Martial Arts Awakening, Bloodfire Fist Master

[Daliquan racked his brains, momentarily at a loss. "Fine," he thought, "let's see if carrying bags can be applied to boxing techniques..." Daliquan was desperate and grasping at straws...]

Listening to Dali Quan's monologue, Zhang Qingshan understood perfectly.

The Six Powerful Techniques he acquired were merely the foundation of the basic boxing techniques that Brother Xu had learned when he was a county militiaman.

Zhou Biao trained his whole life and only reached the first level of martial artist. Most people could only watch it with curiosity and could hardly learn real power from it. It was only because of his innate spiritual talent that he was able to develop a different kind of powerful fist, which allowed him to reach his current level so quickly.

To continue making progress, we may need to explore other paths.

In addition, although he was a level two martial artist, he did not know much about the common knowledge of martial arts and was the type to learn by doing without knowledge.

I didn't gain much martial arts knowledge from practicing boxing with Zhou Biao, but I did hear some people talk about the layout of Qingshui City.

Qingshui City is divided into an inner city and an outer city, modeled after the layout of the giant city of Shenghai, which is 800 li away.

Zhang Qingshan knew that there were also many intertwined forces in the outer city, mainly consisting of three halls, three gangs, one constable, one battalion, and one association.

The three schools are: Shentui Martial Arts School, Qinghe Martial Arts School, and Zhixiang Martial Arts School.

The three gangs are the Clear Water Gang, the Mountain Forest Gang, and the Little Green Gang.

One constable is the outer city constable, one battalion is the Qingshui garrison battalion, and one association is the Qingshui Chamber of Commerce.

Among these major forces, there are certainly strong and weak ones, but Zhang Qingshan cannot know for sure who is stronger or weaker.

One useful piece of information is that ten taels of silver can be used to train at a martial arts school for three months.

Ten taels of silver for only three months—how could an ordinary person dare to dream of that? Theoretically, one could secretly save money for a lifetime and let their child try it, but with so many wolves and tigers around, problems would arise here or there, and one would be exploited there. How could one save money with peace of mind?

Zhang Qingshan was thinking about all this while carrying the large bag.

Even if he loses focus for a moment now, it won't be a problem. Even if someone deliberately bumps into him, it will be the other person who falls.

Thinking of this, his gaze fell on a certain person—Qi Dashi.

Zhang Qingshan's indifferent gaze met the other person's eyes, and then Qi Dashi hurriedly and guiltily turned his head away.

His heart was cold, and he didn't touch him. It wasn't because he pitied him for being forced by Master Ma, nor because he felt that he was also a person with a hard life. It was simply because if he died, people would think of himself and Lao Liu.

Zhang Qingshan is not a magnanimous person; he believes in repaying kindness and avenging wrongs.

Oh, and Zhang Qingshan also wrote down the manager of that trading company in his little notebook.

No rush, take your time.

[Mighty Fist was also comforting himself, telling himself not to rush. His understanding of the Six Forms of Might was still improving. As long as he practiced diligently and steadily, he would eventually be able to perfect the Six Forms of Might in three to five years, or at the latest ten to eight years. With that perfect understanding, he would most likely reach the third level of the Mighty Realm in martial arts.]

[The Mighty Fist couldn't help but have other ideas. To accelerate its growth, it came up with a method: to obtain ten thousand taels of silver, representing a portion of the worldly power of humanity. Using this silver as travel expenses, it could withstand external calamities and visit other Mighty Fists in Clear Water City. There was a high probability it could find a way forward. If it had hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of taels of silver for travel expenses and favors, the Mighty Fist could travel even further, perhaps even finding its ancestor and obtaining the complete inheritance of the tenth level of divine power.]

Zhang Qingshan felt that Dali Quan had become arrogant; one doesn't know the cost of living until one is in charge.

Returning ten thousand taels of silver, or even a hundred thousand, a million, or ten million, who do they think they are? They truly regard money as dirt.

[The powerful punch abandons illusions, reflecting... reflecting...]

[My powerful punch feels weak; my foundation is too shallow...]

This information also made Zhang Qingshan realize that as long as he had money, he could find a way to develop his own skills. The saying "money can make the devil turn the millstone" was indeed true.

When it was time to pay wages, the agent hummed a song as he continued to deduct wages, while glancing at the laborer who was pouting and trying to say something. He smiled disdainfully: "Heh, I'm still more merciful than that dead dog Ma Junfeng, aren't I? Don't fucking be unconvinced, do you really think I have no temper?"

The laborer immediately dared only to nod and bow.

Seeing this, Zhang Qingshan understood that the Qingshui Gang members really didn't take the death of the man surnamed Ma to heart.

Only three to five days later, these people stopped even bothering with the pretense.

In some cases, it's clear they're pleased, perhaps because they've benefited from the Ma family's actions.

Since that's the case, I can relax a bit.

.......

Back in the shack, he took out the ring hidden in the crack of the roof, and then headed to some streets in the outer city. After walking around for a while, he arrived at the other side of the outer city and first found an ordinary clothing shop, where he bought a decent set of coarse cloth clothes with the few coins he had.

