Su Yan arrived at Hundred Herbs Hall just as Song Qi was standing outside the main hall, watching the assistants take stock of the medicinal herbs.
He caught sight of Su Yan out of the corner of his eye and gave a soft exclamation. "You haven't come by in a while, lad."
Through their exchanges and the guidance Song Qi offered, the two had gradually grown familiar. This tone was nothing out of the ordinary.
"Thanks to you, Elder Song, I've had a taste of that Redskin Powder. It's really something words can't describe..."
Su Yan stepped through the door, and the old man laughed. "You want to practice martial arts without suffering? If you saw those supplementary arts that temper the body with Thunderfire and Poisonous Substances, wouldn't your eyes pop out and your tongue tie itself in knots?"
"Well, what mountain goods have you found today? The Golden Ape Martial Arts Hall's Inner Gate exam is about to begin."
Song Qi stared at the basket on his back. Something rustled inside, as though it held living creatures.
This time, however, Su Yan did not empty the basket. Instead, he handed over a cloth bundle he had at hand.
"I found the blood tendon flowers."
"What?!"
Song Qi's hand trembled. He rushed a step forward, took the bundle, and opened it. Sure enough, several bright red flowers lay inside.
"Yes, these are blood tendon flowers! Hahahaha!"
Song Qi burst into laughter. His lingering injuries had kept him from advancing for years. Now, after all his waiting here beside the Cloudridge Mountains, the blood tendon flowers had finally come to him.
"Good lad, you've done me an enormous favor! Do you know how many years I've waited for these blood tendon flowers?"
Some Treasure Plants truly could only be stumbled upon, never sought out at will. And there were people secretly putting obstacles in his path, too.
"Wait!"
An urgent voice suddenly rang out from outside Hundred Herbs Hall.
"Whatever he offers, the Little Mountain Society will pay you double."
Gu Hong emerged from the crowd with three or four hired fighters behind him. Dressed in dark blue-black clothes, they swept cold gazes over the shop.
When his eyes turned to Su Yan, a flicker of irritation passed through their depths.
"Gu Hong! You dare come to Hundred Herbs Hall and run wild?"
"Old bastard, you think these blood tendon flowers will fix those useless hands of yours? Keep dreaming. What, aren't you afraid my father will cut them up again?"
Gu Hong wore a provocative expression, looking at Song Qi as though he were worthless.
He turned to Su Yan. "Sell the flowers to the Little Mountain Society, and I'll bring you into the society. You can take Niu Han's place and handle things the way he did. Once you've learned your martial arts well, I'll get you a position as an assistant instructor."
Gu Hong did not yet know that Su Yan had reached full mastery in Skin Refining. He thought Su Yan was still at lesser mastery.
His words carried more than a hint of condescension.
"Niu Han's place?"
Displeasure stirred in Su Yan's heart, and his gaze gradually chilled. Such arrogance and tyranny. Even as a member of the Little Mountain Society, Gu Hong had no right to act like this.
Cloudcang Town had plenty of powerful households. The Little Mountain Society was merely one among them. What gave him the right to be so brazen?
And this Gu Hong actually had ties to Niu Han.
Seeing Su Yan remain unmoved, Gu Hong grew annoyed. "What, you don't want to? Other people offer plenty of Treasure Plants and Treasure Fish just to join the Little Mountain Society."
Su Yan raised his eyes. "Niu Han offered some too?"
Gu Hong laughed. "Two roots of Black Rock Crow Ginseng picked from a cliff. You have talent for martial arts and skill at Mountain Trekking. Once you join, with me recommending you and my father backing you, you'll have plenty of chances to rise."
Master the arts of pen and sword, then sell them to the imperial house. Though the Little Mountain Society was no imperial dynasty, the principle remained the same.
Su Yan had joined the Martial Arts Hall to train, earning money through Mountain Trekking to cover his martial arts expenses. All he wanted was to rise above the crowd.
As Gu Hong saw it, he was offering Su Yan a broad, level road to success.
The only catch was that he would have to become a dog.
Beside them, Song Qi's fury blazed three feet high as he listened.
"Very good indeed."
Su Yan spoke loud and clear. Niu Dang and Niu Daqi, who had followed Gu Hong here, could only groan inwardly, We're in for it. Gu Hong had even blurted out the matter of the Black Rock Crow Ginseng.
