Shen Yan and Xu Da, who had been watching Chen Tie from nearby, were the first to notice the change in him.
"Junior Brother Chen actually broke through!"
The two hurried over to Chen Tie.
"Congratulations, Junior Brother Chen, on successfully becoming a Skin Refining martial artist!"
"How is it? Does it feel like the Qi and blood throughout your body have increased severalfold?"
Chen Tie nodded happily. "Thank you, senior brothers. My Qi and blood really have increased, by about three times!"
The fellow disciples around them also noticed what had happened and gathered to offer their congratulations.
"Senior Brother Chen, congratulations on your breakthrough!"
"Please look out for us in the future!"
The outer courtyard disciples still lingering at the threshold of Skin Refining had envy in their eyes, along with unwillingness and even a little jealousy.
Chen Tie secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Over the past half month, he had taken Qi and Blood Pills every day.
Without the pills' help, even with another half month left, he would not have dared say he would definitely break through.
The change among the outer courtyard disciples naturally did not escape Mo Hong's notice, and soon Mo Fang came over to Chen Tie.
"Congratulations on breaking through to the Skin Refining realm, Senior Brother Chen!"
Mo Fang handed him a stiff paper packet. "This is a portion of secret medicine. It helps you progress in Skin Refining."
Chen Tie accepted the packet. "Thank you, junior sister."
Secret medicines were a special kind of preparation, mostly mixtures of some sort of dried meat and medicinal ingredients. They could be eaten directly to increase Qi and blood and speed up a martial artist's cultivation.
However, they were not sold on the market. They were essentially controlled by major factions or families, and each family's secret medicine had different effects.
A few people nearby looked their way. A trace of surprise flashed across Xiao Yue's face before Xiao Yue shook their head lightly. "I didn't expect this Junior Brother Chen to actually break through. I reckon he must have taken medicines like Blood-Removing Pills to manage it. From the looks of it, his potential is already exhausted. Skin Refining is the limit of what he can reach."
Zhang Long, standing beside Xiao Yue, said nothing. A hint of complexity flashed through his eyes before they grew calm again.
Although Chen Tie had broken through, his aptitude was clearly far inferior to his own. There was no need to pay him much attention.
"Who are those senior brothers and sisters beside Junior Brother Zhang? I don't think I've ever seen them before."
Chen Tie asked curiously.
Xu Da explained casually, "Those three are also inner courtyard disciples of the martial hall. They're from the Xiao Family, Chu Family, and Wei Family, three of the five great families in the inner city. They came this time to try to recruit Junior Brother Zhang Long."
Hearing this, Chen Tie understood perfectly. They had their eyes on Junior Brother Zhang's talent.
After all, although these family scions came to the martial hall to learn martial arts, they generally would not stay long. Their greater intention was to recruit martial artists for their families from the various martial halls.
Xu Da abruptly changed the subject. "Junior Brother Chen, are you interested in taking a part-time position for a monthly stipend?"
"To tell you the truth, Third Senior Brother, I don't have any part-time work at the moment," Chen Tie explained.
Xu Da patted Chen Tie on the shoulder. "Then come to my Xu Family. Our Xu Family is a mid-ranking family in the inner city, and we own the Tiger Might Escort Agency. You can work part-time as an escort. We can give you ten taels of silver and fifty jin of good meat every month. Of course, if we need you to escort a shipment, you'll receive extra pay."
"Since Third Senior Brother thinks so highly of me, how could I refuse?" Chen Tie agreed after only a moment's thought.
For one thing, he really did need to rely on a faction for part-time work and a monthly stipend. Otherwise, if he kept spending money without any source of income, someone would surely grow suspicious.
For another, Chen Tie was focused on martial arts and did not want these miscellaneous matters to distract him too much. If he sought out other factions, they might not offer particularly good terms anyway.
Today, Chen Tie did not stay to put in extra practice. When the time came, he headed home.
Halfway there, he saw a group of people dressed in white on the street, chanting slogans as they walked.
"Unborn Eternal Mother, Vacuum Homeland! Those who believe in the unborn shall gain eternal life..."
The ordinary people around them could not get out of their way fast enough, clearing a path without daring to obstruct them in the slightest.
