Reception

Full Moon Inn was located on the most prosperous riverside road in the inner city. It was the largest restaurant in Mengyang City.

It was of an extremely high grade and cost at least 100 taels of silver to dine there.

This time, the dojo had spent more than 3000 taels to book an entire floor to welcome Eldest Senior Brother and the others.

The one who paid was Third Senior Brother. Meng Tianyang.

The others were not surprised.

The Meng family had shares in Full Moon Inn. If someone from the Meng family dined here, they could get a discount.

The disciples of the dojo were dressed in uniforms. 70 to 80 people walked out of the dojo grandly, crossed the bridge, and went to the Full Moon Inn. They swaggered through the city, attracting everyone's attention.

There were many spies from the Dark Shark Gang in the city. The Ferocious Tiger Fist Dojo's actions also served to show off their martial strength and intimidate others.

"Gentlemen, please go upstairs. This way."

As soon as they arrived at Full Moon Inn, a servant of the Meng family welcomed them and warmly led the way.

Soon, everyone arrived on the sixth floor.

Three imposing young men greeted them at the door with smiles on their faces.

"Eighth Brother, you're here. Master and our uncle-masters are chatting in the private room. Go and greet them first."

"Ninth Brother, Twelfth Brother, Thirteenth Brother, you guys should go too."

"Yes, Eldest Senior Brother."

"Greetings, Third Senior Brother."

"Greetings, Fifth Senior Brother."

...

Through the conversation with others, Zhou You quickly identified the three senior brothers.

The one with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes was Eldest Senior Brother, Lu Li.

The one with a gentle face and refined temperament was Third Senior Brother, Meng Tianyang.

The one with the honest face and sad smile was Fifth Senior Brother, He Ruozhuo.

"This must be Junior Brother Zhou from the apothecary. You're indeed a fine man. Let's have a few drinks when we have time."

Lu Li had obviously done his homework. He recognized Zhou You at a glance and greeted him warmly.

"Greetings, Eldest Senior Brother. A pleasure to meet you." Zhou You cupped his hands and said politely.

Lu Li gave him a good impression.

"The pleasure is all mine. Junior Brother Zhou, go in first. Master Cheng is also in the private room. Go and greet him first."

"Okay."

Zhou You walked towards the private room.

There was a large round table in the private room, with seven people sitting on each side.

Zhou You knew two masters, Lu Chuanfeng and Cheng Yiqing.

The uncle-masters Tan Fei, Yang Yong, and Wang Hengsong were also there.

There were two people he did not know, but they had extraordinary auras. They were clearly not ordinary people.

Zhao Qing and the others stood behind Lu Chuanfeng and the others.

From Lu Chuanfeng's actions and words, he seemed to be introducing his good disciples.

There were also a few young men in fine clothes behind the two of them. They greeted them warmly under the introduction of their elders.

As soon as Zhou You entered the private room, Cheng Yiqing's eyes lit up. He called out to him and began to introduce him.

"You'er, this is Uncle Meng Zhaohui. Come and say hi."

"Hello, Uncle Meng." Zhou You had no choice but to do as he was told.

"You'er, this is the chief constable of Mengyang City, Wei Changxin."

"Greetings, Chief Constable Wei."

Zhou You took a second look at the legendary chief constable.

There were simple job positions available under the City Lord's Manor, such as the treasury, constabulary, and so on. They were responsible for maintaining order in Mengyang County.

It was the Meng family's private land. Many outsiders formed close relationships with the Meng family and even married into the family.

Wei Changxin had married the three daughters of the previous head of the Meng family to secure his position as chief constable.

After greeting the seniors, Lu Li and the other two received the guests and went into the private room.

Zhou You and the other disciples left the private room.

Although Lu Li and the other two were also disciples, Lu Li was Lu Chuanfeng's only son and the heir of the Ferocious Tiger Fist Dojo.

Meng Tianyang was a member of the Meng family, and Meng Zhaohui was his father.

Although He Ruozhuo's background was not as good, he had already inherited the title of the head of the He family. He had earned his way to sit at the table.

