Breaking Limits in Martial Arts: Grinding Your Way to Becoming a Martial Saint in a Chaotic Era

At lunchtime, the kitchen staff, as usual, served Xu Qing a large bowl full of meat.

Braised pork belly and poached eggs, glistening with oil, the steam carrying the aroma of meat wafted everywhere, drawing the attention of all the fellow apprentices in the courtyard.

"Eating meat again..." someone muttered in a low voice from the corner. "What's the use of someone who can't even reach the internal strength level eating so well?"

"That's right, it's like lighting a lamp for a blind person, a waste of time," another person chimed in, their chopsticks making a clanging sound as they poked at the bowl.

Shh, keep your voice down, someone heard you.

"So what if I heard it? I'm just telling the truth. The martial arts school's money doesn't grow on trees, and we're wasting it on people like this..."

The sound was neither too loud nor too soft, just enough to reach Xu Qing's ears.

Xu Qing held the bowl, eating without changing his expression. He took a bite of meat, then a bite of a large white steamed bun, chewing carefully and swallowing steadily. It was as if those words were just a few flies buzzing past his ears, not worth shooing away.

Qin Liang sat next to him, his mouth stuffed with cabbage and tofu, and mumbled, "These people are just jealous. You've mastered the basics of stance training in half an incense stick's time, can they do that? No. So they can only indulge in empty talk."

Xu Qing smiled but didn't reply. She put a piece of meat from her bowl into Qin Liang's bowl.

Qin Liang's eyes lit up, he chuckled twice, stuffed a mouthful into his mouth, his cheeks puffed out like a toad, and chewed for a long time with his eyes squinted, reluctant to swallow.

......

In the corner, Zhou Wen and Xu Qing sat facing each other on the stone mill.

Zhou Wen rummaged through the cabbage and tofu in his bowl, picking and choosing with his chopsticks, his eyes filled with a hint of mockery as he gestured towards Xu Qing with his lip.

"Junior Brother Xu, Senior Brother Wu has made it clear that the news from the inner courtyard is true. Your cousin who fishes is at most a Ming Jin."

He lowered his voice, a hint of schadenfreude in his tone: "See? Senior Brother Wu doesn't even look at him properly anymore."

Xu Qing did not respond.

He seemed a bit distracted today; he poked around in his bowl a few times with his chopsticks but didn't eat much.

Yesterday, when he returned home from his day off, his mother, Tong, pulled him aside with an unusually worried expression on her face and told him something: Chen Jiang from Qingjiao Hall had gone to his second uncle's steamed bun shop and caused trouble again, and almost got into a fight.

His mother also said that Chen Jiang would harass the shop every few days, and as the business was getting worse, many of his old customers were afraid to come anymore.

When Xu Qing heard this, his heart skipped a beat.

It wasn't out of pity for his second uncle and aunt; rather, he had his calculations crystal clear: his second uncle's steamed bun shop wasn't doing well, so they were making less money. Less money meant less money for him to spend in the future. That was all his money; how could he let someone else ruin it?

As soon as he arrived at the martial arts school this morning, he told Wu Mingyuan about it.

The Wu family was a prominent clan in the county, and the Qingjiao Hall dared not provoke them. As long as Wu Mingyuan was willing to say a word, Chen Jiang was sure he would never dare to act recklessly again.

In Xu Qing's view, this was just a matter of Wu Mingyuan saying a few words, as simple as farting.

After listening, Wu Mingyuan only glanced at him indifferently and said "I know," in a lukewarm tone, leaving it unclear whether he agreed or not.

Xu Qing was very anxious and couldn't concentrate on practicing his boxing all morning.

"Junior Brother Xu, I'm talking to you." Zhou Wen waved his chopsticks in front of him, teasing with a smile, "Why aren't you happy? Are you worried about your cousin? Tsk tsk, you two really have a deep brotherly bond..."

Xu Qing's expression changed, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, and his voice came out stiffly from his throat:

"Senior Brother Zhou, you know perfectly well that I have absolutely no connection with that fisherman. He eats and drinks at my second uncle's house, and I'm the one who wants to settle accounts with him." He paused, then added, "Who does he think he is?"

"Then why are you looking so gloomy?"

"It's nothing." Xu Qing picked up his bowl, took a mouthful of rice, and changed the subject. The rice stuck in his mouth; he chewed for a long time but couldn't swallow it.

……

After finishing her meal, Xu Qing changed into clean clothes, left the martial arts school, and headed towards her aunt's steamed bun shop.

Before he even reached the steamed bun shop, he spotted that disgusting figure in the distance—

Chen Jiang.

The man was leaning against the counter of the steamed bun shop, with half of his buttocks resting on the counter. His face was flushed, and the smell of alcohol could be detected from half a street away.

He had a toothpick in his mouth, his legs crossed, one foot shaking, and he was saying something with a grin.

