SFS Chapter 50 Old Friends
Chapter 50 Old Friends
That evening, everyone enjoyed a good drink at Fengyanlou Restaurant.
Aside from their bruised and swollen faces and unattractive appearance, they were otherwise fine. However, Ma Qianli seemed to have something on his mind and was completely drunk.
Although he was drunk, the kind-hearted brothers still emptied his pockets of all the money.
A total of five taels and four mace of silver was paid out.
Long Yi didn't take off his blindfold to scare people today, but everyone drank more alcohol than before, so Ma Qianli and Yang Silang's expenses were basically the same as last time.
Everyone drank to their heart's content and left.
Of course, the happiest of them all was Long Yiyan, whose intact eye was glowing red. The four girls kept urging him to drink, and at least half of that wine went into his stomach. It made one wonder if there was a bottomless pit in his belly.
Yang Silang and Wang Daniu returned together.
Wang Daniu then slowly recounted the story, explaining that it had happened this afternoon.
Long Yi looked like a tiger among sheep, wantonly crushing the weak.
The old man has changed his methods now. He controls the force of his punches perfectly, and he can knock people down without much effort.
Wang Daniu described the feeling as if he could have blocked it if he had put in a little effort, but when he was knocked down, he felt endless regret and even forgot that the two were of vastly different strengths.
Ma Qianli survived several punches without falling, which piqued the old man's interest. So he sparred with him, his punches and kicks were extremely powerful and each move was filled with murderous intent, keeping Ma Qianli constantly on the move and desperately defending himself, leaving him no time to think of anything else.
The result was that the punch landed like a blow to a bronze bell.
Unbeknownst to Ma Qianli, he had actually condensed his qi and blood, breaking through to the Copper Skin Martial Artist realm.
Yang Silang nodded, thinking to himself that he was familiar with this matter, as he had broken through in the same way last time.
"I think Instructor Long is very strong..." Wang Daniu pondered carefully. "I remember when we were conscripted into the army, we also saw the Iron General with the tiger tattooed on his back wielding a spear."
"Now that I think about it, even though they were both Iron-Bone Martial Masters, I always felt that Instructor Long was much stronger than that Iron General."
Yang Silang patted Wang Daniu on the shoulder.
"Brother, everyone says you're naive, but you see things much more clearly than others."
Human intuition is sometimes the most accurate.
"By the way, Fourth Brother," Wang Daniu said, "you became a Copper-Skinned Warrior a month ago."
"Master Zhu, Xiong Shan, Er Hu, and that Ruan Mingyuan have all received the news and say they want to invite you to a banquet another day."
"You said you wanted to focus on martial arts training for a month, without any distractions, so I've already turned down all your offers. They've already made appointments two or three times. Are you going to turn them down again?"
Although the two were practicing martial arts at the martial arts hall and had the title of servants, they did not shirk their duties as porters and instructors.
As for the martial arts hall, Long Yi didn't care who came or went—whoever was willing to throw twenty or thirty taels of silver into the water to hear the sound, could come or not.
So Wang Daniu would occasionally go back to the dock to train the new recruits in three-legged stances.
That's how the news of Yang Silang's breakthrough was relayed back.
The head of the Sanshui Huihai Association, Ruan Mingyuan, along with three fellow townsmen, Xiong, Li, and Zhu, each prepared a gift according to their financial means to offer their congratulations.
At that time, Yang Silang had just broken through to the next level, and then Instructor Long immediately taught him the Iron Bone Martial Arts, so he couldn't concentrate on it.
"Alright, let's get together with our fellow villagers tomorrow, and we'll meet with Commander Ruan the day after tomorrow." Yang Silang decided after a moment's thought.
Anyway, the time it takes to eat a meal won't affect my cultivation. At worst, I can stay up a little later at night to make sure I get five sessions of practice a day.
The next day.
Near Moon Bay Wharf.
The last gathering was at a restaurant.
Hai Huishou, Master Zhu, Li Erhu, and Xiong Shan had already arrived early.
"Our Sanshui Association truly produces outstanding talents!" The association leader, beaming with pride, exclaimed. "I've long known that Huangxian County is a place of exceptional people and resources, but I never imagined they would be this remarkable!"
"How could I be so blind as to not know there was such a ferocious tiger in my own pond!"
He recalled that Wu Tou'er had once mentioned that Yang Silang was cunning and cowardly, always dodging in fights, lacking courage and valor, and that he wouldn't achieve much in martial arts in the future.
