"Uncle, you're back early."
Xiao Qiaoniang looked up as Bai Yuan pushed the door open. She set aside the sachet she was halfway through weaving.
Even though the Bai Family's circumstances had greatly improved, she hadn't stopped her needlework.
"Nothing much was happening at the Martial Arts Hall, so I came home early."
Bai Yuan hummed in acknowledgment.
"Uncle, what is this?"
Xiao Qiaoniang noticed the oil-paper package in Bai Yuan's hand.
Bai Yuan grinned, placed the small package on the wooden table, and carefully began to unwrap it.
As he peeled back the layers of oil paper, a delightfully sweet fragrance slowly drifted out.
"Osmanthus Cake?"
Xiao Qiaoniang's jaw dropped in surprise when she saw the pale pink pastry wrapped in the oil paper.
Osmanthus Cake was made from glutinous rice flour, which was several times more expensive than the sorghum flour they usually ate. It was filled with sweet red bean paste and sprinkled with bits of green and red candied fruit on its corners. A single small piece cost over ten copper coins.
This was something only the young ladies of rich families in the city could afford.
She had only heard of it from the Chen Family's Women.
"Uncle, why waste money like this? You should still be able to return it if you take it back now."
Having grown accustomed to a hard life, Xiao Qiaoniang's first reaction to the Osmanthus Cake was that it was an extravagant waste.
Ten-some copper coins were enough to buy several pounds of sorghum flour. A tiny piece of Osmanthus Cake could never be as filling as sorghum flatbread.
Bai Yuan smiled and took out a string of copper coins from his robes.
This was all the money he got from selling the wild game hidden in the mountain cave.
"We can still afford one Osmanthus Cake."
Hearing the JINGLE of the copper coins, Xiao Qiaoniang finally felt at ease.
"Uncle, you can't waste money on these fancy things anymore."
"I know."
"Here, Sister-in-law, have a taste."
"Uncle, you eat too."
The Osmanthus Cake was broken into two halves.
Bai Yuan and Xiao Qiaoniang held their halves with extreme care. When crumbs fell into their palms, they meticulously picked them up and popped them into their mouths.
The single Osmanthus Cake tasted exceptionally sweet as the two of them savored it.
The two of them closed their eyes, savoring the sweetness that still lingered in their mouths.
Life was getting more and more comfortable.
...
This year's snowy season in Qinghe County was especially short.
After just half a month, there were already signs of warming, and the snow in the mountains began to melt.
The melting snow formed streams throughout the mountains, their ceaseless gurgling a constant sound.
In Mentougou, the wild beasts that had been hibernating gradually began to become active.
SWOOSH!
Enhancement Points +3
A gray-furred wolf cub, standing half as tall as a man, died instantly as Bai Yuan's arrow pierced its eye.
Bai Yuan's strength was no longer limited to small game.
Hunting large, ferocious beasts was more efficient.
It was just a pity that wolf meat was gamey and smelly, and couldn't fetch a good price in the city. Wild boars were still better.
Since becoming a Swordsman, his combat power had soared. Combined with his skilled-level archery and tracking, he was practically a monster-grinding machine.
The enhancement points were the best proof.
[Name: Bai Yuan]
[Occupation: Hunter, Swordsman]
[Skills: Cleave (Skilled), Tracking (Skilled), Archery (Skilled), Tiger Form Crane Style (Uninitiated), Five Animals Fist (Uninitiated)...]
[Enhancement Points: 27]
[Occupation Acquired!]
[Boxer] [Blacksmith] [Cook]
'I choose Boxer.'
'Add points!'
[In your first year of practicing the Five Animals Fist, you trained hard ten times a day, and your physique strengthened.]
...
[You trained hard in the Five Animals Fist, never stopping for a day, and finally saw results.]
[Name: Bai Yuan]
[Occupation: Hunter, Swordsman, Boxer]
[Skills: Cleave (Skilled), Tracking (Skilled), Archery (Skilled), Tiger Form Crane Style (Uninitiated), Five Animals Fist (Initiate)...]
[Enhancement Points: 0]
The Five Animals Fist was a type of fist style, so it required unlocking the Boxer occupation before it could be upgraded.
