Ten Thousand Sword Masters

As soon as Zhang Jianyun arrived at Cangxi Pavilion, Liu Fei took him to the martial arts training ground.

"There's no mission yet, so I'll teach you the Nine Star Guard's kung fu. Let's start with fist techniques. I'll demonstrate the Falling Phoenix Fist for you, so watch carefully."

As Liu Fei spoke, he leaped into the training ground. Without even moving around, he immediately began practicing the Rising Phoenix Fist after a basic stance.

Hoo hoo ha!

Liu Fei's punches were fierce, each move powerful, which stirred Zhang Jianyun's blood.

After a short while, Liu Fei withdrew his fist, took a few breaths, and said with a hearty laugh, "How about it? Not bad, right?"

"Impressive! Impressive! Quickly hand over the Falling Phoenix Fist to me!" Zhang Jianyun said eagerly.

Seeing Zhang Jianyun's eagerness, Liu Fei smiled with satisfaction: "This Falling Phoenix Fist has a total of twelve moves. I just showed you the first four moves, because I only know these four moves myself, so these are the only four moves I'll teach you."

Zhang Jianyun was somewhat disappointed upon hearing this, "Then how will I learn the moves from now on?"

"The Falling Phoenix Fist is a basic manual of the Nine Star Guards, and it's provided for free. You can get it from Old Man Du and learn it on your own. Of course, if you're skilled enough, you can ask Boss Yang to teach you; he's already learned eight moves," Liu Fei said.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jianyun asked with some confusion, "Provided for free? Does that mean some of the manuals aren't free?"

"Of course, some secret manuals aren't free. Like the Zhou Tian Heart Sutra that Boss Yang gave you, it's not free. It costs 500 taels of silver, and only the Pavilion Master and the Councilors are qualified to buy it. The clerks and soldiers aren't qualified to buy it." Liu Fei said, glancing greedily at Zhang Jianyun's arms.

"The Pavilion Master has truly treated me well," Zhang Jianyun thought to himself. Then, seeing Liu Fei's greedy expression, he laughed, "I'll show you the secret manual in a bit."

Upon hearing this, Liu Fei was greatly alarmed: "You mustn't! The martial arts skills that each member of the Nine Star Guard cultivates are recorded in the official documents and reported to the state government. Non-free manuals cannot be circulated. If you obtain a non-free manual, you absolutely cannot show it to others. If others learn it and it becomes known, you will also be implicated."

Zhang Jianyun was somewhat surprised to hear this, not expecting there to be so many rules.

Suddenly, Liu Fei chuckled: "But once you become the Pavilion Master or a Councilor, you can openly reward your subordinates with these secret manuals, just like how Boss Yang rewarded you. You can reward me with them too."

Zhang Jianyun was speechless upon hearing this: "Don't say things like that. I'm just a junior soldier who just joined the company."

"Hehe, I won't say, I won't say, but I can look forward to it myself," Liu Fei said with a silly grin.

"Enough with the small talk, teach me already," Zhang Jianyun urged.

Immediately, Liu Fei began teaching Zhang Jianyun the first four moves of the Falling Phoenix Fist, and Zhang Jianyun learned them diligently.

"The first move, 'The Young Phoenix Emerges from the Nest,' emphasizes speed; the raising of the hand and the throwing of the punch must be swift..."

"The second move, 'Phoenix Cries in the Pond,' emphasizes stability; don't show weakness when boxing..."

"The third move, Phoenix Soars to the Nine Heavens, emphasizes accuracy; every punch must land on the opponent's vital points..."

"The fourth move, Phoenix Turns Spring and Autumn, emphasizes ruthlessness. It doesn't strike unless it's absolutely necessary, but when it does, blood will surely be shed..."

Following Liu Fei's demonstration and explanation, Zhang Jianyun began to practice meticulously.

Before I knew it, the morning had passed.

"Alright, stop now, it's lunchtime, let's go to the cafeteria." Liu Fei stopped Zhang Jianyun from boxing, and then the two walked side by side to the cafeteria.

"The food in this cafeteria is different every day, but it's the same every week. Every week is the same," Liu Fei complained.

