When Lu Yuan came out from the alloy weapon shop, he was in a daze.
At this moment, there was an additional 1.5 meters big, pitch-black sword that was gleaming in cold light in his battle tattoo space.
A1-type Blacklight Alloy Sword.
It was the lowest grade alloy equipment, but it cost Lu Yuan $3,700.
And this was a price Lu Yuan had gotten after he kept on haggling.
Otherwise, it'd be $3,900, a whole $200 more!
Lu Yuan had initially thought of wanting to buy armor, but by the looks of it...
Back then, why did he have the confidence that he'd be able to buy both a weapon and armor with just $4,000?
Lu Yuan then looked at the $300 in his pocket. He had previously thought of changing the environment to live in.
But he didn't even dare to think of that now.
(What is it that shrouded my eyes?)
(It's poverty.)
After leaving the shopping district, Lu Yuan didn't even dare to turn back for an additional look.
He had taken a taxi to the shopping district. But now, he only had $300 left in his pockets, which he'd need for food. Hence, he had no choice but to walk back.
Fortunately, after absorbing spirit qi, Lu Yuan realized that his stamina was a lot better than before, and he had also gotten a little stronger.
Although the shopping district was over ten kilometers away from the slums, he jogged his way back, taking only slightly over half an hour to arrive.
The slums looked a lot more harmonious during the day than at night. The passersby along the streets were busy on their way, some of them looking lean and haggard.
Unfortunately, both sides of the road were covered in trash. There were children picking trash by the roadside, bringing back the useful things home.
On the sides, there were a few ruffians who had dyed their hair into varying colors. They had their hands in their pockets, occasionally looking at the passersby as they kept on shaking their bodies.
Not looking at them, Lu Yuan lowered his head slightly, entering the district he lived in and then his rental apartment.
The living room was very quiet.
The apartment he rented had a total of four rooms.
One belonged to him, one to Elder Sister Qinghe, and two others that a middle-aged woman and a couple lived in respectively.
However, the middle-aged woman and the couple usually left very early in the day, so there were very few chances of them meeting.
Elder Sister Qinghe, on the other hand, worked at night. Therefore, she should be sleeping now.
Lu Yuan closed the door gently and entered his room.
Thereafter, he switched on his laptop and logged on to the battleweb. He then started to watch the videos on the Military Fist and Military Swordplay.
The space in the room was very small. Thankfully, Lu Yuan was only in the beginning phase of his training so his movements were very slow. Therefore, he didn't knock into things and cause any damage.
Lu Yuan continued until the sun set. He was covered in sweat and he put away the Blacklight Alloy Sword in his hand to sit down on his bed to rest.
At this moment, the sound of a door opening and then closing rang out from outside. Lu Yuan knew that it was Elder Sister Qinghe who had gone off to work.
Lu Yuan couldn't help but let out a sigh.
If it was in his previous life, a girl like Li Qinghe would be liked by many guys and receive their adoration.
It wouldn't be like how things were in this world, where even surviving was difficult.
After some rest, Lu Yuan sat down crossed-legged and started absorbing spirit qi.
As he absorbed it, his body started to feel warm. His fatigued body also felt quite relieved.
To Lu Yuan's surprise, when his body was fatigued, there'd be a better effect when he cultivated the Spirit Qi Guiding Technique than when it wasn't.
It was no wonder they said that physical training techniques were effective in raising one's spirit qi. So this was why.
The relationship between the physical body and mental energy to spirit qi was both opposing and complementary.
…
The next morning, Lu Yuan headed out, planning to look for a quiet place outside to practice physical training techniques.
Just then, the door opened and Li Qinghe entered.
She was holding shengjians*. When she saw Lu Yuan, she smiled and said,
"Younger Brother Lu Yuan, here, I bought too many."
Lu Yuan smiled.
"Thank you, Elder Sister Qinghe."
He reached out his hand to take the shengjians from her.
"Oh right, Younger Brother Lu Yuan, are you practicing fist techniques?"
"How does Elder Sister Qinghe know?"
"You were so loud last night that I heard it from my room."
Lu Yuan was stunned for a moment.
He knew that the soundproofing of the rooms wasn't good because he often heard the couple making noises at night.
However, he didn't expect that the sound of him practicing fist techniques would be heard as well.
He nodded. "En, I'm planning to enter the Land of Origins, so I'll have to practice defensive physical training techniques."
"Oh,"
Li Qinghe nodded, wearing an expression as if she didn't really understand.
She then said, "I know of a place that's good for practicing fist techniques."
Lu Yuan was stunned and he looked at Li Qinghe.
"Really? Where is it?"
He was about to go look for a quiet place to practice physical training techniques, but he didn't expect Li Qinghe to know of one.
What he wanted came to him. Was this the legendary main lead treatment?
(As expected of me.)
"This sister has been in the slums for quite some time. There's a friend I know who opened a dojo. You can practice your fist techniques there. I'll bring you there later."
"Sister, you're going to bring me there? Will I be disturbing your rest? It's tiring for you to work at night too."
Li Qinghe took out a cigarette from her chest, lit it, and took a puff. She then smiled heartily and said.
"It won't take much time for me to bring you there."
After hearing her reply, Lu Yuan nodded in agreement.
After having breakfast, Li Qinghe brought Lu Yuan out.
On the way, both Li Qinghe and Lu Yuan had their heads lowered slightly. Both of them seemed to be in a slight rush.
