“If you’ve really got no idea, you can spend money on storing up grain,” Lu Sheng said gently, letting the hint slip out in a subtle tone.
“Store up grain?” Uncle Zhao exclaimed beside him, clearly startled. “Has the situation become so dire?”
“More or less. Outside the city, even the peasants no longer dare to wander too far. Large stretches of farmland are left untouched. No matter how much grain is stored, it always runs out eventually. We’ll likely see famine next year,” Lu Sheng replied quietly.
“…I’ll go back and begin making preparations…” Lu Quanan murmured. He shut his eyes as though the weight of the conversation pressed directly against his heart. At the end of the day, Lu Chenxin had been his son. The anguish of seeing his child’s lifeless body was something Lu Sheng could not truly fathom.
Sensing his father’s desire to end the discussion, Lu Sheng refrained from pressing further. He gathered the Crimson Whale Sect disciples and departed from the manor.
Night draped itself over Mountain-Edge City with a brilliance that defied the gloom of recent days. The night market shimmered like a flowing river of light—lanterns swaying, oil lamps flickering, rows of stall carts inching forward in a slow, steady current.
Prosperity gleamed everywhere, leaving no trace of the troubles that lurked beneath the surface.
Lu Sheng rode at an unhurried pace. As he watched the crowds bustling with energy, a sudden weariness seeped into his bones.
‘Ever since arriving in this world, I’ve been pushing myself day and night—training, fighting, clawing my way upward just to survive the supernatural threats.’
If not for his presence in this world, the Lu Family might have already shared the same fate as Big Brother Xu’s household: wiped out without a trace.
Ahead and to the right, a small boy received a round wooden rattle-drum from his mother. He shook it with delight, sending crisp, rhythmic beats dancing through the night air.
‘Even in their ignorance, even without protection, the people of this world struggle so hard to live… like wild grass,’ Lu Sheng thought, his expression unreadable. ‘But all they’re doing is surviving.’
As he passed the boy, a group of drunken Institution students staggered into view. Loud and off-key, they belted out songs with reckless abandon, forcing startled pedestrians to scatter and form a wide berth around their unsteady procession.
“Hahaha! A thousand cups leave none drunk, a thousand scrolls leave one erudite! Brother Chen! Brother Song! Again!” A student raised his empty hand as though holding a brimming wine cup, chest bared to the night air, utterly oblivious to the irritated glances cast his way.
His companions burst into raucous laughter, their voices filling the street.
“Miss Hong’er’s really got some kick! Next time… burp… I’ll still choose her!” Their uproar grew louder, echoing down the lively avenue.
Lu Sheng gave them a passing glance and urged his horse forward. Crimson Whale Sect disciples flanked him on both sides, their presence silent yet formidable. Wherever they moved, the crowd instinctively parted, retreating in urgency.
Those who walked in such formation were unmistakably the sort of men ordinary folk dared not provoke.
After a short distance, Lu Sheng suddenly tugged on the reins. His horse slowed to a stop as his gaze drifted toward a modest stall selling glutinous rice balls.
At a small table tucked in the corner sat two beggars—dirty, ragged, and decorated with layers of grime. Their hair tangled like matted bird nests, their limbs skin and bone. Yet the pair sat upright with impeccable poise, backs straight as pine trunks, hands placed neatly on their knees. Their dignified posture clashed strangely with their ragged appearance.
Narrowing his eyes, Lu Sheng signaled with a wave for his men to halt.
He dismounted, letting the disciples take his horse, and casually approached the stall before settling onto a seat.
“This Master, what sort of glutinous rice ball would you like?” The stall owner, noting Lu Sheng’s exceptional bearing, hurried over with a broad, eager smile.
“Anything. Give me the same as what they’re having.” Lu Sheng pointed lightly toward the two beggars.
The middle-aged stall owner froze for a moment, his expression turning awkward.
