A Dignified, Aboveboard Bearing

Among the many escort runners of the escort agency, Qian Shiqi could be called the most gifted—and the strongest.

The martial art he cultivated was also the Cloud-Body Leg Technique, passed down through the great Qian Household for many years.

At eighteen, his qi and blood had already been nurtured to their limit. He was only one step away from breaking open the Blood Tempering Aperture and stepping into the realm of a Martial Master.

Yet this Quasi-Martial Master, blessed with inheritance, secret medicines, and talent, could not even last two breaths before Jiang Jingnian, the newly appointed escort master.

"Big Brother!"

Qian Xiaofu let out a roar of mingled fury and alarm, hurriedly climbing onto the arena to inspect Qian Shiqi's condition.

Feeling for his breath and pulse, he found that his breathing had not weakened.

Though it was somewhat disorderly, he had merely fainted.

He shot Jiang Jingnian a furious glare, then quickly lowered his head. The young man held his elder brother, the hatred and venom in his eyes concealed by shadow.

His elder brother was clearly the Qian Household's once-in-a-generation genius.

How could he have been defeated so easily by some mud-legged yokel from outside?

Jiang Jingnian stood not far away, looked at his fist, and revealed a thoughtful expression. "Have I already become this formidable?"

He himself felt that he had barely used any strength.

Yet this challenger had fallen.

Just like those old scammers who threw themselves in front of cars in his past life.

"This Escort Master Jiang's Iron Body Skill is actually this powerful?"

"This level of external cultivation is truly extraordinary. Martial artists at the same level, unless they can find the weak point in his body, likely cannot hurt him with bare hands."

"Escort Master Yu's palm strike could still be explained as using only a tenth of his strength, but Qian Shiqi's successive full-force kicks could not shake him in the slightest?"

"At that instant just now, when Escort Master Jiang's leg sent Qian Shiqi flying, I saw his qi and blood surging—dense and abundant. He must be able to break through the Blood Tempering Aperture at any time."

"Impressive! Truly impressive!"

Seeing this outcome, the others present wore all manner of expressions. Shock and bewilderment showed on many of the younger men's faces.

In most people's eyes, Jiang Jingnian had to possess real ability to be appointed an escort master by the escort agency.

But no matter what.

He was still only a Quasi-Martial Master at the Qi-Blood Apex. He had not broken open the Blood Tempering Aperture or condensed a Blood Core in his dantian.

Even if Qian Shiqi, at the same level, truly could not match him, the two should have fought like tigers and dragons upon the arena, with Qian Shiqi only losing by a few moves in the end.

Not this utterly one-sided battle.

Those with discerning eyes had already seen it clearly.

Those three punches were upright and balanced. They appeared crude, yet in truth they carried immense force, giving one the feeling that there was nowhere to evade and no choice but to receive them head-on.

And at the critical moment.

Jiang Jingnian had even avoided Qian Shiqi's vital points. Otherwise, this escort runner who had stepped onto the arena to challenge him would likely have been beaten into a cripple.

After all, fists and kicks had no eyes.

Yet he could still hold back his strength during an arena match.

This was truly the bearing of an open and aboveboard crushing victory!

This style of fighting, this fist-and-kick technique that lifted heavy things as lightly as if they weighed nothing, wise beneath a seemingly foolish exterior, made some of the escort masters seem to glimpse the shadow of the escort agency's young master—the Escort Chief Li Mincheng.

"You brat, move aside and let me see."

The Chief Escort also climbed onto the arena. With great difficulty, he bent around his large belly and pushed Qian Xiaofu aside.

He reached out and touched Qian Shiqi's chest, then waved a hand calmly. "Take Qian Shiqi to the clinic to recuperate. He has only suffered some internal injuries. A week or two of rest should be enough for him to recover."

Then he wiped the fine sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief and looked toward everyone present. "Everyone! This newcomer, Jiang Jingnian, has already demonstrated his strength and ability. He is more than qualified to serve as an escort master for our agency. I hope I will not hear such doubts again in the future."

His words ended abruptly there, but the faint authority in his voice still made everyone present shudder inwardly.

