Zhou Hong

The yellowish-brown mountain ginseng lay in a wooden box, more than half of its rootlets broken off during the earlier fight.

Zhou Yan tucked the wooden box into his clothes and left the martial hall, heading toward the street corner.

The apothecary belonged to the Sun Family. He had always bought his Body-Tempering Decoction from this shop before.

Medicinal herbs dried in bamboo baskets at the entrance, their bitter scent drifting halfway down the alley.

The shopkeeper was quite talkative. He also knew Zhou Yan had come from the Sun Family's guard squad, making them practically one of their own, so they had gradually become familiar with each other.

The plump shopkeeper worked his abacus behind the counter. Seeing the visitor, he looked up with a smile. "Brother Zhou, here for more Body-Tempering Decoction?"

Zhou Yan shook his head, placed the wooden box on the counter, and opened it. "Shopkeeper, take a look at this..."

The shopkeeper stopped his abacus, opened the box, picked up the mountain ginseng inside, turned it over twice, and brought it close to his nose for a sniff.

He examined it over and over before slowly putting it back into the box.

"This is at least sixty years old," the shopkeeper said, lowering his voice. He glanced up at Zhou Yan. "Where did you dig it up?"

"Someone gave it to me." Zhou Yan smiled.

The shopkeeper looked at him again, clearly not believing that explanation, but he did not press further.

In the medicinal herb trade, some goods came from proper sources and some did not. One had to know what to ask and what not to ask.

"For mountain ginseng of this age, it's a pity the rootlets aren't intact. You won't get its original value if you sell it. You might as well use it yourself. Slice it thin and hold the slices under your tongue. Once they dissolve into your saliva, swallow it down. This whole root can make thirty or forty thin slices, enough for you to use for a month."

The shopkeeper picked up the mountain ginseng again and gently pinched one of its rootlets.

"Can it be used with Body-Tempering Decoction?"

"It can, but you won't be able to handle it." The shopkeeper waved a hand. "Body-Tempering Decoction is for soaking. Its medicinal power seeps inward through the skin. These ginseng slices are taken internally, and their medicinal power travels outward from the stomach. When those two forces collide in the middle, your outer flesh and inner muscles and bones will be squeezed at once. Pain is the least of it. If you overnourish yourself and rupture your meridians, you'll be stuck at the Body-Tempering Realm for the rest of your life."

Zhou Yan nodded and committed those words to memory.

He smiled and thanked him, bought a small porcelain bottle, and had the apothecary slice the mountain ginseng for him.

Old mountain ginseng was difficult to slice. The apothecary's master used a small knife to cut it piece by piece, each slice thin enough to let light through and no bigger than a fingernail.

After corking the bottle, Zhou Yan paid the copper coins and carefully tucked it into his clothes.

It was still early when he left the apothecary, and there were few people on the street.

He headed back toward the martial hall and had just turned the corner.

"Zhou Yan?"

A familiar voice suddenly rang out beside him. Zhou Yan turned to look.

Two familiar faces from Willow Village stood across the street.

Zhou Tiezhu was much sturdier than he had been over a year ago. His shoulders had broadened, his face had been tanned dark, and he carried a packet of medicine in one hand.

He was still the same—simple-minded but pleasantly surprised. His grin stretched from ear to ear as he crossed the street in a few large strides.

The person beside him was Zhou Hong, Second Uncle's son and Zhou Yan's cousin.

He wore the gray uniform of Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall, made of better cloth than Zhou Tiezhu's. A blue belt circled his waist, and he stood straight as a spear.

After more than a year apart, his fair face had gained sharper lines, and the aura of someone at minor success in Body Tempering was impossible to conceal.

When he saw Zhou Yan, his steps paused for a moment before he smiled.

"It really is you. Tiezhu said so just now, but I still didn't dare believe it!"

Zhou Tiezhu gave Zhou Yan a thorough look, then slapped him on the shoulder. "What are you doing in the county town? Are you in a martial hall too?"

"Just a fortunate coincidence. I joined Mountain-Suppressing Martial Hall." Zhou Yan smiled.

"Mountain-Suppressing Martial Hall?" Zhou Tiezhu turned to Zhou Hong. "Isn't that just two streets away from our Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall?"

