Minor Achievement

Minor Achievement

In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

The moon shone bright amid sparse stars.

Li Rui slowly opened his eyes, feeling something unusual in his lower half.

A pillar holding up the sky.

A long-lost sensation.

It seemed practicing martial arts really was quite effective.

During this period, aside from the necessary inspections of the stables, he had hidden in his room to practice his cultivation. The results were extremely obvious. He had secretly tested himself already—lifting a two-hundred-jin boulder was no problem at all.

A seventy-year-old man lifting two hundred jin—in his previous life, he would have been the god of the park.

The Eight Section Brocade had little killing power, but great strength could still kill.

With Li Rui's current strength, probably more than half the Zhu Family's guards would be no match for him.

Li Rui first made a round of the stables, then practiced the Eight Section Brocade another four times.

Only when a burst of commotion outside his door disturbed him did he step outside.

When Li Rui followed the sounds to the front courtyard, he saw a group of servants gathered in a circle. Faintly, he could hear someone's agonized wails.

Li Rui spotted Yang Yong at the very edge of the crowd at a glance.

"Old Yang, what happened?"

Yang Yong said, "A kid who just entered the residence stole something from the household. Master caught him red-handed. By the rules, he gets thirty lashes."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Li Rui heard a heart-rending scream.

Through a gap in the crowd, he saw a young man stripped bare from the waist up, his back covered in bloody welts—a horrifying sight.

"You dog who eats from the bowl and claws at the pot! We took you in out of pity, and you still dared to steal? I'll beat you to death!"

Master Zhu of the Zhu Family raised his whip and brought it down viciously.

Crack!

The watching servants all shuddered in unison.

Yang Yong said, "His old mother is seriously ill, so he sold himself to the Zhu Family. He probably wanted to steal something and sell it to pay for her treatment. Sigh..."

He shook his head and said no more.

In the end, several guards carried the unconscious young man away. He was taking more breaths out than in, and clearly would not survive.

Li Rui was perhaps the calmest person there.

He had seen scenes like this far too many times over his decades of life. Once one became a slave, even one's life was sold to the master's household. Even if the master beat one to death, the authorities would not interfere. Death would be a death in vain.

"This man-eating world."

At that moment, Yang Yong suddenly exclaimed, "Old Li, have you grown young again? You look much sturdier than before."

He looked Li Rui up and down, clicking his tongue in amazement.

He had originally thought Li Rui was joking when he asked him for the Eight Section Brocade. But looking at him now, perhaps the old man really had been practicing it.

Li Rui took out the Eight Section Brocade Cultivation Method from his robes. "Just in time to return it to you."

Yang Yong put away the cultivation method, but the surprise in his eyes only deepened.

"Old Li, are you planning to outlast me too?"

Li Rui said, "Don't worry. I'm experienced at burying people."

Yang Yong's mouth twitched. He felt that he really might not outlive Li Rui. Could Old Li truly be planning to see him off at the end?

The heavens had turned upside down!

Li Rui returned to his room and recalled what he had seen that day.

A servant was still only a servant, without the slightest human right.

As his martial arts grew more profound, his consumption increased more and more. The supplies in the stable storeroom had long since been depleted by him. Though he could stash away some every day, doing so undoubtedly increased the risk of being discovered by the master's household.

Even though Master Zhu of the Zhu Family had grown up under his watch.

If Li Rui committed an offense, however, the man would not show the slightest mercy. The previous Groom had been beaten to death simply because one horse had fallen ill.

Li Rui had even buried the body himself.

"Looks like I can only buy them outside."

Fortunately, a Groom's wages were generous, and there was little to spend money on in the Zhu Family. Li Rui had saved quite a bit over the years, enough to sustain him for some time.

When he thought of his entire fortune of thirty taels of silver.

No wonder he had heard that some young girls in the city especially loved swindling old men.

When one grew old, one learned many things young people did not know—such as the Black Market.

The Black Market had first been established forty years ago.

At that time, he had just buried the old Groom and become the Zhu Family's new Groom. Back then, the Black Market had still been quite proper. Many things had only gradually become improper.

The Black Market was tucked away in a corner of the eastern district, about two quarters of an hour away.

At the entrance, two burly men in black, who looked troublesome at a glance, expressionlessly stopped Li Rui. "One cash coin for entry. No fighting after you enter, or bear the consequences yourself."

"Understood."

Li Rui already knew the procedure. He skillfully pulled out a cash coin from his robes.

Though it was called a Black Market, it was not as mysterious as the rumors claimed. It was merely a gathering place for somewhat special stalls. The goods for sale were a hodgepodge—there might be treasures, but not many.

Most sellers were still nearby villagers, bringing roosters, eggs, and the like to trade.

Though the Black Market charged an entry fee, it was far lower than the government's tariffs. And, ironically, order in the Black Market was much better than at the government market. Even if prices were a little higher, many people were willing to come.

Ordinary people would not recognize truly shady goods even if they saw them. One had to use specific jianghu code words.

Li Rui had visited many times and knew the Black Market like the back of his hand.

At this moment, he looked entirely different from usual.

Not only did he wear a black face covering, his clothes were also much bulkier than usual. He had even deliberately padded out square shoulders. Not only was his age impossible to discern, but even from his build alone, he looked like someone not to be trifled with.

Though the Blood Tiger Gang had men guarding the Black Market and nothing would happen inside, someone might still set their sights on him and make their move after he left.

It never hurt to be cautious.

"Free-range chicken, pork!"

Li Rui glanced at the nearest vendor. He had often frequented this stall before, buying meat to take back and improve his meals.

This time, however, he was not here for meat, but herbs.

There were quite a few herb gatherers from nearby in the Black Market. He was sure to find something good at a bargain.

Just as he was looking for an herb stall, he suddenly spotted a familiar figure.

"Ma Yang?"

Li Rui had not expected that his disciple would happen to come to the Black Market as well.

He had been the one to tell Ma Yang about the Black Market. At the time, the master and disciple had still been on quite good terms.

Li Rui had no intention of going up to recognize him. He soon found an herb stall.

"Brother, take a look. This is Morinda Root freshly picked today. It nourishes yang and strengthens the sinews—guaranteed to do the job."

As he spoke, he wore an expression that said, You know what I mean.

No matter the era, a man's kidneys and a woman's face were where people were most willing to spend money.

"I'll take this, this, and this."

To avoid exposing his true age, Li Rui spoke as little as possible and deliberately altered his voice. Thus, the stall owner noticed nothing unusual.

These herbs made up a prescription called Qi Nourishing Powder.

He had secretly read the formula one year when he had gone to fetch a prescription for Master Zhu of the Zhu Family, who practiced martial arts.

He had kept it in mind ever since, and now it was finally of use.

Taking the herbs wrapped by the vendor, Li Rui inconspicuously glanced at the lean, wiry man not far away, who was looking up at the sky.

There was a scar on his face. At a glance, he looked like trouble.

He had been marked!