Chapter 29: Showing One's Might

With Yu Zhanchuan's furious roar, the Sanjiang Gang members struck even more ruthlessly, their blows eliciting continuous screams of agony from those seeking help.

The thin man leading the Sanjiang Gang turned his head, gave him a cold appraisal, and said

"Where did this mad dog come from, daring to bark in front of me!"

Enraged, Yu Zhanchuan activated his Tiger-Subduing Steps and charged forward.

Chen Yuan's eyes flickered for a moment before he followed, though he slowed his pace slightly, falling behind Yu Zhanchuan.

The thin man shook his head, tossed the long staff in his hand to the ground, and unhurriedly assumed a fighting stance.

The alley was not long. Yu Zhanchuan rushed to him in a few strides and unleashed the Tiger-Subduing Fist, using the "Fierce Tiger Emerging from the Cave" technique. He thrust his right hand out, reaching for the thin man's shoulder.

The thin man's body swayed, dodging the strike, and he followed up with a downward kick.

*Bang!*

The kick landed on Yu Zhanchuan's shin, causing him to stumble and lose his footing.

Immediately following this, the thin man delivered a Mandarin Duck Continuous Kick, flying upward to strike Yu Zhanchuan in the chest.

*Bang!* Yu Zhanchuan was sent flying backward. Chen Yuan stopped in his tracks, reached out to catch him, and asked with concern

"Senior Brother Yu, are you alright?"

The thin man burst into laughter

"Is this all the skill you have, yet you dare to stand up for others?"

Clutching his chest, Yu Zhanchuan's face flushed red as he said

"You are a peak Bone-Refining expert, yet you bully the weak and strike at ordinary members of my Tiger-Subduing Gang. Do you not find it shameful?"

The thin man sneered

"You can eat anything, but you can't say anything. It was your Tiger-Subduing Gang members who were disrespectful to me; I was merely administering a slight punishment. This is the rule of the martial world. Does your Tiger-Subduing Gang not recognize it?"

By this time, the dozen or so Tiger-Subduing Gang martial artists had all been knocked to the ground, their wails and groans incessant.

The young man who had been shouting for help earlier said indignantly

"Nonsense! You were clearly setting a trap..."

"Shut up!"

*Slap!*

A Sanjiang Gang martial artist leaned down and slapped him across the face, spitting out a vicious remark.

The young man did not dare speak again, but he glared at the Sanjiang Gang member, his face still full of resentment.

"You little brat, you're not satisfied, are you?"

The Sanjiang Gang martial artist grinned savagely and raised his foot to stomp heavily on the young man's leg.

*Crack!*

"Ah! My leg! Ah..."

The young man screamed incessantly, tears and snot streaming down his face, his features contorted in agony.

Yu Zhanchuan grew frantic

"Junior Brother Li!"

The thin man laughed

"Don't be in such a hurry; it'll be your turn soon. Didn't you want to stand up for someone? Let me teach you a lesson: the martial world is treacherous. If you lack ability, do not provoke people you shouldn't. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll only take one of your legs. If it were anyone else, I'd take your life!"

As his voice fell, he pushed off the ground and lunged toward Yu Zhanchuan.

Yu Zhanchuan gritted his teeth, preparing to meet the attack, when Chen Yuan suddenly spoke

"Senior Brother Yu, leave this to me."

Yu Zhanchuan froze, then beamed with joy and retreated to the side.

He had consumed more than half a pot of Emerald Cloud Brew, leaving his mind clouded. Combined with his sudden rage, he had forgotten that Chen Yuan had killed Jiang Feng—a Marrow-Refining realm expert—with just two strikes, making his strength far superior to his own.

The thin man did not expect Yu Zhanchuan to retreat without a fight, hiding behind a youth of sixteen or seventeen. He said disdainfully

"You spineless coward, I'm going to break both your legs today!"

His target was still Yu Zhanchuan; he didn't take Chen Yuan seriously at all and simply reached out to grab him.

