Ships from the Upper Reaches of the Black River!

Liu Fei cast another regretful glance at Zhang Shaojiu, who was practicing his punches nearby. Unfortunately, Zhang Shaojiu had already received Shen Ao's sponsorship. She did not even have a chance to compete for him.

In another corner, Ma Pengcheng wiped the sweat from his neck with a towel. At the thought that Zhou Chen had actually broken through smoothly and become a First-Rank Martial Artist just like him, his gaze darkened by several shades, and his resentment toward Zhou Chen deepened.

"This brat really got lucky! But does he think becoming a First-Rank Martial Artist means he can defy me? The martial path is so long—how far ahead of you am I? You'll never catch up to me in your entire life!"

Ma Pengcheng slammed a heavy punch into the wooden dummy, leaving behind a deep fist mark.

He could not describe the feeling in his heart. It was like accidentally swallowing a fly while eating, making every inch of him feel sick.

It had to be Old Zheng's Qi-Blood Soup that let this brat break through!

If he had been able to drink Qi-Blood Soup for that long, he might already have reached First-Rank Perfection, perhaps even had a chance to charge at the Second-Rank Martial Artist realm. All of this had originally belonged to him, yet Zhou Chen's foolishness had delayed it!

This made him hate Zhou Chen even more!

After the martial hall closed, Zhou Chen walked home, thinking that when Lian Taoze came tomorrow, he would ask whether he could take up a post at his household.

For some unknown reason, Lian Taoze and all the Direct Disciples had been absent today. Even Master Zheng had hurried out in the afternoon, as though he had received some news.

When he pushed open his front door, he saw Zhang Fang coming out of the house carrying a basin of blood-red water. A strip of torn cloth hung over the rim, still dripping bloody water.

Her eyes were swollen and red. She had clearly just cried hard.

Zhou Chen's heart clenched violently. He hurried over to support her. "Mother, what happened?!"

"Your father... your father was carried back today." The moment Zhang Fang saw Zhou Chen, the composure she had forced herself to maintain before Zhou Yu for most of the day instantly collapsed. Her voice trembled, and she covered her mouth to keep herself from bursting into tears. "Your father was sent to fish upstream these past few days. It was already dangerous there, but today, today..."

"Don't panic, Mother. I'm here." Zhou Chen took the basin from her hands, gently patted her back, and supported her inside. As they walked, he listened to her halting explanation.

It turned out that Zhou Tian and several fishermen had been sent out as usual to fish in the upper reaches of the Black River. The journey had been uneventful at first, but they had happened to run into several enormous ships sailing down from upstream.

According to Zhou Tian, each ship was as tall as a building, with massive turbines at its stern. The waves it churned up spread outward like mountains collapsing.

They must have been Inner City aristocratic families fleeing from Azure City.

The upper reaches of the Black River were extremely broad. Those ships could easily have avoided their little fishing boats.

Yet one of the towering ships, flying a high "Li" banner, had charged straight toward them, crushing forward without the slightest regard for the lives of mere fishermen.

Zhou Tian and another fisherman had rowed madly back toward shore, but the wind and waves raised by the tower ship disturbed many Mist Monsters beneath the Black River.

A barbed tentacle burst from the water and tore a huge gash across Zhou Tian's back.

Fortunately, Zhou Tian usually carried wound medicine with him and stopped the bleeding in time. Otherwise, he would have died on the spot. Even so, the injury would keep him bedridden for a month.

After hearing the whole story, Zhou Chen frowned deeply.

So many people from Azure City flooding into Black City at once would inevitably clash with the existing power structure here. No wonder Master Zheng and Lian Taoze's group had been absent today—they had likely received the news and gone back to deal with it.

Zhou Chen had a feeling that the days ahead would not be peaceful.

Zhou Tian said silently, "I was one of the lucky ones. Another fishing boat was swallowed on the spot by the waves that had been whipped up. The big ship rolled over it. There were only a few screams, and then there was nothing left."

As he spoke, he coughed several times. He appeared calm on the surface, but his hand clenched the blanket tightly before falling limp again. The boat had been filled with fishermen who had known one another for years. He had watched them die with his own eyes, yet there was nowhere to seek justice!

People from the Inner City had never cared about the lives of Outer City people like them!

Looking at Zhou Tian lying in bed with a pale face, Zhou Chen was equally furious.

Those great aristocratic families who had come fleeing disaster truly treated human lives like blades of grass!

"It's just that with this injury, I'll need to rest for so long. The Fishery has such a big vacancy now, so they definitely won't keep my position for that long."

