After Li Qing dealt with the three small ruffians, they struggled for a long time and finally managed to move over three hundred jin of iron ingots to his courtyard.
Looking at the three exhausted individuals who could barely get up from the ground, Li Qing gained a new understanding of his current martial prowess.
In a world where people often went hungry, even those armed with weapons, he could easily handle five or six of them alone without any issue. If he were to face strong and sturdy men, as long as they lacked martial skills, taking down two or three would not be difficult either.
Li Qing was quite satisfied with this progress. Once he tempered his body and cultivated his External Strength, officially becoming a master of External Strength, he would forge a suitable weapon and protective armor for himself. At that time, his combat power would increase exponentially.
With such martial strength, even if he returned to the original border army camp, he would have considerable confidence in sneaking away from the heavily guarded granary.
"Now, tell me your names and why you targeted me?" Li Qing asked coldly.
"This esteemed sir, my name is Qi Jinxiong. This time, my brothers and I were blind to your greatness. Please, spare us this once, and we promise to avoid you in the future!"
The speaker was a tall and thin gloomy man, clearly the leader among the three.
After some questioning, Li Qing learned about their backgrounds. The slick and shrewd second brother was named Qi Jinbao, while the dim-witted third brother was called Qi Jinniu.
Interestingly, the three were not biological brothers; they had merely met later and sworn brotherhood, even changing their surnames together.
In a world where food was scarce, there was no saying about changing names or surnames, and no one would take their names too seriously. Today they might be surnamed Qi, and tomorrow they could be surnamed Yan due to some circumstance.
What surprised Li Qing even more was that all three belonged to an underground force called the Righteous Gang.
This was the first time Li Qing learned that besides the Yan family, there were other forces in Obsidian City. However, after inquiring further, he couldn't help but roll his eyes.
It turned out that the members of this organization were basically small ruffians like the Qi brothers, engaging in petty theft and bullying honest people.
Interestingly, this gang of small ruffians even had a motto: robbing the rich to help the poor, with righteousness as vast as the heavens.
"Robbing the rich to help the poor? The wealthiest force in the city is the Yan family. Why haven't you ever robbed them?" Li Qing mocked disdainfully.
The third brother, Qi Jinniu, immediately became indignant. He panted and said, "Why not? The marketplace is run by the Yan family. We rob the people coming and going in the marketplace every day. If no one goes to the marketplace, isn't that indirectly hitting the Yan family?"
Upon hearing this, Li Qing's expression grew even colder.
Qi Jinniu was clearly a one-track-minded individual, and he had no idea who had taught him such nonsense, believing it to be true.
Little did he know that the Yan family was the largest landlord in Obsidian City, a force that drained the lifeblood of the entire city. Anyone living in Obsidian City could not escape being exploited by the Yan family.
It was likely that the Yan family had never even regarded this so-called Righteous Gang with any seriousness; the disparity in their levels was too great, and they were not even on the same scale of power.
Li Qing spoke with disgust, "So, after engaging in these dirty deeds for so long, has the business of the Yan family's marketplace worsened? Has the Yan family been genuinely impacted?"
As soon as these words left his mouth, Qi Jinniu suddenly froze. His brain, which he rarely used, began to think.
Indeed, the Righteous Gang had existed for quite some time, yet it seemed the Yan family's power had not been affected at all; they remained as imposing as ever.
While he pondered, Li Qing coldly added, "Cowards who only swing their blades at the weak, get lost. Don't dirty my courtyard!"
With that, Li Qing turned and walked into the courtyard, slamming the door shut with a bang.
After entering the courtyard, Li Qing sighed inwardly and shook his head.
Originally, he had intended to keep the three under control, using their strength to help gather information in the city and learn about the happenings each day.
However, just thinking about their actions filled him with immense disgust.
If he had not practiced martial arts, after leaving the marketplace today, the outcome would have likely been quite grim.
Losing an arm or a leg would have been the least of his worries; if they discovered the pile of food he had hidden in the cellar, it could have meant certain death.
"Power is still needed."
The blood-red moon hanging in the sky gradually elongated Li Qing's shadow.
At that moment, he finally understood the importance of power and found the true purpose of practicing martial arts.
That day, the notorious Qi brothers, known around the marketplace, became infamous once again.
They were defeated simultaneously by a defenseless person, and this news caused quite a stir in the small circles of the city.
"Hahaha, finally! Someone taught those three dogs a lesson."
"Not long ago, they robbed me of two jin of black rye mushrooms that I had exchanged everything for. I almost starved to death. Why didn't that person just kill all three of them?"
"They're just trash, always up to no good, stealing and cheating. Well done!"
"It would be best to wipe out that so-called Righteous Gang along with them; they are truly a cancer."
Many of those complaining had previously been harmed by the Righteous Gang, and they had long harbored dissatisfaction towards this force, even more so than towards the Yan family.
However, the instigator of this incident, Li Qing, remained completely unaware.
After bringing the iron ingots home, he stoked the fire in the forge, preparing to forge a new hammer for himself, to be used in battle and for his daily blacksmithing.
With his increased strength, the iron hammer he usually used had become unwieldy.
"I'll set the weight at around two hundred jin; that should be my current limit."
Soon, the rough outline of a war hammer appeared in Li Qing's mind. He had thought about the style and weight of this hammer for quite some time.
Two hundred jin was still somewhat burdensome for him at present.
Being able to carry three hundred jin of iron ingots did not mean he could wield a three hundred jin weapon.
There was still a significant difference between arm strength and the body's endurance.
With his current arm strength, swinging a two hundred jin hammer would be somewhat strenuous, and he would feel outmatched.
However, Li Qing had a premonition that it wouldn't be long before he cultivated his External Strength.
When that time came, his strength would increase significantly, and a two hundred jin iron hammer would definitely be manageable for him!
But next, he faced a dilemma: how to melt the Mo Jin into the hammer?
(End of Chapter)