Chapter 2: Alive, One Way or Another

"That's Chen Yan, isn't it?"

"He really is hardworking."

"Hardworking indeed, but the Awakening of Qi and Blood is not a matter of a single morning or evening; having been bedridden for a year, he is truly still quite far behind."

Behind the Teaching Building, a group of people walked out and looked in surprise at Chen Yan, who was sitting on the Playground sweating.

It was Zhang Qingsi and the others.

Zhang Qingsi's Awakening of Qi and Blood was no small matter; many teachers had been helping Zhang Qingsi stabilize his Qi and Blood until after school, and it had only just finished now.

After the Awakening of Qi and Blood, one is considered a martial artist.

The accompanying classmates, even upon seeing Chen Yan, were at most surprised for a moment; their attention was basically all on Zhang Qingsi.

"Brother Zhang, I heard Teacher Xia Dong is going to give you Private Training tomorrow."

To the side, Hu Yuan looked at Zhang Qingsi with great envy.

Xia Dong was not a martial artist, but he was skilled in combat techniques; in the past, he always charged fees for privately tutoring students.

At a price of over two hundred per hour, the Private Training for Zhang Qingsi was now free.

Even teachers often have the intention of building connections when dealing with students who have already achieved the Awakening of Qi and Blood, as it is destined that they will be stronger than them before long.

"I don't want to go; he's the one insisting on giving me Private Training," Zhang Qingsi said indifferently, with a hint of helplessness.

"I'm so envious; back in the day, Teacher Xia Dong relied solely on his Martial Arts Technique to defeat peers who had achieved the Awakening of Qi and Blood."

Hu Yuan sighed with emotion, holding Zhang Qingsi's clothes in his hands, feeling a bit fortunate; fortunately, he had always appeared very sycophantic toward Zhang Qingsi, so his current show of favor did not seem deliberate.

Seeing that Chen Yan in the distance had also noticed him, his expression turned cold, and he shouted:

"Don't forget, one thousand!"

…………

The night in Qingshan Town still carried the lingering heat of the day.

Walking on the street, one could see men with bare chests sitting on the stone steps on both sides to cool off everywhere.

Chen Yan walked familiarly to the T-junction at the end of the street, and a fragrance mixed with cumin, sesame, and other seasonings rushed into his nose.

It was a storefront selling Fried Noodles.

Inside the shop, a man with a thick beard, a dark complexion, and wearing a faded light-blue factory uniform had just put down his wok and spatula, chatting with a bare-chested man in front of the stall.

"You should pay it back too; the one thousand yuan has been owed for half a year, and Hu Yuan hasn't even had a Medicine Bath this year."

The bare-chested man spoke with slight dissatisfaction.

"Brother, you know my situation..." the man named Chen Yuhu said with a bitter face:

"One thousand yuan isn't a huge amount, but you must pay it back tomorrow."

The bare-chested man Frowned, then changed the subject:

"Your Son is about to take the college entrance exam, and he hasn't even had a single Medicine Bath; why not go to the Qingshan Inner Perimeter and give it a try?"

The man named Chen Yuhu Frowned:

"The Inner Perimeter is too dangerous; someone just died in the neighboring village yesterday."

"The bold die of gluttony, the timid die of starvation; it's not for the sake of my one thousand yuan, you should think more about it too."

As the bare-chested man spoke, he picked up the freshly fried noodles and, just as he was about to leave, saw Chen Yan.

"Uncle," Chen Yan said with a smile.

"Hmm, looks like you've recovered well." The bald man glanced at Chen Yan, then fumbled in his pocket for two one-yuan bills and placed them on the table:

"Giving you two yuan first, the remaining one, I'll give it next time."

"No need," Chen Yuhu replied without even lifting his head; the bare-chested man reached out toward the two yuan on the table, then pulled his hand back and left.

Chen Yan walked into the shop; he had only heard a vague part of the conversation between Chen Yuhu and his uncle Hu Zeyuan, but he still spoke up:

"The Back Mountain is too dangerous; every year, people from the Town..."

"Don't you worry about it, I'm not going," Chen Yuhu looked at Chen Yan and smiled, skillfully picking up the wok and starting to pour oil.

"Okay."

After Chen Yan placed his schoolbag on the table, he began to wait for his meal.

"I heard Zhang Qingsi from your class achieved the Awakening of Qi and Blood?"

The clattering sound of stir-frying rang out, and Chen Yuhu asked without stopping his hands.

"Yes."

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself; I don't know how it happened, but Zhang Qingsi's family got rich last year."

