Four major trainings?
External refinement of muscles, bones, and skin; internal refinement of breath?
Bai Qi lowered his head, chewing broad beans, crunching loudly, savoring the taste.
This was the first time he understood those powerful martial artists capable of monument-breaking stone-splitting, tearing apart tigers and leopards.
"What level is Yangquan at?"
Bai Qi continued to ask.
Making a living from fishing for many years.
The warmth and coldness of human relationships he experienced, along with the hardships of fishing for a living, were not few.
The feeling of scraping by from one meal to the next, not knowing what tomorrow holds, had long sharpened Bai Qi's steady temperament.
But just now in the East Market Shop, faced with Yangquan, the smiling tiger pressing step by step.
He almost couldn't control the rage swelling in his chest, itching to draw his blade.
"Draw a blade? Barehanded, what would you use to fight!
Courage needs strength to back it up!
Otherwise, it's just empty talk."
Bai Qi felt helpless.
As a person of humble background, when something truly happens.
It's like being fish meat on a chopping board, letting others slaughter at will!
That kind of powerlessness is truly too awful!
"Yangquan? He should be stepping on the threshold of Muscle Training, half a foot almost stepping in.
If it weren't for relying on his father's lingering influence, how could he dominate the Fishery!"
Xiaotou replied sullenly, deeply resenting this fish tyrant rampaging the East Market.
If it weren't for the troublesome affair of offering Ghost Pattern Fish, he might have already joined Songshan Sect to learn martial arts.
"Not even entering the first level of training, yet so brazen.
If I don't become a Martial Artist, it's indeed like an egg hitting a stone, only to be crushed."
Bai Qi understood that the word "reason" in Black River County had never been related to the weak.
The Fishery, Chai Market, and Fire Kiln, these powerful rice bowl groups, are the ones that can set rules.
If an ordinary person lacks enough strength to break through that door upward.
They can only endure oppression like cattle and horses.
"Xiaotou, are you really familiar with the Senior Brother from Songshan Sect?"
Bai Qi asked lightly.
"Of course! Would I lie to you, Ah Qi!"
Xiaotou suddenly puffed out his chest, afraid of being suspected of bragging.
"Senior Brother Cao from Songshan Sect is very close to me!
Before going to the Martial Arts Hall, he was responsible for reception, and he even ate the big fish that my dad sent!
If this matter hadn't happened, I would be paying respects to my master in a few days!"
Surname Cao?
Bai Qi lowered his eyelids, keeping calm, and continued to subtly inquire.
Until the full name of Senior Brother Cao, the seller of martial arts secretly, the general prices for different techniques...
These specific details were all teased out, then it ended.
The two chatted idly and wandered off-topic, and after finishing the pot of crude tea, they got up to settle the bill and leave.
"Tsk tsk, a meal costs over forty cents, Ah Qi, you're really affluent! Catching big fish feels so good!"
Xiaotou was full of envy; he couldn't even imagine the good days of eating meat every meal.
His parents rowed the boat downriver every day, and if they didn't return empty-handed, their income would be at most fifty or sixty cents.
And they have to endure from dawn to late at night, constantly casting nets and placing traps.
The so-called three hardships in the world, rowing boats, forging iron, making tofu.
It's not just idle chatter.
These are truly tough jobs.
"Speaking of which, why can Wang Laizi buy Ghost Pattern Fish there?"
Before parting, Bai Qi suddenly asked.
"Not sure, maybe he found a fish nest?
My dad said he recently took some helpers and roamed around Mihun Bay every day, probably staking out for big catches.
Coincidentally, Yangquan raised the price requiring offerings, now he's going to make a windfall again!"
Xiaotou said, curling his lips.
The area surrounding Black Water River, spanning eight hundred miles, is the most dangerous at Mihun Bay.
With abundant aquatic plants and dense reefs, many fishermen have stumbled there.
Even during high winds and waves, boats capsizing and costing lives are not few.
"Wang Laizi, he's really brave, daring to catch Ghost Pattern Fish in Mihun Bay."
Bai Qi always felt something was amiss.
Black Water River harbors and mudflats abound, striving for big fish catches is not easy.
Especially coincidentally, Yangquan is just about to offer Ghost Pattern Fish to pay respects to the Young Master?
"The bigger the waves, the more expensive the fish.
Shallow waters have nothing good, ordinary river fish aren't worth much... My dad worries every day, fishing is becoming harder to make a living from."
Xiaotou was indifferent, still eagerly hoping to join Songshan Sect.
Staying as a dockhand, working hard and barely earning a few coins.
If he becomes a Martial Artist, even at just the first training level.
In the future, whether following caravans as an escort or becoming a house guard for wealthy families.
He could earn at least twenty taels of silver a year!
Working long enough, marrying and establishing a family wouldn't be just a dream.
...
...
As the sun slanted west, a few rays of dusk shone into the filthy, muddy slum area.
As Bai Qi walked further in, the daylight overhead grew increasingly scarce.
The alleys were narrow and cramped, the shabby dwellings almost touching each other.
People of various humble origins wearing patched short coats, scurried in and out like ants, constantly busy.
"All are lives of hardship."
Wearing a bamboo hat, Bai Qi sighed softly in his heart.
Perhaps due to several consecutive heavy rains, the sewage overflowed the ditches, spreading everywhere.
