Martial Arts: Starting with Upgrading the Dilapidated Temple

"Coach..."

Xu Hao's voice was terribly hoarse. Pointing at Kui Wu on the ground, he said, "These two bastards wanted to burn the grain! I saw that they had already thrown out the fire starter, and I had no choice but to jump down from the roof beam and hit them on the head with a stick. Who knew that these bastards couldn't take a beating, and they... died right away."

Instructor Lin squatted down and reached out to touch Kui Wu's neck.

Broken.

This isn't something that can be achieved with just one blow.

It was clearly crushed by someone's fingers.

Coach Lin looked up and gave Xu Hao a deep look.

Xu Hao shrank back, his face looking naive: "Boss Lin, I killed someone, do I have to pay with my life?"

Instructor Lin didn't speak, but stood up and wiped his hands on Kui Wu's clothes: "Killing thieves isn't illegal. If this fire starts, we'll all die."

As they were talking, Master Chen, wearing a cloak and surrounded by a group of servants, hurried over.

Upon seeing the oil spilled all over the ground, the old man's legs went weak, and he almost knelt down.

Upon seeing Old Zhao unconscious in the corner, Master Chen was so angry his beard trembled. Pointing at Old Zhao, he cursed, "You bastard! Three generations of the Zhao family have been eating food for the Chen household, and yet you've raised such an ingrate!"

"Take him away! Interrogate him!"

After several buckets of well water were poured on him, Old Zhao was jolted awake.

How could this spineless man withstand such treatment? Before the instruments of torture were even applied, just seeing a row of red-hot branding irons made his crotch soak with sweat, and he confessed everything like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

It was said that it was arranged by Master Sun, Sun Niqiu of the Salt Gang.

Along with the other spies in the mansion, everyone gave a clear account of who received the money and who delivered the message.

Master Chen acted swiftly and decisively, ordering his men to arrest people according to the list that very night.

In an instant, chaos erupted in the Chen mansion, with cries of "father" and "mother" echoing everywhere.

After dealing with the traitor, Master Chen turned to look at Xu Hao, his expression softening considerably.

"Xu Hao, if it weren't for you tonight, my Chen family's century-old foundation would have been destroyed."

Master Chen waved his hand, "A reward of fifty taels of silver! From now on, you are the deputy captain of the guards. Apart from Instructor Lin, you are the one who calls the shots in the guards."

Fifty taels!

The eyes of the guards around him instantly turned red; this was a huge sum of money that an ordinary person could not save up in a lifetime.

Xu Hao quickly knelt down to express his gratitude, accepting the heavy silver ingot. He was overjoyed inside, but on the surface he had to pretend to be trembling with fear: "Thank you for the reward, sir! I was just doing my duty. It was mainly because I was lucky, very lucky."

"Luck is also a form of strength."

Master Chen nodded. "Furthermore, you are permitted to choose one martial art from the Chen family's private collection. Our Chen family never mistreats those who have rendered meritorious service."

Even Coach Lin was somewhat surprised by these words.

The Chen family has been wealthy and powerful for a century, with a profound heritage. Normally, the Chen family's private collection of learning materials is only allowed to be studied by their direct descendants.

Xu Hao didn't stand on ceremony and followed the steward into the library where martial arts classics were stored.

He rummaged through the shelves, not even glancing at any of the elegant sword techniques or intricate palm techniques, and finally picked out a dusty book called "Cloak Sword Technique".

The butler was somewhat surprised: "This swordsmanship originated from the military; the moves are simple, but practicing them is tedious. Are you sure you want this?"

"I'm clumsy, I can't learn any fancy tricks, this swordsmanship just looks natural to me." Xu Hao grinned.

Only he himself knew that this sword technique emphasized large, sweeping movements and powerful strikes, which perfectly matched the brute strength of his Skin-Polishing Realm.

In this chaotic world, good looks are useless; being able to kill someone with a single blow is what matters.

The commotion lasted until late at night before the crowd dispersed.

