Chapter 7: Breaking the Limit

Lu Yan was practicing his martial arts in the bamboo grove when suddenly, the clamor of voices rose from the village.

“That sounds like Mother,” he thought, his expression changing slightly as he halted. The bamboo grove was close to Kaoshan Village, not far at all. Now that Lu Yan was approaching the limit of his training, his blood and energy surged, his senses sharp and keen; amidst the noise, he distinctly heard Wang Cui’s voice.

He dared not delay and hurried back immediately.

“Yan, something’s wrong! Your father is about to fight Wu Chaofeng and his men!”

As he reached the village entrance, an anxious auntie spotted him and called out.

“Wu Chaofeng...”

Lu Yan’s heart tightened. Wu Chaofeng, too, was brimming with vitality and nearly at the threshold—much stronger than an ordinary person. Lu Qingshan was an excellent archer and once broke through the limit twice; his body had been tempered by this training and was stronger than most, but in a real fight, he might not prevail against Wu Chaofeng. Moreover, Wu Chaofeng had two accomplices.

Lu Yan quickened his pace and soon arrived home.

Already, a crowd of villagers had gathered to watch. Lu Qingshan and Wang Cui stood opposed to Wu Chaofeng, Li Shi, and Li Mu.

“Lu Qingshan, I told you—we’re only taking half of your meat. Don’t refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!” Wu Chaofeng held a hatchet, his face fierce and wolfish.

“Impossible. That meat was hunted with our lives on the line. You’ll get nothing,” Lu Qingshan replied.

“Hmph! We’re all villagers here. Why do you get to eat meat every day while we survive on coarse grains and wild greens?” Li Mu jeered.

“If you want meat, go hunt it yourself,” Lu Qingshan retorted.

“Lu Qingshan, do you really think you brought down that game all by yourself? If we didn’t protect Kaoshan Village, it would have been destroyed by bandits and beasts long ago—you’d have no home, no peace to hunt. That means your game belongs to everyone!” Wu Chaofeng spoke coldly.

Such shameless words almost made Lu Yan laugh in anger.

He pushed through the crowd to the front of his house, nocked an arrow to his bow, and aimed at Wu Chaofeng and his men.

Li Mu, wielding a hoe, and Li Shi, gripping a carrying pole, tensed up when they saw Lu Yan take aim.

But Wu Chaofeng’s expression didn’t change. He raised his hatchet and said, “Lu Yan, you want to try something? Go ahead.”

But Lu Yan did not let the arrow fly. There were three of them; if his first shot failed, his father might hold his own, but Wang Cui would surely be in danger. If she were struck by a hatchet or hoe, the consequences would be dire.

Moreover, even if he hit, killing someone in front of everyone would bring the wrath of the Liu clan.

Weighing the risks, Lu Yan made his decision.

“Father, give it to them,” Lu Yan said.

“But Yan... those provisions are essential for your training,” Lu Qingshan replied, unwilling.

He glanced at Wang Cui by his side and sighed inwardly. If a fight broke out, he could barely protect himself, let alone her.

“It’s all right, Father. Give it to them,” Lu Yan said firmly.

“Very well,” Lu Qingshan conceded at last.

“Ha! Lu Qingshan, your son knows what’s wise,” Wu Chaofeng crowed, ordering Li Shi and Li Mu to haul off the boar meat.

The two men carried away well over a hundred pounds, then all three swaggered off.

The surrounding villagers, seeing so much wild boar in Lu Qingshan’s house, had envy burning in their eyes.

“Do you want some too?” Lu Yan asked, standing with his bow at the ready. Lu Qingshan joined him, bow in hand.

The villagers, lacking Wu Chaofeng’s strength, were cowed. Though greedy, they dared not try to rob him; one by one, they drifted away.

Afterward, Lu Yan learned from his father and mother what had happened.

Earlier that day, Lu Qingshan and Wang Cui had returned home unexpectedly, only to catch Wu Chaofeng and his men in the act of stealing their boar meat. Cornered, Lu Qingshan had grabbed his hunting bow, while Wu Chaofeng’s group armed themselves with hatchets and hoes—leading to the confrontation.

“Mother, cook me as much meat as you can. I need it for training,” Lu Yan said. He then turned and strode toward the bamboo grove, a chill gleam flashing in his eyes.

Two hours later, when Lu Yan returned, Wang Cui had already boiled a huge pot of boar—over ten pounds.

Lu Yan devoured five pounds in one sitting and went back to the grove to practice. By the time he’d burned it off, the sun was setting.

He ate the remaining five pounds, then returned to his training.

“It’s coming... soon!”

Lu Yan punched furiously, his skin flushed red, blood and energy coursing through his twelve main meridians and 144 branches, making the veins bulge on his arms like little snakes.

Half an hour later.

His energy surged to its utmost. In a daze, he seemed to glimpse a door.

“The sealed gate!”

Lu Yan’s heart leapt with joy.

His cultivation had finally reached its current peak—he had touched the sealed gate.

Next, if he could break through it, he would join the ranks of limit-breakers, transcending the ordinary.

He gathered his strength and surged against the gate.

