The setting sun bathed the sky in molten gold, weaving seamlessly into the twilight clouds. Beneath the fading light, laborers trudged back from the docks, while fishermen returned from a long day at the market. And then there were those who gripped sabers and clubs, locked in bloody slaughter.
A fierce brawl erupted within a narrow alley.
"You filthy scumbags actually dare to fight me for territory?" Chen Kai barked. Armed with hard, razor-sharp Finger Tigers, he unleashed a relentless barrage of Monument-Breaking Palm strikes, forcing the slightly older Martial Artist before him into a steady retreat.
This was a turf war between the Golden Saber Sect and the Iron Palm Sect. Following their previous failed operation, the Golden Saber Sect had stopped clashing head-on with the Black Dragon Gang, shifting their sights to weaker surrounding factions instead.
Expanding territory required fresh manpower—ideally those with decent Root Bone and prior martial arts experience. Under the guise of guaranteeing a breakthrough into the ranks of true Martial Artists, the Golden Saber Sect secretly recruited targeted individuals. Kai was one of those lured in by their false promises.
Initially, he had harbored some doubts. But when he saw Chen Yuan become a Martial Artist despite losing the Gu Family’s financial support—and even secure a position serving the Inner City’s Li Family—Kai panicked. His own family had spent a fortune treating his injuries, leaving very little silver for his martial arts training. His progress had slowed to a crawl, while Yuan only grew stronger. The gap between them was widening at an alarming rate. If things continued like this, he would never have his revenge. He had no choice but to take a massive risk!
Fortunately, his painstaking efforts paid off. With the aid of the Golden Saber Sect’s elixirs, he successfully broke through the Skin Barrier and grasped Manifest Force, officially becoming a Martial Artist. Even though he could faintly sense that his body had suffered some kind of irreversible damage, he didn’t care. Since then, he had fought tirelessly for the sect with reckless abandon and ruthless cruelty, all to accumulate enough contribution points to exchange for an elixir that would push him to Skin-Refining Great Success!
"Such hard fists!" the repelled Iron Palm Sect Martial Artist thought, a chill running down his spine as a dull numbness spread through his palms. Now in his forties and negligent in his training, his vitality had waned. He simply couldn’t compare to a vigorous young Martial Artist like Kai. Fear took root in his mind. Without hesitation, he abandoned his fellow gang members and turned to flee.
Kai sneered coldly but didn’t bother giving chase. Instead, he teamed up with the remaining Golden Saber Sect members and slaughtered the rest of the Iron Palm Sect thugs. In gang warfare, death was simply part of the job.
"Mr. Chen, you’re absolutely ferocious!" a lackey approached, his face plastered with sycophantic praise.
Kai let out a disdainful chuckle. "It’s just killing a few small fry. Let’s go. Haul the corpses back."
At the Golden Saber Sect headquarters, Sect Leader Zhao Jinsong leaned back in the seat of honor, listening to Kai’s report. He cast a sideways glance at the corpses piled nearby and nodded in satisfaction.
"You did well, Chen Kai," Jinsong said with a faint smile. "What kind of reward do you want? Silver or elixirs?"
A sharp glint flashed in Kai’s eyes. "Sect Leader, I want an elixir to break through to Skin-Refining Great Success so I can make even greater contributions to our sect!"
Jinsong raised an eyebrow, his tone indifferent. "With your Root Bone, you only have a forty percent chance of successfully breaking through to Skin-Refining Great Success. Are you certain you want to try? The consequences of failure are severe."
He certainly wanted to cultivate subordinates at Skin-Refining Great Success or even the Bone Barrier, but the side effects of the elixirs were too immense. Without a solid Root Bone to suppress the backlash, failure meant exploding and dying on the spot.
Kai’s gaze remained resolute. "Sect Leader, I want to try. Please grant my request!"
A forty percent success rate was more than enough for him. As long as he succeeded, he would finally have a chance to defeat Yuan and wash away his past humiliation! He was going to stomp Yuan into the dirt in public, just as Yuan had done to him. Even if he could never advance another inch in martial arts for the rest of his life, that single moment of glory would be worth it. He would have no regrets.
* * *
Time slipped by, and nearly ten peaceful days passed. It had been six months since Chen Yuan first began practicing martial arts.
