Physical enlightenment begins with Xingyi Quan

Chapter 57 Recruitment (Part 1)

The next day, news that the bodies of three Zhao family spies had been found under the inner city gate of Yilin County spread like wildfire throughout the entire city.

The corpses were neatly stacked, facing the city gate, their clothes open to reveal the Zhao family's iron plaque, like three resounding slaps to the Zhao family's face.

"Have you heard? Three spies from the Zhao family! All dead! Their bodies are lying at the inner city gate!"

"It's more than just dead! My wife saw it with her own eyes when she went to sell vegetables at the city gate this morning. It was stacked like a pile of firewood, and the top one's eyes were still open, staring straight at the city gate tower! Inside its clothes, the iron plaque with the character 'Zhao' was shining brightly!"

"Who did this? They've really gone too far! They've really gone too far!"

"Who else could it be? That young master from the Xingyi Martial Arts School just crippled Chen Wanglong a few days ago, and his master, Li Chengyue, even fought against five Grandmasters... Besides them, who else would dare to slap the Zhao family in the face like this?"

"But this is too... too cruel! Throwing him right at the city gate is a blatant declaration to the Zhao family: I killed him, what can you do about it?"

The inner city, the Zhao residence.

Zhao Wuji sat in the main seat, his purple-gold python robe still magnificent, but his usually dignified face was now covered with frost.

"The bodies were discovered by the guards who opened the gate this morning. They were piled up right below the city gate, three people stacked together. All of them were killed instantly, with broken throats and ribs. The only thing missing from their bodies was their five taels of silver, and their three identity badges were stuffed into their clothes, with the character 'Zhao' facing outwards."

"Bang!"

The small rosewood table to Zhao Wuji's right shattered with a crash, sending wood chips flying everywhere.

"Good—very good." Zhao Wuji's voice was hoarse, his eyes bloodshot. "The man who killed me dared to dump his body at my Zhao family's doorstep—this is a slap in the face, a provocation, a message to the entire Yilin County that my Zhao family's spies can be killed at will, and that my Zhao family will have to collect their corpses!"

The core members and stewards of the Zhao family in the hall were all silent and trembling, not daring to utter a sound.

"Brother, please calm down." A middle-aged scholar-like man bowed and spoke. He was the second son of the Zhao family, surnamed Zhao, named Wushi. "This matter—I'm afraid it's not advisable to act immediately."

Zhao Wuji looked up at him, his gaze sharp as a knife.

Zhao Wushi braced himself and continued, "Yesterday, Li Chengyue displayed his half-step Gangjin cultivation, overwhelming five families and seriously injuring Zhou Kun."

The entire city is watching how we react. If we were to launch a large-scale retaliation now, it would confirm that we sent people to spy on us and had ulterior motives, putting us in the wrong from the start.

"Secondly—although Li Chengyue is injured, his power still remains. If he launches a desperate counterattack, even if we manage to take him down, the cost will be too high."

The other companies—may not genuinely offer assistance.

He paused, then lowered his voice even further: "Especially the Qian, Sun, and Li families, who were already hesitant yesterday, will probably start plotting their own schemes now that they see us suffering losses."

Zhao Wuji remained silent, his chest heaving, his eyes blazing with murderous intent, but he ultimately did not lash out immediately.

How could he not know that what the second brother said made sense?

Yesterday's battle, with Li Chengyue's half-step Gangjin cultivation and his ruthless act of risking his life to save Zhou Kun, has deeply shocked everyone.

Now that he is seriously injured, it is the best time to get rid of him, but who can guarantee that this old man has not left any tricks up his sleeve?

Who would be willing to be the one to rush forward and become the one who might be replaced?

More importantly, the five major families of the inner city have never been a monolithic entity.

Yesterday's alliance was to maintain the so-called "face of the inner city," believing that the five of them could suppress Li Chengyue and take the opportunity to divide up the secrets or resources hidden by Li Chengyue, who was only half a step into the Gang Jin realm.

Now that Zhao's spy has been killed and his body desecrated, the other four families are probably just looking forward to seeing a good show!

They would only be thankful that they hadn't truly become mortal enemies with Li Chengyue yesterday!

"What about the Zhou family?" Zhao Wuji asked slowly, his voice hoarse.

"Ancestor Zhou Kun is seriously injured and has closed his doors to visitors. The rest of the Zhou family... seem to harbor some resentment, feeling that they were only able to get by yesterday because they stood up for my Zhao family..." Zhao Wushi replied, "The Qian, Sun, and Li families—have already sent people to sound them out, and their words all suggest they are waiting to see how things develop."

"A fence-sitter!" Zhao Wuji sneered, but there was little surprise in his eyes.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and he said in a deep voice, "Pass down the order: the Zhao family members are not to provoke the Xingyi Martial Arts School or the Su Family Escort Agency in the near future. Surveillance... suspended."

