A Promising Talent

A hook punch was easily knocked aside with a shoulder.

"Not good!"

Jiang Jingnian, who had never experienced actual combat, instinctively grew tense. Seeing the other man's palm stamp toward him, he reflexively raised his blocking arm in a hooking motion, trying to deflect it.

But the bald escort was a man who licked blood from the blade's edge, with extremely rich combat experience.

Though the escort had not reached the realm where "not a feather could be added, nor a fly alight," any discerning eye could see that this laborer boy was full of openings. With the slightest movement, the escort knew what he would do next.

His palm abruptly accelerated, completely ignoring the hooking hand, and heavily stamped Jiang Jingnian's abdomen.

"That hurts... Huh? No."

"It seems I don't feel anything at all."

Jiang Jingnian had originally thought that even if the other party held back, he was still a Martial Master of the same level. Taking that palm head-on should have at least left him lightly injured.

Yet—

The abundant qi and blood in his abdomen naturally surged.

Not only was he uninjured, it even jolted the other man's palm away.

And his hooking hand swept upward, striking the other man's elbow joint with a dull thud.

The bald escort cried out in pain and gave a startled exclamation. His feet retreated again and again as he immediately widened the distance from Jiang Jingnian.

That exchange had taken only two breaths.

Everyone saw the bald escort's palm land squarely on Jiang Jingnian's abdomen.

Yet this laborer boy had not been sent flying as they imagined. He had not even taken half a step back, still standing where he was. Instead, his somewhat crude hooking move had landed heavily on the escort's elbow joint.

"How could this happen?"

"Escort Yu clearly hit him. How did it have no effect?"

"Did the escort go easy on him, or does this boy actually have real skill?"

"That Iron Body Skill is rarely seen!"

It was not only the applicants who were utterly shocked.

Even the surrounding escorts and runners exchanged glances, seeing confusion and astonishment in each other's eyes.

Old Yu was a veteran escort of the agency. Even with his strength suppressed and without using his Blood Core, he had still displayed the level of a Quasi-Martial Master.

Yet this miserable-looking boy had actually fought Old Yu to a draw and even made him suffer a hidden loss.

"A Quasi-Martial Master who practiced an Iron Body Skill?"

Only now did the bald escort truly begin to scrutinize the laborer boy before him. Uncertainty flickered in his eyes. "...Do you sincerely want to join our escort agency?"

"Yes."

Seeing that the man was not continuing the fight, Jiang Jingnian lowered his fists as well. "So, have I passed the assessment?"

Before making his move, he had considered hiding his abilities.

But he was a novice at real combat. If he hid too much of his skill and deliberately put on a fake fight in the ring, an experienced escort like this man would certainly notice.

Besides, there were other experts from the escort agency watching.

If he made it too fake, it would backfire instead, making others think he had some ulterior motive.

As long as he did not directly use the Blood Core's power, using sixty or seventy percent of his strength would merely make him look like a somewhat gifted martial artist.

As for why he did not go all out and display all his strength and value?

Naturally, it was because a steady and mature person always left room for maneuver and kept a few trump cards close to the chest.

"Wait here. I need to ask Escort Chief Duan first."

The bald escort shook his head without saying more. He glanced at the crowd below the ring still waiting for their assessments and only felt that this matter was troublesome, unsure how to handle it.

After all—

The agency had never had a Quasi-Martial Master apply to be an apprentice or runner.

And there was something strange about this matter.

If the other party were a young master of an influential family, or even a child of a poor household, it would not be strange for a formidable young man to appear.

But this young man was merely a laborer whose clothes were covered in patches.

"Brother Duan, how should we arrange this kid?"

The bald escort turned around and looked toward Escort Chief Duan below the ring with questioning eyes.

He was a plain-looking, somewhat short middle-aged man in a black Mandarin jacket. Standing among the crowd, he seemed to possess no presence at all.

"Old Yu, continue assessing the others."

Escort Chief Duan revealed a thoughtful expression, then beckoned at Jiang Jingnian on the ring. "Little brother, come down first and follow me to the discussion hall in the central courtyard. I need to review your documents."

At those words, a trace of vigilance rose deep within Jiang Jingnian's eyes. But after looking over the crowd's varied expressions and pondering briefly, he still stepped down from the ring.

Keeping a certain distance, he followed Escort Chief Duan through the training grounds of the front courtyard and past the eastern and western accounting rooms, entering the discussion hall in the central courtyard.

Along the way, he secretly mapped out several escape routes in case of an accident.

Escort Chief Duan glanced at Jiang Jingnian standing at the discussion hall entrance and smiled slightly. "Come over, little brother. No need to be so nervous. Our Tongda Escort Agency is a respectable establishment with a century-old name. Open and aboveboard, righteous and gallant—those are the foundations upon which our agency and escorts make our living."

"Besides, if you do not give me your documents, how am I supposed to review them and process your paperwork?"

Only then did Jiang Jingnian slowly take a stack of documents from his clothes, along with his work permit, and step forward to hand them to Escort Chief Duan.

"Little Chen, brew some Tieguanyin to entertain our guest. Use the box my friend gave me last week, the one from Baobai Mountain. Oh, right! Remember to scald the teapot three times before adding the leaves."

Holding the documents, Escort Chief Duan read as he walked into the hall. He sat boldly beside the square auspicious-cloud table in the center, then instructed a servant to boil water and make tea.

"Jiang Second Dog? This name... is rather interesting."

"Uh, I already told my relatives that I planned to change it to Jiang Jingnian, but something happened at their home recently, so there was no time."

