was the vitality and blood of three Treasure Fish combined?

The moment Wei Luo finished eating, he felt his vitality and blood boil.

Each of the one hundred and eight thousand pores across his body seemed to be breathing, while every inch of his sinews, bones, skin, and flesh continuously grew stronger.

Like a piece of iron being tempered again and again in a furnace, his entire body turned "red."

Wiping away the scalding nosebleed, Wei Luo endured the discomfort in his body and immediately began practicing the Folding Waves Fist.

If he did not use the fist technique to guide the vitality and blood within him, his meridians might burst before long!

Crack! Crack! Crack!

The powerful vitality and blood brought rapid improvement.

As Wei Luo's stance gradually became more refined, a sound came from within his body with every punch he threw.

At first, the sound was faint, but it steadily grew louder.

His sinews and bones rang in unison, like waves crashing against the shore.

Wei Luo could no longer count how many punches he had thrown. By the time the vitality and blood within him gradually calmed,

he had already reached the Second Refinement!

Letting out a long breath of stale air, Wei Luo withdrew his fists and stood still, unable to stop a smile from rising at the corner of his lips.

The vitality-and-blood threshold had once been like shackles, but now he had not only broken through it with ease, his vitality and blood had increased by quite a bit as well.

[Vitality and Blood Progress from Second Refinement to Third Refinement]

[Time required: Two breaths]

[42%]

A simple deduction brought Wei Luo another surprise.

Once the excitement faded, Wei Luo quickly sorted out the key point.

Such a tremendous improvement was entirely because of the Dragon-Whisker Carp.

The effects of one Dragon-Whisker Carp were completely comparable to two ordinary Treasure Fish.

Clenching his fist, Wei Luo set his sights on a bluish stone by the shore, about the size of a small ball.

With one punch, it was as though an iron hammer had fallen. After a dull thud, the bluish stone shattered into several pieces.

Wei Luo's fist, meanwhile, had only suffered a few minor scrapes.

The improvement from breaking through to the Second Refinement was all-encompassing. Now, even if an ordinary person swung a blade or sword at him, at most they would be able to injure him.

"What would it be like if I broke through to the Third Refinement?"

Wei Luo murmured softly, thinking of Master Qin.

With his current strength, he should be qualified to become Master Qin's disciple as well.

By evening, the moment Wei Luo returned to the rocky beach, he sensed that the atmosphere was somewhat off.

He had not been the only one to encounter vicious fish today. Others had encountered them too.

One particularly unlucky First Refinement boatman had been dragged underwater and had an arm bitten off.

If not for his companions rescuing him, he might have lost his life as well.

For a time, everyone's morale sank.

Liu Changle had not encountered any vicious fish today and had even caught a Treasure Fish.

But upon hearing the news, his initial excitement was immediately doused.

"Wei Luo, are those vicious fish really that troublesome?"

Liu Changle had only just gathered two Treasure Fish when this happened. It was truly enough to make one sick at heart.

If entering the water afterward meant risking an attack from vicious fish, then it would be better to stay put and behave.

If he ended up like that unlucky fellow, losing an arm or a leg, his martial path would basically be at its end.

Wei Luo nodded.

"Vicious fish are like ferocious beasts in the water."

He had been struck by that "vicious fish" today, so he naturally understood the danger involved.

Second Refinement boatmen were still alright; they could protect themselves in the water. But First Refinement boatmen might be injured if they fled too slowly.

Hearing this, Liu Changle sighed as well.

Both Treasure Fish he had caught had to be handed in. If he wanted to catch more Treasure Fish afterward, he could only take the risk.

The other boatmen felt much the same as Liu Changle, their faces all carrying a few more traces of heaviness.

Before long, Sun Chai brought people down again to count the Treasure Fish.

Perhaps because of the vicious fish, there were not many Treasure Fish today—only around a dozen.

"Second Master Sun, it's been two days, and I've only caught one Treasure Fish. Can you let me keep it for my own use? When I come again next time, I'll definitely make up for it."

"Please show some leniency, Second Master Sun. There are vicious fish in the water. Even if we see Treasure Fish right in front of us, we can't catch them."

Several First Refinement boatmen soon went to plead with Sun Chai. Clearly, they no longer dared to enter the water.

