Chapter 389: Three-Family Joint Guarantee, Passing Seven Barriers

The night was already deep! The family members had been rushing about, and having finally found a stable place to rest, they washed up after their meal and went to sleep.

Although this residence was not particularly spacious, it was not so cramped that several families had to squeeze into one room; each family was allocated a spacious guest room.

Zuo Shier and the others did not sleep; they looked toward the brightly lit study, their hearts filled with awe.

Zhou You even had property in Fucheng; this was truly formidable.

Do not look down on an ordinary residence; there were truly not many people in Gongliang City who could afford to buy one. Many who had moved here in advance were still renting houses to live in and had not been able to establish their own property.

Recalling this journey, from Gongliang City to Zhou Family Village, and then to Fucheng, they had lacked neither food nor drink, nor had they worried about lodging; it was as if everything had been in Zhou You's planned arrangements.

This ability to plan ahead and accumulate resources was simply miraculous.

The group of Qi and Blood warriors became even more determined in their resolve to follow Zhou You.

Now that they had a place to stay, they were already ahead of seventy or eighty percent of martial artists from the start.

"That one-armed man seems to be Zhuang Tie of the Dazhuang Fist..."

A Qi and Blood warrior recognized Zhuang Tie and whispered, "How did Master Zhou... with him..."

The only intersection between the Dazhuang Fist and the Jian Xiong Martial Arts Hall was that tragic, brutal challenge to the hall; at that time, Zhou You was still an unknown Force-level martial artist, while Zhuang Tie was already a warrior at the Qi and Blood level.

The gap between the two was too great; outsiders could rack their brains and never connect them together.

Seeing them meet again now, Zhuang Tie was respectful and submissive before Zhou You, clearly acknowledging him as his master; how on earth was this achieved?

In the study, Zhuang Tie reported the situation of this period to Zhou You.

First, due to the skyrocketing prices, the money and supplies Zhou You had given him were nearing exhaustion; if he hadn't come over, Zhuang Tie would have had to go out to work to earn money and seek a livelihood.

After Zhou You arrived, he not only brought people over, but a large quantity of food and supplies was also replenished into the residence's warehouse.

Zhuang Tie had been guarding the residence here and had not let his fist techniques go to waste. After he concurrently practiced the Double Body Tiger Form Fist, he compensated for the disadvantage of having only one arm; now, one arm could simultaneously strike out two sets of Dazhuang Fist, smoothing out the gap between him and a normal person.

"In that case, have you recovered your strength to the middle stage of Qi and Blood?"

"Qi and Blood 4th Stage; it is a bit strenuous against the 5th Stage. I am missing an arm, so my total Qi and Blood is weaker than an ordinary person's."

Zhuang Tie spoke the truth; while guarding here, he had also beaten away several thieves who attempted to sneak in.

Overall, the order in Fucheng was running well; the noble families and the City Gate Guard constrained the environment in the city, putting an end to situations where martial arts were used to cause chaos.

This resulted in the fact that even if martial artists were starving, they would not rush to cause trouble, rob, or kill; they would rather go fight in underground boxing matches to risk their lives, or if they could still swallow their pride, go do odd jobs to earn a meal.

As for Martial Masters, they also had to follow the rules; if they had no money, they had to go hungry.

Zhuang Tie had the Property Deed and the keys, and he successfully took over this residence, which represented that the order in Fucheng was still normal.

As for those thieves, they existed in every season; with his Qi and Blood strength, he easily beat them to death and guarded this property.

"Master Zhou, now that you are a Martial Master, are you considering opening a martial arts hall?"

Zhuang Tie was also filled with emotion; when he saw Zhou You again, the other party had already taken a step ahead to become a Martial Master.

It could be said that he had personally witnessed the entire journey of Zhou You from Force to Qi and Blood, and then from Qi and Blood to Martial Master—how a child of a Commoner had relied on effort to ascend to the level of a Martial Master.

"That's right, with so many people moving to Fucheng, they must seek a livelihood!"

Zhou You did not rely on a martial arts hall to eat, but the people around him needed it; furthermore, the wealth he possessed also needed a channel to be laundered so it could be circulated and used openly and aboveboard.