“Sir, you must be joking. Those two lads are eating what’s made from leftover materials. They aren’t eating proper glutinous rice balls…”
“Aren’t they paying for their food?”
“That’s a good one. Where would these two kids find money?” The stall owner chuckled and shook his head. “These two girls have been wandering around here for days, picking up rotten vegetables and discarded bones just to fill their stomachs. I felt sorry for them.”
“That’s kind of you. Are they foreigners?” Lu Sheng’s gaze drifted toward the two beggars. He had noticed the way the owner referred to them—these two girls.
“Don’t they look like it? Refugees fleeing famine from elsewhere. But both children have integrity. I told them I’d give them the food for free, and they refused. It took me ages to persuade them… in the end, I had to pretend I was selling to them on credit. Only then were they willing to eat,” the stall owner said, shaking his head.
“Since they’re girls, how have they been roaming the streets without being abducted?” Lu Sheng asked in surprise.
“Er… that… well, just look at their faces and you’ll understand,” the stall owner replied helplessly.
Lu Sheng did not question further. He ordered a serving of meat-filled glutinous rice balls and settled back into his seat, eyes fixed on the two beggars.
From the instant he spotted them, he sensed something unusual—an aura unlike anything possessed by ordinary mortals.
Even from more than ten meters away, each girl radiated a presence that shone like a small flame in the darkness, distinct and impossible to ignore.
Two faint strands of Yin Qi.
An aura that should only have belonged to ghosts now emanated from two living beggars. That alone was enough to make Lu Sheng stop and investigate.
Remaining seated, he quietly listened in on the exchange between the two girls.
“Sis, aren’t you going to eat? If you don’t, it’ll get cold,” the younger one whispered. Her voice was clear and crisp, like metal ringing against porcelain.
“I’ve already had three. It’s your turn,” the elder sister replied. Her voice was hoarse, yet unmistakably feminine, carrying a soft steadiness that calmed the air around her.
“I’ve calculated. One glutinous rice ball can last us about eight hours. If we eat sparingly, and drink all the soup, we won’t need vegetable leaves for several days.”
“I don’t want to eat vegetable leaves again,” the younger sister murmured.
“Neither do I. But we don’t have a choice,” the elder sister replied softly.
“Up until today, we’ve already owed favors to thirteen good people. I don’t want to owe anyone else,” the younger sister whispered, bowing her head as she prepared to take a bite.
The elder sister paused, silent for a moment.
“Don’t worry. I’m keeping track.”
Despite being destitute, the two girls spoke with a composed elegance. Their manners belonged more to children from educated households than to ordinary street beggars. Even eating a simple bowl of glutinous rice balls seemed like a matter of solemn deliberation.
Listening from his seat, Lu Sheng found his curiosity growing. He stood and walked toward the table where the two sisters sat.
“Listening to how you speak, you sound educated. Why not work as scribes or letter writers?”
At the unfamiliar voice, both girls instantly lifted their heads. And at that moment, Lu Sheng understood why their circumstances were so dire.
Their faces were entirely covered in blisters—dense, swollen, piled one upon another. The sores crawled across their noses, lips, eyelids, necks… every patch of skin bore the same grotesque affliction. Only two thin slits remained where their eyes peeked through. A nauseating stench drifted from their bodies, the putrid odor of decaying flesh.
Lu Sheng’s eyes lingered on the larger blisters at their necks. In one of them, faint white maggots writhed beneath the translucent skin.
Sensing his gaze, the older sister raised her hand over her neck, attempting to hide it.
“I want to remove them… but I can’t clean them out properly. It itches a lot.”
Lu Sheng studied the pair closely. Were it not for the lack of Adam’s apples and the faint swell of their chests, he would have struggled to confirm they were indeed girls.
“Do you need assistance? I may be able to provide both of you with a job.”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHOWLOgbFS
Lu Sheng studied the two girls closely, curiosity burning at the back of his mind. It was the first time he had ever encountered mortals carrying Yin Qi on their bodies.
