Immortal Refiner

That day, on Zhengming Street in Blackrock City.

After Li Qing had driven Wei Tian out of his house, the neighbors began to worry about his situation, while others feared they might be implicated.

The Righteous Gang was a notorious force in Blackrock City, and those associated with it had a terrible reputation, making few willing to get involved.

Of course, the news eventually reached the ears of the second young master of the Yan Family. Upon hearing about it, Yan Gui’an didn’t react much, merely shaking his head and smiling.

”It seems that blacksmith Li is just as Jing Shu said, nothing more than a half-baked martial artist. Tian Long, that guy, always likes to bully the weak.”

The burly middle-aged man named Jing Shu wasn’t particularly concerned about the matter. His expression darkened slightly as he sighed, ”In this day and age, the path of martial arts is no longer suitable. People can’t even fill their stomachs, let alone practice martial arts.”

Yan Gui’an, however, smiled and said, ”Jing Shu, there’s no need to be so pessimistic. The family has already started making arrangements to provide enough meat for you and the other retainers. As for those wine recipes that stimulate qi and blood, we’ve been trying to improve them in recent years, hoping to brew a medicinal wine suitable for this era.”

Jing Shu only took these words as comfort, not taking them seriously.

Improving wine recipes?

Such a task was far from easy. Brewing wine had become quite difficult in this era, as grain was extremely scarce.

Moreover, the Yan Family’s wine recipes were the result of countless trials and errors by their predecessors. How could they be improved so easily?

At this point, Jing Shu no longer held any hope of advancing further in martial arts. He simply wished for a stable life in his next reincarnation.

Meanwhile, Li Qing continued to practice his martial arts at home, tirelessly and with great dedication.

Unlike others in this world, he had enough food, allowing him to clearly feel his progress in martial arts.

In recent days, he felt that the strength within his body had grown stronger, and his mastery of the Ancient Mystic Hammer Art had become more refined.

Just as Li Qing was about to continue his practice, he suddenly heard faint, chaotic noises in the distance.

They were here!

At the entrance of Zhengming Street, a group of rough-looking men suddenly appeared. Leading them was a fierce man in his forties or fifties, carrying a large golden-ringed sword. His face bore several scars, his head was shiny and bald, and he exuded a murderous aura.

Bang! Bang! Bang! As they passed by, the doors and windows of every house along the street slammed shut, and no one dared to make a sound.

”Boss, it’s just up ahead. That blacksmith is so arrogant, he doesn’t even give our Righteous Gang a second thought!” Wei Tian said with a pitiful expression, his acting quite vivid.

The bald, scar-faced man leading the group was none other than Tian Long, the leader of the Righteous Gang! Tian Long sneered and said, ”Heh, so there’s still a blacksmith in Blackrock City who dares to look down on our Righteous Gang. Today, we’ll teach him a lesson!”

As soon as he finished speaking, his followers began chanting the Righteous Gang’s slogan in unison: ”Rob the rich to aid the poor! Righteousness above all!”

”Rob the rich to aid the poor! Righteousness above all!”

”...”

The loud slogans reverberated through the entire street.

Li Qing, who was at home, naturally heard these words.

He couldn’t help but roll his eyes, then donned his iron armor and picked up the Peerless Hammer in both hands.

Across from Li Qing’s courtyard, Old Man An wore a worried expression.

”Ah, why won’t the young listen to advice! Now they’ve stirred up a big trouble,” Old Man An said with deep concern, as if this calamity were about to befall him.

”Grandpa... will Uncle Li be alright?” An Xuan’s face also showed fear. Though she was a bit thin, her delicate and pitiful appearance indeed marked her as a beauty in the making.

”I don’t know...” Old Man An shook his head.

At that moment, the sound of footsteps outside became chaotic as the members of the Righteous Gang arrived.

Old Man An quietly opened a small gap in the door, peeking at the burly men outside, his eyes filled with even more worry.

Bang! Without a word, Tian Long, the gang leader, kicked open the gate to Li Qing’s courtyard.

The two heavy iron doors fell with a loud thud, raising a cloud of dust.

As the dust settled, Li Qing, holding the Peerless Hammer, looked at his courtyard gate and couldn’t help but twitch his mouth.

This guy, he’s really going all out with the act!

”You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit, kid. How do you want to die?” Tian Long’s mouth curled into what he thought was a menacing grin, then with a clang, he slammed his golden-ringed broadsword into the ground.

Clang! Accompanied by the fifty or sixty rough men standing behind him, the atmosphere was indeed quite imposing.

”Gang Leader Tian Long, you’ve come to trouble me time and again, talking about toasts and forfeits,” Li Qing’s voice also rose sharply.

”Hmph! Let me see how much you’re worth, daring to look down on our Righteous Gang like this!”

With that, Tian Long raised his broadsword, the golden rings clinking against the blade, and then charged fiercely at Li Qing.

Although it was an act, Li Qing actually wanted to gauge the strength of other Outer Strength experts, so he naturally wouldn’t miss this opportunity.

He gripped the hammer tightly with both hands, his face showing no fear as he swung the hammer, aiming for a direct clash!

Behind Tian Long, some who understood the situation couldn’t help but mock:

”Truly fearless. Our gang leader is an Outer Strength expert, his power unmatched. How could he possibly withstand a direct clash?”

However, in the next moment, a crisp sound suddenly rang out.

