A Transformative Rise in Status, Moving into the Inner City

"Little Brother Jiang... you... killed someone..."

Old Man Li's voice trembled. He had never imagined that Jiang Shu, the youth he had known for so long and who had always seemed like a frail scholar, would actually beat Zheng Kun to death with three punches!

Wasn't Zheng Kun a martial artist who had achieved Whole Body Qi and Blood Great Circulation?

Even the chief escorts at the escort agency would have to treat Zheng Kun with every courtesy when they met him.

How had he ended up in Little Brother Jiang's hands—

so unable to take a hit?

Without rushing to answer Old Man Li, Jiang Shu bent down, twisted Zheng Kun's neck, and only after making sure he was completely dead did he search the corpse and find a small pouch of gold beans.

Zheng Kun had been even more disappointing than Jiang Shu had imagined. Though he too had achieved Whole Body Qi and Blood Great Circulation, he merely possessed abundant Blood Qi. His training methods might have passed muster, but in terms of fighting techniques, he was far inferior to Jiang Shu, who had already mastered the Tiger Form Three Styles.

This showed that there was still a certain gap between an Outer City gang hall master and a formal disciple of an Inner City martial hall.

The former merely had sufficient Blood Qi and could overpower ordinary people with sheer force.

But compared to formal martial hall disciples who had truly mastered the Refining, Nourishing, Striking Three Methods, even three or four hall masters together would likely be unable to contain a single one of them.

Once he had confirmed there was nothing overlooked, Jiang Shu stood up. At this moment, he was immensely grateful that he had joined the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall early and trained the Refining, Nourishing, Striking Three Methods to mastery.

Otherwise, relying on his mastered Horse Stance alone and without any fighting techniques, he could certainly have escaped when facing the injured Zheng Kun—but what then?

Old Man Li would surely have died.

And Jiang Shu himself would have been hunted down by the Green Snake Gang members of Poison Fang Hall.

This world was not Xuanxing, after all.

Even this tiny Outer City of Pingling County was fraught with danger. One never knew at what moment danger would descend.

Not to mention the Inner City, where martial artists gathered.

Beneath such colossal forces as the County Government and the great households, without sufficient strength, one could at most scrape together food and clothing in the Inner City, living a life where tomorrow was never assured.

"Little Brother Jiang... should we run away...?"

"Run from what? Zheng Kun wasn't killed by me. Wasn't he killed while being chased by the Black Water Gang?"

Jiang Shu stood and stretched his limbs. Turning to Old Man Li, he spoke with serene calm. "Uncle Li, don't worry. If something happened to Zheng Kun, the Green Snake Gang would only suspect the Black Water Gang. No matter how fiercely the Black Water Gang denied it, would the Green Snake Gang's leader believe them?"

"Once the rain gets a little heavier, I'll toss him into some corner of the Outer City."

"He hid here with you, so naturally he kept it from everyone. He brought death upon himself. Now that he's dead, who would know he ever appeared in Crooked Snake Alley?"

"As for you and me, Uncle Li, tomorrow you'll go to the escort agency and say that you were afraid because the Green Snake Gang and Black Water Gang have been fighting over territory lately, so you came back to sweep the floors at the escort agency. Favors should be used at a time like this."

"As for me, as a formal disciple of the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall, I naturally live in the Inner City. Why would I come to a place like the Outer City?"

Jiang Shu's tone was placid, as though he had not just killed someone, but merely brushed dust from his clothes.

Old Man Li only felt as if his mind had become a pot of muddled paste. At this point, he could not utter a single word.

Little Brother Jiang... hadn't he been studying under Master Qin?

How had he suddenly become a formal disciple of the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall?

During those months when he had been sweeping floors at Poison Fang Hall—

what in the world had happened?!!!

"Uncle Li, you once told me that your daughter was sold into the Inner City. Do you remember which broker's house bought her, and roughly how many years ago it was? I'll keep an eye out these days and see if I can find any traces."