Chen Yuan did not dodge. The thin man grabbed his right arm and attempted to fling him aside, but he couldn't move him.

The thin man was stunned. He increased his strength to swing him, but Chen Yuan remained motionless.

Chen Yuan reached back and grabbed the thin man's arm, saying

"Today, I'll teach you a lesson: the martial world is treacherous. If you lack ability, do not provoke people you shouldn't!"

With that, he exerted sudden force, pulling the thin man toward him.

The thin man struggled desperately to retreat, but it was futile. He stumbled, his body pitching forward.

Simultaneously, Chen Yuan's right fist shot out like lightning, striking heavily against the thin man's abdomen.

*Thud!*

A dull sound echoed. The thin man's eyes bulged, and he let out two wheezing gasps before collapsing limp to the ground, unable to even let out a scream.

Chen Yuan had used eight hundred catties of force in that punch; the man simply could not withstand it.

Seeing this, the expressions of the other five Sanjiang Gang martial artists changed drastically.

Chen Yuan released the thin man, activated his Tiger-Subduing Steps, and charged forward.

Seeing Chen Yuan easily deal with the thin man, Yu Zhanchuan breathed a sigh of relief and followed closely behind.

These five were all Skin-Refining martial artists of low strength. Chen Yuan and Yu Zhanchuan dealt with them in a few moves, then helped up the dozen or so Tiger-Subduing Gang members.

Only the young man with the broken leg remained lying on the ground.

The thin man had just regained consciousness. Lying on the ground and clutching his stomach, he managed to ask with difficulty

"Who... who are you?"

Chen Yuan did not answer. He walked up to him, looked down, and said

"I'm in a good mood today, so I'll only take your two legs. If it were anyone else, I'd take your life."

"Don't... let's talk this out... show some mercy... ah!"

Chen Yuan brought his feet down, breaking both of the thin man's legs. Under the intense pain, the man's eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

Yu Zhanchuan also struck ruthlessly, breaking the legs of all five Sanjiang Gang martial artists, only feeling his shame and indignation dissipate once he had done so.

Chen Yuan leaned over and rifled through the thin man's belongings, finding over ten taels of silver, a bottle of Golden Sore Medicine, and a bottle of Essence Nourishing Pills.

Chen Yuan handed these items to Yu Zhanchuan and said

"Senior Brother Yu, take this bottle of Essence Nourishing Pills. Use this money to buy some tonic for Junior Brother Li so he doesn't suffer lasting damage. If there's anything left, distribute it among the other junior brothers."

"I cannot accept these pills..."

Yu Zhanchuan tried to refuse, but then remembered something. He took the items and smiled

"Look at my memory. Junior Brother has Marrow-Refining Pills in hand and will break through in a few days; naturally, he won't care for these Essence Nourishing Pills."

Junior Brother Li struggled to raise his hands and cupped them in a salute

"Th... thank you, Senior Brother Chen!"

The others followed suit, stripping the five Sanjiang Gang members of their belongings. They gathered seven or eight taels of silver and handed it all to Yu Zhanchuan.

Yu Zhanchuan immediately ordered everyone to throw the Sanjiang Gang members into the depths of the alley, then had several of the lightly injured members carry Junior Brother Li back to Chongxin Ward to find a physician at the Shennong Hall.

On the way, everyone was intensely curious about Chen Yuan, who had defeated the thin man with a single punch, and they peppered him with questions.

Yu Zhanchuan laughed and said

"This is Senior Brother Chen Erniu, who was just transferred from Leping County to the prefectural city. He possesses innate divine strength and high martial skill. He once split a Marrow-Refining realm bandit in half with a blade in the Chiman Mountains..."

He described Chen Yuan's exploits vividly, drawing gasps of admiration from the crowd, who began to treat Chen Yuan with near-divine reverence.

Although Chen Yuan did not wish to become famous or draw attention, he knew such things were bound to leak, so he accepted it calmly.

