Gou Zai Wu Dao Chao Shi Xing Nian Da Gong

At the West City Wharf, the Wang family's cargo ship slowly departed.

Among the crowd on the shore, Zhou Fugan, wearing a straw hat, quietly watched the cargo ship sail away.

Then he turned and left.

With his biggest worry over, he can now focus on his own life.

...

Qishengtang is the largest pharmacy on West Street in the prefectural city.

In a private room, the third manager, Zhang Lin, with a warm smile on his face, pushed over a wooden box. Inside the box were four exquisite porcelain vases and a gold-threaded pouch.

"Master Chen, thirty pills of Fiery Heartburn Pills, thirty pills of Dragon and Oyster Kidney Tonifying Pills, thirty pills of Immortal Spirit Pills, thirty pills of Three Ginseng Calcined Gold Pills, and ten one-year-old Tiger Tendon Grass plants, totaling two thousand one hundred taels of silver. I'll give you two thousand taels. Is that alright?"

"Then thank you very much, Manager Zhang."

Zhou Fugan laughed.

The abundance of resources in the prefectural city far surpassed that of Qingshan County; any ordinary pharmacy could provide a large quantity of tonics. The variety was comprehensive, far exceeding what the county pharmacies could offer, and the prices were reasonable. The tonics he bought this time would last him for several months.

As for the tiger tendon grass, it is the lowest-grade main ingredient for tonics in the Hu family's sword technique. He plans to go back and refine medicine for Zhou He's use.

He took the wooden box, inspected it, and after confirming that the goods were correct, handed over the two thousand taels of silver. The transaction was complete.

"Haha, Master Chen is so generous."

Zhang Lin couldn't stop smiling; two thousand taels of silver was a big deal for him.

"Does Master Chen need anything else?" Zhang Lin asked warmly.

Zhou Fugan pondered for a moment and said, "I do have a question I'd like to ask Manager Zhang. You're very knowledgeable, could you give me some advice?"

"Please speak, sir. I will tell you everything I know." Zhang Lin readily agreed.

"Does the shopkeeper know of any tonics that are even more effective than these?"

"A more effective tonic?"

Zhang Lin paused for a moment, then said, "These tonics I have are already the best available on the market for martial artists who have reached the Bone and Tendon stage. If you want something better, you'll have to join one of the major sects or powerful forces."

"Oh? Forgive my ignorance, but what are the major sects and forces in our Heavenly Scroll Palace?" Zhou Fugan immediately perked up.

"The biggest ones, as you should know, are the Imperial Court and the Heavenly Scroll Palace. If you can enter them and make contributions, you can exchange them for [something]. Next are the two sects and five families."

"The two sects are the Flowing Cloud Sect and the Wind Forest Sect. These two sects are the holy lands of martial artists in the Heavenly Scroll Prefecture, possessing unparalleled martial arts and top-grade tonics. The five families are the five great clans of the Heavenly Scroll Prefecture, whose power is second only to the Scroll King's Mansion, with profound foundations. If you can join the two sects and the five families, you will have the opportunity to obtain even better things."

Zhang Lin then gave a brief explanation.

Zhou Fugan's eyes were opened to a whole new world. He had been like a frog in a well in Qingshan County before, but now he finally saw the vastness of the outside world.

"How can I join these factions? I have a grandson with exceptional talent, and I'd like to give it a try."

Zhou Fugan asked with great interest.

"Hehe, that depends on fate. To gain official rank in the imperial court, one must obtain a title; for princely mansions and powerful families, it is best to have someone introduce you, otherwise, with a low status, it is difficult to access high-quality resources; as for the two major sects, it is neither difficult nor easy, as long as one's innate talent is sufficient, but if one's innate talent is insufficient, there is no chance at all."

Zhang Lin chuckled and explained. He didn't believe that Old Chen's grandson had any chance of joining these forces; after all, he was just a country bumpkin with a little money.

"Thank you for your guidance." Zhou Fugan nodded.

Zhang Lin was unwilling to discuss this matter further, so he changed the subject and asked, "Sir, what is your purpose in wanting better tonics?"

"That's right. After my grandson reached the Bone and Tendon stage in his cultivation, his cultivation speed slowed down considerably, so we wanted to try some better tonics."

Zhou Fugan answered immediately.

"Oh? May I ask how old your grandson is?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Lin's heart stirred slightly, and he quickly asked.

"I'm sixteen this year," Zhou Fugan said.

"Haha, the master really has a good grandson. He's so young and has already reached the stage of physical and mental development. He should go and try his luck at the two schools. He might just be accepted into the school."

