Chapter 19

The bandits' corpses were hastily buried in the next two or three days.

Everyone had experience, knowing that not burying too many corpses would only harm the people in the town, but when doing this, there was still some resentment.

After all, they were enemies, great enemies.

Those bandits were wiped out in half a night, but they killed fourteen people and seriously injured seventeen, not counting the remaining lightly injured ones.

The bandits the town had encountered before were either talking directly to the wealthy families, kidnapping for money, doing things according to the rules of the green forest, or were like refugees, only robbing a few families before being easily scared away by the militia.

After the Great Han Military Government was established, the town paid money to the city diligently, and it had been many years since such a painful loss.

The dozen or so people who died were all young and strong, and the seriously injured were also the pillars of their respective families.

When the white funeral banners were erected in front of these families' doors, the whole town was shrouded in a somewhat sorrowful atmosphere; the few wealthy families in the town were still decent at this time.

The compensation for the families of the deceased and the things needed for the funeral were all initiated by them, and the seriously injured were also taken care of.

People talked about those good young men, always sighing; the actions of the militia patrol in the past, picking up things at the stalls here and taking things from the vendors there without paying, also seemed intimate and nostalgic.

But life still had to go on.

A few days passed, and the main street in the town, every time the sun rose, appeared full of vendors again, and the shops opened one after another.

Even if there was a light rain in the early morning, and the air was full of the chill of autumn rain, it did not affect their shouting and selling.

The gray-clothed man wearing a bamboo hat, stained with the colder rain from the mountains, walked into the town, not yet knowing what had happened in the past few days.

But he stepped into this street and had only walked a dozen steps before he met the militia.

"Master Zhong, you're finally back!"

That face under the bamboo hat had a wide forehead, big eyes, and a high nose bridge, his cheeks thin, his beard stubbly, his appearance somewhat fierce, but he looked lazy and spiritless.

Hearing the babbling words of several militiamen, his eyebrows arched, and his body straightened a bit: "Such a thing actually happened, how are those who were seriously injured?"

"Those who were injured are all fine; that Master Chu is not only good at fighting, but also seems to be a miracle doctor; those who were prescribed medicine by him have all gained some color."

The militiaman said, "These days many people want to see him, but he lives in Shopkeeper Ma's restaurant and doesn't come out much."

"By the way, by the way, Shopkeeper Ma is a half-immortal who knows magic; Master Zhong, you are quite close to Shopkeeper Ma, did you know about it long ago?"

Zhong Jinqiu listened to them asking back and forth, did not answer, took out a piece of dried radish from his bosom, took a bite, and said: "Don't ask blindly, go to those families holding funerals first, I will also offer them a stick of incense."

He followed the militiamen and turned into a small path.

The sunlight gradually became intense, and after more than an hour, Zhong Jinqiu came to Old Ma's restaurant alone, his bamboo hat on his back.

As soon as he entered the door, several tables of guests recognized him and greeted him.

Zhong Jinqiu nodded, his eyes swept, but he didn't see his old friend behind the counter.

The waiter came over: "Uncle Zhong, the shopkeeper is in the backyard, he hasn't come out much these days."

After exposing the fact that he knew magic, besides being respected, there was also a lot of trouble.

Those who wanted to apprentice, those who wanted to invite him home to worship, those who doubted themselves, and those who suspected that people around them were possessed, kept coming to find him.

Shopkeeper Ma had passed the age of loving the limelight, and had been intentionally avoiding it these days.

The curtain leading from the main hall to the backyard was usually rolled up with hemp ropes and iron hooks during the day, but today it was hanging down.

As soon as Zhong Jinqiu lifted the curtain, he saw Shopkeeper Ma squatting in the corner of the backyard, with a long bench in front of him, sitting on a low tree root stool, drinking wine to relieve fatigue.

"Yo, Old Ghost, you're back?"

Shopkeeper Ma rubbed his nose, didn't get up, and beckoned, "Come, come, come, just in time to sit for a while."

Zhong Jinqiu walked to the other side of the long bench, sat cross-legged on the stone slab, grabbed the wine pot, and poured a mouthful into his mouth from the air.

"I've heard about the town's affairs; it's not easy to see where someone who plays magic is injured. You old boy haven't made a move for years, you weren't injured that day, were you?"

Shopkeeper Ma smiled and said: "It was said that it was hard to say whether I would be injured, but Little Chu was too fierce, charging directly out of the town and slaughtering the two marauder leaders in the woods."

"I just blocked for a while in the middle and finished the tail end."

Zhong Jinqiu squinted his eyes to look at his old friend, saying: "I heard he's not very old, knows both medicine and martial arts, and when he first arrived in town, he was dressed like someone who had studied abroad; his background isn't simple, right?"

Those with a background are often prone to trouble.

"Didn't ask."

Shopkeeper Ma said plainly, "The young man is quite good, why ask so much?"

Zhong Jinqiu withdrew his gaze: "Fine, you're still the one who's good at judging people, so I won't worry about this idle matter."

He smacked his lips, "The wine today tastes a bit different, did you add medicinal herbs?"

Shopkeeper Ma said: "It was exactly what that Doctor Chu helped to change."

"I know his medical skills are good, but your medicinal wine recipe is not easy to come by; he can even change this?"

Zhong Jinqiu became interested, took out a piece of dried radish and threw it into his mouth, covering the aftertaste of the wine, then poured another mouthful, closed his eyes to feel it for a while, and couldn't help but nod.

"Hiss, the medicinal effect is a bit different; to be able to brew such a taste with just these second and third-rate medicinal herbs, he has a hand."

"Where is he, why not introduce him to me?"

