That Is Your Death Anniversary

Feng Chen did not start his cultivation immediately because a commotion came from the other side of the courtyard.

It was the familiar creak when the courtyard gate was pushed open, the muffled thud of the bamboo back-basket being set down against the base of the wall, and then brisk footsteps!

Lin Qing'er had returned.

The sun climbed straight up to the zenith,

Feng Chen got up and walked out of the house.

At noon, sunlight flooded the courtyard. Lin Qing'er walked in with the basket on her back, fine beads of sweat hanging from her temples and her cheeks slightly flushed from the sun.

Seeing Feng Chen at home, a smile blossomed on her face, the corners of her eyes curving. "Husband, you're back."

"Yes, I'm back."

Feng Chen went up to her and took the basket.

It was heavy, filled with a large basket of freshly picked wild vegetables. The leaves were bright green and dripping with freshness, and some still carried the moist soil from the mountain stream.

He placed the back-basket down against the base of the wall.

Lin Qing'er caught her breath, then pulled on Feng Chen's sleeve and walked toward the house, her face a mix of excitement and nervousness, as if she were holding back a belly full of words she wanted to say.

Before she even sat down after entering the main room, she leaned in close to Feng Chen, lowering her voice. "Husband, I'm telling you, the village chief's corpse has been dealt with by his relatives. I heard that early this morning, Liu Ma took a few people from the Liu clan to the village chief's house and pushed the courtyard gate open. The blood inside had already dried black. The village chief's head..."

She shuddered, gripping Feng Chen's sleeve tightly. "They really cut his head off. It's so terrifying."

Feng Chen understood in his heart.

Liu Dagang's corpse had finally been collected and buried. After all, he was the village chief, and the Liu surname was considered a sizable clan in the village; relatives from his branch had to step forward to handle funeral arrangements.

Usually, those people followed Liu Dagang to freeload and take advantage of things. Now that he was dead, collecting his corpse was the least they could do.

Seeing that Feng Chen did not speak, Lin Qing'er leaned in closer, her voice dropping even lower. "Right, Husband, I heard from Village Chief Liu's relatives that they've already sent word to Liu Teng, the younger brother of Tiger Liu, the one who's been studying martial arts at the town martial hall."

"They said Liu Teng is already a martial artist, and that as soon as he finishes dealing with what's on his hands, he'll come straight back to avenge his father."

Lin Qing'er raised her head, a trace of lingering worry flashing in her eyes.

A trace of cold light flashed in Feng Chen's eyes.

Naturally, he had not forgotten Liu Teng.

That name was among the very last few words Liu Dagang spoke before he died—Tiger Liu's younger brother, two years younger than his older brother, whom Liu Dagang had spent a large amount of silver to send to the martial hall in town to study martial arts.

He rarely returned to the village these years. He just hadn't expected that the news had already been sent over.

However, he had not seen the person Liu Teng yet, so he could not make a move for the time being.

He wondered what realm Liu Teng was at now. After studying at the Wang Clan Martial Hall for these past few years, was he at the Body Tempering First Level or Second Level?

He would see clearly face-to-face once Liu Teng returned to the village.

If he was stronger than him, then he would endure it for now and avoid his sharp edge, waiting until his realm caught up before making a move.

If he was weaker than him, then next year's today would be Liu Teng's death anniversary.

Feng Chen did not tell Lin Qing'er these words.

He put away the cold light in the depths of his eyes and replaced it with a gentle smile. "Is that so? Then it looks like things are going to get unsettled again."

"Yeah, it's going to get unsettled." Lin Qing'er nodded, sighed, and then raised her face to look at him again, as if waiting for him to call the shots.

Feng Chen did not dwell on this topic and patted her shoulder. "Let's go, Qing'er, and make lunch. I'm hungry too."

"Okay, Husband."

As soon as Lin Qing'er heard about cooking, the worried look on her face dissipated.

Now the family was not short of food; rows of meat hung from the kitchen rafters, unhusked brown rice sat in the rice vat, and oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar were all fully supplied on the stove.

She rolled up her sleeves and walked into the kitchen, squatting in front of the stove fire to make a fire, and even hummed a stray line or two of a tune.

The two of them busied themselves together in the kitchen.

Feng Chen helped her pick vegetables and slice meat, took a large piece of pork hind leg meat down from the rafters, and placed it on the chopping board. With a flick of his wrist, he produced thin, evenly thick slices of meat.

Lin Qing'er washed the rice and put it in the pot nearby, washing the wild vegetables and cutting them into sections.

The firelight in the stove shone on their faces. The water in the pot boiled, the meat slices were dropped in and scalded until they rolled, and the wild vegetables were poured in and simmered for a short moment until tender.

