Seeing the unassuming beast carriage fade into the silent, moonlit night, Zani stood alone by the heavy iron gates.
Now, Recalling the day they had first moved in, he remembered how his disciples had endlessly questioned the massive partition he had built in the hall.
And To save face at that time, he had simply claimed the new hired instructor Das requires privacy.
This ‘Young Master’ had truly been a profound enigma, as to this day, Zani had no idea how his daily meals and necessities were handled without leaving a single trace.
And that beast of a horse?
Having only seen it enter the gates on the first day and leave with them tonight, the rest of the time, not even a neigh had echoed from behind the heavy curtains.
Oh well.
Out of sight, out of mind, Zani thought while shaking his head, knowing he had never dared to aggressively probe about this young master.
Finding no use in obsessing over it now, he secured the iron gates and hurried back to his master quarters.
Now sitting cross-legged on his hard wooden bed, he eagerly unfastened the departing gift Das had left behind, his breath catching in his throat upon seeing the contents.
“Silver,” he murmured, dumping the heavy pouch onto his blanket.
“Fifty silver coins…” For a long moment, Zani just stared at the gleaming metal with his vision blurring slightly.
He remembered the day he had sold his ancestral courtyard to the chief, betting his entire existence on these ruined training grounds, and how he had stared at his last pitiful coin, wondering if he would starve before the system pays off.
As the crushing, suffocating weight of survival that had sat on his chest for three months finally evaporated, he let out a shaky, overwhelmed breath.
Wiping his eyes, a wide, genuine smile broke across his face.
“I am rich.
Thank you…
thank you, generous young master”.
Pulling out his ledger, he added, “I already have fourteen silver and eighty copper coins from gym earnings”.
“To think in ninety-some days since I opened my gym I will become so secure, so quickly.
Tsk, tsk, tsk”.
Glancing at the bronze mirror where the System had callously branded him as lacking innate talent, Zani chuckled.
“Open your dog eyes, System,” he said while clutching the silver to his chest.
“I might not be a martial genius, but my business acumen is heaven-defying.
Hehehe!” That night, wrapped in the profound warmth of financial security, Zani slept better than he had since arriving in this world.
Far from the dust of Big Wheat Village, within a garden so grand and breathtaking that it seemed entirely woven from spiritual light, even the air was thick with vibrant energy.
There, a beautiful woman resembling a descended fairy could be seen carefully inspecting the growth of a radiant fruit on a small spiritual tree.
“Mother,” a young girl’s voice drifted from behind her.
Stopping her task and turning around, the fairy saw a grown man wearing a neat servant’s attire walking toward her through the flora.
“My darling Leo, you have finally come back,” the woman said, her eyes softening with deep maternal warmth.
The man Nodded but the next second he frowned and pivoted on his heels preparing to walk away.
“Hey, wait!” the fairy called out, her figure blurring as she instantly appeared in front of the man.
“I am sorry, I won’t do it again.
So, please, do not go”.
Seeing the stiff expression on the man’s face, the beautiful woman’s features shifted, instantly adopting an incredibly pitiful, heart-wrenching expression that only a worried mother could muster before pleading, “Speak with me, Leo”.
“Your acting will not work on me this time, mother” the grown man replied, his mouth moving but producing the distinct, stubborn voice of a young girl.
“I found something extremely interesting in the mortal world this time, so it is hard to say when I will be coming back.
After changing my puppet I will be on my way, so please tell father and brother not to look for me”.
“Leo, you absolutely cannot,” the fairy said as her facade broke, revealing genuine fear.
The mortal world was vast, chaotic, and dangerous, even with artifacts for support.
“I can,” came the stubborn reply.
“I will not allow it!” What followed was a fierce, heaven-shaking battle of wits between mother and daughter, with both fiercely employing their ultimate techniques to appear more pitiful and wronged than the other.
In the end, having no choice but to play her final trump card, little Leo forced a grand compromise.
“Hmph.
Fine, you may go,” the mother conceded, her voice tight with worry, “But you must swear to these conditions”.
“What?” “First, you must immediately ring your emergency bell if you find yourself in true danger” “Second, you must return to the clan at least once a year”.
Stepping closer and adjusting the servant puppet’s collar, she continued, “Third, you absolutely cannot neglect your cultivation!
Although you are currently laying your physical foundation, take a few high-grade Skin Tempering breathing manuals with you”.