Zhou Tian hesitated before saying, "A-Chen, today I pleaded with the Fishery boss, and he relented. He said that if you are willing to fish, he can hire you first. He said the same to the families of those men who died today. It can be considered compensation for us."

Zhou Chen knew what his father was thinking. He was afraid Zhou Chen would fail to make anything of martial arts, and if they lost even the Fishery job, their days would truly become impossible to endure.

Seeing his father being so cautious, Zhou Chen's heart ached. He hurriedly said, "Father, don't worry. Focus on recovering. Your son is already a First-Rank Martial Artist."

"What did you say?"

The moment Zhou Tian heard those words, his eyes flew wide open. Zhang Fang beside him froze as well.

What had they just heard?

Their son was now a Martial Warrior!

They had never held much hope that Zhou Chen would become a Martial Warrior. Now, this sudden joy crashed down upon them. The two looked at each other, and their eyes instantly reddened!

Excitement! Happiness! Caught completely off guard!

All kinds of emotions flooded their chests!

A Martial Warrior—someone above ordinary people!

Zhou Yu did not quite understand how valuable being a Martial Warrior was, but seeing Zhou Tian and Zhang Fang so delighted, she excitedly asked, "Brother, can you buy me candied hawthorns now?"

"I'll buy them! Your brother can afford it now!"

Zhou Chen rubbed Zhou Yu's head, then said to Zhou Tian, "Father, just stay home and recover properly. I'm already a Martial Warrior. You won't need to work at the Fishery anymore. Once I take up a post tomorrow, I'll handle the household expenses from now on."

But Zhou Tian shook his head. "That won't do. We can't lose the job. I've heard people say that martial arts cultivation costs money at every turn. As long as I can still work at the Fishery, I'll keep working. Your mother and I still want to save up a bride price so you can marry."

Zhang Fang hurriedly said, "Now that A-Chen is a Martial Warrior, we can't settle for those ordinary girls anymore. We have to find a good one."

Zhou Tian smiled. "That's right, a better one. She has to be worthy of our son!"

Seeing them smile so happily, Zhou Chen became happy as well.

This was the first thing he had done that made his parents proud and happy!

His daily diligent study and hard training had not been in vain!

At last, this harvest had borne fruit.

"Oh, right. Mother, boil this medicine in three portions and give it to Father. It can replenish his qi and blood, speed up his wound's healing, and help him recover faster."

He took out the packet of Blood-Boiling Powder Ye Lingtian had given him. The medicine was somewhat overbearing for ordinary people, but if Zhang Fang boiled it in three portions, it would be just right for restoring Zhou Tian's body.

The next day, after learning that Zhou Chen had become a Martial Warrior, the Fishery's boat boss personally brought several lightly contaminated fish to visit them. After exchanging pleasantries for a while, he said with a beaming smile that Zhou Tian's job would be kept for him. From now on, he would not need to go out on the boats and would only need to sort the catch by the shore—a safe and easy task.

Zhou Tian was somewhat overwhelmed by the favor. Before, he had envied that short man whose son had become a Martial Warrior and could stay by the shore. Now, this good fortune had fallen upon his own head.

The neighbors' attitudes had also taken a full one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn today. Every one of them was all smiles. When Zhou Tian had been carried home yesterday, people had only offered a few lukewarm words. Not one person had even come to visit.

It truly proved that saying: once you become strong, everyone around you naturally becomes a good person.

After seeing off those neighbors, Zhou Yu said somewhat dazedly, "Brother, all those uncles and aunties were so kind today. So many people praised me for being pretty, and they all smiled at me. But I know I'm not that pretty. It's because you've become powerful, Brother."

After saying that, she stared fixedly at the table piled high with food, unable to pull her eyes away.

There was coarse cornmeal, dark mixed sugar, and several pounds of brightly colored Gray Meat.

There was also a packet of fried dough snacks wrapped in oiled paper, giving off a toasted fragrance. In normal times, they might not see such things even once during the New Year, especially that dark sugar. Though it contained so many impurities that they grated against one's teeth, it was already an extremely precious rarity in their Outer City district.

Zhou Yu swallowed greedily, yet she sensibly squatted where she was and did not dare reach out to touch anything.

Zhou Chen walked over and lowered his gaze, seeing the back of his little sister's neck exposed beneath her broad, patched collar. She was so thin that her bones stood out clearly, like a slender bamboo pole holding up her head. He raised a hand and patted her head. "Go take a look. Eat whatever you like."

"Okay, Brother!"

Even after receiving permission, Zhou Yu did not dare move. Instead, she first glanced at Zhang Fang. Zhang Fang smiled and said, "From now on, listen to your brother."