2: One against two

The scorching sun hung overhead. Jiang Donghua mechanically swung his medicinal hoe, sweat dripping from his chin onto the soil. But if one were to observe closely, they would notice the corner of his bruised mouth twitching into a slight smile every few moments.

[Dou Zhi Qi Stage Three (67/100)]

The translucent system panel floated at the edge of his vision, the number ticking up once without him realizing it.

Jiang Donghua used the motion of wiping sweat to erase the curve of his mouth, yet his heart hammered in his chest.

"This speed... it's defying the heavens..."

According to the original body's memory, when ordinary disciples cultivated Dou Zhi Qi, their meridians could only withstand one hour of Fighting Qi circulation at most.

Exceeding this limit would result in swollen and painful meridians at best, and injuries from reversed Fighting Qi flow at worst.

Even for those with outstanding talent, an increase of two or three points per day was the absolute limit.

Jiang Donghua secretly calculated the time.

Only one hour had passed since the system activated, yet the progress bar had genuinely increased by 2 points.

At this efficiency, twelve hours over a full day would mean...

"That equals twenty-four days!"

Dragging his exhausted body, Jiang Donghua returned to the servants' quarters, a drafty thatched hut where moldy straw was piled in the corner.

Slumping onto the straw pile, the wounds all over his body stung fiercely, but a cold sneer curled his lips.

"At this rate, he will be able to break through to Dou Zhi Qi Stage Four the night after tomorrow..."

Closing his eyes, the system panel clearly materialized in the darkness.

[Host: Jiang Donghua]

[Realm: Dou Zhi Qi Stage Three (74/100)]

[AFK Income: Base 1 point/hour]

[Estimated Breakthrough Time: In 26 hours]

Jiang Donghua recalled the original body's memory: on the Fighting Qi Continent, every time one broke through a minor realm, the Fighting Qi within the body would cleanse the meridians and automatically repair injuries.

In other words, as long as he reached Dou Zhi Qi Stage Four, his current body—full of bruises, fractured fingers, and even internal injuries—would fully heal the moment he broke through!

"Heh, Zhang Hu, I've noted down every punch you threw at me!"

He grinned, pulling at the wound on the corner of his mouth. The pain made him frown slightly, but his heart felt incomparably refreshed.

"One point per hour means he will reach 98 points by this time tomorrow, and the night after tomorrow... will be the moment of breakthrough!"

The next morning, Jiang Donghua went to work in the medicinal fields as usual.

Zhao Tiezhu and Wang Mazi were already squatting on the field path. Seeing him arrive, they immediately started laughing mockingly.

"Yo, isn't this the little snitch? What's wrong, didn't sleep well last night?" Wang Mazi squinted his triangular eyes and deliberately raised his voice.

Jiang Donghua ignored them, lowering his head to weed, but secretly calculating the time in his heart.

[Dou Zhi Qi Stage Three (87/100)]

Soon!

Seeing his lack of reaction, Zhao Tiezhu snorted coldly, strode over, and stomped his foot down on the medicinal herbs Jiang Donghua was organizing.

"Trash, are you deaf?"

Jiang Donghua slowly raised his head, his eyes terrifyingly calm.

"Senior Brother Zhao, you stepped on the spirit herbs."

Zhao Tiezhu froze, then flew into a rage.

"So what if I stepped on them?"

"You dare talk back?!"

He raised his hand, ready to slap Jiang Donghua, but Jiang Donghua suddenly smiled.

"Senior Brother Zhao, tell me... what would happen if I ran to the Disciplinary Hall right now and reported that you deliberately destroyed the medicinal field's spirit herbs?"

Zhao Tiezhu's hand froze in mid-air, his face instantly turning ashen.

"You...!"

Jiang Donghua slowly stood up, dusted the dirt off his body, and said softly.

"Don't rush. In a few days... we will settle the score properly."

Zhao Tiezhu and Wang Mazi exchanged glances, both feeling that this trash was unusually strange today.

Time flowed by, and Jiang Donghua's panel value steadily increased.

[Dou Zhi Qi Stage Three (96/100)]

[Estimated Breakthrough Time: In 4 hours]

Night fell, and the servants' quarters filled with snoring.

Jiang Donghua silently got up and, in the dark, made his way to a secluded cave in the back mountain.

He had scouted this location during the day to ensure no one would disturb him during his breakthrough.

He sat cross-legged, quietly waiting for the final countdown.

"3... 2... 1..."

[Ding!]

[Realm Breakthrough!]

[Dou Zhi Qi Stage Four (1/200)]

In that instant, a warm current surged from his Dantian, washing over his entire body like a tide!

"Hiss!"

Jiang Donghua gritted his teeth, feeling his bones crackle inside. The bruises visibly faded, his fractured finger bones automatically healed, and even his pale, malnourished complexion gained some color!

He fiercely clenched his fist, and the air produced a slight popping sound!

"His strength... has more than doubled!"

A sharp light burst from his eyes, and a ferocious curve appeared on his lips.

"This is Dou Zhi Qi Stage Four..."

He stood up and casually punched the cave wall.

"Bang!"

Gravel scattered, and the hard rock wall was actually smashed into a dent about an inch deep!

"Not bad."

Jiang Donghua nodded in satisfaction.

"Now, purely in terms of strength, he is no weaker than that brute, Zhao Tiezhu."

With a thought, the system panel unfolded.

[Host: Jiang Donghua]

[Realm: Dou Zhi Qi Stage Four (1/200)]

[AFK Income: 1 point/hour, Base 1 point]

[Environmental Bonus: None (Explorable)]

[Number of Avatars: 1]

"One point per hour, 200 points will take... approximately 8 days."

Jiang Donghua's lips curled slightly.

