Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

Very lively.

Zhang Lvjiu savored the sorrow and helplessness in those four words. He didn't know how to comfort his brother's congenital disadvantage, so he simply skipped that part and asked, "Didn't Father arrange for my brother to study under Mr. Igorinasio, Mr. Mike, and Mr. Jimmy?"

“A group doesn’t have to resort to force for everything and everyone. The Sanyuan Group’s development to this point owes a great deal to the think tank represented by these three gentlemen. Brother, you can learn from them and achieve great things after you’ve learned your skills.”

"Ha, so much to be accomplished..." Zhang Wusheng shook his head with a smile, looking lost, and murmured, "So much to be accomplished?"

I know my own skill level best.

Zhang Wusheng knew perfectly well that he wasn't cut out for this. He didn't have a strong thirst for knowledge in economics, politics, law, or culture. He only mechanically memorized them over and over again to avoid disappointing his parents.

"Even if... I do achieve something and become your strategist, so what? They won't look at me any differently just because I came up with some ideas!"

Zhang Wusheng waved his cane and drew a circle inside the tent, his tone gradually becoming agitated, "They were just keeping the young master company, playing a game of house, nothing more."

"If I can't practice martial arts, then I can't practice martial arts, but..."

“I can’t even run, or even just walk a little faster. Even if I walk slowly for half an hour with a cane at the pace of an old man or woman, I will feel chest tightness, shortness of breath, and dizziness. If I don’t take a car, I can’t even leave Baiju City!”

"Tell me, with green wine, what else is there in this kind of life...?"

……

"Ah……"

A cold, mocking laugh echoed from the still-dark tide of vision.

Zhang Wusheng's expression hardened, and his gaze passed over Zhang Lüjiu, looking towards the entrance of the military tent—where stood a man who looked exactly like him.

The same blond hair, the same tall and thin build, but that person had terrifying, vertically slit amber pupils, like those of a giant lizard. A mocking smile played on his lips as he stared at me from a distance.

Zhang Wusheng, with his vertical pupils, was missing his right leg; the part below his right leg was shrouded in darkness.

……

Zhang Wusheng's expression was somewhat horrified; he just opened his mouth but didn't utter a sound.

"Brother?"

"Ah, no...it's nothing. I meant..."

Zhang Wusheng shook his head, trying his best to ignore the phantom in front of the military tent, and continued, "Green Wine, you are a rare kind person. If one day, you can inherit this family business... I think it would be a lucky thing for everyone."

"You and Honglu are both the future of our family. I am grateful that you call me brother. I always hope that you can reach that day safely."

……

"hypocrite."

The version of himself with vertical pupils leaned closer and whispered something in Zhang Lvjiu's ear with a cold laugh.

Zhang Wusheng's black pupils widened slightly, his eyebrows twitched, his forehead bulged, and beneath the skin of his arms, hundreds of tangled veins sprouted like tangled seaweed!

But he quickly suppressed it with his breathing.

"..."

He calmly steadied himself on the table, took a deep breath, and began to pant slightly, but still managed a weak smile. "Alright, thank you for your hard work... listening to my rambling in the middle of the night."

"That's all for tonight. Objectively speaking, you did make a contribution. Tell them to celebrate if they want to. Hold all the prisoners in custody, and tomorrow morning, we'll regroup and head back to White Torch City, New Orleans."

"Are we going back tomorrow morning?" Zhang Lujiu asked suspiciously. "The remnants of the Blue-Clad Army haven't been completely wiped out yet; some are still scattered in other cities in Ukraine. To be on the safe side, shouldn't we wipe them all out before returning to the capital?"

"There's no need for that. This wasn't a well-structured military organization to begin with. Now that the leader is dead and the strategist is captured... we don't need to worry about the corpses in Glenburg. Just leave them there."

"When the remaining remnants come looking for us, they will naturally be intimidated. We won't need to lift a finger; we can just wait for them to fall into chaos."

"Those who lack a firm fighting spirit will give up at this stage."

"Leave the rest to the Ukrainian state RCMP and the local sheriff's office; they can handle it themselves."

He leaned on his cane, instinctively refusing Zhang Lvjiu's offer of help, and very slowly stood up from the ground, panting heavily.

"I have a feeling that this attack... is inextricably linked to the north."

“Our father will be back from his hometown soon. Remember to write a letter to Honglu and tell him to come home as soon as possible. After that, we need to sit down and discuss what to do as a family.”

----

Zhang Lvjiu left.

The military tent was empty again. The night wind blew across the surface. Zhang Wusheng remained silent and sat back down in his seat.

