Chapter 47: Factions

After the New Year passed,

the disciples of the Tieshan Martial Arts Hall also returned one after another.

Those who needed to practice martial arts practiced martial arts,

and those who needed to be sent out on assignments were sent out.

Cheng Feng had self-awareness.

His own foundation lay in his Panmian.

His own talent, his own woman.

But others did not think so.

The gangs and powerful clans in the city were in league with the government officials,

controlling their respective businesses.

The Martial Arts Halls did not have any good feelings toward the government,

forming their own faction.

There were a total of six Martial Arts Halls in the city:

Yingyue Martial Arts Hall, the first choice for the young ladies of wealthy and powerful clans;

two that were connected to gangs, the Black Tiger Martial Arts Hall and the Red Snake Martial Arts Hall;

and the remaining three.

Hongshi Martial Arts Hall taught fist techniques, Wuying Martial Arts Hall taught leg techniques, and Tieshan Martial Arts Hall taught blade techniques; each had its own specialty and its own trade.

The government relied on the Great Zhou and was the orthodox authority, but it generally did not manage affairs.

Officials are like flowing water, while the clerks are like iron.

Internally, it was not particularly stable either;

the powerful clans were the support for the clerks, and the clerks were the eyes and ears of the powerful clans.

And gangs, to put it plainly, were just the lackeys of the powerful clans and the government,

specializing in doing some shady, low-class business.

They were united together because of interests.

The Martial Arts Hall Masters all built their respective family businesses through their own abilities,

but they did not belong to the path of the government or the gangs.

They had no choice but to band together and form their own faction.

The government and gangs managed local affairs both openly and secretly,

which is commonly known as the black and white paths.

The Martial Arts Halls indeed belonged to the gray.

When there was a matter, they could connect with the government or be on good terms with the gangs.

The Jianghu, after all, is not just about fighting and killing; it is mostly about human relationships and worldly wisdom.

After all, in terms of martial force,

the strength of the Martial Arts Halls was indeed stronger than that of the gangs,

but it could not compare to the orthodox status of the government.

The government relied on its background.

The gangs relied on connections and numbers.

The Martial Arts Halls only looked at individual strength.

They could be considered quite versatile.

To make a living in the territory of Qingxi County,

one must always pay attention to connections and human sentiment.

Each Martial Arts Hall could also teach disciples for various families,

helping them improve their strength.

The Martial Arts Halls also relied on the relationships between their disciples and the various great families to develop their own ways of making money.

Tieshan Martial Arts Hall was on good terms with the Zhang Family; Zhang Zhuo was a disciple of the Zhang Family, and he came to the Martial Arts Hall to learn his craft due to his extraordinary talent.

At nineteen, he was already at Skin Refining Perfection.

With some effort, he could practice Blood Refining.

But the fact was that Zhang Zhuo had been at Skin Refining Perfection for over a year.

Disciples of great families basically did not lack money or food.

For the basic Strength Refining Realm and Skin Refining Realm, as long as one had a bit of talent and the family's resources could keep up, it was normal to break through to Strength Refining as long as one could endure hardship.

This was because the requirements for the Strength Refining Realm were not high to begin with.

As for breaking through to the Skin Refining Realm, that required some talent—at the very least, average aptitude—and even then, persistent hard training was a basic condition, and the subsequent expenses for medicinal soups also had to keep up.

Entering the Skin Refining Realm meant that one's talent was indeed quite good.

But to break through to the Blood Refining Realm,

one either had to rely on Old Medicine to forcibly gather Qi and blood,

or rely on basic skills that had already become instinct, gaining that perception of Qi and Blood through countless sharpenings.

In the process of regulating one's breathing, one had to find that trace of Blood Qi mixed within the strength under the skin.

Once one was proficient in controlling the Blood Qi to circulate through one's body, one could enter the Blood Refining Realm.

Zhang Zhuo was stuck at this step.

He had no Old Medicine resources.

Relying solely on bitter training, one still cannot grasp that trace of Blood Qi within the force circulating beneath the skin.

If one cannot perceive it, then perhaps their Martial Dao career has come to an end.

Cheng Feng's natural talent is truly poor.

But he has the Panmian!

He mainly maintains his physical health.

Keeping his kidneys healthy and not depleted.

It is truly possible for him to add points and become a god.

Of course.

If there is no method or information on becoming a god.

Staying within one's own information cocoon.