Chen Yuhu sighed; last year, Chen Yan was hit by a car and had a one-in-nine chance of survival.

Yet Zhang Qingsi's family had risen up.

The world is unpredictable.

Chen Yuhu cracked three eggs into the bowl and sliced two sausages.

"That's too much, Dad," Chen Yan held back the saliva about to flow out and quickly spoke up.

"I can't sell it all anyway, you help me eat more." Chen Yuhu took out a bag containing beef from under the stall, quickly sliced the beef as well, and added it to the Fried Noodles.

It was a bit luxurious.

But at the thought of the taste of beef, Chen Yan couldn't help but drool.

Soon, the Fried Noodles were ready, and Chen Yuhu brought the noodles to his Son's table and smiled:

"Finish eating and go back, I'll sell a bit more."

"Okay."

The aroma of the Fried Noodles wafted over; Chen Yan picked up a piece of beef, stuffed it into his Mouth, and chewed. In an instant, the fragrance overflowed; the beef stir-fried in lard had a special aroma, very mellow and fragrant.

Although his muscles no longer felt sore after he ate the Force Array Po Saint Fruit, he was truly hungry.

Chen Yuhu looked at his Son with a smile, and just as he was about to say something, more customers arrived, and he became busy.

In this state, even if Chen Yan were to eat plain steamed buns, eating ten at once would be no problem, let alone a bowl of Fried Noodles like this.

"Dad, another bowl."

Chen Yan finished eating quickly; his sudden increase in appetite made Chen Yuhu slightly surprised, but he soon smiled and stir-fried a second bowl for Chen Yan.

"True Martial Prize Money..."

The True Martial Prize Money is a very common and also very generous student subsidy; Qingshan Gao has a total of three classes in the third year, and each class has one quota.

Once obtained, it is a cash subsidy of Twenty Thousand, and more importantly, one can choose to receive instruction in a Qi Blood Cultivation Technique and a Breathing Method for a Horizontal Refinement Martial Artist.

It is just that there is only one per class.

Chen Yan's Pupil tightened.

Zhang Qingsi has achieved the Awakening of Qi and Blood; he is indeed a formidable opponent.

【Saint-Breaking Realm: Level One (2/3)】

【Sacred Fruit:

Force: (0/100)

Blood (5/100)】

Having broken through his Limit once, the 【Blood】 Sacred Fruit reached five percent.

Why is it so slow?

Chen Yan felt somewhat annoyed; he didn't think it looked very difficult when Zhang Qingsi achieved the Awakening of Qi and Blood.

However, with one more Fruit, the Saint-Breaking Realm could be upgraded; that was a good thing.

"Dad, why did you buy a Knife?" Chen Yan suddenly noticed a brand-new, half-meter-long curved knife placed in the corner of the shop.

"Oh, someone left it here for safekeeping," Chen Yuhu said while chopping vegetables.

…………

The Fried Noodle Shop only closes at twelve, so Chen Yan would go home first by himself.

Qingshan Gao is beyond South Street, and Chen Yan lives in Lijia Village to the north.

To go home, Chen Yan has to walk from South Street to North Street, and then walk for twenty minutes along the Xiang Lu.

"I can go to the park over at North Street to test my strength."

Chen Yan muttered to himself while running; standard Force Testers are only at school.

But there are Stone Pillars marked with weight at the North Street Park; two days ago, after consuming a 【Force Array】 Sacred Fruit, Chen Yan was already able to perform a Hard Pull on a one-hundred-fifty-kilogram Stone Pillar.

Now he would only be stronger; Chen Yan felt that his body felt much lighter while walking.

The 【Force Array】 Sacred Fruit seems to act upon the entire body.

Inside the Consciousness World, wisps of Orange Light appeared, and a hint of new green also appeared on the branch of the Sacred Tree that had once grown a 【Force Array】 Sacred Fruit.

As long as one exercises, it will bring about the growth of the Fruit.

As for the 【Blood】 Sacred Fruit, its growth is too slow.

In Qingshan Town, those who achieve the Awakening of Qi and Blood are very few, less than one in a hundred.

Chen Yan naturally also wanted to achieve the Awakening of Qi and Blood, but being bedridden for a year left him lagging behind students of the same grade in every aspect.

Running all the way, Chen Yan arrived at North Street; this is the most prosperous place in Qingshan Town.

On both sides are many five or six-story buildings, and the only supermarket in the entire Town is also here.

The aroma of barbecue drifted over slowly, and the neon lights along the street were very bright.