Hearing this, Zhou Hong slowly walked over.

His pace was unhurried. He stopped before Zhou Yan.

"Cousin, long time no see." Zhou Hong's tone was polite, as though he were greeting an acquaintance he was not particularly close to.

That "cousin" was spoken lightly.

Zhou Yan remembered that, more than a year ago in the village, Zhou Hong had never called him cousin. At most, he would nod when they met.

When the family split, Grandfather had given most of the family property to Second Uncle. Zhou Hong lived in a brick house, while Zhou Yan lived in a mud-brick courtyard.

Back then, whenever Zhou Hong passed by his own doorway, his eyes had always been raised high.

Now that he had left the village and entered the city, and learned that Zhou Yan had joined a martial hall too, he had suddenly become polite.

Zhou Yan cupped his hands in return but said nothing more.

Zhou Tiezhu could not hold back his words. He poured them all out at once. "Zhou Hong is in Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall's Class C now. He's already reached minor success in Body Tempering, and even the instructor praises how quickly he's improved! I've only just entered Body Tempering, and I've barely stabilized my stance work. I'm far behind. Zhou Yan, have you started Body Tempering too?"

"I only just entered it. I've only been here a few months."

Zhou Hong's gaze rested on Zhou Yan for a moment before shifting away.

"Class C at Mountain-Suppressing Martial Hall is taught by Instructor Ding, right?" Zhou Hong suddenly asked.

"Instructor Ding is famous for beating people with his bamboo rod. If you can endure that, it means your stance work foundation isn't bad."

Zhou Hong smiled. He pretended to be familiar with Instructor Ding, and there was something indescribable in that smile. "Take it slowly. Martial arts can't be rushed. Those of us from the village can't compare with city people who have family wealth behind them, but we can endure hardship."

Zhou Yan did not respond.

Zhou Tiezhu nodded at the side. "Right, right, Zhou Hong's right. It's already good enough that you got into a martial hall. You don't know this, but my father borrowed from the entire village just to scrape together the tuition. It still hasn't been paid back. Being able to stay is an accomplishment in itself."

"Tiezhu, let's go." Zhou Hong patted Zhou Tiezhu on the shoulder, neither too hard nor too lightly, cutting him off at just the right moment. "We'll meet again another day. We need to get Senior Brother Luo's medicine back quickly."

Zhou Tiezhu answered, then turned back to Zhou Yan. "Come visit us at Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall sometime! It isn't easy for people from our village to gather in the city. You have no idea—Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall is much bigger than Mountain-Suppressing Martial Hall. It has several Class A groups, and its training ground can hold over a hundred people!"

Zhou Hong had already walked several steps away. Looking back, he said, "Come by when you have time. Class C—just give them my name."

With that, he turned and left, while Zhou Tiezhu hurried after him.

Zhou Yan stood there and watched for a while. Then he gave a soft laugh and turned toward Mountain-Suppressing Martial Hall.

Zhou Hong was still the same as ever.

Back in the village, he had relied on Grandfather's favoritism and taken plenty of advantage of the main branch.

When the family split, Grandfather had given most of the property to Second Uncle. As Second Uncle's youngest son, Zhou Hong had lived more comfortably than Zhou Yan since childhood.

Now that he had entered Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall and reached minor success in Body Tempering, he looked down on Zhou Yan even more.

He called him cousin, but Zhou Yan was still absent from his eyes.

That "cousin" was not an acknowledgment of kinship. It was Zhou Hong placing himself above him.

I'm being polite to give you face, so don't take it seriously!

But it did not matter.

Zhou Yan had no intention of building any brotherly bond with Zhou Hong. They could each walk their own path and leave each other alone.

If Zhou Hong failed to recognize his place and provoked him, then he could not blame Zhou Yan for putting righteousness before family.

A slice of mountain ginseng rested beneath his tongue.

When the medicinal power dissolved, it carried an earthy, fishy taste mixed with bitterness as it flowed down his throat with his saliva.

On the first day, he took one slice.

A current of heat churned in his abdomen. It was gentler than Body-Tempering Decoction, but far more enduring.

Body-Tempering Decoction was used for soaking. Its medicinal power traveled inward through the skin and stopped once it reached the gaps between the bones.

