Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

Before Chen Hao could finish speaking, Hu Biao’s tone had already turned ice-cold.

”Heh, so you’re the kid who’s sworn brothers with the Black Wolf Gang’s leader? A life-and-death friendship, is it?”

”...Me?”

The color drained from Chen Hao’s face. On his way here, he had already heard the news of the Black Wolf Gang’s annihilation. What’s more, the ones taking over this area were the Giant Tiger Gang, their deepest enemies.

”Absolutely not! I barely know anyone from the Black Wolf Gang... Some asshole is spreading rumors to frame me... They’re trying to get me killed!”

At these words, the faces of the woman of the Wang Family and Chen Yong flushed red then turned green, their intestines twisting with regret.

”Rumors? Would your own father and mother try to harm you?”

Hu Biao cut him off, his voice sharp and cold.

”Don’t say another word. From now on, your family’s peace coins will be collected at triple the rate.”

”...How much!?”

Hearing this, the members of the Chen Family nearly had their eyes pop out of their sockets.

Given their family’s current situation, they could barely afford to pay the normal amount of peace coins.

Triple... that was practically forcing their entire family down a dead-end road.

”Sir!”

Chen Hao swallowed hard and said in a low voice.

”I... I’m a Martial Artist from the White Ape Hall. When our Hall Master was young, he was also a gang member... Maybe you two know each other...”

”Don’t you know it, I really do know him! Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come here myself today!”

Hu Biao raised a finger and pointed to a scar on his brow bone.

”See this? Your Hall Master left this behind. Back in the day, he bullied the weak and launched sneak attacks... HACK... PTUI!”

Hu Biao spat a thick glob of phlegm onto the ground.

”Triple! I said so! Even if you bring out the Jade Emperor himself, that’s the number! If you’re short by even half a coin, or dare to be a moment late...”

”Whether I tear off one of your parents’ arms, or drag that old coffin-dodger out to fill a ditch, will depend on my mood at the time.”

As Hu Biao spoke, his cold gaze swept over Old Chen, Chen Yong, and the woman of the Wang Family.

After a slight pause, Hu Biao brushed non-existent dust from his lapels, then called his men over and turned to leave.

Just as he reached the door, Hu Biao turned back again.

”Almost forgot. Every household registered under your name—every single one—will also pay triple!”

With that, he finally swaggered off.

The shack fell deathly silent, which made the arrogant laughter from outside sound even more like a knife, piercing and heart-wrenching.

An unknown amount of time passed.

The dead silence was broken by a hushed conversation from outside.

”Mama, Papa, it smells so bad here... Xiaodie wants to go home.”

”Be good, Xiaodie. We’re here to see your big brother Hao, the Martial Artist you admire so much... Old Zhao, we didn’t forget to bring anything, did we?”

”You’ve asked me that eighteen times on the way here. We didn’t forget! Oil, salt, rice, flour, pastries, fruit, pork—we have everything!”

”Alright, you go first. When you see Hao, you have to be polite... Smile! A bigger smile! Even bigger!”

The family of three quickened their pace, squeezed through the narrowest part of the alley, and finally managed to enter the Chen Family’s dilapidated shack.

Before they could even say a few words, Chen Yan’s tearful scream came from inside the house.

”What!? Triple!?”

”Hao already drained all our savings! And our home was originally on Giant Tiger Gang territory. Old Zhao just went yesterday to register our household under Hao’s name!”

”This... from now on... how are we supposed to live!?”

Once Chen Yan’s crying and shouting subsided a little, Chen Hao’s voice, feigning composure, could be heard comforting her from inside.

”Aunt, Uncle... just bear with it for now. Once you’ve paid the peace coins, everything will be fine.”

”Aunt, trust me! Once my injuries heal, I’ll immediately call my fellow disciples to demand an explanation. However much the Giant Tiger Gang takes from us, I’ll get it back a hundredfold!”

”...”

”Uncle, trust me! By the way... how much money did you bring today? Go and get a doctor for me first.”

”???”

