strictlysupreme Chapter 14 Perfect Flying Locust Stone
Chapter 14 Perfect Flying Locust Stone
[The deceased: Winemaker Durand]
[Realm: Ming Jin]
[Progress of the ritual to deliver souls from suffering: 0%]
[Reward: A certain talent, martial arts skill, or technique]
Lin Qing was overjoyed. He had come here to deal with corpses many times in the past four months, but he had only encountered the corpses of ordinary people. He could only obtain some life skills, which were of some value, but not of much help to martial arts.
Martial artists are ultimately few in number, especially among refugees.
He immediately sent the corpse into the crematorium, and in the instant the flames engulfed it, he saw the martial arts skills it carried, and was suddenly overjoyed.
"One martial art, Flying Locust Stone Perfection; one third-tier talent, Taste Intuition; one fourth-tier talent, Craftsmanship; plus one skill, Brewing."
With a series of crackling sounds, the corpse quickly burned to ashes, and the process of delivering the deceased to the afterlife soon reached 100%.
Many images quickly flashed through Lin Qing's mind; they were the memories of the winery owner before his death.
This person came from a well-off family. He practiced martial arts in his youth and spent twenty years mastering the Flying Locust Stone technique. He ran a winery and lived a wealthy life.
Unfortunately, the war swept through the land, forcing him to become a refugee and flee in all directions.
When he arrived in Shanyin County, he was extremely weak and froze to death in the midst of heavy snow.
Although he was skilled in using the Flying Locust Stone technique, his physical strength was average, which is why he failed to gain the appreciation of wealthy and powerful figures in the county.
After reading it, Lin Qing felt numb. In this chaotic world, such tragic stories were not uncommon.
Please copy a martial art, skill, or talent.
1. Locust Stone (Perfect)
The technique of throwing hidden weapons, widely circulated in southern Sichuan, involves injuring people with flying stones. When mastered, it allows one to hit any target within thirty paces.
2. Taste Sense (Tier 3 • Excellent)
Your taste buds will become exceptionally developed, enabling you to distinguish the most subtle differences between food and water, and to identify poisons and impurities.
3. Craftsmanship (Level 4 • Excellent)
You possess extraordinary focus and patience when it comes to the careers you love.
4. Du Family Brewing Techniques (Complete)
The Du family has inherited the winemaking skills for three generations. After fifty years of practice and improvement, they have formed a unique style, especially skilled in brewing high-quality, mild, mellow, and long-lasting yellow wine.
Lin Qing naturally chose to replicate the Flying Locust Stone.
Afterwards, he went out and carried away another corpse. This time, he misjudged it; it was a fisherman who only possessed a third-tier talent: water skills, which allowed him to swim far beyond that of ordinary people.
Back to the training ground.
With a thought, Lin Qing replaced the Flying Locust Stone with the equipment slot.
In an instant, a wealth of detailed information about the Flying Locust Stone flooded his mind.
"Thirty steps, hits exactly where you point, not bad." Lin Qing was delighted.
However, with so many people around and so many eyes on him, he still has time to experiment.
It wasn't until dusk, when everyone finished their martial arts practice and returned to their courtyards, that Lin Qing finally found an opportunity to be alone.
He casually picked up a few stones by the roadside, flicked his wrist, and with a snap, a bird perched on a distant branch was hit and knocked to the ground.
He then aimed at a few leaves and, with a whoosh, hurled four stones in quick succession. Three hit their targets squarely, while the last one missed.
"Four out of five is a pretty high hit rate."
"The most important thing is practicality. Use whatever you can find: pebbles, broken porcelain, darts."
Lin Qing returned to the courtyard with joy. After a night of intensive practice, he asked for leave to go home the next day.
It had been a month since Lin Qing last went home, and he was worried about his parents, so he had to go back to check on them.
On his way home, he bought a box of osmanthus cake. Han Ying once said that she loved eating this when she was a child, and Lin Qing always remembered it.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived at the gate of the courtyard, he heard Lin Cheng sighing.
