You defeated an LV8 enemy and gained 3 experience points.
You defeated an LV12 enemy and gained 10 experience points.
You defeated an LV18 enemy and gained 25 experience points.
A string of notifications flashed before Chen Ming's eyes. Defeating the fourteen people present had only earned him 78 experience points in total.
After reaching Level 20, beating opponents in the teens yielded pitifully little experience. After defeating them repeatedly a few times, it dropped to only 5 points.
How much experience would defeating a Level 20 opponent give me?
He was looking forward to finding out.
In the rear courtyard, Chen Rui sat in a chair with his eyes closed, resting his mind. Yet his hands gripped the armrests so tightly that they revealed just how nervous he was.
Wei Shi held her wailing daughter in her arms, soothing her softly while a trace of unease showed in her eyes.
Six-year-old Chen Lide's little face was taut as he stayed glued to his mother and younger sister's side.
The air was thick with unease.
At this moment, they all realized with crystal clarity that the honor and disgrace of the entire Chen Family now rested on Chen Ming alone.
If he prospered, the whole family prospered.
If he failed to escape this calamity, the entire family would plunge into the abyss with him.
And they could not help him in the slightest.
Chen Rui felt a deep sense of powerlessness. As the eldest son of the family, when danger struck, he could actually do nothing at all.
Amid this agonizing wait—
An excited voice came from outside. "He won... Second Young Master won!"
It was the maid Xiao Hong.
Wei Shi had sent her out to gather news.
Upon hearing this, Chen Rui felt as though a great burden had been lifted. He silently muttered, "Ancestors, bless us!" He was just about to get up and help clean up the aftermath when he discovered that he did not have a shred of strength left in his body.
For a moment, he could not even stand.
"Wonderful... wonderful..."
Beside him, Wei Shi wept tears of joy and kissed her daughter fiercely.
Chen Lirong had no idea what was happening. Seeing her mother like this, she wailed even louder.
Chen Lide looked toward the doorway, his little face filled with yearning and envy. He wished that when he grew up, he too could be like his second uncle—stepping forward when bad people appeared, defeating them, and protecting his family.
At that moment, Xiao Hong ran into the room, gasping for breath.
Chen Rui hurriedly asked, "Tell me everything that happened outside."
"Second Young Master... he defeated all those bad people in one go... I heard people saying that Second Young Master is already Eighth Rank."
"Eighth Rank?"
Chen Rui was utterly shocked, his face full of disbelief.
Unlike Xiao Hong, he was not so ignorant. Though he had never practiced martial arts, he knew quite a bit about the ranks of martial artists and understood perfectly well what an Eighth Rank Martial Artist represented.
Moreover, Erlang had only entered the Ninth Rank last year, after cultivating bitterly for eight years.
And now, only one year had passed, yet he had broken through to the Eighth Rank?
It was too unreal.
He had never heard of any martial artist in Qingfeng City breaking through a rank so quickly.
For martial artists, breaking through realms often took several years. Three to five years was considered fast. Failing to break through even after seven or eight years was perfectly normal. Many spent more than a decade still trapped at Ninth Rank.
Could Erlang truly be a Martial Prodigy?
When Chen Rui came outside and saw the group standing punishment-style at the gate, he could not help but fall into a daze. This scene was so similar to when the people from Wanli Gambling House had come to collect their debt last year.
"Stand properly."
Old Li, the gatekeeper, held a bamboo whip as he pointed at them and shouted.
Those dozen or so burly men were all bigger and taller than Old Li, yet before him, they did not even dare lift their heads.
Two more lay on the ground, seemingly unconscious.
Erlang sat in a rattan chair, brewing tea. Chunxiang and Xiaxiang stood behind him, fanning him.
"Big Brother, come sit."
After Chen Rui went over and sat down, he picked up the tea his younger brother had brewed for him and took a sip. There were many things he wanted to say, but for the moment, he did not know how to begin.
Chen Ming took the initiative instead. "I know that in business, harmony brings wealth. Big Brother, do you think humiliating them like this was going too far?"
