Chapter 140 - 122: Not Worried
"This is so gratifying!"
"Uncle, you’ll never guess what happened today! I bet you can’t."
Huang Yuangu exclaimed gleefully the moment he got home and saw his uncle.
Huang Lie didn’t indulge him, immediately giving him a sharp flick on the forehead.
"Hmph. Trying to make fun of your uncle, are you? Spit it out, what is it?" Huang Lie asked with a frown.
"Uncle, do you know who the new Captain of the Guard Army is?"
Perhaps Huang Yuangu was just too overjoyed, as he started playing guessing games with Huang Lie.
But this only infuriated Huang Lie. He had been home recuperating these past few days.
Although he had escaped that day, he only realized upon returning that he had carelessly twisted his ankle.
It was utterly humiliating, so Huang Lie had been in a foul mood lately.
"Well then, Uncle, guess again. What do you think the relationship is between the new Captain and that Fang Yue? And also..."
"You damn bastard!"
Just as Huang Yuangu was about to continue, Huang Lie viciously slapped him across the face and then kicked him.
"You imbecile! You’ve got time to stand here running your mouth."
"If you weren’t so stupid, how would that Tea Garden have fallen into someone else’s hands? You moron! If you have something to say, spit it out! Don’t give me any more of this crap!"
Huang Yuangu hadn’t expected this at all and was caught completely off guard.
Of course, even if he had been on guard, he wouldn’t have been able to stop Huang Lie. His Cultivation Realm was far too inferior, leaving him no time to react before he was sent tumbling away like a gourd.
"Uncle, I was wrong!"
Huang Yuangu immediately begged for mercy and quickly recounted what had happened that day.
"You’re saying that Fang Hu has become the new Captain of the Guard Army for our Xiahe County? This complicates things."
"You imbecile, and you’re celebrating? What is there to celebrate?! Whether Liu Zheng would be willing to offend a Captain of the Guard Army over this Tea Garden, or whether the two sides might reconcile because of this—it’s all up in the air. You’re celebrating far too soon!"
After hearing the full account, Huang Lie thought that even though this Fang Hu had arrested Fang Yue’s friend, it wouldn’t necessarily affect their relationship.
’It’s not a bad scheme for sowing discord, but it might not work.’
’In this world, everything comes down to a balance of interests.’
"What an utter moron! How did I end up with such a stupid nephew!" Huang Lie was thoroughly exasperated by his nephew’s failure to live up to his potential.
He had injured his body practicing martial arts in his early years, so he had never married and, naturally, had no children.
In truth, he had always treated this nephew as his own son.
’How am I only now realizing just how foolish he is?’
"Then... then what should we do?"
Huang Yuangu thought about it and realized his uncle had a point. If Fang Hu acted as a buffer and the two parties reconciled, where would that leave him?
"Don’t worry. In a couple of days, an old friend of mine is coming to Xiahe County. Once I have him step in, this whole affair will be properly handled."
Huang Lie, in contrast, seemed calm and composed, looking as if he had the situation completely under control.
Huang Yuangu naturally had no objections—or rather, he didn’t dare have any.
If he angered his uncle and got beaten again, who could he possibly complain to?
After all, he was the one who had messed up first. Who would dare to plead his case now?
~~~~~~
「Meanwhile.」
"What did you say? Chubby was thrown in the County Magistrate’s Office jail?"
Fang Yue could hardly believe what the government constable before him was saying.
’Didn’t I just see him off? How could he have barely left before ending up in a Xiahe County prison?’
’Did Liu Zheng make his move?’
"That’s right. Lord Liu sent me here. He wishes to see Fang Wuju again." The government constable promptly relayed Liu Zheng’s message. This time, the meeting was to be at the County Magistrate’s Office.
’He definitely still wants to talk about the Tea Garden,’ Fang Yue thought. ’Only this time, there probably won’t be any pleasantries.’
’A meeting at the Government Office... this is an ultimatum.’
"I understand. Go back and tell Lord Liu I will be there on time." Fang Yue’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Killing intent toward Liu Zheng was already stirring in his heart, but he remained wary of the County Magistrate’s strength.
’This man was supposedly a genius in his youth, and his Martial Arts Realm later advanced. He seems to be a Qi Sensing Realm Martial Artist.’
’Qi Sensing... Qi Sensing... They say a Martial Artist’s strength undergoes an earth-shattering change after reaching the Qi Sensing Realm, far surpassing the Marrow Transformation Pass of the Four Martial Arts Gates. I wonder just how powerful that is.’
To this day, Fang Yue had never seen a Qi Sensing Realm Martial Artist in action. In fact, the only such experts he had ever heard of in all of Xiahe County Town were the Wei Family’s Patriarch, County Magistrate Liu Zheng, and a few other individuals.
As for their actual combat strength, he had neither seen nor heard anything about it.
’So, it seems I must continue to improve my own cultivation.’
Fang Yue immediately checked his Talent.
[Time is fleeting, but Heaven rewards diligence. Talent +1]
Right on cue, a line of text floated by.
[Talent: 2500]
’Perfect, it’s reached two thousand five hundred Points. My strength limit should have risen a little more.’
After a glance at his strength stat, Fang Yue headed straight for the backyard of his residence.
Although the main house was still being set up, the backyard had already been converted into a Martial Arts Arena.
Equipment for testing strength, like Stone Locks, had naturally been prepared in advance.
Fang Yue began testing his strength immediately.
’As I expected. My strength has now reached ten thousand jin. This should be the limit for Marrow Transformation, which means I have one-third of a thousand-jun force.’
Thirty jin equals one jun, meaning a thousand jun is thirty thousand jin.
Fang Yue now possessed a strength of ten thousand jin, exactly one-third of a thousand-jun force.
Most at Marrow Transformation Perfection had a strength between seven and eight thousand jin; only a rare few with high Talent could exceed nine thousand.
Ten thousand jin was the absolute limit of this stage, a feat impossible for those without exceptional Talent.
And yet, his own Marrow Transformation was far from Perfection, which meant his strength still had room to grow.
’It seems that in this world, no matter what, one must command true power,’ he thought. ’I can’t let up for even a moment. If I were at the Qi Sensing Realm right now, would Liu Zheng still dare to be so brazen?’
’For that matter, that uncle-nephew duo, Huang Yuangu and Huang Lie, would be too terrified to even think about taking the Tea Garden back.’
Fang Yue reflected quietly.
Strength reigns supreme. This was a universal truth, no matter the world.
It was true in his past life, and it was even more so in this one.
Therefore, he could not afford to be complacent.
Ultimately, everything came down to one priority: raising his Cultivation Realm.
Of course, as for Bai Xingqiu’s safety, Fang Yue wasn’t actually worried. His friend came from an extraordinary background. Though he hadn’t elaborated, Chubby was a powerful figure even in Shanyang Prefecture City; a place like Xiahe County was no threat to him.
’When the time comes, I’m eager to see what excuses Liu Zheng will have.’
His decision made, Fang Yue resumed his cultivation.