Chapter 28: What If I Achieve Skin Refining Great Accomplishment?
With the matter cleared up, Li Shun simply said: “Only Inner Disciples are truly considered the martial arts school’s own people. Not only do they not need to pay tuition, they can also choose to work in the martial arts school’s industries, receiving monthly salary, herbal medicine, and feral beast meat.”
“Is that how Senior Brother Gao Zheng and Zhou Hui and the others are?”
Having been here for so long, Su Yan had seen only a handful of Inner Disciples, namely Zhou Hui, Gao Zheng, Ma Shengming, and the like.
Now it seemed that it wasn’t that there were too few disciples who had entered the Inner Sect, but rather that they each had their own places to be.
For a martial arts school to continuously expand, relying solely on students would never work. Cultivating students into their own people—that was a powerful force.
“Teaching is one of the Inner Disciple tasks, but not the only one. In Yun Cang Town, Yunling Mountain, and Bai Lu Lake, the Golden Ape Martial Arts School has some industries, but since we haven’t entered the Inner Sect, we have no way of knowing.”
Dian Jing said in a muffled voice: “If we enter the Inner Sect, we’ll have sufficient resources and won’t need to exhaust our family wealth to practice martial arts. We mountain households and lake households are different from those wealthy households in the city. They have money, so even without finding a way out, they can support continuous cultivation. We can’t. The martial arts school is our best path. At worst, coming out of the Inner Sect, we can seek livelihood elsewhere.”
That was said, but just drawing pies for oneself wouldn’t do.
Su Yan’s gaze swept over the two: “You two Senior Brothers must want to shine in the arena fight. Tell me first how you want me to help you.”
Li Shun’s eyes lit up, thinking Su Yan had agreed, and immediately said: “Those rundown city folk and rich young masters are all insidious types. If there’s an arena fight, they’ll definitely bribe people to continuously challenge me and Dian Jing, wearing down our strength. Please have Junior Brother take the arena stage first to block them for a while.”
Hearing this, Su Yan sneered inwardly. Wearing you down is wearing down, but if I go on stage first, wouldn’t that be wearing me down too?
Dian Jing wanted to speak but hesitated. But at this critical moment, he couldn’t play the saint.
Su Yan smiled without saying a word. Li Shun thought he was worried about the opponents, so he persuaded: “Junior Brother, don’t worry. Among the Outer Disciples, only five have reached Skin Refining Great Accomplishment.”
He counted them out carefully: “Me and Dian Jing, two. Ma Xiaodong, son of the city butcher, Li Ying, youngest son of the Li Family cloth shop, and Liu Yinglong, second son of the Liu Family grain shop. Only us five will have Great Accomplishment. We’re all aiming for the Inner Sect, so we won’t act easily.”
“If we enter the Inner Sect first, we’ll definitely take care of Junior Brother. After the winter tax, we’ll surely help contact and arrange for you to succeed in the arena fight.”
Li Shun finally threw out the chips, but Su Yan’s gaze was indifferent: “That’s it?”
Li Shun was stunned, annoyed in his heart. He hadn’t only approached Su Yan alone—how could he be so clueless?
However, this Su Yan could combat a vicious tiger even at Minor Accomplishment, so he was probably one of the top ones among them.
Martial artists train the body and also the courage. Without that combat courage, facing enemies, they’d probably be weakened by seventy percent.
Among those at Great Accomplishment, regardless of background, over the years, their skills had come from constant hands-on sparring.
They naturally dared to fight, but some of the Skin Refining Realm juniors in their own group might not.
Therefore, Su Yan, this capable Skin Refining Realm fighter, was quite valuable at this moment.
“Junior Brother, you’re at most Skin Refining Minor Accomplishment. You have little chance of winning this arena fight. If you first help us two become Inner Disciples, not to mention the Outer Disciple mountain households and lake households taking you as leader, just our future help with your martial arts practice—”
“Senior Brother, I can’t swallow this pie of yours.”
Su Yan interrupted Li Shun’s words. Wanting him to do things yet not even willing to put out half a tael of silver—how stingy and petty.
Su Yan abruptly stood up and walked toward the outside of the tavern, without the slightest hesitation.
