Conflict and the Buddha Statue

He glanced at the panel. Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake: Beginner, 20%.

"One month and five days. I finally got started."

Lin Qing murmured, a glimmer of joy in his eyes.

It was the depths of winter, yet he wore only a thin, short-sleeved shirt. He felt not the slightest chill. Instead, his whole body seemed to burn with heat.

He could feel a warm current racing through his body.

Each time it made a circuit, his body seemed to grow a little stronger.

That warm current was his qi and blood. One sign that he had begun to master the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake was the birth of this first thread of it.

From Proficiency to Minor Mastery, then Major Mastery and Perfect Mastery, he would have to keep practicing and strengthen his qi and blood until he finally broke through his acupoints and produced force. That was Bright Force.

Lin Qing savored the changes in his body. The feeling of growing stronger with every passing moment filled him with delight.

He reached out, gripped a nearby stone millstone, and suddenly exerted his strength. He slowly lifted it, then gently set it down.

I've got at least seven or eight hundred jin of strength in one arm, and my fighting power has risen enormously too, Lin Qing thought.

Just then, Shen Lian pushed open her door. She leaned against the doorframe in a thin blue-green blouse, her cleavage exposed, and did not seem to care in the least.

"You can lift a millstone with one hand? Well, well. Gotten started, have you?"

"By luck." Lin Qing nodded.

"Not bad. I knew I had an eye for people. You got started in just over a month, much faster than I expected. You've got promise." Shen Lian smiled and went back inside. A moment later, she returned with a palm-sized white porcelain medicine bottle.

"If you want to progress quickly, meat alone won't do. You need medicine to replenish your qi and blood. This is a bottle of Qi-Supplementing Pills. Take it!"

Shen Lian tossed the bottle. Lin Qing caught it, his heart leaping. "Thank you for supporting me, my lord!"

"Make me proud. Of the dozen or so helpers in this courtyard, you're the only one I see with a chance of joining the Night Patrol Office. Don't slack off.

"If you can keep improving this quickly, there'll be no shortage of medicine. You have five months left. Reach Major Mastery, and I'll reward you handsomely!" Shen Lian said with a smile.

"I'll give it everything I have and work hard every day. I won't slack off for a moment!" Lin Qing declared.

"Good. Keep training, and Jiang Baihe will certainly notice something. He may come looking for trouble later. Whatever he says, agree with him for now. When the assessment comes, do what you need to do. With me here, he won't turn the world upside down." Shen Lian added the warning as she went back inside.

"Understood," Lin Qing replied.

With Shen Lian backing him, Lin Qing no longer felt afraid. She might be only a manager, but her uncle Shen Cheng was the head of the Netherworld Pacification Bureau, second only to Head Office chief Cheng Yannian. Naturally, she did not fear Jiang Baihe.

After Shen Lian went inside, Lin Qing opened the white porcelain bottle. A rich medicinal fragrance rose from it. Inside were six brown pills, each the size of a soybean. These were Qi-Supplementing Pills, and each cost thirty wen.

I'll try one tomorrow.

The next day.

The night was moonless. The cold deepened, and snowflakes drifted down.

Dressed in a short shirt of coarse cloth, Lin Qing took his usual position in the courtyard. The knife-like wind stung his cheeks.

He closed his eyes slightly. Before coming out, he had swallowed a Qi-Supplementing Pill. Now he calmed his mind and felt for changes in his body.

His stomach felt cool at first. After a while, the medicine took effect, warming him to the bone. It felt as though he had strength to spare.

"Exhale!"

"Inhale!"

Lin Qing's eyes snapped open. He flashed forward through the falling snow and drove out a punch with a whistling rush of air.

Countless fine points of technique flowed through his mind and took shape in his fists and feet. He darted and wheeled around the courtyard, stirring the thread of qi and blood within him until it circulated throughout his body. With every circuit, he felt it grow stronger, and his physique strengthened with it.

On the panel, his proficiency in the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake climbed rapidly.

In the past, Lin Qing had felt his strength drain swiftly whenever he practiced. After two full rounds of the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake, he would have to stop and rest.