Those words struck straight at Chen Rui's heart. He did not hide his thoughts and said, "I heard that the president of the Martial Hall Guild is Old Hallmaster Lei of Fenglei Martial Hall. He is a Seventh Rank martial artist, and his Wind and Thunder Saber Technique once swept through the entire commandery undefeated. I fear he will not be easy to provoke."
Chen Ming smiled faintly and said only one thing. "He is old—over seventy—and still has to hold up his martial hall's facade. That shows there are scarcely any promising heirs or disciples among his descendants. He is nothing to worry about."
"Big Brother, in the world of martial artists, trying to be kind to everyone will not work. It will only make people think you are easy to bully. Then everyone will want to step on you to make a name for themselves. That is when trouble will come without end. Only by striking back viciously when others provoke you will they respect and fear you. This is called: punch open a path, lest a hundred punches come your way."
Chen Rui was completely convinced. "Since you have it all figured out, Erlang, I am at ease. Go ahead and do as you see fit. Whatever consequences there may be, we brothers will bear them together."
Inside the rear residence of Fenglei Martial Hall.
Lei Zhenguang sat in his study. His hair was still black, but the wrinkles on his face had already grown deep, revealing the marks of time.
Lei Yucheng, who had just passed thirty this year, stood before him and humbly sought guidance. "Grandfather, didn't Envoy Sun say not to take Chen Ming's life? Why did you still send Li Xiangrong?"
Li Xiangrong had a fiery temper and acted overbearingly, injuring people at the slightest provocation. If he went, he would surely beat Chen Ming half to death.
Lei Zhenguang patiently instructed the grandson in whom he had placed great hopes. "Do you think someone like Sun Shicai, who reached Seventh Rank at such a young age and became a Six Doors Patrol Envoy, would give me face?"
"This..."
Lei Yucheng felt somewhat embarrassed. He did not dare deceive him, but neither could he bring himself to speak the truth.
Lei Zhenguang took it in stride and laughed. "If I were in his place, I would not take a doddering old man with one foot in the grave seriously either. Since he is willing to give me this face, what do you think the reason is?"
Lei Yucheng suddenly understood. "There is bad blood between him and Chen Ming!"
Lei Zhenguang nodded at first, then shook his head. "This Sun Shicai is narrow-minded and harsh, with little gratitude or kindness. She does not even protect those from her own school, which cannot help but chill people's hearts. Yucheng, remember this: so long as they are from the same school, if you have the ability to protect them, you must do your utmost to do so. Only then can you win people's hearts."
"Yes, Grandfather. Your grandson will heed your teachings." Lei Yucheng then asked, "What about Chen Ming? He became a martial artist at only twenty, so his talent must be decent as well. Didn't Grandfather say that for someone like that, it is best not to offend them if possible?"
Lei Zhenguang said earnestly, "Yucheng, as a martial artist, it is absolutely impossible to be on harmonious terms with everyone in this world. The other eleven martial halls of Qingfeng City elected us president of the Martial Hall Guild. When someone breaks the rules, we must act, and we absolutely cannot go soft."
"Chen Ming is merely a Ninth Rank martial artist. So long as Sun Shicai does not protect him, he can naturally be dealt with easily. To eliminate future troubles, it is best to cripple him. That is the purpose of people like Li Xiangrong."
Lei Yucheng said with a face full of admiration, "Grandfather has considered everything so thoroughly. Your grandson is impressed."
Just as they spoke, an urgent voice suddenly came from the outer room. "Hallmaster, this is bad! Something terrible has happened!"
Lei Yucheng said displeasedly, "What has you panicking like this?"
"Chen Ming refused to accept the guild's decision and detained Senior Brother Li and the others. He said—he said that he wants the guild to apologize."
"What?"
Lei Yucheng was startled. "Could Chen Ming have helpers too? Who is so bold as to dare become an enemy of our Martial Hall Guild?"
"No, he was alone."
"What did you say? How is that possible?" Lei Yucheng was both shocked and furious.
"I heard... Chen Ming is already Eighth Rank!"
Eighth Rank?
Lei Yucheng was shocked beyond measure. Instinctively, he looked toward his grandfather and saw that the expression on his face had likewise turned utterly astonished.
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