That morning, Master Apothecary Wang handed each of the five boys, including Ye Qin, one hundred copper coins, granting them a day off to enjoy themselves in Zhuqi County Town—buy food, supplies, or whatever they pleased. Once they ventured into the mountains with the Master Herb Gatherers tomorrow, they would be gone for months, rarely getting a chance to amuse themselves in the town again.

Ye Qin was ecstatic. It was the first time he had held so much money; this sum was nearly equivalent to ten days' worth of food for an ordinary family in the county. At a proper restaurant or tavern in town, he could even order a modest spread of food and drink for a fine meal.

Yang Yichen loudly praised, "Master seems cold and ruthless, yet he certainly doesn't short us on coin!"

Feng Xiao and the others nodded in agreement.

The four of them hailed from the county seat or its immediate vicinity. With a rare day off and money in hand, they all rushed home to inform their families that they would be entering the deep mountains for herb gathering and might not return for a long time.

Ye Qin’s home was hundreds of miles away, making a trip impossible.

He strode out of the Apothecary Hall, coins nestled securely in his pocket, and wandered alone through the bustling, crowded main street of the county town. On either side, taverns and teahouses were packed with wealthy patrons, and shopfronts saw visits from young masters and ladies of affluent families. Farmers carried fresh fruits and vegetables, hawking their wares along the street.

Ye Qin was already quite familiar with this county. As an acolyte of the Apothecary Hall, he could already sense the subtle shift in his status, bringing a slight strangeness to his encounters. At the very least, the common townsfolk, seeing his distinctive uniform from the Hall, regarded him with a measure of awe. They didn't dare treat him as a mere eleven-year-old boy but looked upon him as someone of consequence.

The beggars huddled in the dark corners of the alleys dared not approach him.

It seemed like only five months ago that he was a small beggar who dared only walk with his head down, dodging every glance. How could he now walk down the street with his head held high, needing to avoid no one? Even the martial folk carrying swords and sheaths would deign to look him in the eye, instead of casting him aside with a dismissive glance.

Ye Qin felt a flicker of excitement, mixed with a pang of sorrow. Where was Da Niu now? Was he still alive? Was he even in this county town? When he eventually returned to his hometown, how would he explain things to Da Niu’s parents?

Lost in thought, he realized he didn't know where he had wandered to when he heard the sounds of kicking and yelling coming from a small alley ahead.

A local ruffian leader, perhaps in his early twenties, was shouting orders to three or four younger thugs, kicking a small, filthy, foul-smelling beggar. The leader roared, "Boy, where's this month's protection fee? Begging in the county and not paying up for the young master? You don't want to live anymore! Hit him hard!"

The thugs were thoroughly enjoying themselves, ignoring the small beggar's cries of pain.

Ye Qin approached this group and paused, a faint recognition stirring in him. When he first drifted into Zhuqi County Town, he too had been bullied by some of these ruffians. He couldn't recall their faces, but their viciousness seemed identical.

An unnameable fire instantly ignited in his chest. If it hadn't been for these scoundrels bullying him back then, he and Da Niu could have at least found food in the town, rather than fleeing to the wilderness, which led to Da Niu being bitten by wild dogs. Now, they were terrorizing someone else—they deserved punishment.

He certainly wasn't afraid of these damned thugs anymore.

Ye Qin suddenly charged forward. Without a word, he lifted his leg and aimed a kick directly at the ruffian leader's leg. Despite being only eleven, he had practiced internal arts, and half a year of high-intensity training had given him considerable brute strength. A man unversed in martial arts might not stand a chance against him.

"Ouch!"

The ruffian hadn't noticed and was caught completely off guard by the sudden kick, stumbling violently before falling flat on the ground, his face planting squarely in the mud. Seeing that it was just a young boy in his teens, the leader erupted in fury.

"Damn it, where did this little brat come from, daring to kick your Grandpa!"

The other thugs immediately abandoned the small beggar and lunged toward Ye Qin. Four or five of them swarmed him, intending to beat him down.

Ye Qin faced the four or five of them without fear. After taking a few blows, he realized that the thugs' footwork was shallow; the punches and kicks they landed carried almost no real force, merely soft taps that felt like tickling against his skin. They didn't even pack the force of one of Yang Yichen's strikes. He could probably withstand one or two of Yang Yichen's iron fists.

"Ptooey, I'm your grandpa!"

Ye Qin simply stopped defending. He launched himself forward, tackling the ruffian leader to the ground, straddling him, and rained down over a dozen frantic punches. In an instant, the leader's face bloomed like a bright flower, blood spurting from his nose as he wailed, calling for his mother and father, begging for mercy. "Mama! It hurts! Stop hitting me! You’re Grandpa, I’m your grandson, please stop!"

