High-level martial arts: Invincibility starts with basic archery.

Chapter 163 Is he of high status in the village? (Please subscribe)

In a clean and tidy room.

The old man lay on the bed with his right leg braced.

"Grandpa, are you full? If not, I'll get you another bowl."

Beside the bed, a woman in her forties held a bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other, asking with a warm smile.

Beside them stood a young woman, also with a smile on her face.

The old man let out a burp, nodded in satisfaction, and said, "I'm full, but I'm a little thirsty."

The young woman quickly picked up the bowl of water, blew on it to cool it down, and brought it to his lips.

"Gulp gulp".

The old man drank the water in the bowl in a few big gulps, and the young woman thoughtfully wiped the water stains from the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief.

"Sir, Dr. Liu said that it takes 100 days to recover from a broken bone. During these 100 days, if you need anything, just tell us directly. Don't be shy."

The older woman said with a smile.

"Yeah?"

The old man immediately perked up upon hearing this, "Really, anything is possible?"

Upon hearing this, the two women immediately realized that there was a hidden meaning in the other person's words.

"cough."

The young woman coughed and said apologetically, "Sir, before Brother Chen left, he told us that if you had any wicked ideas, we should tell him directly, and he would come and talk to you personally."

The old man suddenly realized what was happening and said, "Forget it, forget it. I don't have anything to say to him right now."

After he finished speaking, he looked around.

It must be said that the living conditions here are much better than in Songjiabao.

The house was clean and tidy, the food was plentiful, and there were people to serve me. If I had known that I would be treated this well here, I should have come sooner.

"By the way, who exactly is that young man?"

He couldn't help but ask.

Along the way, everyone treated that kid with utmost respect.

As a seasoned veteran who had seen countless people, he could tell that it was genuine respect from the bottom of his heart, without any pretense.

Consequently, everyone treated him with great friendliness.

So he was really curious about what the kid's status was in the village.

"You mean Brother Chen?"

"yes."

The old man nodded. "Judging from how obedient you all seem to him, does he hold a high position in the village?"

Both women burst out laughing upon hearing this.

"W-what's wrong? Did I say something wrong?"

The old man was a little lost.

"Grandpa, this is the young man named Chen from our Chen Family Fortress."

The young woman gave a thumbs up.

"Boss?"

The old man's mouth gaped open, his face filled with disbelief.

"If that's how you see it, then it's fine too." The young woman couldn't help but chuckle.

"Thanks to Brother Chen, we were rescued from the clutches of Zhao Da and his gang. If it weren't for him, we might not even be standing here talking to you right now."

The older woman sighed and remarked with emotion.

"What exactly happened?"

The old man felt as if a million ants were crawling inside him.

He glanced cautiously outside and lowered his voice, saying, "Tell me what you want to say. Don't worry, I don't have many other redeeming qualities, but I'm very good at keeping my mouth shut. I won't tell anyone."

"What's the big deal? It's not a big secret. Everyone in the village knows."

The older woman smiled and recounted what had happened.

After hearing this, the old man took a deep breath, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

Good heavens, I've spent my whole life hunting eagles, and now I've been pecked by one!

He had always thought he had gotten a great deal, but now he realized that the kid had been playing dumb all along.

Think back to what everyone said when we came in.

This kid is clearly the martial artist he was talking about, right? And the one who went to Anshan City wasn't any of his elders!

My God, how terrifying must the talent of such a young martial artist who has just entered the realm of internal strength be?

No wonder he was still so enthusiastic about obtaining the manuals from him, even though he knew they were all incomplete.

With such high talent, he must have gained some insights from those incomplete manuscripts.

I was careless!

Thinking of this, the old man slapped his right thigh and immediately winced in pain.

"Sir, are you... are you alright?"

The young woman panicked.

"Grandpa, please don't do anything rash. It's just a broken leg; you'll be fine after some rest."

"No, I'm fine."

The old man waved his hand and said, "Alright, you can all go out now. I want to be alone."

The two women exchanged a glance and nodded.

"Okay, sir, we'll head out now. If you need anything later, just call us and we'll come right away."

"Um."

The old man responded with a mixed feeling.

After a long pause, he gave a wry smile and comforted himself, "Well, at least it proves that I, an old man, still have a good eye for people. I picked the most powerful one in this village right away."

"Yes, that's right!"

Thinking of this, a smug look appeared on his face.

"With this kid as my backer, I'd like to see who dares to bully me in the village from now on!"

……

At the same time.

On the training ground, everyone was sweating profusely.

Inside the house next to the warehouse.

"I never imagined that the Martial Arts Association would progress so quickly in just three or four years, producing so many martial artists at the Meridian Refinement Realm?"

Zhang Ren asked in surprise.

"Yes, I heard from the president that above the Meridian Refining Realm, there is the True Essence Realm. Besides the president, there are two other people who are True Essence Realm warriors."

