Chapter 3: Netherworld! Apprenticeship

Tap.

Tap.

What came into view was a pair of bright red embroidered shoes.

The tiny shoes tapped against the ground, making a sound like striking ice. With every step, they cracked the icy surface, letting a biting chill seep up from the ground.

Zhang Lingshan couldn't help but shiver, his mind becoming even clearer.

At this moment, the heads of Wang Datou and Li Xiaole were no longer in his eyes. He saw only a black-and-white scene, the only color being this pair of embroidered shoes and their owner.

Walking toward him was a peerlessly beautiful and slender woman, dressed in a bright red gown. Her fair, straight legs were extremely striking in the late autumn air.

Did she not feel the cold?

What Zhang Lingshan found even stranger was that the woman held a greenish oil-paper umbrella in her right hand. It shimmered with a green light under the moonlight, making her look both glamorous and eerie.

Who was this?

Or rather, was she even human?

Zhang Lingshan felt a surge of terror.

If it had been Li Xiaole and Wang Datou’s heads, he might have still had the courage to smash them, but the arrival of this woman felt like ice from the Nine Netherworlds, instantly freezing his body solid.

They were not on the same level at all.

This woman was, without a doubt, the most terrifying person he had ever seen.

It wasn't that she looked terrifying, nor that her methods were terrifying; her mere existence was enough to inspire dread.

Zhang Lingshan felt as if he were about to freeze stiff.

Suddenly, a cold, clear voice drifted down from the air: "The Underworld is at work; bystanders, keep away."

*Whoosh.*

These words were like a refreshing rain falling upon Zhang Lingshan. He instantly regained the ability to move, scrambled to his feet, and ran. He didn't dare stop until he turned into Changning Street, where he hid around a corner and looked back.

But no matter how he looked, all he saw was a pitch-black void, like a deep, dark well that swallowed all light.

"Qinghe Road has disappeared?"

Zhang Lingshan was shocked and bewildered. With his current understanding, he couldn't imagine the woman's methods, nor did he know what the "Underworld" she spoke of represented.

He only knew that although he had walked through the gates of hell and back, he had finally returned safely.

"Mother, I'm back... Father was hired by the Lei family for manual labor and won't be back for half a year... Yes, yes, nothing happened. I've locked all the doors and windows. Xiaoyu, go to sleep too... I'll go to the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall tomorrow to sign up and learn martial arts..."

Zhang Lingshan comforted his worried mother and sister before entering his own bedroom. Only then did he take out the banknotes from his bosom to count them.

As he counted, he was suddenly horrified, his back breaking out in goosebumps.

There were actually two extra ten-tael notes!

What was going on?

If he wasn't mistaken, these two ten-tael notes belonged to Wang Datou and Li Xiaole, just like the ten taels his father had given him—all of them were wages earned by their fathers working at Jinguang Temple.

But he had been so busy running for his life that he hadn't had the chance to search their bodies. Even if he had the heart of a thief, he lacked the guts. So how did these two notes end up in his bosom?

Did the money grow legs?

The more Zhang Lingshan thought about it, the more afraid he became. This was dead man's money, and both of them had been killed by an evil spirit—they had died miserably, their heads hanging in the sky, swaying.

Was their money so easy to take?

Zhang Lingshan couldn't help but feel panicked.

But then he thought, he had just used an axe to split their heads open; what was there to be afraid of? If something was going to happen, it wasn't something he could handle anyway.

He was already exhausted from today's events and couldn't take any more surprises. So, rather than scaring himself, he might as well get a good night's sleep.

Once he woke up, he would go straight to the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall to apprentice and learn martial arts. A bright future was beckoning to him, ha-ha.

With this beautiful wish in his heart, Zhang Lingshan lay on the bed and closed his eyes.

In his hazy state, he saw a person walking out of the darkness.

He saw arm after arm extending from the person's chest, each hand holding a ten-tael banknote, shaking them with a *swish-swish* sound, a greedy and triumphant smile on the person's face.

He took a closer look.

*Thump!*

Zhang Lingshan woke up with a start. The person had a face exactly like his own.

*Huff, huff.*

Panting heavily, Zhang Lingshan calmed himself down for a long while before realizing it was already dawn.

It was just a dream, thankfully.

Although he hadn't slept soundly, he had made it through the night.

