Hearing this, the three felt their minds buzz. They never imagined they would be eliminated just like that.
One of the women went limp, collapsing to the ground. She covered her face and began to sob wretchedly.
'My mother gave herself to the village ruffian just to get me this chance to learn martial arts... But I failed, just like that. My life is over...'
Her sobs were suppressed and filled with despair, twisting in everyone's hearts like a dull knife.
Ma Fei's face was deathly pale, his eyes instantly bloodshot. "I failed my breakthrough attempt the day before yesterday, but I still have a chance! Let me stay a few more days! I can definitely do it!"
The spectating apprentices fell silent, while the few senior disciples from the Inner Courtyard looked on as if this were a common occurrence.
Every month around this time, the cruel reality of the martial path was laid bare before them in all its bloody detail.
This Ma Fei had failed one breakthrough attempt, and with his mediocre aptitude, his chances of succeeding again were virtually nonexistent.
Lin Wanzhu shook her head and crossed off Ma Fei's name without the slightest hesitation.
"Rules are rules. Go!"
"Rules? To hell with your rules!"
Ma Fei completely snapped. Three months of pent-up resentment, jealousy, and frustration erupted like a volcano.
He pointed toward the Inner Courtyard, spittle flying from his mouth:
"You leeches! You take our hard-earned money and treat us like pigs and dogs! You only give the Outer Courtyard apprentices an Herbal Decoction once a week, but the Inner Courtyard gets them every single day! How is anyone supposed to break through like this?
And why do some people get to enter the Inner Courtyard while we can't?
Is it just because we have no money? No connections?!
I'm going to expose the dark secrets of this damn dojo! I'll let the entire city see you frauds for who you really are!"
Ma Fei roared, his voice thick with indignation.
"How noisy!" Qin Yu had long since lost her patience. Her expression turned cold, and with a single step, she instantly appeared before Ma Fei.
Her shapely brows knitted in anger, her eyes filled with loathing. "A thing like you, an ant, dares to speak of fairness?"
She didn't even take a stance, simply throwing a casual punch.
BANG!
With a muffled thud, Ma Fei's curses cut off abruptly. He was sent flying backward like a discarded sack, slamming hard into a training post thirty feet away.
CRACK!
The sound of his sternum shattering followed immediately.
Ma Fei slid down the post like a heap of mud, breaking into violent, pained coughs as he sprayed several mouthfuls of blood.
The other apprentices were scared into silence. Many felt a pang of sympathy, like a fox mourning a dead rabbit, but no one dared to speak up.
She hadn't held back at all with that punch!
In her eyes, killing Ma Fei would be no different than crushing an ant.
The fear of death finally overwhelmed everything else. Ma Fei scrambled to his knees and begged for mercy. "Spare me... Senior Sister, spare me... I was wrong, I'll never do it again..."
Qin Yu snorted coldly. 'This ant actually dared to slander the dojo. He's really asking to die.'
She kicked Ma Fei in the chest again, sending him flying.
PFFT!
Ma Fei crashed to the ground again, violently spitting a mouthful of blood that stained the green flagstones red. The arm he'd raised to shield his chest fractured and snapped.
"Spare me, spare me!" Propping himself up with one arm, Ma Fei kowtowed repeatedly like a dying dog, begging only to live.
Just as Qin Yu was about to strike again, Master Qin spoke calmly from behind her. "A little punishment is enough. Don't delay the assessment."
Ma Fei kowtowed furiously, his head banging against the stones and smearing them with blood. "Thank you for sparing my life, Senior Sister Qin!" he shouted.
...
The Black Water River churned with turbulent waves.
Three large ships cut through the water, sending vast white swells spreading out on either side.
Qian Qinghong stood tall at the bow. The cold wind billowed her white fox-fur cloak, revealing a figure that was at once slender and voluptuous.
Behind her, a flicker of heat flashed in Zhao Gaolang's eyes. He adjusted his collar, took a step forward, and said, "Qinghong, we're almost at the location. You don't need to worry. Just leave the investigation to me. You can focus on leading the Fishing Team."
A flicker of disgust passed through Qian Qinghong's eyes. This Zhao Gaolang was a Tributor for her family, and a powerful one at that.
However, he was mixed up with her Fourth Uncle and had been coveting her for a long time, a fact she was well aware of.
But for now, she had to investigate the cause of her father's disappearance, and for that, she needed his power.
"Then I must thank you, Tributor Zhao."
"Why so formal? I'm just a few decades your senior, Qinghong. Just call me Brother Lang."
"WHOOO—!"
The scout boat ahead suddenly sounded its horn.
"Fish! A large school!"
"Leave them to Boat C. The rest of us, keep moving forward!" Qian Qinghong ordered decisively.
"Haha, the fish are here! Prepare the nets! Swimmers, get ready!" Aboard Boat C, Qian Wenhao laughed heartily upon seeing the flag signals.
Su Yu stepped onto the deck, readying the casting net in his hands and observing the water ahead.
The next moment, a turbulent wave surged up. SPLASH! It crashed against the hull, kicking up a wide spray of white foam.
Beneath the surface, dark schools of large fish swarmed—a magnificent sight.
"Lower the trawl net!"
At Qian Wenhao's command, several veteran sailors at the bow skillfully lowered a massive trawl net.
