Promise!

Chapter 113, The Encounter

November 29th, that evening.

The weather has been getting colder lately, especially after sunset when the chill is even stronger. Chen Yun has been tending a small red clay stove at the door, with hot water bubbling up inside, brewing tea, and keeping the exotic beast meat and two other side dishes warm.

Zhuang Jin practiced his Swift Wind Steps martial arts technique in front of the door, his inner energy flowing through the Shaoyang meridians of his legs. He moved with his hands behind his back, flashing and shifting about, unhurried and composed.

Whoosh!
At a certain moment, it felt as if a threshold had been broken, and the speed suddenly increased, getting faster and faster. The wind whistled in my ears, and withered black leaves fell from the treetops, swirling around my clothes.

"For the past two weeks, I've been practicing for an extra hour every night, and I've finally mastered the Swift Wind Step technique...!"

Zhuang Jin thought to himself, "The Swift Wind Step's characteristics surpass ordinary movement techniques. Furthermore, I've now completed forty percent of my Seven Scriptures cultivation, and my Black Fiend Palm has reached its peak. If I were to fight Miao Shao again, it certainly wouldn't be like last time."

Indeed, his Black Fiend Palm had truly reached the limit of the Great Completion level, which was that he had not yet opened up all twelve meridians and made them a unified whole; otherwise, he could have directly achieved perfection in one step.

At this moment, Luan Zhenyun came over, thinking that the seven-level guards had different job assignments, and came to tell Zhuang Jin, just in time to see this scene.

"Brother Zhuang has mastered the basics of movement techniques? But if I remember correctly, he chose the Swift Wind Step!"

Luan Zhenyun had heard of the Swift Wind Step and knew that this movement technique was extremely difficult to master. He had even advised Zhuang Jin against it. He was surprised that Zhuang Jin had mastered it in such a short time and his eyes widened instantly.

"Brother Luan, want to give it a try?"

"Haha, very good. I'm just curious to see what secrets this swift entry technique holds!"

In his youth, Luan Zhenyun was also ruthless and brave. Now that he is old, he has calmed down and cultivated his character. However, his curiosity about the Swift Wind Step and the fighting spirit brought by Zhuang Jin's challenge have reignited the passion that had been dormant in his heart for a long time.

He used his own martial arts technique, Wild Goose Leap, and swept away in a flash.

Whoosh whoosh!
Under the starlight and moonlight, Zhuang Jin and Luan Zhenyun left afterimages as they fought around the sycamore tree in front of the door, starting from the ground and leaping up to the tree.

As the two clashed, their figures moved swiftly, shifting and changing. Withered branches and leaves fell continuously, and under the erosion of their strength, they were all reduced to dust, like raindrops exploding on a lake, appearing hazy under the starlight and moonlight.

"Brother Zhuang, this isn't enough, let's go to the pavilion!"

"it is good!"

The two lightly touched the ground with their toes and flew away quickly. A few breaths later, the bark of the sycamore tree behind them burst open with a series of crackling sounds, as the hidden energy that had seeped into it during their previous fight erupted.

Upon arriving at the pavilion, the two once again leaped and scaled the walls, landing on top of the pavilion. As they exchanged blows, each move produced a sharp, rustling sound.

"Sister Yun, Zhuang Zhenshou is amazing!" Yu Xiaoxiao came over and exclaimed in amazement beside Chen Yun.

The young servant Min Shang watched, clenching his fists in excitement. Who didn't dream of becoming a master when they were young?

Chen Yun didn't speak, but pursed her lips and stared intently at the figure that left a trail of afterimages under the starlight and moonlight, above the pavilion, in the dim light.

Over here, Zhuang Jin warned, "Brother Luan, be careful, I'm about to retaliate!"

"Hahaha, come on!"