Zhao Wushi replied, "Alright! I'll go right away, brother!"

After a pause, he added, "Brother, Li Chengyue's injuries will take time to heal. As for Chen Jianghe—the higher he jumps now, the harder he will fall in the future."

Zhao Wuji hummed in agreement and spoke again: "Get the invitations for the 'Yilin Martial Arts Tournament' processed as quickly as possible! I want my Zhao family's top martial arts prodigy, Zhao Litian, to cripple him fair and square on the arena! Let the whole city see what happens when you offend the Zhao family!"

He softened his tone slightly and added, "Also, send someone to the Chen family to deliver a message: the Zhao family can help treat Chen Wanglong's injuries. But the Chen family's own affairs," he said, "should also be settled."

Zhao Wushi understood, nodded, and withdrew.

Unlike the fury and frustration at the Zhao family mansion, the atmosphere in the other three secluded mansions in the inner city was much more subtle.

The Qian family's study.

The Qian family patriarch, Qian Shouyi, was a plump old man with a round face and small, always squinting eyes. At this moment, he was holding a teacup, listening to the report from his trusted steward, with a faint smile on his lips.

"Three dead? And they were thrown at the city gate?" Qian Shouyi took a sip of tea. "That old bastard Zhao Wuji must be furious right now."

"Ancestor," the steward whispered, "that Chen Jianghe acts so ruthlessly, could it be...?"

"Ruthless?" Qian Shouyi put down his teacup, tapping his fingers lightly on the table. "In chaotic times, without ruthlessness, one would have been devoured long ago, leaving not even bones behind. This kid is interesting. Eighteen years old, he possesses hidden strength, acts with shrewdness, has a calm demeanor, and, more importantly, knows how to leverage external forces!"

He paused, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his small eyes: "Li Chengyue is seriously injured, and Xingyi Martial Arts School seems to be in crisis. In reality, because of this battle, no one dares to openly make a move in the short term. Chen Jianghe has seen this, which is why he dares to so brazenly slap the Zhao family in the face. He is establishing his authority and telling everyone that even if the master of Xingyi Martial Arts School is injured, the disciples are not to be trifled with."

"Then let's..."

"Us?" Qian Shouyi laughed. "What deep-seated grudge do we have against the Xingyi Martial Arts School? Yesterday's action was merely a show, a pretense to maintain the appearance of unity among the five major families. Now that the Zhao family has brought trouble upon themselves, why should we get involved? Not only should we not get involved..."

"6"

He pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "Prepare a generous gift. Take two Bone Tempering Pills and seal them with one hundred taels of gold. Deliver it personally to Chen Jianghe's courtyard in my name."

The steward was taken aback: "Ancestor, isn't this... a bit too much of an honor? Besides, what about the Zhao family..."

""

"A compliment?" Qian Shouyi glanced at him. "This is an investment for me. If Li Chengyue's injuries heal, he will still be a half-step Gangjin expert, one of the top fighters in Yilin County. If they don't heal... his disciple, who is only eighteen years old and has internal strength, may very well become a Huajin in the future, or even higher. It's easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. Right now, the Xingyi Martial Arts School seems powerful, but it is actually fraught with danger. Showing goodwill now will have the lowest cost and the greatest potential return in the future."

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked towards the outer city: "The Zhao family is powerful and used to being domineering; sooner or later they will incur the wrath of the masses. The Zhou family has already shown signs of decline after this battle. The situation in Yilin County might... change. Our Qian family needs to prepare several alternative paths."

The reactions of the Sun and Li families were largely the same.

Sun Hanshan, the patriarch of the Sun family, was even more straightforward. Upon hearing the news, he smashed a millstone-sized bluestone with a single punch in the training ground, laughing heartily, "That old bastard Zhao Wuji has finally met his match! That's satisfying!"

He greatly admired Chen Jianghe's ruthless style and directly ordered, "Prepare gifts! One hundred taels of gold, and also find the land deed for that vacant little courtyard in the west of the inner city and send it over! Let's see if that kid wants to continue hiding in the outer city, or if he has some ambition and is willing to try his luck in the inner city!"

Li Changfeng, the patriarch of the Li family, was more pragmatic. The Li family passed down their martial arts tradition and had the most experts in the clan, but they also valued strength and recruitment the most.

"A master of internal strength at eighteen, ruthless in combat, and decisive in mind." After hearing the report, Li Changfeng only commented with these twelve words, and then said, "Bring the guest elder's token and prepare another one hundred taels of gold. Tell him that if he joins my Li family, the resources and offerings will be no less than what Chen Wanglong received in the Zhao family. The Li family can bear the burden of past grievances for him."