Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Chapter 287: Chapter 175: Bumper Harvest

”No problem.”

Wan Ze walked over, bent down to pick up the case, and returned to his side of the bank.

He placed the case on a flat rock and opened it.

Inside were neatly stacked bundles of cash—eight hundred thousand, which, when added to the previous two hundred thousand, came to exactly one million.

He took out the stacks of cash one by one and inspected them carefully.

He went through every stack, pulling out a few bills to check the watermark against the moonlight and rubbing them between his fingers to listen to the sound.

It was all genuine.

The people from the Secret Palace were ruthless, but they wouldn’t stoop to cheating on a transaction like this. They couldn’t afford the loss of face.

Beneath the cash was a hidden compartment. Opening it revealed four booklets lying inside.

Wan Ze raised an eyebrow slightly. The deal was for one High Tier and two Middle Tier Martial Skills, but it turned out there was an extra one.

Just then, Zhao Henian’s voice drifted over from a distance, laced with a tone of feigned generosity. ”Consider that extra Middle Tier Martial Skill a gift.”

Wan Ze chuckled at his words and looked up, shouting across the stream, ”Old Zhao, you’re a good man!”

Zhao Henian didn’t respond.

Wan Ze lowered his head and began examining the four booklets.

The one on top was titled *Ten Thousand Waves Secret Martial Arts*.

The words ”Secret Martial Arts” on the cover made his heart skip a beat.

Secret Martial Arts were different from ordinary Martial Skills. They were a Sect’s ultimate treasure, a closely guarded secret taught only to Direct Disciples.

He had never heard of this *Ten Thousand Waves Secret Martial Arts*, but judging by the name, it was likely some kind of Fist Technique that excelled in soft, continuous attacks... ’Ten thousand waves, layer upon layer, one after another, with inexhaustible follow-through power.’

He flipped it open quickly, and a data panel soon appeared before his eyes.

...

[Illustrated Guide: Ten Thousand Waves Secret Martial Arts] (Unlearned)

[Skill Beginner Level Requirement: Practice Fist Technique 3,000 times]

...

Wan Ze was secretly overjoyed.

’It’s the real deal!’

’And it’s even a High Tier Secret Martial Arts! Three thousand repetitions just to reach the Beginner Level!’

’Perfect, perfect, perfect!’

’This is just fantastic!’

’What I need most right now is a High Tier Martial Skill that can drastically boost my attribute values!’

The second booklet was called *Stone-Breaking Fist*.

The cover was plain, with just three words on it.

It was a Middle Tier Fist Technique that followed a hard and fierce style. A single punch could supposedly split stone and shatter monuments.

There weren’t many fancy variations, just straightforward explosive power. It was somewhat similar to the Cloud-Breaking Fist that Wan Ze had learned before, but with a different emphasis. Cloud-Breaking Fist focused on ’Force’, while Stone-Breaking Fist focused on ’Strength’.

One used Dark Force to penetrate the body; the other used Bright Force for Armor-Piercing.

Wan Ze took a deep breath and glanced at the data panel.

...

[Illustrated Guide: Stone-Breaking Fist] (Unlearned)

[Skill Beginner Level Requirement: Practice Fist Technique 100 times]

...

Breathing an inward sigh of relief, Wan Ze turned to the third Martial Skill.

This was a Body Technique, also Middle Tier.

The name sounded ordinary, *Wind-Stepping Step*... ’The moment I saw it, I thought of Windward Slash,’ Wan Ze mused. ’Step on the wind, draw the blade... This Martial Skill is excellent!’

Flipping it open, Wan Ze’s eyes brightened even more.

The essence of this Body Technique was ’lightness’. Its Step Technique was varied and fluid, allowing for nimble dodging and weaving within a hair’s breadth.

...

[Illustrated Guide: Wind-Stepping Step] (Unlearned)

[Skill Beginner Level Requirement: Practice Step Technique 100 times]

...

He opened the fourth booklet.

*Mountain-Splitting Whip Leg*.

Another Leg Technique, of Mid Tier Quality.

This Leg Technique didn’t rely on brute strength, but on the application of Leg Force. The leg drives the body, the body drives the strength, and the strength rises from the ground, flowing through every joint. At the final moment of impact on the top of the foot, it unleashes a Momentum capable of toppling mountains and severing rivers.

”What a great leg technique!”

...

[Illustrated Guide: Mountain-Splitting Whip Leg] (Unlearned)

[Skill Beginner Level Requirement: Practice Leg Technique 3,000 times]

...

Wan Ze closed the booklets and took a deep breath.

’They’re all the real deal.’

’This Old Zhao is alright. For now, at least, he’s a man of his word.’

”How did the items check out?” As the question came from across the stream, Wan Ze put the four booklets away, restacked the cash neatly, and closed the case. He looked up and shouted, ”Let me tell you, that thing wasn’t easy to decipher. It took me so long to finally succeed!”

He deliberately emphasized the words ”so long.”

Zhao Henian, who had been waiting for confirmation, heard this and looked up, a hint of surprise in his voice. ”You... deciphered it yourself?”

Wan Ze grinned, his smile looking exceptionally sincere in the moonlight. ”If you have any more deciphering jobs in the future, you know who to call. Old Zhao, you’re a good man, so I’ll give you a special discount. Anyone else who comes to me definitely won’t get the same offer.”

Zhao Henian was silent for a moment.

He looked at Wan Ze, and there was something new in his gaze.

This young man had only been on the Martial Dao for half a year, yet his talent for it was absurdly high. He was ruthless and decisive in his actions, and on top of that, he knew how to decipher ancient texts.

If he wasn’t just bragging, then his value needed to be reassessed.

A Martial Dao genius wasn’t scary. A Martial Dao genius who understood ancient texts wasn’t scary either. But a Martial Dao genius who was so young, who could both fight and understand ancient texts... no one could say what the upper limit for such a person might be.

But suddenly...

Zhao Henian glanced down at his communicator, and his expression changed.

He stared at the screen for two seconds, then snapped his head up and asked urgently, ”Is there more content after this?”

Wan Ze blinked, his expression perfectly natural as he picked up the thread. ”Oh, right. I forgot to tell you, there’s quite a bit more. Do you want it?”

”Yes, of course I want it!” Zhao Henian said reflexively.

Wan Ze smiled, a smile that looked utterly harmless in the moonlight. ”Then you’ll have to pay more.”

”Wh-what? Pay more?” Zhao Henian was stunned. His expression froze, and he was so choked up he couldn’t speak.

Wan Ze spread his hands as if it were the most natural thing in the world, his tone so sincere it was impossible to argue with. ”What did you expect? Was that really so much to ask for two pages of top-secret information? If you hadn’t thrown in that extra Martial Skill today, I definitely wouldn’t have given you that discount.”