In eight days, he would step into Dou Zhi Qi Stage Five, and by then, even those two lackeys would no longer be a threat!

The tenth day, late at night.

Jiang Donghua sat cross-legged in the cave, Fighting Qi swirling around him like mist, surging ceaselessly through his meridians.

[Ding!]

[Realm Breakthrough!]

[Dou Zhi Qi Stage Five (1/300)]

A surge of power, even more formidable than before, erupted from his Dantian, instantly washing over his entire body!

His bones crackled, his muscle fibers tightened as if being tempered, and even his five senses became sharper.

He could clearly hear the sounds of insects crawling within ten zhang outside the cave, and he could smell the faint fragrance of spirit herbs in the soil.

"This is... Dou Zhi Qi Stage Five!"

He fiercely clenched his fist, and the air produced a popping sound!

"His strength is twice as strong as it was at Stage Four!"

Now, purely in terms of the profundity of his Fighting Qi, he was completely on par with Zhao Tiezhu and Wang Mazi, perhaps even surpassing them!

The next morning, Jiang Donghua arrived at the medicinal fields as usual, still hunched over, pretending to be meek and submissive.

Zhao Tiezhu and Wang Mazi were already waiting on the field path. Seeing him arrive, they immediately sneered.

"Yo, the lunatic is here to work again?"

Wang Mazi squinted his triangular eyes and deliberately raised his voice.

"I heard you've been running into the mountains lately. Could it be that you're digging your own grave?"

The surrounding servant disciples lowered their heads, not daring to get involved.

Jiang Donghua "fearfully" shrank his neck and said softly.

"Senior Brother must be joking..."

Seeing this, Zhao Tiezhu strode over, looked down at him condescendingly, and sneered viciously.

"Trash, if you dare slack off again today, this daddy will break your legs!"

As he spoke, he reached out to grab Jiang Donghua's collar.

"Snap!"

With a crisp sound, Zhao Tiezhu's wrist was firmly grasped by Jiang Donghua, unable to move!

"Hmm?!"

Zhao Tiezhu was stunned, then enraged.

"How dare you resist?!"

He exerted force, trying to break free, but Jiang Donghua's fingers remained motionless, like iron clamps!

"Senior Brother Zhao..."

Jiang Donghua slowly raised his head, a cold arc curving his lips.

"Who did you just say you were going to break the legs of?"

Zhao Tiezhu's pupils contracted sharply!

At this moment, he finally realized something was terribly wrong.

Where was the slightest hint of fear in Jiang Donghua's eyes?

It was clearly... the gaze of a hunter looking at prey!

"You...!"

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Donghua suddenly exerted force!

"Crack!"

Amidst the crisp sound of breaking bone, Zhao Tiezhu's wrist was forcibly crushed!

"Ahhh!"

A horrifying shriek echoed throughout the medicinal field. All the servant disciples looked up in shock, only to see Zhao Tiezhu kneeling on the ground, his wrist twisted and deformed, while Jiang Donghua... looked down at him condescendingly, his gaze cold as a blade!

Wang Mazi stumbled back two steps in fright, his face pale.

"You, you broke through?!"

"Impossible! It's only been a few days...!"

Jiang Donghua let out a cold laugh and slowly approached.

"Senior Brother Wang, now... it's time to settle our score."

Jiang Donghua's eyes were icy cold. His five fingers, like iron clamps, fastened around Zhao Tiezhu's throat, lifting his entire body off the ground.

"Senior Brother Zhao, do you remember what you said when you kicked over my medicinal basket?"

Zhao Tiezhu's face turned purple, his legs kicking frantically, his eyes filled with disbelief.

How could this trash, who they had bullied at will just ten days ago, suddenly become so terrifying?!

"Le-let go... of me..."

He struggled to squeeze out a few words. The power of Dou Zhi Qi Stage Five erupted frantically, yet Jiang Donghua's hand remained completely still!

"Crack!"

Jiang Donghua suddenly twisted. Zhao Tiezhu's shoulder blade instantly dislocated, and before his scream could escape, a knee strike slammed viciously into his abdomen!

"Ugh—!"

Zhao Tiezhu spat out a mouthful of sour liquid, collapsing to the ground, curled up like a shrimp.

Jiang Donghua looked down, placing a foot on his face, the sole of his shoe grinding against the fleshy cheek, his voice as cold as ice.

"This stomp repays the debt for when you stepped on my fingers."

Wang Mazi was already scared out of his wits and turned to flee, but just as he took two steps, his vision blurred—Jiang Donghua had appeared before him like a ghost!

"Senior Brother Wang, where are you rushing off to?"

"I-it's not my business, it was all Zhang Hu's orders! I, I was just following instructions!"

Jiang Donghua sneered.

Although they were both at Dou Zhi Qi Stage Five, these two were merely trash who had achieved it through sheer time. Their Fighting Qi was unstable, and their meridians were sluggish.

However, every fraction of Fighting Qi gained through his system's AFK mode circulated through his meridians with incomparable purity!

After hundreds of hours of Fighting Qi cleansing his physical body, he had long been reborn!

"Following instructions?"

Jiang Donghua grabbed a handful of Wang Mazi's hair, forcing him to look up.

"Then follow my instructions now: break Zhao Tiezhu's legs, and I will spare your life."

Wang Mazi trembled all over, his eyes full of struggle. But facing Jiang Donghua's emotionless gaze, he finally relented... "I-I'll hit him! I'll hit him!"

He scrambled to grab the medicinal hoe and, under Zhao Tiezhu's terrified gaze, viciously smashed it down onto his knee!

"Ah! Wang Mazi, you bastard...!"

Amidst the screams, Jiang Donghua turned around indifferently, scanned the servant disciples who were already petrified with fear, and slowly spoke.

"Starting today, the work in the medicinal fields belongs to the two of you."