I'll write a manual called the Sunflower Manual, and the entire martial arts world will turn in

Zhou Wu waved to the distance, and two servants carried a large box, swaying as they entered the room.

Seeing that the other party had come to deliver gifts, Xie An naturally couldn't be impolite. While welcoming everyone in, he called to Xie Yu, "Xiao Yu, serve tea to the master."

After everyone was seated in the living room, a round of pleasantries ensued.

Zhou Fu and his son praised Xie An's righteous act of eliminating the water monster, but Xie An simply said that it was only right to rid the people of a scourge.

Zhou Fu then took out a small wooden box and handed it to Xie An with both hands. "This is the Mingjin Inner Breath Pill that Prefect Wang Zhuo gave to Fifth Master. This medicine is made by a pharmacist in Huanglei City and is extremely rare. It is of great benefit to Mingjin martial artists, strengthening their internal strength and external bones. You can't buy it on the market even if you have money."

Xie An took the wooden box and opened it. Inside was a blue pill about the size of a thumb, emitting a faint, pleasant fragrance.

It's obvious at a glance that this is no ordinary item.

Click.

Xie An closed the box, stood up, cupped his hands in thanks towards Baiyun County, and exclaimed, "Thank you, Lord Wang, for the medicine!"

In a previous life, such behavior would likely have been mistaken for that of a madman.

But most people in this world act in this way.

If it was a gift from the emperor, officials and doctors would have to kneel down and kowtow on the spot, shouting their gratitude to the emperor in the direction of the imperial city.

After expressing his gratitude, Xie An took his seat again.

Zhou Fu gave Zhou Wu a look, and the latter opened the large box.

Inside were gleaming white silver ingots, reflecting a blinding silver light in the candlelight.

A rough estimate puts it at a full eight hundred taels.

Xie An wasn't exactly a miser, but the expenses of practicing martial arts were simply too high. Naturally, the more money the better.

He said, "Lord Zhou, how can this be..."

"Yes, yes, Fifth Master, you've already reached the Ming Jin realm at such a young age; your future is limitless. Besides, I won't hide it from you, Fifth Master, I've lost an arm, and it's already difficult enough for me to hold this position as the river patrol inspector. I hope you'll take good care of me in the future." Zhou Fu spoke earnestly, and seeing that Xie An hadn't responded, he added, "Fifth Master, rest assured, we won't dare to bother you with ordinary river patrols. But if any difficult cases arise at the river patrol, or if there are water monsters or bandits that we can't handle..."

Xie An understood.

This goes beyond the scope of a temporary posting; it's more like seeking personal protection.

In that case, the amount of money wouldn't be much.

Zhou Wu added, "Fifth Master, rest assured, from now on, my Zhou family will send a substantial tribute every month."

Xie An nodded: "In that case, I shall accept your offer."

Zhou Fu and his son finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Xie An said, "There is another matter. Half a year ago, my father went on a merchant ship with the canal gang. They said he was attacked by a water monster, and we don't know where it happened. I would appreciate it if Lord Zhou could investigate this matter thoroughly."

Xie An had mentioned this to Mai Qiuyan before, but she hadn't given any feedback. This was understandable, given that the Canal Gang worked for the Dragon King Gang, and he himself had a long-standing feud with the Dragon King Gang. Mai Qiuyan probably had some reservations and dared not speak openly about it.

"Fifth Master, rest assured, leave this matter to me."

After seeing Zhou Fu and his son off, Xie An looked at the chest in the living room, which was full of silver ingots, and was quite moved.

Just over half a year ago, I was struggling to afford a few hundred coins for incense offerings, but now people casually give me eight hundred taels as a gift. Adding the six hundred taels I received before, that's a full fourteen hundred taels.

The ups and downs of life are truly heartbreaking.

"Brother, we have a full fourteen hundred taels of silver!" Xie Yu's eyes lit up; he had never seen so much money in his life. But he was more worried. "With so much given by Lord Zhou Fu, I'm afraid the things he wants you to do are quite dangerous, aren't they?"

Xie An patted Xie Yu's head. "It's alright. I need money. Besides, I have my senior brother and sister-in-law protecting me. As long as I don't leave Wuqiao Town in secret, nothing will happen."

Xie An had only spoken half of his sentence.

Actually, there was a female demon, the Red Serpent Fairy, protecting him, provided that she didn't know he was using her name to spread the Sunflower Manual...

If they knew, then it would be hard to say.

After nightfall, Xie An took a bath and climbed into bed. He imagined a small notebook in his mind, filled with a series of names: Dragon King Gang, Wei Dian, Pang Tong, Pang Hu, Liu Jiang…

"No rush, take it one at a time."

……

The next morning, Xie An got up early.