The other thugs, witnessing Ye Qin's ferocious, reckless assault on their leader, retreated in terror, stepping back more than ten paces before turning tail and bolting—not daring to look back as they ran to fetch reinforcements.

Ye Qin did not stop just because the leader begged. He beat the ruffian half to death, leaving his entire face swollen and bloated, venting the rage in his heart before finally halting.

The small beggar, having been kicked by the ruffians, had been curled up, clutching his head. When he heard the thugs stop their beating and the leader's screams, he cautiously poked out his blackened, dirty face and stared. He then stared blankly at Ye Qin.

"Qin... Brother Qin'er!"

The small beggar’s voice trembled, uncertainty coloring his tone.

Hearing the voice, Ye Qin was startled and looked down at the small beggar lying in the alley.

"Da Niu, is that you!"

"It's me, Brother Qin'er!"

Seeing Ye Qin, the small beggar burst into hysterical sobs.

Ye Qin rushed over and helped him up. The two fellow villagers from home embraced, weeping into each other's shoulders. Ye Qin had truly thought that after parting ways at the Apothecary Hall gate, they might never see each other again. He never imagined they would meet again half a year later.

After crying, Da Niu wiped his tears and recounted his experiences over the past six months.

It turned out that Cheng Da Niu hadn't been driven away by the Apothecary Hall because of his leg injury. However, he didn't want to be far from Ye Qin, so he lingered near the Hall, hoping to catch sight of him. But soon, he was discovered by a gang of local ruffians who wanted to train him as a petty thief. The training failed because of his injured leg; he was too slow. The gang was forced to abandon the idea of making him a thief.

Da Niu had since been begging in the county town, constantly bullied and driven away by the other beggars, and regularly extorted for protection money by the ruffians.

Hearing this, Ye Qin felt immense anger and stomped over to the fallen ruffian leader, delivering a few more fierce kicks.

Suddenly, twenty or so burly men in green carrying large clubs came running out of the alley entrance, led by the three or four thugs, charging toward them. The leader, a burly man in plain cloth carrying a battered axe, shouted wildly, "Good! Where is this brat who dares bully my Wild Dog Gang? Grandpa will smash his bones!"

"Boss, that kid is right there! He hasn't run away yet! Please show your might, Boss, and skin him alive!" the thugs yelled excitedly, running at the front.

Ye Qin looked toward the alley mouth and was instantly alarmed. He hadn't expected the thugs to return so quickly with such a large group of backup. He could handle three or four unarmed ruffians, but twenty men wielding clubs and axes was far beyond his current capability. How could he escape?

He quickly scanned the end of the alley, preparing to flee with Da Niu.

However, things did not unfold as Ye Qin anticipated.

The burly leader clearly recognized the clothing and attire of Ye Qin, especially the conspicuous Maple Leaf emblem of the Apothecary Hall stamped on his chest. He froze instantly, his eyes shrinking back as if he had seen a venomous snake or scorpion, revealing a flicker of sheer terror.

He had assumed that some other gang in the county had beaten up his Wild Dog Gang members, but who knew it was someone from the Apothecary Hall?

The Apothecary Hall was the number one unreasonable powerhouse in Zhuqi County Town, boasting thousands of disciples who were ruthless and valued money over their lives. If one carelessly offended a disciple, they might die without even knowing how. His small, third-rate gang of ruffians, with dozens of underlings in Zhuqi County Town, wasn't even worthy of being brushed aside by a mere finger from the Hall. How dare they provoke someone from the Apothecary Hall?!

Even though the person before him was just a teenage acolyte, who knew if he had older brothers, sisters, or uncles backing him? If even a moderately powerful figure were drawn into the affair, his Wild Dog Gang would cease to exist, becoming nothing more than a footnote in Zhuqi County's history.

The burly leader’s face instantly turned pale with fright. He erupted, leaping forward and slapping the few thugs across the face four or five times, hard. "Useless trash! Are you blind? Didn't you see this is an Elder Brother from the Apothecary Hall?! Hurry up and kowtow to apologize to Brother!"

The thugs, dazed by the hard slaps, tumbled to the ground and immediately started kowtowing violently toward Ye Qin and Cheng Da Niu, weeping hysterically.

"Brother, Grand... Master, we were wrong!"

"Please, Great One, do not hold a grudge!"

Ye Qin staggered back several steps, his face a mask of astonishment.

Da Niu shrank slightly behind Ye Qin in fear, his eyes wide, his jaw slack with shock. Brother Qin had become incredibly formidable.

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