Chen Fan nodded and tentatively asked, "Is Uncle Zhang also a member of the Martial Arts Association?"

"yes."

Zhang Ren gave a wry smile. "When I joined the branch, the president was also Sun Wei. However, at that time, the entire association only had two or three martial artists at the Qi Refining Realm. There wasn't a single one at the branch. So at that time, not only the other people in the branch, but also myself, were skeptical about this realm."

Upon hearing this, Chen Fan couldn't help but recall what Zhang Ren had told him. The latter had indeed said that there were martial artists outside who could cultivate true qi within their bodies.

It seems that the Martial Arts Association has indeed grown quite rapidly in recent years.

Given enough time, it might not be any worse than the Awakeners Association.

"Xiao Fan, you just said that there are only seven or eight martial artists in the branch who have reached the Qi Refining stage, including yourself?"

Zhang Ren frowned.

"Yes, that's what the president said. Excluding him and Lin Hui, there are only six of us, including myself."

Chen Fan said.

"hiss……"

Zhang Ren gasped.

"I remember that when I joined the Martial Arts Association four years ago, there were more than thirty martial artists who had reached the level of Jin."

"More than thirty?"

Chen Fan was startled.

"Yes, back then I was a Ming Jin martial artist, at the bottom of the branch's entry-level martial artists. At that time, there were more than five Hua Jin martial artists. Even later, when I was being chased and picked up by your father and the others, the number of entry-level martial artists in the association was still more than twenty."

"Being chased?"

A thought popped into Chen Fan's mind: "Uncle Zhang, you're not being chased by people from Hongchang Trading Company, are you?"

"!"

Zhang Ren stared at Chen Fan, mouth agape, "How...how did you know?"

He was worried that his affairs would cause trouble for the villagers, so he kept quiet and never mentioned it to anyone.

How did Chen Fan find out about this?

"no."

Chen Fan was both amused and exasperated. He said, "I guessed, Uncle Zhang. The guild leader warned me before to be careful of the people from Hongchang Trading Company. The only people with the strength to hunt down a martial artist who has reached the Enlightenment stage are either Awakened or Enlightenment stage martial artists, right?"

"That's right."

Zhang Ren was silent for a moment, then said, "It seems that the conflict between Hongchang Trading Company and the branch is getting more and more intense."

"When I was still in the branch, people kept leaving to join Hongchang Trading Company. Soon, the number of martial artists in Hongchang Trading Company was about the same as ours. Later, the two sides would break out in the wild every now and then, until one time..."

Pain flashed in his eyes. "I went hunting mid-level ferocious beasts in the wild with a friend. They targeted us. My friend was hit in the head by several sniper rifle bullets and died on the spot. Although I wasn't hit in any vital organs, I was also seriously injured. I ran for my life, ran for my life. You know what happened after that."

"So that's how it is."

Chen Fan was moved by what he heard. He realized that it was because those people thought Uncle Zhang was doomed that they didn't pursue him.

But Uncle Zhang's life was not meant to end.

"Uncle Zhang, do you remember the names of the people who were chasing you back then?"

Zhang Ren was taken aback, but then he understood what Chen Fan meant. He felt a warmth in his heart, shook his head, and said, "Forget it, it's all in the past. Besides, Hongchang Trading Company is called a trading company, but behind it are those few Awakened Ones. Even the president of the guild doesn't want to easily provoke those guys."

"Uncle Zhang, there are some things that we can't just refuse to do without the other party's willingness to cooperate."

Chen Fan said helplessly, "As you said, the conflict between Hongchang Trading Company and the branch is getting more and more intense. Of the more than 30 martial artists who entered the realm of strength at the beginning, plus those who joined in the following years, there are now only 6 left. Most of them died at the hands of those people from Hongchang Trading Company. By choosing to join the branch, I am standing on the opposite side of the trading company. When I came back before, someone tried to follow me."

"What?!"

Zhang Ren quickly asked, "What happened after that? Nothing bad happened, right?"

"I've shaken them off, but I'll definitely run into them again next time I go to Anshan City."

Chen Fan shrugged. "So, Uncle Zhang, now you understand, right? It's not that they'll let us go just because we don't provoke them."

Zhang Ren's face was grim.

He didn't mention the Martial Arts Association because he was worried that Chen Fan would be drawn into this mess.

However, by a twist of fate, Chen Fan ended up joining in.

The enemies they will face next will likely be not only ferocious beasts, but also the vassals of these awakened ones, and even the awakened ones themselves.

Extremely dangerous.

"So, Uncle Zhang, what's the name of the guy who got you into this mess?"

Chen Fan asked.

Since we've decided to stand against the business...

He would be happy to help Zhang Ren get rid of those enemies.

(End of this chapter)