blueteamnovel 13. Harvest
13. Harvest
After coming out, Chu Xuan ran all the way, going around several alleys before finally arriving at the abandoned house he had prepared in advance.
"Breathe in..."
Chu Xuan took several deep breaths to calm his heart.
In fact, killing Xie Hui and the others didn't cause him any physical or psychological discomfort; it was no different from killing a chicken. His fear stemmed from a feeling of guilt.
In both his past and present lives, he was a law-abiding citizen who had never even been in a fight. Yet today, he has committed murder and arson!
Even a rabbit will bite when cornered!
"These bastards have done countless heinous things; they deserve to die..."
Chu Xuan muttered a few words softly, gradually calmed down, and then began to review the situation.
"As expected, techniques are techniques, and actual combat is actual combat! They are completely different things!"
Before taking action, he had rehearsed the moves countless times in his mind, but when he actually started, he realized that it wasn't like that at all. His opponent wasn't a stone or a wooden stake; he couldn't possibly stand there and wait for him to hit him.
The reason he was able to defeat Xie Hui and his group so quickly and efficiently this time was twofold: firstly, it was a swift sneak attack, and secondly, it was his increased strength.
This is also the source of his confidence in taking action!
Although he hadn't sparred with anyone in the past six months, he was still aware of his own strength. He could easily lift a stone block weighing over 200 pounds inside the martial arts school.
"We need to strengthen our practical skills in the future."
"However, if a sneak attack is possible, it's best to do so."
He made a summary.
"I covered my face the whole way, so not many people should have seen me. Even if they did, they definitely wouldn't have recognized me."
"The Bajiquan I used is a problem, but I've already smashed all the wounds open. Plus, that fire will be enough to erase all traces!"
These days, it's common for a few people to die in the outer city. What's more, the other party was a notorious scoundrel, and the government wouldn't care at all.
What he was worried about was retaliation from the Three Heroes Gang!
However, after reviewing the situation and finding no obvious flaws, he felt much more at ease. He then opened the package.
Inside were large and small pieces of silver, a handful of copper coins, some not-so-valuable jewelry, and a variety of miscellaneous IOUs. After Chu Xuan counted them, he was greatly surprised.
"Over three hundred taels?!"
He was also taken aback by the number.
It's important to know that the average family in the outer city earns only about ten taels of silver a year. And for families like Chu Xuan's, it's even less, less than five taels of silver a year.
These three hundred taels are enough for an ordinary person in the outer city to live on without eating or drinking for more than thirty years.
This doesn't even include the jewelry.
Chu Xuan estimated that it was worth at least ten taels of silver.
Xie Hui could never have that much money!
"This is troublesome!"
Upon receiving such a large sum of money, Chu Xuan was not excited; instead, he felt a little heavy-hearted.
After seeing the IOUs, he understood what had happened.
This money didn't belong to Xie Hui at all; it belonged to the San Ying Gang. Or rather, it was loan shark money that Xie Hui had collected, which he hadn't had time to hand over to the San Ying Gang, or perhaps the other party had no intention of handing it over at all, but instead intended to use it to join the Black Snake Gang.
However, before Xie Hui could make a move, he was intercepted by Chu Xuan.
This is a complete hot potato!
As for returning it...
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
"This money cannot be touched for the time being!"
The San Ying Gang members aren't fools; having lost so much money, they certainly won't let it go.
Chu Xuan tore up all the IOUs and buried them, then hid the silver before going home.
That night, lying in bed, he subconsciously glanced at the control panel and was taken aback.
[Energy Value: 70/100]
[Introduction to Yin-Yang Stance (621/1000)]
[Bajiquan Introduction (133/10000)]
"It actually improved."
Chu Xuan was somewhat surprised, "Fighting with people can actually improve proficiency, even faster than practicing martial arts?!"
Even the essence value increased along with it.
This was a completely unexpected and delightful surprise for Chu Xuan.
……
The next day.
Before dawn, heart-wrenching cries and murmurs could be heard outside.
When Chu Xuan came out, he saw several familiar neighbors standing in the alley talking.
"Xiangzi from the village entrance couldn't pay off his loan shark debts, so that beast Xie Hui used his baby to blackmail him and slept with his wife. Xiangzi couldn't take it anymore and hanged himself in the middle of the night. When they found him, he was already cold..." a neighbor explained to Chu Xuan.
