“I even know who the real culprit is!”
“But what if I know?”
“With the strength the Tong Family has shown, giving you a family bucket is no harder than killing a chicken.”
“Just like Qin Wuye and his family of six…”
Liu Sheng’s mind raced with thoughts. He reached out and pressed Zhao Lei’s shoulder, motioning for him to look at Zhao Family Sister-in-Law, who was holding Gou Wa at the door:
“Stone Ge, it’s windy outside. Your sister-in-law and Gou Wa are waiting for you!”
“……”
Zhao Lei looked at his wife and son, as if doused with cold water. His lips moved a few times, then he nodded silently.
“I hope Stone Ge doesn’t get a hot head…”
Liu Sheng sighed, withdrew his gaze, and carried his buckets home.
The deaths of Qin Wuye, Changgen Shu, and Er Niu were inextricably linked, and now their entire families had been silenced by Tong Bapi’s men…
Clearly, the Tong Family was inseparable from the near annihilation of the village’s hunting team, or at least they knew some inside information.
But the prerequisite for seeking justice was having sufficient strength and confidence.
What’s more, Qin Wuye was playing with a Tiger Demon; his end was somewhat…
Self-inflicted.
—
As the morning light first touched them, the mountains, like dark brows, faintly appeared in a soft blue.
“Hoo!”
“Suck!”
Liu Sheng stood by the window, his body like a crouching fierce Tiger Demon, his face contorted into a ferocious expression from the effort.
These past two days, he had been standing in his stance for longer and longer periods. Especially today, he had stood for an hour or so, yet he felt no fatigue.
This was because a wisp of ‘misty Qi’ as fine as a strand of hair was rising from his feet, autonomously circulating throughout his body.
Wherever it went, it felt like being soaked in hot water, warm and comfortable, and also like a strong little hand kneading and relaxing his muscles.
It felt incredibly refreshing!
The only pity was that this wisp of ‘misty Qi’ could only be sensed at present and could not be controlled by his will.
“Is this sensing Qi? Am I now considered to have entered the Dao, becoming a Martial Artist?”
A moment later, Liu Sheng exhaled and ended his practice, smoke rising from his head, sweat pouring like a gush, and a muffled rumble in his abdomen, like a Tiger’s Roar.
He recalled what Master Wu had said this morning when he was ‘peeking at martial arts,’ and his eyes gleamed.
According to him, in the few days after entering the Qi and Blood Realm through stance training and sensing Qi and blood, one’s Physique would experience its first significant improvement…
Ultimately, one’s strength could reach three hundred jin, enough to draw a hard bow of one stone and fire continuously!
“Three hundred jin of strength…”
He wiped the sweat from his body, went outside, and grabbed the rim of the water Cylinder under the eaves.
He exerted force!
The half-full water Cylinder swayed a few times, slowly lifted a few inches off the ground, and then fell back to its original spot.
This water Cylinder was made of coarse pottery, weighing about sixty to seventy jin empty. With the half-full clear water inside, it was roughly over two hundred jin.
“After a few days when things stabilize, my strength might increase to around four hundred jin?”
Liu Sheng’s lips curved upwards, feeling great—
【Name】: Liu Sheng
【Dao Fruit】: Seventy-Two Transformations
【Talent】: Magpie Eyes, Heaven-Born Swordsman
【Cultivation】: Qi and Blood Realm (Entry Level)
【Incarnation】: Blade-tailed Finch (Can invest spiritual essence for further deduction)
【Spiritual Essence】: 5
Most importantly, he could finally refine the second Incarnation and further deduce the Blade-tailed Finch Incarnation!
This would give him more confidence when facing the Tong Family and the increasingly severe Tiger Demon disaster.
These past few days, the hottest topic in the village was the Tiger Demon disaster in the mountains.
Not only Baishui Village, but also several surrounding villages like Erhe Village and Qiaodong Village suffered, with many hunters perishing in the Tiger Demon’s maw.
Yesterday, that Tiger Spirit even broke into Qiaodong Village, eating several people before leaving.
For a time, Black Wind Mountain became a Forbidden Land, and villagers nearby were all in danger, turning pale at the mention of the Tiger Demon.
Changgen Shu and Er Niu ultimately didn’t make it. Like Er Zhu’s family and the other two, their funerals were held one after another.
Liu Sheng followed Grandma to contribute to the funeral expenses and personally witnessed what it meant to “prey on the widowed and orphaned.”
After his death, Zhou Heizi’s family was left with only a widowed mother and an orphaned daughter, targeted by Qian Da and Qian Er from the village.
