Physical immortality begins with Bajiquan

Autumn has completely passed, and early winter has arrived.

Three days after Guo Man left, Hou Xiaomei also gave up martial arts, accepted her family's arrangement, and went back to marry a husband of equal social standing.

After Li Shoutian found a temporary job, he spent less and less time at the martial arts school each day.

As usual, Songxuan Martial Arts School sees new disciples arriving almost every day, filled with excitement at the prospect of learning martial arts, while older disciples, knowing there's no future for them, quietly pack up and leave.

The departure of a disciple who had reached the Ming Jin level was hardly a cause for concern in such a large martial arts school, let alone a disciple who hadn't even reached the Ming Jin level.

At this moment, only Qin Heng was still diligently practicing in the training ground.

Every day, apart from eating and drinking, he would practice relentlessly on the stakes, as if he were rooted to them.

With the martial arts exam approaching, he harbored a fierce determination to reach the level of internal strength as soon as possible.

"Hey! Look at him, look at him. This Qin Heng is still working himself to the bone at midday. Doesn't he know what work-life balance is?"

"That's right, this kid has the same aptitude as Guo Man. He must have been provoked. Hmph! Guo Man is gone, I think he'll be next."

"No way! Haha! He's only been here for six months, while Guo Man stayed for almost four years. If he leaves and the Lifen faction collapses, then we'll be out of entertainment!"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Under the pillars of the training ground, Qian Erqiang, Liu Dadao, and Hua Ying leaned against the pillars, arms crossed, staring at Qin Heng's back, laughing so hard they were doubled over.

Upon hearing this, Qin Heng ignored the disciples' mockery and remained focused on the training platform beneath his feet.

He understood everything perfectly, and once he achieved his goal, these people would naturally shut up. Only those who couldn't achieve anything would keep spewing nonsense.

[Destiny: Diligence is rewarded by Heaven; success is inevitable]

【Bajiquan (Minor Success 749/800)】

Bajiquan (Minor Success Level 739/800)

【Shadowless Footwork (Beginner 62/300)】

Qin Heng practiced his stance training diligently until evening before going to the bathhouse to shower, change his clothes, and head home.

As soon as he reached his doorstep, he saw five or six fierce-looking men standing outside the shop, seemingly waiting for something.

Qin Heng felt a chill run down his spine. After making preparations in secret, he slowly approached the other party.

The man at the head of the group was about forty years old, wearing an indigo-blue padded jacket and a tanned leather belt, and looked quite imposing.

The man spoke first: "This must be Brother Qin Heng. I am Liang Lun from the Tiger Claw Gang. I am new here and apologize for the inconvenience."

"So you're a master from the Tiger Claw Gang. I've heard so much about you. May I ask what brings you to my home?" Qin Heng replied calmly, bowing slightly in return, his tone neither humble nor arrogant.

Liang Lun also cupped his hands in a polite gesture and said, "Not at all, I am the one who has long admired Brother Qin's name. I heard that when Brother Qin was protecting the medicine for the Cui family, he single-handedly killed several Ming Jin martial artists in succession, and his skills and courage are both superb."

He paused, then continued, "From now on, Fishing Fire Bay will be under the control of my Tiger Claw Gang. In our future interactions, I hope we can all strive for harmony. If there's anything the gang does improperly, brother, please feel free to point it out!"

Qin Heng smiled politely and said, "Chief Liang, you flatter me."

Liang Lun also laughed and said, "Don't mention it! With Brother Qin's abilities, I hope you will take good care of me."

After exchanging a few more polite words, Liang Lun left with his entourage.

Reaching the fork in the road, he abruptly stopped, a surge of suppressed ferocity erupting from him. He coldly demanded of Liu Yu, "Are you sure it's him?"

Liu Yu's heart tightened suddenly, and he immediately lowered his head and bowed, not daring to look directly at him. "It's him, Chief, it's him."

Upon hearing this, Liang Lun sneered, "That's it, then it's probably him. In my opinion, Zhou Ping doesn't have that ability."

He turned and whispered, "Send word to everyone: don't mess with this man!"

Liang Chong, the deputy leader of the gang, looked unwilling and stepped forward in a low voice, "Brother, are we just going to let it go like this? Now that we know it was him, are we just going to let go of the thousands of taels of silver we've already paid?"

Liang Lun's expression suddenly changed, and he shouted sharply, "Foolish! Don't even think about doing anything shady if you're not confident you can take him down!"