”Xiaodie, how about I teach you martial arts in the future?”

”No! I don’t want to learn martial arts! I don’t want to make Mama cry or make Papa angry!”

...

「The edge of the South Outer City.」

Deep within a stretch of old shacks, abandoned years ago due to a haunting, stood a ruined temple with collapsed walls and shattered tiles, long since forgotten.

A figure flitted through the temple gate like a ghost.

Inside, the temple was laced with cobwebs and thick with dust. Though a few slivers of bleak daylight pierced through holes in the roof, it only made the place seem more sinister and bizarre.

The person raised a hand and slowly removed the conical hat that concealed their face.

A ray of light happened to fall upon their face.

Their features were as delicate as a painting, their skin a cold white, but their lips were an unnatural, vivid red. Beyond their beauty, there was a clear hint of androgyny.

”Urk...”

A strange, inexplicable sound escaped from their throat.

The timbre of the sound fluctuated wildly. One moment it was as raspy and somber as scraping stone, the next as clear and melodious as a striking jade chime.

Looking closely at the person and listening to their voice, it was impossible to determine their gender.

It was even impossible to judge their age.

”Shen Chong... Wu Lian... DIE!!!”

Their red lips parted again, and a pair of deep, pitch-black eyes simultaneously swept toward a corner of the Inner City, as if they could see through half the city at a glance.

’My sect’s Sacred Object... how can it be allowed to remain in such a filthy place...’

That strange voice echoed eerily in the empty, ruined temple. Its pitch shifted between high and low without any pattern, yet every word was perfectly clear.

”Find it!”

Their flawless, jade-white fingers gently brushed across the dust-covered shrine. The movement was elegant, yet possessed an inhuman stiffness.

”Those who block my path... kill! Kill! KILL! Even if I have to slaughter every one of the million households in this city, the Sacred Object will be retrieved!”

...

「Anle Village.」

Inside the small but clean and tidy house of rammed earth and tile.

The woman of the Li Family sat on a low stool by the window. The gentle early winter sun slanted through the window lattice, blanketing her in warmth and filling her heart with a sense of peace.

She unconsciously fiddled with the corner of her clothes, her gaze falling on the laundry drying outside as she spoke hesitantly.

”Minor Achievement, Mother is getting lazy just sitting around like this. Everyone living here in Anle Village seems respectable. I was thinking, I could take on some odd jobs like mending or laundry...”

”Mother, it’s chaotic outside lately. You shouldn’t take on any odd jobs.”

Chen Cheng had made a special trip back today, bringing a bulging sack of rice, a cut of pork with a good mix of fat and lean, and some dried vegetables that would keep.

He sat across from his mother and said in a steady voice.

”If you’re really too restless, then why not buy some fabric and make some thick winter clothes and quilts for yourself.”

As he spoke, Chen Cheng took out a handful of broken silver from his robes.

”This is three taels of silver. You should take it for now.”

”No! Your mother has her own two hands. It’s one thing that I can’t help you, but how could I be a burden to you?”

The woman of the Li Family shook her head repeatedly.

”How is this being a burden? Please, let me explain.”

Chen Cheng said calmly.

”One tael is for our winter tax. Another is to buy some fabric and thread. You can use the last tael to buy winter supplies... I can use them too when I occasionally return, can’t I?”

”Well...”

After listening, the woman of the Li Family realized he had a point.

If she didn’t accept this money, she really couldn’t guarantee that the household would make it through the winter peacefully.

”Ah, Minor Achievement... you are truly the one supporting this family! Mother... I am truly living a good life because of you!”

She wiped the corners of her eyes, but couldn’t suppress a gratified smile.

”This is all because we moved out. If we were still in Kuhuai Village... Aunt Zhang and the others, I can’t imagine how envious they would be of me!”

Seeing his mother so happy, Chen Cheng’s mood also improved greatly. He chatted with her for a while longer before getting up to leave.

The house was separated by only a single wall from the Dragon Mountain Hall’s Lower Courtyard.

Chen Cheng walked around and knocked on the door.

—

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