Receiving a Title

At dawn, in the Li Family's rear courtyard training ground.

A flash of sword light. Li Cheng shifted his footing, the longsword sweeping past his side before stabbing out at an angle. Sword stroke after sword stroke, he followed the forms recorded in the manual.

Turn, sheathe the sword, stab again...

He had practiced the entire set of the Seven Forms of Settling Solitude more times than he could count.

He had naturally memorized the moves, but that was all.

The more Li Cheng practiced, the tighter his brow furrowed.

That battle between Deng Qing and Zhou Fei in the mountain stream surfaced in his mind again.

That feeling...

Li Cheng could not put it into words, but he knew that the Seven Forms of Settling Solitude he was practicing now were completely different from what Deng Qing had displayed.

"Again!"

Li Cheng gritted his teeth and assumed the stance anew, but the more anxious he became, the more chaotic his sword grew.

He could still barely keep the first sword steady. By the third, his shoulder and elbow had already lost coordination. When he thrust the fifth, it went completely off target.

Li Cheng forcibly continued, and his sword momentum scattered completely.

Clang!

In frustration, he hurled the longsword to the ground.

Zhang Bo picked up the sword from the ground. "Young Master, why be so stubborn? Deng Qing came from humble origins, nothing more than an ant clawing his way out of the wilderness.

"Young Master's future is destined to be boundless. Why insist on competing with some wild man from the backcountry?"

"Zhang Bo."

Li Cheng did not want to hear any of this.

Ever since Deng Qing had yielded Zhou Fei's head to him last time, Li Cheng had regarded Deng Qing as a friend.

Zhang Bo said, "Young Master, do not let certain people's schemes blind you.

"Deng Qing may have helped you, but was he not also trying to establish a connection with you? So long as Deng Qing is not a fool, he must have long seen that our family is no ordinary wealthy clan."

Li Cheng froze, then said quietly, "So what if Deng Qing saw through it? So what if he understood the calculations? Is that not only human nature?

"Could one refuse to feel grateful and instead bear a grudge because of that?"

Zhang Bo laughed speechlessly and waved a hand. "Young Master is too kind and does not know how treacherous people's hearts can be. Fine, let us not speak of him. Young Master, continue practicing your sword."

Li Cheng said, "I want to ask Deng Qing to guide me in practicing the Seven Forms of Settling Solitude."

Zhang Bo frowned. "Even if he has entered Initiation, he is probably not qualified to instruct Young Master."

Li Cheng said, "Whether he can or cannot, trying will not cost much."

Zhang Bo considered it for several breaths, then nodded in agreement.

When Li Cheng found Deng Qing, quite a crowd had gathered outside Great Fortune Rice Shop. Two groups of thugs were confronting one another.

On one side stood Wu Yun of Five Blessings Butcher Shop, while on the other was Feng Xiao, the owner of Great Fortune Rice Shop.

The two sides had come into conflict. Every one of them glared fiercely, hands pressed to their weapons.

Deng Qing, one of the thugs, stood beside Wu Yun.

The negotiations were already ablaze with fury, and a fierce battle seemed ready to erupt at any moment. Li Cheng stepped forward with a smile. "Boss Feng, what imposing prestige."

Feng Xiao turned his head, and his brow jumped. He hastily cupped his hands. "Greetings, Young Master Li."

Li Cheng pointed at Deng Qing. "You dare square off against my Senior Brother Deng? Boss Feng, you have quite the nerve."

Feng Xiao looked embarrassed. He did not know Deng Qing and assumed Li Cheng had come to back him. Though furious, he did not dare speak out.

Li Cheng smiled. "Do not think I came here merely to support my Senior Brother Deng. You probably do not know what kind of strength he possesses.

"At the battle of Mountain God Temple, my Senior Brother Deng cut down the Eastern Radiance Evil Cult's great villain, Monk Tang, with a single sword strike. Boss Feng, how do you think your men compare to Monk Tang?"

The moment those words fell, the entire place went silent.

Feng Xiao's face was full of shock. "He killed Monk Tang with one sword strike?"

Wu Yun was also stunned. Then he was overjoyed and slapped Deng Qing's shoulder. "Who would have thought Junior Brother Deng had achieved such military merit! Magnificent! Magnificent!"

