Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

The rugged mountain road winding upwards outside the county town was covered with a thin layer of white snow.

A seemingly weary nag, exhaling puffs of white breath, pulled an old cart, slowly advancing along the silent mountain road.

The cartwheels rolled over the snow, emitting a dull creaking noise.

Along the way, bare branches stretched with a tenacious posture. An occasional cold wind passed by, causing the branches to tremble slightly and the snow on the twigs to fall rustlingly.

"Brother Qingzi, how did you notice them just now?"

After a moment of self-comfort, Shen Xiaohu had emerged from the initial guilt of killing someone, feeling much more at ease in his heart.

Shen Qing glanced at Shen Xiaohu and said truthfully, "I wasn't very sure either, so I shot an arrow in advance to test it."

"Ah? What if you had killed the wrong person?"

"If it's wrong, it's wrong." Shen Qing had no psychological burden and said softly, "Sometimes, if you're not ruthless enough, you can't survive in such a harsh world. Don't think too much."

In this world, the death of a person was truly too common.

Even in their small village, accidents often occurred with people getting eaten clean by wild beasts.

Not to mention a county town with a population of one hundred and fifty to two hundred thousand, it's feared that people die every day.

One more or one less person wouldn't make any difference at all.

If Shen Qing didn't want to be the one missing, then he couldn't afford to be indecisive.

Shen Xiaohu fell silent upon hearing this, not objecting.

Because he knew that what Shen Qing said was the truth, the world was just like this.

Zhang Shuyuan, who was leading the weary horse, overheard the conversation between the two brothers and chimed in, "You killed them today and avoided a calamity, but it might not be the same next time you enter the town."

Shen Qing, sensing that Zhang Shuyuan might know something, cupped his hands and asked, "Is there some reasoning behind this? I hope the teacher would be generous with his guidance."

Zhang Shuyuan, seemingly pleased with Shen Qing's respect, continued, "These lowly households scraping a living in the Outer City don't work alone. Today I saw their group had people tailing and others taking action; there definitely must be a leader among them."

"These people care a lot about loyalty. If one of their brothers encounters trouble, these leaders are bound to step forward to settle things. Otherwise, it would lead to disunity. As long as you go to the county town, you won't be able to escape."

"However, the good news is that we live in Hongshan Village. Those leaders can only take care of their own turf; they can't reach out that far and have no control over us. As long as you don't go to the county town, there shouldn't be a big problem."

After hearing Zhang Shuyuan's words, Shen Qing, who was directly involved, furrowed his brow slightly.

He had just obtained a precious opportunity to learn martial arts at Linfeng Hall's inner courtyard, an opportunity far too rare to give up easily.

He was definitely going to the county town.

"Are these leaders very strong?" Shen Qing asked further.

"Those who make a living in the Outer City definitely can't compare to the true martial masters in the Inner City. Most of them are at the Great Perfection of Qi and Blood realm, half a step away from the gate of Martial Arts. They are more than enough to deal with us ordinary folks."

Great Perfection of Qi and Blood?

Shen Qing's brow furrowed slightly again.

Although his training in the Nine Skills had not yet reached the Great Perfection, he was not too far from it.

If that's the case, when the time came, as long as he killed that leader, that should suffice, right?

Thinking this in his heart, Shen Qing let out a long sigh.

...

Time trickled by.

By dusk, when the sky was still bright,

Zhang Shuyuan, relying on his superior driving skills, safely delivered Shen Qing and Shen Xiaohu to the village.

"I must thank you for your efforts today, sir. Here is your compensation for the day," Shen Qing took out the money he had prepared earlier and, as agreed, gave two hundred wen to Zhang Shuyuan. Not only that, but he added another twenty wen and said, "You've been a great help to me today, sir. Here is an extra twenty wen for your troubles."

Zhang Shuyuan didn't count the money in front of Shen Qing. He simply pocketed it and said, "Remember not to forget tomorrow. Come over to continue learning the Thousand Character Classic."

"All right, I'll go early tomorrow morning."

After sending Zhang Shuyuan away, Shen Qing turned to look at the sky, feeling it was still early before dark. He hurried toward his home, tethered the nag, took down the items from the cart, kicked open the dilapidated gate, and called out, "Sister, I'm back."

...

At Shen Er's household.

Shen Xiaohu, who had returned to the village with Shen Qing, dashed home as soon as he got off the carriage.

As soon as he pushed the door open, he shouted, "Grandpa, Grandma, I can study at Linfeng Hall! I can study at Linfeng Hall!"

The moment Shen Xiaohu burst into the house and saw what was happening inside, his voice caught in his throat and died down.

Besides his father Shen Er, Tian Xiaohu and Zhang Baqing were also present, seemingly discussing some affairs.

"Cough, cough..." Uncle Shen Er coughed twice to draw everyone's attention back and glared at Shen Xiaohu, saying, "What's with all the fuss returning from the county town? Can't you behave with some decorum? What did you say just now?"

Shen Xiaohu's excitement upon entering the house instantly dissipated, and his voice dropped several notches as he honestly said, "Grandpa, the Hall Master of Linfeng Hall said I have decent bone structure, and if I provide seven silver taels, he's willing to let me study at the outer gate."

Uncle Shen Er sprang up from his chair, and in disbelief, rushed over to Shen Xiaohu, saying, "You can study at Linfeng Hall?! Is what you're saying true?"

He had once wanted his child to study the martial arts and had not spared any effort for this, but learning martial arts was never easy, and he had long ago lost hope.

Never did he expect it to actually happen, how could he not be thrilled?

Shen Xiaohu nodded vigorously and said, "Uncle Li Linfeng personally promised, and he's willing to let me start at the outer gate for three months first."

"Three months is fine, three months will do," Uncle Shen Er said, examining Shen Xiaohu up and down with satisfaction.

Tian Xiaohu and Zhang Baqing, who were in the room, exchanged glances before standing up to congratulate him, "Congratulations Brother Shen, once your Hu Zi studies martial arts, perhaps he will soon change his martial arts register and become a cut above the rest."

Uncle Shen Er, rarely so delighted, showed a gratified smile on his deeply wrinkled face, "It's still early days, still early days."

Though he said so, Tian Xiaohu and Zhang Baqing could still see the pride on Shen Er's face.

With Shen Qing before and Shen Xiaohu after.

It seems that from now on, Hongshan Village might well belong to the Shen Family.

Shen Er patted Shen Xiaohu on the shoulder, saying happily, "How did you manage to enter Linfeng Hall so smoothly this time? I remember they are very strict about taking disciples. You'd better tell your grandpa how you did it?"

Shen Xiaohu said excitedly, "It's all thanks to Brother Qingzi. You have no idea how amazing he is. Uncle Li Linfeng tested his bone structure on the spot and directly accepted him into the inner sect. When we left, he even gave him a medicine prescription. The gatekeeper said that's the treatment for a direct disciple."

Boom!

As soon as these words were spoken, the room fell silent.

Shen Er, Tian Xiaohu, and Zhang Baqing, each of them stood there, dumbfounded.

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