Chapter 163: Chapter 162: Does He Hold a High Position in the Village? (Please Subscribe)
In a clean and tidy room.
An elderly man lay on the bed, with his right leg immobilized by a splint.
"Sir, have you had enough to eat? If not, I can get you another bowl."
Beside the bed, a woman in her forties held a bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other, her face full of warmth as she asked.
Next to her stood a young woman, also smiling.
The old man burped contentedly, nodded and said, "I’m full, but a bit thirsty."
The young woman quickly picked up a bowl of water, blew on it to cool the heat, and brought it to his mouth.
"Gulp gulp."
The old man drank the water in several big gulps. The young woman thoughtfully used a handkerchief to wipe the moisture from the corner of his mouth.
"Sir, Dr. Liu said that it takes a hundred days to heal bones and tendons. During these hundred days, if you need anything, just tell us directly, there’s no need to be polite."
The older woman said with a laugh.
"Really?"
The old man’s eyes lit up, "I can ask for anything?"
The two women immediately sensed some hidden meaning in his words.
"Ahem."
The young woman coughed, embarrassed, "Sir, Brother Chen told us before he left, if you have any bad ideas, we should tell him directly, and he would come and have a talk with you personally."
The old man shivered and said, "Forget it then, I don’t have anything to discuss with him right now."
After speaking, he looked around.
He had to admit, the living conditions here were much better than at Song Family Castle.
The room was clean and tidy, the food was abundant, and there were people to serve him. If he had known he would receive such good treatment here, he would have come earlier.
"By the way, who exactly is that young fellow?"
He couldn’t help but ask.
Along the way, everyone treated that young man with deep respect.
As a seasoned person who had met countless people, he could tell that respect was genuine and not feigned.
Consequently, people treated him with kindness as well.
So, he was really curious about the young man’s status in the village.
"You mean Brother Chen?"
"Yes."
The old man nodded, "I see everyone obeying him. Does he have a high status in the village?"
The two women laughed at his words.
"What’s so funny? Did I say something wrong?"
The old man felt a little uncomfortable.
"Sir, Brother Chen in our Chen Family Fortress, is like this."
The young woman gave a thumbs up.
"The boss?"
The old man’s mouth dropped open, filled with disbelief.
"If you understand it that way, it’s not wrong." The young woman couldn’t help but laugh.
"Thanks to Brother Chen, we were saved from Zhao Da and his people’s clutches. If not for him, who knows if we’d be here talking to you now."
The older woman sighed with emotion.
"What exactly happened?"
The old man felt like a thousand ants were crawling in his heart.
He cautiously looked outside, then lowered his voice, "Tell me about it. Don’t worry, if I have one virtue, it’s a tight mouth, I won’t tell anyone."
"There’s nothing secret about it, everyone in the village knows."
The older woman smiled and recounted the previous events.
After listening, the old man took a deep breath, almost having his eyes pop out.
Well, he thought he was the clever one all along, but he was the one fooled.
He always thought he was taking great advantage, only to now realize that the young man had been pretending all along.
Recalling what people said when he arrived.
This young man clearly was the Entry Force Martial Artist he heard about; the one going to Anshan City wasn’t his elder!
My goodness, such a young Entry Force Martial Artist, how terrifyingly talented could he be?
No wonder he knew that the manuals he got from me were incomplete, yet he was always eager to have them.
With such high talent, he must have gained some insights from those incomplete manuals.
Got careless!
The old man smacked his right thigh and immediately grimaced in pain.
"Sir, are you okay?"
The young woman panicked.
"Don’t think too much, it’s just a broken leg; a bit of rest and it will heal."
"No, I’m fine."
The old man waved his hand and said, "Alright, you can leave now. I’d like to be alone for a while."
The two women exchanged glances and nodded.
"Okay, Sir, we’ll go for now. If you need anything, just call us."
"Mm."
The old man responded, feeling complex emotions.
After a long while, he smiled bitterly and comforted himself, "At least it proves that I still have sharp eyes for people, picking the most capable one here right away."
"Yes, exactly!"
Thinking this, he couldn’t help but show some pride on his face.
"With this young man as my backer, who in the village would dare to bully me in the future!"
...
At the same moment.
On the martial arts practice field, everyone was sweating profusely.
In the room next to the warehouse.
"I didn’t expect that in just three or four years, the Martial Arts Association would progress so quickly and produce so many Meridian Refining Martial Artists?"
Zhang Ren said in surprise.
