The matter with Madman Liu was settled, whether it was Lame Wang or Hu Ye who took the blame didn't matter to Chen Yi.
In the following days, he quietly and humbly practiced his standing stake and enhanced his vitality and blood. He also occasionally caught a fish from the Spiritual Energy World to nourish his mother and sister's health.
He had not touched the three taels of silver he obtained from Madman Liu, planning to use them later to modestly pay his fees at the martial arts school in order to learn a Fist Technique that would allow him to refine his vitality and blood to enter Mingjin.
As Chen Yi's vitality and blood inside his body were increasingly robust, his strength also gradually increased.
One day, Chen Yi tested and found that he could effortlessly lift a weight of one hundred and fifty catties single-handedly.
"It is said that the strength of martial artists who have entered Mingjin is just two or three hundred catties. Although I haven't practiced any martial methods yet, it seems I'm on the correct path by increasing my vitality and blood by practicing standing stake in the Spiritual Energy World."
Chen Yi's body visibly grew stronger at a rapid pace. His muscles became full and strong, his eyes were full of vitality, and even his height increased significantly. Over the past month, he grew nearly 6 feet tall (about one meter and eighty centimeters).
During this time, Chen Yi started wearing hemp cloth outer shirts to hide his muscles.
Otherwise, the people of West Lake Village, who were all very poor, would become suspicious if he suddenly became too strong.
However, there was one downside to having more strength and vitality: he got hungry faster!
Fish from the Spiritual Energy World could supplement Yuanqi, but they were not staple foods and couldn't replace the nourishing function of grains on vitality and blood.
Furthermore, Chen Yi tried several times to catch bigger fish from that world, but it was extremely difficult without a more advanced fishing technique.
Remembering what the old man had said about how the Red-Blooded Black Carp could drastically benefit body cultivators and provide a substantial supplement to vitality and blood, he was somewhat eager to try.
"Hmm, I'll go to town later and ask if there are any advanced fishing techniques available."
However, what Chen Yi needed to solve first was the problem of food. A thin, tall grain cake was simply not enough for each meal at home.
He must figure out a way to include nutritious staples like wheat and rice in his diet.
However, these staples were expensive. Wheat flour was one copper coin per catty, and rice was one copper coin for two catties.
Only wealthy individuals like Wang Xiaohu could afford to eat these foods every meal.
According to Chen Yi's current appetite, if he ate without restriction, he could easily consume two or three catties of staple food a day.
Such an expense would have been unthinkable for the Chen Family in the past.
However, now that Chen Yi has grown stronger and could catch some big fish that weigh over five catties, he felt he could slightly improve his living standards as long as he kept a low-profile.
The Great Swamp Lake, close to West Lake Village, was where the sound of splashing water could be heard.
A muscular young man sprung out of the water, his right hand gripping a fishtail while the fish, which was longer than his forearm, flapped wildly in his grip.
"Little Blue Fish, about 6 or 7 catties. This one should be worth ten copper coins!"
The Great Swamp Lake is enormous. Usually, the larger fish swim deeper underwater, making them impossible to catch with nets. If you use a fishing rod, not only would you need a high-quality one, but you would also need the skill.
Having grown up by the lake, he was accustomed to diving into the water, staying still and catching big fish as soon as they swam nearby.
Before he started martial arts training, the largest fish he caught weighed about three catties. Now, if any fish under twenty catties came within three feet of him, he was almost guaranteed to catch it.
However, in order to keep a low profile, he could not sell a twenty-catty fish all at once. That would only cause the gang managers to remember him and bring trouble upon himself.
After climbing onto his little boat, Chen Yi rowed to the pier of the Lakeside Town. After paying a copper coin as the docking fee to the dock manager, he carried the Little Blue Fish onto the shore.
Passing the Pier Fish Market, he went straight to the more premium agricultural produce market.
There were various shops selling grain, oil, poultry, wild game, fruits and vegetables, and all sorts of lifestyle goods.
There were also individual traders selling their goods in the market, albeit with a tax to pay.
The tax collectors were from the Fish and Dragon Gang, with one of them being a chubby fellow surnamed Li. He sat at the entrance, estimating the value of goods brought by traders at a glance and conveying an entry fee. If traders considered the fee reasonable, they entered the market; otherwise, they could leave.
No matter where you sell in Lakeside Town, one layer of exploitation was unavoidable, unless you secretly sold to someone like Hu Ye.
Chen Yi, who wished to not stand out even in such minor matters, was extorted three copper coins as an entry fee by Fatty Li upon entry.
He then went to a fish shop and sold the large fish for twelve copper coins.
With nine copper coins now in his possession, he was quite satisfied.
"What, the prices for rice and flour have gone up?"
Upon visiting the grain shop, Chen Yi received some disturbing news: the prices of flour and rice had each increased by 20%!
"Yes, young man, lately there are bandits running rampant in the outer areas. Many grain merchants don't want to come to our remote little town. Today, the price for flour is twelve copper coins for ten catties. If you don't buy it now, the price might be higher when you come next time."
Chen Yi bought four catties of flour and seven catties of rice. Upon returning home, he told Chen Yi's Mother about the price increase.
This provoked a round of complaints from her: "Just buy some corn flour and mix it with the highland barley flour. Why did you waste money on the good stuff?"
"Mother, today I caught a 7-catty fish and sold it for what I used. I've been training in martial arts lately, and my body has grown stronger, so I can now catch some fish over 5 catties. We should eat better at our house. Also, my training burns a lot of calories. From now on, please prepare three buns for me at each meal, and one for you and my sister. Regardless of how other households are, we need to be full!"
