Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

Chapter 171 Bone Pain!

As the two walked along the road, it was early spring. In the distance, the ice on the river would occasionally crack, and the willows along the riverbank would shed their cocoons, with old trees sprouting new branches.

In the early morning, dew rolled down the city wall, and people were already selling carrots at the market entrance.

"Radish~"

"Sigh, those fresh, frosty radishes!"

"One big coin is worth one jin."

Sometimes, having too keen senses isn't a good thing.

Chen Zhan controlled his senses and reduced their sensitivity, and the two walked very fast. Otherwise, it would have taken them a while to cross the city of Beijing. The rickshaw driver saw that the two were walking fast and knew that they were skilled in martial arts, so he did not come up to disturb them.

Along the way, I experienced all the local customs and culture of Beijing.

In the western part of the city, there are many people from all walks of life, including storytellers, opera singers, street vendors, fortune tellers, and palm readers. Several people tried to stop Chen Zhan and Ye Ningzhen.

After being glanced at by Chen Zhan, her heart pounded and she immediately gave up.

They were masters of reading people's expressions and moods, and Chen Zhan didn't have time to deal with them right now, so he simply revealed a hint of menacing aura.

"Old man, is the Simin Xingyi Quan Society around here?" Ye Ningzhen asked an old man who was doing morning exercises by the roadside.

The old man was banging on the big tree, without any skill, but he had a lot of strength.

Hearing Ye Ningzhen speak, he stopped what he was doing, looked at the two of them, and sized them up.

After a while, he said, "Turn left over there, pass three jujube trees, and you'll see it."

"Thank you, please continue practicing."

The two left, and the old man looked back for a long time, shaking his head and thinking to himself:

"That girl isn't bad, but that kid's martial arts skills are vague. Surely they're not so high that I can't even tell?"

"Forget it, Old Geng is dead. The Simin Boxing Society has nothing to do with me. I'm too lazy to provoke those lunatics."

Unbeknownst to him, Ye Ningzhen and Chen Zhan were also talking about him.

"That old man"

"Hmm, he's a master, but he's injured."

Ye Ningzhen turned to look at Chen Zhan, "How could you tell you were injured?"

"breath."

"In his breathing, the last breath he took was incomplete. Logically speaking, before a top master breaks down, the frequency, speed, and volume of his inhalation and exhalation should be completely consistent. But his breath suddenly stopped at the last moment, by one percent."

"The lung meridian is damaged."

Ye Ningzhen was amazed again. To be able to detect even a one percent difference in breathing was truly astounding for a master of the Core Formation stage.

After passing three large jujube trees, I saw the Simin Xingyiquan Society, a large courtyard on flat ground. This area consists of single-story houses, not traditional courtyard houses, but they are all quite large.

The wall is not high.

The door was open, and Chen Zhan pushed it open and went inside.

There were many apprentices in the courtyard, lined up on both sides, one side practicing stance training and the other practicing stone lock training.

"Hold on! Practicing stance training with stone weights will make you strong quickly and graduate early. Everyone wants to earn money to support their families, so I held on."

The middle-aged man exuded an imposing aura as he instructed his two apprentices. He wore a single-layered undershirt without sleeves and black trousers, also single-layered.

Surprisingly, it's not cold these days.

Upon seeing Chen Zhan and the other person enter, he stepped forward, looked them over, but couldn't discern anything amiss, nor did they seem to have come to seek apprenticeship.

Chen Zhan was also a little incredulous.

The Four People's Xingyi Quan Society lives a rather austere life.
The courtyard was all made of earthen walls, and the stone locks, large vats, and mercury balls used for practicing martial arts on the ground were all very old and had cracks.

The damage varies.

The clothes he was wearing were old and tattered.

Can someone make a living by reselling opium?

Or is it just that her acting is too good?

Unable to make a judgment for the moment, Chen Zhan stepped forward and asked directly, "Who's in charge of the Four People's Boxing Association?"

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man's expression changed, his eyebrows immediately stood up, and he gestured for his disciples on both sides to continue practicing.

"You're looking for our curator? What for?" The tone was wary.

