Turtle Snake

Chapter 39: Turtle-Snake

The Huang Family was in trouble.

Big trouble, at that.

Family Head Huang Xinglong had gone missing.

The Huang Manor had also been attacked by a mysterious assailant, and word was that both of Huang Xinglong's sons had been killed in the strike.

Now the Huang Family was in complete chaos, with several uncles fighting tooth and nail over the family assets.

This news had even spread to the Outer City.

The common folk felt not a shred of pity—mostly, they were gloating.

The people of Linjiang City had suffered under the Huang Family for far too long.

Grain prices in the city stayed sky-high, largely because those damned Huangs were hoarding supplies.

The Huang Family's several grain shops in the Outer City hadn't opened today, but once word of their downfall got out, hordes of starving people smashed down the doors and looted the grain like mad. The chaos grew, threatening to spark another riot.

But this time, the County Office and the major families of the Inner City had learned from past experience. They quickly sent people to suppress the unrest, and the Outer City gangs, not wanting another riot either, did their best to keep order. In the end, the turmoil was brought under control.

Li Mansion.

Li Baling burst into the main hall, all fired up.

"Father, I heard something huge went down in the Inner City last night."

Li Tong was sipping tea. He shot him a glance and said flatly, "What's that got to do with you?"

Li Baling pressed on eagerly, "The Huang Family was in the grain business, right? Now that they've fallen, we should stick a foot in too."

Li Tong let out a scornful laugh. "Do you have any idea how big the waves are in that pond? If our little boat sails in, it'll get smashed to pieces. That's not something we can touch."

"Can't be that bad," Li Baling frowned.

Li Tong shook his head slightly. "You're too naive. Some businesses just can't be touched."

"Let me tell you, this isn't about profit—it's about public anger."

"If you sell grain, you'll sell it at a high price for profit, and that builds up resentment."

"You saw the Outer City riot before. Once that anger explodes and spills into the Inner City, I guarantee the grain sellers will be the first to die."

"Those rioting people will take all their rage out on you."

"How many lives do you have to withstand that?"

Li Tong's words left Li Baling speechless, unable to argue.

"You should learn from your good brother, Qin Yang."

"Look at him—he just minds his own little patch of the Qin Family, training hard in the manor every day."

"Why?"

"Not because he's useless, but because he knows that when chaos comes, all wealth is just smoke. Only if your fists are big enough can you live better."

"That's why I told you to practice martial arts. Don't think being in the Inner City means you can rest easy."

Li Tong spoke with deep sincerity.

His words seemed to strike Li Baling hard. After a long silence, he took a deep breath. "Father, I'll train hard for sure."

"Go on, then."

"Don't just talk without doing."

Li Tong waved his hand.

Li Baling nodded seriously and turned to leave.

"I hope you really understand," Li Tong murmured, shaking his head.

Then his mind drifted to another matter.

"Could the Huang Family's fall really be Qin Yang's doing?"

He'd been mulling it over all day.

It sounded absurd.

A Blood Moving Martial Artist from the Outer City, someone who didn't even rank in the Inner City, bringing down the Huang Family?

But Li Tong had a gut feeling it might not be false.

Lately, Qin Yang had been asking him a lot about the Huang Family.

And the Huangs had something Qin Yang was dead set on getting.

That Second-Rate Qi Gathering Method, the Turtle-Snake Art.

"If it really was Qin Yang... his desperate need for the Turtle-Snake Art probably means he's about to break through to the Qi Gathering stage."

"He's the same age as Baling—nineteen this year, right?"

Li Tong sucked in a sharp breath.

A twenty-year-old Qi Gathering Martial Artist?!!

He remembered that He Yongchang, hailed as the top expert of Linjiang City, had only broken through to the Gathering Qi Realm at thirty-one.

But these were just guesses. Li Tong couldn't be certain either.

"Why overthink it? Even if I'm wrong, with Qin Yang's talent, he's still a top-tier choice."

"Besides, he and Ba Ling share such a deep bond."

"This guy—when it comes to everything else, he's useless, but his knack for making friends sure beats mine by a mile."

Li Tong chuckled, his mind already scheming how to bring their two families closer.

Qin Yang stayed holed up in his room all day, not stepping out once.

The people of Qin Manor were long used to this, showing no surprise at all.

Even his personal maid, Xiao Huan, noticed nothing unusual, assuming the young master was just training in his room again.

Inside the room.

"Who'd have thought I'd score three manuals in a single night?"

Qin Yang stared at the three manuals on the table, grinning from ear to ear.

He definitely had no use for the Pure Qi Art.

He couldn't even be bothered with a third-rate Qi Gathering method.

Maybe he'd find a chance to sell it later.

Qi Gathering techniques could still fetch a decent price.

The second one was the Rushing Thunder Palm.

With his Arhat Fist now mastered to perfection, Qin Yang was just missing a fist-and-foot martial art, and the Rushing Thunder Palm fit the bill perfectly.

But that would have to wait until he broke through to the Gathering Qi Realm.

Next up.

Was the last manual.

The Turtle-Snake Art.

"I went through hell to get my hands on this."

"Hope it doesn't let me down."

Qin Yang steadied his mood and flipped open the Turtle-Snake Art manual.

The Turtle-Snake Art, a Qi Gathering technique, was profoundly mysterious, concealing the principles of balancing heaven and earth's yin and yang.

Turtle represented stillness—the state of cultivation, like a mystic turtle lurking in the deep sea.

It was a terrifying cultivation state.

In the deep sea, the pressure was immense, something most sea beasts couldn't withstand.

When practicing the Turtle-Snake Art, one would condense Turtle-Snake Qi inside the body. As it circulated, it simulated this terrifying pressure environment, constantly tempering the bones, flesh, and skin, making them hard and tough.

Snake represented motion.

This was a combat state.

The Turtle-Snake Qi would turn icy and biting, seeping into the opponent's Internal Organs upon impact, stiffening their blood and qi and slowing their movements.

If cultivated deeply enough, it could even freeze the opponent's heart vessels, killing them on the spot.

After reading through it once, Qin Yang knew this technique was perfect for him.

With its body-tempering effects and the extreme cold special effect in combat, it was undoubtedly a top-tier method among second-rate Qi Gathering techniques.

Currently, at the Nine Heavens of Canglang Blood Moving, his blood and qi were abundant, and he was already at the brink of breakthrough, just missing a Qi Gathering technique.

He called for Xiao Huan and told her to brew him more nourishing medicinal soups, adding extra rare herbs.

Breaking through to the Gathering Qi Realm would consume a terrifying amount of blood and qi, so he needed to prepare in advance.

Next, he would thoroughly study the Turtle-Snake Art, especially how to gather qi and memorize the meridian circulation routes.

Otherwise, if the internal qi took a wrong path through the meridians, the consequences would be severe.

Naturally, Qin Yang entered a deep state of Zen Meditation.

In this state, his comprehension and memory soared, allowing him to quickly grasp the Turtle-Snake Art.