Shopkeeper Ma picked up a few peanuts from the plate on the long bench, peeled them unhurriedly, and threw them into his mouth to chew.

"He's practicing martial arts in his room; this person really loves fist arts. That night's bloody battle must have been dangerous, but the next morning he didn't say to take a break and started practicing again."

"But don't be in a hurry, he will definitely come out when it's almost lunchtime; let's drink first."

Shopkeeper Ma held the wine cup and said in a low voice, "I've also been thinking these days, that thing we got back then..."

Zhong Jinqiu waited for him to speak, and after waiting for a long time, seeing that he didn't say anything, he frowned and said: "What thing, speak clearly."

"Not in a hurry."

Shopkeeper Ma considered, took a sip of wine, and turned to say, "Better wait until you two have spent some time together before talking."

Inside Chu Tianshu's room, he was indeed practicing martial arts.

Unlike the fist practice of rising, jumping, and moving in the past.

Now his left foot was on the ground, his right foot was bent and placed on his left knee, his hands were pressed together and raised above his head, and from his ankles, knees, waist, and hips to his shoulders, back, neck, and arms, every joint and every muscle segment were rotated to a state of being twisted and tightened in one direction.

His skin was as tight as steel wire, trembling slightly with his breathing.

The dust in the room floated in the sunlight, and it took a long time for Chu Tianshu to change a posture; the movements were very slow, and every move and every style was like the dance of a ghost and god warrior in a temple.

His toes gripped the ground, his body leaned back, his palms and soles touched the ground at the same time, and the movement of muscle exertion went from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, repeating over and over.

His ten fingers spread out, his arms pressed against the air, the force was too fierce, rising and falling repeatedly, making his finger joints protrude like bamboo joints.

The stretching of each movement seemed to be challenging the limits of his muscles.

It was also like a barren mountain, a wild fire, a monster that was half-human and half-ape unfolding its figure, dancing slowly and praying, deep and powerful, its shadow printed on the mountain rocks, quiet, timeless, and powerfully ferocious.

It seemed not as intense as the previous practice method, but in fact, the muscles on his body were twisted and pressed like copper blocks, mobilizing all parts, his whole body was surging with heat, and he was tightening and closing his pores, his skin continuously turning red and hot.

This was the product of his second deduction using evil spirit materials.

"Mountain Ape Eight-Face Tiger-Subduing" stance method!

The evil spirit materials obtained from the battle with the bandits were all quite useful, especially the "Insect-Belly Leopard Cat" and the "Crocodile Boy," the former clearly focusing on strengthening muscle power.

The latter's underwater swimming and long breath-holding time might be related to cardiopulmonary function, but it might also just be a special ability of water ghosts to change breath in the water.

At that time, Chu Tianshu hesitated a little, but the next day he still chose to use the Leopard Cat as the main focus for deduction.

The cultivation method material used was "Gluttonous Through-the-Back Fist."

After the deduction was completed, the name of the fist manual did not change, but a set of stance methods was sublimated from the footwork contained within.

After practicing for these few days, he felt that the effect of this stance method was excellent, and the strength of his whole body had a sense of becoming more and more condensed.

From the appearance, his muscles did not continue to thicken, but the explosive power of the same range of motion had increased significantly.

However, according to the token's prompt, the potential of the "Qi Family Old Through-the-Back" fist manual had been used up after two deductions and optimizations.

It could continue to be deduced and optimized using evil spirit materials, but that would be more than the loss.

Therefore, for the next deduction, it was best to collect new cultivation method materials.

Chu Tianshu had inquired from Wang Fu and knew that Master Zhong of the militia was also a powerful practitioner, definitely having obtained the true transmission of brilliant fist arts, and was also on good terms with Shopkeeper Ma.

If there was an opportunity, he would see if he could exchange arts, or otherwise, apprenticing would also be fine.

He also heard with his ears that an acquaintance of Shopkeeper Ma had come to the courtyard today, but he was not in a hurry to go out, practicing patiently until his stomach protested loudly, only then finishing his practice.

Dense, soybean-sized sweat beads rose from his skin one after another with his exhalation; just as he wiped them with a towel, more sweat condensed.

Fortunately, in the past few days, he had eight towels and two buckets of clean water in his room, and he was already very handy at washing, and not long after, he wrapped himself in clothes.

Creak!

As soon as the door opened, the two old men in the courtyard looked over at the same time.

Shopkeeper Ma slowly savored his pot of wine, and it wasn't finished by noon, laughing: "You're out, eat lunch in the courtyard, just eat and chat, get to know each other, this is Old Zhong!"

Chu Tianshu smiled: "So this is Master Zhong, I should also call you senior."

He bowed slightly when he cupped his fists, but Zhong Jinqiu's face changed suddenly, he got up and reached out to let Chu Tianshu stand straight, then bowed his own fists downward, bowing even deeper, which was a great ceremony.

Chu Tianshu was stunned, a little confused.

"I was hired with a large sum of money to be the gun and staff master of the militia, and when the bandits attacked, I wasn't there; it was all thanks to you."

Zhong Jinqiu said sternly, "No matter what, it shouldn't be you bowing to me; it's me who should bow to you."

Chu Tianshu said: "I live quite well in this town, of course I can't let the bandits run wild..."

Zhong Jinqiu was just about to say something else when a noise of gongs and drums came from outside.

Soon, the footsteps of the crowd and the noisy voices actually overwhelmed the original gongs and drums.

The waiter lifted the curtain, his face full of surprise, and said happily: "Shopkeeper, Doctor Chu, you guys come out quickly."

"I heard that people from the city have come to reward us for our annihilation of the marauders and protection of the town this time, especially you two; the town mayor asks you to go over quickly!"

(End of chapter)