Chapter 4: The Bully
Chapter 4: The Bully
“Still as a mountain, swift as a fleeing hare, devouring like fire, leaving a thousand miles barren!”
Mu Feng silently recited the cultivation chant as he practiced in a bamboo grove on Back Mountain. His toes lightly touched the ground, and with one leap, he appeared ten steps away. He rushed quickly toward a sharpened bamboo pole. Just as his forehead was about to hit it, he suddenly stopped. He spun around abruptly and kicked a stone on the ground, sending it flying…
Mu Family Fist!
Mu Feng focused his mind, fully concentrating on his training. This was a basic technique from Mu Manor, most suitable for disciples like him who had little foundation. Although it only had moves like punching, elbowing, and kicking, when combined in different ways, its power was not to be underestimated.
Before consuming the Ancestral Sorcerer’s Essence Blood and becoming a Great Blood-Refining Sorcerer, he had been weak and sickly, panting after just a few quick steps. Now, his limbs were strong and powerful. His movements were sometimes fast, sometimes slow, flowing smoothly like clouds and water, all in one go. The biggest change was his strength. One punch from him could make a young calf spit out three mouthfuls of blood.
As strong as an ox!
Not just any ordinary ox, but the wildest and fiercest Desolate Plains savage ox.
It was the third day after consuming the Ancestral Sorcerer’s Blood Pearl!
In just three days, his rigid and damaged meridians, which had been that way for over ten years, began to toughen up. His body was clearly getting stronger. Without realizing it, he had grown more than an inch taller!
Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle…
As he focused on his training, slowly, a series of dull sounds came from Mu Feng’s abdomen.
With the rise and fall of his abdominal muscles, the abdominal sounds grew clearer. At first, they were like frying beans, crisp and faint. Then, they were like croaking frogs, slightly muffled. Finally, they became as loud as an ox’s bellow. Before one sound faded, the next followed, continuing without end.
Thunder Sound Bone Tempering!
Using the abdomen instead of the lungs to breathe, three long breaths and one short breath, also known as the Deep Abdominal Breathing Technique.
Like Mu Family Fist, this was the simplest and most common cultivation technique in Mu Manor. When he was young, Mu Feng had memorized every chant and every movement, but he had felt nothing while practicing. Now, after just three days of training, there was a clear reaction inside his body. His strength, speed, and balance were completely different from before!
“Whoever controls their breathing controls their body!”
Mu Feng slowly came to a stop. After this intense training, his limbs were sore, and bean-sized sweat dripped from his face. His meridians ached slightly. But after swallowing a few Blood Pearls, his blood and energy immediately surged inside him. The tiredness vanished completely, and his eyes became bright and lively!
“Breaking through to the Mortal Realm and officially stepping into the threshold of cultivation is no longer just a dream!”
Feeling the changes in his body, Mu Feng was filled with confidence and hope for the future.
These past few days, the healing of his meridians had been getting faster. He believed that perhaps it wouldn’t be long before they fully recovered, maybe even surpassing those of an ordinary person. By then, it would be time to accumulate strength and make a breakthrough to the Mortal Realm in one go!
As long as he could officially step into the threshold of cultivation, his and his mother’s status within the family would be completely different. They would receive a fixed monthly allowance, and his mother wouldn’t have to work so hard sewing and washing clothes for others to make ends meet!
Noticing that it was almost dusk and the sun was starting to set, Mu Feng turned around and got busy, gathering some common herbs. Some would be sold to the medicine shop in the city, and some would be used to brew medicine for his mother. After about half an hour, he carried a bamboo basket down the mountain. Unexpectedly, before he had gone far, a series of urgent barks came from ahead. Soon, a group of people stepped out and blocked his path.
The leader was none other than Mu Qingyuan, dressed in fine clothes, who always idled around with a group of guards.
A rat-headed, useless waste!
Remembering the wretched groundhog that appeared behind Mu Qingyuan during the baptism ceremony, a trace of contempt crossed Mu Feng’s face. Without a word, he moved sideways to go around them, staying calm and low-key.