He found a place to change, and then his expression changed. He was no longer honest and simple, but had a sharp glint in his eyes, stood tall and walked with strength. Occasionally, he would frown and glance around, causing the roadside vendors to greet him with smiles. He had an air of being someone not to be trifled with.

He was a completely different person from Zhang Qingshan, the laborer wearing an earthy yellow coat.

There's no need for disguise at this moment. Even if you walk right past your neighbors in the shack, they probably won't notice unless they stare at your face and look closely. That's when they'll realize that you look just like their laborer neighbor, Brother Zhang.

After her appearance changed drastically, she went to a small pawnshop.

"Smack!" A hand slammed down on the thick countertop, unleashing a force of several hundred pounds, leaving what appeared to be a faint mark on the wood.

The pawnshop owner was startled. This was a martial artist, and he dared not be negligent. "Sir, what brings you here? Hehe, my nephew is a formal disciple of the Divine Leg Martial Arts School, and also a martial artist with many brothers and friends. This young master, perhaps you know him..."

This was to show that they were not to be trifled with, fearing that Zhang Qingshan might have ulterior motives.

Zhang Qingshan glared at the other party: "Stop talking nonsense, I'm short of money. Look at this thing, how much can I get if I pawn it?"

The shopkeeper picked up the thumb ring, examined it, and said cautiously:

"Sir, the jade quality of this thumb ring isn't top-notch; it's just passable. The carving is also quite ordinary. Hmm, how about this, I'll give you face and offer you eight silver dollars?"

Zhang Qingshan stared at him fiercely.

"Sir, I'm not exaggerating. My pawnshop is honest and fair to all, young and old. We would never cheat or swindle anyone out of a bargain."

Zhang Qingshan continued to stare at him fiercely, then slammed his hand on the counter again: "Don't fucking try that on me. Take thirteen, no, at least fifteen silver dollars. I spent thirty silver dollars to get them back then. If I weren't in such a hurry to turn things around, why would I sell them to you at a discount?"

"Hurry up, I'm in a rush to recoup my losses, they're waiting over there."

The pawnshop owner hesitated for a moment, then looked at the wooden mark Zhang Qingshan had made, a look of worry and fear flashing across his face.

He sighed, "Alas, I'll have to take a slight loss today, but consider it a small favor to have made a friend like you."

He counted out the silver dollars, hesitated for a moment, and then handed them over. "Sir, this is a pawn document. Please stamp it..." Zhang Qingshan picked up the silver dollars one by one, weighed them in his hand. They were quite heavy. Then he sneered and turned to leave.

At this moment, the waiter who was wiping the tables and chairs nearby quickly came over, looking terrified.

"This man is too fierce! How can anyone do this? Manager, should we inform the Second Master?"

The shopkeeper's helpless sigh disappeared, replaced by a smug expression.

"Fierce? Just a gambler who's all bark and no bite. Heh, nothing but a brute. If this ring is properly maintained, it can easily sell for twenty or thirty silver dollars. If there were more people like this who come to my door with money, I wouldn't mind being 'fierce' all the time."

The waiter realized what was happening and gave the shopkeeper a thumbs up, saying, "You're the best!"

"Hehe, you should learn from him, but when it comes to making money, you still have to go to those gambling dens. This brute's wealth has probably made them richer."

Selling it for fifteen silver dollars was already beyond Zhang Qingshan's expectations.

Master Ma truly died a worthy death. Zhang Qingshan has no regrets that his family's assets have been seized by others. It is precisely because those assets have diverted attention that no one really cares about his death. He himself does not yet have the strength to contend with the Qingshui Gang.

I had intended to wear this outfit back, but after thinking about it, I found a corner and changed back into my laborer's clothes and demeanor.

As they hurried back to their lodgings, they pondered what lay ahead.

The team behind Mighty Fist is currently facing growth difficulties, so it can't rely entirely on its cheat codes; it also needs to develop its own revenue streams.

Twenty silver dollars, or twenty taels of silver, is enough to do a lot of things.

"You seem to be called Zhang Qing... Shan. Why haven't you come to practice your boxing these days? Let me tell you, the path of martial arts is like rowing against the current. If you want to change your destiny, you have to persevere. Don't be stingy with those ten copper coins."

Zhang Qingshan looked up and saw that it was Zhou Biao, the boxing instructor. Zhou was carrying a stack of braised meat and looking at him with dissatisfaction.

"Listen to Master Zhou, we'll continue tomorrow. Putting everything else aside, just follow me, and I can say hello to any big shot on the street, and no one will dare to bully you..." At the same time, he patted Zhang Qingshan's shoulder with his left hand.

Zhang Qingshan deftly dodged to the side. "Master Zhou, let's talk about it in a couple of days."

Zhou Biao stared at Zhang Qingshan's retreating figure with suspicion and uncertainty. Then he raised his own hand, his expression shifting. "Could it be that I've been drinking too much and my basic skills have deteriorated?"

"Also, why does this kid seem less naive and weak-willed than before?"