From that day on, Zhang Ming’s life changed dramatically. From morning until late evening, he was outside the fortress, sometimes standing watch at the main gate, sometimes receiving assignments for the night patrol. Tang Gui sent him on various tasks almost every day. As Zhang Ming came to understand, the strength of each squad leader was measured by how many warriors of the Body Tempering Realm they had under their command, and he now served as Tu Hama’s replacement.

  Once, he even took part in a brief skirmish with another band of brigands right in the middle of the forest. Fortunately, it ended with little bloodshed. They argued over a forest road or rather, in Zhang Ming’s eyes, over a barely visible trail through the undergrowth. Of course, after spending time hunting, he had learned to orient himself in the woods to some extent, but one cluster of trees still looked much like another to him, and where the bandits saw a road, he could only guess.

  His change in status affected his relations with the other bandits. No one dared provoke him anymore; even lieutenant Mo lay low, like a snake hiding in the grass. Among the Brown Boar squad, Zhang Ming’s face had become familiar, some even remembered his name, which made moving around the brigands’ settlement much easier. Occasionally, bandits would stop him just to exchange a few words. From a newcomer, he had turned into an ordinary bandit, though he had not yet taken part in any robberies.

  Despite the burden of new duties, he did not neglect his cultivation. The technique from the scroll, combined with the medicinal baths, had almost completely healed his wounds, and Zhang Ming returned to his usual training. Not wishing to reveal his true strength to anyone, he practiced away from the others in the evenings, before visiting the former captives. He never trained together with them, unwilling to take risks, and instead kept vigilant watch over the surroundings.

  After breaking through to the second level of Body Tempering, his power continued to grow, as if he had not yet fully grasped his own strength and was still learning how to wield it. The amount of internal Qi had increased slightly, filling every cell of his body, as though the vitality of two people resided within him. Unfortunately, the energy currents had yet to stabilize, sometimes surging violently, sometimes slowing almost to a complete halt.

  The three girls constantly reminded him of the two other children he had left behind in Baohe, now vanished without a trace. Sleep nearly abandoned him altogether, and the bursts of energy became more frequent. Once, Zhang Ming had sincerely believed that freeing Xue and Mingzhu from their burden had solved most of their problems. Before his arrival, they had managed to survive even with an eternally drunken father who beat them and took their money, so without him, the girls should have fared much better. Yet things had turned out differently, as if some cruel fate refused to leave them alone.

  I haven’t slept for three days, Zhang Ming thought, rubbing his face with both hands. This can’t go on. Water doesn’t flow under a stone that won’t move. It’s time to find a reliable way out of here and finally put an end to this.

  The next day, he appeared before Tang Gui, drenched in cold sweat. The commander greeted him with a warm smile, like a distant relative, squinting into his eyes as if trying to read his thoughts.

  “Oh! Zhang Ming! Come in, come in. Sit down. Tell me, what brings you here?”

  “Allow me to be of use!” Zhang Ming clenched his fists. “I feel like I’m wasting my strength. I could bring you more benefit.”

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  “Ha! Itching to test your hands? Want to check your strength?” Tang Gui sneered.

  “A little,” Zhang Ming did not argue.

  “So what is it you really want? What are you planning?”

  “To gain experience. Thanks to you, I’ve already learned a lot, but I’m still a novice. I want to go on reconnaissance with the others, see how things are done. I heard a group will be heading out soon, and they’re short one strong fighter.”

  “Hm. I understand your desire. Is that the only reason?”

  “Heh-heh,” Zhang Ming laughed sweetly, having prepared in advance, knowing the commander’s suspicious nature. “I heard they’re going to a big city. Last time, I was stuck lying on a ship and… missed everything. The guys had quite a good time there.”

  “I see,” Tang Gui nodded. Greed, lust, and other sins were familiar to him. “So you want to be useful?”

  “That’s right, sir,” Zhang Ming deliberately lowered his head.

  “Very well. I’ll give you such an opportunity. But when you return, your entire life, and your sword, will belong to me. Do you understand?” It was as if a snake had bared its fangs.

  “Thank you for your generosity, Commander Tang Gui!” Zhang Ming bowed once more.

  Leaving that smiling monster alive, he took a deep breath, as if he had narrowly escaped death. He still had work to do that day and went on yet another forest patrol, where it grew colder with each passing day and the dew lingered long, raising thick mist. The weather was slowly changing, the familiar warmth giving way to a damp chill.

  After completing his duties outside the fortress, Zhang Ming always returned with game and prepared hearty meat dishes for the three girls. After a week of good food and training, their condition improved noticeably. Despite the risk, he allowed them to stroll through the tall grass and taste a bit of freedom.

  At first, they only sat quietly on a small patch near the shed, breathing in the forest scent carried by the wind, watching the moon, the stars, or the clouds drifting across the sky. Their eyes filled with joy from the simple act of observing nature. Over time, they grew bolder and sometimes walked through the grass, and Xiao Mei even ran all the way to the chicken coop before Zhang Ming caught her.

  “I wanted to see the chicks,” she sighed.

  Every night, whenever he managed to visit them, he made all three practice complex movement combinations from the scroll’s method, while meditation they practiced without him, often all day long. Xiao Mei did everything with great enthusiasm and excelled at it. The other two girls showed little interest in martial arts, but still obediently followed all of Zhang Ming’s instructions.

  “Xiao Mei, you did very well,” he praised his best student. “Just a bit more, and you’ll become very strong.”

  “Heh-heh-heh, Xiao Mei will try even harder,” she smiled in response, “so Papa can be proud.”

  So I’m a father again, Zhang Ming thought. Aloud, he encouraged them, “You all did great. Let’s go eat. The rabbit should be roasted by now.”

  Under the moonlight, which occasionally peeked out from behind the clouds, the girls sat quietly by the old shed, squinting with pleasure as they ate the rabbit meat. Night and tall grass concealed them from prying eyes. Insects chirred all around, the grass rustled in the wind, and the forest murmured. From the pig pens came occasional disgruntled grunts, and from the stables the snorting of horses, completely drowning out the timid whispers of the three captives. They were lost in the most forgotten, deserted corner of the fortress atop the vast mountain, as if they did not exist at all.

  While the girls filled their bellies, Zhang Ming carried into the underground room a sack of forest nuts, dried fruits, and jerky, bartered for one fresh rabbit and a promise to hand over the remaining pelts. The warehouse workers were used to him by now, constantly making deals, sometimes for money, sometimes for other goods, without the slightest concern that the items did not belong to them. Zhang Ming’s ability to keep his mouth shut had made him a welcome guest at any warehouse. Lately, he visited them as one would a shop.

  “I won’t be here again for several days.”

  “What? Again?” Xiao Mei puffed out her cheeks.

  “It has to be that way,” Zhang Ming replied. “I’ll bring you real candies. All right?”

  “Oh!” Xiao Mei’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, then her face turned serious. “You promised. A deal is more valuable than money.”

  “Yes,” Zhang Ming nodded with the same seriousness. “A deal is a deal.”

  “Where are you going? Far away?”

  “To Puyang.”