Clang! The golden-ringed broadsword struck the Ink Gold surface of the Peerless Hammer, the two immense forces colliding, even causing sparks to fly from the weapons. Seeing that Li Qing had actually blocked the strike, the person who had just spoken was left with his mouth agape.

”This...”

Feeling Li Qing’s strength at this moment, Tian Long was also slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected Li Qing to have honed his Outer Strength to such a level, unlike someone who had just entered the Outer Strength realm.

But the stronger Li Qing was, the more likely the plan would succeed, and Tian Long’s mood lightened accordingly.

Having not fought for many years, Tian Long’s blood boiled once more, and he was eager to have a good fight with Li Qing right there.

Therefore, he swung his blade several times in succession, each strike reaching its peak power.

However, all these strikes were directly blocked by Li Qing, rendering them ineffective.

At this moment, the others were nearly shocked out of their wits, as it seemed their leader was locked in a fierce battle with Li Qing.

Li Qing had already gauged the approximate strength of the Tian Long leader. Seeing the expressions of the others, he knew it was time to stop.

Clang! Once again blocking a strike from the Tian Long leader, he took advantage of the chaos to whisper, ”Enough, save your strength. My true power must not be revealed.”

Upon hearing this, Tian Long suddenly realized that he had gotten a bit too carried away.

The fact that Li Qing was an Outer Strength expert absolutely could not be revealed—it was crucial to their plan!

Immediately, he shouted, ”Hahaha, not bad, kid! You’ve got some strength, but I was only using thirty percent of my power earlier. Now, I’m going all out!”

Hearing this, the people behind Tian Long finally breathed a sigh of relief.

So, their leader had been holding back, merely enjoying the fight. Li Qing, upon hearing this, knew that the other party was about to go easy on him.

In the next moment, Tian Long’s muscles bulged, and his clothes began to puff up.

He swung his blade again, this time with an exaggerated force that seemed intimidating.

Li Qing caught this thunderous but weak strike, then pretended to be overwhelmed, staggering back a few steps before being sent flying.

”Hahaha, Wei Tian, go tie this guy up and take him back to the gang!”

”Once we’re back, I’m going to have some fun tormenting this guy!”

Tian Long laughed wildly, his voice shaking the courtyard walls.

”As you command, Leader! Leader, your martial prowess is unparalleled, truly invincible!” Wei Tian scurried out with a rope, his eyes filled with hidden apology as he approached Li Qing.

At this point, the others also began to boast about Tian Long’s martial skills, their flattery so loud it was as if they were proclaiming him the reincarnation of a martial god.

”Brother Li, bear with it... I’m sorry,” Wei Tian whispered in a voice even softer than a mosquito’s.

Li Qing gave a slight nod, then put on an expression of unwillingness.

Just as Wei Tian was about to tie Li Qing up like a dumpling and take him away, a slender figure suddenly rushed out, blocking the path of the gang members.

An Xuan spread her arms, tears in her eyes, and said in a trembling voice, ”You... you let Uncle Li go! Don’t take him away!”

Instantly, the gang members led by Tian Long stopped in their tracks, looking mockingly at this plain-faced little girl.

In this era, they hadn’t seen such a clean and pure face and eyes in a very long time.

”Hey, this little girl isn’t bad-looking. Too bad she’s a bit thin, but she’ll definitely grow into a beautiful woman.”

Someone looked at An Xuan with a greedy gaze, like a wolf eyeing a helpless lamb.

”Xiao Xuan, come back here!” Old Man An rushed out in a panic, grabbing An Xuan and apologizing repeatedly.

”Sorry, sorry, my granddaughter is still young and doesn’t understand. I truly apologize!” Old Man An said with a trembling voice.

”You think saying sorry is enough? Old man, it seems like your granddaughter hasn’t had a decent meal in a long time. Why not let her follow me?” someone in the crowd provocatively said.

At this moment, Li Qing couldn’t stand it any longer. He coughed and spoke up, ”Ahem, this girl is favored by the second young master of the Yan Family.”

As soon as the words ”Yan Family” were uttered, the members of the Righteous Gang immediately fell silent, all turning their gazes toward their bald leader.

Li Qing’s words were naturally meant to have Tian Long rein in his subordinates and make them behave.

Tian Long snorted coldly and said, ”Hmph, let’s go back.”

At this point, Old Man An’s face showed a mix of struggle and hesitation, and then he suddenly stepped forward.

With his hunched figure, he blocked the tall and burly Tian Long, and in a humble tone, he said, ”Leader Tian Long, I don’t know how Young Master Li has offended you. I still have some Dark Wheat Mushrooms at home. I wonder if you could spare him. He’s still young and doesn’t understand much.”

Tian Long, however, just smiled. He glanced back at Li Qing, surprised that his reputation here was unexpectedly good, to the point that someone was willing to stand up for him like this.

But letting Li Qing off was out of the question—it was part of the plan.

”Get out of here! Our Righteous Gang robs the rich to help the poor, and we have no interest in your meager offerings. If you dare to get in the way again, I’ll chop you and your granddaughter in half with one stroke!”

Tian Long shouted fiercely, embodying the image of a desperate outlaw.

These words immediately frightened Old Man An, who quickly pulled his granddaughter and ran back home.

Though their steps were somewhat frantic, Li Qing, watching this, felt a warm current flowing through his heart.

(End of the Chapter)

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