Wei Fan's plan to reveal a little of his strength and join the Night Watch Team had fallen through.
But he was in no hurry. If today did not work, he could try again tomorrow.
He had gained another 2 points of energy, bringing his total to 4. Wei Fan planned to find a martial art manual and practice it first.
The Tiger's Breath Art cultivated True Intent: Tiger's Breath Art, granting strength capable of Grasping Iron into Mud. His power had already reached an unimaginable level; what he lacked now was speed and defense.
Wei Fan searched through his memories for a suitable martial art. Thinking of the village blacksmith's body-tempering skills, he figured the martial art Blacksmith Li cultivated should greatly improve his defense.
Without further hesitation, Wei Fan took out a string of copper coins from home and headed for the blacksmith shop.
But the moment he stepped outside, Wei Fan sensed someone watching him.
"Which blind fool is that?" Wei Fan's gaze turned cold.
In the past, he would most likely have been unable to detect such a gaze spying on him from behind.
But after the Tiger's Breath Art reached the pinnacle of True Intent, his five senses had become extraordinarily sharp, making such things easy to notice.
Wei Fan turned around. That prying gaze came from the direction of Wang Dafu's house!
"Yu Dafu's family was already killed by the White Ghost Soul. How could there be someone in his house?" Wei Fan frowned slightly.
These houses, built from yellow mud and thatch, were extremely enclosed, with tiny windows. In other words, the front door was their only exit.
The tiger stripes on Wei Fan's forehead flickered in and out of sight as he walked toward the thatched house.
Once he drew near, the cautious Wei Fan gave a cold smile. With a single stride, he rushed inside, grabbed a skinny, furtive figure, and threw him to the ground.
"Idiot, what are you doing here?" Wei Fan shouted.
"It came again, it came again!" Even after being thrown to the ground, the man did not react, merely repeating those words dazedly.
Wei Fan secretly shook his head. This man was one of the village idiots, mad and muddleheaded all day long, with strange behavior and no ability to communicate.
"People died in this house. It's unlucky. Go play somewhere else." As Wei Fan spoke, he took a steamed bun from his pocket and handed it to him.
"Ah ba, ah ba..." The idiot's eyes gleamed when he saw the bun. He snatched it over and took huge bites.
Seeing his skin-and-bones frame and his earth-colored face, Wei Fan sighed inwardly.
When all was said and done, the idiot was a pitiful person too.
He had once been perfectly normal. It was only after a strange horror invaded the village that he had been scared witless.
The idiot could not care for himself and survived entirely on the charity of the villagers. But in these times, everyone went hungry one meal and full the next, so most of the time, the idiot could only starve or chew on scraps of tree bark.
The villagers had originally thought he would starve to death, yet they had not expected his vitality to be so tenacious. He had somehow kept living.
Wei Fan gave him his last remaining bun. It was from the plate that had fallen onto the ground that morning; after cleaning it off, he had intended to eat it for lunch.
It was worth mentioning that after mastering the Tiger's Breath Art, Wei Fan felt full of energy. Even if he did not eat for several days, he would not feel hungry.
The idiot accepted the bun, gratitude appearing in his eyes.
"When you say 'it came again,' what are you talking about? The White Ghost Soul?" Wei Fan asked.
He had the feeling that this idiot must have discovered something.
Because the more mad and muddleheaded a person was, the more likely he was to see things ordinary people could not.
"I saw it, I saw it!" Terror appeared on the idiot's face. Pointing in one direction, he said in a trembling voice.
"Hm?" Wei Fan looked in the direction the idiot pointed. It was an empty street leading deeper into the village.
Wei Fan carefully sensed the surroundings and confirmed there was nothing unusual. When he looked back at the idiot, the man's face remained stricken with fear, as though he were terrified of something.
"What exactly is going on?" Wei Fan pondered for a moment, then got up and left. For now, obtaining the martial art manual was more important.
But after only a few steps, the idiot's hoarse voice rang out again.
"It has set its sights on you!"
"It has set its sights on you!"
Wei Fan stopped. Knowing the idiot was warning him, he waved his hand and said, "Thanks!"
Passing by the distillery, Wei Fan bought a jar of fine wine and continued toward the village entrance.
Along the way, several villagers saw him and cast envious looks his way.
This single jar of wine cost eighty copper coins, equivalent to half a year's income for an ordinary villager's family.
Only because Wei Fan's parents had left behind a considerable inheritance could he spend so freely.
Of course, it was a necessary expense. The blacksmith at the village entrance loved wine as dearly as his life. If Wei Fan did not cater to his tastes, how could he persuade him to hand over a martial art manual?
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Before he even reached the blacksmith shop, he heard the ringing of iron being hammered. The bellows creaked as they were worked, and blazing flames burst from the furnace.
Bare-chested and broad-waisted, Blacksmith Li was drenched in sweat. His right arm, twice as thick as an ordinary man's, swung a massive hammer, striking the red-hot iron on the anvil again and again.
"Uncle Li, keeping busy?" Wei Fan called out from afar.
"I could smell the wine from a long way off. I was wondering what good day it was today—turns out it's the Wei boy!"
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