Over the past few days, he had been working tirelessly to forge Copper Skin. He never stopped taking Blood Qi Pills and Skin Strengthening Pills, simultaneously nourishing his vitality to temper his skin and absorbing the medicinal properties to refine it further. At the same time, he poured all his acquired Low-key Points into upgrading his Root Bone, raising it from fifty-five to fifty-nine. After all, the higher the Root Bone, the easier it was to achieve Copper Skin.
An unwritten rule existed within the Qingyuan County Martial Realm: Grade C+ Root Bone could forge Copper Skin, Grade B- Root Bone could forge Iron Bones, Grade B+ Root Bone could forge Golden Muscle, and Grade A- Root Bone could forge Jade Marrow. Reaching the absolute limit of each barrier required extremely strict Root Bone qualifications; it was entirely bottlenecked by innate talent.
As far as he knew, his familiar acquaintances, Xu Heng and Yu Yan, had both forcefully stepped into the Bone Barrier with the foundation of Copper Skin. This granted them a massive advantage. If they fought other Bone Barrier Martial Artists who hadn’t tempered Copper Skin, they would completely dominate the battle, as their defensive capabilities were on an entirely different level.
As for the elusive Grade A+ Root Bone—a talent Qingyuan County might only see once every few decades—rumor had it that such geniuses could unlock the unique divine treasures of the flesh and cultivate their own exclusive physical phenomena. Of course, that was merely a highly esoteric rumor.
Taking this three-pronged approach, the bronze hue on Yuan’s skin grew noticeably thicker and tougher. With continuous accumulation, reaching the absolute limit of the Skin Barrier would naturally fall into place. His progress in the Heart Intent Six Harmonies Fist and the Dragon Elephant Prison-Suppression Body hadn’t fallen behind either, improving at a steady, solid pace. With both excellent Comprehension and Root Bone, he didn’t need to neglect one for the other; he could easily advance them all simultaneously.
The autumn air was crisp and refreshing today—perfect weather for martial arts training. Yuan was in the Huo Courtyard, sparring with Senior Brother Fang Minghai to practice his Heart Intent Six Harmonies Fist.
Although Old Fang was a Muscle-refining Martial Artist, he was stuck at Manifest Force Perfection and had been unable to break through to Hidden Force for a long time. He was the classic "all brawn and no brains" type, but he was undoubtedly the perfect sparring partner for Yuan’s current level.
In the middle of their practice, someone came to report that a challenger had arrived at the front gate. Senior Brother Tao stepped forward to handle the matter.
Yuan raised an eyebrow. Formal doorway challenges weren’t common. People usually only chose this method if there was a deep-seated grudge between the two parties. In his half-year at the Huo Courtyard, he had only seen challengers arrive two or three times. He didn’t pay it much mind and simply resumed sparring with Senior Brother Fang.
But when he caught a glimpse of the figure Senior Brother Tao was leading into the courtyard, Yuan froze for a moment, his brow furrowing.
Noticing his strange reaction, Minghai couldn’t help but ask, "What is it, Junior Brother Chen? An acquaintance?"
Yuan offered a faint smile. "You could say that. The kind of acquaintance where one of us ends up dead."
Minghai’s eyes narrowed sharply. "Is he here for you, Junior Brother?" he asked in a deep voice.
Yuan nodded. "Most likely. But there’s no need to worry. His strength shouldn’t pose any threat to me."
Truthfully, he was a little surprised. He hadn’t been keeping track of Kai’s movements recently. As long as those three from the Chen Family didn’t provoke him, he wasn’t the type to go looking for trouble. He never expected that after so much time had passed, Kai still hadn’t given up—and had even gained the confidence to issue a formal challenge.
Yuan shifted his feet and walked over toward them.
Tao Ping was asking in a routine, businesslike tone, "You know the rules of a doorway challenge, right? You must complete three matches before you can step down, with a fifteen-minute break between each. Now tell me your Martial Dao level and the opponent you wish to challenge."
Kai spotted Yuan as well. His eyes instantly filled with venomous hatred as he stated coldly, "Chen Kai of the Golden Saber Sect. Skin-Refining Great Success, Manifest Force Initiate. I’m challenging Chen Yuan."