“Really?”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYmZqvSnhdI
The younger sister sprang to her feet, staring at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.
Beside her, the elder sister trembled faintly, struggling to contain the excitement threatening to spill over.
“As real as it gets,” Lu Sheng said with a nod.
“What do you want us to do? We’re literate, we can sew and knit, we can wash clothes, cook—whatever you need!” The younger sister’s words tumbled out in a breathless rush.
“Do you know gardening?” A faint grin tugged at Lu Sheng’s lips. “Watering, fertilizing, trimming branches and leaves.”
“YES!!!”
The sisters answered at the exact same moment, their voices overlapping, their eyes shining with sudden hope.
…………
After bringing the two beggar girls back to the Golden Jade Greenhouse and settling them into simple work, Lu Sheng used the remaining hours of the day to practice the Nine Lakes Steel Chains Skill. Before beginning, he first drained every last trace of Yin-Yang Jade Crane inner force from his body.
This time, the results were immediate. A faint numbness and itch rippled across his skin, spreading like waves of heat. It was the unmistakable sign of entering the introductory stage of the Nine Lakes Steel Chains Skill.
The sensation confirmed his suspicions about the conflict between his cultivation methods. Yin-Yang Jade Crane Skill hindered martial arts that required the body to be driven to extremes. Now, having experienced the clash firsthand, he knew how to handle similar situations in the future.
BAM! BAM! BAM BAM BAM!!!
Lu Sheng’s palms crashed into the lump of black iron before him, each strike echoing through the clearing like thunder.
In the open space of the greenhouse, a crimson pattern pulsed on his forehead. His palms glowed with heat, and waves of scorching air rolled outward from his body. Within a two-meter radius, the wind itself felt as though it had been set ablaze.
“Heart Shattering Palm!”
His final blow landed squarely at the center of the massive iron block, causing the metal to shudder violently.
BOOM!
He held his stance for several long seconds before finally lowering his hand.
The iron remained pitch-black, unchanged in appearance—but a single touch would reveal its true state: the entire mass was burning hot.
This was Lu Sheng’s method of cultivating the Ultimate Crimson Mantra. His Level Seven mastery stood at the peak of this inner force technique; there was no further advancement through conventional practice. He also had no clear method to refine his blood web. Thus, he devised a way to force progress—by using the iron block as a training tool.
Each strike required his blood web, woven from inner Qi, to completely envelop the massive lump of iron. Only then would he ignite it, letting the heat sear through the metal. It was a method meant to hone both his precision and his control.
The block itself was the height of a grown man, irregular in shape and riddled with uneven surfaces. It was perfectly suited for practicing how the blood web might behave when cast against enemies of varying forms, from every possible angle.
With his final strike, he unleashed the Level Seven blood web of the Ultimate Crimson Mantra through the Heart Shattering Palm. The result thrilled him—raw power erupting through flesh and bone in perfect harmony.
Enhanced by the Ultimate Crimson Mantra, a technique that normally belonged merely to the Strength Proficiency realm transformed into something far greater. The Tremor effect that followed caused the massive iron lump to quiver violently. Had Lu Sheng not deliberately angled his strike downward, the block—several thousand kilograms heavy—might have been sent hurtling backward.
“External Head, it’s meal time,” Ning San called respectfully from a distance.
“Mm.”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqx1do7txg9
Lu Sheng gave a brief nod. Now that he had officially entered the introductory stage of the Nine Lakes Steel Chains Skill, he planned to return to his room afterward and use the Modifier to upgrade it directly. With the Yin-Yang Jade Crane Skill as the foundation, he did not expect any significant side effects. It was, after all, merely a Strength Proficiency external force art. Even if hard body techniques were demanding, their realm was far too low to challenge him now.
His reason for practicing the Nine Lakes Steel Chains Skill was simple: it was a defensive art—one that could mean the difference between life and death at a critical moment.
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