The Heavenly Court is gone, I don't want to be a True Lord.

Fushan City, nestled between mountains and water, has always been a strategic location fought over by military strategists. It can be used to transport troops along the Liang River when advancing, and to hide thousands of troops when retreating.

Throughout Fushan City, there are countless wharves of all sizes. The canal wharf in the east of the city was built spontaneously by the people. The government would occasionally intervene, but in most cases, it was left to develop on its own.

The Green Robe Gang was one of the largest gangs at the East Canal Wharf.

As the leader of the Green Robe Gang, Chang Kun was in high spirits, but today, his face looked particularly grim.

It rained last night, and someone actually killed members of the Green Robe Gang!

Gang members' deaths are never officially recognized; this has always been the rule in the underworld.

Chang Kun wasn't worried about the authorities; what he hated more was the person who killed his brother.

"Chief, according to the coroner Sun's deduction, the one who killed Xiao Liu and the others was tall and incredibly strong. In terms of strength alone, he was no less than an ordinary second-level master."

Chang Kun remained expressionless. "So what if you're a second-tier cultivator? You dared to kill my brother; you'll pay the price!"

"What did Xiao Liu and the others do yesterday?"

"Master Li arranged for them to go out and do some work, but two little beggars with accents from other places ruined our plans, so Master Li sent people to teach them a lesson."

Chang Kun nodded.

At least this isn't a dead end. It's good that we know who did it. When we see those two little beggars again, we'll know who did it.

……

In the courtyard of the manor.

The three Zuo brothers stood in front of Li Gang, demonstrating the stance training they had learned.

Li Gang looked at the three of them. He nodded slightly when he saw that Zuo Qi and He Xiao were doing a proper job, but frowned when he saw that Ni Heng looked like a monkey.

He turned around and looked at the progress of the others.

"Practicing martial arts isn't something you can achieve just by burying yourself in hard work. To achieve something, you need sufficient Qi and blood. Where does Qi and blood come from?"

Someone immediately spoke up.

"Eat meat."

Li Gang nodded approvingly, "That's right. For martial artists, cultivating qi and blood is 50% training and 50% diet. In fact, for some techniques, 70% to 80% of the success depends on proper nutrition."

The cultivation speed of Jin Yi Gong is not fast, but it requires relatively few resources. In addition, it combines internal and external cultivation, which is why it is considered an entry-level cultivation method.

There are also martial arts schools in Fushan City that teach entry-level skills, but each day during training, at least three to five catties of raw meat are required. At the current price of twelve coins per catty of meat, five catties would cost sixty coins.

In a month, just eating meat would cost 1,800 coins.

"There are many places in the village that are short of people. You can find some work to do yourselves. If you really can't find any, you can come to me. Don't practice your skills on an empty stomach."

Li Gang seemed to be speaking from the heart.

Everyone nodded.

At lunchtime, people from the village brought food, consisting of only some dark flour buns and corn porridge, along with a handful of pickled vegetables that each person could count.

If Zuo Qi and the others successfully master the skills, they will have used up most of the food in half an hour of practice.

"Brothers, where did you guys come from?"

During the meal, someone came over and struck up a conversation.

The other person was about seventeen or eighteen years old, tall and strong.

He Xiao and Ni Heng looked at Zuo Qi, who said with a smile, "The refugees from Pingcheng even lost their documents on their way to escape the famine."

"That's a real shame. My name is Cheng Yun, from Fushan City. Something happened to my family, so I have to sell myself. Have any of you brothers found work in the village?"

Cheng Yun, with an air of familiarity, said with a smile.

"Does your brother have connections?"

"My uncle is the pig castrator in the village. He's looking for two helpers. The pay is six hundred coins a month. Are you interested, brother?"

Zuo Qi's heart stirred slightly; six hundred coins was indeed a considerable sum.

Since Cheng Yun was neither a relative nor an acquaintance, he introduced them to work. Castrating pigs was a skilled trade that never lacked workers, and it didn't only pay six hundred coins a month.

The extra money was probably Cheng Yun's agency fee.

"I can go and help, but besides the wages, I'd like some of the offal from the pigs when they're slaughtered."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Yun immediately agreed.