Look less, hear less, and not meddle in other people's businesses.
This was what Li Qinghe had taught Lu Yuan.
It was how ordinary people in the slums lived.
The both of them took a few turns along some streets that had a stench and then finally arrived in front of an extremely battered-looking metal door.
The door with the big words 'Daming Dojo*' above it was flickering with neon lights that seemed to be a little spoiled.
Outside the door, a few strong men were squatting at the side and smoking.
When the two of them got near, the few men raised their heads to take a look. After seeing Li Qinghe, their eyes lit up. A man who had a scar on his left eye even whistled flirtatiously.
Lu Yuan frowned, but Li Qinghe smiled charmingly at that man.
The scarred man stood up and said, smiling.
"Miss, aren't you quite coquettish-looking? Are you here to look for me?"
Li Qinghe smiled and said.
"I'm here to look for Brother Ming."
Hearing these, the other few men who were raring to make a move paused. The smile of the scarred man also froze.
After that, he didn't say a word and quietly squatted down to continue smoking.
Lu Yuan felt a little puzzled as he looked at the few strong men who became silent.
Li Qinghe said to him.
"Come with me."
Lu Yuan followed Li Qinghe and entered the place.
It was a huge drill ground with quite a lot of equipment and facilities.
There were metal dummies, gym facilities, boxing rings, and others.
Many people were shouting as they did physical training and practiced their fist techniques. Some were even practicing blade techniques and other fighting techniques.
Lu Yuan watched as a strong man with a mechanical arm punched heavily onto a metal dummy, causing it to become deformed. He felt a little surprised that there was such a place in the slums.
He asked curiously.
"Elder Sister Qinghe, who is Brother Ming? How did you get to know him?"
Li Qinghe raised her brows at Lu Yuan, revealing a strange smile.
"Young brother, are you sure that you want to know? How detailed do you want to know?"
Upon hearing this answer, Lu Yuan's lips twitched and he laughed dryly.
"... forget it."
Li Qinghe smiled and then led Lu Yuan into the dojo.
In the depths of the dojo, a strong man almost two meters tall with brown hair was punching a metal dummy. He wore a black tight-fitted singlet and had exaggerated muscles all over his body.
Bang bang bang bang!
Each punch was very heavy, leaving deep marks on the dummy.
Lu Yuan's pupils contracted upon seeing this.
This was actual metal. To think that this guy could leave such punch marks on it.
Was this guy still human?
Could he be a gene fighter?
When Lu Yuan and Li Qinghe got close, the strong man stopped his actions and then turned to look toward them.
His gaze swept at Lu Yuan and then stopped on Li Qinghe. After that, he broke into a strange smile and spoke in a rough voice.
"Why have you come?"
Li Qinghe got close while smiling, gently poking the strong man's chest.
"Isn't it because I miss you?"
The strong man turned to look toward Lu Yuan.
"Who is this kid?"
"He's my younger brother. I'm thinking of letting him train at your place for a little, so he'll be able to protect himself."
"Your younger brother? Let him train here then. I won't ask you for money."
The strong man was surprisingly easy to talk to, waving his hand and agreeing to it right away.
Lu Yuan thought that this person would be very fierce.
Li Qinghe spoke up, "Younger Brother Lu Yuan, he is the boss here, Fu Langming. You can call him Brother Ming."
Lu Yuan quickly nodded and said, smiling. "Thank you, Brother Ming."
Fu Langming waved his hand and broke into a shameless smile. "Feel free to look around by yourself. Qinghe, come in with me."
After saying that, he turned to enter a room at the side. Li Qinghe then gave Lu Yuan a weird smile and said, "Go look around by yourself. I'll be going in."
Lu Yuan: "..."
He nodded, feeling very complicated inside.
Was such a dealing something that an underaged kid like him could see?
When Li Qinghe entered the room and closed the door, Fu Langming had closed the curtains.
Unlike what Lu Yuan thought, Fu Langming was standing very straight. He looked at Li Qinghe.
"Madam!"
Li Qinghe lit a cigarette and sat on the brown real leather sofa, crossing her legs.
"En."
Fu Langming snuck a look at Li Qinghe and asked carefully,
"Madam… that kid outside, who on earth is he?"
Li Qinghe smiled and said, "A younger brother I met by chance. He's quite a kind-hearted child. He has just awakened his genes and hasn't entered the Land of Origins. I plan on letting him train over at your place. Just teach him as you see fit."
Fu Langming understood. He patted his brick-like chest.
"No problem! Leave it to me!"
"But don't overdo it and expose yourself."
"Your subordinate understands."
"En, I'll go out after staying for a little longer."
Li Qinghe then took out her phone and started to play a game.
Fu Langming looked hesitant but still said.
"…Madam, can you stay a little longer?"
Li Qinghe looked up at Fu Langming. "Reason?"
"Cough... If the time is too short, it won't sound too good..."
"Hmm?"
Li Qinghe squinted her eyes and revealed a brilliant smile.
All of a sudden, Fu Langming's countenance turned pale and he quickly added.
"No no no, I was wrong! You make the call!"
Li Qinghe withdrew her smile. She then thought of something and said.
"Oh, right. There's a man outside with a scar on his left eye. I don't wish to see him again."
"I understand!"
[1] Shengjian mantou, shengjian bao, or shengjian for short, is a type of small, pan-fried baozi which is a specialty of Shanghai.
[2] The 'ming' from the dojo's name might be taken from Fu Langming's name.