These two brothers were notorious ruffians in the village, idle all day, stealing chickens and dogs.
Previously, when the original Liu Sheng had an accident, they had also tried to scheme against the Liu family but were severely taught a lesson by Zhao Lei, which made them behave.
This time, they similarly set their sights on the Zhou family, even planning to take both the people and their wealth in one swoop.
Liu Apo couldn’t stand it and spoke a few words, upon which the two immediately turned hostile, rolling up their sleeves to fight…
As a result, Liu Sheng gave them a series of punches, directly beating them to their knees, begging for mercy, even more severely than Zhao Lei had taught them last time.
Afterward, Liu Sheng followed Zhao Lei on a few rounds around the periphery of Black Wind Mountain, mastering many hunting skills, and bringing back twenty to thirty jin of game every day.
This completely solidified what Liu Apo called his “Awakening.”
Otherwise, how could he explain the changes in his body?
Awakening was enough to explain everything.
From then on, no one dared to look down on their grandparents and grandson, and the villagers’ attitude became much more polite, greeting them with smiles.
The only side effect was that Zhou Family’s Sister-in-law would always come to their house to help with chores afterward…
Washing clothes, cooking, skinning and drying meat, various chores—she did them quickly and well, and refused any payment.
Thus, some unsavory rumors began to spread in the village…
Liu Sheng roughly guessed Zhou Family’s Sister-in-law’s intentions.
Whether she was truly interested or just borrowing his (Liu’s) influence for protection…
He didn’t take it to heart and didn’t care.
After experiencing the “certain cat” ideology in his previous life, he had completely liberated his mind and firmly embarked on the path of “Awakening.”
Don’t initiate, don’t refuse, don’t take responsibility.
What’s more, Grandma was getting old, and having someone help with housework was not bad. His only cost was a bit of reputation and some food.
“What should I choose for the second Incarnation?”
Liu Sheng closed the panel, returned to the house, and fell into deep thought.
The first Incarnation, Blade-tailed Finch, had excellent mobility, making it convenient for reconnaissance, scouting, monitoring, and sneak attacks.
The two talents it bestowed gave Liu Sheng terrifying dynamic vision and a powerful instinct for bladed weapons.
In contrast, what he currently lacked most was the ability for frontal confrontation.
“Only by being alive can one output. The second Incarnation should ideally be thick-skinned and tough, with very strong defensive capabilities…”
Images of elephants, bears, cattle, and turtles appeared in Liu Sheng’s mind.
Actually, what best met his expectations were things of metal and stone, but for such inanimate objects to develop spirits, they would at least need to become spirits first…
That was beyond his current reach.
Excluding the less likely options, his choices were actually limited to only four types: wild boars, cattle, turtles, and bears.
There were large wild boars and black bears on the mountain, but now with the Tiger Demon disaster, he couldn’t go there.
Moreover, cattle were too expensive, costing over ten taels each, which he couldn’t afford.
So, only one option remained…
Turtle… Man?
Liu Sheng’s breathing hitched, and his eyelids twitched.
That name… was very unsettling.
However, if he could gain the turtle’s defense and longevity talents, it wasn’t entirely unacceptable.
All in all, he still had to make a trip to the city and, while he was at it, harvest another wave of spiritual essence points.
Just then, there was a commotion outside. Grandma seemed to have led someone into the courtyard.
Liu Sheng went out to look, and his eyes immediately narrowed.
The person who came was none other than Steward Cheng of the Tong Family!
The night Qin Wuye’s house caught fire, he had interacted with him near the fire scene.
This person was deeply cunning, rarely showing his emotions, and very difficult to deal with.
“Sheng-ge’er?”
Upon seeing Liu Sheng, Steward Cheng was visibly startled.
That night, the light was too dim and the environment chaotic, so he hadn’t noticed. Now, with ample light, seeing Liu Sheng again greatly surprised him.
At this moment, Liu Sheng was nearly 1.8 meters tall, with long, powerful limbs, a ruddy complexion, and especially a pair of eyes that shone piercingly.
It was hard to connect him with the person who was beaten to the brink of death just a few days ago.
Everyone said this boy had an Awakening…
But even with an Awakening, it was impossible for such severe injuries to completely heal within a few days!
Could this kid have stumbled upon some incredible fortuitous encounter?
Let me test him!
Steward Cheng’s heart filled with greed, and he immediately set aside his original task, a smile plastered on his face:
“I have a good matter to discuss with you.”
As he spoke, he stepped forward, feigning intimacy as he patted Liu Sheng’s shoulder.