The escort agency's rule was this.

If there were internal conflicts, they could be settled on the arena.

And once a matter had been settled, grievances were to vanish upon the arena as well. If anyone later kept clinging to the same matter and continued stirring up conflict, then they should not blame the Chief Escort for showing no mercy.

"Yes."

While the apprentices were still in a daze, the many escort masters and escort runners beside them were already nodding repeatedly.

Once the unconscious Qian Shiqi had been carried away, this minor incident during the regular meeting was considered over.

The escort agency's various affairs continued, and everyone went back to doing what they were meant to do.

The Chief Escort and Duan Escort Chief walked back shoulder to shoulder. The Chief Escort clicked his tongue in amazement. "That kid from the countryside has rather good martial virtue!"

It was not only the Qian Household that held prejudices against martial artists from other places.

Even the Chief Escort, born into a prominent local household, could not help harboring stereotypes about outsiders.

He simply never deliberately displayed them, for the sake of the escort agency's normal operations.

He then turned his head and glanced at Duan Escort Chief.

He found that the other man still wore the expression of one sitting steady as an old god, as though he had long expected this outcome.

Curiosity appeared on the Chief Escort's face. "You old fox, you already knew Jiang Jingnian's external cultivation was extraordinary, didn't you? What family's inheritance does this kid practice? It looks somewhat like the Iron Garment Technique, or perhaps the Golden Bell Shield?"

The Iron Garment Technique and Golden Bell Shield were both Iron Body Skills passed down for centuries. They were also widely accessible; in certain martial arts schools, such techniques were even handed directly to apprentices for cultivation.

However, both Iron Body Skills were easy to learn but difficult to master. Those who could rely on these common techniques to break through to Martial Master were few and far between.

"I don't know the specifics. It could also be a variation of those two external cultivation techniques. But his physical talent truly differs from ordinary people; he is exceptionally suited for external cultivation martial arts."

Duan Escort Chief shook his head. After pondering for several seconds, he lowered his voice again. "At first, I was worried that the boy came from too poor a background and was desperate for quick success, so he might have practiced some crooked branch of the Iron Garment Technique."

"A crooked branch of the Iron Garment Technique? You mean that variant, the Corpse Garment Technique?"

The Chief Escort frowned slightly, then immediately relaxed. "I observed him carefully just now. His qi and blood surged vigorously, his vitality was full and dense, alive and brimming with energy, and he carried an air of grandeur and harmony between heaven and earth. He could never be practicing that vile Corpse Garment Technique."

The martial path of the Chen State had stretched on for over a thousand years.

Even commonplace low-level martial arts had produced countless variants, and some of those variants had become wicked arts and demonic practices.

Take the Corpse Garment Technique, for example. One cultivated it by consuming beast blood and human blood, then used human bones as ingredients to refine secret medicines. One applied them day and night, allowing them to seep throughout the body, hardening the skin and fascia until they became like a solid sheet of iron.

Though this variant technique enabled extreme rapid progress and allowed one to advance by leaps and bounds at the Martial Master realm, it offended the harmony of heaven. Not only did it shorten one's lifespan, but upon reaching the Bone Tempering Stage, one might lose one's mind and ultimately become a living corpse.

The corpse became its garment; the garment refined its corpse.

"Yes! The martial art this kid practices is upright and grand, and his character is not bad either."

Duan Escort Chief smacked his lips and nodded in agreement.

"...It has been too short a time. I cannot say much about the boy's character."

The Chief Escort smiled. "But you, old fox—you clearly have thoughts of cherishing talent and taking him as a disciple, yet you still insist on testing him again and again. How very unlike you!"

"Nothing to be done. I must be cautious."

"I am an escort master, not the head master of a martial arts sect. I cannot take disciples lightly. Once I take one, he will be a closed-door disciple like my own son, one who will inherit my legacy."

Duan Escort Chief took a deep breath, then sighed. "My Copper-Mirror Iron Garment Technique has already reached Marrow Tempering Perfection, but I have no hope of breaking through in this lifetime. It is time to make arrangements for what comes after me."