Becoming a saint begins with apprenticing under the last martial arts champion.

Chapter 29: Treasure Fish

Village Port Wharf.

When Lu Changqing arrived at the riverbank today, he keenly noticed that there were fewer fishing boats.

It's not just that there are fewer fishing boats.

The crowds that should have been bustling as the sun was about to set were now two or three tenths smaller.

"Brother Lu".

Old Chen was inspecting the musket when he saw Lu Changqing. He stood up and greeted him with a smile.

Lu Changqing nodded with a smile, chatted with a few of the men on the boat for a bit, and then asked Old Chen, "Brother Chen, it seems like there are far fewer people at the dock. Is it just my imagination?"

Upon hearing this, Old Chen's smile faded, and he sighed softly, "Ah, it's not my imagination... there really are fewer people."

Lu Changqing raised an eyebrow. "Because of the demon fish?"

Old Chen nodded, "Yes."

"Although you killed the demon fish, Brother Lu, who knows if there are other demon fish in the river?"

"We are all people who have suffered hardship. Coming to the water to make a living is suffering, and going to work in other places is also suffering."

"But on the water, you could lose your life, so who would want to come?"

Upon hearing what Old Chen said, Lu Changqing instantly understood.

He looked at Zhou San, who was fiddling with the fishing nets in the distance, and several brothers inspecting the boat planks, and asked, "Are you scared?"

Old Chen smiled wryly, "Of course I'm afraid."

"Everyone is afraid."

"But there's nothing we can do... Master Wang offered a very high price, and we don't have any other skills."

"The money earned on the water can make us rich enough to eat and drink, and even allow the children in the family to eat meat... If we do anything else, the whole family has to tighten their belts."

Upon hearing this, Lu Changqing understood the situation.

He didn't say anything more about it.

They simply boarded the boat, and once everything was ready, they headed towards the river.

...

Three days have passed in the blink of an eye.

Lu Changqing continued his life as usual, practicing his skills, doing his homework, fishing, and exploring the bottom of the river.

It can be said that he lived each day to the fullest.

And it was on the evening of that day.

He came to the dock again, intending to go out to sea.

He saw Uncle Xing standing on the dock.

Seeing this, Lu Changqing quickly stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Uncle Xing."

Uncle Xing smiled, his face deeply wrinkled. "Little Lu, have you had any trouble working on the water lately?"

Lu Changqing smiled and shook his head: "No."

"Recently, there have been fewer fishing boats and fishermen, so our boat is catching more fish."

Uncle Xing chuckled twice, exchanged a few polite words, and then explained his purpose: "Master said that with the recent disturbance of the demonic fish, everyone is in a state of panic and is taking risks in their work."

"Therefore, the master does not want everyone to bear this risk for nothing."

"Starting today, the catch from fishing at sea will no longer be paid as wages."

"Instead, we'll allocate 40% of the total amount to everyone."

"As the person in charge on this ship, you'll be responsible for deciding how the shares are distributed."

Upon hearing this, Lu Changqing's expression changed from surprise to delight, and he exclaimed, "Uncle Wang is so generous!"

It wasn't just Lu Changqing whose emotions changed.

The men on the fishing boat all became excited.

As the saying goes, a generous reward will surely attract brave men.

Moreover, there haven't been any disasters on the river recently.

For a moment, the group started discussing amongst themselves.

Uncle Xing smiled, exchanged a few more polite words, said he would also send messages to others, and then left.

Seeing the group of people rubbing their hands together in anticipation, Lu Changqing felt a surge of energy in his heart as well.

After the fishing boat was inspected and found to be in good condition, Lu Changqing immediately said:

"Set off!"

...

The river surface is golden, and the water ripples.

"rise!"

On the boat deck on the river, Zhou San, Lao Chen, and Liu Shitou were pulling hard on the fishing net.

As the fishing nets were all retrieved.

Inside the cabin, mackerel and grouper piled up to about half a person's height.

The scales shimmered silver in the afterglow, fluttering and leaping, full of vitality.

This is more than what you would normally harvest in half a day!

On Wednesday, wiping away sweat, a broad smile spread across his face as he picked up a plump grouper: "Look at this weight!"

"Hey, with fewer people around, all the fish are jumping into our nets!"

"If we keep doing this every day, with the new allowance from Master Wang, we brothers might become bosses and masters ourselves!"

Liu Shitou and the Zhao brothers, who were rowing the boat, also had rosy cheeks.

Old Chen didn't say anything, but his slightly trembling hand and squinting eyes when lighting a cigarette couldn't hide his genuine joy.

"The more you work, the more you earn."

These four words are more inspiring than anything else right now!

Just then, another fishing boat, slightly larger than theirs, sped and abruptly approached from a distance on the river.

