The two walked all the way to the courtyard of Li Feng's home.
"Uncle Li, how much silver do these gravels cost? I'll pay you all at once."
Li Feng really felt bad about getting things for free and having someone else help deliver them.
Uncle Li waved his hand. "Just a few stones, not worth much money. Besides, we've been neighbors for years. Delivering some gravel is nothing at all."
Not to mention delivering a few pieces of gravel, upon seeing earlier how Li Feng easily lifted those two baskets and walked as if flying, Uncle Li had already churned up quite a bit of a storm in his heart.
Everyone had been neighbors on the street for so many years, so you could say they knew each other inside and out.
This young brother Li had an upright character, and his sister-in-law Lin Yanqiu was also a good person who valued relationships and loyalty. Now that Li Feng was serving in the City Guard Office and had forged extraordinary skills, he would surely be able to become a chief constable just like his sister-in-law in the future.
If it weren't for the fact that his own granddaughter was only twelve this year and far too young, he would have wanted to shamelessly let the girl come over to visit and chat on weekdays, have more contact with this Li Feng, and lock down this outstanding young man in advance.
"That won't do. Business is business. Even if this gravel isn't worth much, Uncle, you still helped me carry it over. Labor fees must be paid."
Naturally unaware that the old man before him had already started setting his sights on him, Li Feng insisted on fishing out a bit of broken silver from his bosom to hand over.
If this were back in his past life, a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl, he'd probably be arrested and given three days and nights of electric shocks.
"You child, you're just too polite! If you really feel bad about it, just look out a bit more for the old man's family when you're on duty patrolling the streets."
No matter what Li Feng said, Uncle Li refused to accept the money, smiling as he pushed Li Feng's hand back.
"Alright, I've delivered the gravel, and this old man has to go back for dinner. I won't disturb you practicing your cultivation method. If you need help with anything, just give a shout anytime."
"This... then many thanks, Uncle Li. Walk slowly."
Seeing this, Li Feng knew it was no use pushing further, so he went along with the old man's wishes and escorted Uncle Li all the way out the door.
Watching Uncle Li's cheerfully retreating back, Li Feng smiled helplessly.
At worst, he would just pay more attention to the old man's family during neighborhood patrols and lend a hand whenever something came up.
With the gravel matter settled, Li Feng eagerly wanted to start repaying the debt of the Iron Robe Skin-Grinding Method.
After spreading the gravel out evenly, Li Feng stripped off all his clothes and lay down on it with a bare body.
If an ordinary person were to do this, they would probably be poked all over in stinging pain. After all, this coarse gravel still contained quite a few sharp stones that would break the skin if one wasn't careful.
If Li Feng were still just starting out with the skin-grinding method, rolling around would probably make him feel a trace of pain, but now that he was already at the perfection realm, this bit of friction actually made him feel comfortable all over, as if a masseuse were giving him a massage.
"Skin training achieved, tough like an iron robe." These were the original words from the Iron Robe Skin-Grinding Method.
Li Feng lay bare-bodied in the gravel, continuously rolling around.
The only way to quickly repay his debt was to let the gravel make full contact with all the skin on his body.
With every roll, the gravel rubbed against his whole body. Compared to previously scrubbing himself by hand with coarse burlap cloth, this training efficiency was undoubtedly several times faster.
Li Feng rolled around on the gravel like a playful child, continuously repaying the debt of the skin-grinding method with the aid of the coarse gravel.
"Rustle... rustle..."
The sound of the gravel rubbing was exceptionally clear in the quiet courtyard.
Inside the house, Lin Yanqiu heard the commotion and couldn't help feeling a bit worried. With Xiaofeng pushing himself so hard, he mustn't hurt his body.
She pushed open the room door and, relying on the faint starlight, looked toward the corner of the courtyard.
The night was too dark, and coupled with the fact that Li Feng had deliberately chosen the furthest corner, Lin Yanqiu could only vaguely see a figure rolling continuously on the ground.
As Li Feng stretched out his movements, Lin Yanqiu furrowed her brow slightly. Feeling somewhat puzzled in her heart, she called out a reminder, "Xiaofeng, if you're going to practice the skin-grinding method, then practice properly. Rolling around in the gravel like that, aren't you afraid of bruising yourself?"
Li Feng was right in the middle of an intense training session when he heard his sister-in-law's voice, causing him to instantly sit up from the gravel.
He took a heavy breath, looking somewhat dumbfounded with a dazed expression as he instinctively lowered his head to take a look, asking blankly, "No, I'm not?"
Lin Yanqiu froze slightly, taking two steps forward wanting to see what was going on.
A gentle breeze blew, scattering some of the thin clouds that blocked the starlight. Relying on the slightly brighter starlight, Lin Yanqiu finally saw clearly what that was.
Although Lin Yanqiu was Li Feng's sister-in-law in name, she had only been a child bride back then, and before they had even performed wedding bows, the eldest brother passed away. In reality, she was still an unwed maiden.
Thinking of that scene from just moments ago, Lin Yanqiu's brain went buzz with a clear sound as she understood instantly in that very second.
In a flash, a flush of crimson crawled all the way from Lin Yanqiu's slender neck up to the tips of her ears.
She only felt her cheeks burning like a fire, her breathing also turning hurried.
This Xiaofeng... how could he practice naked in the courtyard!
"You... you brat! How can you practice your cultivation without even wearing a pair of undershorts? Have you no shame at all!"
Filled with a mix of shame and anger, Lin Yanqiu hastily turned around, clutching the corners of her clothes as her heart hammered violently.
By this time, Li Feng had also reacted.
After breaking through to the Qi-Blood Second Level, his yang energy was already brimming to begin with, and he had just been rolling back and forth in the pile of gravel.
To make matters even worse, in order to let the skin all over his body make full contact with the gravel and speed up the debt-repayment progress, he was stark naked right now!
"Sis... Sister-in-law, listen to my explanation. I was just doing this so that every inch of my skin and membranes could be tempered. Th... this is just an instinctive surge of qi and blood!"
Li Feng's old face flushed crimson as he hurriedly grabbed a piece of clothing from the side, trying in a fluster to block his front with it.
"Who... who wants to hear your absurd nonsense!"
With her back to him, Lin Yanqiu didn't dare look back at all, her voice trembling. "Put your clothes on right away! The night wind is chilly, don't catch a cold... I, I'm going back inside first!"
With that, Lin Yanqiu walked briskly back into the house as if fleeing, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.
Leaning against the back of the door, Lin Yanqiu pressed her hands against her burning cheeks, yet her mind uncontrollably replayed the scene from just moments ago over and over again, leaving her thoughts in utter chaos.
Looking at the tightly closed door, Li Feng stood in the cold wind clutching his clothes. The air still seemed to linger with the faint, warm, and soft fragrance belonging to his sister-in-law, prompting him to let out a bitter laugh.
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