Chapter 50 - 49: Hidden Dragon in the Abyss, Destined to Soar to the Nine Heavens

Chapter 50: Chapter 49: Hidden Dragon in the Abyss, Destined to Soar to the Nine Heavens

Zheng Jun stepped out of the Xu Family Martial Arts Hall. In his chest pocket rested a copy of the Iron Sand Demon Suppression Skill, personally transcribed by Xu Tianfang. Having been appraised by the Great Tao Martial Book, it was undoubtedly authentic. Zheng Jun was in a fantastic mood.

Watching Zheng Jun’s retreating figure, Xu Tianfang felt a wave of profound melancholy. At this moment, the ancestral tales handed down through generations were playing out vividly before his very eyes.

In the past, Xu Tianfang had scoffed at the common tropes where a certain genius witnessed a breathtakingly brilliant Martial Arts Pride, suffered a crushing blow to their confidence, and found their Martial Arts Cultivation permanently stagnated. He had always thought they were nothing more than idle nonsense spun by storytellers, entirely unworthy of belief. After all, if one lacked a steadfast devotion to the Tao, how could they possibly endure the three major Martial Arts hurdles of Blood Refining, Qi Storage, and Outer Gang?

But today, having seen Zheng Jun, Xu Tianfang finally understood that those Jianghu tales told by storytellers were grounded in reality.

He thought, "Imagine if I were that regional genius, hailed as a prodigy from the county to the State capital, only to be completely crushed by someone else at a certain juncture. Under such circumstances, my own convictions would likely shatter too. Fortunately, I am no genius. Although I took a hit to my pride, I am not completely disheartened. As for my Martial Arts Cultivation stagnating and being unable to advance a single inch... if I can just reach Outer Gang before I die in this lifetime, that would be an extraordinary feat in itself. Why should I worry about anything else?"

Seeing Xu Tianfang’s deep inner conflict, the fleshy-faced fat disciple cautiously asked, "Master, today’s events will definitely spread. Should I tell the brothers to watch their words and keep their lips sealed?"

After a long silence, Xu Tianfang finally spoke. "Paper cannot conceal a fire. Just let them speak. We can silence them for a moment, but not for a lifetime. This Zheng San is like a Hidden Dragon in the abyss; now that he has soared into the sky, he is truly unstoppable.

"Next, I predict he won’t let the other Qi Storage experts off the hook. He will surely challenge every single Qi Storage Martial Artist in Black Mountain County to cement his title as the strongest below Outer Gang!"

Hearing Xu Tianfang’s words, the fat disciple clicked his tongue, unable to find the words to describe his complicated emotions. He could only ask tentatively, "Master... does that make him number one in Qi Storage?"

"In Black Mountain County, no one can stop him," Xu Tianfang replied. "Even in Pingzhang Commandery, there aren’t many Qi Storage experts who can exchange thirty to fifty moves with him. Only those Demon Fiends lurking in the Black Mountain, or the Liu Family’s Young Master—reputed to be their greatest heaven-sent genius in two hundred years—might be able to give him a proper fight."

With that, Xu Tianfang looked somewhat desolate. He waved a hand at the onlookers behind him. "Alright, everyone go back to practicing your punches."

Seeing this, the fat disciple was about to cup his hands and withdraw, but he suddenly saw Xu Tianfang waving him over.

"Huh?" The fat disciple was a bit surprised, wondering what his master wanted with him. Nevertheless, he quickly leaned in.

As the fat disciple brought his ear closer, Xu Tianfang’s expression flickered with uncertainty for a moment before he lowered his voice. "When you spread the word outside, make sure to emphasize that your master fought bitterly with Zheng San for several incense sticks of time... no, half a two-hour period. Tell them we were locked in a neck-and-neck struggle, and I only fell short by a single move, losing on the very last punch."

The fat disciple was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this. Then, he nodded.

...

After leaving the Xu Family Martial Arts Hall, Zheng Jun naturally did not hesitate to walk right into the Nameless Martial Arts Hall to challenge Luo Lei.

Although Luo Lei was Tian Zhenyuan’s junior brother, he had absolutely no relationship with Zheng Jun. Zheng Jun’s core philosophy was simply to seek out a beating. Thus, he showed up at the door to spar, and Luo Lei naturally accepted the challenge.