For every person he introduced to him, he would take one hundred coins from their wages.

This is the Lin family's estate. Pig offal and the like are usually fed directly to the dogs. I'll just ask my uncle to share some with Zuo Qi and the others. If all else fails, I can buy it with money.

Are all three of you brothers going?

Zuo Qi shook his head slightly, "He Xiao and I will go."

They discussed it and decided that Zuo Qi and He Xiao would try to find jobs that involved handling meat, while Ni Heng would go to the kennel to find work. With his skills in training and training dogs, he should be able to easily establish himself.

Cheng Yun was somewhat disappointed; two people were already quite good.

Afterwards, Zuo Qi silently inquired about Cheng Yunlin's family affairs.

He knew little about Fushan City, only that the Lin family was one of the largest families in Fushan City and that they were also relatives of the emperor.

"The Lin family, you know the Lin family in the east of the city? The entire east of the city is the Lin family's territory, and there are countless experts in the family."

Cheng Yun looked proud.

He also told Zuo Qi and the others that some of the guards practicing martial arts in the courtyard had elders who worked at the Lin family manor, while the rest were mostly from poor families in the east of the city, here to try their luck in the future.

It's perfectly normal for martial artists, who enjoy high social status, to have such thoughts.

I continued practicing in the afternoon.

Zuo Qi still started by practicing standing meditation and dynamic exercises.

Although he still couldn't sense the presence of qi and blood, he cultivated with exceptional seriousness.

Until the sun is about to set.

Zuo Qi was jolted awake. Just as he was about to stop, a new power suddenly surged within him, flowing slowly through his many blood vessels like water.

Is this Qi and blood?

Qi and blood flow slowly through the body, like a wisp of silk, carrying a slight burning sensation.

Zuo Qi hurriedly followed Jin Yigong's instructions, changing his posture every now and then, allowing the faint wisps of qi and blood to flow through every piece of flesh and blood in his body.

The whole process was exceptionally smooth.

After finishing the exercise, without taking a break, I sat cross-legged and breathed through my nose and mouth.

Qi and blood are generated within the body, and two long streams of qi and blood gush out from the mouth and nose with each breath.

"When practicing the Golden Easy Skill, all the Qi and blood flow to the skin and flesh three inches below the left armpit, which is also the weak point of the first level of the Golden Easy Skill."

The place where Qi and blood are stored is where the weak point lies.

After a long while, Zuo Qi slowly got up and felt light and agile, as if he had become several years younger overnight. His skin and flesh also had a faint luster. His first tempering of his skin and flesh was very effective.

He was extremely excited.

So... I am considered a martial artist?

He roared in hatred, looking up at the sky.

As if he had just thought of something, Zuo Qi hid in a corner, opened his third eye, and looked at himself.

I wonder if I'll be able to see the martial arts I've practiced.

[Spiritual Essence: 25]

Life Points: 19

[Heavenly Fortune: 100]

[Golden Ease Technique (Level 1), Effect: Daily cultivation for three hours grants two streams of Qi and Blood; daily completion rate for flesh and skin tempering is 1%.]

Can you really see it?

Zuo Qi was overjoyed; the Heavenly Eye's ability to perceive things was indeed capable of quantifying what he wanted to see.

……

It was evening.

Zuo Qi and He Xiao followed Cheng Yun to the pigsty, where there was a small hill.

"There are more than 900 pigs on the mountain. Sows give birth every day. Your daily task is to clean up the pig manure on the mountain and catch the pigs that are half a month old and bring them back for me to castrate."

Cheng Yun's uncle was named Cheng He, and he had a stern-looking face.

Zuo Qi and He Xiao nodded repeatedly.

Cheng He was very satisfied with the two men, especially Zuo Qi, who was strong and healthy. Most of the large pigs on Pig Mountain had been castrated, so they weren't too fierce, but it still took some strength to catch the piglets.

Zuo Qi is quite good.

Cheng He assigned them the tasks, instructing the two to come and work for three hours every afternoon, with wages settled on the third of each month.

There is nothing wrong with either of them.

After a day of getting acquainted at the Lin family manor, everything seemed to be on track.