It is still unknown how far one can go in a lifetime.

But at least Cheng Feng feels that he should first finish walking the path currently before him.

His strength is too weak, in front of senior brothers and sisters at the Blood Refining stage.

Whatever he says is of no use.

Not to mention Wang Tieshan, whose strength is unknown and powerful to Cheng Feng.

So, wanting to learn Medical Skill but finding no one to ask, and finding no reliable person to gather information.

This was what made Cheng Feng discover this blind spot.

And it also made Cheng Feng realize his own path of survival hereafter.

Before, Cheng Feng was lost.

Even now, he is still lost.

But at least he has a general direction.

Cheng Feng has no ambition to claim kingship or hegemony.

But Cheng Feng does need trusted hands to help him do things.

That this will touch upon the interests of others is inevitable.

And Cheng Feng only wants to raise his strength first.

At least before all the women in his household are pregnant.

He can still raise his own strength and incidentally get some silver.

Cheng Feng has already asked his Martial Arts Hall Master.

An Inner Sect Disciple can also take on part-time jobs.

Escorting a shipment, guarding a courtyard.

These are all possible.

But these all require strength as an endorsement.

Those who look for courtyard guards basically only look for people when they have trouble.

Escorting shipments earns more, but there are large and small mountain strongholds, outlaws of the greenwood, and petty thieves on the road.

Without strength? That is just throwing one's life away.

It is true that high strength can earn more.

But there is no one to provide a safety net!

You only have one life, think it through before choosing.

Cheng Feng was still a bit afraid after what Wang Tieshan said.

Looking at his own Skin Refining strength.

It indeed feels a bit dangerous.

He still needs to stay in this newbie village a bit longer.

What Wang Tieshan said was actually not an exaggeration.

It was fine during peaceful times in the past.

In these two years, the wave of rebellions in the east has already begun to sweep across the north and south.

Even if the Imperial Court rushes, winter is not a good time for a counterattack.

Instead, the rebels can openly recuperate.

In preparation for the war after the new year.

Once they have already rebelled, the longer the time given, the greater the possibility of the rebellion succeeding.

If all else fails, they can just carve out territory and become kings.

That would be distressing for the Emperor of Great Zhou.

Those who rebel certainly won't lose out.

Wang Tieshan still has some connections.

The friends who survived while wandering the jianghu back then are all life-and-death companions.

There is also communication from the south and north.

Snakes have snake paths, and rats have rat paths.

Small characters also have their own ways.

Those who don't basically just cease to exist.

There is no need to survive.

Wang Tieshan is also nearly fifty years old.

Having lived through more than half of life's journey.

Having walked over high mountains and also fallen into low valleys.

Having seen much, one eventually sees through it all.

In his view, Cheng Feng was just restless because he had a bit of strength.

Being accepted as an Inner Sect Disciple was something one could talk about with pride.

As for silver, as an Inner Sect Disciple, by simply befriending the scions of great families, one would soon not be lacking in silver.

Yet Wang Tieshan did not expect that Cheng Feng had no time to concern himself with such social interactions.

After finishing his training at the Martial Arts Hall, he would hurry back, completely ignoring the socializing, dining, and drinking of those Outer Disciples.

No one could disturb his acquisition of Fortune Points.

With that time, it would be better to go one more time.

No one told Cheng Feng that socializing could also bring in silver.

Even if Cheng Feng knew.

He would still hold it in contempt.

Once you get the silver, you lose your freedom.

No one will treat you well for no reason.

The scams of his past life, and the anti-corruption campaigns.

Which one of them wasn't luring every single person?

Just like bait dropped in front of a fish.

If you don't eat it, you are fine, and can still swim freely in the river.

If you eat it.

You never know when the Angler will pull up the fishing rod.

Cheng Feng, who is Proficient in Fishing Skill, understands this way deeply.

Cheng Feng now only believes in himself.

In this era of natural and man-made disasters where no one is secure.

Placing one's own safety in the hands of others is the least safe thing to do.

Cheng Feng asks himself, if he had the strength of Wang Tieshan.

He could get by anywhere.

Not giving face?

With a Blade Frame at your throat.

Will you give face or not?

Please give yourself a chance.

To redeem yourself.

Don't make it difficult for me, okay?

Cheng Feng felt excited just thinking about that scene.

First, prepare the lines for himself.

Just waiting to see when they can be used!