A longer life

"Congratulations, Junior Brother Xu Yang. You've surprised everyone yet again." Sun Tao walked over with a smile.

Just when everyone had thought Xu Yang would be left completely in the dust by Lu Ren, Xu Yang actually succeeded in Qi Gathering. Who knew how many people in the Inner Court were exclaiming over his dumb luck.

"Greetings, Senior Brother Sun Tao!" Xu Yang cupped his hands.

Sun Tao beamed. "If you don't enter the Inner Court now, when will you? Junior Brother Xu Yang, hurry and come see Master with me."

Xu Yang nodded and followed Sun Tao into the Inner Court.

"I told you he was no match for Senior Brother Lu Ren. When Senior Brother Lu Ren succeeded in Qi Gathering, how many senior brothers came from the Inner Court? But when he broke through, only Senior Brother Sun Tao came. That shows the senior brothers in the Inner Court don't think much of him."

Only after Xu Yang's figure had disappeared completely did Luo Dehu dare speak again.

"You bootlicker. Looks like Senior Brother Xu Yang went too easy on you with that slap."

Qiu Wenjie snorted, turned around, and quickly left the Mighty Far Hall.

He needed to tell his father that Xu Yang had succeeded in Qi Gathering.

"He actually succeeded in Qi Gathering!"

Standing beside Luo Dehu, Qian Jiaxing was filled with regret.

If he hadn't committed himself so completely to one side, he could have remained on good terms with both Xu Yang and Lu Ren. But now Xu Yang no longer spoke to him.

In all honesty, he actually preferred Xu Yang.

Xu Yang had treated him as a friend, while Lu Ren treated him as a lackey. They were nothing alike.

A lackey could be kicked aside the moment he stopped being useful, but a friend would always stand by you.

"That you succeeded in Qi Gathering so quickly truly surprised me. Still, your bone root is ordinary. If you want to advance further, you'll have to work hard to earn money."

Lin Cheng sat in his chair, studying Xu Yang with a slightly surprised expression.

"I understand, Master!" Xu Yang cupped his hands.

"The Huang Family has terminated your agreement. If you have nowhere to go, you can ask your senior brother Sun Tao for help. If anyone tries to recruit you and you want to know more about them, you can ask him about that too.

"You have little backing. Think three times before you act..."

This time, Lin Cheng finally showed something of a master's demeanor, offering Xu Yang plenty of guidance.

When it came to joining a faction, however, Xu Yang still needed to see what the Qiu Family decided.

If the Qiu Family hired him as an Attendant, he would naturally serve them. Everything had to wait until they made their choice.

Only if the Qiu Family couldn't afford to hire him would he reconsider other factions.

"Junior Brother Xu, come here. Let me introduce you to the senior brothers of the Inner Court."

As soon as Xu Yang left Lin Cheng's quarters, Sun Tao pulled him into a pavilion and introduced him to the Inner Court disciples there.

After making the rounds, he had gotten to know just about all of them-roughly eleven or twelve people.

According to Sun Tao, however, these weren't all the Inner Court disciples. Many didn't come to the Mighty Far Hall every day because of their duties, while some had already left Qingyuan County.

These disciples weren't exactly cold toward Xu Yang, but they weren't enthusiastic either. His reception was nowhere near as warm as Lu Ren's had been after his breakthrough.

"Junior Brother, if you're looking for work, you can come to me anytime," Sun Tao told Xu Yang.

After thanking him, Xu Yang found somewhere to sit and quietly sensed the changes in his body.

Once he had succeeded in Qi Gathering, the difference from before was like that between clouds and mud. Every aspect of his body had changed greatly.

[Remaining lifespan: 60]

Even the lifespan displayed on the panel had changed from "57" to "60," suddenly increasing by three years.

"Greetings, Uncle. Greetings, Fifth Master!"

The first people Xu Yang's wait brought him weren't Qiu Yongqiang, but his eldest maternal uncle, Zhou Shunchang, and Huang Jin.

"Good, good, good! I knew you could do it." Zhou Shunchang clasped Xu Yang's hand, his face full of excitement.

Now that Xu Yang had become a martial artist, he could finally feel he had done right by his deceased younger sister.

They talked for a while before Zhou Shunchang's surging emotions settled.

Only then did Huang Jin step forward.

The Huang Family still wouldn't hire Xu Yang as an Attendant, but in light of their past sponsorship, they had prepared five taels of silver as a congratulatory gift.

