Considering everything that had happened, the city was surprisingly calm. Tiger Fist Members were already restless, as losing a great number of disciples and even an instructor after winning a war was unsettling enough. When their allies of convenience lost no one, it got even more painful.

Then, Marana appeared, strong enough to cut through the sieging forces through surprise factor to return to her compound, apparently already recovered.

Their shock at that fact showed that Marana's reputation had been overwhelming before her injury.

The combination was enough for them to pull back to their compound, abandoning the siege; whether temporarily or permanently was to be seen. They even stopped surrounding the Crane compound, replaced by Demon Claw disciples, whose presence was predominantly Initiates with a few Muscle Reinforcement martial artists sprinkled in.

It was clearly just for the show while they tried to update their strategy.

After making sure there would be no city-wide search for me in the short term, I returned to the safe house, after another short yet intense practice session with Pearyin, I refined pills nonstop. Mostly essence pills, some to ease the breakthroughs, and a few unique pills that would help wounded people recover from ordinary wounds in less than a day.

The quality of the pills wasn't as high as I would have preferred under better circumstances, but they would still function well.

As I walked toward the meeting spot we agreed, I wore no disguise. Creating a disguise to trick someone in the dark of the night while a battle was going on was one thing, but tricking a Connate realm martial artist face to face in bright daylight was something else. It was not something I was willing to risk.

Talking to Marana without any disguise was a risk, but also an opportunity.

I arrived at the meeting location early, but found Marana waiting for me. "You—" I gasped, doing my best to look absolutely shocked. "M-Marana, what are you doing here?" I added, trying to look panicked. "Don't tell me you got captured by that mad couple."

It was a preemptive strike to show her that I was not aligned with the so-called old man. I could have said that I worked for 'him', but while that would keep me secure, I strongly doubted that it would trigger the System.

It would work much better if she believed me to be a victim of circumstances.

"Not exactly," she said as she kicked the air, the sharp cutting sound that accompanied leaving no doubt that she was a martial artist. "I'm not a cook, but a member of Crane Kick school," she said. Interestingly, she didn't say she was the hall master.

"Y-you're a martial artist as well. How fascinating —" I started, then, paused. "You were the one that gave me the book," I said, looking star-struck.

"Yes. Now, tell me. What are you doing here …" she started, then paused, rightfully assuming that the previous name I had given her was a false one.

"Arthanum. My real name is Arthanum," I said.

"Good. Now, explain," she said, her voice sharp. She gave me nothing, which was a smart idea. It was far easier for me to trip while lying without extra details.

Unfortunately for her, I knew too much to be tripped by that.

"Once I got away from those disciples, I decided to move to the city, hoping to buy some pills that might help me. However, I was lucky to come across a few patrons on the road, who appreciated my poems enough to give me a little reward. So, when I arrived in the city, I put on a bit of a show, acting like my family still wanted me back, and I was just traveling. That way, no one would target me..." I said, then launched a long and detailed tale of my adventures.

I subtly highlighted that it was Elsana and Lannayin who came on their own accord to meet me rather than the reverse. It was easy to verify considering it was a fairly public event.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

I didn't want her to start suspecting that I was the agent of the 'old man', sent to infiltrate the compound.

" … and, then. A servant helped the guards to capture me. But, before I arrived at my destination, a crazy old apothecary saved me. But, other than keeping me in a room, and feeding me a few pills to claim it'll make me useful, he did nothing," I said, finishing the tale, keeping an appropriate amount of confusion in my tone.

Luckily, I was practiced in that. In a way, it was like convincing my lady friends that the panties they discovered under my bed were a prank and I wasn't cheating on them.

Only with higher stakes.

She asked a few more questions about my travel, to which I responded with mostly truth, but exaggerating the dangers I faced. I wanted her to feel responsible for my distress and pity me more.

"I see that you're already in the Muscle Reinforcement stage," Marana said, thoughtful, but I could see the pity in her eyes. Understandable, as forcibly improving cultivation meant my potential would be damaged. More importantly, facing the same level, I would always underperform, which was something the martial artists put great value on.

Duels often happened in people in the same cultivation level, and having such a disadvantage for them was a great dishonor.

In a way, it was Pearyin's situation. I doubted that she could ever put up a fight against someone at her level … but considering just how high her cultivation had reached in just a few days, she wasn't exactly in a place to complain.

Being the poorest millionaire in a country club was not the worst fate.

"I … I am," I said sadly, showing that I was aware of the consequences.

"What are you going to do now?" she asked. "Are you going to return?"

"No. He said to check a hidden spot every day for messages to pay back that favor. Other than that, he said nothing," I said, putting me on the same boat with her. I was hoping that she would invite me to go with her, which should be very beneficial to her current cultivation,

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Alright, come with me," she said.

I thought about refusing it first before reluctantly accepting, but the risk was too high. What if she gave me a job as an excuse? But, there was more than one path. "I … I better not," I said. "He ordered me not to be too attention-catching. I'm afraid that…"

"Don't worry, I still have some spots that you can stay hidden," she said.

"Really, Marana?" I said. "You must have a high rank to do that," I said, acting like I didn't know her real position.

"You can say that," she said. Then, to my surprise, she brought me to the outskirts of the city before entering an ordinary house, which had a small tunnel that led to the Crane compound. "Never reveal it to anyone," she warned me.

"Never," I said, then passed. "Where exactly are we?" I said as I looked around.

"We are in my private quarters. Don't worry, no one can enter without my permission," she said, which I appreciated. The trust she extended to me was a bit absurd, but from the gentle gaze she wore, I could see that she felt some kind of responsibility toward my current situation.

After all, she was the one that gave me the

"Private quarters. But does that mean that you're an instructor at Crane School? How amazing!" I said. "I never expected you to be that strong, Marana," I said, baiting her to admit that she was actually the hall master.

"Something like that," she said, once again ignoring it. "Now, show me how well you learned the book I have given you," she said.

I paused for a moment, wondering just how much I should be able to show her. I could sandbag it completely to look useless, therefore guaranteeing her pity, or I could show potential, risking her to treat me more seriously.

Or, I thought suddenly, I could try a combination. "Tiger Fist," I growled as I punched, showing perfect technical proficiency in the Initiate stage punches, but keeping my essence weak. More importantly, I used my medicinal knowledge to impede the essence flow. I would have shown Tiger Ascend, but that wasn't included in the tattered book she had given to me.

I was hoping that she would give me another. I had already received a complete book from Elsana, which could have explained my improvement. But, I hoped to receive a better one from her.

And, hopefully, an even better one from the System.

I continued to display the Initiate Realm punches, showing great comprehension but limited power. Through the way I was showing, there was no hope for me to fight against a proper disciple. All because the 'old man' decided to feed me some pills to hasten my cultivation.

"Very good. Work hard, and you will make great progress," she said. "Actually, wait a minute," she said, disappearing for a moment. When she returned, she came with another old and tethered book.

The title alone marked it as a superior product. "Here, a gift for you. Study this, and you might see some improvement," she said as she passed the book to me. "I need to go and distribute those pills now. Feel free to practice freely."

"Thank you, Marana," I said with a bow, happy with her gift. It was another Tiger Fist Manual, but it was far superior to the ones Elsana gave me.

Which meant a higher return. But, the result still surprised me.

[Cultivation Difference Bonus - 60; Pity Bonus - 70 (Capped)]

[130x Return - Black Tiger Onslaught Martial Art, Complete, Yellow-High Grade]