Liang Qu went home to change into clean clothes, jogging all the way towards Peaceful Sun Town.
The leaves piled thicker along the road; the top layer was red and yellow, the lower layer dark brown.
The wind felt like icy knives against his skin, but Liang Qu felt neither cold nor warm, just full of energy, with a fervor burning in his chest.
Raising his head, he watched the huge sunset slowly descend, turning his pupils into radiant golden rainbows.
As the sun gradually reclaimed its light from the earth, the pale red forest darkened to a deep crimson, soon to be enveloped by nightfall—this was the last glimpse of the sunset.
Suddenly, he found the world rather pleasant—no pollution, no cages, and the air was refreshingly clean.
A brief spell of adversity wasn’t a bad thing; as long as the direction was right, even the harshest of situations could be turned into a delicious feast—the way forward would eventually lead to a breakthrough.
"Roar!" Liang Qu shouted aloud.
A nearby mule pulling a cart, startled by the noise, tried to bolt into the forest.
The cart driver lashed out a few times before returning to the path, cursing, "Idiot."
Did such words exist this early? Liang Qu was taken aback but did not get angry.
He merely returned a smile.
With the driver muttering as he left, he likely thought he'd encountered a fool.
Upon reaching Peaceful Sun Town, Liang Qu assumed that Li Libo and Chen Jiechang might be hungry, so he bought a few buns and took a familiar shortcut to the Yang Clan Martial Hall.
The lights at the hall's entrance blazed brightly, and inside, every few meters, an oil lamp or lantern illuminated the way.
Liang Qu, carrying an oil-paper package, easily navigated through the corridors.
The training grounds seemed more crowded than usual, with over fifty people present.
Many practiced at home after attending lessons, meeting again at the month’s end.
The thirty who registered earlier were not the only ones.
However, among the crowd, no genuine Martial Masters seemed present, just apprentices.
Liang Qu assumed the masters were occupied or perhaps meeting with Master Yang and didn't give it much thought.
Yet, many eyes constantly, if subtly, shifted towards him.
"Strange, why are they all looking at me?" he wondered.
Despite his current downtrodden status and few willing to befriend him, he didn't expect to be under gaze.
Was he late? He recalled an incident in high school when he overslept and was caught by the class teacher during morning reading—a situation where friends pretended to read while actually watching, akin to the current scene.
Choosing to act oblivious, Liang Qu made his way alone to the corner of the flowerbed to find Li Libo and Chen Jiechang.
Hearing footsteps, the two looked up, recognized Liang Qu, then lowered their eyes again.
Yet, the bruised, swollen eyes and cheeks couldn't be hidden.
Assuming they'd gone too far in teasing each other, Liang Qu asked, "What's happened? Did you two fight? So serious?"
The two exchanged glances but remained silent.
Sensing something amiss, Liang Qu crouched down and whispered, "What's really going on?"
After a pause, Chen Jiechang finally spoke, his swollen cheeks making his voice muffled.
"After you left, Lu Tingcai came with a group to demand money, claiming we smelled of affecting their practice, asking for two taels of silver each. We got angry and fought them."
Two taels! Liang Qu was astounded.
This wasn't just about money; it was life-threatening!
"And what about Lu Shaohui?" Liang Qu asked without any respect, anger flaring within him.
"And Senior Brother Xiang? Didn't you seek help from him?"
"Lu Shaohui didn't even look at us," Li Libo gritted his teeth.
"He just walked away! We don't know where Senior Brother Xiang is; since noon, there've been only apprentices at the hall."
Liang Qu could hardly believe it.
How could everything be so coincidental today?
"I initially knocked one out, with Chen bro’s help. Facing two more wasn't a lost cause, but then three others jumped in, and we lost," Chen Jiechang sneered, indignant, regretting not severely injuring Xue Dingyi.
He had only managed to leave some bloodied marks on Xue Dingyi’s neck.
"Now they demand ten taels of silver, or they'll 'spar' with us daily," Chen Jiechang mocked himself with a smile.
He had no regrets, only disappointment—that reinforcements arrived too swiftly, preventing him from dealing more damage.
His voice tailed off with a helpless sigh.