In front of a restaurant, over thirty people were sitting at outdoor tables and chairs; they were eating and drinking, and many were speaking drunken words, but the voices sounded quite immature, not like the voices of adults.

Two barbecue grills were working at the same time; as soon as Chen Yan ran close, he discovered that the people sitting there were mostly his classmates.

Almost more than half of the entire class had come.

"Drink up, Zhang Qingsi is truly too amazing; from now on, we really have to call him Brother Zhang."

"I called him Brother Zhang before; you're only calling him that now, you have no foresight."

"Brother Zhang is too generous; it's been a long time since I've eaten this happily."

"Hey, that looks like Chen Yan."

"Where? Didn't see him."

…………

Zhang Qingsi was drinking beer, and hearing a classmate call Chen Yan's name, he looked toward the street, only to see a thin back already running into the Darkness.

"Chen Yan, come drink with us."

Zhang Qingsi glanced over and said it in a flat, indifferent tone.

This bit of sound was covered by the noisy clamor, and Chen Yan naturally could not hear it.

Zhang Qingsi then didn't pay it any mind.

"This kid, he doesn't give us face, Hu Yuan."

A Male Student smirked and looked at Hu Yuan; Hu Yuan is Chen Yan's cousin, which basically all the classmates in the class know.

"Ignore him."

Hu Yuan waved his hand, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes:

"He's just a fool, a poor wretch."

Suddenly, a Guangtou Nanren walked up to the barbecue stall; some classmates looked over and asked politely:

"Hello, Uncle."

"Hello, hello, you guys eat." The Guangtou Nanren named Hu Zeyuan said with a laugh, his Mu Guang glancing at Zhang Qingsi inadvertently, and then he spoke to Hu Yuan:

"Hu Yuan, come over here for a second, I have something to tell you."

"What for?" Hu Yuan Frown, but still left his seat.

…………

Chen Yan arrived at North Street Park, passing through a Crabapple Grove about five or six meters wide before reaching the small garden where the Stone Pillar was placed.

The Fist Power Test is the day after tomorrow; as long as one reaches a Fist Power of 160 kilograms, one is qualified to compete for the True Martial Prize Money.

This Trial will weed out the majority of people.

In the eyes of the average person, Chen Yan is one of this majority, for no other reason.

Chen Yan did not go through the second-year high school combat Technique instruction, which is to say, even if Chen Yan's strength increased, he still lacks too much in terms of applying that power to a punch.

"But once strength reaches a certain level, it can compensate for the lack of Technique."

Chen Yan murmured, arriving before several Stone Pillar that had stood at the edge of the square for who knows how long.

Seeing a Stone Pillar engraved with 【200KG】, Chen Yan bent his Waist, reached out both Arms, and gripped the metal bar embedded in the Stone Pillar.

Just as he was about to pull it up, he heard a conversation ringing out from within the Crabapple Grove.

"Dad, why are you giving me so much money?"

That was Hu Yuan's voice.

"Take this three thousand, and when we have the barbecue later, you pay the bill, you hear me?" The voice of his uncle, Hu Zeyuan, rang out.

"I'll pay, but Dad, this is so much money."

"This isn't for you to spend; take this money and treat Zhang Qingsi more often. You're still young and don't understand what the Awakening of Qi and Blood represents. If you get on good terms with Zhang Qingsi, our family's Fate will change." Hu Zeyuan spoke earnestly.

"Got it, Dad." Hu Yuan nodded seriously:

"By the way, has Chen Yan's family paid back the money yet?"

Hu Zeyuan said, looking slightly speechless:

"I'll go ask for it again tomorrow, don't you worry about it." He changed the subject:

"Right, the Fist Power Test is coming up, there's a 1,500 reward, you better test well for me!"

"Don't worry, Dad, my Hard Pull is already two hundred, and the teacher also said my punch is standard; I'll pass."

The two spoke as they left.

Inside the small garden, Chen Yan's expression was calm, but an inexplicable bitterness welled up in his heart.

Thinking of the sad and worried looks on his Father and Sister when he first had the car accident, his lips couldn't help but tremble.

At least he was cured, at least he was still alive.

At least, he still had a pair of Fists and a body of Tendon and Bone.

It felt as if an inexplicable power was flowing within his body; Chen Yan gripped the iron bar on the Stone Pillar.

Hiss!

The sound of the Stone Pillar rubbing against the ground rang out; veins bulged on Chen Yan's Arms, and as the rolling power flowed, the two-hundred-kilogram Stone Pillar suddenly left the ground, lifted by him in a Mammoth Manner.