Compensation

"Master Chen, aside from the Refining Liquid, this is the additional compensation I prepared. Please take a look."

The brocade box was pushed before Chen Xu. Perhaps it had been sprayed with perfume or something beforehand, as a faint fragrance wafted out.

The first brocade box contained nothing special: a check for fifty thousand Abyss Coins, redeemable for Great Abyss Coin at any official bank in Great Abyss.

Just as he was about to open the second gift box, a commotion arose outside the door, with Wen Fan at its head.

Cheng Bin gave Chen Xu an apologetic smile, then opened the door and stepped into the corridor.

"What are you all making such a fuss about out here?"

Seeing their master's stern expression, the disciples could not help shrinking back. Only Wen Fan remained where he stood without moving.

"He's just some kid who came to challenge our martial hall. Why are you treating him with such respect, Master?"

Wen Fan truly could not swallow this insult. A man who had injured two of their disciples and blasted their door to pieces clearly had not come with friendly intentions. Since when had his master become so easygoing?

When had Iron Stele Martial Hall ever suffered such treatment, only to shamelessly curry favor afterward?

Most importantly, his master was such an upright man, yet he had been slandered as a thief. It was utterly ridiculous.

"It's a misunderstanding. It's all a misunderstanding," Cheng Bin explained reluctantly. He truly was not good at lying to his own disciples.

Seeing Chen Xu still leaning casually against the desk, Wen Fan's anger flared. "You, get out here!"

"Wen Fan!" Cheng Bin's voice immediately rose. "How dare you speak to my guest like that!"

"I'll first see whether you're qualified to be that guest!"

In an instant, Wen Fan shot out from the front of the crowd, fierce gusts of force wrapped around his palms.

"Great Stone-Stele Smash, Stele-Splitting Form!"

"How could this be?" Cheng Bin's expression froze slightly. Had Wen Fan unknowingly cultivated Great Stone-Stele Smash to such a level already?

Even he was too late to stop him.

"Master Chen, watch out!" Cheng Bin shouted. When he had first arrived in Jinning Commandery in his youth, Chen Zhenwu had looked after him several times. Otherwise, he would not have felt so guilty.

Even with the old master's tacit approval, he still felt that he owed this sole heir of Chen Martial Arts Academy a great deal.

He had originally intended to wait until Wen Fan caught the attention of the Martial Pavilion's higher-ups during the Martial Hall Exchange Tournament, then tell Chen Xu the truth. He would then use that pretext to support Chen Xu and train him into a qualified martial hall master.

He had never expected Chen Xu to suddenly come knocking today, catching him completely off guard.

Having immersed himself in Great Stone-Stele Smash for decades, he could tell that Wen Fan had struck with all his strength, showing no mercy whatsoever.

"Scared stiff?" Seeing Chen Xu remain motionless, Wen Fan shifted the target of his palms from his head to other parts of his body. Teaching him a lesson would be enough; he was not about to beat the youth to death over something like this.

"Strong, but far too rigid."

Before the words had even faded, Chen Xu threw a punch, striking after him yet arriving first.

Wen Fan let out a muffled grunt as he smashed through a wooden partition and tumbled into the next room.

"Xiao Fan!" In his panic, Cheng Bin rushed into the neighboring room. After a quick examination revealed that Wen Fan was barely injured, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Carry your Head Disciple downstairs and rub some medicinal herbs on his wounds," Cheng Bin said, rising to his feet and clasping his hands behind his back as he addressed the martial hall disciples.

Once the disciples had left, Cheng Bin shook his head with a bitter laugh. "So Master Chen already possesses such strength. If you are willing to join the Martial Pavilion in this year's Martial Hall Exchange Tournament, perhaps one day I'll have to address you as a Martial Artist."

Chen Xu was even stronger than he was. After some time passed, it was hard to say who would end up supporting whom.

"Oh? Does Master Cheng mean that the Martial Hall Exchange Tournament has another purpose?" Chen Xu looked toward Cheng Bin. He wanted to use Martial Dao to establish a foothold for himself.

However, the original owner had merely been an ordinary youth from a martial hall, so he knew very little about the Martial Dao World.

"Old Master Chen never told you?" Cheng Bin sounded surprised. If it had been him, with such strength at barely over ten years old, he would have poured every resource he could obtain into the boy. He certainly would not have concealed news like this.

Old Master Chen had already passed away, and Cheng Bin obviously could not go down and ask him. So he decided to tell Chen Xu in the old master's place. "Master Chen, have you heard of Great Abyss National University?"

Chen Xu nodded lightly. So long as one was from Great Abyss, one had heard of Great Abyss National University. More than half of its students could be said to become the future pillars of Great Abyss.

What it was most famous for was its principle of treating imperial princes and commoners as equals. So long as they remained at the university, they were merely fellow students, regardless of any outside status.

"You can study any knowledge that exists in Great Abyss there, including Martial Dao." Cheng Bin filled both their teacups, his gaze seeming to pierce the heavens toward Abyss Capital, the foremost city of Great Abyss, where Great Abyss National University was located.

"Martial Pavilion branches at the county level and above have yearly quotas to send people to Great Abyss National University."

At this point, Chen Xu understood. The Martial Hall Exchange Tournament was a platform for martial halls to draw the Martial Pavilion's attention to their geniuses. If one's talent was good enough and one then joined the Martial Pavilion, one would have a chance to study more powerful Martial Dao there.

"Master Chen, if I'm not mistaken, you aren't eighteen yet this year. You must not miss this opportunity.

A Martial Warrior Stage practitioner before eighteen and one after eighteen receive completely different treatment.

The Martial Artist realm is something one can only encounter by chance. In all of Jinning Commandery, perhaps only that elusive pavilion master has entered the [Martial Form] realm."

Chen Xu's eyes lit up. "So there's plenty of Refining Liquid there?"

"Refining Liquid? What we can use is merely scraps from true Refining Liquid. How could they possibly distribute genuine core resources as rewards for civilian martial halls?"

Cheng Bin set down his teacup. He seemed to have completely regarded Chen Xu as one of his juniors, constantly imparting his experience and Martial Dao principles.

He spoke of not attacking those who did not practice Martial Dao, of respecting every Martial Dao inheritance, and most importantly, of not acting as rashly as he had today. If he ran into someone difficult, escaping unscathed would not be easy.

For the sake of the five brocade boxes and the future Refining Liquid, Chen Xu endured listening for over an hour. When he noticed Cheng Bin was still talking endlessly, looking likely to speak through the entire night, he hurriedly found an excuse to leave Iron Stele Martial Hall.

They had given him gifts, made promises, and taught him quite a bit of common knowledge about the Martial Dao World. Chen Xu truly had no reason to make a move.

His original purpose in learning Martial Dao was to secure a place for himself in this new world, at the very least ensuring that no one could bully him at will. Attacking others without cause did not suit his character.

After all, before transmigrating, he had been nothing more than one ordinary person among countless others.

Night fell, and scattered lights lit up Iron Stele Martial Hall as neon flickered across its signboard.

Chen Xu planned to return to his own martial hall first and inspect the remaining four brocade boxes.

With establishing himself in this new world as the prerequisite, he set his first small Martial Dao goal: advance to [Martial Form] and become a true Martial Artist.

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