Zhang Lin laughed heartily. To have such cultivation at such a young age, he's very likely a genius with superior innate talent. I never imagined this old master was so fortunate to have such a gifted grandson.

"Very well, thank you for your kind words. Thank you for your guidance, shopkeeper."

Zhang Lin waved his hand and continued, "You're welcome, you're welcome. You should send your grandson to the two sects as soon as possible. Your grandson's slow cultivation speed is likely not due to the tonics, but rather because the martial arts he is practicing are inadequate. As far as I know, martial artists who specialize in the tendons and bones mainly temper their internal organs. If they practice low-level martial arts, the effect of tempering their internal organs will be extremely poor."

"My grandson practices Iron Sand Fist. It's already the most powerful martial art in the county," Zhou Fugan said, feigning surprise.

"Haha, sir, don't blame me for being blunt. Iron Sand Fist is just a low-level martial art, with only external training methods and no internal cultivation techniques, making the tempering of internal organs very slow. If you were to learn a superior martial art that includes internal cultivation methods, your grandson's cultivation speed would surely advance by leaps and bounds. And superior martial arts can only be learned in those powerful forces. They are not available in martial arts schools outside," Zhang Lin laughed.

"I see."

Zhou Fugan suddenly realized, then asked unwillingly, "Is there no superior martial arts outside of the major powers?"

Zhang Lin shook his head. "Almost certainly not. And even if someone did, who would expose it?"

"Too."

Zhou Fugan finally gave up. If he had superior martial arts skills, he would definitely have kept them hidden and not let anyone know.

He then asked some more detailed and common-sense questions before taking his leave.

...

The carriage swayed and rocked.

Zhou Fugan sat upright in the carriage, lost in thought.

"Sir, where are we going?"

The coachman, Old Huang, asked respectfully.

"Go straight back to Qingshan County."

Zhou Fugan thought for a moment and then gave the instructions.

He had perfectly achieved all his goals on this trip to the prefectural city. He had rescued his son, bought the tonic, and acquired the precious medicine that Zhou He needed. All that remained were the auxiliary medicines and tools for preparing the medicine, which were neither rare nor space-consuming, and he could easily buy them back in the county town.

In addition, he was worried about his eldest son and his family, so he decided to go back.

"Okay."

Old Huang responded and continued driving.

Zhou Fugan continued to ponder the previous question, but all he could think about was melancholy.

Superior martial arts skills are simply unattainable unless one joins a powerful force like one of the Two Sects or Five Families. And without obtaining superior martial arts skills, one cannot solve the problem of slow cultivation speed after passing the Bone and Tendon Barrier.

This matter not only concerns him personally, but also his two grandsons.

With his external help, he might just have to wait a while to break through the internal organ barrier. But even he's struggling to cultivate now, so wouldn't it be even harder for his two grandsons? They might never have a chance to break through the internal organ barrier in their lifetime.

"That definitely won't work!"

Zhou Fugan was unwilling to accept this situation. He came to the prefectural city determined to develop his family's power. After combining his memories from his previous life to think and plan, he believed that there were two core aspects to it.

First, there must be an ancestor in the family to oversee things. This ancestor must possess extraordinary martial arts skills, be elusive and rarely seen, and serve as a deterrent to enemies, eliminating powerful adversaries.

And he is the ancestor of the Zhou family.

Second, there must be a core group of people to develop the family's influence and businesses.

The two sons had no martial skills and could at most serve as managers or shopkeepers, overseeing the family business. However, the hope of conquering the world rested on the two grandsons.

The more powerful the two grandsons are, the greater the family's influence can grow.

In Zhou Fugan's plan, his two grandsons' cultivation levels couldn't stagnate at the Body Tempering Realm; otherwise, the Zhou family's development would be hampered. He couldn't possibly have his patriarch constantly out in the public eye developing the family business, could he?

Therefore, not only must the grandfather become powerful, but his two grandsons must also become powerful.

However, both grandsons have inferior aptitude. If they want to achieve anything in martial arts, Tai Chi alone is not enough; they need superior martial arts skills. Only the internal training methods of superior martial arts can allow them to quickly temper their internal organs, thus giving them hope of breaking through the barriers of their internal organs.

"Internal cultivation method, internal cultivation method! Wait, isn't internal cultivation about directing the power of cultivation directly to the internal organs?"

Zhou Fugan frowned as he pondered, when suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him.

"He possesses this kind of cultivation that reaches directly to the internal organs!"