Chen Zhan smiled. At a time like this, asking questions wouldn't yield any results.

"What for? I've heard that the Simin Boxing Society is one of the thirteen major martial arts schools in the capital. I'm new here, so I'm just paying a visit." His tone was already tinged with provocation.

"Trying to challenge us, huh! Hey, come to the backyard!" The middle-aged man led Chen Zhan and the other man towards the backyard.

The disciples on both sides seemed oblivious, continuing their practice. This scene had happened countless times before; they were long accustomed to it.

The backyard is small, with two rows of single-story houses on both sides, made of blue bricks and black tiles. They are neither dilapidated nor new.

The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and a small area, about ten meters square, could be barely cordoned off, enough for two people to compete.

Chen Zhan was even more puzzled, but he didn't ask.

"There are too many people challenging us, and they all come looking for the master. Our master doesn't need to do anything anymore; he has to get past me, Old Zhu, first. You can't just see the master whenever you want."

The middle-aged man introduced himself as Zhu Ran, the junior apprentice of the master.

Chen Zhan's ears twitched; he had already heard movement inside the room, but he didn't make a move. "Okay."

Without exchanging any words, the two immediately started fighting.

Zhu Ran was tall and strong, much taller than Chen Zhan in his normal state, but his punches were agile and light.

They're using the 'Heartfelt Chicken Step'! And it's the 'Plowing Style'!

He moved as if walking lightly in the plowed paddy field by the river, squatting into a six-body stance, his left foot stepping forward in the mud like a plowshare, the mud on the instep turning to both sides, his five toes gripping the ground when he stopped, his right foot moving in the same way, stopping next to his left foot, and then stepping forward again, repeating the process with both feet.

This footwork allows him to achieve a unity of form and spirit, with the "three points aligned" meaning the tip of the nose, the tip of the knee, and the tip of the foot are in a vertical line.

The chicken's gait is chaotic and unpredictable, making it extremely difficult to guess where it will come from.

Zhu Ran suddenly dodged to Chen Zhan's side, and with her right hand shaped like a chick pecking at rice, she stabbed him in the waist.

The speed is undeniably fast.

Chen Zhan smiled. This man was kind-hearted. Even though Chen Zhan had come to challenge him, he still held back some energy in his attack, not stabbing him in the kidneys, but rather in the ribs above the kidneys. That made a big difference.

A hidden force strike to the kidneys, combined with a stabbing motion from the hands, can cripple a person, rendering them infertile for life.

But at most, the ribs are broken. With 100 days of rest, there shouldn't be any major problems.

Chen Zhan saw through the other party's intentions, reached out and grabbed, unleashing a tiger-shaped chopping force, the tiger's paw striking the chicken claw with a "smack!"

They parted abruptly upon touching each other. Zhu Ran's hand trembled with a buzzing sound, seemingly indicating that the two had separated, but he retreated sharply, and Chen Zhan did not pursue him.

With a slash of its tiger paw, it instantly shattered his two layers of energy, one visible and one hidden.

In his shock, he glanced up and saw Chen Zhan standing right in front of him, his hand on his shoulder.

Despite having the upper hand, Chen Zhan didn't use any hidden force or eagle claw technique. Logically, a simple pull would have been enough to take away an arm.

"Ok?"

Zhu Ran understood Chen Zhan's meaning: she wanted to "compete" with him!

Chen Zhan pressed his left hand on his right shoulder, meaning that he couldn't lift his arm!
Therefore, he also needed to raise his right arm; that was the real 'strength contest'!

The energy flowed throughout his body and gathered in his right arm. His previously loose right arm suddenly cracked and popped as his blood and energy gathered, and he tried to lift it.

"Ok??"

His strength seemed to vanish into thin air, disappearing into Chen Zhan's fair left hand without any change.

Zhu Ran's eyes were bloodshot, and she was about to exert more force when a voice came from inside the house behind her:
"Old Zhu, don't hurt yourself, you're no match for him."

The man walked out of the room. He was tall! Skinny as a rake! He looked like a dried-up corpse, with hardly any flesh on his body.

Chen Zhan released his grip, and Zhu Ran's breath came out in gasps, her face turning red and white.

