Chapter 6: A Sudden Change in Attitude
The next morning, it was another beautiful day.
Chen Ming woke up feeling refreshed.
As he passed by his eldest brother’s courtyard, he heard someone grunting and puffing while practicing martial arts outside the wall.
He was a bit curious—who else in the family was practicing?
He walked over to the corner of the wall and peeked out, only to see his little nephew, Chen Lide, swinging his small arms and practicing punches in a very earnest manner.
When the little guy saw him, he immediately looked panicked, as if he had been caught doing something wrong.
Without waiting for him to speak, he turned around and bolted.
Chen Ming found it amusing. So, this little nephew was secretly practicing martial arts. It seemed he, too, harbored aspirations for the martial path.
What the little nephew was practicing was a style of long fist.
When they were young, their father had taught this to both brothers—it was a basic martial arts form for beginners.
During breakfast, Chen Ming asked and found out that his eldest brother had gone out before dawn. His sister-in-law probably wasn’t awake yet. So the little nephew had taken this opportunity to practice in secret.
At that moment, he heard particularly loud reading coming from the back courtyard—it was his little nephew again. He couldn’t help but laugh. He could already picture the guilty look on the boy’s face.
…
When Chen Ming arrived at the Huo residence, it was about nine in the morning, or the beginning of the si hour. He was an hour later than the previous day.
The timing was just right—the group of young men had just finished their morning stance training.
After resting for half an hour, they would begin sparring.
“Seventh Senior Brother is here too.”
When Chen Ming reached the training grounds, he saw Wen Zehao sitting with Hong Mingquan, chatting and drinking tea. He greeted them.
Unexpectedly, Wen Zehao’s expression turned cold instantly. He didn’t even look at Chen Ming and completely ignored him.
With a cold laugh, he said, “Fifth Senior Brother, don’t you think it’s ridiculous? Just anyone can call us senior brothers now.”
Hong Mingquan looked a bit awkward and didn’t know what to say.
Chen Ming had clearly made a fool of himself, so he naturally didn’t stay there and withdrew from the pavilion.
“How strange. Did I offend him?”
Just yesterday, Wen Zehao had greeted him warmly and even invited him to drink together.
Why had he suddenly turned hostile today?
What had happened?
After a while, Wen Zehao left.
Once his figure was out of sight, Chen Ming walked over and greeted Hong Mingquan. “Fifth Senior Brother.”
Hong Mingquan asked, “How did you offend Seventh Junior Brother?”
“I’m a bit puzzled myself. Everything was fine yesterday. Perhaps I was disrespectful in my demeanor and made him unhappy.”
After a brief pause, Hong Mingquan asked, “Are you close with Little Junior Sister?”
“Little Junior Sister?” Chen Ming asked in surprise. “Has Master Huo recently taken in a female disciple?”
“She’s Qianqian.”
So it was Huo Chengkun’s granddaughter.
Still, calling the master’s granddaughter ‘Little Junior Sister’—didn’t that mess up the hierarchy?
Chen Ming grumbled inwardly but said aloud, “Not at all. I’ve never even spoken to her.”
“How odd,” Hong Mingquan said, seeing that he didn’t seem to be lying. “I heard it was Little Junior Sister who pleaded with Master to let you stay.”
“Really?”
Chen Ming was quite surprised.
Hong Mingquan added, “You probably don’t know this, but Seventh Junior Brother has always had feelings for Little Junior Sister. He’s just been waiting for her to come of age before proposing to Master.”
So that was it.
Though Hong Mingquan didn’t spell it out, Chen Ming understood—Wen Zehao was jealous.
A proud man like Wen Zehao probably already considered Little Junior Sister as his woman.
How could he tolerate someone else—especially someone he looked down on—getting close to her?
It was just like a high school heartthrob discovering that the goddess he admired was getting cozy with some punk from outside the school—he’d be devastated, maybe even murderous.
From this, it was clear that Wen Zehao’s warmth toward him was only superficial.
Deep down, he looked down on him. Otherwise, his reaction wouldn’t have been so extreme.
