Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

Seeing how seriously Chen Cheng honored his commitments, Tang Yunlong and the other esteemed guests all wore looks of appreciation.

Xiao Yi was still all smiles, his true thoughts impossible to guess. He simply walked over to the still-dazed Liang Guang, and after exchanging a few words, they were acting like fast friends who should have met years ago.

”Eldest Brother, Third Sister, what do you think?”

From a distance, Zhu Mingyuan pulled his gaze away from the small door, his tone casual.

”Not interested.”

Chu Meng’s voice was calm, almost detached, as if nothing outside the door had anything to do with him or was worthy of his attention.

”Useless.”

Ye Qiluo’s lips parted slightly, but her words were as cold and hard as ice shards.

”On the path of Martial Arts, the fundamentals will always be Root Bone and resources. To think you can advance your Realm by pinning your hopes on a sudden epiphany...”

”I’m not saying it’s completely impossible. But even if you get lucky once or twice, can you really count on that every single time?”

”If you can’t form the Three Pillars of Blood Qi, you’ll never be qualified to truly enter the Inner Hall. Compared to us...”

She lifted her chin slightly, her pride unconcealed.

”We are simply not the same kind of people.”

...

「South Outer City.」

Beneath the massive arch of the city gate, a new notice from the Inspectorate Headquarters had been pasted on the grimy brick wall. The paste was still wet, steaming slightly in the cold wind that whistled through the passageway.

Two Constables stood guard on either side, hands resting on the hilts of their sabers. Their faces were as stern and unmoving as the bricks in the wall.

A crowd pressed in from all sides. Most of them were craning their necks, but being illiterate, they had to ask anxiously, ”What does it say!? Are they raising taxes!? Or is it... another draft!?”

”Silence!”

Just then, a Patrol Clerk stepped forward and announced in a clear, loud voice.

”By order! Regarding the heretics of the Red Moon Nunnery: though their nest has been destroyed, the ringleader remains at large, and their evil has not been fully purged!”

”Anyone who is hiding in the city or countryside, acting suspiciously, or knows the whereabouts of their Evil Artifacts... may report to their local ward office or the Patrol Office!”

”Upon verification, rewards will be granted based on merit, with no upper limit! Anyone found to be concealing information, or worse, colluding with and sheltering these criminals, will be charged with the same crime as the heretics themselves!”

The Patrol Clerk’s voice rose sharply, and he spat out the words ”same crime,” each syllable landing like a shard of ice in the noisy crowd.

The crowd went quiet for a moment before erupting into a clamor.

”Whoa! No upper limit on the reward?! They’re really putting up the cash for this...”

”Report it? Who knows who’s hiding a demon under their roof? You’re more likely to get your throat slit by some ghoul than to ever see that reward money!”

”There are always people desperate enough not to fear death. Who knows how long this chaos will drag on now...”

The discussions were fervent, but everyone’s eyes told a different story.

Some were indifferent, spitting on the ground before turning to leave. Others hunched their shoulders and let their eyes dart about, whether out of fear of trouble or a guilty conscience, it was hard to say. And then there were a few nondescript-looking men who stared intently at the word ”reward,” their Adam’s apples bobbing as they unconsciously fiddled with the hems of their clothes.

A corner of the notice curled in the wind. The bright red Official Seal looked like a single eye, coldly gazing down on the figures hurrying through the city gate below.

This news was a drop of water in a sizzling wok, destined to cause untold ripples—and perhaps ignite hidden flames—in a South Outer City still reeling from the recent chaos.

On the edge of the crowd, in an unremarkable corner, a figure paused.

Their gaze swept over the words ”Evil Artifacts” on the notice. They then lowered their eyes, pulled their bamboo hat down, and silently melted into the crowd flowing into the city.

...

「Kuhuai Village.」 In a dark, rutted alley, a simple stretcher swayed with a rhythmic CREAK.

