A small gathering of fellow townsmen (thanks to Nicknames Are Such a Headache for the helmsman-tier support)

The Rice Noodle Factory was one of his major clients, reliably paying him two hundred dollars every month. Naturally, he knew all about the family of three.

Venomous Snake said, "That kid must have secretly gone off to train in martial arts. I asked around for ages before finding someone who'd seen him enter the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall."

Third Master said gravely, "The Four Seas Martial Arts Hall... Huang Sihai is a formidable fighter. We can't afford to cross him."

"Of course. But at that kid's age, he most likely has a servant physique, with a small chance of an average physique. A superior physique is pretty unlikely. Geniuses like that are usually discovered by the martial arts halls' talent scouts in their early teens and taken in as disciples. My guess is he's just fumbling around at the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall, and Huang Sihai doesn't think much of him."

Third Master nodded. "True enough. Huang Sihai is famously greedy. He takes in plenty of people with poor aptitude, too. If Huang Sihai isn't paying attention to him, we can grab him."

Venomous Snake said, "Once we've caught him, we'll have something to offer Dao Youming if he comes knocking."

Something occurred to Third Master. "Hang on. Even if he's been training, he can't have been at it for long. How could he have beaten Rotten-Life Ji, who'd already developed an azure membrane?"

Venomous Snake chuckled. "Rotten-Life Ji offended an expert a while back and got injured, so he wasn't as strong as he used to be.

"Besides, that kid ambushed him from behind with a sharp weapon... If he let his guard down, getting killed by an ordinary person isn't really that surprising."

Third Master nodded. "We should still be careful. Brother Ji's fate was a warning for us, too. Find out exactly how strong this kid is first. Don't act rashly."

Venomous Snake said, "I'll find an excuse to collect protection money from the Rice Noodle Factory in a few days and test the kid while I'm there."

At noon the next day,

Li Xiuwen looked back at the Walled City, a squat, enormous beast crouching behind him, then at the skyscrapers towering into the clouds all around him ahead.

A hundred feet of difference, two separate worlds.

The tallest buildings in the Enclave were only fourteen stories high. Anything taller might endanger planes taking off and landing.

This wasn't his first time leaving the Enclave. He had occasionally ventured out to look around before.

Today, he was heading out for a gathering with fellow townsmen.

The illegal crossing was another unpleasant memory belonging to this body's original owner.

Back then, more than a dozen of them had crossed the sea together, only to be captured by the Snake Catchers and taken to the Snake Den, where they suffered every kind of torment.

Some died. Others were abused and went mad.

Li Xiuwen had been one of the lucky ones.

Apart from a few superficial injuries, he hadn't suffered much. His uncle-in-law had paid his ransom.

In the end, only four people escaped the Snake Den.

Him, Zhao Dalong, Li Nanshu, and Ding Sheng.

Fortune Restaurant.

It was a long-established Sichuan restaurant, and the prices weren't low.

"Zhao Dalong picked a pretty fancy place for this gathering. Wouldn't one proper feast here cost an ordinary person a month's wages?"

Li Xiuwen decided to eat his fill for once. He had just broken through to the purple membrane stage and needed to replenish his nutrients.

When he reached the private room on the second floor, three people were already seated at the table: a man and two women.

The man was cracking melon seeds. He had thick brows, large eyes, and a burly frame.

He wore a suit and sunglasses, with an arm around a fashionable woman sporting dyed hair, heavy makeup, and a half-exposed cleavage.

The other woman wore everyday martial arts attire. She sat straight-backed with her long legs together, her exposed ankles as fair and delicate as fresh lotus roots.

She had a pretty face, somewhat above average, and neat, short hair.

By the aesthetic standards of the time, her clothes and styling were considerably dowdier than those of the fashionable woman beside her.

Yet her indescribably understated air outshone the other woman's many times over.

"A Wen's here!" The man took off his sunglasses, stood, and hugged Li Xiuwen with his thick arms, tattooed with an azure dragon on the left and a white tiger on the right.

"Zhao Dalong-no... I should call you Brother Long. Three years apart, and now you're throwing money around like this. Made it big in the gangs?" Li Xiuwen asked with a smile.

"Wouldn't call it making it big. I'm just one of the Forty-Niners, with a few lackeys under me." Zhao Dalong took out a cigarette, and the woman beside him lit it.

