Flying Knife Technique

Firelight illuminated Lu Li's calm, steady profile.

He stood tall and upright, his spine like a dragon, flesh and skin firm and solid. Standing amid the roaring blaze, he remained untouched by the heat waves, his eyes still as water.

"Flying knives?"

Wu Shoucheng's expression shifted. His gaze moved to the furnace, and a rare smile appeared on his face as he said with feeling:

"Flying knives are quite the technical craft."

Lu Li remained silent. He did not know whether Wu Shoucheng meant forging flying knives was technical work, or practicing them was.

If he meant practicing them, then Lu Li had already mastered them.

"Concealed Weapons":

Lime Powder: Perfected (300/300)

Darts: Great Mastery (789/1200)

Ever since his master had taught him these two life-saving techniques, he had made time to practice them every day.

Once the flying knives were forged, he would have another killing technique. He had already made up his mind: during his next epiphany, he would push his flying knives to the limit.

He greatly anticipated whether flying knives that had broken their limits would truly never miss their mark.

Lu Li gradually gathered his thoughts and turned his gaze toward the furnace as well.

Wang Shi stood bare-chested, fine beads of sweat covering his bronze-colored skin.

"Clang! Clang! Clang! ..."

His hammering of the iron billet was practiced, powerful, and rhythmic. Old scars from sparks burning him dotted both sides of his arms.

"What kind of flying knives do you want?"

Wu Shoucheng walked to Lu Li's side, his eyes still fixed on the furnace without so much as a glance aside.

Lu Li already had a rough design in mind and immediately said:

"Shopkeeper Wu, do you have a writing brush and yellow hemp paper here? How about I draw it for you?"

After the two entered the inner room, Lu Li laid out all his ideas and sketched them onto draft paper. Wu Shoucheng's calm gaze rose and fell repeatedly.

Right afterward, he went to the rear courtyard, fired up the furnace, and personally began hammering according to Lu Li's design.

An hour later.

Wu Shoucheng brought out three flying knives and handed them to Lu Li.

"These are forged from refined iron. Take a look and see whether anything needs improving."

Lu Li's eyes flickered as he casually accepted the flying knives.

They were warm in his hand, their residual heat not yet dispersed. His fingertips lightly brushed over their finely polished surfaces. Judging by their appearance alone, they perfectly matched what he had envisioned.

"Shopkeeper Wu's craftsmanship is extraordinary. Lu admires it deeply."

"In half a month, the flying knives and the Cold Moon saber will be delivered to Golden Gate Martial Academy. From now on, this shop will be relying on Master Lu's protection."

"Sorry for the trouble, Shopkeeper Wu."

Lu Li clasped his fists. "Lu accepts the Protection Notice for the weaponsmith shop."

The sun had risen three poles high.

Lu Li headed toward the martial academy.

Today was his day off, so he did not need to go to the Road Division yamen.

Today's gains had been plentiful.

Together, the fifteen shops would bring him 420 taels of silver every month. In addition, clothes, grain, oil, tea, wine, and medicine would all be supplied to him free of charge from now on.

This was one of the privileges of becoming a martial artist.

As Lu Li walked down the road, he suddenly felt at ease. He had a house in the Inner City and no worries over food or lodging. Whether in his past life or this one, this was probably the pinnacle an ordinary person could reach.

Only days like these could truly be called comfortable.

Lu Li sighed inwardly. Two months ago, he had still been an orphan scorned by everyone, unable to eat his fill or stay warm. Martial arts had brought him far too much.

Of course.

There was a price for obtaining these things. He would have to take responsibility for the future security of all fifteen shops.

Fortunately, those shops were all in the Outer City. He only needed to deal with Ironwood Hall.

With a loud "bang," he pushed open the heavy gates of the martial academy.

It was not yet mealtime in the front courtyard, and the disciples were all busy holding stances and practicing their punches.

The instant Lu Li entered, the atmosphere of training around him quietly changed.

In its place came astonished disbelief.

Lu Li's features, complexion, and physique were utterly different from yesterday's. The flesh and skin over his entire body were taut and condensed, carrying a faintly heavy, oppressive presence.

Many disciples unconsciously stopped what they were doing. Their gazes repeatedly slid sideways, focusing on Lu Li.

"What's going on!?"

"He changed completely in a single day?"

