Taming

Stone Village.

The night was dark, the wind high.

Reeking of alcohol, Wang Dashan lay in his room, thoroughly satisfied.

Earlier that day, he had learned that the Zhang Clan had dealt with Chen Sanshi in the county town. The Zhang Clan would continue clearing land tomorrow and had told him not to worry, even sending him wine and meat.

The stone hanging over his heart had finally dropped.

He lay in bed, dreaming his landlord dreams.

Half an hour later.

A dark figure approached the courtyard and lingered by the entrance for a while. Only after making sure the person inside was asleep did he pry open the door and slip quickly into the room.

By the moonlight, he spotted the figure sleeping soundly on the bed.

Without the slightest hesitation, he plunged a knife into the man's heart, clamping his other hand over his mouth.

Wang Dashan jolted awake and tried to cry out, but the man held his mouth tightly shut. Blood seeped through the gaps between the man's fingers.

Squelch!

Quick-eyed and quick-handed, Chen Sanshi drove the knife in and pulled it out several more times in succession. Finally, to be safe, he drew the blade hard across Wang Dashan's throat.

Hot blood splattered across his face.

Wang Dashan instantly went still.

"Pah."

"Just wait. Those Zhang Clan bastards will be joining you soon."

Chen Sanshi spat on Wang Dashan's frightening face, then searched the house. He had thought that working for the Zhang Clan must have let Wang Dashan save up some silver, enough for him to buy some blood Qi tonic soup back in town and speed up his cultivation.

Who would have thought there was nothing left in the house except a pot of leftovers?

He had spent half the night lying low in the village and was ravenous. Unable to help himself, he drank several mouthfuls of rich soup and stuffed a few steamed buns into his robe before slipping out of the house.

But the moment he poked his head out, a handful of lime was flung into his face.

Several fists came hurtling toward him next.

Before he could draw the short knife at his waist, several thudding punches struck his chest and knocked him back into the house. The steamed bun he had just swallowed surged back up, nearly choking him to death.

His chest hurt as though it had split open, yet he could not make a sound.

When he tried to get up.

A steel fork pinned him to the ground by the throat, while another burly man planted his feet on his ankles. It seemed that with just a little force, they could break his limbs and rob him of the ability to practice martial arts.

Just then, a young man walked in through the doorway, his face expressionless.

He lit the candle in the house.

After seeing the state of Wang Dashan's corpse, he frowned slightly, then sat down on a stool.

The two men who had just subdued Chen Sanshi hauled him off the ground. Both locked his shoulder blades in their grip and forced his arms high behind his back, spreading them like airplane wings.

Seeing his face grow redder and redder, as though he might suffocate, the young man cast them a glance.

The burlier man punched him in the abdomen, forcing him to spew up even the rich soup in his stomach.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Chen Sanshi coughed several times in succession, glaring fiercely at the young man.

The young man was none other than Zhang Lingfeng, who had returned from the county town with Sun Yan and Hei Hu.

Although Chen Sanshi had average bone aptitude and could master Ming Jin within a few months, without meat and blood Qi soup to supplement his training, he was not particularly strong. At present, he was not even as formidable as Hei Hu.

Caught in an ambush and outnumbered two to one, Chen Sanshi had not even had a chance to resist.

"Are you from the Zhang Clan?"

Chen Sanshi asked.

"Yes."

Zhang Lingfeng nodded.

Chen Sanshi's heart sank. Having fallen into the Zhang Clan's hands, how could he survive? He inwardly blamed himself for failing to keep his composure. If he had waited until he developed Ming Jin before returning for revenge, perhaps he would not have fallen into their hands.

But he had already spent all his silver. To continue cultivating, he could only sell his house, and with Wang Dashan standing in his way, no one dared to buy it.

He had no choice but to get rid of Wang Dashan first.

He would settle the score with the Zhang Clan once he became a martial arts expert. Who would have thought he would be caught red-handed tonight?

"Under the laws of Great Qing, murder for money is punishable by death!"

Zhang Lingfeng said.