The key point was—he truly didn’t know Huo Qianqian. Who knew why she had pleaded on his behalf?
He would have to find a chance to ask her next time.
Hong Mingquan changed the subject and started talking about something else.
Chen Ming understood—he didn’t want to get involved in this matter.
Frankly speaking, they had only just met, and their relationship hadn’t reached that level.
Wen Zehao, on the other hand, was his fellow disciple.
He felt a bit emotional.
Even a small place like the Huo Residence was like a miniature martial world.
If things really didn’t work out, he could always quit this sparring partner job.
After all, there were still several martial schools in the city.
It wouldn’t be hard to find another place to work as a sparring partner.
…
Half an hour later, the students had almost finished their break.
When they saw Chen Ming walking over, they all looked eager.
Youngsters were naturally combative.
Sparring with others was far more exciting than stance practice and punching drills.
Hong Mingquan asked, “Who wants to go first to spar with Chen Ming?”
“I do!”
“I’ll go first!”
“Me! Me!”
“……”
A group of teenagers scrambled to be first.
“I will!”
Suddenly, a voice overpowered the rest.
When everyone turned to look, no one dared to compete anymore.
It was Li Jinchuan.
He stepped forward with fighting spirit in his eyes, cupped his fists toward Chen Ming, and said, “Please give me your guidance.”
Seeing his demeanor, Chen Ming’s heart stirred.
This kid probably came prepared—he might have something up his sleeve.
After a moment of thought, he made a decision.
He opened his panel and allocated all 25 remaining points to the Three Talents Fist.
Immediately, his mind was filled with new insights about the technique.
【Name: Chen Ming】
【Level: 3】
【Current Points: 0】
【Cultivation Method: Iron Horse Stance (Second Tier 5/200+)】
【Martial Skills: Three Talents Fist (Proficient 66/200+), Eight Trigrams Saber Technique (Beginner 12/100+)】
Chen Ming knew he absolutely could not lose. If he couldn’t even beat a thirteen or fourteen-year-old kid, he’d never be able to show his face as a sparring partner again.
He smiled slightly and said, “Come on.”
Hmph!
Li Jinchuan let out a cold snort and didn’t waste words.
He lunged forward, punching at Chen Ming’s chest with a strike fiercer than yesterday’s.
He really had come prepared.
Chen Ming reacted immediately.
With a sidestep, he slammed his shoulder forward—if this hit connected, it would be enough to send the boy flying.
Li Jinchuan swiftly changed moves.
With a White Crane Spreads Its Wings, he nimbly dodged the shoulder strike and countered with a blow aimed at Chen Ming’s nape.
These two moves flowed together with remarkable finesse—definitely not something a beginner with only six months of training could come up with.
Chen Ming was now certain someone had been coaching him—and it had to be a real martial artist.
Lightning-fast thoughts flashed through his mind, but his hands didn’t lag behind.
With a move called Tyrant Lifts the Cauldron, he knocked aside the crane-beak strike.
At that moment, Li Jinchuan’s right foot shot out like a spring, kicking toward Chen Ming’s solar plexus.
This unusual move wasn’t part of the Three Talents Fist, but it was fast, sudden, and completely unexpected.
Luckily, Chen Ming had been cautious.
He quickly reacted, ducking just in time to narrowly avoid the kick.
The exchange of moves was dazzling, and the spectators didn’t even dare to breathe.
Many were already cheering, wishing they could take Li Jinchuan’s place and knock that sparring partner down.
Unfortunately, after the first three moves, Li Jinchuan was suppressed and never recovered from his earlier performance.
After thirty-six moves, Chen Ming defeated him once again.
Li Jinchuan looked unwilling but had to admit defeat.
He had thought the three moves taught by Uncle Rui would catch this guy off guard—but he still lost.
He quietly retreated into the crowd, his lips pressed into a tighter line.
Chen Ming remained where he stood, silent.
He stared at the message that had just popped up before his eyes, overcome with joy.
【You have defeated an LV3 enemy again and gained 5 experience points.】
So, it turned out that defeating the same person a second time also yielded experience points.
Although the experience was halved, for him, it was already fantastic news.