The tattered fishing boat was bobbing on the waves, with rusty fish spears on it and a cracked, squiggly sand pot placed near an earthen stove.
Chen Yi, however, was too preoccupied to care about anything else.
He took a deep breath and instantly felt intoxicated, like stepping into a desolate deep forest.
"No, it's not intoxication," he thought.
"The air quality here is incredibly high. Just one breath makes my whole body energize and blood flow vigorously!"
"Swoosh~!"
Suddenly, a streak of light flashing across the sky caught his attention.
Looking up subconsciously, Chen Yi saw a figure flying on a sword hundreds of meters above the ground, which astounded him.
"Sword flying?!" he exclaimed internally.
"Am I in an Immortal Cultivation World?!"
Chen Yi abruptly retreated to the cabin, stealthily hiding himself.
Looking around, he noticed that the fishermen on nearby boats appeared unaffected. He guessed that people in this world are used to seeing Immortal Cultivators.
The exquisite air quality suggested it might contain spiritual energy.
However, with the presence of Immortal Cultivators in this world, there would be Demon Beasts as well, and their power was likely to be much greater.
"Life in The Great Swamp was hard enough. Now I find myself in an even more dangerous world," he thought. "I must be extremely careful; otherwise, I won't survive long here."
Hidden in the cabin, Chen Yi kept observing his surroundings through the ramshackle boat tents and didn't dare to try his adept underwater martial arts maneuvers either.
After ensuring he could leave at any time, Chen Yi decided to observe and try a few simple things before planning anything else.
He couldn't tell if it was a just feeling but after being in the cabin for a while, Chen Yi felt like his stamina was somewhat restored, and even his legs seemed to have regained some strength.
"Could it be the effect of the air in this world?" he surmised.
Experimenting in the cabin, he assumed the postures of the Pile Skill— bending his legs slightly, bringing his arms up as if holding something—and gradually adjusted his breath.
He breathed in the air rhythmically, and his blood circulated swiftly.
Chen Yi, already exhausted, and theoretically, would not have been able to continue standing much longer.
However, in the new cabin, he felt the rate of his fatigue slowing down, and there were even a few instances where he thought he was about to collapse but an unexpected surge of energy from within allowed him to hold on.
Chen Yi was elated. "This world apparently assists martial arts practices in such a manner. If I stand here and practice the Pile Skill every day, I should be able to control Vitality and Blood at a much faster pace, wouldn't I?!"
However, his excitement was short-lived.
In the next moment,
a wave splashed onto the boat, causing the cabin to shake,
Chen Yi was thrown onto the deck.
"I've lived on a boat for over a decade and am well-acquainted with the water. Even in stormy weather, I can maintain my balance. I didn't expect standing in this boat to be so challenging - it's like being a novice again the first time I stepped on the boat. I refuse to believe that a minor wave can defeat me. Let's try again!"
Stubborn Chen Yi tried one unsuccessful stake practice after another.
At last, he stopped practicing the Pile Skill due to hunger and fatigue.
Finding nothing edible in the boat except a broken fishing net, he tried uselessly to catch fish.
The fish in this world seemed to swim faster, and the net on the boat had huge holes in it. Hence, he could not catch any fish at all.
Therefore, when he wheezed trying to throw the spear, he found that he could hardly expend much force, making even the fish tails that grazed the water surface out of reach.
"There's always tomorrow!" He reassured himself and gave up for the day.
....
On the other side, near the fish market at the town's pier in Lakeside Town,
Rows of fishermen were selling and shouting from both sides of the road. The aroma of fresh and rotting fish mingled in the air; it was quite pungent.
This was the town's lowest-grade fish market, where the common residents came to buy small fish. The suppliers were mostly fishermen from nearby villages, and they sold small fish, which usually weighed less than 3 pounds.
Even so, the market entry fee was a copper coin per day.
To save the two coins as market entry fees, Chen Yi's mother brought fish to the market only once every two to three days.
Today, Chen Yi's mother came to sell fish collected in the past few days with Chen Ran. She also brought a turtle, raised for more than half a year, intending to sell it to buy eggs for Chen Yi to nourish his body.
Suddenly, two tall figures appeared in their sight, walking one after the other towards the deeper part of the market.
Seeing them, Chen Yi's mother quickly held Chen Ran back and warned her, "Stay quiet."
The sturdy guy leading the way with a bit of white hair was Hu Ye, a small leader in the Fish and Dragon Gang, responsible for collecting protection fees from this area.
And the wobbling man with a face full of pockmarks that followed is precisely Lai Zi Liu. Chen Yi didn't know when Liu joined the Fish and Dragon Gang and became Hu Ye's cohort.
Yesterday, the village widow was in her menstrual period. Lai Zi Liu, disappointed, went out with a belly full of anger to the Pier Fish Market. He strutted behind Hu Ye, looking for a way to vent his frustration.
As he looked around, his eyes suddenly brightened. Immediately, he wobbled over to Chen Yi's Mother. He was ogling something behind her:
"Yo, isn't this Sister-in-law Chen? Little Ranran has grown more charming since I last saw her!"
"And where is your half-sized boy? Didn't come today? Is he off fishing in the Deep Lake district again?
