As usual, after practicing knife skills in the martial hall, the disciples of the Sanhe Gang would be sent to various outposts to do tasks for the gang.
Chen An was no exception.
After three months, he arrived at a tavern where he was responsible for guarding.
This turned out to be a job that surprised Chen An a bit.
Compared to other tasks, guarding in a tavern was obviously much more comfortable.
Most of the time, he just needed to sit there without moving, earning a monthly salary, and even occasionally receiving some offerings from others.
It was considered a good cushy job.
Such a cushy job, theoretically, should not have fallen into the hands of someone like Chen An with no background, it should have been snatched away long ago by someone else.
It was only after inquiring for a while that Chen An suddenly realized.
It was Mei An who had pulled some strings behind the scenes.
When Chen An first arrived, he had greeted Liu Dao from the martial hall and asked him to take care of Chen An so that this cushy job would fall into Chen An's hands.
It seemed that the relationship between the previous owner's father and Mei An was indeed good, which was why Mei An took care of him in this way.
But at this point, it should be about the extent of it.
The previous owner's father was not a martial artist, just an ordinary person, even if the relationship was good, it was probably the limit to let Mei An do this.
Fortunately, Chen An wasn't expecting much.
Guarding the tavern wasn't bad.
At least it was peaceful, and he had time to practice martial arts in his spare time.
Bang!
A crisp sound rang out.
In the spacious hall, two strong men fell heavily to the ground, staring at the tall figure in front of them with a look of astonishment on their faces.
If you look closely, you could see that the weapons in their hands were broken directly.
Ahead, the sound of crisp footsteps approached.
"You dare to cause trouble with just this little ability?"
Chen An walked up slowly, holding a long knife in his hand, looking at the two strong men in front of him with a disdainful expression.
"While I'm in a good mood, you better leave."
He said to the two men in front of him.
Immediately, the two men's faces showed relief, not daring to say another harsh word. They simply picked up their weapons and left in a hurry.
After dealing with these two men, Chen An put away his weapon and walked back slowly.
"Brother Chen's martial arts skills are amazing, truly admirable."
An old man walked up, dressed in a gorgeous brocade robe, looking at Chen An with a flattering look, "These two men are good hands from the Haisha Gang. It is said that even several hall masters would have to put in some effort, but Chen Xiong dealt with them so easily."
"No need for flattery."
Chen An glanced at the old man and didn't say much, simply reaching out his hand and saying, "Give me the money."
"Didn't I just give you some money a while ago?"
The old man's face stiffened, instinctively speaking.
"That was from last time."
Chen An looked at the old man, "Don't tell me these two men will come knocking on my door for no reason."
"You brought trouble upon yourself. Expecting me to solve it for free, aren't you thinking too highly of yourself?"
Hearing this, the old man chuckled, but eventually obediently took out a money pouch and handed it to Chen An.
Satisfied with the weight in his hand, Chen An was ready to leave directly to continue his martial arts practice.
But at this moment, a voice behind him continued to speak.
"Brother Chen, with your martial skills, it would be a pity to just guard here. I have a big deal here. As long as Brother Chen is willing to participate, you will profit greatly."
"Not interested."
Chen An paused, coldly saying, "I should remind you, if you go looking for trouble and it attracts some people, I can just walk away, it's up to you to deal with it."
After saying that, he left directly.
Leaving the tavern, he walked outside and quickly returned to his residence.
Where he was currently located, was a relatively spacious courtyard that Chen An rented specifically for practicing martial arts. It was quite comfortable to live in.
Returning to his place, he picked up his long knife and practiced his knife skills in the courtyard until it was getting dark, then finally stopped.
By this point, he was sweating all over, so he took off his clothes and poured a bucket of water over himself.
Under the faint sunlight, Chen An's upper body was exposed, his skin showing muscles that made him look strong with a masculine aura.
This was the result of refining the Five Tiger Knife Technique, which had inadvertently strengthened Chen An's body, slowly transforming him into this appearance.
Standing in place, Chen An suddenly felt something and his gaze shifted to a corner.
In the adjacent courtyard, a small head peeked out, belonging to what seemed to be a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl, who had been secretly watching him.
When she noticed that Chen An had noticed her, the girl blushed and quickly withdrew her head.
But after a moment, she raised her head again, continuing her surreptitious glance.
A large hand suddenly reached out and lightly tapped her head.
"Don't keep looking, study properly at such a young age."
Chen An stood at the wall, smiling at the girl, then threw something into her yard.
"I just bought some snacks, try them."
On the other side of the wall, the girl picked up the items and found them to be some snacks and fruits.
She smiled and almost drooled.
After she finished eating, she looked up again, but Chen An was already gone.
"Almost there, to start the next simulation."
It was almost evening now, and Chen An packed up his things and stayed inside his house, looking at the charging progress on his projection screen with some anticipation.