"Yes, the President said that above the Meridian Refining Realm, there’s the True Essence Realm. Besides the President, there are two others who are True Essence Realm Martial Artists."
Chen Fan nodded, trying to sound him out, "Uncle Zhang, are you a member of the Martial Arts Association too?"
"Yes."
Zhang Ren smiled bitterly, "When I joined the branch, the president was also Sun Wei, but at that time, the association only had two or three Meridian Refining Martial Artists, and the branch had none. So at that time, not just others at the branch but even I was somewhat skeptical about this realm."
Chen Fan listened and couldn’t help recalling what Zhang Ren had told him; indeed, the latter mentioned that there were rumors of Martial Artists who could cultivate True Qi within their bodies.
So, it seemed true that the Martial Arts Association had grown quite rapidly over the years.
If given enough time, it might not be worse than the Awakened Association?
"Xiaofan, you just mentioned that now there are only seven or eight Entry Force Martial Artists in the branch, including you?"
Zhang Ren frowned.
"Mm, that’s what the president said. Excluding him and Lin Hui, there are only six including me."
Chen Fan said.
"Hiss..."
Zhang Ren took a sharp breath.
"I remember four years ago, when I joined the Martial Arts Association, there were over thirty Entry Force Martial Artists."
"Over thirty?"
Chen Fan was shocked.
"Yes, at that time, I was just a Mingjin Martial Artist, at the bottom among the Entry Force Martial Artists in the branch. Just the powerful Martial Artists alone exceeded five. Even later, when I was being chased and saved by your father and the others, the number of Entry Force Martial Artists was still above twenty."
"Chased?"
A thought arose in Chen Fan’s mind, "Uncle Zhang, you weren’t chased by the people of Hongchang Trading Company, were you?"
"!"
Zhang Ren looked at Chen Fan in shock, "How did you know?"
He was worried that his matter would bring trouble to the people in the village, so he never mentioned a word about it.
How did Chen Fan know about it?
"No."
Chen Fan couldn’t help but laugh, "I guessed it, Uncle Zhang. The president warned me earlier to be wary of people from Hongchang Trading Company. Those who have the ability to chase down Entry Force Martial Artists would either be Awakeners or other Entry Force Martial Artists, right?"
"That’s right."
Zhang Ren was silent for a moment, "It seems that the conflict between Hongchang Trading Company and the branch is getting more intense."
"When I was still in the branch, people kept leaving to join Hongchang Trading Company. Soon, their number of Entry Force Martial Artists matched ours. Then, every so often, conflicts broke out in the wild until one time..."
Pain filled his eyes, "A friend and I went hunting Mid-level Fierce Beasts and were targeted. My friend was shot in the head by several sniper rifle bullets and died on the spot. Although I wasn’t hit in a vital spot, I was seriously injured, running for my life. The rest you know."
"So that’s how it was."
Chen Fan was moved, realizing they must have thought Uncle Zhang was dead and didn’t pursue him further.
Uncle Zhang’s fate wasn’t sealed.
"Uncle Zhang, do you remember the names of the people who chased you?"
Zhang Ren paused, then understood what Chen Fan meant, his heart warmed, and he shook his head, "Forget it, it’s all in the past. Moreover, Hongchang Trading Company is backed by several Awakeners. Even the President is hesitant to provoke those folks."
"Uncle Zhang, some things aren’t avoided just because we wish to."
Chen Fan said helplessly, "Besides, the conflict between Hongchang Trading Company and the branch has intensified. Originally thirty Entry Force Martial Artists, plus those who joined in recent years, now only six are left. Most died at the hands of Hongchang Trading Company. By joining the branch, I’ve aligned against them. Someone even tried to tail me when I returned."
"What!"
Zhang Ren quickly asked, "And what happened? Are you alright?"
"I shook them off, but I’ll encounter them again next time in Anshan City."
Chen Fan shrugged, "So Uncle Zhang, now you understand, avoiding them won’t stop them."
Zhang Ren looked troubled.
He hadn’t mentioned the Martial Arts Association to Chen Fan to avoid dragging him into trouble.
But unexpectedly, Chen Fan still got involved.
So the enemies he would face included not only Fierce Beasts but also the subordinates of Awakeners, and possibly the Awakeners themselves.
Very dangerous indeed.
"So Uncle Zhang, what’s the name of the person who caused you such suffering?"
Chen Fan asked.
Since he was set against Hongchang Trading Company.
He’d gladly help Zhang Ren deal with those enemies.