Watching the puppet listen attentively, the corner of the fairy’s lips curved into a faint, loving smile.
“And lastly…
you must always remember your age and profound origins, so do not make any foolish decisions that would bring shame upon our lineage”.
“MOTHER!” A second, lengthy assault of verbal complaints erupted, but this time, little Leo simply thought it was not worth it and fled the garden.
Watching the servant puppet disappear into the mist, a deeply sorrowful look returned to the beautiful woman’s face.
“Oh, my pitiful child,” she sighed while rubbing her temples.
Then, as if thinking of something, her eyes flashed with intense annoyance.
“If not for that stinky man…” Remembering how all this was entirely the fault of her hateful husband, she stomped out of the heavenly garden, storming toward the main villa to seek retribution.
Meanwhile, Little Leo, who was simultaneously Young Master Cuby Leo and the servant Das, had long departed, blissfully unaware that her exit, like always, had triggered another nightmare for Master Cuby.
Back at the Iron Core Gym, everything operated smoothly as another week passed.
Today was a momentous occasion, as exactly one hundred days after its grand opening, the Iron Core Gym was preparing to send off its very first graduate.
A massive sea of people had gathered, and not only were peasants from all five subsidiary villages present, but even wealthy commoners from Grains City had made the journey.
The true highlight, however, was the profound aura hanging over the front row.
Several Skin Tempering experts stood with hands clasped behind their backs, accompanied by Village Chief Sythe and representatives from the three great dojos and the Mayor’s Manor.
They were all here to witness the results of this so-called ‘Gym’ and potentially recruit a youth whose physical foundation was already perfectly forged.
In the martial world, securing a talented disciple not only bolstered a faction’s strength but was a primary method of making a living.
“I sincerely thank everyone for attending this graduation gathering,” Zani announced from the center of the hall, offering a deep, respectful bow to give the assembled experts the necessary respect.
Straightening up, Zani looked at his core group, knowing that thanks to his sudden influx of wealth, he had easily sponsored two additional promising youths, expanding his prized, fully-funded inner circle to five.
Now looking at them, the village kids who once had no hope of affording the martial path, a profound wave of pride washed over him.
He wasn’t just a merchant anymore, using the gym to earn money; he was a master changing their fates.
Moving with synchronized discipline, the five youths marched into the weight area in the hall and hauled out the pieces of equipment needed for demonstration.
THUD.
THUD.
THUD.
Three massive iron dumbbells were set upon the stone floor, weighing 150 kg, 75 kg, and 75 kg.
“Before my disciple demonstrates his foundation, if any senior master present wishes to verify the authenticity of these weights, please step forward,” Zani offered with an accommodating smile.
But before the words had even left his mouth, several martial artists had already stepped into the ring.
“Heavens…
so these are the famous weights forged of solid iron”.
“Look at how perfectly smooth and balanced they are!” “Master Zani, please, you must let my child join your establishment!” “It does not look like it weighs 150 kg at all.
Such an absurd amount of pure wealth!” As the crowd erupted into a chaotic uproar, some of the bolder commoners even tried to push past the martial artists to touch the suppose divine metal.
It took a full stick of incense and the combined pressure of the Village Chief and the Mayor’s representative to finally suppress the crowd’s fervor.
An hour later, the grueling demonstration concluded perfectly where the youth performed the deadlift to prove himself.
Since, he was using dumbbells to do it instead of barbell there was some difficulty but it was still better than hurling massive stone.
The graduating youth, having proven his strength, respectfully chose to join the ranks of the Mayor’s Manor.
And Watching the boy walk away toward a future that had once been impossible, Zani felt a deep, swelling satisfaction in his chest.
As the crowd dispersed, the news of the Iron Core Gym helping build foundation in mere 3 months spread like wildfire, setting the entirety of Grains City ablaze with gossip once more.
Meanwhile, on the dusty dirt road leading toward Big Wheat Village, a tough-looking, broad-shouldered man with a thick brown beard was walking with steady, unhurried steps.
“Interesting,” the bearded man murmured, his eyes flashing with a playful light.
“It looks like I should finally pay my visit.
After all, I have already wasted far too much time adjusting the joints on this new puppet”.
A confident smile surfaced on the rugged man’s face as he quickened his pace toward the Iron Core Gym.