Half an hour later, a large pot of stewed meat was ready. The aroma of meat and the fresh fragrance of wild vegetables blended together, and when the lid of the pot was lifted, white steam billowed upward.

Feng Chen ate several bowls of rice and half a pot of stewed meat in a row until the empty feeling in his stomach was completely filled. Only then did he put down his bowl and chopsticks, and look at Lin Qing'er. "Qing'er, I'm going to continue my cultivation this afternoon."

"Okay, Husband, go practice. I'll keep going out to pick wild vegetables for you," Lin Qing'er replied.

Feng Chen shook his head. "I won't go pick them today. There's food at home, we don't lack just that little bit. You stay home and also look at the martial arts books I bought, and you can cultivate with me when the time comes."

He had thought about this matter long ago.

He had already become a martial artist, and his lifespan and physical fitness far exceeded ordinary people's; in the future on the martial arts path, he would only go further and further.

Lin Qing'er was his wife in this lifetime. Ever since she was bought, she had followed him wholeheartedly without a single word of complaint.

Now that he had the ability, naturally he had to plan for her as well.

Although he still didn't know what Lin Qing'er's innate bone structure was like, with the Blood-Qi Medicinal Herbs and correct cultivation methods he provided, even if her bone structure was ordinary, spending a bit more resources to slowly polish it should allow her to become a martial artist as well.

Hearing this, Lin Qing'er hurriedly shook her head. "Husband, why don't we forget it. It's enough to have one martial artist in the family, and I don't need to go out and fight people."

She had heard that practicing martial arts cost a lot of money; for those young people in the village who went to the martial hall in town to study, the tuition alone cost ten taels of silver a month.

Even though Feng Chen had money on hand right now, she didn't know which kind-hearted person had sponsored it all, and presumably it wasn't very much.

It was fine for her husband to practice alone; she didn't want to take up an extra share.

Looking at her looking like she was terrified of spending an extra copper coin, Feng Chen found it both funny and heartwarming.

He reached out and patted Lin Qing'er's head. "Let's practice together. Listen to me."

Lin Qing'er raised her head and looked at Feng Chen's earnest face. Her lips moved, but the words that reached her mouth were swallowed back down again.

She had no choice but to nod and said in a soft voice, "Alright then, I'll listen to Husband."

After tidying up,

Feng Chen began to teach Lin Qing'er to practice the Tiger Fist.

He had already cultivated the Tiger Fist to perfection himself, knowing every move and form thoroughly by heart.

He first let Lin Qing'er read the Tiger Fist secret manual from beginning to end, and then he broke down each move and form right beside her.

From the starting stance of the Tiger Crouch, to the punching angle and breathing coordination of Tiger Probes with Its Claws, to the waist-and-hip twist and fist-surface exertion of Black Tiger Rips Out the Heart, he explained it very slowly and in detail, reaching out from time to time to help her adjust her posture.

Biting her lip, Lin Qing'er earnestly and carefully followed along to learn. Even though her movements were as stiff as a newborn fawn learning to walk, her attitude was more proper than anyone's.

An hour later, Lin Qing'er slowly gestured according to the movements of the Tiger Fist. Although each move and form was still very unfamiliar, the general framework could already be put on display.

Feng Chen watched from the side for a moment and nodded.

Unlike him, Lin Qing'er did not have the Destiny Talent of Rapid Mastery; she could only rely on time and sweat to take it slowly, and it could not be rushed.

He let Lin Qing'er practice by herself in the courtyard while he turned and walked into another room.

Feng Chen stood firm in the center of the room, his feet apart and shoulder-width apart, and regulated his breathing.

He closed his eyes, running through the Giant Strength Art cultivation method from start to finish in his mind.

The Giant Strength Art was a purely body-tempering cultivation technique, possessing independent stance work and breathing methods.

The starting stance work was called the Giant Strength Stance!

His legs were slightly bent, his hands held empty in front of him as if embracing a giant boulder, his body's center of gravity sank, his Qi sank into his Dantian, and in his mind it felt as if there truly was a heavy boulder weighing a thousand catties in his arms, using his whole body's strength to support it.

Feng Chen adjusted his posture according to the secret manual diagrams.

As soon as the stance frame was established, a heavy pressure surged up from all his limbs and bones, and the Qi and blood within his body began to surge rhythmically under the guidance of the Dantian, impacting his tendons and bones.

A moment later.

Clang, dong. Giant Strength Art proficiency increased by one.

Clang, dong. Giant Strength Art has achieved mastery of entry; please check, Host.

Accompanied by the talent prompt tone, a burst of preliminary insights regarding the Giant Strength Art surged and rolled in his mind.

He closed his eyes to digest those insights one by one.

The slight adjustments to the stance frame, the breathing rhythm, and the Qi-and-blood circulation route were integrated into his body bit by bit.