Chen Hao lay on top, his face ashen. A faint bloodstain still marked the front of his robes, and his entire being radiated weakness and misery.

The two young men carrying the stretcher were new, Entry Level disciples from the White Ape Hall. They stumbled along the uneven ground, their noses wrinkling in disgust at the surrounding stench.

”We’re here. It’s just up ahead...”

Chen Hao lifted a finger, pointing toward a dilapidated shack in front of them.

As if granted a pardon, the two youths quickened their pace. They just wanted to drop him off and get out of this godforsaken place as fast as possible.

”Mother, Grandfather...”

”Hao, you... what happened to you!?”

Hearing the commotion, Mistress Wang rushed out, followed closely by Chen Yong and Old Chen.

The moment they saw Chen Hao’s condition, the faces of all three turned grim.

But Chen Hao, stubbornly trying to save face, said, ”It’s just a minor injury. I’ll be fine after a few days of rest.”

Then, Chen Hao looked at the two young disciples.

”Thank you for your trouble, Junior Brothers. When I’m better in a few days, I’ll be sure to treat you to drinks!”

”...You should get some rest, Senior Brother. Don’t strain yourself talking.”

The two young men gave a noncommittal answer, carried Chen Hao into the shack, set him on the bed, and promptly took their leave.

After leaving the alley, both of them couldn’t help but roll their eyes.

”That Senior Brother Chen is such a poser. From the way he always talked and acted, I thought his family was well-off. Turns out he’s just some bottom-rung peasant.”

”Treat us to drinks? Please. If the Hall Master himself hadn’t gone to the Fulai Building to settle his tab last night, Chen Hao would have completely disgraced our White Ape Hall.”

”The guy’s a fake and totally unreliable. We should stay as far away from him as possible from now on.”

”Tell me about it.”

「Back at the shack.」

Chen Hao briefly explained how he had been robbed the night before.

When Old Chen heard the story, he collapsed into a corner. His face, already gaunt from a sleepless night, seemed to age decades in an instant.

’A Martial Artist...’

A look of utter despair filled the old man’s eyes.

’His grandson, the one in whom the entire family had pinned all their hopes, had finally become a true Martial Artist...’

’...and yet he’d been beaten so badly he couldn’t even stand, robbed of everything he had...’

’This Martial Arts...’

’...was it all for nothing?’

”Hao!”

Mistress Wang’s reaction was completely different. She lunged toward the bed, eyes bloodshot, a low growl rumbling in her throat.

”If you know who did it, why didn’t you ask the Hall Master for help? Why didn’t you report it to the Patrol Office? That... that was over one hundred taels of silver! That was everything for this family!”

”...Mother, you need proof for things like that...”

Chen Hao said, his brow furrowed and his voice full of despair.

”I suspect it was Lu Feng from our hall, but the Hall Master said Lu Feng was at the Martial Arts Hall the entire time, that he never left...”

Before he could finish, a clamor of heavy, disorderly footsteps echoed from the alley outside. The sound grew closer, carrying an air of undisguised arrogance as it zeroed in on their humble shack.

CRASH!

The wooden door was kicked open, the hinges splintering from the force.

The first to enter were two burly members of the Giant Tiger Gang. Their eyes were fierce as their gazes swept across the room before they stepped aside to clear the way.

A middle-aged man in a short brocade jacket then sauntered in, his face dark and sinister.

The man was about forty, with a slick, well-oiled mustache. His temples bulged slightly, and the knuckles on his hands were thick and coarse. It was Hu Biao, the Deputy Gang Leader of the Giant Tiger Gang.

”They say the Chen Family of Kuhuai Village has produced a remarkable Martial Artist. I presume this must be him?”

Hu Biao glanced at the pathetic figure of Chen Hao on the bed, a cold sneer twisting his lips.

”That would be me...”

Chen Hao, still thinking the man had come to build connections, immediately plastered a smile on his face.