Even though Old Chen was at the helm and intended to turn around and go around, the other party still caused trouble and eventually blocked their boat in front of them.

Six shirtless, burly men stood at the bow of the boat. They were all dark-skinned, muscular, and had unfriendly eyes.

The leader was a bald man with a shallow scar on his face, and the outline of a short knife was clearly visible at his waist.

"Old man," the bald man said in a rough voice, gesturing with his chin toward their cabin, "this stretch of water is our Zhang family's fleet's territory today."

"Fish, stay."

"You guys, let's go somewhere else."

Old Chen's face darkened.

Zhou San and the others stopped what they were doing, their anger showing on their faces, but when their eyes swept over the weapon at the other party's waist and his physique, they suppressed their anger.

At this moment, the cabin curtain moved, and Lu Changqing, who had changed into an old work shirt, bent down and walked out, standing at the bow of the ship.

The bald man and the other burly men's expressions changed visibly when they saw him.

After all, for those who live a life of crime and navigating the underworld, no matter how capable they are, recognizing people is the most important thing.

Otherwise, if you offend someone you shouldn't one day, you won't even know how you died.

Lu Changqing had killed the demon fish a few days ago and was called "brother" by Master Huang, so he was very popular and they naturally recognized him.

"Brother, where are you from?" Lu Changqing asked, his tone revealing no emotion.

The bald man's Adam's apple bobbed, and most of his previous arrogance dissipated. He cupped his hands in a gesture of respect and forced a smile: "The Zhang family's boat... so it was Brother Lu on board. Truly, truly, the flood washed away the Dragon King's temple."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

He glanced at the hold full of fish, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes, but he quickly changed the subject:

"Since Brother Lu is here, you should naturally go first to this stretch of water."

"With such a large river, where can't we set up a net?"

"Let's go somewhere else."

After saying that, without waiting for a response, he waved to his men to take the helm.

The Zhang family's fishing boat slowly turned around and headed towards the other side of the water.

Old Chen and the others breathed a sigh of relief, and a hint of joy and pride flashed across their faces.

After all, Brother Lu is one of their accomplices.

Brother Lu is awesome, but they're not bad either!

As the Zhang family's fishing boat gradually sailed away, Lu Changqing finally understood the power of "reputation".

Often, you can save yourself a lot of trouble without having to lift a finger.

If he didn't have this reputation, even if he could win, it would be a waste of his time and energy.

In that instant, he understood why martial arts masters all strive to achieve great fame.

However, this "robbery" incident also served as a reminder to Lu Changqing.

The world is ultimately chaotic and unsafe!

His current reputation is enough to secure some of his catch and live up to the title of "Demon-Slaying Hero," but if the profits were greater and his fame more widespread...

When the evil spirits and monsters come looking for trouble, will he still be able to save face and save face?

I still need to practice martial arts and become stronger!

As Lu Changqing was thinking this, he suddenly saw that when the ship in the distance had sailed less than a hundred feet away, someone suddenly exclaimed!

"Fish! Strange fish! Red one!"

"A demon fish! It's a demon fish!!!"

"..."

That shout was like a needle piercing through a taut skin.

Everyone on Lu Changqing's boat tensed up instantly, all looking over, their hands involuntarily reaching for the harpoons and oars beside them.

Old Chen instinctively grabbed the musket leaning against the side of the cabin.

On the river, near the stern of Zhang's fishing boat, water churned.

A bright red fish leaped out of the water for a moment before sinking back down. Judging from its outline, it was about the size of a half-grown dog and was definitely not an ordinary fish.

But the anticipated attack did not occur...

Lu Changqing also stared intently at it...

That touch of red reappeared.

It was a carp, red like fire, and somewhat intelligent, leisurely spitting out bubbles on the surface of the water.

Sunlight shone on its exceptionally large, brocade-like scales, refracting a golden-red shimmer.

Old Chen, being a veteran, reacts quickly.

He squinted, rubbed his eyes hard, then suddenly widened them, his voice trembling with excitement, and exclaimed, "It's not some kind of demon fish!"

"It's 'Red Scale Brocade'!"

"A treasure fish worth a hundred taels!"

Treasure fish?

Lu Changqing's heart skipped a beat.

He had heard about the treasure fish and the spiritual plant when he was a child.

After acquiring his talent, he always thought about whether he could find...

Unexpectedly, I've seen it now!

Anything with the word "treasure" in its name is a rare and precious treasure from the river, something you can only come across by chance.

It has a remarkable nourishing effect on both the sick and martial artists!

It's something that's expensive but unavailable!

Liu Bai has never said it even once.

It's a pity we don't have enough money. If we had enough, we could feed them precious meat and medicine every day and improve even faster!