Sure enough, after the instructions were given, the camp became lively. Everyone was celebrating the victory, drinking, singing, clapping, and all sorts of sounds drifted into Zhang Wusheng's ears through the tents on the night breeze.

Naturally, no one will come back here.

Except for himself, who had only one leg.

……

"family?"

He appeared beside Zhang Wusheng, grinned, and asked with a cold smile, "Are you really... family?"

"Shut up..." Zhang Wusheng clutched his forehead, his expression both pained and resolute. "What do you want to say? Of course, we're family!"

"My father, my mother, and me!"

……

Zhang Wusheng, with his vertical pupils, laughed. His eyes were wide open, making his amber-colored vertical pupils appear even more eerie.

"Of course you have family, but not these three people, it's..."

“My echo…”

“My shadwo (my shadow)…”

“And me.”

Chapter 899: A Parting Is Inevitable

"These gourds contain the same 'asthma pills' as usual. If Wusheng's illness flares up after taking them back, he can take a few pills whenever he wants."

"Then, this gourd, I tied a red string around it for you, remember that! This is the [Cold Asthma Pill] I made according to the new formula, there are thirty pills in total. And these few small packets contain Pinellia ternata, Arisaema cum Bile, and Gleditsia sinensis, take them with your medicine to relieve asthma and cough."

“Using the same medicine too often can cause the body to develop resistance. I reckon that given Wu Sheng’s current condition, the Dingchuan Pill is probably not very effective for him. It’s a pity that the geology and climate where you are are different from here. Many medicinal herbs cannot be found as substitutes there, otherwise… sigh…”

With that sigh, Zhang Renfeng suddenly realized that his senior brother had aged a lot, and his temples were already showing some gray.

"How is Wu Sheng's health now? Has it improved?"

"..." Upon hearing this, even Zhang Renfeng, who possessed immense strength, sighed deeply, revealing an expression of helplessness and utter defeat.

Silence itself is an answer.

"It's still the same."

Wolf's tone was relatively calmer. Over the years, she seemed to have gradually accepted the fact. "Just as Senior Brother Zhu said, the same medicine is becoming less and less effective on him. He has to take several pills in a row to see any effect."

"If I remember correctly, he's about fifteen years old this year, which is the time when he's growing. That might be related to that."

Zhu Kuilong wrapped the dried-out medicinal herbs he had caught in lotus leaves and stuffed them into Zhang Renfang's hand. He patted the back of Zhang's hand lightly and said in a very ordinary tone, "I have already taught Ping An how to prepare these medicines. You can come and find him after I die."

"Senior brother, what are you saying?" Zhang Renfeng's expression was somewhat surprised, and his hand, which had taken the lotus leaf package, froze in mid-air. "Why are you talking about death all of a sudden?"

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!" The wolf immediately spat twice on the ground, her delicate eyebrows furrowing slightly as she scolded, "Senior Brother Zhu, you mustn't say such unlucky things again!"

Zhu Kuilong stared at the couple for a while, then smiled with relief.

"You should have mastered Master's [Turtle Breathing Technique] by now, right?"

"..."

Zhang Renfeng was caught off guard by the question and paused for a moment.

According to the ancestral teachings of their sect, members of their lineage are not allowed to privately pass on martial arts skills to each other.

Fourteen years ago, facing an overly powerful "senior brother," Zhang Renfeng had no choice but to be driven to the brink of despair. In a moment of desperation, Zhang Renfeng secretly learned the wolf's [Rama Kung Fu].

However, given his condition at the time, even knowing the key principles of the Rama's Mind Technique, Zhang Renfeng couldn't replicate it. In the end, he first achieved enlightenment through the Lesser Formless Skill, and by applying this knowledge to other situations, he was able to use the Rama Skill with ease.

To this day, the battle with Lu Aniu remains the most thrilling and heroic one in Zhang Renfeng's memory.

He also received a reward commensurate with this magnificent battle.

On his deathbed, for reasons unknown, Lu Aniu "passed on" all thirty-odd martial arts manuals he had learned in his lifetime to Zhang Renfeng. Zhang Renfeng was a very pure person; he would not be tempted by gold, silver, wealth, wine, women, or power. But these thirty-odd manuals... were like a magic ring fallen to earth, constantly radiating a powerful allure.

Learning one martial art would be breaking the precept, and learning more than thirty would also be breaking the precept. After struggling with this dilemma for a while, Zhang Renfeng finally made up his mind and began to practice these martial arts.