Today, he went through it three times in a row and still felt full of energy.

At one point, Lin Qing threw a punch that stirred a gust of wind, while a faint hum seemed to sound beside his ears.

"Exhilarating!"

Lin Qing felt thoroughly invigorated.

Medicine really is essential for martial training. Even the most ordinary, cheapest Qi-Supplementing Pills work this well. They've greatly increased my stamina and the rate at which my qi and blood grow.

With better medicine, Minor Mastery in half a year? Even Major Mastery wouldn't be out of reach, Lin Qing thought.

I'm short on money. I still need to find a way to earn some. Lin Qing wiped the sweat from his brow and went back inside.

For several days after that, Lin Qing swallowed a Qi-Supplementing Pill each night and put in extra practice. His proficiency in the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake rose sharply, and his body grew stronger and stronger.

One night, just as Lin Qing finished training and was about to go inside to sleep, Han Juetong suddenly blocked his path.

"You've gotten started?" Han Juetong stared hard at him.

Lin Qing did not answer. He merely said evenly, "If there's nothing else, please step aside."

"Getting started in just over a month... To think this courtyard had someone with your talent for martial arts. I'm a young master of the Han Family. You needn't take the assessment in five months. Come straight to my family, and I can recommend you as a guard. Once you've advanced in martial arts, I can even put you forward as an Attendant." Han Juetong spoke with an air of superiority, as though he were issuing an order and dispensing charity at the same time.

"Not interested." Lin Qing turned to leave.

"Hm?" Han Juetong frowned. "The Han Family controls every trade in the county town. Don't be an ungrateful brat."

"Young Master Han, everyone has their own ambitions. Don't force yours on me. You look down on peasants, but Great Yuan Taizu himself was once nothing more than a stablehand. Don't underestimate anyone!" Lin Qing went inside, his cold voice echoing through the courtyard.

Han Juetong's expression chilled. This brat is a threat to me. I'll watch him for now. Without medicine to replenish his qi and blood, even the best talent won't get far. Let's see how this pauper plans to make anything of his martial training.

The following day.

It was early morning, and the sky was only beginning to lighten.

After breakfast, Lin Qing asked Shen Lian for leave to visit home.

"Be careful lately. Don't go wandering around unless you have to," Shen Lian instructed him.

"My lord, has something happened?" Lin Qing asked.

"Eternal Peace Pawnshop was wiped out yesterday. Thirteen people were killed. The whole city's in an uproar," Shen Lian said casually.

"Hm? Was it those fiends again?" Lin Qing asked.

"Yes. They're ruthless, and this isn't the first time. Eight people were killed at Tongfu Shop before this. They seem to be looking for something. Don't get involved. You can't be too careful. I'm not over this illness yet, so you can't die," Shen Lian added.

"I see." Lin Qing nodded and headed out.

He suddenly recalled what remained of the thief Zhou Ping's memories. Yin Muhua and the others were probably still searching for the Eight-Armed, Three-Faced Wooden Buddha Statue.

Could the legendary Tathagata Fist Manual be real? Lin Qing wondered.

He was curious, but that was as far as it went. Right now, the Buddha statue was a hot potato.

A short while later.

He reached the entrance to Changping Street. His family's general store stood before him.

Han Ying was wiping down goods in the shop. When she saw Lin Qing come in, she smiled. "Ah Qing, do you have the day off?"

"Yes, just one day. I came back to visit. Where's my father?" Lin Qing asked.

"He's sorting things out back there. It's a mess," Han Ying said.

"I'll give him a hand."

Lin Qing went into the rear courtyard as he spoke and found Lin Cheng moving things around. The courtyard really was a mess, like a rubbish dump. All kinds of odds and ends were piled together, leaving only a narrow path through the middle.

"Ah Qing, you're back. Our courtyard's gotten too cluttered, so I'm tidying it up," Lin Cheng said with a smile.

"I'll help." Lin Qing stepped forward and began moving things with him.

By noon, Lin Qing reached into a heap of miscellaneous goods and unexpectedly pulled out a wooden Buddha statue. It had eight arms and three faces, stood half as tall as a person, and gleamed with a dark luster.