The school of fish immediately hit the large net, darting about chaotically underwater.
Some of the large fish turned to flee, while others leaped directly out of the water, their glittering golden scales flashing in the air as they soared over the net.
"Haha, it's Yellow-Scaled Fish! In the water! Herd them!"
Yellow-Scaled Fish were a bit more expensive than White-Scaled Fish, though they weren't considered exotic or treasure fish.
But their meat was exceptionally delicious, and they only lived in the depths of the Black Water River. They were a favorite among the city's wealthy and powerful, and any high-class banquet was considered incomplete without them.
The members of the Fishing Team responsible for herding the fish immediately jumped into the water, churning it violently to drive back the fleeing Yellow-Scaled Fish.
SPLASH! SPLASH!
More Yellow-Scaled Fish leaped up, jumping over the net in an attempt to escape.
"Casting Team, cast your nets!"
Qian Wenhao issued another order.
The Casting Team, Su Yu included, immediately cast the nets in their hands.
The Qian Family's fleet was experienced in fishing. With their seamless coordination and Qian Wenhao's command, they quickly brought most of the massive school of Yellow-Scaled Fish under control.
"Haul them in!"
The Casting Team began to haul in their nets, and Su Yu immediately felt the ropes jerking in his hands.
When the net was finally pulled up, it held seven or eight Yellow-Scaled Fish. The large ones weighed seven or eight pounds, while the smaller ones were still a pound or two.
A wave of amazement went through the crew. 'The depths of the Black Water River are truly bountiful,' Su Yu thought. 'A single cast here is worth several months' harvest for an ordinary fisherman.'
'But it's not that easy to just come here and fish. An ordinary person could never get their hands on a large ship capable of withstanding these winds and waves,' he mused.
'Not to mention the other dangers.'
Nearby, Bai Shun hauled in a Yellow-Scaled Fish weighing over ten pounds, earning clicks of admiration from the others.
The bigger the Yellow-Scaled Fish, the more valuable it was, but their strength increased exponentially with size. It wasn't easy to haul them in; one small mistake and they would escape from the bottom of the net.
"Kid, you may be new, but your fishing skills are quite impressive." Qian Wenhao had been observing the new recruits and felt that Bai Shun was indeed a good find.
"Treasure fish!"
Just then, one of the swimmers in the water suddenly yelled.
The next moment, a loud CRACK erupted from the water.
A column of water dozens of feet high erupted from the surface, and one of the swimmers was sent flying out of the river. He spat a mouthful of blood in midair, his chest caved in.
The two men on either side were just raising their Fish Spears to intercept when the dark shadow suddenly accelerated, slamming into one of their legs. Another pained scream rang out.
"You're courting death!"
Qian Wenhao roared in anger and leaped, plunging into the water like a cannonball.
"Where do you think you're going! Wave-Piercing Stab!"
His body spun in the water, turning him into a human drill. Wreathed in a terrifying Spiral Force, he slammed viciously into the dark shape!
BOOM!
A huge sound, like muffled thunder, echoed from beneath the waves.
'So strong!'
Su Yu's expression flickered as he watched. 'If my Fishbone Skill were that powerful,' he thought, 'and I combined it with my Net Casting Skill, my chances of catching treasure fish in the future would increase dramatically.'
The churning water parted, and the dark shape was sent tumbling into view, its true form finally revealed.
It was three feet long and black as ink, with a round, snow-white belly. A sharp, foot-long black horn grew from its head, and its mouth was filled with terrifyingly sharp teeth.
"It's a Blackfin Pompano!"
Everyone sucked in a sharp breath.
This was a notoriously vicious fish! Its horn could easily tear through the hull of a ship, and its strength was immense. But the creature was a treasure trove. Its horn could be ground into Bone-Strengthening Powder, and its flesh was a great tonic for one's Qi and Blood. One this size was worth at least fifty or sixty taels of silver!
"Haha, let's see you run now!" Qian Wenhao laughed as he lunged again, reaching for the Blackfin Pompano.
The Blackfin Pompano, having taken a hit, knew it was outmatched. With a flick of its tail, it churned up the water and dove for the depths.
"Secure the net! It can't break through the ancient-vine trawl net!" Qian Wenhao immediately commanded.
At the bow, the crew members manning the ancient-vine trawl net desperately tried to tighten its opening.
However, the Blackfin Pompano's strength was terrifying.
"AHH!"
The next instant, a crewman at the bow cried out as the webbing between his thumb and forefinger split open, the immense force dragging him into the water.
As he fell, an opening appeared in the net, and the dark shape shot through it like a bolt of lightning!
"Cast the nets! Quick, cast the nets!"
SWISH, SWISH...
The Zhou Brothers, coordinating seamlessly, cast their nets to block its path from the left and right, but the Blackfin Pompano dodged them with an easy, agile flick of its tail.
Bai Shun and Gao Xiaoshuang were quick, casting their nets one after the other. They anticipated its path by dozens of feet, yet still caught nothing but water.
The treasure fish was simply too fast; their predictions couldn't keep up!
It seemed the Blackfin Pompano was about to dive into the depths and escape for good!
At that critical moment, Su Yu flicked his wrist. The fishing net blossomed in the air like a perfect, round flower, arcing with a profound rhythm toward the space just ahead of the Blackfin Pompano.