His father is gone, if anything were to happen to him, you'd be left with no man at all. How about I step in and take care of you, huh?" Liu sniggered, his gaze filled with ill intent.
"My brother isn't going to die; he's off learning martial arts!" Chen Ran defended her brother from behind. She was about to say more, but Chen Yi's Mother held her back.
"Master Liu is joking. Ranran is still a little girl and not of marriageable age yet. Why not look elsewhere?" Chen Yi's Mother said, shielding Chen Ran.
Upon hearing that Chen Yi was learning martial arts, Lai Zi Liu's eyes glinted. His lustful glares at Chen Ran became more blatant.
"So what if he's learning to fight? I learned martial arts myself back in the day! When I come to your house, I can train your little brother. Wouldn't that be a good story, huh?
Moreover, Mother-in-law, let me take care of you and your household first. You can rely on Ranran later. Isn't that perfect? Ha-ha-ha!"
Beast! He dares to harbor such thoughts! He's not human at all!
Chen Yi's Mother was nearly bursting with fury. But Liu had some hold within the gang now, so she, unable to confront him directly, had to bear with it. Even if she fought back with all her might, it would not end well. She'd only put Chen Ran at risk.
"Bam!"
Suddenly, Chen Yi's Mother grabbed the huge tortoise with her left hand, forcing its head out. She then picked up a fish-killing knife with her right hand, raised it high, and — "Bam!" — slammed it down on the cutting board.
Suddenly, blood splashed everywhere, and the tortoise's head flew off!
Chen Yi's Mother looked up at Lai Zi Liu and said coldly, "Master Liu, there are some things you might want to think twice about."
Lai Zi Liu felt a chill run up his spine that left his legs feeling numb. He involuntarily tightened his grip and took a step back.
It took him a while to regain his composure. Now embarrassed and angry, he was about to lash out at Chen Yi's Mother.
Just then, Chen Yi's Mother put down the knife. Holding the decapitated tortoise with both hands, she laughingly approached a robust man with gray temples.
"Hu Ye, it's been awhile! You are still looking strong! Thanks for your help this year. Please take this tortoise to make some soup as a token of my gratitude," Chen Yi's Mother said and handed the demised tortoise to Hu Ye, tied with a string looped into a loose knot.
Hu Ye was in his mid-forties. He had shown promise in his martial arts training in his early years. As he aged, he exhibited signs of declining vitality and blood energy. Over the last couple of years, not many people showed him respect.
The Fish and Dragon Gang even assigned Lai Zi Liu, a pugnacious man, to succeed him. Liu, however, was a man of little patience. Even before succeeding Hu Ye, he bullied stall owners. This distressed Hu Ye.
When he noticed trouble brewing between Lai Zi Liu and Chen Yi's Mother, he remembered his friendship with Chen's deceased husband and decided to step in.
"Chen's wife, our gang rule is clear: we only collect stall fees and nothing else. Offering me a gift in public breaches the gang rule," Hu Ye pointed out.
"You're joking, Hu Ye. This fish—while alive and with its head intact—has a price. But since I accidentally killed it, it doesn't hold any value. It's just a dead fish now, not even worth a cent. Thus, it doesn't count as bribery. What do you say?" Chen Yi's Mother, maintaining a smile, proffered the tortoise.
Hu Ye glanced at Chen's wife and Lai Zi Liu and eventually burst into laughter,
"Chen's wife, you make a good point. It's a dead fish. Why not bring it back and enjoy it with my drink? Rest assured, as long as you pay your stall fee, I will look after you for the rest of the year!" Then, turning to Liu, he barked, "What're you standing there for? Get going. Continue the patrol!"
Lai Zi Liu was left with a face quite literally black and blue. He reeled at Hu Ye's admonishment. His eyes blazing, he thought, You're all going to pay for this!
After the two had left, Chen Yi's Mother sat back down. Her heart pounded, her hand hidden in her sleeve was trembling, and her face was ashen.
She had put up a brave face, but the experience had unnerved her.
...
Chen Yi had been practicing on the boat for almost two hours. Although each standing stake exercise had helped him improve his breathing, he had never achieved a significant breakthrough in his vitality and blood energy. He kept falling down in the cabin whenever a big wave rocked the boat.
When he was too tired to continue, he returned to the normal world and rested on his kang bed.
Soon, his mother and sister returned home. Chen Yi's Mother was cooking dinner. Chen Ran, still clutching the tortoise's head, looked tense as she entered his room. She seemed unable to recover from what had happened.
That tortoise—alive and robust—could sell for more than a dozen copper coins!
Upon seeing her distress, Chen Yi asked her what was bothering her. Chen Ran said, "They're despicable! This tortoise was supposed to be sold to help you...."
Chen Ran shared the incident with Chen Yi from beginning to end,
She emphasized, Mother said that she's trying to buy time for you and didn't want me telling you about this. Don't say I told you!"
After listening to the account, Chen Yi's smile faded. He remained silent for a while before assuring his sister, "Don't worry, Ranran. I will protect you."
Then, he stood up, ready to leave, "Mother, I'm going to practice martial arts for a bit. I'll come home later for dinner."