There was no wager this time, however. After all, Luo Lei’s signature technique had already been passed down to Zheng Jun by Tian Zhenyuan long ago, so there was no need to do anything extra. But this time, the sparring session wasn’t particularly satisfying. Since Luo Lei’s signature ultimate technique was also the Hard Qi Skill, exchanging blows with him felt suspiciously like watching two Iron Armor Pupas in Pocket Monster spamming the Harden move...

Fortunately, Luo Lei still possessed the Luo Family Continuous Legs. He fought with all his might for over ten minutes until he was completely out of breath, finally adding over a hundred progress points for Zheng Jun.

Afterward, Zheng Jun left the Nameless Martial Arts Hall. After some thought, he headed to the military camp of the Military Department to mix and spar with the tough County Soldiers. Just like that, he spent the entire morning training.

[Attacked. Hard Qi Skill repayment progress +20. Current progress: 1194/2500.]

Master Zheng wiped the sweat from his brow after a busy morning, feeling that all his hard work was entirely worth it.

For lunch, Zheng Jun returned to the County Government Office to eat. Ordinary commoners only ate two meals a day, but as a Squad Leader, Zheng Jun could usually snag a free meal at the County Government Office, even if it lacked much meat. Still, having food to eat was enough for him; he wasn’t a picky eater.

This time, however, as soon as he returned to the County Government Office, he saw Historian Xu Heng waiting early at the door of the Strong Shift with an obsequious smile. Upon seeing Zheng Jun, he hurried forward, bowing and scraping. "Squad Leader Zheng, you’re back! I’ve finished everything you asked of me. Look, I ordered roast duck from the Rejuvenating Building for lunch today. Would you do me the honor of dining together?"

Zhou Pu stood beside Xu Heng, watching the scene unfold, momentarily at a loss for words. He felt as though the Great Zhou Court’s Ninth Grade official, Historian Xu Heng, was actually the subordinate of the completely rankless County Government Office constable, Squad Leader Zheng Jun.

Hearing the invitation, Zheng Jun nodded and said, "Call Zhou Pu to join us."

"That’s a given," Xu Heng said, overjoyed. He quickly pulled Zhou Pu along as they headed toward the Historian’s office.

As soon as they entered, Zheng Jun saw two glistening, oil-dripping roast ducks placed prominently on the table, instantly whetting his appetite. He sat down without standing on ceremony and looked at Xu Heng. "Historian Xu, if you have something to say, just say it straight."

"Squad Leader Zheng, Zheng San," Xu Heng said, happily pouring wine for him. As he poured, he continued, "I offended you greatly before, and the fault was entirely mine. Now that we are all serving under Lord Cai, we should be sailing in the same boat.

"This is a small gift, merely a token of my respect."

With that, Xu Heng pulled a silver note from his sleeve. He felt a pang of agony in his wallet, but he had no choice. Zheng Jun was progressing at such a rapid pace that he had already reached a level Xu Heng could only look up to. Moreover, lately, during the 5:00 AM roll call, Xu Heng had constantly felt a chilling breeze against his back.

He was entirely consumed by regret, thinking, "At first, I was merely looking for an excuse to frame the Qingshui Gang for treason. Who would have thought... the Qingshui Gang was actually committing treason?! Had I known that, I wouldn’t have needed to order Zhao Da and Zhao Er around at all." Xu Heng felt as disgusted as if he had swallowed a fly in an outhouse.

Zheng Jun looked up and glanced at the silver note Xu Heng offered. He thought, "One hundred taels! He’s really bleeding money."

Seeing this, Zheng Jun couldn’t help but sneer inwardly. He thought to himself, "Before, I wasn’t entirely sure of your connection with Zhao Da and Zhao Er, but now I can be absolutely certain. You think one hundred taels can buy a reconciliation? Keep dreaming!"

Right at that moment, however, Zheng Jun suddenly heard footsteps approaching. He looked up just in time to see a Scribe burst into the room. "Squad Leader Zheng, the County Captain ordered me to summon you!" the Scribe announced.

After speaking, the Scribe glanced at Xu Heng and added, "Historian Xu, you as well. The County Captain called your name too."

The Scribe thought, "He seemed to have said a few words about it, though I’m not entirely sure. I might as well call them both together."