"You certainly look the part. Just like a gang boss in the movies," Li Xiuwen said with a smile.

Zhao Dalong lit his cigarette and chuckled. "Not even close. Three years in, and I'm still a Four-Nine. I'm not even a Straw Sandal yet. Once I become a Red Pole, then I'll be a real boss!"

After exchanging pleasantries with Zhao Dalong, Li Xiuwen turned to the short-haired young woman. "Little Shu, judging by your outfit, you've started training, too?"

The short-haired girl was called Li Nanshu. She was four years younger than him. In his memories, she had always been a classic southern girl: quiet and gentle.

Zhao Dalong laughed. "Tsk, tsk. Show some respect. You should call her Sister Nanshu. She's a disciple of the Southern Heaven Martial Arts Hall now."

"The Southern Heaven Martial Arts Hall?" Li Xiuwen's gaze froze for a moment.

That was a renowned martial arts hall in Fragrant Harbor, nothing like an obscure establishment such as the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall.

Its master, Ye Tiannan, was a Southern Heaven-style expert. Rumor had it that he had crossed the sea on a single reed when he first came to Fragrant Harbor years ago.

Within a year, he challenged over a hundred martial arts halls in Fragrant Harbor without a single defeat, establishing his reputation.

"Impressive." Li Xiuwen gave her a thumbs-up. Three years had passed. If Li Nanshu had entered the Southern Heaven Martial Arts Hall to train, she was probably no weaker than the Three Heroes.

"I developed an azure membrane a month after I started training, and that's already considered impressive in our gang. Talk about unfair," Zhao Dalong said gloomily.

Then he made sure to explain, "A Wen, having an azure membrane means you're a trained fighter. Against those rotten bastards in the Snake Den, taking on a whole crowd alone would be no problem."

"How about you?" Li Nanshu looked at Li Xiuwen and asked with a smile.

"Same as ever, I suppose... Working in the Enclave, living an ordinary person's life," Li Xiuwen said.

"That's good, too. An ordinary person who lives safely and happily is blessed." Li Nanshu looked him over, smiled, and nodded without saying anything more.

With her higher cultivation, she could tell that A Wen actually carried the air of a trained fighter, rather than an ordinary person.

But A Wen didn't want to talk about it, so she didn't expose him. The Walled City was far too chaotic. Anyone with a little sense would keep something in reserve there.

"We agreed we'd all be down-and-out together, but Sister Shu suddenly took off," Zhao Dalong said, letting out a relieved breath. "Good thing you're here to bring up the rear, A Wen, or I'd feel awful."

"Yeah," Li Xiuwen agreed with a smile.

After the three had eaten and drunk for a while, another person arrived.

His hair was slicked back, his features handsome. Smartly dressed in a suit and tie, he cut an imposing figure.

"Well, well, well! Young Master Ding graces us with his presence! Forgive me for not coming out to welcome you!" Zhao Dalong rose to greet him with a grin.

"Ding Sheng?" Li Xiuwen stared at the polished young man before him.

"Tell me that isn't surreal," Zhao Dalong said with a sigh. "When I got in touch a few days ago, I found out Young Master Ding had a great-grandfather he'd been separated from for years. Ding...

"Chunyi."

Li Xiuwen asked in surprise, "The newspaper tycoon who founded the Spring and Autumn Daily?"

Ding Sheng gave a slight nod and smiled. "That's right."

Zhao Dalong laughed. "The Snake Den that kidnapped us really capsized in a gutter. They messed with Young Master Ding, and he sent people to wipe the whole place out."

Li Nanshu was momentarily speechless, then smiled. "No wonder I went back for revenge and found the place deserted... So Young Master Ding got there first. Impressive."

Zhao Dalong raised his glass. "Who would've thought that tiny fishing boat would produce a Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix like Young Master Ding and Nanshu?

"Here's how I see it, everyone. No matter how we're doing now, whether we've made it big or not, we all once went through life and death together. May our friendship last forever!

"I was thinking the four of us could start a little hometown association, and later bring in others who've been through the same things we have.

"That way, we can support each other here in Fragrant Harbor. You all know this place isn't as easy to get by in as the foreigners make it sound. What do you think?"