Boom!

He seemed to hear a thunderous sound inside his body, but the gate held firm.

Lu Qingshan had warned him: the sealed gate cannot be shattered in one try. Breaking it requires patience.

Lu Yan kept driving his energy against the threshold. As he hammered at it, his body began to glow faintly. The light gathered in the air, forming a phantom gate.

“Good—sealed gate’s projection. Break!”

Thrilled, Lu Yan strode forward, black lines coiling around his fists. His Iron Thread Fist, mastered to perfection, struck the projection.

Boom!

His punches, fierce and domineering, rattled the projected gate violently, fracturing it.

Most who train in third-rate martial arts only reach mastery when their energy is at the limit, but the power is far less than perfection.

Boom, boom, boom!

Lu Yan landed three more blows. The cracks multiplied until, with a resounding crash, the projection shattered.

At that instant, the real sealed gate within him burst apart as well. Suddenly, Lu Yan felt a great lightness, as if a binding had been removed.

At the same time, his muscles and bones tingled as streams of vital energy poured from muscle and bone into his meridians.

The total amount of his energy soared; in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, it rose by thirty percent, then stabilized.

The human body is like a water jar—capacity is limited. When it’s full, it overflows.

But breaking the sealed gate releases potential, expanding the jar and doubling capacity.

Thus, shattering a gate can double one’s energy reserve—but not out of nothing. The thirty percent boost came from energy stored deep in the body, now released.

The next seven days would be a period of rapid growth, provided there was enough meat.

With enough meat, he could replenish the remaining seventy percent, doubling his reserves from before the breakthrough.

Lu Yan returned home and asked Wang Cui to cook a big pot of meat.

He ate heartily, then trained again, converting the food into energy.

“Yan, did you... did you break through the sealed gate?” Lu Qingshan asked, having noticed the signs, hardly able to believe it.

Having broken two gates in his time, Lu Qingshan was extremely sensitive to such changes—the seven days after a breakthrough are marked by ravenous hunger.

“Yes, Father,” Lu Yan replied, knowing he couldn’t hide it.

Lu Qingshan drew a sharp breath, stunned.

For a long moment he was speechless; then joy blossomed on his face, impossible to contain.

“Yan, you must not tell anyone about your breakthrough. Not even your mother. Do you understand?” he warned gravely, once his excitement subsided.

If reaching archery mastery in twenty-some days was astonishing, breaking the limit in just over three months was terrifying—a talent Lu Qingshan had never even heard of.

A prodigy might attract attention and special training from the noble clans.

But a monster could be seized for study.

“I understand, Father,” Lu Yan nodded.

With Lu Qingshan covering for him, and Wang Cui’s ignorance of martial arts, no one suspected anything when Lu Yan’s appetite suddenly soared; every day, his mother cooked him a large pot of meat.

In just seven days, their stores were nearly depleted.

Lu Yan’s energy reserves had doubled; his body, honed by the surge, grew rapidly, reaching nearly 1.8 meters tall, his muscles swelling with explosive power.

His cultivation was now firmly at the first gate broken.

Next, he would build up his energy again. When it overflowed, he could attempt the second gate.

That night, after his parents were asleep, Lu Yan rose, took some potatoes and coarse rice, and quietly left them at Aunt Dagang’s house.

These days, Aunt Dagang and her two children survived on what little pickled vegetables and wild yams they’d stored, but it would not last much longer; without food, they would soon starve.

Lu Yan was no saint—there was too much suffering in this troubled world for him to save everyone. But when hardship took place right before his eyes, and he had the power, he could not remain indifferent.

Besides, with his first breakthrough, food would never be a problem for his family again.

“Uncle Dagang, rest in peace. Those scum—I’ll send them to keep you company.”

With that, Lu Yan rushed toward Wu Chaofeng’s house.

As he drew near, the rich aroma of meat wafted through the air.

Wu Chaofeng, Li Mu, and Li Shi were still awake, huddled around a pot, gorging themselves.

“So fragrant! Seven days and I’m still not sick of it,” Li Mu said, stuffing a chunk of meat into his mouth, utterly content.

“Boss, our meat’s almost gone. What will we do next?” Li Shi asked.

“Simple—get more from Lu Qingshan,” Wu Chaofeng replied, gnawing on a pig’s trotter.

“Boss, I’m worried they’ll snap. Lu Qingshan’s supposed to be a crack shot—hard to dodge an arrow,” Li Shi fretted.

“Relax. Lu Qingshan wouldn’t dare attack us,” Wu Chaofeng said, wiping grease from his mouth. “Think about it. There are three of us. Unless he kills all three, if even one escapes, his wife and son will be targets for revenge. That’s his weak point. He won’t take the risk.”

“Besides, Lu Qingshan’s the only archer in the village. If we die from arrows, everyone will know who did it. The Liu clan won’t let him off.”

“Boss, you’re brilliant,” Li Mu and Li Shi fawned.

“Lu Qingshan, you’re mine for life,” Wu Chaofeng spat viciously.

Bang!

The door exploded inward. A hulking, beast-like shadow lunged straight at Wu Chaofeng.