Unknowingly, he had been in this place for over two months.
Honestly, the feeling in this place wasn't bad.
Although the world was tough, it was only for the common people.
For the wealthy and powerful, life was as they wanted it to be.
Chen An was responsible for keeping an eye on the Sanhe Gang's affairs in this area, occasionally helping out the wealthy and powerful with some minor troubles as well.
His strength was good, and after upgrading the Five Tiger Knife Technique, he had practically no opponents in a fight.
Relative to others, he lived a more comfortable life.
If he were an ordinary person with this kind of strength, a bit cautious, then finding a good wife and settling down in this area would be quite nice.
But unfortunately...
Inside the house, Chen An pondered his current situation.
In these two months, he had been practicing the Five Tiger Knife Technique all the time, never stopping no matter how busy he was.
Yet the progress was still minimal.
There was no way around it.
The methods of the Five Tiger Knife Technique were simplistic, only basic martial arts.
Chen An had almost mastered the knife techniques, but the body refinement was not something that could be achieved overnight.
After two months of effort, the progress was still minimal, just better than nothing.
"It seems there's no hope for me to master it on my own."
Chen An thought to himself.
During this time, he had almost come to terms with his own situation.
Compared to others, although he was diligent, his talent did not seem to be that of a genius, just above average.
To try and make a name for himself with his own practice would be too difficult.
Thinking this, he couldn't help but focus his gaze on his upgrade template.
On the projection screen, the blue progress bar was already more than half full, just a little more to go.
When that time came, he should be able to start the next projection.
With that in mind, Chen An felt a slight abnormality in his heart.
He looked outside and heard a lot of commotion.
"Officials' men?"
Chen An sensed something was up and listened to the noise outside, wondering what had happened.
It was almost night.
When the sunlight lit up the sky again, and morning arrived once more, Chen An got up early and walked outside his door.
Just as he stepped out of the courtyard gate, his eyebrows furrowed.
The smell of blood, a strong scent of blood permeated the air.
Looking up, he saw bloodstains everywhere on the street, staining the ground in red. It was hard to say how much blood had been shed.
"What happened last night?"
Chen An wondered in his mind, looking at the scene full of blood, he was at a loss for words.
Blood stained the streets everywhere, but no bodies could be seen, nor any traces of a fight.
How did this come about?
Chen An didn't know.
Seeing the scene in front of him, he was about to leave, but his body suddenly paused.
A familiar feeling surged from his body.
(End of Chapter)
As usual, after practicing knife skills in the martial hall, the disciples of the Sanhe Gang would be sent to various outposts to do tasks for the gang.
Chen An was no exception.
After three months, he arrived at a tavern where he was responsible for guarding.
This turned out to be a job that surprised Chen An a bit.
Compared to other tasks, guarding in a tavern was obviously much more comfortable.
Most of the time, he just needed to sit there without moving, earning a monthly salary, and even occasionally receiving some offerings from others.
It was considered a good cushy job.
Such a cushy job, theoretically, should not have fallen into the hands of someone like Chen An with no background, it should have been snatched away long ago by someone else.
It was only after inquiring for a while that Chen An suddenly realized.
It was Mei An who had pulled some strings behind the scenes.
When Chen An first arrived, he had greeted Liu Dao from the martial hall and asked him to take care of Chen An so that this cushy job would fall into Chen An's hands.
It seemed that the relationship between the previous owner's father and Mei An was indeed good, which was why Mei An took care of him in this way.
But at this point, it should be about the extent of it.
The previous owner's father was not a martial artist, just an ordinary person, even if the relationship was good, it was probably the limit to let Mei An do this.
Fortunately, Chen An wasn't expecting much.
Guarding the tavern wasn't bad.
At least it was peaceful, and he had time to practice martial arts in his spare time.
Bang!
A crisp sound rang out.
In the spacious hall, two strong men fell heavily to the ground, staring at the tall figure in front of them with a look of astonishment on their faces.
If you look closely, you could see that the weapons in their hands were broken directly.
Ahead, the sound of crisp footsteps approached.
"You dare to cause trouble with just this little ability?"
Chen An walked up slowly, holding a long knife in his hand, looking at the two strong men in front of him with a disdainful expression.
"While I'm in a good mood, you better leave."
He said to the two men in front of him.
Immediately, the two men's faces showed relief, not daring to say another harsh word. They simply picked up their weapons and left in a hurry.
After dealing with these two men, Chen An put away his weapon and walked back slowly.
"Brother Chen's martial arts skills are amazing, truly admirable."
An old man walked up, dressed in a gorgeous brocade robe, looking at Chen An with a flattering look, "These two men are good hands from the Haisha Gang. It is said that even several hall masters would have to put in some effort, but Chen Xiong dealt with them so easily."
"No need for flattery."
Chen An glanced at the old man and didn't say much, simply reaching out his hand and saying, "Give me the money."