He rolled out of bed.

Zhang Lingshan frowned slightly and let out a hiss of pain. He felt a tightness in his ribs, abdomen, and back; every movement hurt.

Checking his body, he discovered red welts, one after another, that hurt at the slightest touch.

'What's going on? Was it from the fight yesterday? Or from being whipped by Wang Datou and Li Xiaole on Qinghe Road, or frostbite from that woman?'

Zhang Lingshan felt astonished and deeply uneasy.

He hurriedly put on his clothes, left the house, and headed toward the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall.

No matter what, apprenticing to learn martial arts was the right path. As long as he could record martial arts in his panel and accumulate enough energy, he could defy the heavens and change his fate.

Soon, he reached the intersection of Changning Street and Qinghe Road.

Suddenly, he heard someone shouting: "It's a tragedy! Dozens of people from the Zhao family are all dead!"

"How did they die? Did they run into bandits?"

"I don't know, it seems like an evil spirit. Except for two people, everyone else was scared to death; there isn't a single wound on their bodies."

"How could an evil spirit appear again? We haven't seen one in years."

"It must be that the Zhao family did something wicked and got entangled by someone's resentment."

"That's true. There wasn't a single good person in the Zhao family. They deserved it, serve them right!"

"Shh... keep your voice down, don't get targeted. Evil spirits don't care if you're a Zhao family member or not; if you're unlucky enough to run into one, you're done for."

"Yes, yes, I won't talk nonsense. I just hope the yamen handles this quickly, otherwise, it won't just be these few dozen lives."

"The yamen is here!"

As the crowd talked, pushing and shoving, they pushed Zhang Lingshan along with them to the entrance of the Zhao residence to watch the commotion.

Zhang Lingshan was surprised. Was the yamen that powerful? They could actually deal with evil spirits and supernatural entities.

It seemed that in the half-year he had been here, his knowledge was still too shallow. He only knew that practicing martial arts could make him stronger; he knew nothing of other paths.

When he had the chance in the future, he would have to see for himself. Perhaps his panel could record those as well.

"Look, those two had their heads smashed in; their way of dying is different from the others."

Someone suddenly shouted.

As it happened, a gust of autumn wind blew by, lifting the white cloth covering the corpses and revealing the truth.

Zhang Lingshan looked over subconsciously, his heart chilling.

The two who died differently were none other than Wang Datou and Li Xiaole.

And the one who had smashed their heads was none other than himself.

However, unlike yesterday, he noticed that although their heads were crushed, they were resting securely on their necks, not the floating heads he had seen yesterday.

Could it be that he had been bewitched yesterday and had beaten two living people to death?

Zhang Lingshan didn't dare to think about it.

At that moment, another gust of autumn wind blew, lifting the white cloth covering another body.

It was a face with bulging eyes and a deep purple complexion. It was hard to imagine what the deceased had seen before dying, or what kind of terror they had endured.

*Buzz!*

Zhang Lingshan suddenly felt a chill rush to the top of his head, his mind trembling violently.

Because he discovered that this face was none other than the woman from last night.

When he saw her, he had thought she was a supreme powerhouse from another dimension, a high and mighty existence he needed to look up to.

Yet, after only one night, such a powerful person had died so easily?

'The Underworld is at work, bystanders keep away... Is this how the "Underworld" she spoke of works? A suicide squad?'

Zhang Lingshan was speechless, feeling that his future had become bleak once again.

Living in a world like this, could learning martial arts really allow him to master his own fate?

Finally, with heavy steps, he pushed through the crowd and arrived at Hongwu Street.

This was where the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall was located. This entire street was under the protection of the Hong Clan, and everyone living here belonged to the hall.

"Yo, if it isn't Zhang Lingshan. Why are you here again? Still want to apprentice? You aren't stealing money from home again, are you? We don't dare take you, lest your father comes to bash his head against our walls and fight us to the death like you did. Go back."

"Ha-ha."

At the entrance of the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall, several men laughed in groups.

After what happened half a year ago, Zhang Lingshan had become the butt of everyone's jokes. Seeing him today, they couldn't help but tease him.

Zhang Lingshan ignored their laughter, cupped his hands, and said solemnly: "I am Zhang Lingshan, here to apprentice at the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall. I have brought the money, and it was not stolen. Please, brothers, take me inside to apprentice."