Chapter 21 Recommendation Letter (3 updates)

The streets were bustling with an endless flow of people.Calls from street vendors and conversations were nonstop.

Tianyuan Town was bigger than Fang Yu had imagined, with a population larger than he anticipated.

It was called a town, but it more closely resembled a city.

Walls surrounded it on all sides, with two gates open and two gates closed, each manned by guards taking turns on duty.

The operations of the entire town were orderly and efficient.

Fang Yu, who kept his wealth concealed, walked briskly along the street, blending in with the crowd.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out up ahead.

Fang Yu didn’t care initially, but then...

"...Who the hell are you? I just set up my stall here and gained 1 Experience Point, and you come here to stir up trouble? Are you looking for death?"

Huh?

A player??

Fang Yu glanced over.

It was a woman setting up a stall, selling stuff like Chinese cabbages.

Seemed like she just completed a transaction, gained some Experience Points, and was then surrounded by five burly men.

A few young people around her were itching to jump in, seemingly wanting to play the hero and save the damsel.

What? I’m young too?

Don’t joke!

Fang Yu, carrying a significant amount of money, wouldn’t dream of jumping in and causing trouble.

He just hadn’t seen players around much in the game and wanted to watch the excitement.

"You wench, new here? This spot belongs to the Black Tiger Gang. Want to set up your stall here? Pay us a protection fee first, got it?"

"Pah! I’ll set up my stall wherever I please. And you guys, if you keep disturbing me and affecting my leveling up and Experience Points gain, I’ll kill you, believe it or not!"

Fang Yu: ????

Are players nowadays this brave?

Or is she just really strong?

Fang Yu checked her health bar.

Fang Yu: ...

Isn’t this just pathetic??

Why is she so arrogant? Isn’t she afraid of dying?

SMACK!!

As Fang Yu was pondering this, the woman got slapped.

A big ’-1’ popped up, and she began wailing loudly, crying and creating a fuss. She threw herself on the ground, rolling around, then got kicked a couple of times. Curled up on the ground with ’-1’ ’-1’ appearing above her, she didn’t dare make a sound anymore.

Was she always this fearless?

In the crowd of onlookers, finally, someone couldn’t stand it any longer.

"Stop it! In the broad daylight, under the bright sky..."

BAM!

The young man who spoke out got knocked down.

"You’re bullying too much! What skill is there in five against one... Ah! I was just saying! Stop hitting me! If I die, I’ll have to start over! Ouch ouch ouch!"

Another person, disbelieving, jumped out, and ended up getting beaten by the bullies just the same.

Deserved it!

Fang Yu thought to himself.

He used to hang with these sorts of thugs before, like Wang Er’s group. Those guys were cruel, way beyond the level of ordinary street thugs, properly vicious.

A few more jumped out to help, chanting slogans that marked them as players.

It was truly a case of players helping players.

But the result was the same: the five bullies knocked them all down and piled them up, kicking them relentlessly, killing three on the spot.

This level of viciousness was even worse than Wang Er and his crew.

At least they didn’t dare to kill people outright; they’d just break a few limbs or something.

"Ptui! With that weak strength, you dare try playing the hero to save a beauty!"

"Remember this, it was Grandpa Qi of the Black Tiger Gang who beat you down, heard?"

"Hand over all your valuables, you bunch of paupers! Ptui!"

The bullies swaggered off, and the crowd began to murmur and gossip.

Those who had survived were utterly embarrassed and slinked away.

The commotion quickly subsided, and the street returned to normal.

Seeing how those players were grinding their teeth, it was likely they’d head to the forums to post and shake down some people to get their revenge.

But what Fang Yu saw in all this... was a business opportunity.

Yes, exactly, an opportunity for business.

Players are now miserably at the mercy of NPCs, bullied indiscriminately, with the vast disparity in strength leaving them utterly powerless.

At this time... if a professional high-level player stood up, claiming they could help them take revenge and eliminate those NPCs, wouldn’t that be a lucrative business, raking in money hand over fist?

Fang Yu was tempted, but all this was premised on him becoming strong enough first.

Yuan Body Martial Arts School.

Shi Zhongmei opened the grand doors of the martial arts school.

Outside, a long queue had already formed.

But Shi Zhongmei was not surprised.

For these three days every month were when Yuan Body Martial Arts School recruited disciples.

Looking across the entire Tianyuan Town, Yuan Body Martial Arts School was a martial arts school with an extraordinary reputation.

Those who came to seek learning were naturally endless.

However, Shi Zhongmei did not think there was anyone in the queue who could catch the master’s eye.

The master’s standards for taking disciples were always very high.

Thus, while other martial arts schools saw a steady rise in the number of their disciples, expanding throughout Tianyuan Town, only their Yuan Body Martial Arts School showed no signs of expansion, quietly practicing martial arts in their own little corner.

Some thought their school was easy to bully and got repelled.

Some wished to make connections with their school and had their gifts returned.

Tough as nails and stubborn as ever, such was the master, and so was the ethos of Yuan Body Martial Arts School.

The frequency at which the master took in disciples was not high; unlike other schools, which were always open for recruitment, it did not mean he never accepted anyone.

It simply meant there were stringent requirements for one’s qualifications, and sometimes it even depended on the master’s mood that day.

"You may now enter for the assessment."

Those wishing to join Yuan Body Martial Arts School began to enter in an orderly manner for the evaluation.

About ten people would go in at a time.

The duration of the assessment varied; some were quick, others slow.

Closing the door, Shi Zhongmei stood guard at the entrance, sitting in a chair, waiting for the inside assessment to end before letting in the next batch of people.

Suddenly, Shi Zhongmei noticed some disturbance stirring in the lengthy queue.

"What are you doing? Don’t push!"

"Excuse me, excuse me."

"You’re trying to cut in line?"

"Excuse me, excuse me."

"You little rascal, who allowed you to go in front of me?"

"Excuse me, excuse me."

"You’d better be really just passing through, or Yuan Body Martial Arts School will deal with you! Hmph!"

The minor disturbance spread from the end of the queue all the way to the front.

Shi Zhongmei looked over curiously to that side.

She saw a young man, seemingly cutting in line, continually pushing past the people in front to get further ahead.

Now, he had reached the front of the queue.

"Another one seeking death?"

"Pretending to pass through but actually cutting in line, an old trick that’s been used before; the outcome... heh heh!"

From within the crowd, some reveled in Schadenfreude, while others observed secretly.

At this point, Shi Zhongmei had already stood up.

She had more or less confirmed that the young man was cutting in line.

Here, queue disruption was not permitted; it was a rule set by Yuan Body Martial Arts School.

Anyone who did not abide by this rule was showing contempt for Yuan Body Martial Arts School.

Such individuals, let alone joining the school, would be lucky not to be crippled.

Here, the rules of Yuan Body Martial Arts School trumped everything.

She waited from her vantage point, silently.

She was waiting for Fang Yu to stop, to reach the very front of the queue, complete his act of cutting in line, then she would take action to punish him.

He was getting closer; very close.

The young man was already within the first ten positions in the queue, still squeezing his way forward.

Eight, seven, six... three, two, one... huh?

Shi Zhongmei was taken aback.

From the queue stretching out behind, there were sounds of surprise and astonishment.

Because the young man, who they assumed was simply cutting in line, actually stepped out of the queue and walked briskly toward the doorway where Shi Zhongmei stood.

"You are..." Shi Zhongmei voiced her confusion.

"Here."

Fang Yu directly handed over the recommendation letter.

"Li Qianxuan... a recommendation letter from the Li Family..."