Fortunately, Su Yan did not know that Su Dahe had been thrown off a cliff while gathering ginseng and fallen to his death. Otherwise, how could he possibly let this rest?
The chill in Su Yan's eyes was sharp as a blade, but Gu Hong could not see it.
"Elder Song, these blood tendon flowers are my gift to you."
Song Qi froze, while Gu Hong's expression stiffened.
"Hahahaha!"
Song Qi laughed without restraint, but his deep eyes revealed their full sharpness. "Gu Changfeng's little brat hasn't even grown all his hair, yet he dares come looking for trouble with me."
Humiliated, Gu Hong's blood and qi surged. He suddenly hooked his hand like a blade and struck at Su Yan.
Today, he would teach this little brat a lesson.
"Get out."
Su Yan's expression did not change. Song Qi had already swept his sleeve forward, striking Gu Hong squarely in the chest.
Gu Hong's expression changed drastically. He brought his hand back to defend, only to feel an immense force surge like a wave, splitting into three streams of power that drove straight into his chest.
With a wet splutter, he spat blood and staggered five or six steps out through the doorway, nearly falling to the ground.
"Old bastard, you... you've returned to the Blood Moving Realm?!"
"Why aren't you running yet? Don't make me slaughter you."
Song Qi stepped outside the door and looked down at Gu Hong, giving him no regard whatsoever.
Did that little wolf cub from Gu Changfeng's household really think that, with the meridians in his hands injured, his blood would weaken with age and his cultivation would fall, leaving him at full mastery of the Sinew and Bone Realm for the rest of his life?
"Let's go!"
Gu Hong was already riding a tiger he could not dismount. He had lost face, but he had no desire to lose his life as well.
The various powers in Cloudcang Town all had their differences, and there was no shortage of killing when interests were at stake.
But they rarely brought such things out into the open, especially murder in the middle of the street.
Once all pretense was torn away, it could easily spark a bloody clash between two factions.
Gu Hong, however, did not dare gamble with his life.
He was in the prime of his youth, with fine talent. If this old man Song Qi went mad and took him down with him, the loss would be far too great.
"Why weren't you afraid?"
"Would being afraid do any good against someone like him?"
There were clearly two realms between them. Gu Hong had entered the Blood Moving Realm, while Su Yan was only at Skin Refining.
That gap was enough for Gu Hong to knead and crush him however he pleased. Not everyone would dare face him so directly.
"I'll buy the blood tendon flowers from you at four times the usual price."
Song Qi said seriously, "You've offended Gu Hong, but he won't dare act rashly and break the rules. He's still no match for me. Once you enter the Golden Ape Martial Arts Hall's Inner Gate, you'll be one of their people. With that status, outside the Wild Mountains, people won't readily try to kill you either."
"Elder Song, I said these are a gift."
Su Yan's eyes were bright and especially candid, without the slightest hint of affectation.
Song Qi stood rooted to the spot, as though he were seeing Su Yan anew.
"Your guidance in martial arts may have been nothing more than a few casual words to you, Elder Song, but to me, it was the kindness of someone showing me the way. The blood tendon flowers may be precious, but to me, they fall far short of your guidance."
Su Yan grinned. "Besides, if I took your money, how could I have the nerve to ask Elder Song to be my backer?"
"Hahaha!" Song Qi laughed. "Good lad, you certainly dare say it. In that case, come to the rear courtyard with me. Let's see you hold the Golden Ape Stance for an hour."
He had no children. In the years since he had come to the Mountain Market Ward, his ties with some of the younger generation had grown much fainter.
Yet when he met a young man like Su Yan, he found himself growing ever closer to him.
A backer, then. Even if Su Yan had said nothing, he had found the blood tendon flowers for him and offended the Little Mountain Society in the process. Song Qi had already resolved to help him.
Now that Su Yan had spoken like this, he was even more determined to do so.
The lad had talent and a sharp mind, far better than Song Qi himself had been at that age. He would see just how far Su Yan could go.
As Song Qi led Su Yan away, he truly intended to continue guiding him in his stance training and fist arts.
He would instruct him first, then find some way to help him learn more when the opportunity arose.
But they had barely entered the rear courtyard when Song Qi's shocked cry rang out:
"How have you already reached full mastery, lad?!"
Before you continue