Everyone says Zhu Kuilong is mediocre, but that's only compared to gifted geniuses like Zhang Renfeng and Xiaolang. From his postures of standing, sitting, walking, and lying down, he can already sense that Zhang Renfeng has violated his master's teachings and practiced various internal skills. His internal strength is like fine wine, aged over time, becoming mellow, steady, and unfathomable.

However, before today, Zhu Kuilong had never brought up this topic during their meetings, and Zhang Renfeng had always pretended not to know.

If you don't say anything, and I don't say anything, perhaps... this is one of the unspoken understandings among adults.

……

"You've really grown a lot in the past ten years or so; you've even figured out how to change your tune and come up with a reason."

Seeing his silence, Zhu Kuilong laughed and teased, "If it were before, you would definitely have said whatever it was."

"Ha...haha..." Zhang Renfeng scratched his head, unsure if this counted as a compliment, so he simply told the truth, "Then let me tell you the truth, senior brother, this [Turtle Breathing Technique]...I really haven't mastered it yet."

"The techniques left by my master are all profound and mysterious; they cannot be mastered by simply doing a few random tricks."

"Even if I possess the Lesser Formless Skill, I can only imitate 80% at most. There will always be slight differences in the details. The remaining 20% ​​is precisely the true essence of this martial art. To thoroughly master it, one must truly devote oneself to these 20% and not be careless in the slightest."

"To put it simply..." Wolf added from the side, "Ordinary people start practicing martial arts from 0 and end at 100. But Senior Brother has the Lesser Formless Skill, which allows him to start directly from 80. However, the last 20 are the essence after compression. Senior Brother also needs to spend a lot of time perfecting it."

"Once you master the Turtle Breathing Technique, your lifespan will be as immeasurable as that of a divine tortoise," Zhu Kuilong said with a smile. "It's only a matter of time before we part ways."

"Senior brother..."

That day will eventually come, yet he speaks of it in such a nonchalant tone, as if it could happen at any moment, perhaps even tomorrow.

Zhang Renfeng was deeply moved. He gritted his teeth and made a decision. "Don't accuse me of being rebellious. Since Master and Senior Sister have already passed away, at worst... at worst, after I've thoroughly studied it, I'll pass on the key points of the [Turtle Breathing Technique] to you as well!"

……

Surprisingly, Zhu Kuilong, who always respected the rules, did not reprimand him for this.

His eyes were lowered, and a somewhat gloomy smile appeared on his face. "According to you, that Lu Aniu started learning every martial art from scratch."

"Even with his talent, it would take him over two hundred years to achieve anything. For someone as mediocre as me, to have learned even a small part of my master's teachings is already incredibly fortunate. What more could I ask for?"

----

"Alright, you two, cheer up," Zhu Kuilong said calmly. "The kids are back."

……

"Tap tap tap tap—!"

A series of hurried footsteps came from outside the courtyard. With a "bang," the wooden door was pulled open forcefully, and a boy wearing a long yellow cotton coat, with rosy cheeks and an extremely excited smile, burst in. The boy's eyes lit up the moment he saw Zhang Renfeng and the wolf.

"Godfather, Godmother, long time no see! You're here again!" He rushed over and bumped into Zhang Renfeng's arms, giving him a huge hug. "Where's my gift?"

"Peace and safety." Zhu Kuilong's voice instantly turned stern. "Where are the formalities?"

"Alright, alright, why bother with formalities? We're not strangers anymore." Zhang Renfeng affectionately patted Zhu Ping'an's head.

"The chocolate bar I brought you last time, did you like it?" Wolf chuckled softly, then picked up several large bags of beautifully packaged, gleaming snack boxes from the ground. "I brought you some more, remember to share them with the kids."

"Wow----!"

To a teenager, these bags of snacks were practically worth real money. Zhu Ping'an's eyes lit up, and he snatched the bags in the blink of an eye.

"Don't spoil this brat." Zhu Kuilong frowned as he looked at the large bags of snacks.

"Hey, don't worry about it, don't worry about it." Zhang Renfeng took on the role of the elder that the children liked the most, and said emphatically, "It's just a little something from godfather and godmother to Ping An, it's none of your business."

"It's rare for you to eat something," the wolf chimed in, echoing his wife. "It's alright, Ping An isn't a little kid anymore. She knows her limits, doesn't she, Ping An?"

"Yes, yes! Thank you, godfather, thank you, godmother!"

Zhu Pingan, carrying several bags of snacks, didn't forget his manners and bowed to Zhang Renfeng and Lang, his smile finally breaking. He glanced at Zhu Kuilong, and seeing that he didn't say anything more, he dashed out of the room, shouting as he went.

"Fulin, Fulin, come quick!"

"Your family has some visitors—!!"

Chapter 900: Zhang Fulin