"Relatives... Oh? These documents bear the Qu Household's signature and seal. Little brother, you come from an influential family? Sit and tell me about it."

Escort Chief Duan carefully flipped through the documents and also examined the work permit issued by the Foreign Ministry of Industry.

The Qu Household was a century-old prominent family in Peace City.

Its history stretched even further back than the founding of Tongda Escort Agency.

Although it had declined greatly now, its foundation remained. It was not something ordinary poor households could compare to.

Yet this little brother, as a relative of the Qu Household—

Was working as a rickshaw puller.

No matter how he looked at it, it was strange.

Jiang Jingnian shook his head and took a seat to the side. "I am not from an influential family. I only have a distant relative in the Qu Household. I shamelessly begged them for help, and that was how I managed to gain a foothold in this vast Peace City."

He was not a gossip.

Fifth Uncle's position in the Qu Household was extremely awkward. There was no need to explain it in excessive detail to outsiders.

"Is that so? But since you are related, and you are such a fine martial talent, why did you not have this relative continue helping you enter a martial school? If you joined one of those major schools, you could absolutely carve out a splendid future!"

Escort Chief Duan's eyes flickered as he continued questioning him.

If they allowed him to join Tongda Escort Agency—

Anything involving an influential family, even if it only touched the edge of one, could not be handled carelessly.

"They did help, but we tried several places and none had openings. After all, that relative of mine is only a scholar and not an important member of the Qu Household."

Jiang Jingnian answered truthfully.

Escort Chief Duan pondered for a moment, seemingly judging whether those words were true. But then he weighed the documents and work permit in his hands.

The documents should be genuine.

Especially the special seal of the Foreign Ministry of Industry. That could not be forged.

"Escort Chief Duan, the tea is ready."

At that moment, the young servant approached from nearby carrying tea. Holding the teacups with both hands, he offered them to Escort Chief Duan and Jiang Jingnian.

Escort Chief Duan nodded, dismissed the servant, then lifted his teacup and took a sip of hot tea.

After swallowing the scalding tea, he slowly exhaled a breath of heat and asked quietly, "Little Brother Jiang, you are about to advance to Martial Master, aren't you? Have you practiced some kind of Iron Body Skill?"

"I obtained an Iron Body Skill by a fortunate coincidence. I should be close to advancing, I suppose. I have only been practicing blindly."

"...Could you let me test you? I merely want to massage your arm."

Escort Chief Duan did not press further. After all, the exact contents of a cultivation art were private, even taboo, to many martial artists.

This was because some cultivation arts—especially Iron Body Skills—concealed certain weak points. Once one's specific martial arts were exposed, it was easy for others to secretly target them.

"Fine."

Jiang Jingnian rose to his feet and extended his arm without changing expression.

Yet just in case, he secretly prepared at any moment to activate the Blood Core and cover his arm in surging qi and blood.

Escort Chief Duan stood from his chair and walked directly over.

He placed a hand on the youth's arm and lightly kneaded it twice, as though giving a massage.

Then he quickly withdrew his hand. A faintly surprised look appeared on his unremarkable face.

"Your innate bones are only middling to poor, yet your skin, membranes, and muscles are several times thicker than an ordinary person's. Your sinews are knotted and tough. This is a body blessed with extraordinary natural gifts!"

"Coupled with the Iron Body Skill you practice, it is no wonder Old Yu's palm failed to injure you."

Even Escort Chief Duan had failed to detect Jiang Jingnian's actual realm. He merely believed the youth was naturally gifted, born with skin, membranes, and muscles thicker than anyone else's, granting him such astonishing defensive power.

This situation—

Made the originally tense Jiang Jingnian relax somewhat.

It seemed the problem was not with Escort Chief Duan, but with his cultivation art, which had caused the man's examination to go wrong.

After all, his Taiji Vajra Art had not been acquired through ordinary means. It had fused and advanced through devouring special objects, and perhaps contained some hidden profundity.

"A promising talent, truly a promising talent!"

"Those martial schools with no openings actually let a promising talent like you slip away. What a pity, what a shame!"

Joy first appeared on Escort Chief Duan's face, but then he sighed. "However, if you come to our escort agency, you are destined not to advance to any profound realm. We can provide guidance in cultivation arts, as well as some basic food and secret medicines."

"But beyond that, we cannot provide further resources. We are not as comprehensive as martial schools and sects. Many things can only be obtained outside through your own efforts."

"A martial talent like you must think carefully before joining our escort agency."

Though escort agencies and martial schools overlapped in certain fields, their functions were completely different.

One had to know that the concessions were subject to the Martial Restriction Order.

Martial schools and sects had influential families and powerful nobles behind them. They were registered in the concessions and possessed all kinds of legal resources preferentially allocated by the Foreign Ministry of Industry.

Those special resources were strictly controlled by the upper structures. Ordinary martial artists from wild, unofficial paths simply could not obtain the provisions needed to advance their realms.

As for escort agencies...

Though they could legally register martial artists as well, their resources were limited. They received no legal preference or support and were, at most, comparable to small and medium-sized gangs.

Many things could only be purchased through various channels. If money could not buy them, one might have to risk other dangers to obtain them.

"I have naturally considered it carefully."

"No matter what, finding work at the escort agency is still far better than continuing to pull a rickshaw."

Jiang Jingnian's gaze was deep and steady as he looked resolutely at Escort Chief Duan before him.

Whether in status or income—

Working as a runner, or even an escort, at the agency was far superior to being a rickshaw puller. Joining the escort agency was the first true step he could take upward within these concessions.