Li Muzhan smiled at him, his eyes wide open, staring intently, while the other two men stood guard on either side of the doorway.
Li Muzhan picked up his bowl and chopsticks and began to eat, ignoring Xiong Sihai’s ferocious gaze.
This time, he ate slowly and deliberately, chewing each mouthful thoroughly for better health maintenance.
After finishing his meal, he wiped the corner of his mouth. This was a military camp; he couldn't be as particular as he was outside, so a simple wipe with his hand would have to suffice.
He looked up at Xiong Sihai, whose eyes were wide open, fixed upon him.
Li Muzhan chuckled, “What do you intend to do?”
Xiong Sihai coughed, shook his neck, and boomed, “Let’s put it this way: since you defeated us, you’re the boss now. I should call you Big Brother!”
Li Muzhan smiled and shook his head, “I don’t like being called Big Brother.”
Xiong Sihai frowned, his eyes flashing with savage light, as if trying to pierce through Li Muzhan’s body.
Li Muzhan said, “Thank you for your concern. You can see yourself out.”
Xiong Sihai remained motionless, as if he hadn't understood the words, merely glaring at him fiercely.
Li Muzhan moved off the kang, walking slowly backward.
Xiong Sihai’s eyes followed him rigidly as he stepped down from the heated platform and moved toward the door. The other two men stepped forward, blocking the exit shoulder-to-shoulder, staring coldly at Li Muzhan.
Li Muzhan smiled faintly, “Do you think you can stop me?”
“Hmph, even if we can’t stop you, we still have to try!” The gaunt man’s small eyes widened savagely. “Little Monk, it would be better for you to understand things clearly. Don’t think just because you can fight, you’re the boss, Big Brother?”
“Xiao He, you should call me Second Brother! He is Big Brother!” Xiong Sihai pointed at Li Muzhan.
“...Second Brother, are you letting him go?” Xiao He asked gruffly.
Xiong Sihai snorted, “He’s the Big Brother, so whatever he wants is what happens. Who can say anything... Move aside!”
“...Fine.” Xiao He grunted, shooting Li Muzhan a fierce look before stepping back, resuming his guard position by the door, his gaze still locked onto Li Muzhan.
Li Muzhan smiled faintly, “I am not any Big Brother.”
With that, he stepped out of the room into the large courtyard and began to wander leisurely. In this other world, being a monk meant being strong, the sun was bright and beautiful, the sky high and the air crisp, with white clouds drifting across the azure heavens—truly a fine day.
As he strolled, he noticed the gazes cast upon him were somewhat strange—excitement, expectation, and even jealousy.
Li Muzhan closed his Xintong (Mind Aperture) and ignored them, circling the courtyard again and again, his thoughts racing as he processed the recent events.
He understood that Xiong Sihai acknowledging him as Big Brother was not born of genuine reverence, but necessity.
Having been defeated by him, his established image of dominance had crumbled, and he needed to reassert control over the men. There were two ways to restore his authority: either kill Li Muzhan, or accept the second position, serving as Li Muzhan’s representative. This way, he would still be the first among the group, above everyone else, and the others would still have to obey him obediently.
Li Muzhan shook his head and smiled. This Xiong Sihai was not merely brutish and reliant on force; he was quite adept at the art of power dynamics. Truly, he could not be underestimated.
His martial arts style must be related to the Tiger, judging by his imposing presence and the rhythm between his fists and feet—like a fierce tiger. However, he had been countered by Li Muzhan, the Bear, who suppressed his momentum, preventing him from unleashing his full power.
He was able to become the leader because his martial arts were genuinely formidable; his fists even carried a faint glimmer of light, indicating immense power—clearly, his fist technique had reached a certain level.
Li Muzhan figured his Flying Bear Palm technique would achieve a similar effect once it reached that level, but for now, he only felt surging warmth and greatly increased strength, nothing more.
He wandered for a while, then found a secluded spot to begin practicing the Flying Bear Palm, intensely curious about what his deep internal energy would eventually manifest as.
Currently, cultivating the internal energy relied on the physical body alone; using mental intent to intervene was a grave taboo, as the Head Instructor had explicitly warned.
He had been practicing until mid-morning, deep in the zone, when suddenly a loud shout echoed: “Mingkong! Mingkong! Is Mingkong here?”
Li Muzhan started, quickly halting his movements, and called out, “I am here!...”
“Come here!” the shout came from a distance.
Li Muzhan rose, followed the sound to the main gate, where two burly men stood, sizing him up from head to toe. As he approached, one man asked, “Are you Mingkong?”
Li Muzhan nodded, “Indeed.”
“Hmm, you just arrived, didn’t you?” the large man inquired.
Li Muzhan nodded. The two large men exchanged a look and said in deep voices, “Alright, you can go now...”
With that, the two men pulled the gate open. Li Muzhan paused for a moment, activating his Xintong.
He remained guarded, fearing some conspiracy, but upon hearing the two men’s inner thoughts, he breathed a sigh of relief.
The two men were musing: This little monk is incredibly lucky to be released after only two days; it seems he is highly regarded by those above. Usually, anyone who breaks military discipline gets locked up for ten days or half a month first.
Li Muzhan bowed to the two men, but did not hurry away. Instead, he slowly turned and looked back at the men in the yard; they were all observing him with curiosity.
Most of them hadn't committed major offenses; fighting and brawling were the most common, along with some theft or shirking of training duties.
Those confined here were usually released after half a month at most, or seven or eight days at minimum.
He stepped out through the gate.
Outside the gate stood a dense crowd of armored soldiers. Four imposing men in black cloaks, wearing gleaming breastplates, stood coldly at the foot of the steps, staring at Li Muzhan.