Xu Hao returned to the granary, playing with the silver ingots he had just received, feeling that the night's suffering had not been in vain.

The image in my mind suddenly jolted.

[Successfully protected the branch headquarters, averting the fire.]

[Receive a gift from the blessed land: You can "extract" one pound of fresh meat from the blessed land space every day]

With a thought, Xu Hao produced a piece of fresh meat in his hand.

This is fresh meat, not the hard, dried meat from the granary. It looks like it was just slaughtered; it's very fresh. From now on, we'll have rice and meat, and we won't have to worry about food.

"This is good stuff."

Xu Hao took out the Salt Gang token he had taken from Kui Wu, looked at it, and casually tossed it into the storage room.

This thing is a minefield, and also a handle; keeping it might be useful for stabbing someone in the future.

Just as dawn broke, Old Huang sauntered back carrying his wine gourd.

Upon entering and hearing about what happened last night, he was so frightened that he dropped his wine gourd.

"Oh my goodness!"

Old Huang circled Xu Hao three times, genuinely shaken. "If I hadn't left last night, these old bones of mine would probably be cooked! Young Xu, you're my savior!"

Old Huang shakily pulled a yellowed booklet from his pocket and shoved it into Xu Hao's hand: "I don't have anything valuable. I learned this from a blind man when I was young. The blind man had a keen ear and could hear the sound of horses' hooves from three miles away."

"Take it, just for fun."

"Master Huang, are you kidding me? Can a blind man write books?" Xu Hao was speechless.

Old Huang hurriedly defended himself, "He wasn't blind back in the day, he just lost his sight when he was in the underworld..."

"If you don't want it, give it back right now!"

Xu Hao dodged Huang Ye's hand that was trying to snatch the book, opened the booklet, and his eyes lit up.

The Art of Hearing the Ground.

This isn't just a joke; it's practically a user manual tailor-made for the Listening Breath Talisman!

It explains how to listen closely to the ground, how to distinguish the weight of footsteps to judge the level of martial arts skills, and even how to judge whether the opponent is about to make a move by listening to their breathing.

Xu Hao was overjoyed and immediately thanked Old Huang.

Before he could memorize the booklet, Instructor Lin arrived.

Instructor Lin dismissed the others, closed the warehouse door, and stared intently at Xu Hao with his eagle eyes.

"You're the one who crushed Kui Wu's throat, aren't you?"

Xu Hao's heart skipped a beat, but he still tried to play dumb: "Instructor, I am..."

"Don't give me that nonsense about innate superhuman strength." Instructor Lin interrupted him. "Kui Wu is a trained fighter. Although he hasn't reached the Skin Polishing Realm, his external martial arts skills are still quite formidable. To be able to crush his throat bone in one move, you must at least be at the Skin Polishing Realm, or even... the Great Perfection of Skin Polishing."

Xu Hao fell silent, his hand unconsciously reaching for the baton at his waist.

"Don't be nervous." Instructor Lin waved his hand, found a burlap sack to sit down, and said, "These days, everyone has secrets. The fact that you can hide your skills shows that you're smart. Unlike some hotheads who learn a few rudimentary skills and then want to announce them to the world, they'll die the fastest."

Xu Hao breathed a sigh of relief and cupped his hands, saying, "Instructor, you have a discerning eye. I did practice for a few days, but I was afraid of causing trouble, so I didn't dare to make a fuss."

"No matter where you learned your skills from, as long as you are a member of the Chen family, these skills are a good thing."

"The master has promoted you, and you can move into your own private room today." Instructor Lin carefully observed Xu Hao's reaction. "From today onwards, you will practice the sword technique you have chosen in your own courtyard. If you don't understand anything, come and ask me. You should be proficient in at least half a month."

Instructor Lin paused for a moment, then said, "The master has a task for you."

Xu Hao's heart skipped a beat. "Half a month? What kind of work is this?"

"You'll know once you've mastered it; if you haven't... you have no right to know."