Deng Qing calmly waved a hand.

He had not wanted to take part in this sort of thing, but Wu Yun had treated him well: a plate of pig offal every day, plus one tael of silver per month.

Wu Yun said Deng Qing was there to watch the place, yet had basically never needed to use him.

Now that Wu Yun was in trouble, even if it was only a street brawl, Deng Qing could only grit his teeth and join in.

Li Cheng called out loudly, "Shopkeeper Feng, if your two families truly cannot reach an agreement and must fight, send word. I will have Senior Brother Deng come over then."

Feng Xiao waved his hands repeatedly. "Young Master Li is joking. We will discuss it ourselves, discuss it ourselves."

Wu Yun also laughed. "Junior Brother Deng, there is nothing to worry about here. You two go ahead and talk."

Only then did Deng Qing leave with Li Cheng.

Once they reached a secluded place, Li Cheng asked, "Senior Brother Deng, what are you busy with this time?"

"Making money."

"You even earn this kind of money?"

"Yesterday, I carried burlap sacks all night."

That was no lie.

A few days ago, he had gone to Tianshun Apothecary to look for work.

Steward Liu had been exceedingly polite, but after talking in circles, he had turned Deng Qing down.

When Deng Qing came out, he saw many commoners lined up outside the apothecary.

Some carried buckets, while others brought wet cloths. Clearly, they were all waiting to enter the furnace room to work.

There was no need to ask how low these people's wages were. No wonder Steward Liu had not wanted to hire him at a high price.

After hearing about the jobs Deng Qing had been doing recently, Li Cheng was speechless for a while.

He had grown up clad in brocade and fed on fine food. He knew that low-level martial artists without backing, like Deng Qing, would not have easy lives.

But he had never imagined things could be this difficult.

A martial artist capable of killing Monk Tang with a single sword strike had been carrying burlap sacks yesterday. Was that not the greatest joke under heaven?

Li Cheng came straight to the point and said that he hoped Deng Qing would teach him the Seven Forms of Settling Solitude. Deng Qing could name any condition he wanted.

Deng Qing had even yielded Zhou Fei's head to him, so how could he make outrageous demands? He merely asked with a smile, "Cut the nonsense. Just tell me—can I eat my fill of meat?"

Li Cheng laughed. "Who are you insulting? I am only afraid you do not have two stomachs."

The two joked as they headed toward the Li Family residence. Just as they turned onto the main street, they saw Zhou Tie and Wang Wei approaching them.

The two hurried along, unable to conceal the excitement on their faces.

From far away, Wang Wei shouted, "Senior Brother Deng, Senior Brother Li, we were just looking for you."

"What is it?"

"Master has returned. He is gathering all disciples at Celebration Hall to speak. Hurry over."

Li Cheng and Deng Qing hurriedly changed direction and rushed toward Celebration Hall.

Half a cup of tea later, the four arrived at Celebration Hall. The sight before him left Deng Qing stunned.

He had joined Celebration Hall for some time now, yet this was still the first time he had truly seen just how vast Celebration Hall's scale was.

Nearly a hundred people stood in the enormous front courtyard.

They stood in separate ranks, the colors of their robes clearly distinct.

The largest group consisted of more than sixty registered disciples in white robes.

These were only the registered disciples who received an Attendant's stipend. If those who received no stipend were included, the number would be even greater.

Further ahead stood more than a dozen Initiation disciples in black robes.

Though few in number, every one of them possessed a distinctly steadier aura.

Deng Qing knew there were several personal disciples above the Initiation disciples.

But he had only heard of these people and never met them. It was said they all had bright futures and held posts elsewhere.

Li Dashan sat in the central seat of honor, dressed in a golden robe. Compared to before, the pressure around him seemed even heavier.

Zhang Yan leaned close and whispered a few words into Li Dashan's ear. Li Dashan swept his gaze over the crowd and said in a deep voice, "Recently, the region has been unsettled, and Celebration Hall has also been affected.

"You have assisted the local authorities in suppressing the unrest. Your toil and merits are considerable, and as your master, I am greatly gratified.

"This time, I answered the prefectural office's summons and traveled far to Liangshan to join the battle. I made some modest contributions and was granted the rank of ninth-grade commandant..."