"I still think highly of you, actually. Lu Ren is talented, but he's far too arrogant and conceited. I fear our Huang Family will end up sewing a wedding gown for someone else," Huang Jin sighed.

But he wasn't from the Huang Family's main branch and had little say in the matter.

Xu Yang, too, had mixed feelings about Lu Ren.

In just two months, the shy boy who used to stammer when he spoke had become someone willing to stoop to underhanded means. Simply because he feared the Huang Family might change its mind, he had someone sling mud at Xu Yang the moment he broke through.

He had to admit, Luo Dehu really had a talent for it.

"Although I'm no longer with the Huang Family, if you ever need me, you can come to me anytime," Xu Yang said solemnly.

Although the Huang Family had broken their agreement, he bore them no resentment. On the contrary, he remained grateful for their kindness.

Without the Huang Family, he might already have been hounded to death by the Three Harmonies Gang.

Zhou Shunchang and Huang Jin soon left.

A little later, Qiu Wenjie came to find Xu Yang and told him Qiu Yongqiang was waiting outside.

The Qiu Family was a small household with no partnership with the Mighty Far Hall. Naturally, Qiu Yongqiang couldn't enter whenever he pleased as Huang Jin could.

When they met, Qiu Yongqiang offered another round of congratulations before frankly admitting that the Qiu Family couldn't afford to hire him. They couldn't come up with ten taels of silver a month.

They were, however, willing to continue giving him three taels of silver each month to support his martial training.

Xu Yang was quite satisfied with this outcome.

He hadn't actually wanted to bind himself to any particular lineage, whether the Huang Family or the Qiu Family. But since he had accepted their kindness, he had to honor his promises. Now, things had worked out just as he wished.

If he had truly wanted to become an Attendant of the Huang Family, he could easily have succeeded in Qi Gathering before Lu Ren. The main reason he had broken through a few days later was precisely that he hadn't wanted the position, so he had deliberately delayed.

Large lineages were full of sordid dealings. More importantly, the Huang Family had lifted him up from the bottom. If he joined them, he would inherently stand a head lower than they did, making it difficult to speak as equals. If any dispute arose, others would simply accuse him of forgetting their kindness and betraying them.

Choosing a new faction to serve might not bring him resources as good as the Huang Family's, but he would have more freedom to act.

That day, he didn't train at the Mighty Far Hall until dark. Instead, he left in the afternoon.

"A Yang!"

Not long after he left the city, Zhang Daniu's voice rang out behind him.

"A Yang, long time no see!" Zhang Daniu hurried to catch up. "I heard you're working in the city too. I went to your house a few times, but unfortunately, I never caught you there.

"I asked Xiaoqing where you worked so I could come find you, but that girl absolutely refused to tell me.

"By the way, where exactly do you work? How come I've never run

"into you?"

Upon meeting again, Zhang Daniu was warmer than ever, pouring out a stream of words as though he had forgotten how he had distanced himself from Xu Yang.

"I'm not working. I've actually been training in martial arts at the Mighty Far Hall."

Now that he had succeeded in Qi Gathering, there was no need to keep his training hidden.

Training at the Mighty Far Hall? No wonder he never said anything.

Zhang Daniu froze. "Where did you get the money?"

"The Huang Family, a wealthy household in the city, thought I had decent talent and paid to send me to the Mighty Far Hall."

At those words, Zhang Daniu fell silent for a long while.

He had heard about that opportunity and had even regretted hearing the news too late to take part in the Huang Family's selection.

With a hint of sourness in his voice that also sounded like concern, he said, "I've heard the Huang Family is stingy. If you don't end up becoming a martial artist, you'll probably have to pay them back. A Yang, take my advice. Martial training isn't something people like us can dream of. It's better to keep our feet on the ground."

Xu Yang glanced at him. "I'm already a martial artist."

"You... became a martial artist..."

Zhang Daniu felt as though lightning had struck him. Only then did he realize Xu Yang had long since grown taller than him and carried an awe-inspiring air, exactly like the martial artist gentlemen he had seen at the smithy.

"A..."

He wanted to call him "A Yang," but his throat felt dry, and he couldn't get the words out.

"This is where we part ways. We can talk another time."

Xu Yang pointed at the fork ahead, took one of the paths, and strode toward home.

Zhang Daniu stood rooted to the spot. Even after Xu Yang's figure disappeared, he still hadn't come to his senses.

"Daniu, what are you standing here for? Gone stupid?"

Suddenly, He Laosan's voice sounded from behind him.

Zhang Daniu turned around and said bitterly, "Laosan, A Yang... A Yang's become a martial artist..."