This mountain ginseng traveled outward from his stomach, going wherever it could reach.

Zhou Yan sat cross-legged on his bed, heat steaming from every pore.

He assumed the Mountain-Settling Stance and guided the medicinal power downward, layer by layer, until it sank into the soles of his feet.

[Mountain-Settling Stance: Mastery 203/300]

The days that followed became routine.

During the day, he practiced stances and fists as usual in Class C.

He deliberately held back thirty percent of his strength in his stance work, making it look solid without drawing attention.

Ding Yong occasionally passed by. His bamboo rod struck others but not Zhou Yan, and he did not give Zhou Yan any extra looks.

Hall Master Xue Zhenshan visited Class C twice. He swept his gaze across the entire training ground before leaving, though his eyes lingered on Zhou Yan for a moment.

There was no other reason. Zhou Yan's diligence at the martial hall had become well known.

Before dawn, people could see him practicing fists on the training ground. Once he began his stance work, he could continue until the sun set.

Many old disciples could not compare to him in that regard.

Still, many people sighed over it, saying that without talent, all one could do was rely on hard work.

No one mentioned He Song anymore.

A month had passed. Whatever needed discussing had long been discussed, and Class C returned to normal.

Pockmarked Zhang found a new topic, saying that a genius had appeared at Heavenly Peak Martial Arts Hall.

In just two years, he had gone from an ordinary person to major success in the Qi Gathering Realm.

Meng Lei was still having his stance work struck by Ding Yong every day. Fang Jin's spot had been taken by a newcomer, and Wang Si's empty bed was occupied again.

Every night, when Zhou Yan returned to his room and shut the door, it became an entirely different scene.

First, he held a slice of mountain ginseng beneath his tongue. When the medicinal power rose, he practiced the Mountain-Breaking Fist, throwing punch after punch.

The force of the Mountain-Breaking Fist at mastery was far fiercer than it had been at minor success. Every punch made the qi and blood within his body feel as if they had been ignited.

Once the burning ended, the medicinal power followed and filled the burned-out places anew.

[Mountain-Breaking Fist: Mastery 18/300]

He held the Mountain-Settling Stance until his entire body burned, pressing down the restless qi stirred up by the Mountain-Breaking Fist.

Once it had been smoothed out, he practiced the Mountain-Suppressing Fist again!

[Mountain-Suppressing Fist: Minor Success 56/200]

Through his daily hard training, the Mountain-Suppressing Fist had already reached minor success.

Zhou Yan discovered that his Martial Dao Limit-Breaking System improved cultivation techniques at an utterly monstrous speed!

Others needed years of practice to reach minor success, while he only needed to repeat the training every day to improve.

There were no bottlenecks at all!

He withdrew his fists, assumed his stance, took another slice of ginseng, and repeated the process.

One month later.

When the ginseng bottle was nearly empty, Zhou Yan finished his final stance session.

Peak Body Tempering!

The tempering of his flesh, muscles, and bones had reached the end of the Body-Tempering Realm.

The next step was Qi Gathering!

The Qi Gathering Realm required opening the dantian aperture and producing inner qi.

[Mountain-Settling Stance: Mastery 276/300]

The Mountain-Settling Stance had not yet reached perfection, but Zhou Yan had a feeling that once it did, he would naturally step into Qi Gathering.

He was just one breath short!

As one of his great killing moves, the Mountain-Breaking Fist naturally continued progressing steadily.

[Mountain-Breaking Fist: Mastery 132/300]

The Mountain-Suppressing Fist had also passed the halfway point of minor success.

[Mountain-Suppressing Fist: Minor Success 165/200]

He dismissed the panel and looked at the empty medicine bottles in the corner and the piled-up dregs from the Body-Tempering Decoction.

A month had nearly exhausted his silver. Less than two taels remained in his pocket.

Martial arts burned money. The martial hall's monthly five taels could not even cover his Body-Tempering Decoction, let alone the monthly payment that was due again soon.

But in this world, martial strength reigned supreme!

Without strength, even the most substantial family fortune could not be protected!

Zhou Yan rose and walked to the washstand, splashing water over his face.

Tomorrow, he needed to return to the Sun Family and find Steward Feng. He had to figure out a way to take on some outside assignments and quickly secure next month's silver.