Strengthening the Bones

In the small courtyard.

The sound of fists whistling through the air.

Zhong Xuan has practiced a set of Eight Pieces of Brocade and is now showing signs of mastering it, but he is not satisfied.

"Could it be that we've hit a bottleneck?"

These past few days.

He noticed that the effect of the Eight Pieces of Brocade on increasing strength was becoming less and less effective.

This is clearly a trend where profits are not enough to offset losses.

to be honest.

Zhong Xuan's cultivation level has increased, but his diet has not kept up, resulting in an unstable foundation. The solution is simple: medicinal supplements. Otherwise, if he continues to force himself to cultivate, it may even damage his foundation.

He paused for a moment.

Zhong Xuan finally took out the three taels of silver that he had hidden at the bottom of the box.

"I remember that a dose of bone-strengthening medicine in the city is exactly three ounces."

Like the previous Strengthening Powder, the Bone Strengthening Medicine is an herbal remedy to help martial artists replenish their deficiencies. However, the herbs used in the Bone Strengthening Medicine are more precious, and its effects are far superior to those of the Strengthening Powder. Naturally, it is also more expensive.

Zhong Xuan's hunting skills have become increasingly refined.

A few dozen coins a month is enough to buy rice, so he was willing to spend his savings on medicine.

I've made up my mind.

Zhong Xuan left Xiahe Village with three taels of silver in his pocket.

Half an hour later.

He came to a shop and could smell the fragrance of herbs wafting from it even from several feet away.

"Oh, sir, what brings you here again?"

Zhong Xuangang stepped across the threshold.

A young man, about sixteen or seventeen years old, came forward to greet them.

Zhong Xuan raised an eyebrow slightly: "You know me?"

"Of course I recognize you. You bought a dose of Qiang Shen San from our shop three months ago. Are you here today to buy Qiang Shen San again?"

The young man spoke eloquently.

Zhong Xuan was surprised. He had thought the young man was just spouting platitudes, but he never expected that he would have such a good memory and be so clever.

"No wonder the manager dared to leave him alone in the main hall to look after things."

Zhong Xuan thought for a moment, then clasped his hands in a fist salute to the young shop assistant: "No, I want to buy a bone-strengthening medicine."

The young man's eyes lit up when he heard that the medicine was for strengthening bones.

A dose of bone-strengthening medicine costs three taels of silver.

The profit is at least eight hundred coins.

Putting it in the shop would already be considered a big business.

The young shop assistant, not daring to make the decision on his own, hurriedly went to the backyard to call the pharmacy manager.

Upon hearing that he had come to buy bone-strengthening medicine, the middle-aged pharmacy owner became extremely polite, cupping his hands in greeting to Zhong Xuan: "Please wait a moment, sir, I'll prepare the medicine for you right away."

Not long after.

The middle-aged shopkeeper handed the medicine packet, still carrying the unique fragrance of herbs, to Zhong Xuan.

"This bone-strengthening medicine is much stronger than the body-strengthening powder, so it should be used with caution on young children."

The middle-aged pharmacy owner assumed that Zhong Xuan was being sold to his children and grandchildren, so he gave him special instructions.

"Thank you, shopkeeper."

Zhong Xuan took the medicine packet, handed three taels of silver to the middle-aged shopkeeper, and then quickly turned and walked out of the pharmacy.

......

"There really is someone following us."

Turn into the alley.

Zhong Xuan glanced behind him out of the corner of his eye.

Three taels of silver is enough to feed several people in a normal family, so using it to buy bone-strengthening medicine is undoubtedly an extreme luxury.

Not to mention that he was an elderly man in his sixties, which made him even more conspicuous.

Even though he deliberately chose the time when the pharmacy had the fewest customers, he was still targeted.

He was about to quicken his pace.

Then they saw a tall, young man wearing a short-sleeved shirt walk out from the front of the alley.

"A martial arts apprentice?"

Zhong Xuan recognized that the young man was wearing the training clothes of a martial arts student in the city.