Zhang Jianyun asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"The meals are different from Monday to Friday, but they repeat every week. In other words, you eat the same thing every Monday until Friday," Liu Fei explained.

Zhang Jianyun shrugged. He didn't care much about the food in this world; it was just something to fill his stomach.

Upon arriving at the canteen, there were five large bowls containing stir-fried cabbage with tofu, stir-fried bamboo shoots, boiled eggplant, stir-fried pork with chili peppers, and stir-fried twice-cooked pork. Everyone could add vegetables as needed.

After getting the food, Zhang Jianyun felt it was more plentiful than the food at home. He tasted it and found it to be ordinary, but enough to fill his stomach.

"Old Zhu, can you change up the menu? I'm tired of it." Holding a spoon, Liu Fei looked at the dishes but didn't want to scoop any out; he seemed to have no appetite.

The cafeteria cook, Zhu Laoliu, grinned at Liu Fei but didn't say anything.

Helpless, Liu Fei simply scooped up some cabbage and stir-fried tofu, then sat down next to Zhang Jianyun, somewhat angrily.

"Damn it, I've been eating your fill for weeks," Liu Fei cursed. "You should eat less. I'll take you out for a big meal after get off work."

"What kind of feast?" Zhang Jianyun asked curiously.

Liu Fei said in a mysterious whisper, "You'll find out when the time comes."

Seeing that Liu Fei didn't say anything, Zhang Jianyun didn't ask any more questions. He buried his head and finished all the food in his bowl, even adding a spoonful of rice, since he still had to practice boxing in the afternoon.

After a short rest following their meal, Zhang Jianyun went to the training ground to continue practicing his boxing. Liu Fei wanted to take a nap, so he was told to practice on his own first.

"The First Move: The Young Phoenix Emerges from the Nest"

Zhang Jianyun shouted out the moves, demonstrating each one by one. At this point, he could only make vague gestures. He hadn't even mastered the tricks of generating power in the moves, let alone grasped their essence.

Not long after, Liu Fei returned to the training ground after resting. Watching Zhang Jianyun demonstrate his moves, he began to correct him one by one.

"Wrong, bend your wrist down a little..."

"Stop, you need to move your arm to land this punch..."

"The direction is off, move a little to the right..."

As Liu Fei corrected his mistakes one by one, time quickly came to the end of the workday.

"Alright, it's time to go home. Remember not to rush your martial arts practice, take it one step at a time. Go back and change out of your uniform, then wait for me at Jiaxing Restaurant," Liu Fei said. "By the way, you know where Jiaxing Restaurant is, right?"

Zhang Jianyun was a little confused upon hearing this, and for a moment he really couldn't remember where Jiaxing Restaurant was.

"You've gone mad from practicing martial arts. Jiaxing Restaurant is on Phoenix Street where your dad has his stall. Just tell me your name when you get there," Liu Fei said speechlessly.

After returning home, I changed my clothes, told my mother Cao Fen, and headed to Jiaxing Restaurant.

Upon arriving at Phoenix Street, Zhang Jianyun saw his father selling shoes and walked over with a smile. "Dad, how's business today?"

"Not bad. What brings you here?" Zhang Song asked.

"Liu Fei said he'd like to invite me to dinner at Jiaxing Restaurant," Zhang Jianyun said casually.

"You have to pay for every meal you eat at. Jiaxing Restaurant is quite expensive. Can you afford to treat us to meals in the future?" Zhang Song said seriously.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jianyun was momentarily at a loss for words, then awkwardly replied, "I'll be able to afford it sometime."

After saying that, he hurriedly left his father's stall and headed towards Jiaxing Restaurant.

As soon as he entered Jiaxing Restaurant, a waiter greeted him, "Sir, how many are in your party?"

"Where is Liu Fei's room?" Zhang Jianyun asked.

"He's a friend of Lord Liu. This is the elegant private room on the second floor," the waiter said respectfully.

Immediately, Zhang Jianyun went up to the second floor, found the elegant room, and pushed the door open to enter.

Upon entering, Zhang Jianyun immediately saw Liu Fei in his seat, and a refined-looking middle-aged man sitting next to him.