Giant Whale Swallows the Sea

"Liu Da, what are you doing?" A Zhen asked.

Liu Da forced a smile and said, "Everyone, I'm truly not cut out for martial arts, so I'll be heading off first. The world of martial arts is vast; may we meet again if fate allows!"

Li Xiuwen had gotten along well with Liu Da, so he offered some comfort: "Xianghai is so prosperous, you'll surely find a better path."

Silly Qiang asked with concern, "Liu Da, what are you going to do now?"

"Join a gang, of course!" Liu Da laughed. "I want to join a syndicate and start from the very bottom. There are martial arts masters in the gangs, too; I can learn to fight there."

"A gang, huh? Well, take care of yourself." Li Xiuwen didn't think much of Liu Da's plan.

The cannon fodder at the bottom of a gang had a high mortality rate, and the big bosses wouldn't give a damn about them.

After saying goodbye to his friends at the martial arts hall, Liu Da left.

"Liu Da." Huang Sihai emerged from his study and called out to him.

"What is it, Master?" Liu Da asked.

Huang Sihai said with an expressionless face, "If you join a gang, don't use my name. Others will think you're there to challenge the hall, and you'll die even faster...

But if you get beaten to death, then use it. I might not be able to save you, but I can at least collect your corpse!"

After a moment of silence, Liu Da's eyes reddened as he smiled. "Alright, thank you, Master."

After Liu Da left, the others sighed with emotion.

In this period, Liu Da wasn't the only one to leave.

Learning martial arts was expensive, and most people couldn't even get past the entry level in a month, so they gave up.

After all, even if one did get started, the expenses required to maintain the practice were a bottomless pit.

If one didn't keep it up, their cultivation would regress rather than progress. Once they passed their peak, it would be a rapid decline, and they might even be left with hidden injuries.

In the end, they were still destined for manual labor; nothing could change that.

Many people signed up for Four Seas Martial Arts Hall. Every month, people came and went; the turnover was high, and very few remained in the end.

Li Xiuwen silently returned to the corner to practice his stance.

In the cage, Chen Laodao leaned against his pillow and took out a notebook to write something.

"What are you writing, Brother Chen?"

"The Four Seas Fellow Disciples Register... Out in the world, meeting by chance is also a form of fate."

After Liu Da left, the others practiced their punches even harder.

In the blink of an eye, another ten days passed.

It was Li Xiuwen's 21st day at the martial arts hall.

During this time, Li Xiuwen had been in a good mood.

First, he had reached a cooperation agreement with Brother Jun: two hundred a month to watch over the place, without needing to stay at the hair salon all day.

The Enclave wasn't large; if something happened, they just needed to call the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall or Chen's Rice Noodle Factory to summon him.

Brother Jun had also said that Li Xiuwen only needed to drive away those low-level punks and junkies within his capabilities.

If he encountered a master coming to smash the place, Li Xiuwen didn't need to intervene; such people usually had some backing and weren't to be trifled with.

However, the probability of that was very low; masters wouldn't even look twice at the meager profits of a hair salon.

In short, he no longer needed to do manual labor and could collect 200 a month; making money was much easier than before.

This amount of money was enough for him to improve his diet; he could eat meat every day.

The second matter concerned Brother Ji.

After being robbed of fifty that last time, Brother Ji seemed to have vanished; he hadn't been seen for over twenty days.

Without this obstacle in his path, he could walk with his head held high.

He felt that Brother Ji had likely met with misfortune.

The Thirteen Guardians sounded impressive, but in this Enclave where hidden dragons and crouching tigers resided, they were just the lowest-tier, insignificant gang.

Brother Ji acted eccentrically and didn't follow the rules; he drew too much attention, so it was normal for someone to deal with him.

"Evil people get their due eventually."

Li Xiuwen cast aside his distracting thoughts and began to throw punches with a specific breathing rhythm. His palm technique was like a gale whipping up massive waves, one wave layering over the next.

Huang Sihai's words surfaced in his mind:

"The Sand-Turning Palm is divided into four realms, corresponding to a thirty-two-character mantra."