Li Shun’s expression changed. He stood up, knocking over the wine cups in front of him, clattering to the ground.
“Su Yan, what do you mean by this? You’re only at Skin Refining Minor Accomplishment. This plan is for your own good.”
“As expected of Skin Refining Great Accomplishment. Your skin must be thicker than Yun Cang Town’s city wall.”
Li Shun’s face turned iron-blue, but he heard Su Yan’s voice coming from afar: “You’ve been a year in the Outer Courtyard, a year in the Middle Courtyard before reaching Great Accomplishment. I reached Minor Accomplishment in half a month. Guess what realm I’ll be in after another half month?”
The voice was arrogant, but Li Shun’s expression changed. He clenched his fist, as if wanting to make a move.
But he was rebuked by Dian Jing beside him: “Li Shun!”
Li Shun had gone too far; he couldn’t stand it, but he had no face to say more, after all, he had been dragged into it.
“Pah, just a lucky bastard. Without the treasure plant, you couldn’t have reached this level. Giving you face but you don’t want it. Let’s see how you fare in the arena fight with no one to help.”
——
Tian Feng Weapon Shop was an old established major power in Yun Cang Town, with an inheritance of two to three hundred years, famous for forging high-quality weapons.
They did forge ordinary tools, but those were just for apprentices to practice.
The real business was the sharp weapons used by martial artists.
Hair-slicing, iron-cutting were just the basic requirements for sharp weapons.
Advanced sharp weapons had special effects, resonating with qi and blood, operating vital energy, allowing martial artists to exert stronger strength—that was their core.
Su Yan walked through Yun Cang Town’s main street, following the eastern side street onward, entering a wide main road. Before even getting close, he heard the clanging sounds.
A wide shop appeared in the distance before him. Ironworking apprentices and master craftsmen surrounded the furnace, swinging hammers.
The surrounding workbenches and walls held many weapons: green sword long swords, willow leaf curved sabers, long pole pointed steel spears, heavy single-edged axes.
The iron items here were almost all weapons, without any farm tools, all sharp and gleaming with cold light.
Su Yan walked in, and a shop assistant apprentice came to greet him.
“Customer, what weapon do you want?”
“How much for a fine steel thin net?”
The shop assistant was stunned by the request, then reacted: “This thing really isn’t common.”
“Tian Feng Weapon Shop doesn’t have it either?”
Su Yan frowned slightly, but the shop assistant said: “That’s not it. A few days ago, someone from Bai Lu Lake ordered some thin silk nets, saying they were for catching treasure fish, so we made some iron wire fishing nets. Customer, see if this suits.”
The shop assistant took out an iron wire fishing net and handed it to Su Yan.
Su Yan looked and was truly surprised in his heart.
The iron wire fishing net was dark metal in color, about four or five square meters in size, probably a small net pieced from leftover edges.
Though woven from metal wires, it didn’t feel that rigid. In hand, it was like the weight and texture of seven or eight jin of coarse cloth, controllable by the net caster.
Such ironworking craftsmanship wasn’t something ordinary people could achieve. No wonder this one weapon shop could stand in Yun Cang Town for two to three hundred years.
“How much?”
The shop assistant’s eyes brightened, smiling. This thing was only needed by Bai Lu Lake for catching powerful treasure fish; it had little use for others.
Now someone was buying it—a happy occasion.
“This iron wire fishing net, four or five square meters, priced at 15 taels of silver.”
So expensive!
This thing was even more expensive than a hardwood bow. If they couldn’t catch treasure fish, wouldn’t those people lose big?
Though Su Yan felt the pinch for his wallet, thinking of the velvet fire scorpion insect, he had to buy this iron wire fishing net.
Otherwise, using an ordinary fishing net to catch it—if it escaped, there’d probably be no chance to catch it again.
“Pack it up for me.”
Su Yan took out the silver and bought the iron wire fishing net.
He had originally wanted to buy a new longbow too, but now it seemed he didn’t have enough temporarily. He hadn’t bought medicine from Hundred Herbs Hall, nor feral beast meat from the alley temple butcher shop either, and didn’t know if it would be enough.
