Chapter 112: Speaking of Righteousness

The names of the sword techniques and cultivation methods were unfamiliar—after all, Bai Lang hadn't read many wuxia novels, only a portion of Jin, Gu, Wen, and Huang's works. He had read all of Jin's, but a few of those books he only skimmed once or twice and can't recall clearly; Gu wouldn't claim to have read everything, and the plots also slip his memory. Wen wrote a lot and liked lazy endings and delays, so basically he read then forgot; remembering the protagonists and a few techniques is already good. As for Huang… like the name, he used to read Huang's books, and the long series were indeed too lengthy, so many specific details have naturally faded from memory.

As for Liang, Wo and Li and their kind, Bai Lang remembered even less… not only the names but also the techniques; in any case, he only vaguely recalls something like 'leap off a cliff and survive,' and that suffices.

And who can claim that the techniques here are the same as those in novels? At least the Thirteen Tai Bao Golden Bell Shield that Bai Lang obtained is certainly not from a novel; judging by the stages, it's probably the one from Huang's comic. In novels, the Golden Bell Shield is a crude outer-door skill, a trifle practiced by minor jianghu folk. Yet what Bai Lang trains, even if it can't yet be called Tiger Roar Golden Bell Shield Dragon Chant Iron Cloth Shirt, is at least the kind of divine skill found in comics.

"It's probably even stronger than the Diamond‑Impervious Divine Skill… and with external training of muscles, bones, skin, cultivating a body of cross‑trained Internal Force, at this rate… wouldn't I become a fierce general who charges into battle?" Bai Lang was still quite relaxed, watching his companions finish the exchange; the kid Mu Ronghua was even bathed in white light, seeming not to train but to directly infuse the entry‑level technique.

"He's really daring; who knows what background this palace has and yet he dares to use its techniques for infusion… but back to the pill, it should be fine, right?" Bai Lang took out the pill stored in a small jade bottle and inspected it. Buy‑one‑get‑one free, and the little jade bottle was included… Bai Lang had exchanged for a large restorative pill; with his seven‑hundred points he could only redeem two of them. "They say it's made of living and dead flesh and white bone, but if it can keep a life hanging on, that's good enough."

Not long after, having set a future meeting time, Bai Lang stepped into the dense fog outside.

After returning here, Bai Lang realized his chance to leave was not far off. As a low‑rank gang member, he still had an opportunity to escape, and Mu Ronghua would visit again, giving him an excuse to depart. With that thought, the Chang Le Gang had treated him reasonably, and he didn't want to just walk away; they should still forge a good bond. Bai Lang raised his arm, clenched his fist, feeling the fierce power coursing through his body.

"Golden Bell Shield Stage Four! From now on the body has protective yang energy, can reflect attacks. And the organs are also protected… but from then on each stage is a thousand hardships, as the comic would have it." Then the fellow thought of his own weak point. Practicing the Golden Bell Shield, Bai Lang naturally knew his own flaw—it was just the chicken and the egg; the chicken was fine, the problem lay with the egg.

"Compress yang into the abdomen… whatever year, whatever month, may the wish be fulfilled." Bai Lang hummed, then recalled an ancient wuxia film that featured an Iron Cloth Shirt in a near‑final shot, and immediately felt the egg throb. "The image of those two eggs being smashed with a 'pop' was truly frightening!"

Others whose eggs were smashed could still become eunuchs; Bai Lang, who had cultivated the Thirteen Tai Bao Golden Bell Shield and had his egg smashed, would likely die. "There's no way around it…" he sighed, "Huh? I remember that after breaking the fourth stage of the Golden Bell Shield the yang energy is balanced, so one need not maintain the boy body! Wait!" Bai Lang carefully recalled the manual—the 1980s street‑vendor "scam" publication was vague beyond the fourth stage.

Each stage's cultivation method is like a string of verses; to Bai Lang it seemed the classical prose was insufficient yet they still tried to imitate, ending up at the level seen in Huang's comic… "The boy skill can be maintained without upkeep, but if you wish to go farther, before attaining the innate realm and continuously drawing primordial qi from heaven and earth, it's best not to easily lose the primordial yang." Fortunately, Bai Lang wasn't a lecher deeply interested in that, so keeping it suppressed was no big deal.

But this problem—how to determine the primordial yang versus the boy body? Bai Lang decided to abandon the thought, for that would be idealism—perhaps with powerful hypnosis he could convince himself that the primordial yang is always present and thus be fearless…

At least that fellow named Lü Dongbin probably does it that way—he lingered among the blossoms, indulging in white peonies for three days and three nights, countless times, yet claimed his primordial yang remained unleaked… that is an immensely powerful mental suggestion. Bai Lang mercilessly sneered at Lü Dongbin in his mind, but could not voice it—because this world also has legends of the Eastern Emperor Lord, countless deities and Buddhas exist, just not appearing in the mortal realm.

Who knows if speaking it aloud now would be heard by that fellow—drunken, lecherous, greedy Lü Dongbin; Bai Lang doesn't think such a person would hold no grudge.

In any case, for the fourth stage, this place should have the top expert, and while Bai Lang was still earnestly and diligently serving as the enforcer and leader of the tooth business venue, before Mu Ronghua arrived, things took a turn.

That day Bai Lang, following his routine, rose early to absorb the first strand of pure yang, then practiced punches to temper muscles and bones; it seemed another ordinary day. The jade fish on his chest… this thing could not be discarded, not even a toad's self‑detonation could remove the jade fish. Its jade quality had become much warmer, and the carving that once resembled a dead fish suddenly seemed alive; although still a dead‑fish shape, at least it was a freshly dead fish.

He didn't know when this fish would wear out again, but for now Bai Lang still had to continue his cultivation; the fifth stage was far off, and without training he would never reach it; relying on chance was unreliable. While Bai Lang was cultivating, he suddenly heard a booming sound. "That sound? Direction of the branch?" Bai Lang raised his head.

He took a few steps to the small courtyard entrance, and indeed saw smoke from the branch shooting up into the sky. "Dajiang Gate is handling business!" the voice echoed through the whole city, and Bai Lang saw everyone hurried back into their houses, closing doors and shutters. "Dajiang Gate? What's happening? A gang turf war?" Bai Lang was a bit bewildered, "Quick, quick, quick, get inside and shut the doors! We low‑rank servants should not get tangled in the fights of their superiors." The tooth business shopkeeper grabbed Bai Lang.

"What's going on?" Bai Lang asked, curious. "Anything else? Dajiang Gate and the Chang Le Gang have always been hostile—today you strike me, tomorrow I strike you; this time it's probably just Dajiang Gate's raid preparing to seize our branch." Hearing that, Bai Lang laughed outright. "I see, since the Chang Le Gang has treated me fairly, this time as a gang member I must shoulder my responsibility. There's always a need to speak of loyalty on this chaotic road, isn't there?"