With a grave expression, Ji Xiu strode from the stables without pause.
This time...
he had truly vented his frustrations!
One could say he had unleashed all the pent-up frustration and indignation from the past few days in one go. That whipping had been utterly and thoroughly satisfying.
This Steward Lin was a Family-Born Son of the Lin Residence who had served for many years, only climbing the ranks by relying on a powerful benefactor.
As for actual ability, he had none to speak of.
But...
no matter what...
this was the Lin Residence.
On this turf, his actions—even though he was now a Martial Artist—
were a direct slap in the face to the Lin Residence and its Boss, Lin Zhenhai.
Across the five-hundred-li expanse of Anning County, Lin Zhenhai wasn't considered a top-tier figure, but to have built such a massive family enterprise, his own martial prowess couldn't be lacking.
While he couldn't compare to the Three Great Gangs or the Four Great Halls, nor to the bosses with their vast enterprises controlling the Chai Market, the Fire Kiln, and the Cattle and Sheep Market...
...he was still a force to be reckoned with in the next tier down.
If Lin Zhenhai set his mind to it, dealing with someone like him would be as easy as turning over his hand.
'The only option now is to act. Waiting around to die is out of the question. I have to leave first and figure out a way forward later.'
'First, I'll find Master Duan and ask for a solution. Or I could try to make a living with the Three Great Gangs or the Four Great Halls. If worst comes to worst, I can seek refuge with one of the bosses controlling the three great markets and lay low for a while.'
'They won't turn away a true Martial Artist.'
'This is the confidence that comes from having a strong fist...'
A glint flickered in Ji Xiu's eyes.
A common runaway slave who dared to strike his master would be committing the ultimate act of rebellion, an offense punishable by being drowned alive in a pig cage.
But since he was a Martial Artist, it wasn't necessarily a death sentence.
It was as the saying goes.
Nothing in the world is difficult if you're willing to climb the peak!
What was done was done; there was no need for hesitation or regret.
The priority now was to hurry and slip away before the incident came to light.
Otherwise, if he were cornered and dragged to a back courtyard to be beaten to death or crippled, he would have no one to turn to for justice.
After all, his name was still on the Slave Registry. It didn't matter if he was a Martial Artist; even if he became a Qi Cultivation Grandmaster, if he died, he died for nothing. The Government Office wouldn't even bother to ask a single question.
With that thought, Ji Xiu strode with purpose. He passed several Lin Residence servants, his face a taut mask, ignoring them all as he drew closer and closer to the main gate.
However...
Just as he reached the entrance of the Lin Residence, Ji Xiu ran into someone completely unexpected.
"Senior Brother Lu?"
Tall and poised, with an air of immense satisfaction about him, a cyan-robed Lu Yu was just stepping through the main gate of the Lin Residence, causing the approaching Ji Xiu to start in surprise.
And this was a stark contrast to when he had gone to Duan Chenzhou's residence alone.
This time,
Lu Yu was flanked by powerfully built Guests, who were obviously trained fighters, and the clothes they wore...
...were the uniforms of stewards from the Fire Kiln, the very ones who managed the iron refining and quenching workshops!
A chill went through Ji Xiu's heart.
'That Fire Kiln Steward, Qiao Jin... He's known for taking swift revenge!?'
His heart sank as he braced for the worst.
However,
upon seeing it was him,
Lu Yu's eyes lit up and he strode over.
"Junior Brother, I finally found you..."
He didn't get to finish.
THUD, THUD, THUD!
A flurry of chaotic footsteps erupted!
"Quick, quick!"
"Don't let that brat get away!"
"Tie him up and drag him before the Boss! He's getting the 'three stabs, six holes' punishment for sure!"
CLANG! RATTLE!
A group of menacing Martial Artists, dragging swords and sabers and leading a large posse of guards, stormed up to the gate. They moved with purpose, their ill intentions plain to see.
Upon seeing Ji Xiu, several of the guards, who were clutching their swollen faces, started yelling:
"Instructor, that's the brat! It was him! He whipped Steward Lin until he passed out! The moment he learned some Martial Arts, he decided to turn on his master!"
"If we can't take him down... and word of this gets out, the Boss will be utterly disgraced!"
The man addressed as 'Instructor' wore baggy lantern pants and a short gray tunic. With every breath, his powerful muscles coiled and bulged like ferocious serpents.
Even as the bone-chilling late-autumn wind scraped against his skin, he didn't shiver in the slightest. In fact, his Qi and Blood burned like a furnace, generating palpable heat. He was a true expert, a trained fighter who had already begun Bone Tempering!
