Chapter 10 Dispute

Chapter 10 Dispute

"Xiong Kid, don't slack off!" Yang Baochang lightly kicked a kid who was slacking off in horse stance practice on the Bull Horn Village training ground.

The kid turned his head to look at Yang Baochang's stern face, sheepishly muttered an "oh," rubbed his butt cheek with his hand, and resumed his horse stance.

"In horse stance, your chest should be flat and your back round, with your hands as if holding a ball. Keep your head upright as if suspended by a thread from above. This is basic martial arts training and must be done well."

As Yang Baochang walked, he instructed a group of seven or eight-year-old children on the basics.

The training ground was about fifty yards long and wide, with a raised platform on the top left resembling a small sports court. In the center of the training ground were four or five rows of stone millstones of varying sizes. Each row had about ten or so, gradually increasing in size from left to right.

The dark stone millstones looked extremely smooth, glistening under the sunlight.

This was due to many years of people moving them, with the oil from their hands being absorbed onto the stones after constant friction.

A few rows at the front, where the stones were lighter, had two or three young men standing by each. These youths looked particularly strong, training shirtless under the blazing sun.

Some of them were lifting stone blocks to practice their strength, huffing and puffing as they lifted and lowered the stones.

Some were walking with peculiar steps, trying to grasp the essence of martial arts.

Others were sparring, their exchanges lively and exciting.

At that moment, Lin Yuan, dressed in a black shirt, had just entered the training ground, drawing everyone's attention. Gradually, those practicing with the millstones put them down and turned to look.

Several who were sparring stopped and jogged over to Lin Yuan.

A young man closest to the entrance walked over, noticing Lin Yuan's tall and spirited form, a condition unbefitting someone whose martial arts were supposedly ruined.

He surmised Lin Yuan had recovered completely and exclaimed in delight, "Yuan Ge, you've recovered? That's wonderful."

This young man was one of Lin Yuan's companions in the fight to divert water from the neighboring village and had witnessed Lin Yuan being surrounded. Although Lin Yuan was defeated, his resolve was admirable to them.

"Yes, I've recovered. I heard from Yuan Shan that today's walking lesson will teach martial skills in the village, just in time for the selection," Lin Yuan replied with a smile.

As he was about to move forward, an unpleasant voice chimed in, "A waste with a destroyed Dantian still wants to join the selection? What a joke."

Lin Yuan's eyebrows knitted upon hearing this, and his once slightly smiling face turned serious.

The initial inquirer to Lin Yuan then angrily retorted, "Li Guangtou, what do you mean by that? Yuan Ge was just resting after serious injury; now that he's recovered, he can naturally represent us in the academy selection."

The bald youth replied, "What do I mean? Hmph. This waste insisted on stepping forward knowing he couldn't win. Isn't that stupid? He deserved to be ruined."

"Wasting the village chief's Vitality Pill for your so-called willpower, do you even know how valuable the Vitality Pill is? Compared to it, your martial will is nothing."

"Shut up. Li Guangtou, stop talking nonsense here. We just admire Yuan Ge, admire his spirit and vigor. Keep blabbing, and I'll tear your mouth apart," the young man said anxiously.

"I'm talking nonsense?" the bald youth's face darkened.

"What do you know! If the village chief had given the Vitality Pill to Brother Wang Dong, our Bull Horn Village would surely make the academy selection this year."

"But because of this waste's insistence, the pill was wasted, and Bull Horn Village lost a chance to rise. If Duan Yong gains power, our village will be irreversibly oppressed by the neighboring Quanya Village, with no hope of ever rising."

At this point, many people were standing behind Li Guangtou, seemingly supporting him, indicating there were quite a few youths who shared this belief.

It became evident that these youths believed the village chief wasted the Vitality Pill on a useless person.

"What, you baring your teeth, want a fight?" Li Guangtou asked the youth who previously argued with him, sounding both brave and fierce.

"Baldy, feeling itchy, are you, yelling at my brother?" At this moment, a tall and strong youth, who had been watching from the side, shielded the initial speaker and stared intently at Li Guangtou.

"Zhang Sanlang, when you bully my brother, shouldn't you ask if I agree or not?" Another person appeared behind Li Guangtou, locking eyes with the sturdy Zhang Sanlang.

That person then glanced at Lin Yuan and scoffed, "Lin Yuan is just a cripple, why struggle so hard! He wasted the village chief's medicine, and we just said a few words, what's wrong with that?"

"For these three months, has Lin Yuan dared to come to the training ground? He must know that without martial cultivation, even consuming the precious pill wouldn't restore his cultivation. Yet, a waste remains a waste, stubbornly ignorant!"

"Still acting like a turtle! Coming to our village for the training lesson today, no matter how you disguise it, this waste won't escape our eyes!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Sanlang puffed out his chest, stepped forward, and angrily shouted, "Only boasting because of Wang Dong's backing. Cut the pretense! Want to spar, take a few moves from me!"

Due to differing opinions, the youths on the training ground gradually formed into two opposing groups, with the tension of a battle gradually rising between them.

"Stop."

With a loud shout, Yang Baochang halted both sides as the confrontation was about to erupt.

"Fellow villagers should be like family, what do you all think you're doing? Lin Yuan was seriously injured for the village and has now recovered; we should celebrate, not talk of wasted medicine."

"Li Xiaoliang, the words you just said should not be repeated again. Apologize to Lin Yuan immediately!"