"Oh, what a tragedy! How will this widow and her orphan survive?"
"Xie Hui is a beast, he's not even human!"
"Keep your voice down! If Xie Hui hears you, you'll be in big trouble..."
The neighbors probably saw themselves in Xiangzi, their faces showing indignation like the fox mourning the death of its kin, yet they were also wary and dared not shout out loud.
Chu Xuan's heart was not at peace either.
Xie Hui had been keeping an eye on his sister for quite some time. If it weren't for the fact that he had previously used Manager Wu's connections and later obtained a place in the martial arts school sponsored by the Bai family, their family's fate wouldn't have been much better than Xiangzi's.
No, it could be even worse!
"Skill!"
Chu Xuan was alarmed.
Without sufficient strength, it's difficult to survive in this world; you'll just be a fish on someone else's chopping block, at their mercy!
Chu Xuan couldn't help much, so he could only ask his mother to send some coarse rice over, while he went to the martial arts school.
That afternoon, news spread that Xie Hui and the others had been burned to death.
The families in the outer city clapped and cheered, celebrating with gongs and drums. Many even set off firecrackers in celebration.
These matters are no longer relevant to Chu Xuan.
In the days that followed, Chu Xuan returned to his previous routine, practicing martial arts at the martial arts school every day and continuing to sell his wares at the dye shop during his breaks.
In order to quickly replenish his qi and blood, Chu Xuan started to buy blood-nourishing soup from time to time.
After discovering that combat could increase proficiency, he would often spar with Zhao Yuzhu.
I learned from Zhao Yuzhu that the Sanying Gang is currently engaged in a major battle with the Black Snake Gang and is too preoccupied to care about Xie Hui's affairs for the time being.
However, this peace was shattered again in less than a month.
Xu Yuan has made a breakthrough!
Xu Yuan possessed the strongest physical constitution among the eight, and also received the most financial support.
His breakthrough was not surprising to anyone.
But no one expected that Xu Yuan would be so abnormal, breaking through to the Ming Jin level in less than seven months!
Even the sect leader, Lu Tong, was alarmed and came out from the inner courtyard to confirm that Xu Yuan had indeed broken through to the Ming Jin realm! This was a shock and a significant blow to the remaining seven people!
After all, Xu Yuan has already become a martial artist. Once the Bai family achieves its goal, they will likely stop funding them.
Soon, upon receiving the news, Master Bai also rushed over and hurriedly entered the inner courtyard.
Not long after, Master Bai brought Xu Yuan out and publicly announced that he had hired Xu Yuan as a retainer of the Bai family. In addition to the daily cultivation support, there would be ten taels of silver per month and a two-courtyard house in the inner city!
This caused an uproar among the crowd.
Even Zhao Yuzhu, who lives in the inner city, was filled with envy.
After discussing Xu Yuan's matter, Master Bai reiterated that the Bai family would only hire one or two people as retainers. If anyone could break through to the next level within the specified timeframe, they too could become a retainer of the Bai family.
If no one makes a breakthrough, they will only hire Xu Yuan, and will no longer provide funding in the future.
They can find other ways to make a living; consider this year's funding as a way to build good karma...
The speculation turned into reality, casting a shadow over everyone's hearts.
"I've figured it out! Effort is utterly worthless in the face of talent!" Zhao Yuzhu muttered in Chu Xuan's ear, his face unable to hide his disappointment.
His natural talent was second only to Xu Yuan's. He had always been unconvinced by Xu Yuan's abilities!
However, Xu Yuan successfully passed all the tests. But he was still a step away from achieving perfect Qi and Blood.
This was a significant blow to him.
Chu Xuan patted Zhao Yuzhu on the shoulder, then stood on the plum blossom stakes again and buried himself in practice.
He remained alone in the outer courtyard until darkness completely fell.
Chu Xuan then stopped to rest and looked at his panel.
[Energy Value: 75/100]
[Introduction to Yin-Yang Stance (712/1000)]
[Bajiquan Introduction (214/1000)]
"Phew~"
Chu Xuan let out a long sigh of relief.
His path was different from others.
Although he can use his essence points to break through the levels, it also means that he will have to put in more effort than others!