Opening a martial arts hall was a good business!

Zhuang Tie paused and said, "You are an out-of-town Martial Master; wanting to open a martial arts hall in Fucheng is harder than ascending to heaven!"

Fucheng was filled with experts; inside there were noble families and the City Gate Guard, and outside there were several major sects. The martial atmosphere was thick, and powerful martial artists often appeared in the marketplace. Being a Martial Master here was just the starting point; to accomplish a career, one needed more.

For example, background; a sect origin was considered a bonus. Do you not see that the business of medical clinics certified by the Medicine King Sect was better than others?

Secondly, there were connections; if one had a noble family backing them, or climbed up to relationships with the higher-ups within a sect, opening a martial arts hall was just a matter of a single word.

Finally, there was strength; fighting through barrier after barrier until no one opposed you, and until someone was willing to provide financial support, it would naturally be a success.

"So you're saying, apart from having strength, I have nothing else!"

Zhou You listened to Zhuang Tie's analysis and rubbed his chin, feeling it was a great pity.

Zhuang Tie suppressed the urge to speak; he feared that in terms of strength, in the general environment of Fucheng, he was not outstanding either! "Master Zhou, recently, the Fucheng martial arts circle has formulated two policies regarding the increasing number of Martial Masters."

"Anyone who has three martial arts halls jointly guarantee them can pass the application to open a martial arts hall."

Finding people to guarantee, at least three halls—this had extremely high requirements for connections!

If Lu Zhigang were willing to defect to Liu Fengji, this would not be a problem, but it was not easy for Zhou You.

"Or, one can 'Pass Seven Barriers'—defeat seven Martial Masters to prove one's own strength."

Hmm, this one was decent; relying on strength to break through the barriers.

It's just...

Zhuang Tie shook his head. "This is even harder. The Seven Barriers are as difficult as ascending to heaven. Since they were established, only a handful of people have passed them, and they were all top-tier figures."

He mentioned a few names, one of which caught Zhou You's attention.

Jade Shell Golden Turtle... Pei Li.

Wasn't this a Martial Master of the Gongliang rebels? He actually arrived in Fucheng and even passed the assessment to open a martial arts hall? "This Pei Li..."

"Yes, I heard he is a model set up by Fucheng; he abandoned darkness for light and is now the master of the Jingui Martial Arts Hall."

The Martial Masters of the Seven Barriers were adjusted according to the challenger's strength; if the challenger was a Primary Martial Master, the gatekeepers were seven Primary Martial Masters; if it was an Intermediate Martial Master, they were seven of the same realm.

Although there were certainly some who were just there to make up the numbers, the overall difficulty was not small.

That Pei Li could clear the barriers showed his extraordinary strength.

"Pei Li might not be the strongest, but he was the fastest to clear the barriers. He not only won beautifully but also let his enemies lose with grace. After fighting through the Seven Barriers, he made seven friends, and his network of connections immediately opened up."

Zhuang Tie praised this Pei Li endlessly.

Whenever there was a fist fight or martial competition, it followed the principle of 'no good hands in a fight, no good words in a quarrel'; even decades of friendship could be beaten to a pulp by a round of old fists.

The difficulty of the Seven Barriers lay in the fact that after clearing them, one still had to be able to stand firmly in the martial arts circle.

Seven barriers, seven Martial Masters, represented the deep-rooted connections and forces of Fucheng.

There were too many interests involved behind a single win or loss; it wasn't just a matter of you winning. If you made the peers and seniors lose all face and created enemies—one or two enemies might be fine, but if there were seven...

Not to mention being unable to move an inch, even running the martial arts hall in the future would become a problem.

The impressive thing about Pei Li is that while others make enemies when they win, he makes friends.

Pass Seven Barriers became his exclusive social activity; not only did he obtain an entry ticket to the martial arts circle, but he also expanded his connections, killing two birds with one stone.

"He is slick and sociable, I can't learn that!" Zhou You waved his hand, "Help me inquire about the specific steps to Pass Seven Barriers, I will consider it."

(End of chapter)