"Liu Da, what's this?" A Zhen asked.
Liu Da forced a smile. "Everyone, I really ain't cut out for martial arts, so I'll be heading off first. The road ahead is long. If fate allows, we'll meet again!"
Li Xiuwen had gotten along fairly well with Liu Da, so he offered some encouragement. "Fragrant Sea is such a prosperous place. You'll find a better path."
Big Silly Qiang asked with concern, "Liu Da, what are you going to do next?"
"Follow a boss, of course!" Liu Da laughed. "I want to join a gang and work my way up from the bottom. Gangs have skilled fist masters too. I can still do Fist Training."
"A gang, huh? Take care of yourself, then." Li Xiuwen wasn't optimistic about Liu Da's prospects.
Those at the bottom of a gang were cannon fodder, with a high death rate. The bosses wouldn't give a damn about him.
After saying goodbye to his friends at the martial arts hall, Liu Da left.
"Liu Da." Huang Sihai came out of his study and called him to a stop.
"What is it, Master?" Liu Da asked.
Huang Sihai said expressionlessly, "If you join a gang, don't mention my name. People will think you're there to challenge them, and you'll die even faster...
"But if someone beats you to death, then mention it. I might not be able to save you, but I can at least collect your body!"
After a moment of silence, Liu Da smiled, his eyes reddening. "All right. Thank you, Master."
After Liu Da left, everyone sighed.
He was hardly the only one who had left recently.
Fist Training was expensive. Most people gave up when they failed to reach entry level within a month.
After all, even once they reached entry level, the cost of maintaining their training was a bottomless pit.
If they didn't keep it up, their cultivation would regress rather than advance. Once they passed their prime, it would plummet, and they might even be left with hidden ailments.
In the end, they would still be stuck doing hard labor. Nothing would change.
Quite a few people enrolled at the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall. People came and went every month, and turnover was high. Very few stayed in the end.
Li Xiuwen quietly returned to his corner to practice his stance training.
Inside the cage, Chen Laodao leaned against a pillow, writing something in a notebook.
"What are you writing, Brother Chen?"
"The Four Seas Fellow Disciples Register... When you're out in the world, even a chance meeting is a kind of fate."
After Liu Da left, everyone else trained even harder.
In the blink of an eye, another ten days passed.
It was Li Xiuwen's twenty-first day at the martial arts hall.
He had been in a good mood lately.
First, he had worked out a deal with Brother Jun. For two hundred a month, he would keep trouble away from Brother Jun's establishment without having to spend all day at the hair salon.
The Enclave wasn't large. If anything happened, they could call the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall or Chen's Rice Noodle Factory to get him.
Brother Jun had also said that Li Xiuwen only needed to drive away unaffiliated Street Thugs and addicts within his ability to handle.
If an expert came to wreck the place, Li Xiuwen didn't need to act. People like that generally had backing of some sort and weren't to be trifled with.
Still, that was very unlikely. Experts wouldn't bother with the paltry profits of a hair salon.
In short, he could now collect two hundred a month without working at the factory. Making money had become much easier.
That money was enough to improve his diet. He could eat some meat every day.
The second reason had to do with Brother Ji.
After robbing him of fifty last time, Brother Ji seemed to have vanished. He hadn't been seen in over twenty days.
Without that obstacle in his way, Li Xiuwen could walk with his head held a little higher.
He figured something had probably happened to Brother Ji.
The Thirteen Guardians sounded impressive, but in the Enclave, where hidden talents abounded, they were nothing more than a bottom-rung gang.
Brother Ji acted recklessly and ignored the rules. Tall trees caught the wind; it was perfectly normal for someone to put him in his place.
"Heaven takes care of the wicked."
Li Xiuwen cast aside his stray thoughts and began practicing with a specific breathing rhythm. His palms moved like gale-driven waves, one wave piling upon another.
Huang Sihai's words surfaced in his mind:
"Sand-Turning Palm has four realms, corresponding to a thirty-two-character mnemonic."
"Entry level: Waves Sifting Sand!"