“Mingkong?” one of the large men asked. His demeanor was neat, clean, and precise.
Li Muzhan nodded, “Yes.”
“Let’s go, to the Yanming Hall!” the large man stated solemnly, turning to leave.
The two large men moved to stand behind Li Muzhan. The four of them surrounded him and walked outward.
They soon arrived at a small courtyard, above which hung a plaque bearing the words “Yanming Hall”—dignified and straightforward, suggesting peace rather than severity.
Li Muzhan followed the burly men inside, arriving at the central hall.
Two large horizontal scrolls were hung high on the north wall of the spacious hall, bearing the characters “Yan” and “Ming” respectively, written in a powerful, sweeping calligraphy that exuded immense might.
Below the scrolls, a writing desk sat, behind which sat a man with a genial smile and kind eyes—it was Steward Li.
To the left and right of the desk, two Baxian tables were set up, each occupied by an elderly man lazily observing Li Muzhan enter with paper and brush in hand.
Li Muzhan paid his respects. Steward Li sized him up, nodded, and chuckled, “It’s good that you’re alright, very good, very good!”
Li Muzhan thanked him for his concern.
Steward Li waved his hand and smiled gently, “Mingkong, you killed six men in self-defense; the investigation is complete.”
He cleared his throat, his expression turning serious and stern. “You are penalized with one Major Demerit, which equates to sixty lives. Good, good, good. Off you go, train hard when you return...”
Li Muzhan bowed and turned to leave.
He navigated twists and turns through the endless rows of tents, returning to his own. Zhao Shengli and the others were resting, preparing for lunch. Seeing him enter, they were greatly delighted.
“Haha... Good lad, you’re back so quickly!” Zhao Shengli roared with laughter, stepping forward to slap Li Muzhan on the shoulder and looking him up and down. “Good, good!”
Cai Yuzhang smiled, “Monk, we thought you’d be locked up for a full eight days. We were just discussing inside whether you could hold your ground.”
Li Muzhan understood his implication: anyone sent inside would eventually try to dominate, leading either to submission or severe injury—there was no other path.
“Monk, did that fellow named Xiong bully you?” Li Baolu asked with concern.
Li Muzhan smiled and shook his head, “No, there wasn't time; I was out before anything happened.”
“Haha, you’re lucky!” Zhao Shengli laughed heartily, full of relief. “That fellow Xiong, relying on being the Deputy Commandant’s brother-in-law, acts without regard for law, and his martial arts are strong. No one in our Flying Cavalry Battalion can manage him!”
“His martial arts are that strong?” Li Muzhan asked.
“Absolutely!” Zhao Shengli nodded, snorting. “That guy wastes his good potential. His Tiger Roar Fist has reached the Intermediate stage; few people can stand against him.”
Feng Dakun scoffed, “If not for his martial prowess, even as the Deputy Commandant’s brother-in-law, such arrogance would have seen him dealt with long ago!”
Li Muzhan nodded thoughtfully. It seemed the number of truly skilled fighters in the army was limited, and his current cultivation level was already top-tier.
He had previously worried that without deep inner strength, his advantage in spiritual fortitude couldn't be fully utilized, making him a weakling in the military camp, so he had maintained a low profile and acted cautiously. Now, it seemed he had been overly cautious; his strength was already sufficient.
Thinking carefully, with the protection of the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art, he possessed immense strength and the ability to control kinetic force. Unless he encountered a truly supreme master, he could ensure his own safety.
“Monk, quickly tell us, what was the verdict?” Zhao Shengli pressed eagerly.
Li Muzhan sat down on the cot and recounted the judgment with a smile. Zhao Shengli let out a roar, “Damn it, that’s harsh!...”
Feng Dakun frowned, and Cai Yuzhang shook his head, but Li Baolu chuckled, “Sixty lives, that really is quite a lot. Monk, you’re unlucky!”
Although Li Muzhan knew the laws, he didn't understand the specifics and quickly asked for clarification.
As Cai Yuzhang patiently explained, Li Muzhan gradually grasped the situation.
There were two parallel systems for military merits and demerits: one was based on (merits and faults), divided into three levels of merit; the second was based on counting heads—the number of people killed. The two systems complemented each other.
One Major Demerit was equivalent to one level of merit reduction, canceling out sixty lives; thus, he would need to kill sixty people to clear the demerit. Calculated this way, to achieve promotion, one would first need to earn a Major Merit, and then kill sixty people to offset the demerit. Until both conditions were met, he would forever remain a private.
Li Muzhan smiled wryly upon hearing this. He had assumed it was a minor affair, but it turned out to be severe.
It seemed the military deeply detested the killing of comrades. For an ordinary soldier, serving an entire lifetime might not be enough to earn one First-Class Merit.
Feng Dakun shook his head, “Monk, forget about promotion in this lifetime!”
Li Baolu chirped cheerfully, “Monk, don’t worry. You’re so capable; killing sixty people is a small matter, nothing big! Otherwise, I’ll just give you a few of mine!”
“Li Zi, stop spouting nonsense!” Zhao Shengli glared at him irritably, scratching his head and pondering deeply.
Li Baolu quickly shrank back, chuckling, and said no more.
Li Muzhan smiled; he understood this much: the army strictly forbade the yielding or claiming of merits that belonged to others. Otherwise, if power and influence were used to vie for military achievements, the army would descend into chaos.
: The weather is nice today; it’s time to get out for a walk. I’ve had two explosive bursts this week and feel extremely weak. Everyone should take advantage of the weekend to get some activity; physical health is the most important thing! (!)E