In a sense, Yunshou was "forced" to take action today.
Although the food he eats has been failing to keep up with his body's consumption recently, he secretly wonders if those great masters are eating and drinking to excess all day long, and that's why they rarely show up in public.
But he was still a long way from starving to death. In fact, he was planning to reach the level where "even martial artists could hardly break his skin" before defeating Xu Ruohai.
But who knew that Mu Jian was the uncle of Er Shao and would take action for this purpose.
After Mu Jian, the leader of the Qinghe Gang, was beaten up by him, it also meant that Xu Ruohai was bound to take action.
The only way was to do it in one go, beat them all up, and then he had an idea and tried to become the gang leader.
In a head-on battle, the Qinghe Gang would not be able to hurt Yun Shou no matter what, but what he was worried about was that the other party would use underhanded tactics.
A martial artist is also defenseless even in his sleep. The simulated Lao Yun may be defenseless, but the real Yun Shou is not.
He was worried that the Qinghe Gang would only surrender on the surface, and then stab him dozens of times while he was sleeping, which would cause him to be seriously injured if not killed.
It would be better to go to Qingcheng. When Yunshou entered the city, it was almost closing time. He didn't think the Qinghe Gang could chase him here.
As for the gang members who stayed in Qingcheng... they might not know that the situation had changed and the boss had been replaced by a young boy.
"But in case they really want to kill me, I still have a safety net."
In the morning, Yunshou woke up and satisfiedly removed the reminder device he had set up last night.
"It's time for the daily simulation again."
"start up!"
[Ding! Foundation -1%, current foundation 244%]
You wake up feeling full of energy and ready to spend the entire day exploring Qingcheng and experiencing its local customs and culture.
[You still have more than ten taels of silver, enough for your ordinary expenses.]
[It doesn't matter if it's not enough. You can go to the Qinghe Gang's city branch to collect more, or rob the rich to help the poor and wipe out the evil forces in Qingcheng.]
[While strolling... you went to Baihualou to listen to the young lady sing.]
[While strolling... you go to the snack street and enjoy the delicious food. ]
[While strolling... your eyes light up as you discover the competition registration office with surprise. You learn that registration closes the day after tomorrow. Luckily, you found it early!]
Yunshou: "...No, am I that petty?"
"It's just a small holiday in the simulation. I've already reported it once. Why would I hold on to it?"
"Your simulator isn't real at all. It's turned me into a villain!"
"…"
"By the way, where exactly is the arena for the martial arts competition to win a bride? Registration will close in just two or three days."
[Over the next few days, you swept through the competition and battled the only top-tier warrior in the entire tournament, "Chibi Guest" Zhang Xiaoran.]
[You still remember that during the last simulation, you described Zhang Xiaoran as quite impressive. Now that we've fought each other, you've discovered that he's indeed quite capable.]
[Some of their combat power is almost close to that of a martial artist, but you are a martial artist. Even with your size, you are still a very strong martial artist.]
Zhang Xiaoran's defeat was unsurprising. Afterward, you discussed the matter with each other and learned that Zhang Xiaoran indeed possessed some unusual physique, naturally possessing a tall stature. His master described this as a gift for becoming a small giant.
Although it can't compare to the famous "Dragon-Elephant Strength," it's better than talents at the "Steel Bones" level. Almost anyone below the Grandmaster level can possess combat power that's half a level higher.
"Talent..." Yun Shou fell into deep thought, wondering what talent was.
He now knew several core elements concerning martial arts.
Foundation/aptitude represents a warrior's training speed, the difficulty of breaking through the realm, and combat effectiveness at the same level.
His "foundation enhancement" actually enhances not only martial arts qualifications but also factors such as lifespan. It can almost be said that this enhances the essential attributes of the "origin of life" level!
Then there are martial arts/martial arts. Different martial arts can provide different proportions of qualification enhancement. The foundation can be transformed into the shape of the martial arts and enhanced a bit, and the depth of the martial arts also has additional bonuses.
After that, it's talent/supernatural powers.
Most talents are similar to the bonus of martial arts depth, directly increasing the corresponding value at one time: for example, "iron bones" increases the strength of a thousand pounds and the corresponding physical strength.
An ordinary person with the talent of "iron bones" and a grandmaster with the talent of "iron bones" both increase their strength by a thousand pounds.
Generally speaking, people who are gifted with supernatural powers will not have bad qualifications, but having this talent only means that they have a bottom line, and their qualifications are not necessarily comparable to those of people without any talent.
"In the early days, I wanted a talent..." Yun Shou shook his head, "But the further I get, the less useful it becomes!"
When he was still an ordinary person at the beginning, he had a talent of steel bones, which made him comparable to a slightly weaker second-rate warrior, and would greatly enhance his early combat power.
But talent becomes less and less useful as time goes by. For people of Zhu Baowen's level, the tens of thousands of pounds of strength increased by the Dragon Elephant's might is a joke!
Zhang Xiaoran's Little Giant talent seems to be growing exponentially, but in fact there is also a limit: the proportion is getting lower and lower, and it will no longer work after reaching the Grandmaster level.
"Sure enough, it's still not as good as my foundation increase."
You once again won the championship in the martial arts competition to win a bride. However, before the Lin family steward led you into Qingyu Tower, you saw a young woman jogging out and looking you up and down.
"You're the young leader of the Qinghe Gang. Rumor has it that you beat up Xu Ruohai to get to the top?" The woman's eyes were filled with curiosity. "Are you really a top-notch warrior at your age? Can you defeat the big boss Xu Ruohai?"
You've already guessed the identity of the man before you, thinking to yourself, "This woman is truly blind to the true strength of a person. Xu Ruohai is nothing. Zhang Xiaoran, who previously fought you in the arena, was far stronger than him. But you, a woman, lack the foresight to recognize a truly powerful person."
The woman didn't notice your disdain and continued excitedly, "If you truly defeat Xu Ruohai, I'll marry you!"
"So, all I need is the Qing He Gang's leader status to make her ignore the age gap and come out to greet me..." You think to yourself, this is perfect.
"Why is it an old woman? I wouldn't have come if I had known." You pouted in disgust and turned away.
[Lin Youbai, who just turned seventeen: "..."]
You laughed a few times and left, returning to the Qinghe Gang to show off your power.
[Under your orders, some of the Qinghe Gang's treaties have been revised. This can be considered as you working for the benefit of the villagers in the fishing villages.]
[The benefits aren't great, meaning the fish collectors aren't allowed to pay less and the price of fish is slightly increased. From a modern perspective, it's still unethical.]
"But most of those fishermen didn't help you when you were in trouble. You're very kind to do this. People like Uncle Ji don't have to work every day and have enough to eat and drink."
Now that you have a foundation, practicing martial arts anywhere is still practicing martial arts. Although your freedom is limited, you get paid for free every day, which makes things a lot easier.
"As a martial artist, you've already expanded the Qinghe Gang's sphere of influence. You've even expanded your reach to the neighboring Lihu City, following the edge of Qinghu Lake."
[Lihu City, a medium-sized city, has a martial arts school located on the edge of Qinghu Lake. After all, Qinghu Lake is 800 miles long, so there are many cities around it.]
[Of course, there are fishing villages in Lihu City, and the power that controls these fishing villages is none other than the only martial arts school in the city: Baishui Martial Arts School.]
Yun Shou: "Interesting. Are you going to start a different path in this life, a strategic one of conquering power and expanding territory?"