41: On the eve of evolution!

Back at the Fierce Wind Martial Arts Hall, Li Qing once again became that submissive, reticent, and thin follower.

The followers' room was noisy, with Hou San spitting as he bragged to the martial arts hall's handymen about how heroic he had been on the river.

Li Qing silently climbed onto his bunk to rest and recuperate.

Money was temporarily sufficient.

The sky-high price tags at the Hundred Herbs Hall had given him a glimpse of the pinnacle.

On the way back, he had already planned his next moves!

Catch fish, sell them for money!

Become a free man!

Time passed day by day in an atmosphere of surging undercurrents.

Day after day.

The atmosphere in the martial arts hall became increasingly solemn.

On the Great River, patrol boats from the City Lord's Mansion and fast ships from the martial arts hall crisscrossed back and forth.

They had already turned that stretch of water upside down, searching every inch.

The Martial Artists all had solemn expressions as they searched for that Mid-tier Spirit Beast.

But that Black Armored Turtle seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth, never appearing again.

At Chen Meng's training ground.

The sound of wooden swords piercing the air was sharp and frequent.

She put extraordinary effort into every moment of her Cultivation.

Her progress was visible to the naked eye.

As for Li Qing, he appeared punctually every afternoon.

"Senior Sister Chen, I want to go out for a bit."

His excuse was always the same: to wander around the Inner City and broaden his horizons.

On the first day, Chen Meng only frowned and waved him away impatiently.

On the third day, she stopped practicing her sword, looked at him coldly without saying anything, and after a long while, nodded.

On the fifth day, she ignored him directly.

Only after he stood awkwardly in place for a long time did she squeeze the word "Scram" from between her teeth.

She couldn't understand it.

The world was so dangerous that the slightest carelessness could lead to being crushed to pieces.

She was desperately trying to grasp even a sliver of hope for survival.

But this Li Qing was content to indulge himself in the prosperous illusions of the Inner City.

A poor boy with no power or influence.

So what if he saw more of the world?

Could it put food on the table?

Could it buy cultivation?

He was simply beyond help.

Seeing this, Li Qing didn't care at all.

Every day he left the martial arts hall, took many twists and turns in the Inner City to shake off any potential spies.

Then he would dive into the cheapest meat shop, disguising himself as an ordinary boy with an enormous appetite.

He needed a massive amount of food to nourish his increasingly powerful physical body.

His Clone had been in the cave at the bottom of the river for eight full days without hunting personally.

The presence of patrols on the river surface was too dense, with no lack of Late Stage of Meridian Connecting Realm experts; acting rashly was too risky.

He could only rely on the ten fierce generals he had subdued to take turns hunting for him.

The efficiency was much slower.

Deep in his consciousness, the numbers on the panel grew slowly.

[evolution value: 4810.2/5000]

Only a little bit left... On the ninth day, in the afternoon.

Li Qing came to the training ground again.

Just a little bit more, just a little bit more and he would welcome his next transformation.

He had to endure.

Prepare for the hunger after evolution!

Chen Meng was practicing her sword, executing a set of basic sword techniques with extreme sharpness.

The wind from the sword whistled, and fallen leaves on the ground were swept up, only to be shredded into powder.

Her forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat, and her clothes were already soaked through.

Clinging to her body, they outlined the burgeoning curves of the young girl.

Li Qing walked behind her and waited for her to finish this set of sword techniques.

Chen Meng retracted her sword and stood still, her chest heaving violently as she gasped for air.

She turned around, saw Li Qing, and her brow furrowed.

What replaced it was disgust.

"Going to the Inner City again?"

Her voice was flat; she had long since given up on Li Qing.

"Yes."

Li Qing lowered his head.

"Li Qing."

"My father asked me to bring you along because he hoped you could learn something at the martial arts hall."

"Even if it's just basic martial arts, you would have a skill to make a living in the future."

"And you?"

She took a step forward, staring at the top of Li Qing's head.

"All you think about every day is going to the Inner City to see excitement that doesn't belong to you."

"Do you think it's fine to just muddle through life like this?"

"You're just rotten wood that cannot be carved!"

She almost spat out that last sentence through gritted teeth.

That was what her father had said when he invited Li Qing over.

The last sentence was her own conclusion!

Li Qing's body trembled slightly, and he buried his head even lower.

He looked terrified, as if he had been scolded into a daze.

Inside, however, he was as calm as still water.

Uncle Chen didn't tell him that.

Wasn't it to keep an eye on you?

Whatever, Uncle Chen meant well for him too.

Fortunately, his task was already complete.

After the incident with Lu Yunfei, Chen Meng had grown a lot.

She no longer looked at problems so superficially.

He just didn't know if her obsession with looks had been worn away.

Soon.

Very soon.

Just endure a bit longer. Once the Family Visit Leave arrived, he would leave this place for good and shed this identity.

Seeing his pathetic appearance, the last bit of hope in Chen Meng's heart was extinguished.

She felt a deep sense of exhaustion.

Why was she getting angry at an irrelevant person?

If he wanted to degenerate, that was his own business.

"Go then."

She waved her hand and turned her back to him.

"From now on, you don't need to come to me for permission anymore."

The implication was that she didn't want to see him again.

Li Qing felt as if he had been granted a great pardon. He turned and left quickly, his back even showing a hint of panic.

Watching his fleeing back, Chen Meng closed her eyes, her fingers gripping the sword turning white from the force.

Li Qing, why don't you understand?

In this world, you ultimately have to rely on yourself.

Li Qing walked quickly out of the martial arts hall.

His heart was beating violently in his chest.

It wasn't because of Chen Meng's scolding, but because of the impending evolution.

The last 49.5 evolution value.

He would collect it all tonight!

He needed to go to the Inner City to buy some food.

Otherwise, the feedback from his body after the evolution would be enough to give him a hard time!

He felt the two hundred taels in banknotes in his bosom and strode toward the East Street of the Inner City.

Hundred Herbs Hall.

He was going there one more time.