"Once I become a martial artist, I'll go to the County Government and help you settle the household registration issue. Move into the Inner City afterward as well. The Outer City gangs are constantly at war; moving from place to place isn't truly safe. You're getting on in years too. From now on, enjoy your later years properly. Don't keep living in fear every day."

As he spoke, Jiang Shu picked up a wooden bucket from Old Man Li's room, went out to collect rainwater, and washed the blood from the ground clean.

Killing someone.

Washing the ground.

Done in one smooth motion.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

In the Outer City, the Green Snake Gang and Black Water Gang continued to fight without end. After news of Hall Master Zheng's death spread, Poison Fang Hall fell apart, and the Green Snake Gang was driven back again and again. Yet strangely, the leaders of neither gang had made a move. Only the gang members fell and died in batch after batch.

Refugees and commoners from Crooked Snake Alley and several other alleys moved away one after another.

Yet the County Government did not care about any of this.

If one batch of refugees did not want to live here—

wouldn't the next batch be willing to?

Inner City.

Jiang Shu stood in his newly rented Small Courtyard. After the rain, the air in Pingling County was exceptionally fresh.

Over the past three days, he had not only settled his own household registration, but also rented a Small Courtyard in the eastern part of the Inner City.

It was remote and reasonably priced.

The attached yard was only around twenty square meters. Jiang Shu casually planted a few plants whose names he did not even know, adding a little life to the place. There were two rooms: one for himself, while the other had been tidied up and turned into a training room.

"At last, I have a little foothold in Pingling County. I really have to thank Hall Master Zheng. Without that small pouch of gold beans, where would I have gotten so much silver?"

"Murder and arson bring gold belts around the waist. The ancients truly did not deceive me. Even a mere hall master had such wealth. I really can't imagine the accumulation of those great households..."

"If I were strong enough, why would I bother doing business? Wouldn't robbing those damned rich households bring money faster?"

"Unfortunately, I'm not strong enough, and my talent doesn't seem all that great either. Three days have already passed, yet I still haven't even touched the threshold of the Hungry Tiger Howling Mountain Force. It seems I still have to use the stupid method and grind all three of the Refining, Nourishing, Striking Three Methods to perfection first."

Jiang Shu muttered inwardly as he pushed open the door and stepped outside.

Unlike the cramped lanes of Crooked Snake Alley—

the stone road outside the Small Courtyard was clean and spacious. Nearby, many stallholders called out their wares. Bathed in a ray of sunlight, Jiang Shu headed toward the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall.

By the time he arrived, the entrance of the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall was already alive with gongs and drums, bustling with celebration.

Nearby residents had gathered around, while the apprentices practicing Qi and Blood Circulation stood outside one after another to maintain order. Zhou Yang, having benefited from Jiang Shu's favor, had shed his former laziness and stood in the most conspicuous spot, loudly announcing the various congratulatory gifts sent by the arriving factions.

Before long.

Inside the martial hall.

All the martial hall masters of Pingling County's Inner City had arrived.

The great households also sent their illegitimate sons and stewards one after another to congratulate Old Man Chou on accepting a talented new disciple.

Chou Hai sat in a high-backed chair. Beside him stood all twelve formal disciples who had already become martial artists of the Skin Grinding Realm.

After everyone had taken their seats.

Chou Hai cleared his throat, looked at Jiang Shu in the center of the courtyard, and said:

"Apprentice Jiang Shu is kind-hearted by nature and diligent in martial training. He has now achieved Whole Body Qi and Blood Great Circulation and has been accepted by this old man as a formal disciple, ranked thirteenth. In this life, he shall not fail the Martial Dao, nor defy his master's teachings. He shall train diligently day and night, polish his skin at the earliest opportunity, and ensure the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall's illustrious name does not fall..."

Amid a chorus of congratulations.

Jiang Shu changed into the formal disciple's training uniform of the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall.

On the chest of the pure black training uniform, a vicious tiger's head was embroidered in gold thread, its fangs sharp and gleaming.

He accepted a cup of clear tea from his senior brother, stepped forward a few paces, knelt on the ground, and respectfully offered the tea with both hands.

"Master, please accept this bow from your disciple, Jiang Shu."