Even though Mu Qingyuan had reached the Middle Mortal Realm, it was all built up with precious pills and medicines. His actual talent and cultivation were truly contemptible. Surpassing such a guy was only a matter of time. He could settle the score with him later!
“Hehe, Mu Feng, we meet again!”
Mu Qingyuan stepped sideways, blocking Mu Feng’s path once more.
The more Mu Feng tried to avoid trouble, the more Mu Qingyuan thought he was easy to bully. After whistling, he leisurely continued, “Tell me, how are we settling last time’s debt? Will you kneel and beg for mercy yourself, or should I help break your leg bones? This is a desolate mountain wilderness. There are no outsiders, no law enforcement elders, not even a flying bird. There’s no family law to protect you anymore!”
Humiliated, he now held a grudge instead!
Mu Qingyuan, who had been snubbed three days ago, had been brooding over it. If he couldn’t even handle a weak scholar who couldn’t cultivate, how would he manage outside once word got out?
For the past two days, he had been secretly looking for a chance to strike, sending people to keep an eye on Mu Feng’s movements. His efforts paid off. Now, he finally had a chance to act without restraint!
Desolate mountain wilderness, dark moon and windy night.
This was a perfect opportunity given to him by heaven. If he didn’t torment and humiliate Mu Feng properly, he wouldn’t deserve to be called the Second Young Master of Mu Manor!
“Ridiculous! Heaven sees what people do. Do you really think no one will know if you run wild in this desolate mountain wilderness?”
Mu Feng gave a cold laugh, righteous and solemn. “I told you, Mu Manor isn’t your family’s Mu Manor. Yes, your grandfather, the Elder of Inheritance, holds a high position and great power. But above him is the Family Patriarch, and above the Family Patriarch, there is the secluded Grand Elder. Killing a direct bloodline clansman is a capital crime! If the Family Patriarch and Grand Elder find out, forget about a rat waste like you, even your grandfather, the Elder of Inheritance, won’t escape severe punishment!”
“What? Who are you calling a rat? Who’s the waste?”
Mu Qingyuan’s voice turned shrill, both shameful and furious, like an angry rooster.
Right now, what he hated most was anyone mentioning that day’s baptism. At home, the guards and servants didn’t even dare utter the word ‘rat’, afraid of hitting his sore spot! Gnashing his teeth, he had originally only planned to teach Mu Feng a lesson. Now, he wished he could tear Mu Feng to pieces with his own hands!
Being called a waste by a weak scholar who couldn’t cultivate since childhood—was there anything more humiliating or infuriating?
“Born under the rat sign, cowardly as a rat, and a useless waste. Who else could such trash be but you?” Since he couldn’t avoid it, Mu Feng simply mocked Mu Qingyuan to his face, venting his anger, while secretly preparing himself.
Hearing this, Mu Qingyuan, the usual bully, couldn’t stand it anymore. His face turned red. “You… Get him! Tear him to pieces!”
In his rage, Mu Qingyuan spoke and moved to attack personally, wishing he could chop Mu Feng into mincemeat. He immediately used a deadly move, drawing a cold, gleaming dagger and stabbing toward Mu Feng’s chest. But before he could get close, a handful of sand and soil suddenly flew into his face. Blocking it with his hand and opening his eyes, he saw that the prepared Mu Feng had already turned and fled, disappearing into a dense bamboo grove.
“After him! Catch him alive!”
Mu Qingyuan ordered in a low voice. For a moment, he didn’t notice that Mu Feng’s body was completely different from usual. As soon as he finished speaking, the hunting dog beside him, as big as a calf, fiercely charged forward. Relying on its sharp sense of smell, it plunged into the dense bamboo grove. Behind it, many guards chased like wolves and tigers, full of murderous intent.
“A weak, sickly scholar dares to be this arrogant? How dare he defy me!”
Mu Qingyuan fumed, his voice carrying far. “Mu… Feng… Don’t… let me catch you… or… you’re dead, absolutely dead… dead…”
The always arrogant Mu Qingyuan was hopping mad, his anger burning inside. He swore he wouldn’t rest until he tore Mu Feng apart tonight! His hoarse voice echoed back and forth through the valley, the sound lingering.