My thoughts immediately drifted back to the early days of the Republic of China, to the terrifying moment I experienced at Zhang Laosan's house, where I robbed the rich to help the poor.

The first time I faced a gun, I miraculously dodged it.

There was this smell in Zhang Laosan's house at the time, and upon closer reflection, it must have been because someone inside was smoking opium.

That smell was exactly the same as that of the middle-aged man who had just come out.

Although they were more than ten meters apart, they couldn't escape Chen Zhan's nose.

Chen Zhan glanced at the newcomers and exclaimed, "This taste! There's no mistake!"

It's you!
Once we find the person, things will be much easier!
"Ningzhen, close the door!"

Before Chen Zhan's voice even finished, he had already leaped out of the water, executing the same 'Heartfelt Chicken Step' as Zhu Ran had just performed!

Step forward half a step with your left foot, bend your knee and squat down, then immediately follow with your right foot, pressing your knee close to the inside of your left knee, forming a left chicken step.

Then, step forward with your left foot, moving forward on the flat ground, gripping the ground with your toes after landing, and step forward with your right foot, also moving forward on the flat ground.

It was even more dazzling than what Zhu Ran had just used, and the speed was faster than the movement of the eyeballs.

Chen Zhan instantly pressed his body close to the gaunt middle-aged man, reaching out to grab him with his five fingers forming a claw. The other man also possessed martial arts skills, and they were quite formidable.

It even managed to free up a meter and dodge a claw attack.

"Huh? Interesting."

The grasp missed, and in an instant, the claw transformed into a slap. The triple force of the Great Slamming Hand was already prepared in the void. The middle-aged man made up his mind and raised his palm to catch it.

"Don't hit me!!!"

Zhu Ran roared. He knew Chen Zhan's skill level. If this palm strike was delivered with full force, his senior brother would definitely lose his life.

Chen Zhan was not bothered by him, but the deathly aura emanating from the middle-aged man opposite him puzzled him.

The gathering and transformation of elixir, the gathering and releasing of energy, are all within a single thought.

The violently slamming hand stopped just an inch from the man's chest.

Chen Zhan said, "Trying to die? Trying to die while smoking opium, what's wrong with you?"

The middle-aged man exhaled, his eyebrows furrowing as if in great pain, before recovering for a moment: "Bone pain."

"Bone paralysis?"

Chen Zhan didn't react for a moment, then realized that the other person was really saying that he was sick.

Bone pain is actually bone cancer; at this stage, the concept of cancer doesn't exist, as cancer is often referred to as "pain."

Bone cancer?

Chen Zhan seemed to understand some things, but still had many questions.

Bone cancer, also known as metastatic bone cancer, is caused by cancer cells spreading to the bone through the blood, lymphatic system, and other pathways, where they continue to grow and proliferate, destroying bone tissue.

This cancer is known as the most painful cancer in the world.

Not only is there no cure, but people can also die from the excruciating pain.

It is widely known that opium can greatly relieve pain.

The last empress, Wanrong, suffered from dysmenorrhea. The pain was severe every time she had her period, and there was no medicine to relieve it. So she tried using opium to relieve the pain and eventually became addicted.

There was also Lu Xiaoman, who suffered from a serious gynecological disease due to a failed abortion. She was in unbearable pain and, on Weng Ruiwu's advice, started smoking opium to relieve the pain, and became addicted.

This situation abounds.

"You smoke opium to fight off bone paralysis?" Chen Zhan asked.

The middle-aged man nodded and said, "My name is Geng Xu. I can tell that you have come here about opium. Please come in and we can talk."

Chen Zhan and Ye Ningzhen looked at each other and nodded.

Chen Zhan has now passed the stage of fearing the other party's tricks, and his achievements are unparalleled.

Zhu Ran followed them into the house.

This is a side room, not a reception room.

Upon entering the house, it was neat and tidy. The only difference was that the smell was stronger, a rich, sweet and fishy odor.

It has a very pungent smell.

As soon as Chen Zhan entered the room, the tall, thin middle-aged man turned around.

With a "thump," he knelt down on both knees.

(End of this chapter)