"The world's growing more chaotic by the day. The Unborn Sect is openly marching through the streets. This way of preaching clearly has some other purpose, yet nobody does anything about it."
"Keep your voice down. If they hear you, they'll come knocking tonight."
The people around them murmured among themselves.
Chen Tie had just reached the mouth of his alley when he heard a commotion from inside.
"Everyone, get out here! Have you seen this person?"
Several vicious-looking Liu Family guards were knocking on doors, making everyone come out to look at the portrait in their hands.
"Sirs, I really haven't seen this person. Several groups have already come asking before. I truly don't know."
"I don't have any impression of them. I really don't remember."
The guards clearly knew they would get no answers. They merely wanted an excuse to squeeze out a little money.
But everyone living here was poor, with clearly nothing to be squeezed out of them. The men left after tossing out a few curses.
Chen Tie deliberately waited at the alley entrance for a while, only going home once they were far away.
"Big Brother, why are you home so early today?"
Chen Tie reached out and stroked his little sister's head, saying softly, "I came back early to bring you something tasty."
Chen Tie took a large package of beef, roast chicken, and other meats from inside his clothes, along with some tasty snacks.
"Wow! Big Brother really is the best!"
Chen Xi happily hugged Chen Tie's thigh.
After dinner, Chen Tie took out the packet of secret medicine Mo Fang had given him.
He opened the stiff paper packet. Inside was a mixture of dried meat and medicinal ingredients. When he leaned closer to smell it, there was a faint bloody scent mingled with the pungent smell of the herbs.
Chen Tie picked up a little and chewed it. It tasted slightly spicy. Just as he swallowed, a scorching current suddenly burst forth in his stomach, surging through his veins and sweeping throughout his body. Under the rush of heat, his flesh began to grow faintly hot, his blood vessels expanded, and his heartbeat abruptly quickened.
Chen Tie immediately began practicing the Fierce Tiger Fist in his courtyard. Only after four hours did the medicine's effects slowly fade.
[Fierce Tiger Stance Art: minor accomplishment (3/200)] [Fierce Tiger Fist: beginner (64/100)]
"Scholarly pursuits really are for the poor, and martial pursuits for the rich. Without resources to support me, cultivation really would be much slower. If I hadn't taken that part-time position, the road of martial arts ahead might have been much harder."
Early the next morning, Chen Tie went out. This time, rather than heading straight to the martial hall, he went to a brokerage nearby.
The proprietor, who had only just opened for business, had not expected a customer so early.
"Sir, what can I help you with?"
Chen Tie got straight to the point. "I need to buy a residence. It must have a courtyard. Show me some options."
"Certainly, sir. I have some details here. Let me walk you through them."
The proprietor enthusiastically took out information on several residences and laid it on the table.
Chen Tie looked them over and finally chose one. With the proprietor enthusiastically leading the way, he went to inspect it in person.
It was a courtyard enclosed by walls roughly ten feet high, their surfaces even.
The courtyard entrance consisted of two heavy wooden doors. They had no elaborate carvings, but their edges and corners were smooth. He pushed the doors open and stepped into the small courtyard, where irregular blue flagstones paved the ground. A tree grew in one corner beside the wall, rustling whenever the wind blew.
There were three rental rooms here, along with two side rooms. It was more than enough for Chen Tie and his sister, and it was not far from the Fierce Tiger Martial Hall.
"Sir, this house originally belonged to a traveling merchant. Business is difficult in times like these, so he sold it and returned to his hometown. These days, there will only be more empty houses, and they won't fetch much."
"How much does this place cost?"
The proprietor immediately quoted a price. "Only three hundred taels. If money is tight, sir, you can pay one hundred taels first and the remaining two hundred in installments over six months, with a handling fee of ten taels."
Seeing Chen Tie's everyday martial hall uniform, the proprietor did not dare open his lion's maw and demand an exorbitant price.
"All right. I'll pay one hundred taels first."
After a moment's consideration, Chen Tie decided against paying in full. Installments were the safer choice.
Besides, this place was close to the martial hall and a little safer. If the Liu Family discovered him later, at worst he could grab his sister and flee.