"Minor mastery: Surging Tides!"
"Major mastery: Shark Shadow Strike!"
"Perfection: Giant Whale Swallows the Sea!"
"Each of these four levels has its own wonders."
"The first level trains hard palm strikes, concentrating as much of the body's strength as possible into the palms. Their force is like great waves, shattering the heavens and swallowing the land!"
"The second level trains soft palm strikes. The movements appear gentle, but they're like the tides: one moment distant on the horizon, the next right before your eyes."
"The third level combines hardness and softness, feints and real attacks. It's impossible to guard against, like a fierce shark in the sea."
"The fourth level can only be used by Black Membrane experts. The force of the palm is like a giant whale. A single strike can crush a skull and snap a spine... Without a Black Membrane, anyone struck will die."
Li Xiuwen finished a round, pondering the changes between these four levels of palm technique.
The incense burner appeared in his mind.
[Li Xiuwen] [Martial arts] [Basic martial arts knowledge: entry level (51%)] [Sea of Stake Training: entry level (29%)] [Sand-Turning Palm: entry level (31%)] [Stage: blue membrane (29%)]
At this rate, I should reach minor mastery in Sand-Turning Palm next month.
Big Silly Qiang and A Zhen became disciples a month before me. Their talent ranks just below Liu Chun's among the disciples, yet they still haven't reached minor mastery.
It's just the stance training that's progressing a little slowly. This takes steady work, and there's no rushing it. I have to temper my skin membrane bit by bit and build a solid foundation.
At this rate, I have a chance of advancing to purple membrane before next month's fee comes due.
If Brother Ji still dares to cause trouble then...
A trace of ruthlessness flashed through Li Xiuwen.
After living in the Enclave for some time, he had already adapted to its law of the jungle.
Either he didn't offend someone,
or, once he did... he had to beat them to death.
Otherwise, there would be no end to the trouble.
He didn't want to fight and preferred peace, but that didn't mean he would let people keep bullying him.
The next day,
at the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall,
there were still nine days before Li Xiuwen's monthly fee came due.
With his hands behind his back, Old Huang came over to Li Xiuwen as he practiced his palms. Feigning indifference, he asked, "Xiuwen, will you keep training next month?"
"I'll see how things go, Master," Li Xiuwen said.
Old Huang nodded slightly. "Blue membrane is only the beginning. If you train in fits and starts, you'll regress instead of improving. Even your blue membrane will disappear."
"I understand. It's just that the monthly fee is quite a lot. I need to discuss it with my family," Li Xiuwen said.
"I'm planning to hold a gratitude-to-the-master promotion today to give something back to my disciples. If you're willing to pay for three months or more in one go, you'll get ten percent off!"
"All right, I understand." Inwardly, Li Xiuwen cursed the old money-grubber.
He still had over a thousand. He just didn't want to renew early and planned to wait until the last day to decide.
Having some money in his pocket would help in an emergency.
He knew Old Huang's tricks.
Gyms did the same thing.
He was just afraid that one day the martial arts hall would close down and Old Huang would run off with his sister-in-law and everyone's money.
That day, the gratitude-to-the-master promotion began.
Liu Chun paid six months of fees in one go, earning Old Huang a tidy sum and leaving him beaming.
Aside from Liu Chun, everyone was broke. At most, they renewed for a month as a token gesture.
The more Old Huang looked at Liu Chun, the more pleased he became. He asked with a smile, "Chun, how is your Sand-Turning Palm coming along?"
"Still at minor mastery, Master. But I feel like I've already grasped a little of the essence of hardness and softness. I'm sure I'll reach major mastery in the next few days," Liu Chun said with a hint of pride.
"Good! You've already reached purple membrane. Unless someone as formidable as your senior brother Tianhong shows up in the next six months, you're certain to make it to the second floor!" Old Huang laughed heartily.
Talented and capable of coughing up money-who wouldn't love a disciple like that?
Looking at the others, Old Huang sighed.
Not a single one amounted to anything.
Before you continue