"We discussed it. Since the fight began because of us, we’ll cover the extra four taels."
Li Libo nodded solemnly, both feeling a bit guilty.
They insisted on the fight, raising the price for one to over three taels.
Knowing Liang Qu's family struggles, they resolved to patch the increased gap themselves.
The flowerbed corner turned silent, and as if sensing safety amidst quiet, the crickets’ fragmented chirps resumed.
Their chirps weren't clear, rather aged.
It was early winter already; in less than a fortnight, midwinter would arrive, rendering the crickets motionless by the sudden drop in temperature—their end nearing as they freeze to death.
From the training grounds, some eyes wandered back to the unwatched corner of the flowerbed, out of curiosity or indifference
Dressed in fine clothes, Young Master Zhao third shifted his glance from the flowerbed to another corner.
There, Lu Tingcai and his peers also sat in silence.
Even as things escalated, what benefit would they gain? None.
Zhao Xueyuan knew well they would face harsher punishment.
They had previously extorted protection fees by intimidating victims into silence and acted outside the hall.
Today, with no Martial Masters present, the situation differed.
Lowly folk, naturally servile out of utter destitution, frightened of those high up.
Tricked by Lu Tingcai's smooth talk, they dared not appeal for help.
Most who suffered didn’t even think of reporting.
Under scams and beatings, Lu's group had always prevailed, never expecting a challenging pair today, one charging straight with a brick in hand.
Now Zhao Xueyuan wondered—could the last trainee from the same village withstand this?
As Lu and the others regretted and feared, reckless blood surged in the brothers’ veins; now, without concern, they were perilous like gamblers on the brink.
Yet, the duped remained clueless.
Everyone seemed to be watching a show.
The earth-packed training ground glowed under oil lamps, a field of fiery orange.
Liang Qu stood up; the light stretched his shadow long, slightly flickering on the partition wall.
Li Libo and Chen Jiechang raised their heads to find two oil-paper packages before them.
"Take it."
"What’s this—"
"Take it!"
The crickets went silent.
Li Libo and Chen Jiechang accepted the packages, feeling the warmth inside, the aroma revealing the contents as food.
Liang Qu turned and headed to the center of the training ground, drawing all eyes upon him.
Here he'd never set foot before, never basked in such focused attention.
Tired, really tired.
He had once worked overtime until midnight, dog-tired, yet never this exhausted.
Scoundrels could live, bullies at the waterside could, clerks kicking at fees could too.
Yet those yearning for nothing but simple, honest existence couldn't live!
The whole society seemed like an impermeable net, ensnaring all who aspired to rise upward.
Everyone striving to pass through was contorted in that tiny opening, body squashed.
Spiders, venomous insects, centipedes clung along nodes of this net, anticipating the blood-drained prey's exhausted struggle, vying for a taste of life’s essence.
Liang Qu's gaze shifted to the other corner.
Everyone was there: Lu Tingcai, Xue Dingyi, Yu Weilong, Xiang Quji...
These... vile creatures!
Liang Qu’s eyes suddenly stilled, peaceful.
His hand reached out, pointing at the seven.
"I'm going to fight you all!"
The training ground fell silent as death.
"Pfft."
Someone chuckled aloud.
Liang Qu held no expression, staring unwaveringly.
"Ahem..."
The atmosphere returned to silence.
In response to the intense gaze, Lu Tingcai and his peers stood reluctantly; the crowd parted, opening a pathway.
Even now, though regretful, sitting amidst such brazen provocation felt too cowardly.
"Just you?" Lu Tingcai's head, wrapped in a white bandage, looked ridiculous.
Yet flanked by six others, none found it amusing.
"Do you even realize—"
"Shut up, you idiot!" Liang Qu cut him off.
Lu Tingcai froze, as did everyone else.
Like chickens with necks clamped shut, veins bulged, but no curse could match the comeback in force.
How infuriating.
Liang Qu felt an immense pressure in his chest, a volcano of rage yet to find release, as if a mountain of heat smoldered within him.
Breathing heavily, his chest heaved, restraining volcanic wrath as the wind stilled.
"I alone am enough! Just me to defeat all of you!"
(End of Chapter)