...

The group returned to Chongxin Ward, settled Junior Brother Li, and only then dispersed.

Chen Yuan and Yu Zhanchuan walked toward their lodgings together. Yu Zhanchuan said gratefully

"Junior Brother, thanks to your help today, I didn't lose face completely."

Chen Yuan waved his hand and said

"Don't say that, Senior Brother. Those people were bullying our Tiger-Subduing Gang members; how could I stand by and watch? Breaking their legs was the light end of it."

Yu Zhanchuan said seriously

"Regardless, I owe you this favor. If you ever need anything in the future, just ask me. As long as it is within my power, I will never refuse!"

"You overstate it, Senior Brother..."

Chen Yuan smiled, then changed the subject

"Before Xie Quan died, he said the Sanjiang Gang provided the funds for the Black Wind Fortress to ambush our Leping County branch convoy. Does the Sanjiang Gang have a long-standing grudge with our Tiger-Subduing Gang?"

Yu Zhanchuan said indignantly

"That's right. The Sanjiang Gang is a gang that rose to power only a decade or so ago. The Yongping River used to be our Tiger-Subduing Gang's territory before they snatched it away. We fought them for several years afterward without a clear winner, but the grudge only deepened. We clash whenever we meet; breaking hands and feet is the mildest outcome."

Chen Yuan's expression shifted, a murderous intent appearing on his face

"Then didn't we go too easy on them just now? I'll head back right now and finish those bastards off!"

Yu Zhanchuan hurriedly grabbed Chen Yuan

"Don't be hasty, Junior Brother! If we were in the wilderness, we would naturally fight to the death, but this is within the prefectural city. If a life is taken, it will be hard to settle the matter. Breaking their legs was enough."

Chen Yuan's expression softened slightly. He said

"Consider them lucky. I'll settle this debt with them later!"

Yu Zhanchuan chuckled

"Your filial piety is commendable, but you don't need to worry about revenge. When we returned from Leping County last time, Deacon Wei reported the Black Wind Fortress matter to Hall Master Hou. Two days later, a Sanjiang Gang fleet on the Yongping River was plundered by river bandits."

"Was that Hall Master Hou's doing?"

"Most likely. Since the Sanjiang Gang dared to hire mountain bandits, Hall Master Hou can naturally command river bandits. It's called an eye for an eye!"

"Well done! To deal with such insidious villains, one must use such methods!"

Chen Yuan was extremely excited, but Yu Zhanchuan quickly pulled him close and whispered

"That's just my guess. Deacon Wei never said anything explicitly; such matters cannot be brought into the light. Don't go spreading this."

Chen Yuan patted his chest in assurance

"Rest easy, Senior Brother. I know what's important."

Yu Zhanchuan added a warning

"After the Sanjiang Gang's fleet was hit, even though there was no evidence, they concluded it was retaliation by our Tiger-Subduing Gang. If you encounter Sanjiang Gang members, do not be careless. The prefectural city is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers; Marrow-Refining experts are everywhere. It won't always go as smoothly as it did today."

Chen Yuan said solemnly

"Thank you for the warning, Senior Brother. I will certainly act with caution."

"Sigh, I suppose I've implicated you as well. That Emerald Cloud Brew had too much aftereffect. If I had encountered this under normal circumstances, I certainly wouldn't have been so reckless..."

"You only acted out of concern for our gang..."

The two chatted for a few more moments before parting ways to return to their respective lodgings.

Returning to his room, Chen Yuan took out the Marrow-Refining Pill that Wei Wuding had given him and inspected it carefully.

After confirming that the medicinal potency was intact and that nothing had been mixed in, he pondered for a moment before putting it away.

This pill was of no use to him now, but it was still a valuable item worth a hundred taels of silver—enough to exchange for nearly half a bottle of Foundation-Strengthening Pills used by internal strength martial artists.

However, how to sell it without attracting trouble was something he would need to consider carefully.

(End of Chapter)