Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

"Oh," Shen Qing didn't ask any further.

Ouyang Tiezhu patted Shen Qing's shoulder, his mood apparently much better, "Really don't know how you practice, breaking through so fast. Now you're officially my junior brother, shall we go out for a drink to celebrate?"

He had initially heard about some of Shen Qing's talents from Li Linfeng and thus volunteered to get close to him.

Now, Shen Qing was soaring just as he had anticipated.

Among the numerous junior brothers, he was the first to build a good relationship, gaining the advantage of proximity, perhaps in the future, he could benefit from it.

Shen Qing knew that it hadn't been long since Ouyang Tie Niu had died, and the senior brother Ouyang Tiezhu must not have completely gotten over it yet.

Seeing him in such rare good spirits, he simply didn't decline.

"Then let's go to Fengwei Restaurant," Ouyang Tiezhu said with a smile. "Junior brother might not know, Fengwei Restaurant is a high-class restaurant in the Inner City, where the most expensive meal can easily cost hundreds of taels of silver, it's one of the restaurants that sons of the Boss families like to frequent the most."

"Today, to celebrate master taking you in as his disciple, let's make an exception and go there."

Fengwei Restaurant?

Shen Qing remembered he had just eaten there not long ago, the taste was quite ordinary, and it was expensive, truly a bit unnecessary.

"Senior brother, let's just find a place to have some drinks and eat some meat and vegetables. That place doesn't really offer anything special in taste, and there's no rush to go now. We can go later after I've broken through to the Qi Cultivation Realm."

When Shen Qing spoke, his tone carried a bit of sincerity.

Ouyang Tiezhu thought about his own purse and did not insist any further, "Alright, I'll owe this meal to you, and we'll make it up later."

Seeing Ouyang Tiezhu acting in such a way, Shen Qing knew that this senior brother was indeed a little short on money.

He didn't know what to say to his senior brother's insistence on keeping up appearances.

Leaving Linfeng Hall, it was just mealtime, so the two found a clean and neat little restaurant nearby, ordered some food and wine, and sat down.

At this time, the restaurant was filled with laughter and conversation, atmosphere harmonious.

Ouyang Tiezhu couldn't help but sigh, "Indeed, only the Inner City of Taiping County looks proper, other places are all in a mess. Sometimes I wonder if it's just Taiping County like this, or if it's the same in other parts of Great Zhou."

Shen Qing asked, "Has senior brother been to other places?"

Ouyang Tiezhu shook his head, "Just around Taiping County. I was born in the Outer City, used to hang with people and go all over the place, you wouldn't know what life outside Taiping County has become. Every day there's fighting and killing."

"To even have an honest living, one needs connections, to find a gang to rely on, or else you won't last long before being sucked dry by various powers."

"In the end, in Taiping County, the word 'safety' is too valuable."

"With safety in the Inner City, businesses can thrive, the Boss families can make more money, then hire more martial masters for protection, government offices can be stable, so if you want to make something of yourself, you need to practice Martial Arts and can't just get by."

Ouyang Tiezhu spoke absently, "I've known this truth for a long time, but he just wouldn't listen."

Shen Qing, sensing that Ouyang Tiezhu was venting frustrations, tactfully played along, "Senior brother is talking about who wouldn't listen?"

"My stupid brother," Ouyang Tiezhu sighed. "I'm sorry, junior brother. I originally planned to get you some work with a gang in the Outer City, but that's not happening now."

"I've heard about it, Senior Brother, take care," Shen Qing replied with a calm expression.

"Let's not talk about the past anymore, let's drink, come on."

"Okay, cheers."

Both filled their cups with rice wine and drank it down.

Ouyang Tiezhu wiped his mouth and said, "Refreshing!"

He picked up his chopsticks, tapped on the table, then grabbed a peanut and tossed it into his mouth, chewing contentedly.

"By the way, little brother, have you heard anything about the tiger demon recently?"

"Tiger demon?" Shen Qing's heart skipped a beat, and he casually replied with chopsticks in hand, "How could there be such nonsense in this world? Is there really such a thing as a demon?"

Ouyang Tiezhu leaned in earnestly and said, "It's true, right near your Shicheng Mountain. Haven't you heard?"

"No," Shen Qing flatly denied, "However, I have heard that there are traces of a tiger in the mountains."

"That's right, it's that tiger demon," Ouyang Tiezhu said mysteriously, "Some people have seen it talk. It's truly become a spirit. The Guardian Martial Department has even urgently gone to capture it. I heard a lot of people got injured because of it, with tax officials dying at the hands of the tiger."

"Is that so?"

"It's been in the past few days. Right now the county government is discussing with the Four Great Eastern Families about capturing the tiger demon. I reckon it won't be long before things get serious."

Shen Qing asked, "This doesn't involve us, does it?"

"Hard to say. To some extent, our Linfeng Hall is under the government office, and if they come to us for support, we can't refuse."

Shen Qing frowned and said, "We can't refuse?"

"There's no helping it. It's not so easy to enter the Inner City. If you come in, you have to follow their rules."

"Is it only us who has to do this?"

"Not necessarily. Basically, anyone studying Martial Arts in the Inner City has a certain chance of being called upon depending on how strong their connections are."

"Well, that's not too bad. If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up; we don't need to worry."

"Exactly."

After Shen Qing and he each had another bowl of wine, they picked up the roasted lamb chops that had just been served and started to eat.

After three rounds of wine.

Shen Qing spoke up and asked, "Senior Brother Ouyang, now that I've become Master's direct disciple, are there any benefits? Tell me about them."

"Master teaching you personally isn't a big enough benefit? Don't be ungrateful; Master is like a father. Many people can't even beg for such an opportunity."

Ouyang Tiezhu continued, "Don't think that just by holding a Martial Arts Secret Manual you can master it. How do you know if there's a typo, or a mistake made during transcription and printing? Sometimes a single word can lead to a completely opposite meaning."

"Having a revered and respected Master teach you is different; you can avoid many detours."

Shen Qing nodded in agreement, "I understand. There are many terms in Martial Arts that I can't even understand, let alone learn. I just want to know more when I have the time."

"Ah... your timing isn't great. A few years earlier, our Master was quite a figure in the Inner City, and everybody gave him some respect. Now that the government of the city has changed, Master's connections have weakened quite a bit."

"But Master's foundation in Martial Arts is still there. Not to mention anything else, he has practiced numerous Martial Arts, and his vision is quite broad. You'll know when he teaches you killing techniques. 'Wind Defying Finger' can truly take a life with one point, it's not a lie at all."

Hearing this, Shen Qing's eyes lit up.

He hadn't expected Li Linfeng to have such skills.

Perhaps he could get some more Cultivation Techniques from him to practice.

At the moment, the combination of Blood Dominance Technique and Wind Defying Finger already produced unexpected effects.

What would he turn into if he broke through several more Martial Arts using the Water Ink Panel?

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