At first, Zhuang Jin played cautiously on the defensive, but found that the Swift Wind Step made him slightly faster than Luan Zhenyun and he did not feel any pressure. So he switched from defense to offense and with his wide and open moves, he quickly suppressed Luan Zhenyun, a veteran of the Seven Classics.

The two fought from the top of the pavilion down into the pavilion, and then fought their way out, causing damage to the surrounding flowers and plants, with leaves flying everywhere.

A few moments later, after hundreds of moves.

Swish!
Luan Zhenyun quickly separated them, saying, "Stop fighting! Stop fighting! If we keep fighting, my old bones will fall apart!"

The real reason was: if we continued fighting, we would lose, and it would be too embarrassing for the old man.

"You brat, you're a real freak. You've reached the pinnacle of the Black Fiend Palm, haven't you? And you've even mastered the extremely difficult movement technique, Swift Wind Step... At the same level, Swift Wind Step is indeed a cut above other movement techniques. I'm afraid no one in the same realm can do anything to you. If you're so focused on running away, you probably won't be able to stop two or three of them..."

As Luan Zhenyun said, the Swift Wind Step is difficult to master. At the same level, it is indeed more comprehensive and better than other movement techniques. In battles at the same level, being faster gives you a significant advantage. As for walking, it is even more difficult for ordinary martial arts practitioners to catch up.

After this battle, Zhuang Jin had a clear understanding of his own strength and felt confident. He then flattered Luan, saying, "Brother Luan is still going strong despite his age; he put a lot of pressure on me just now..."

"My internal energy is merely more refined and pure, accumulated through the Seven Classics. My martial arts skills are far inferior to yours... You young people are impressive, no, it's you, this young man, who are impressive..."

Luan Zhenyun was amazed by Zhuang Jin's high comprehension and rapid growth, and exclaimed again, "I heard that with insufficient comprehension, it is difficult to even enter the Eight Scriptures Realm, but you... sigh, high comprehension is really good, it seems to be tailor-made for people like you."

In truth, to truly master the Swift Wind Technique within the Seven Scriptures, one needs exceptional comprehension, or rather, a comprehension level that isn't high enough. Zhuang Jin's situation is unique; he has no bottlenecks, which is why he was able to achieve this in such a short time. Other martial artists cannot imitate him. The two returned, and Chen Yun poured tea and brought out the warmed side dishes.

"correct,"

Luan Zhenyun drank a cup of tea and chatted for a while before suddenly slapping his forehead, remembering what he had come to say: "The Seven Classics are different from before. We need to go back to headquarters tomorrow afternoon to be assigned tasks in advance. If we are in the city, as the ward magistrate, we will have to go to a meeting this afternoon; the same goes for the district magistrate here in the medicinal fields."

This was so that on the first day of the new year, the ward magistrate could directly hold a meeting with the ward magistrates of the surrounding streets to convey instructions from above.

"I was on my way to the promotion that day because of the Miao Lun case, I didn't get to know the details and didn't know this at all... Thank you for letting me know, Brother Luan."

As Zhuang Jin spoke, he thought of the Eighth Prince's opportunity to become a personal guard, which had still not yielded any news, and was probably doomed to fail.

"Very well, becoming a young master's personal guard has two main advantages: first, it's safe within the Shen family headquarters; second, resources will be allocated preferentially."

"Firstly, it is indeed safer than first-tier areas like the north and south of the city. While it's peaceful on ordinary days, in a real emergency, it wouldn't be a minor incident. Secondly, regarding resource allocation, I don't have any bottlenecks and don't have a great need for high-end resources, which greatly reduces its value."

"Furthermore, becoming a bodyguard brings too much attention. My talent... will inevitably advance extremely quickly, which is too challenging for others. In the long run, the young masters I protect might all lose their composure."

Thinking about it this way, the so-called opportunity to become a bodyguard also had significant drawbacks for Zhuang Jin, so he didn't dwell on losing it and was quite 'open-minded' about it.

……

The following day, November 30th.