He looked toward the street corner and said in a deep voice, "Let's make a note of this for now and discuss it further later."

"Yes, Boss!"

The followers behind him nodded in unison.

......

The next day.

Qin Heng, as usual, went to work at Cui's Pharmacy on Datong Street.

In the backyard of the pharmacy, a thoroughly enjoyable sparring match came to an end.

Cui Ran pulled back his fist and took a breath. Looking at Qin Heng, whose breathing was still perfectly steady, he smiled helplessly and said, "Alright, alright, I've been completely outclassed by you, kid. Judging from how your blood energy is so concentrated and not dissipating, your blood energy is probably about to reach the peak of Ming Jin. You'll be ready to try your second breakthrough soon, right?"

Qin Heng nodded slightly, "Let it settle a little longer, refine your qi and blood to make them more solid, and it will be about right."

Upon hearing this, Cui Ran unconsciously rubbed his cuffs with his fingertips, secretly making plans.

After spending so much time together, he discovered that Qin Heng's skills far surpassed those of other martial artists of the same level, and his temperament and comprehension were also quite good; perhaps his only weakness was his innate talent.

He only gambled twice in his entire life.

The first time, he gambled on his own ability to break through to the Dark Force realm, but he failed six times in a row. He had no choice but to gamble a second time on his daughter's Dark Force realm, but he failed three times in a row as well.

However, this time, he had the idea of ​​taking another gamble.

If Qin Heng can reach the level of Dark Force, then the person behind him will be able to play a significant role.

Even if he loses, when there are things he has to do, he is confident that he can drag this kid into the mess together.

Cui Ran sighed softly to himself.

He snapped out of his reverie, no longer hesitating, and pulled a palm-sized white porcelain bottle from his inner pocket, shoving it directly into Qin Heng's hand: "Good lad! Then I'll give you another push! But Heng, let me be frank, if you really can master internal strength, Uncle Cui really has something to ask of you later."

Qin Heng took the porcelain bottle, his fingertips pausing slightly.

Having spent so much time in the pharmacy, he naturally knew that what was inside was a Blood-Boosting Pill, which was more than ten times more effective than a Blood-Generating Powder.

He does need this, but what exactly is Cui Ran seeking?

Perhaps sensing Qin Heng's hesitation, Cui Ran waved his hand, his tone frank:

"Take it without worry. It's not asking you to do anything that could get you killed. If it does, just leave without a second thought, and I won't complain at all!"

Qin Heng thought about it for a moment after hearing this, and finally stopped refusing and put the porcelain bottle into his pocket.

He knew in his heart that this favor might not be easy to repay, but he was also determined, just as Cui Ran had said, to help if he could, and if it really came down to risking his life, he would not hesitate and would turn around and leave.

The two walked side by side through the narrow corridor to the front hall, then into the left wing room, preparing to have lunch together.

Two sets of bowls and chopsticks were already set on the table, with four dishes and a soup steaming hot.

After gesturing for Qin Heng to start eating, Cui Ran picked up his chopsticks, ate a few bites, and then put them down again. He lowered his voice and said, "Qin Heng, there's something I need you to know. The county has just decided that as soon as the martial arts examination ends, the garrison will officially send troops to suppress the bandits, forcing the five major families to contribute money and manpower."

Qin Heng frowned upon hearing this, put down his chopsticks, and looked up at him.

"The Huang family was naturally the first to jump out and respond, immediately pledging 100,000 taels of silver, and even forcing the other four families to follow suit." Cui Ran's tone was somewhat cold. "They say they're going to send troops to suppress bandits, but which of the five major families doesn't know the truth? These river bandits and mountain bandits are suppressed every year, but their numbers only increase! Hmph, maybe more than half of them are private bandits raised by the Huang family themselves. The Ming family and my Cui family have suffered even more from this."

He paused, picked up the white porcelain teacup beside him, took a sip, and then continued, "In that case, the Ming family was naturally the first to disagree and refused to contribute a single penny. But how could the garrison commander Cheng let it go so easily? He overturned the table on the spot. If Inspector Chen hadn't personally intervened to stop it, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

He looked up at Qin Heng, his eyes filled with exhaustion: "Now the Ming, Cui, Xu, and Zhang families are irreconcilably at odds with the Huang family and the garrison headquarters. Even the Chen family of Jishui has caught up in the chaos. My branch of the Cui family has also been implicated. If a fight breaks out one day, just lend a hand if you can. If you can help me and Yingying escape from Heyang County, I, Cui Ran, will be eternally grateful."

.........