"I'm not afraid to die. You've caught me today. I accept it."

Chen Sanshi knew there was no escaping this calamity. He had killed Wang Dashan, leaving no one to manage the water supply for the Zhang Clan. They certainly would not spare him.

"You have backbone. But if you die, what will happen to your sister?"

Zhang Lingfeng asked.

"This has nothing to do with my sister. Please spare her."

Chen Sanshi said anxiously.

"I never bully men or tyrannize women. But there's no guaranteeing that others won't lust after her beauty."

Zhang Lingfeng reminded him.

"This... I've doomed her."

When Chen Sanshi thought of his sister left all alone after he was gone, helpless and bullied, he could not help breaking into tears.

"I'm willing to give you my property. All I ask is that your Zhang Clan spare my sister."

Chen Sanshi pressed his forehead to the ground.

"Once you're dead, what property will you have left?"

Zhang Lingfeng shook his head.

"What exactly do you want?"

Chen Sanshi asked in grief and anger.

"All I want is enough water to irrigate the land our Zhang Clan is clearing. You've killed Wang Dashan. If the villagers keep making trouble, who will help our Zhang Clan keep them in line?"

Seated on the stool, Zhang Lingfeng hooked the tip of his shoe beneath Chen Sanshi's chin as he asked.

"This..."

Chen Sanshi froze.

"Kid, Brother Feng is offering you a way to live. Do you understand?"

Hei Hu prompted him.

"You want me to work for your Zhang Clan?"

Chen Sanshi asked.

"No, it isn't that I need you to do this. I'll give you just one reason: I want to see how much courage you, Chen, have, and whether you can get this done properly."

Zhang Lingfeng flicked the dust from beneath his fingernails as he spoke.

"I can!"

Chen Sanshi replied.

Zhang Lingfeng glanced at Sun Yan and Hei Hu. Understanding his meaning, they released Chen Sanshi from the ground, but remained standing on either side of him.

"Then what about what happened here?"

Chen Sanshi asked.

"You caused this trouble, so deal with it yourself. All I want is a good harvest from my Zhang Clan's fields every year."

Zhang Lingfeng rose as he spoke.

"All right."

Chen Sanshi nodded.

I'll swallow this humiliation for now. Once I've perfected my divine arts, I'll get rid of these people.

"Practicing martial arts costs a great deal of money. From now on, you'll receive ten percent of the annual harvest from the land we clear. The bigger the harvest, the bigger your share."

Zhang Lingfeng patted Chen Sanshi's shoulder as he spoke.

Chen Sanshi froze.

Then wouldn't I be a small landlord myself? Should I still take revenge?

"All right."

Thinking of how much money his martial arts training would require, Chen Sanshi's shoulders slackened.

"Resolve the water supply issue before going back to practice. It won't be too late. When you return to the county town, remember to come find me at the Guo Wei Martial Arts School."

Zhang Lingfeng added.

"Uh... all right."

Chen Sanshi was unwilling to accept this. He was at a crucial stage in improving his strength. If he suddenly stopped now, developing Ming Jin would not be so easy.

But if he refused, the Zhang Clan would certainly report his killing of Wang Dashan to the authorities.

The viciousness he had just suppressed rose again.

"Oh, right. Your sister asked me to give you this pouch. She's learning embroidery from my elder sister now. From now on, she won't have to go out washing clothes for others in the freezing cold, and you can practice martial arts with peace of mind."

Zhang Lingfeng placed a faded pouch in Chen Sanshi's hand.

Chen Sanshi's eyes widened, and a cold sweat broke out across his back. So everything about him had been under the other man's control. Seeing Zhang Lingfeng turn to leave, he dropped to one knee and said, "Rest assured, boss. There will absolutely be no problems with the water supply."

"Good."

Zhang Lingfeng nodded.

Sun Yan lit the lantern, Hei Hu opened the door, and Zhang Lingfeng walked outside.

The three were like fierce beasts descending the mountain to hunt. Even when candlelight flickered past, not a single villager in Stone Village dared poke their head out to look.