His eyes kept glancing at Xu Yan, his gaze like that of a mangy dog ​​eyeing a bone, sticky and impossible to shake off.

Xu Yan buried herself in her work, her face ashen, her lips pressed tightly together, refusing to even glance at him.

Xu Cheng stood to the side, a stiff smile plastered on his face, repeatedly apologizing: "Master Chen, please be magnanimous. Yan'er is just being silly, please don't take it to heart. Please help yourself to the steamed buns. I'll make you a few big meat buns to take home..."

"Immature?" Chen Jiang chuckled, pulling the toothpick from his mouth and flicking it on the counter. The toothpick bounced and fell to the floor. He reached out to touch Xu Yan's face. "Immature is what needs teaching. Yan'er, come here, let me teach you..."

Xu Yan dodged abruptly, slamming the rag in her hand onto the counter with a "smack," splashing water all over Chen Jiang's face, which then trickled down his nose.

Chen Jiang's expression changed.

He wiped his face, slowly dried his hands on his clothes, and the smile on his face vanished completely.

He flashed a set of yellow teeth, sneered, and said in a voice reeking of alcohol, "Xu Yan, don't push your luck. It's your good fortune that I even noticed you! Let me tell you, my brother-in-law is the vice-leader of the gang! Even if I sleep with you right now, nobody will dare say a word against it!"

His voice was so loud it sounded like he was deliberately speaking to the whole street.

Several pedestrians hurried past the shop, heads down, pretending not to see anything. The onlookers quickly looked away, pretending to be busy with their work and that they hadn't heard anything.

Xu Yan's face turned pale instantly, her lips trembled, and her eyes reddened, but she stubbornly refused to let the tears fall.

"Mr. Chen, you've had too much to drink. Please sit down and I'll pour you a cup of tea—" Xu Cheng suppressed his anger, his voice trembling, but he still reached out to grab Chen Jiang's arm.

"Get out of here!"

Chen Jiang shoved Xu Cheng away, his hand landing squarely on Xu Cheng's chest.

Xu Cheng staggered a couple of steps, tripped, and slammed his lower back against the door frame with a thud.

He was in so much pain that he was grimacing and his face turned pale. He was leaning against the door frame with one hand and couldn't straighten up for a long time.

With red eyes, Xu Yan ran into the inner room, the curtain slamming shut with a loud "slap," as if she had been slapped in the face.

Chen Jiang spat at the curtain and cursed, "stinking woman," "slut," and "ungrateful wretch," each word sounding like it had been pulled from a cesspool—stinky and venomous.

He shoved Xu Cheng hard again, causing Xu Cheng to bump into the doorframe once more, before staggering away, muttering, "You shameless bastard... I'll come back tomorrow..."

Xu Qing stood motionless in the shadows of the alley, like a wooden stake nailed to the ground.

He watched Chen Jiang's departing figure, swaying and staggering like a maggot that had eaten its fill. He watched his uncle slowly straighten up, leaning against the doorframe. He watched his aunt peek out from the inner room, her eyes red and tears streaming down her face.

His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white and his fingers cracked.

He had murderous intent!

It was anger, it was hatred, it was that cold, unwavering determination that seeped from the very marrow of one's bones.

However, now is not the time. The streets are crowded; it's not a place to make a move. He can't do it here either. He can't implicate his aunt and uncle.

He took a deep breath, suppressed the fire in his chest, and etched that face, that name, deep into his bones.

Then he turned and disappeared into the alley.

He didn't return to the martial arts school all afternoon.

He followed Chen Jiang like a shadow.

Chen Jiangxin wandered around several streets in the western part of the city and collected protection money from several shops.

He went into another tavern, ordered a pot of wine and two side dishes, and drank by himself for half an hour. When he came out, his face was even redder, he started to stagger, and he was humming an off-key tune.

He then turned into an alley and knocked a few times on a door. A heavily made-up woman opened the door, laughing as she pulled him inside. The door closed, and from inside came giggles and the clinking of wine bowls.

When Chen Jiang came out, it was already dark.

He put his arm around the woman's waist, touched her face, and swayed away. The woman leaned against the doorframe, waved her handkerchief at him, and turned to go inside.

Xu Qing followed from a distance.

Chen Jiang walked two more streets before turning into a quieter alley and entering a small courtyard.

Xu Qing stared for a long time, but there was no more movement in the courtyard. There were no human voices, no barking dogs, no one going in or out. Only Chen Jiang lived in the courtyard.

He didn't act impulsively. It wasn't completely dark yet, and there were still people on the street; it wasn't the time to kill.

He stood at the alley entrance, memorizing the surrounding terrain. Several exits, several forks in the road, where to hide, where to climb over the wall.

Then he turned and walked towards the martial arts school.

On the way back to the martial arts school, the night wind was cool, blowing on his face, but it couldn't extinguish the fire in his heart.

His steps were steady, his breathing was even, and his face was expressionless.