But Sun Chai showed them not a shred of mercy, and a flash of viciousness immediately crossed his face.

"Do you think I brought you here for a pleasure trip? Listen up, all of you. Whoever does not hand over two Treasure Fish can forget about going back!"

The moment those words came out, the expressions of everyone who had not handed in enough Treasure Fish turned bitter.

The waters around Falling Geese Gorge were all perilous. Being unable to return was no different from being dead.

Wei Luo frowned at those words. To the Sun Family, boatmen were no different from disposable goods.

Even if they all died, the Sun Family could simply train another batch in the annex courtyard, or spend money to recruit some more.

Sure enough, eating people alive had never changed.

The next day, most of the boatmen huddled together for warmth, joining up in groups of four or five to head to the same place.

Although their efficiency at catching Treasure Fish would be lower, there was safety in numbers. If they encountered vicious fish, they could still get away safely.

There were also a small number of hardened rascals, holding to the belief that wealth and honor were sought amid danger, intending to snatch food from the jaws of vicious fish.

For safety's sake, Wei Luo did not reveal to Liu Changle where Treasure Fish could be caught again.

So Liu Changle found several First Refinement boatmen and teamed up with them to catch fish.

Wei Luo had already completed the task of catching two Treasure Fish and had even eaten three Treasure Fish, so there was naturally no need for him to risk himself catching more.

Rather than deducing where Treasure Fish would appear, he instead deduced in reverse where vicious fish would not appear.

The facts proved that places with fewer vicious fish also had no Treasure Fish.

After an entire day, Wei Luo actually returned empty-handed.

As the sun sank westward, the boatmen also began making their way back to shore one after another.

There was only one path leading toward the rocky beach. As he neared the shore, Wei Luo saw quite a few returning boatmen.

Many were carrying Treasure Fish, but there were also many with injuries on their bodies.

It seemed that after these past few days of "chumming," there truly were more Treasure Fish—but more vicious fish as well.

When Wei Luo approached the fork in the road, he saw someone cursing by the roadside ahead.

"Damn Zhang Chi! Once I break through to the Second Refinement, I'll definitely get revenge!"

Two or three people beside him were offering words of comfort.

The one cursing was none other than Liu Changle.

His face was bruised and swollen, blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, and there were quite a few footprints on his clothes. It was obvious that someone had beaten him, and beaten him badly.

Seeing him in this state, Wei Luo immediately frowned.

Hadn't he gone to catch Treasure Fish with others? How had he gotten involved with Zhang Chi?

"Liu Changle, Zhang Chi has always been hard to deal with. What good could come from butting heads with him?"

One of the people who had gone with Liu Changle to catch Treasure Fish spoke up.

But with Liu Changle's temperament, it would have been better not to say anything. The moment he heard it, he craned his neck and cursed again.

"He's only relying on having trained one more year than me. If I had just one more Treasure Fish, maybe I could break through to the Second Refinement too!"

"Then I'll definitely let him have a taste of what it feels like to be bullied by others!"

Seeing that Liu Changle was still so stubborn even after suffering a loss, the others who had gone catching Treasure Fish with him all shook their heads.

"Stop talking already. If Zhang Chi finds out, he might come looking for trouble with you again."

There were only five or six people at the annex courtyard who had reached the Second Refinement. How could it be so easy to break through?

Some had stayed in the annex courtyard for two years and were still stuck at the First Refinement.

The gap between them and Zhang Chi was far too great. So even when they were bullied, they could only endure it. That had always been their rule for survival.

Liu Changle was full of frustration. Today, the few of them had worked together and only managed to get one Treasure Fish after an entire day—not even enough to divide among them.

He had already been in a foul mood, yet he had run into Zhang Chi on the road just now. Zhang Chi directly demanded the fish bait they carried and said it would be wasted on them anyway.

Their group was all at the First Refinement. No one dared resist, so they could only obediently hand over the bait.

But Liu Changle's head was harder than most. He immediately questioned Zhang Chi over what right he had to take his bait.

After a few words of argument, Zhang Chi directly attacked and injured him.

"What happened?"

Just as Liu Changle was feeling frustrated, a hand landed on his shoulder.