Following Xiaotou's directions, he stepped in straw sandals into Tin Street, with the sounds of hammering, chiseling, and honing incessantly ringing in his ears.
Bai Qi followed the shop on his left, walked north less than a hundred paces, and stopped in front of a worn wooden door.
He knocked with his fingers, three long and two short.
Knock knock knock!
Knock knock!
Creak.
The moldy wooden door, soaked and damp, slowly opened a crack, revealing half of a long and lean horse-like face.
He looked Bai Qi up and down with slanted eyes and hoarsely asked:
"What do you want?"
Bai Qi held the brim of his bamboo hat, obscuring the boy's brows and eyes, and said gruffly:
"Cao Yang from the Songshan Sect sent me. He said you have goods in stock."
The horse-faced man furrowed his brow slightly, then said:
"What do you want? Fist techniques? Leg techniques? Let me be clear first, these are all common skills, whether you can learn them or not has nothing to do with us!"
Bai Qi lowered his voice, speaking like an old customer:
"I understand the rules, but I need to see what's available."
The horse-faced man nodded and dropped a sentence:
"Wait here."
He closed the door with his hand, adding a wooden latch.
"It's like secretly buying adult films."
Bai Qi mused inwardly, not long after, the horse-faced man reappeared with half his body, handing over a few thin books with yellowed pages.
He glanced over, and the titles were all intimidating!
"Luo King's Eighteen Palms," "Seven-Star Mantis Fist," "Mandarin Duck Looping Legs"...
"Two hundred cents for fist and palm techniques, three hundred and eighty cents for leg techniques! Fixed price!"
The horse-faced man spoke coldly, clearly adopting an "if you want it, buy it, if not, get lost" attitude.
There's a saying in martial circles: fists are two doors, it's all about kicking.
With the same skill level, leg techniques definitely have more damage than fist and palm techniques.
Bai Qi had heard about this from Xiaotou.
Thus, he didn't ask unnecessarily, avoiding looking like an amateur.
He glanced at them, each thin book had only around twenty pages.
Mostly simple illustrations like a children's book, accompanied by sparse annotation text.
In less than a few moments of holding, the horse-faced man took them back.
Fortunately, Bai Qi had the skill of recognizing characters and remembering things upon a glance.
He remembered roughly and confirmed they're not worthless.
"No wonder it's so cheap. Rather than secret manuals of fist and leg techniques, they seem more like things clueless martial artists wrote after blindly pondering!"
His eyes showed a trace of hesitation. He originally thought martial arts should also count as a "skill".
Once covered by that ink seal revealing the embrace, progress might show.
By then, absorbing insights from it could allow him to learn without a master?
Although Bai Qi was unsure, he really wanted to take this gamble.
In his view, Yangquan was like a ferocious wolf!
If he truly occupied the position of East Market Steward, backed by the Fishery, he could control the fishermen making a living off the Black Water River at will.
Life would only grow harder.
Even if his fishing skills reached a modest level, with substantial daily harvests.
He would still be on edge, fearing being targeted.
No mention of shedding the lowly status, even a stable life would be hard to guarantee!
"Hey? Looking at cheap martial arts, expecting blossoms?
If you master a few moves, that's your skill!
If you want it, pay up and take it swiftly, if not fork over and leave quickly!"
The horse-faced man didn't have much patience.
He smelled the fishy scent on this kid, his attire was shabby.
Obviously a fisherman from Black Water River, seemingly unable to afford martial arts.
If not for mentioning Cao Yang from Songshan Sect's name, he wouldn't bother at all.
"I want this one!"
Bai Qi pulled out a small bundle of hefty copper coins, their clatter opening the door again.
"Eight Sections Skill! You have good taste! This one's special, I'll charge you four hundred cents..."
Horse-faced man chuckled, reaching out for the money, but was blocked.
The bamboo hat shook, Bai Qi haggled:
"Leg techniques sell for only three hundred and eighty cents, and yet swimming techniques cost four hundred cents? That doesn't make sense.
Three hundred and fifty cents! If we agree, we may deal again in the future. If not, forget it!"
His tone was firm, without a hint of probing.
As if he would turn and leave upon hearing "no".
"Deal! Haven't had business these days, you get a discount!
Money in one hand, goods in the other!"
The horse-faced man feigned hesitation, seemingly agreeing with reluctance.
These "martial arts secret manuals" nearly devoured by insects, were owned by martial artists wanting to open a hall and take disciples.
Their names seemed imposing, but they were actually useless.
If they concealed real skills, how could they not sustain their reputations?
Placed in Black River County, spanning five hundred miles of mountains and eight hundred miles of water.
Good repute meant strong fists!
There's no way mighty martial arts masters would go unnoticed!
"Another poor lad unable to enter the Great Martial Arts Hall, hoping to rise quickly through shortcuts."
Horse-faced man shut the door, a sneer tugging at his lips.
The lower class farmers who had no chance to emerge, were more likely to believe this.
They didn't even think why proper martial art disciples, suffer through summer drills and winter discipline, forged their skills.
Yet fishermen who struggled to feed themselves might easily learn them?
"Barely knowing all the characters, yet dreaming of becoming martial artists!"
...
...
Riverbank, adobe house.
Under the dim oil lamp, Bai Qi drooped his eyelids, ripple-like text emerged.
[Skill: Eight Sections Skill]
[Progress: 0/800 (Not started)]
[Effect: Smooth in waves, strengthens both inner strength and external power]