The tall, young man crossed his arms and looked at Zhong Xuan with a mocking expression:

"The young thug told me about an old guy who's rolling in money. I'd like to see just how rich he really is."

Zhong Xuan guessed the cause and effect.

"It turns out that it's hard to guard against a thief within the family."

The young clerk at the pharmacy must have been colluding with the martial arts school disciple in front of them. One of them was keeping watch while the other was robbing the customer. They had chosen the pharmacy customer as their target, and the middle-aged man had intercepted him less than fifteen minutes after he left. Clearly, this was not his first offense.

Zhong Xuan sighed softly.

Even though he was being cautious enough, his age was simply too conspicuous.

The shop assistant thought he was an easy target.

Zhong Xuan looked pleading.

"Hero... This old man has brought his grandson's life-saving medicine. Please, sir, show mercy."

"Give it to me!"

Seeing Zhong Xuan tentatively try to back away, the tall, young man became even more arrogant, striding forward and grabbing at Zhong Xuan's chest with one hand.

Just as the large hand was about to touch the medicine bag in his arms—

The timidity on Zhong Xuan's face vanished in an instant.

"Hey——!"

A faint yet sharp whistling sound, like the cry of an eagle, pierced the air and echoed through the narrow alley.

With his left hand protecting the medicine, Zhong Xuan drew an inconspicuous wooden sword from behind him with lightning speed with his right.

The sword tip did not slash, but rather pecked like an eagle's beak, carrying the sudden burst of strength from the body's muscles and bones, precisely and ruthlessly striking the man's unsuspecting throat!

Too fast!

Close at hand!

Before the man's ferocious grin could even turn into astonishment, he felt a sudden chill in his throat, followed by an indescribable pain and a feeling of suffocation that overwhelmed him.

His eyes bulged out, filled with unbelievable fear.

He wanted to shout but could only let out a weak "hoarse" sound.

His burly body convulsed violently for a moment, then collapsed to the ground with a thud, like a sack of potatoes with its bones removed. His limbs twitched a few times before he fell completely silent.

The alleyway returned to deathly silence, with only a faint smell of blood beginning to linger.

Zhong Xuan's chest rose and fell slightly, but his hand holding the wooden sword remained steady.

This was actually his first real killing, and the target was a martial artist.

He quickly bent down, intending to touch the corpse.

But then a hoarse, aged voice rang out.

"You've actually mastered the Eagle Strike Sword Technique so well that you've even captured some of the spirit of an eagle. He didn't die unjustly."

Zhong Xuan was startled.

Looking back.

He then saw an elderly man in gray robes walking toward him with his hands behind his back.

"It's him?!"

Zhong Xuan recognized the old man as the old accountant who had sold him the introductory explanation of the Eagle Strike Sword Technique at the Flying Eagle Martial Arts School.

The old accountant glanced at the middle-aged man's corpse on the ground and snorted coldly:

"Good riddance."

"You dare to collude with outsiders to engage in robbery and plunder? You've completely disgraced my Flying Eagle Martial Arts School."

Zhong Xuan suddenly realized.

No wonder he thought the middle-aged man's training clothes looked familiar; it turned out that the man was from the Flying Eagle Martial Arts School.

The old accountant easily tipped the middle-aged man's corpse over ten feet with his toes.

"I've been squatting here for half a month because of this kid."

"In retrospect, I should thank you for cleaning up my house."

Upon hearing this...

Zhong Xuan's tense nerves still dared not relax.

This old accountant is very capable.

It was utterly sluggish.

Anyone who has ever carried a corpse knows that even a strong man might not be able to lift one, yet this old accountant could easily toss a corpse away.

This clearly demonstrates his skill.

One must never let one's guard down when facing such a master.

"In that case, I shall take my leave."

Zhong Xuan cupped his hands in greeting and prepared to leave this place of trouble.

But the old accountant intervened first, chuckling as he spoke:

"My dear brother, where are you working these days?"