Zhuang Jin came over in the afternoon and ran into Xing Yan, who seemed to be waiting for him.

"Lord Xing..."

"Now that you are also a Seventh-Rank Guardian, we are of the same generation. If you are willing to give me face, just call me Brother Xing."

Xing Yan recounted his experience of becoming the Eighth Prince's personal guard: "I know you were also among those selected, Brother Zhuang. The General Affairs Department conducted an investigation and asked for my opinion, and I spoke well of you... In the end, it all fell to me, this..."

"It's alright, these things depend on fate, no wonder Brother Xing... Congratulations Brother Xing!"

At this moment, Zhuang Jin didn't think too much about it. With the idea of ​​"if I get him, I'm lucky; if I lose him, it's my fate," she didn't choose him. Perhaps it was because he was young and not as mature and stable as Xing Yan, whose resume was better?
"By the way, I'm not comfortable leaving Dongqiaowu in the north of the city to someone else. You're more familiar with it, and I have the qualifications to recommend you. I'd like to give it to you, Brother Zhuang. What do you think?"

"Thank you so much, Brother Xing!" Originally, a wave of those people with connections died in early October. If Zhuang Jin were still at the Six Classics level, he would most likely have continued to stay in the medicinal fields outside the city. But the problem is that he is now at the Seven Classics level and the Guard level, which is equivalent to the District Garrison level in the medicinal fields outside the city. There are really no vacancies.

They couldn't stay in the medicinal fields outside the city, and the good thing about the Shen family headquarters was just a dream. It was more likely that they would go to the north of the city. Since they were going to the north of the city, it would be best to stay in the familiar Dongqiaowu.

After talking for a while, they said goodbye to Xing Yan and then encountered Zou Qingfeng. This time, Zou Qingfeng was wearing a white robe, clearly having successfully broken through to the seventh meridian with the help of the 'enhanced version of the Meridian-Clearing Pill' and advanced to the level of a guard.

Congratulations, Zou Changsui!

"It was also luck that I was stuck at this bottleneck for so many years... Of course, I am most grateful to Town Guardian Zhuang... If it weren't for that perfect-level beast treasure that I refined into the Meridian Clearing Pill to enhance its effects, and the reward pill that I received, I wouldn't be where I am today..."

Zou Qingfeng exchanged a few polite and modest words, then paused before speaking of the opportunity to become a personal guard: "The Eighth Prince's personal guard, in the end, still... fell a little short."

Zhuang Jin already knew this in advance, so she was not disappointed and still expressed her gratitude.

As agreed, since the opportunity to become a bodyguard did not materialize, Zou Qingfeng was to pay for the "enhanced version of the Meridian-Clearing Pill" with silver, increasing the amount based on the merits earned in battle. This was essentially a gift of money.

This is also a good thing for Zhuang Jin, as it can reduce the consumption of battle merits—five taels of mid-grade Black Yuan Powder per dose, exotic beast meat to accelerate cultivation, and cultivation resources to increase dramatically. In just over twenty days, he has spent more than one hundred taels of silver, he is simply a money-devouring beast, and he needs to replenish his little treasury!
As he was leaving, Zou Qingfeng seemed to want to say something, but hesitated and stopped.

"Does Zou Changsui have something to say? Please speak frankly."

"nothing."

Zou Qingfeng paused slightly, then chuckled and said, "Does Magistrate Zhuang still remember Zhao Bin, the director of the Enforcement Division? He's being transferred to the south of the city next month. By the way, I won't be Eighth Young Master's personal attendant anymore next month; I'll be going to the Enforcement Division as a director. We might have to deal with each other again in the future, so let's get to know each other better and become closer!"

"That would be best, I couldn't ask for more!"

Zhuang Jin instinctively felt that Zou Qingfeng had said something else, but since he didn't say it, he probably had some concerns, unspeakable difficulties, or things he couldn't say. She kept it to herself and didn't show it on her face.

……

(End of this chapter)