"Entry level: Waves Sifting Sand!"

"Minor success: Surging Tides!"

"Major success: Shark Shadow Strike!"

"Perfection: Giant Whale Swallows the Sea!"

"The four levels each have their own wonders."

"The first level trains the Hard Palm, concentrating all the body's strength into the palm. The momentum is like a massive wave, capable of collapsing the heavens and swallowing the land!"

"The second level trains the Soft Palm. The technique appears gentle, but it is actually like a tide; one second it is far away, the next it is right before your eyes."

"The third level combines hardness and softness, blending the illusory with the real. It is impossible to defend against, like a fierce shark in the sea."

"The fourth level can only be executed by a Black Membrane master. The palm force is like a giant whale; one strike can shatter the skull and break the spine... Without the Black Membrane, to touch it is to die."

Li Xiuwen finished a set and pondered the changes in these four levels of palm technique.

In his mind, the Incense Burner appeared.

[Li Xiuwen]

[Martial Arts]

[Beginner Martial Arts Knowledge: Entry (51%)]

[Sea-Sand Stance: Entry (29%)]

[Sand-Turning Palm: Entry (31%)]

[Stage: Azure Membrane (29%)]

"At this rate, I should be able to reach minor success in the Sand-Turning Palm by next month."

"Silly Qiang and A Zhen became disciples a month before me, and their talent is second only to Liu Chun among the disciples, yet they haven't reached minor success either."

"It's just that the stance training is a bit slow. This slow-grinding work cannot be rushed; I must temper my skin and membrane bit by bit to solidify the foundation."

"According to this progress, I have a chance to advance to the Purple Membrane before next month's fee expires."

"If Brother Ji dares to look for trouble then..."

A hint of ruthlessness flashed through Li Xiuwen.

During his time living in the Enclave, he had adapted to the law of the jungle here.

Either don't offend anyone,

But if you do... you must kill them,

Otherwise, the future troubles would be endless.

He didn't want to fight and preferred peace, but that didn't mean he could be bullied forever.

The next day,

Four Seas Martial Arts Hall,

There were nine days left until Li Xiuwen's monthly fee expired.

Old Huang walked over to Li Xiuwen, who was practicing his palms, with his hands behind his back. He pretended to be indifferent and said, "A Wen, will you still be practicing next month?"

Li Xiuwen said, "Master, I'll see how things go."

Old Huang nodded slightly and said, "The Azure Membrane is just the beginning. If you fish for three days and dry the nets for two, you will regress. Even the Azure Membrane will disappear."

"This disciple understands, but the monthly fee is not cheap. I need to discuss it with my family," Li Xiuwen said.

"I plan to hold a 'Gratitude for the Master' event for the disciples today. If you are willing to pay for three months or more at once, you get a ten percent discount!"

"Alright, I understand." Li Xiuwen cursed the old miser in his heart.

He still had over a thousand, but he didn't want to renew early; he wanted to wait until the last day to decide.

Having a little money in his pocket could save him in an emergency.

He was familiar with Old Huang's tactics;

Gyms were exactly like this.

He was just afraid that one day the martial arts hall would go bankrupt, and Old Huang would run off with the money and his sister-in-law.

That day, the gratitude event was held.

Liu Chun paid for half a year's fee at once, making Old Huang a tidy profit and leaving him beaming with joy.

Except for Liu Chun, everyone else was broke and at most renewed for a month to show their support.

Old Huang looked at Liu Chun, finding her more pleasing the more he looked. He laughed, "A Chun, how is your Sand-Turning Palm coming along?"

"Master, it's still at minor success, but I feel I have grasped a trace of the essence of hardness and softness. I will definitely reach major success in these coming days," Liu Chun said with a hint of pride.

"Good! You are already at the Purple Membrane stage. If there isn't a fierce talent like your senior brother Thunder Boy in the next six months, you will definitely be moving to the second floor!" Old Huang laughed loudly.

Talented and capable of "dropping gold coins"—who wouldn't love such a disciple?

Looking at the others, Old Huang sighed.

Not a single one was promising.