This set of fist techniques was of a much lower level than the Tiger Form Crane Style, so it didn't require raising the Boxer's initial skill to the Skilled level.
Even so, Bai Yuan had to spend 17 enhancement points just to upgrade the Five Animals Fist to the Initiate level.
Bai Yuan hunted in Mentougou until dark before heading down the mountain and back to the small wooden cabin in Baisha Town.
The moment he pushed open the door and stepped into the cabin, he smelled the comforting aroma of meat.
Xiao Qiaoniang, who was busy at the stove, heard the door open and turned to look at Bai Yuan.
"Uncle, the porridge will be ready soon."
Before long, Xiao Qiaoniang brought over a bowl of cornmeal porridge topped with three large pieces of meat.
The Bai Family's food had been upgraded from sorghum flour to cornmeal.
Compared to the coarse and hard-to-swallow sorghum flour, the cornmeal had a hint of light sweetness.
The fatigue from crouching in the mountain gullies all day vanished before this bowl of cornmeal porridge.
'It feels so good to come home to a hot meal.'
Farming families didn't have much entertainment at night, so they all went to bed early.
By the time Bai Yuan finished his meat porridge, the Bai Family's home was the last one in Baisha Town with its lights still on.
Xiao Qiaoniang cleared away the bowl and chopsticks.
"Uncle, you should get some rest."
"Mm."
Bai Yuan and Xiao Qiaoniang both drifted off to sleep.
...
「Huwei Arts Hall, Martial Arts Arena. Between 7 and 9 a.m.」
BANG!
With a muffled thud, Bai Yuan's heavy, powerful punch landed squarely on a sandbag, leaving an impression a foot deep.
"Not bad."
Just as Bai Yuan was about to reset his stance for another punch, Zhang Yang's voice sounded from behind him.
He turned to look.
Zhang Yang gave him a look of approval.
He had long since noticed this young man who, like Xu Wen, arrived at the Martial Arts Arena very early.
'This boy's talent isn't on par with Xu Wen's, but it's still quite good. I estimate he'll break through the Skin Grinding stage in less than half a year. Becoming an Outer Disciple is a certainty. He's outstanding, just barely.'
"The fist follows the eyes, your stance must be set quickly. Martial arts are killing techniques; a moment's hesitation can mean death."
"Thank you, Instructor."
Bai Yuan cupped his fist in salute to Zhang Yang.
"Alright, continue your training."
Zhang Yang walked towards the other young apprentices, his hands clasped behind his back.
Now that Xu Wen had broken through the Skin Grinding Barrier and been promoted to Outer Disciple, Bai Yuan and Li Ting were the most outstanding apprentices of their group.
Bai Yuan glanced at the delicate young woman not far away, sweat flying as she practiced.
Li Ting had been training for the same amount of time as him and was now also showing decent form. Although she was a bit behind him, she was gradually getting the hang of it.
Her family was well-off, so she lacked for nothing in terms of food and medicinal herbs, but her rapid progress was also inseparable from her diligence.
Ever since Xu Wen was promoted to Outer Disciple, Li Ting was the only one who arrived at the Martial Arts Arena around the same time as Bai Yuan.
The apprentices' training time was very short. Bai Yuan was forced to stop just as he was starting to get into it.
After all, his talent couldn't compare to Xu Wen's, so he wouldn't receive any special treatment.
"Brother Yuan, that crazy killer has been caught!"
Zhuang Zhao sidled up to Bai Yuan and said in a low voice.
Such a secret piece of news was naturally told to him by Zhou Qian.
Perhaps it was a matter of shared physique, but Zhou Qian, the big guy, always looked out for Zhuang Zhao, the chubby kid.
"Tell me about it."
Bai Yuan looked interested. 'After all, that person took the fall for me. I should pay attention to this.'
"It's wild, absolutely wild! I thought it would all be over once they caught the murderer, but I never expected the guy to be an Assassin from the Soul-Chasing Tower."
"Someone is deliberately targeting our Martial Arts Hall."
The Soul-Chasing Tower was the largest organization of assassins in Huanglong Prefecture, and even in all of Xuan Yang.
Faced with such a terrifying organization, not even the three major powers would dare to provoke them lightly.