In the entire, sprawling Lin Residence, there was no one stronger than him, save for the Boss himself.
Instructor Du stood at the fore of the Lin Residence guards, a Hundred Refinement Saber in hand, his gaze terrifyingly sharp.
Hearing their words, he was about to make his move.
But just as he took a powerful step forward that whistled through the air, before he could even raise his saber, he saw Lu Yu. He froze, startled.
"The Young Master of... Lu Manor!?"
He stayed his hand on his saber.
He looked over at Ji Xiu, who was chatting amiably with Lu Yu as if they were old friends...
...and his eyes gradually filled with shock and bewilderment.
'This kid... he actually knows the Young Master of Lu Manor, the family that controls the Fire Kiln trade?'
In the five-hundred-li Anning County,
there were the Three Great Gangs, the Four Great Halls, the Fire Kiln, the Chai Market, and the Cattle and Sheep Market!
Aside from the Government Office, only these places...
...had Skin Refining masters, experts who stood at the peak of the Power Barrier, reigning over hundreds of thousands of commoners and Martial Artists!
They were the sky above Anning County.
As for the Boss of Lu Manor, he had traveled far and wide in his youth. He had gone up to the Prefecture City to study under a master and had come back down to traverse the five hundred li of mountain roads, opening numerous kilns for smelting iron and forging weapons. His business was incredibly extensive.
He was also known as Master Lu, or Lu Dabingzhu.
He kept a famed Three Hundred Guests in his employ to manage his affairs, providing a livelihood for countless people in Anning County.
For example, some of the Lin Residence's own shops operated under the purview of the Fire Kiln and had to pay rent to Lu Manor!
How could he possibly not recognize the only son of such a man?
"Instructor Du, my apologies for the disturbance,"
Seeing the head guard instructor of the Lin Residence stay his hand,
Lu Yu patted Ji Xiu's shoulder, gave him a reassuring smile, then turned serious. He draped an arm around Ji Xiu's shoulders and announced solemnly:
"I have come today..."
"...specifically to request an audience with Boss Lin and free my brother from the Slave Registry!"
"He has now mastered the saber and entered the realm of Force, becoming a Martial Artist. By all rights, he should no longer be a servant."
"If Boss Lin requires redemption silver to release this slave contract..."
"...then we of Fire Kiln Lu Manor will cover the cost for him!"
With a grand wave of his hand, the Young Master of Lu Manor made his declaration, his voice brimming with magnanimity.
This left Ji Xiu, who had been planning to make a break for it...
...with a rather colorful expression on his face.
'Fire Kiln... Young Master?'
'No wonder. Before I'd even mastered the saber, Master Duan said that if I became Senior Brother Lu's disciple, my slave contract could be torn away with a flick of the wrist.'
'So that's it...'
'His background is that incredible!'
He watched as Instructor Du—the man who had just been putting immense, suffocating pressure on him—underwent a rapid change of expression. In an instant, the instructor sheathed his saber and put on a smiling face.
It was as if Ji Xiu hadn't just flogged Steward Lin thirty times.
The instructor acted as if it had never happened, instead praising Ji Xiu as "young and promising, with extraordinary courage." He then offered to lead both Ji Xiu and Lu Yu to meet with the Boss, Lin Zhenhai.
Even Ji Xiu...
...couldn't help but be struck by a realization.
It turned out that sometimes, having a strong fist wasn't enough.
You also needed backing!
Riding the coattails of Fire Kiln Lu Manor,
even a Martial Artist at the second step of the Power Barrier, a Bone Tempering expert...
...had to lower his head!
It was good to have a large tree for shade.
For a moment, the urgent pressure that felt like thorns in his back vanished. Ji Xiu's mind felt active and unburdened, lighter than ever before.
But...
even in his relief,
Ji Xiu knew one thing perfectly well.
He was only able to borrow Lu Yu's influence because of Duan Chenzhou.
And the reason Duan Chenzhou was willing to favor him, in the final analysis...
...was that his own saber was sharp enough!
If he were to slack off for even a single day,
...then all of this would become a castle in the air, gone in an instant!
He understood this in his heart.
He then vowed to himself:
'To forge iron, one must first be strong.'
'After today, no matter the circumstances, I must practice eight hundred saber strikes a day. The day I possess the ferocious might and prestige of a Skin Refining expert... in this five-hundred-li Anning County...'
'...my words might actually count for something!'