...

After leaving the private room, Zhou You heaved a sigh of relief.

The others left after exchanging a few pleasantries. Zhao Qing looked around and brought Zhou You around the hall to introduce new faces.

This celebratory banquet was jointly held by Meng Zhaohui, the leader of the second branch of the Meng family, and the Ferocious Tiger Fist Dojo. Everyone who came was one of their own.

Most of those unfamiliar faces were from the Meng family. Among them, there were many young and beautiful girls. They were surrounded by many hormonal male disciples from the dojo.

The Meng Family was a big family, and the women from the branch families did not enjoy many benefits. If a disciple of the dojo took a fancy to them, it would be best if he was a direct disciple of the dojo master. That would make him a good potential candidate to date.

Zhao Qing gave a simple introduction before being pulled away by a few people from the Meng family. They said that they wanted to introduce someone to him.

Zhao Qing smiled apologetically at Zhou You and ran away.

Zhou You was the only one left. He sat in a corner and ate snacks silently.

Occasionally, someone would chat with him for a while before leaving quickly.

There were also girls who asked about him. After learning that he was only the apothecary's disciple, they all lost interest in him.

An apothecary's disciple's status was not low and their income was quite abundant. Since they came from a martial arts family, they preferred martial artists who were strong and could give them a sense of security.

The welcoming banquet was very lively.

However, Zhou You was not interested. He could not be bothered to spend time and energy trying to socialize with important characters or meet women.

After rejecting a few invitations, no one came looking for Zhou You anymore.

The disciples of the dojo were already used to Zhou You's behavior.

The Meng clan had alchemists, and their numbers for apothecaries went as high as double digits. They had a sufficient supply of medicinal pills, so there was no need to curry favor with an apothecary's disciple who had yet to graduate.

On the other hand, Zhao Qing and the others were like fish in the water surrounded by women.

"Junior Brother Zhou, come, let's have a drink." He Ping broke free from the crowd and looked around before walking towards Zhou You.

"I'm not good at drinking. I hope Senior Brother He can forgive me." Zhou You shook his head and refused.

Thirteenth Senior Brother was only 20 years old and was still full of vigor. Now, he smelled like fragrance and makeup. Although he had already left the center of the vortex, his gaze was still lingering and his face was filled with regret.

"Senior Brother He, there are so many girls. Don't you like any of them? With your charm, it won't be a problem for you to take them down."

Zhou You was bored, but it was rude for him to leave early. Zhou You's eyes darted around and he suddenly joked.

He Ping was fair and clean, and his looks were ranked among the top among the senior brothers. He was young and passionate given his youth and was very popular with the girls.

"Alas!"

He Ping sighed and shook his head. "I'll have to pass for now. I'm at a critical moment. I need to stabilize my essence and can't afford to get distracted."

Zhou You was stunned for a moment before a look of joy appeared on his face. He cupped his hands and said, "Congratulations, Senior Brother He."

He understood what He Ping meant.

He Ping had already started the Purification process!

Cultivation during the Purification Stage was mainly to repair the hidden injuries in the body, stabilize the essence energy to keep it at its peak and consolidate true blood.

During this period, if a large amount of essence energy was lost and needed to be restored, it would greatly extend the cultivation time of the Purification stage.

In that case, out of Master's eight disciples, three were already Visceral Tempering martial artists and four of them were Purification martial artists.

He was the only pitiful Body Forging martial artist.

However, Zhou You did not belittle himself.

In fact, He Ping was already taken in as a disciple by the master six years ago. He was originally nurtured as his last direct disciple.

He Ping did not let him down. In just six years, he completed the Body Forging and Bone Forging stages and entered the Purification stage.

At this rate, there was a chance that he could complete Visceral Tempering before the age of thirty and enter the Five Tigers Sect's headquarters to further his studies.

After nurturing a 30-year-old Visceral Tempering martial artist, Lu Chuanfeng would complete the headquarters' mission. He could return to the mountain to retire and enjoy his life.

Six years…

Zhou You was certain that six years later, he would definitely be stronger than the current Senior Brother He.