Ugh... I really want to dig Wu out of his grave and let him stare at his dead eyes to see if this is what you call a good-for-nothing?
Master Zhu, Li Erhu, and Xiong Shan were all beaming with joy.
It feels somewhat unreal that the little brother I used to be with has achieved such good fortune and cultivation.
If you look closely, you can see a hint of disappointment in the eyes of the three of them.
Grandpa Zhu thought of his eldest grandson, Zhu Tong, who had almost emptied the family's savings. Despite his advanced age, Zhu Tong was still working hard to supplement the family income.
Zhu Tong practiced for five and a half years, failing twice in between, and finally became a bronze-skinned martial artist. He was originally thought to be the prodigy of the Zhu family.
Now look at how fast Yang Silang is, wow... is my grandson a genius or a stupid pig?
As for Li Erhu and Xiong Shan, they were not jealous of Yang Silang, but felt extremely ashamed.
They embarked on the path of martial arts more than half a year earlier, and have only made some progress so far, but are still far from becoming copper-skinned martial artists.
What could Silang learn in those six months?
It's nothing more than a three-legged stance, but once he entered the martial arts hall, he made rapid progress and became a bronze-skin martial artist in just one month. We're from the same hometown, so why is there such a big difference in our talents?
As the group chatted idly, the curtain was lifted.
Yang Silang and Wang Daniu walked in.
The four of them hurriedly got up.
"Shiro is here..."
"Little Si...you've really made something of yourself! You've brought honor to our people of Huang County..."
"Fourth Brother...come, come, sit here."
Yang Silang smiled in response and sat down next to Xiong Shan.
Wang Daniu patted Xiong Shan on the shoulder.
"You old bear, you only see Fourth Brother and you can't see Old Ox. Didn't you used to call yourself Fourth Brother too? Why are you calling me Fourth Brother now?"
Xiong Shan's face was slightly flushed.
"You're allowed to shout it, but nobody else is?"
"Once you become a bronze-skinned warrior, things will have to be different."
Yang Silang laughed heartily.
"No, it's fine for Master Zhu to just call me Xiao Si."
"Xiongshan, you can still call him Fourth Brother."
Although he spoke modestly, Xiong Shan and Li Erhu insisted that it was Fourth Brother.
Brotherhood is a bond of affection, but the way you address someone should be accurate and appropriate.
Sometimes, how you address someone isn't just a matter between the two people; it can also affect others. If you neglect how you address someone and cause them to look down on you, that would be undesirable.
The principle of respecting the strong is the most fundamental aspect of human relationships. One cannot rely on past relationships and allow them to slowly erode the goodwill between people.
The group sat down and chatted about the past, creating a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere.
The head of the Hai Society said that it was an unparalleled honor for his society to produce a copper-skinned martial artist, and he was willing to pay five taels of silver a month just to hire Yang Silang as a brand name.
Yang Silang doesn't need to come to work or do anything. He only needs to acknowledge his relationship with the Sanshui Society and receive monthly offerings.
If Sanshui encounters trouble in the future, ask Yang Silang for help; that will cost extra money.
Yang Silang nodded with a smile. He knew that this was the leader of the Haihui Society giving him money in disguise. It didn't seem like much, but in reality, the Sanshui Society wouldn't come to him unless they faced a life-or-death crisis, since the Black Tiger Gang was behind them.
When Yang Silang agreed, Hai Huishou was very happy. After drinking a few cups of wine, he said that he had something to do and took his leave, leaving the table to his fellow villagers.
With his departure, the atmosphere at the table became more relaxed and comfortable.
When everyone inquired about Wang Daniu's progress and learned that he was still refining his stance training, Li Erhu and Xiong Shan breathed a sigh of relief. This was the level of a normal person.
The two asked Yang Silang curiously how he had broken through to the next level.
Yang Silang was generous in sharing his insights, explaining the key points in detail. He also said that the three-legged stance training was not in vain. Whether the legend of the iron vat being oiled was true or not was uncertain, but the training method was definitely effective.
I was able to break through within a month because I had mastered the stance training and had a good foundation.
The two men gained some insights from what they heard and felt a pang of regret. They realized they should have continued to put in the hard work of practicing the three-legged stance after finishing the regular stance.
Therefore, although the fourth brother may seem unambitious, he has already laid a solid foundation and is just waiting for the right opportunity to unleash his full potential and achieve great success.