The effects of the medicine from the consecutive doses of the tiger catfish had not yet completely dissipated, so Xie An was not in a hurry to take the big green eye medicine. Instead, he took advantage of the bright morning light to practice a set of Bajiquan.

[Bear Squat: 100/100]

"I've already finished practicing the seventh move, the Bear Squat. Now all that's left is the eighth move, the Crane Step Push."

In the past, Wei Xiang had already taught Xie An all the essentials of Bajiquan, and he only needed to practice on his own.

"I initially thought Bajiquan wasn't very useful, but after witnessing my senior brother kill Big Green Eyes with Bajiquan the night before last... I feel that this style of boxing is quite useful against Ming Jin martial artists. Since I'm already practicing it, I might as well finish it."

With this in mind, Xie An assumed a stance and began practicing the eighth move, Crane Step Push.

Crane Step Push, also known as Crane Step Push Mountain Stability.

Drawing inspiration from the lightness and steadiness of a crane, the "Crane Step" emphasizes the combination of footwork and propulsion. It refers to a footwork technique where the knee is raised and the person stands on one leg for support, requiring extreme stability.

In actual combat, raise your knee to defend, and push forward with both palms to generate force. The intention is to uproot the opponent and push them away, as if the force could push a mountain, hence the name "Pushing Mountain Stability".

After an hour of rehearsal.

【Crane Step Push: 4/100】

"The progress is acceptable. With my foundation in Ming Jin (a type of internal energy cultivation), practicing Crane Step Push is like a game-changer. I should be able to master it in a few days."

Just then, an extremely noisy commotion came from outside.

Xie An pushed open the door and went out. As soon as he arrived at the martial arts training ground in the central courtyard, he saw a large group of people pouring in.

Leading the group was Liu Qing, dressed in a black, close-fitting outfit, with a long sword at his waist, his face ashen. Behind him followed Wei Dian, who was dressed exceptionally well today, in a brand-new blue brocade robe, with a jade pendant at his waist, his hair neatly combed, but his expression was complex—resolute, tense, and a hint of barely perceptible guilt.

Four people were following behind them.

Xie An recognized two of them: one was Lei Peng, the head of the Lei Family Martial Arts School, a burly man with a face full of scars, whose large, round eyes swept across the training ground with a hint of amusement.

The other one is Shi Hong, the master of Hanshan Martial Arts School. He is the one Zhou Fu asked to stay away from due to illness. He is thin, has a goatee, and has a sinister look in his eyes.

There were two others Xie An didn't recognize, but judging from their attire and demeanor, they were probably the owners of other martial arts schools in Wuqiao Town.

The four stood side by side, as if to witness something.

Seeing this, Xie An's heart sank.

Could it be that the Dragon King Gang is about to openly come to my door to cause trouble?

Xie An hid in a corner of the corridor, not showing himself, but just watching from afar.

Just then, Wei Xiang strode over from the direction of Shougong Hall. Seeing Liu Qing and his group, he frowned and asked, "Second Boss Liu, what brings so many people to my Yongsheng Martial Arts School today?"

Liu Qing snorted coldly and gestured for Wei Dian to step forward.

Wei Dian took a deep breath, walked to the center of the training ground, faced the direction of the Hall of Defenders, bent his knees, and knelt down with a "thump".

"Disciple Wei Dian, today, with all my teachers as witnesses, I formally withdraw from Yong Sheng Martial Arts School and sever all ties with the school!"

These words caused an uproar in the room.

"Wei Dian! You've gone mad!" a disciple shouted angrily.

"Your master has treated you well, yet you dare to betray your sect!"

"Ungrateful wretch!"

Wei Dian knelt on the ground, his back ramrod straight, ignoring the surrounding insults. His face was pale, his lips trembled slightly, but his eyes were unusually firm.

Wei Xiang was utterly astonished: "Wei Dian, although you haven't been a disciple for long, your master has always treated you well. How dare you betray your master?"

Wei Dian said firmly, "My mind is made up. Please inform Master Chen."

Wei Xiang said no more, nodded firmly, and then hurriedly ran to the Shougong Hall. A short while later, he emerged with Chen Lutang.

Since Xie An had not told others that the man in black who had offered a living sacrifice to the water monkey the night before was Wei Dian, Chen Lutang was unaware of the reason and simply blushed.

"Wei Dian, I have always believed I have treated you well, so why did you betray your master?"

Why?

It was all because of that bastard Xie An!

Wei Xiang gritted his teeth, but didn't say anything. He simply took out a letter of application to become a disciple, placed his hands on the ground, and then took out a booklet, which he opened with both hands.

This is Xie Benshi.