"Didn't I just give you some money a while ago?"
The old man's face stiffened, instinctively speaking.
"That was from last time."
Chen An looked at the old man, "Don't tell me these two men will come knocking on my door for no reason."
"You brought trouble upon yourself. Expecting me to solve it for free, aren't you thinking too highly of yourself?"
Hearing this, the old man chuckled, but eventually obediently took out a money pouch and handed it to Chen An.
Satisfied with the weight in his hand, Chen An was ready to leave directly to continue his martial arts practice.
But at this moment, a voice behind him continued to speak.
"Brother Chen, with your martial skills, it would be a pity to just guard here. I have a big deal here. As long as Brother Chen is willing to participate, you will profit greatly."
"Not interested."
Chen An paused, coldly saying, "I should remind you, if you go looking for trouble and it attracts some people, I can just walk away, it's up to you to deal with it."
After saying that, he left directly.
Leaving the tavern, he walked outside and quickly returned to his residence.
Where he was currently located, was a relatively spacious courtyard that Chen An rented specifically for practicing martial arts. It was quite comfortable to live in.
Returning to his place, he picked up his long knife and practiced his knife skills in the courtyard until it was getting dark, then finally stopped.
By this point, he was sweating all over, so he took off his clothes and poured a bucket of water over himself.
Under the faint sunlight, Chen An's upper body was exposed, his skin showing muscles that made him look strong with a masculine aura.
This was the result of refining the Five Tiger Knife Technique, which had inadvertently strengthened Chen An's body, slowly transforming him into this appearance.
Standing in place, Chen An suddenly felt something and his gaze shifted to a corner.
In the adjacent courtyard, a small head peeked out, belonging to what seemed to be a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl, who had been secretly watching him.
When she noticed that Chen An had noticed her, the girl blushed and quickly withdrew her head.
But after a moment, she raised her head again, continuing her surreptitious glance.
A large hand suddenly reached out and lightly tapped her head.
"Don't keep looking, study properly at such a young age."
Chen An stood at the wall, smiling at the girl, then threw something into her yard.
"I just bought some snacks, try them."
On the other side of the wall, the girl picked up the items and found them to be some snacks and fruits.
She smiled and almost drooled.
After she finished eating, she looked up again, but Chen An was already gone.
"Almost there, to start the next simulation."
It was almost evening now, and Chen An packed up his things and stayed inside his house, looking at the charging progress on his projection screen with some anticipation.
Unknowingly, he had been in this place for over two months.
Honestly, the feeling in this place wasn't bad.
Although the world was tough, it was only for the common people.
For the wealthy and powerful, life was as they wanted it to be.
Chen An was responsible for keeping an eye on the Sanhe Gang's affairs in this area, occasionally helping out the wealthy and powerful with some minor troubles as well.
His strength was good, and after upgrading the Five Tiger Knife Technique, he had practically no opponents in a fight.
Relative to others, he lived a more comfortable life.
If he were an ordinary person with this kind of strength, a bit cautious, then finding a good wife and settling down in this area would be quite nice.
But unfortunately...
Inside the house, Chen An pondered his current situation.
In these two months, he had been practicing the Five Tiger Knife Technique all the time, never stopping no matter how busy he was.
Yet the progress was still minimal.
There was no way around it.
The methods of the Five Tiger Knife Technique were simplistic, only basic martial arts.
Chen An had almost mastered the knife techniques, but the body refinement was not something that could be achieved overnight.
After two months of effort, the progress was still minimal, just better than nothing.
"It seems there's no hope for me to master it on my own."
Chen An thought to himself.
During this time, he had almost come to terms with his own situation.
Compared to others, although he was diligent, his talent did not seem to be that of a genius, just above average.
To try and make a name for himself with his own practice would be too difficult.
Thinking this, he couldn't help but focus his gaze on his upgrade template.
On the projection screen, the blue progress bar was already more than half full, just a little more to go.
When that time came, he should be able to start the next projection.
With that in mind, Chen An felt a slight abnormality in his heart.
He looked outside and heard a lot of commotion.
"Officials' men?"
Chen An sensed something was up and listened to the noise outside, wondering what had happened.
It was almost night.
When the sunlight lit up the sky again, and morning arrived once more, Chen An got up early and walked outside his door.
Just as he stepped out of the courtyard gate, his eyebrows furrowed.
The smell of blood, a strong scent of blood permeated the air.
Looking up, he saw bloodstains everywhere on the street, staining the ground in red. It was hard to say how much blood had been shed.
"What happened last night?"
Chen An wondered in his mind, looking at the scene full of blood, he was at a loss for words.
Blood stained the streets everywhere, but no bodies could be seen, nor any traces of a fight.
How did this come about?
Chen An didn't know.
Seeing the scene in front of him, he was about to leave, but his body suddenly paused.
A familiar feeling surged from his body.
(End of Chapter)