"A single penny can bring down even a hero; where am I supposed to find money?"
"We have to find a way; we can't afford to mess with Rongfutong," Han Ying replied.
Lin Qing frowned and pushed the door open to enter.
"Father, Mother, what happened?"
Lin Cheng was chopping wood when he saw Lin Qing. The worry on his face lessened a little, and he suddenly stood up from the ground.
"Aqing, you're back. Don't even mention it. Rong Futong went back on his word and is asking the people for money again. This time it's protection fees, and everyone who does small business has to pay them."
"Ugh, that Rong Futong is a real scoundrel. We already paid him a sum of money at the last White Emperor Gathering, and now he wants more. Where are we supposed to find the money for him?" Han Ying said.
A surge of anger suddenly welled up in Lin Qing's heart. He had contributed part of the money from the White Emperor Association, and his parents had contributed part of their own money, and they had managed to raise the sum. But now they wanted more. This insatiable greed was like a bottomless pit.
"Father, Mother, don't worry about this. I have a way to solve it." Lin Qing put down the osmanthus cake in his hand.
"Aqing, you don't have to take all the pressure on yourself," Han Ying instructed.
"Don't worry, Mother, I know what I'm doing." Lin Qing nodded.
At dusk.
Lin Qing went out and told his parents that he was going back to the Soul Suppression Division, but in reality, he was taking a detour to find Rong Futong.
Rong Futong was notorious, and everyone knew the location of his residence, which was near Changping Street.
Lin Qing soon arrived near the courtyard. A lantern hung on the door, and there were low earthen walls on both sides, behind which were five thatched huts.
Despite Rong Futong's exploitation of ordinary people and his smuggling of money, he was actually just a gofer. Behind him were others, and the lion's share went to them. Hence, his own house was quite dilapidated.
Lin Qing didn't rush to make a move. Instead, he leaned against the wall and observed carefully for a while, listening to the sounds in the courtyard. He finally confirmed that there should be four people inside, drinking in the thatched hut on the north side.
After confirming that no one was around, Lin Qing climbed over the wall and entered, carrying a bag of pebbles and lime powder in his arms.
Instead of forcing his way in, he crouched in the shadows at the foot of a wall, waiting for Rong Futong and the others to come out.
He could hear everything that was happening inside the courtyard.
in the room.
Several people sat around a wooden table, drinking heartily. The one in the main seat, wearing a black mandarin jacket and with a fierce appearance, was Rong Futong.
"Come on, drink!"
Let's have a drink!
The four of them had already finished a large jar of wine, and this was their second jar; they were all quite drunk.
"Master Rong, how was that widow from the Wang family? Last night, listening to her voice made my heart itch." A skinny, monkey-like thug hiccuped, his face full of lewd smiles.
Rong Futong laughed and said, "Very good! You'd better do a good job, kid. If you perform well, I'll let you play for a few days."
"Thank you, Master Rong." Skinny Monkey was overjoyed.
"Damn it, that Jiang guy is a real scoundrel. I hate him so much, and he just asks for 80% of the money I worked so hard to get," Rong Futong suddenly said.
"Master Rong, there's nothing we can do. He's a constable in the Soul Suppression Division, and I've heard he has the Han family backing him," a burly man suddenly said.
"Han Tai, Jiang Baihe, two bloodsucking, skinning bastards." Rong Futong's face was gloomy, and he took another big gulp of wine, his face flushed.
Lin Qing listened to the discussion in the room from the courtyard, his brows furrowing slightly: "Jiang Baihe? Han Tai? One is a night patrolman, the other is a demon-exorcising officer. So these two are Rong Futong's backers in the yamen. No wonder he hasn't been arrested all these years."
Just then, with a creak, the skinny, monkey-like rogue opened the door, his eyes glazed, and staggered toward the outhouse.
Reaching the corner, Lin Qing suddenly appeared, grabbed the man's head from behind with both hands, and twisted his neck forcefully.
The scoundrel was completely drunk and had never practiced martial arts. Since he had no intention of resisting, he simply blacked out and collapsed in the snow.