"Alright, you should eat more; it's right for you to eat more now that you have so much strength. Your sister and I will be fine with half a bun each. Let's prepare four buns for each meal in the future. Oh, and we still have a little highland barley flour left at home. I will mix it in."
Facing such a mother who was always thinking about saving money, Chen Yi felt rather helpless.
That settled it, he would just go to the Spirit Mist Marsh to catch more fish to replenish their strength.
.....
After Chen Yi had been to the farmers' market in town a few times to sell his big fish, he gradually caught the attention of curious people.
At the very least, each time he went, Fatty Li at the entrance would greet him with a smile, "Brother Chen, another harvest for you, huh?"
Chen Yi would always pretend to be frightened and reply, "Oh, please, Li Ye, you're just joking with me. This is just the fixed money for today."
A fish weighing 5-7 jin would cost three copper coins, and a fish weighing 7-10 jin would cost five copper coins. This was the rule of the Fish and Dragon Gang,
Chen Yi would always pay the exact amount each time. He didn't say it out loud, but he kept a mental note of the accounts.
Eagerly thinking, 'I haven't taken any advantages from you, the Fish and Dragon Gang, yet you've exploited so much from me. Just wait!'
Aside from Li Ye, the owner of Deep Marsh Fish Shop, which specializes in selling premium fish products in the market, also started to take an interest in Chen Yi.
The owner's name was Li Baitiao, yet he was dark-skinned.
He was a man in his 40s, his face full of weathered wrinkles. From his looks, he was obviously a fisherman who had spent his younger years drifting on the lake. One day, he saw Chen Yi carrying nearly a 10 jin grass carp.
"Young man Chen, strong arms you got there! It's not easy to catch such a big fish, is it?"
Chen Yi smiled foolishly, "Luck, just luck, hehe."
"My boy, there's no need to play dumb with me. I've been fishing in the deep lake for a lifetime, I know the tricks of the trade.
So, are you interested in trying your hand at catching a big fish over 50 jin?"
Li Baitiao quietly enticed Chen Yi with a tempting tone.
Chen Yi was startled. A 50 jin fish? How would someone catch that? Without professional fishing equipment and nets in this ancient time, you'd have to manually catch it in the deep lake.
There was more than just 50 jin fish in the depths of The Great Swamp. Reportedly, there were also various hundred-jin aquatic creatures, some of which could eat people. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them monsters.
How in the world could he dare to venture into such a place?
Chen Yi shook his head straight away, "No, no, I dare not go there."
"You don't have to go. You just have to lure it in. I have an ancestral secret bait here. Go to a more distant part of the lake and spread a pack. Fish are guaranteed to swim towards the smell.
Of course, the bait can only ensure that they swim over. Whether or not you can catch it will depend on your skill.
So, what do you say? A pack of bait is 5 copper coins, do you want to give it a try?"
Chen Yi fell silent. So this old man not only buys fish, but he also sells bait. He felt he couldn't refuse because he wanted to try using this bait in the Spiritual Energy World.
But he couldn't just be swindled like this. Five copper coins, that's enough to buy 4 jin of flour!
"Shopkeeper Li, there aren't any fish over 50 jin in the outskirts of The Great Swamp, and we dare not venture into the depths. What if a 500 jin monster is lured in and eats me?
Your bait, whether or not it works, is a tough sell. After all, there aren't many fish on the outskirts, and it's too dangerous deeper into the lake."
Li Baitiao, of course, understood this. He hadn't expected this newcomer to be so cautious about his life, and that he wouldn't be easily tricked.
After he was almost attacked by a monster from the deep marsh, his ancestral fish bait had not attracted any interest for many years.
After all, in this town, there were only a few people who could catch big fish. Who wasn't clear about the situation?
"So, what's your price?"
"One copper coin per serving," Chen Yi said, stating the price he had prepared in advance.
"No, that's too low. Add some more."
"That's the price. If you don't want to sell it, forget it." Chen Yi put on a show of wanting to leave,
"Alright, alright, seeing as you're a regular, I'll sell it to you at a loss." Li Baitiao stretched out his thin, dark hand to stop Chen Yi.
Great, he overpriced it.
This was Chen Yi's most immediate thought. Well, let's give it a go. If it works well, he could negotiate the price further in the future.
After obtaining a pack of fish bait that resembled a mixture of flour and bread, Chen Yi exchanged all the money he earned from selling fish that day for rice and flour and took it home,
Recently, the price of grain was continuously rising, and the market also had less and less wild produce. Chen Yi felt something amiss, so he subconsciously stored some grain.
If war were to break out and cause chaos, money wouldn't be worth anything.
Upon returning home and putting away his things, Chen Yi, clutching the fish bait, teleported himself onto the small boat in the Spiritual Energy World,
He had inquired and learned that the fish in Spirit Mist Lake, where their fishing boats were located, were only of the level of Red Blood Carp King at their highest.
Moreover, these fish evolved in a way that solidified their flesh and blood, enhanced the amount of spiritual energy they harbored, and sped up and made their movements more flexible.
They weren't very aggressive towards humans,
Compared to potentially large aquatic beings in The Great Swamp in the Martial World, the outer parts of the Spirit Mist Lake were a lot safer,
After all, the threats to humans had evolved into demon beasts, most of which were in the depths of the spiritual mist. If one appeared out here, it would have been captured by some roaming cultivators a long time ago.