According to the customs of the Great Qian Dynasty, the relationship between master and disciple was extremely close. In addition to the master taking the initiative to expel the disciple from the sect, the disciple could also take the initiative to leave the sect. However, there were some rules to follow. It was necessary to find a respected person in the local area to witness the departure, then publicly return the letter of acceptance to the master and the sect tokens, then perform the severance ceremony, publish an article thanking the master, and finally the sect would publicly announce the "removal from the sect".

Once the process is complete, it's considered leaving the sect, and from then on, they'll part ways and never see each other again.

All that could be heard was Wei Dian looking at Xie Benshi's booklet and reciting aloud:

"To all the teachers and fellow students of Yong Sheng Martial Arts School, I, Wei Dian, have been fortunate to receive your instruction and learn martial arts since I entered the school. However, our paths diverge, and we cannot work together. I, Wei Dian, have decided to seek a new master and request to complete my training. From this day forward, I sever all ties with Yong Sheng Martial Arts School. From this day forward, if we meet again in the martial world, we will each rely on our own abilities. To prove this, I hereby write this as proof!"

The four museum owners, Lei Peng, Shi Hong, and others, nodded in agreement as a sign of their testimony.

Wei Xiang's face was ashen, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked. "Wei Dian, you've always known how much your master values ​​his reputation. This public betrayal of our school is unprecedented in the martial arts academy. How is your master supposed to face his fellow martial arts practitioners after this? Have you thought this through?"

Wei Dian's body trembled slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. He took out a bronze plaque from his pocket—it was the identity plaque of a direct disciple of Yong Sheng Martial Arts School, engraved with his name. He placed the plaque on the ground and then took a short sword from his waist—a token given to him by Chen Lutang when he accepted him as a disciple.

"Disciple Wei Dian, from this day forward, sever all ties with Yong Sheng Martial Arts School." His voice trembled, but he emphasized each word.

Then he raised his head and bowed three times to Chen Lutang: "Master, your disciple is unfilial and has failed your cultivation. But your disciple also has his reasons, please forgive me, Master."

Liu Qing sneered, "Wei Dian, the items have been returned. From now on, you are a member of my Dragon King Gang and have nothing to do with Yong Sheng Martial Arts School. Let's go."

Wei Dian stood up and bowed deeply to Chen Lutang one last time. Then he turned around and followed Liu Qing toward the martial arts school gate.

Lei Peng, Shi Hong, and the other two museum owners also bowed and took their leave.

call!

Chen Lutang's face flushed red with rage, his hands and feet trembling. He took a deep breath to suppress his burning anger, "Wei Xiang, beat the drums!"

If a disciple leaves the master's school, the master must beat a drum to drive him away if the master agrees, signifying the complete severance of the master-disciple relationship.

Soon, the sound of drums rang out.

"The road ahead is long and arduous, Wei Dian, take care of yourself!"

……

"Senior brother, please don't get angry; it's not worth it."

Xie An knew that Chen Lutang was very concerned about his reputation, so he went over to comfort him.

Chen Lutang patted his chest to catch his breath. "Senior brother has wandered half his life, what haven't he seen? It's alright. It's probably because Wei Dian saw you suddenly become his senior uncle and harbored resentment, holding a grudge against me, his master. How can someone so petty achieve anything great in the future?"

Xie An said, "What my senior brother says is true."

"Well, in the end, it made my senior brother lose face in front of his fellow martial arts practitioners. Oh well, I'll continue my seclusion. Wei Xiang, from now on, you can discuss all matters concerning the martial arts school with your master's wife, or at the very least, let your junior brother make the decisions. There's no need to bother me anymore."

Chen Lutang waved goodbye and left, his steps unsteady, as if he had aged considerably.

Clearly, Wei Dian's betrayal of his master had dealt him a great blow.

After seeing Chen Lutang off, Xie An summoned Lin Chong and asked, "Do you know anything about Wei Dian's current situation with the Dragon King Gang?"

Lin Chong, always a gossip, said, "I heard he's taken the second-in-command of the Dragon King Gang as his godfather. And I heard that Liu Qing is a notorious womanizer. Tsk tsk, this Wei Dian is willing to do anything for a chance to get ahead."

I see……

No wonder Liu Qing went to such lengths for him...

"Uncle-Master, Wei Dian's betrayal of the sect has dealt a heavy blow to Master. Please take the time to comfort him." Wei Xiang approached at this moment.

Xie An nodded: "Okay."

Hmm.

Wei Xiang said, "I initially thought Wei Dian was just young and impetuous, with a restless personality. I never imagined he would be so heartless and ungrateful. He thinks that by associating with the Dragon King Gang, he can have a better future..."

"He has no future," Xie An replied, then turned and left.

Wei Xiang stared blankly at Xie An's departing figure, not understanding for a moment what Xie An meant by those words.