"He suddenly became terribly thin a few days ago, and now not only has he suddenly recovered, his build has become even more stable?"

"He didn't secretly practice some demonic art, did he?"

Many disciples trembled inwardly. More than shock, however, they felt astonishment mixed with envy. They could not understand Lu Li's sudden transformation.

Hou Sanwa was an old hand in the front courtyard and had always gotten along well with the other disciples there. He often took the initiative to speak with Lu Li as well. He stepped forward, his throat tightening slightly.

"Senior Brother Lu, did you succeed in Gate-Breaking?"

To the front-courtyard disciples, the most important matter in their lives was their first Gate-Breaking, after which they would become martial artists.

They bore far too much upon their shoulders: their families' hopes, the eyes of relatives and friends, and, more importantly, the direction of their future fates all rested on this single throw of the dice.

Lu Li nodded and gently patted Hou Sanwa on the shoulder. After thinking for a moment, he chose his words carefully.

"By luck."

With that, Lu Li headed toward the rear courtyard. He had to tell his master the good news that his Root Bone had successfully improved.

"Senior Brother Lu!"

Hou Sanwa looked at Lu Li's solid back, gathered his courage, and called out to stop him. Finally, he raised his voice.

"Senior Brother Lu, we all entered around the same time. Privately, you're also the one I admire most,

I've always secretly compared myself to you and treated you as a potential rival, because your Root Bone was the worst in our front courtyard, but you were also the one who worked the hardest,

Whenever I couldn't hold on any longer, I would see you in the corner, bitterly practicing your stance, and I would secretly feel ashamed of my own slacking... Tell me, why is the gap between one person's fate and another's so vast? With the worst Root Bone, you succeeded in Gate-Breaking in less than two months of martial training, while I... My aptitude is two grades higher than yours, yet I can't even touch the edge of Skin Tempering,

This month is already my sixth month at the martial academy,

Last month, I was fortunate enough to temper my Internal Force to the peak of Sinking Force, but no matter how hard I work at this first martial artist's hurdle, I simply cannot find the opportunity to break through,

This hurdle crushes me every day like a mountain, leaving me unable to breathe. I'm exhausted. So many times, I've wanted to give up, but I can't accept it, and I don't dare to. My family would never allow it. But I'm truly so tired..."

Lu Li stopped and turned back to look at Hou Sanwa.

Tears glimmered in Hou Sanwa's eyes, and his voice gradually choked up.

"A man sheds blood, not tears, but I really can't keep going. My family has already drained everything for me. They've borrowed from everyone they could borrow from, and pawned everything of value they could pawn..."

All the disciples in the front courtyard stopped and looked at Hou Sanwa. Many felt the same, tears glimmering in their eyes, as though emotions suppressed for far too long had suddenly burst through the floodgates.

Zhou Tie's son, Zhou Di, could not hold himself together and suddenly began sobbing loudly, prompting many others to sniffle along with him.

"Senior Brother Lu, your aptitude is the worst in this courtyard, yet you were the first to succeed in Gate-Breaking. Is there some trick to it? We are fellow disciples taught by the same master. Pity me, if nothing else, and help me. Whether I succeed or fail in the future, I'll follow your lead in everything!"

"Senior Brother Lu, from now on, I'll obey your every command too."

"Senior Brother Lu, me too..."

"Me as well!"

The disciples were stirred up, all looking at Lu Li with envy, burning fervor, and expectation in their eyes...

Lu Li remained silent. Hearing those words left a bitter taste in his heart as well.

He could understand the difficulties his junior brothers faced, but when he had undergone Gate-Breaking, there had been no bottleneck blocking him. That first hurdle they described as a mountain—he truly had never felt it.

Lu Li swept his gaze over everyone. He wanted to help them too, but he could not. After considering it, he explained:

"Junior brothers, if there truly were a method to help others break through the gate, would Master keep it hidden?

If such a method truly existed, wouldn't martial artists be everywhere in Blackwater City?

You say your lives are hard, but at the very least, you still have parents and families supporting you, allowing you to stand on tiptoe and reach for the chance to enter a martial academy. Go look beneath the city gates, at the bridgeheads, in the abandoned huts by the docks... Those people are the ones truly living hard lives. I came from a place like that.

I have only one thing to say: if you want to break through the gate, you can only rely on yourself. Heaven helps those who help themselves."

With that, Lu Li turned and walked toward the rear courtyard.