“To practice martial arts, not to mention the medicinal wine, ointments, and oils required, just the daily supplements alone are more than you all can afford.”

William Walker’s voice wasn’t loud, but everyone in the small courtyard could hear him clearly.

Some people nodded repeatedly.

But Samuel Bennett knew well that the expenses for practicing with a blade were also quite high. For example, just an ordinary knife would cost three or four taels of silver.

With his monthly wage as a menial worker at the yamen, he’d have to go two years without eating or drinking to afford one.

And that’s not even counting the daily maintenance.

Weapons need to be maintained; you can’t just toss them aside when not in use and only sharpen them when you need them.

“Since you’ve become my disciples, you must know that I come from a military background, made my living by chopping off heads. So, what I can teach you is just these things.”

William Walker swept his gaze over the group of disciples, pausing for a moment on Samuel Bennett.

“Master, what are you saying? Who in Black Mountain City doesn’t know your reputation? If we can learn even a fraction of your skills, we’ll benefit endlessly!”

Such blatant flattery made everyone turn to look.

Samuel Bennett turned his head. The speaker was a burly, middle-aged man with a face full of flesh. He recognized him—it was the butcher from the outer city, David Miller.

He was also one of the two or three people who came to practice martial arts every day.

“Whether on the battlefield or in an execution, you don’t need a bunch of fancy moves. You just need to remember three words: steady, accurate, and ruthless. Then, making a living in Black Mountain shouldn’t be a problem.”

William Walker waved his hand: “Someone, come over here.”

“Hey, I’ll do it!”

The burly David Miller was the first to rush forward, grinning foolishly.

But in the next instant, his smile froze: “Hey, ow! Master, please go easy on me…”

“Hiss! Such strength!”

Watching from below, Samuel Bennett was shocked. This burly man with a face full of flesh must weigh close to two hundred jin.

Yet he was lifted by the scruff of his neck by the skinny, shriveled old man William Walker.

“No need to say much about steadiness. You’ve all been cutting tofu for years; if you’ve made it this far, you must have some skill. Next, let’s talk about accuracy!”

William Walker held David Miller up with one hand, gesturing up and down with the other:

“With one stroke, you can save thirty percent of your strength—never waste a bit of effort! There are over two hundred bones in the human body, some hard, some soft…”

“If you’re fighting someone, a strike to the crown of the head is very different from a strike to the second or third vertebra below the neck!”

William Walker spoke eloquently. As he talked about this, the old man’s eyes grew bright.

“That actually makes a lot of sense…”

Samuel Bennett felt his teeth ache listening—this old man was definitely a ruthless character.

“The hand holding the blade must be steady, and your strikes must be accurate!”

William Walker pointed here and there, explaining which bones were hard, which were soft, where to apply force, and where not to.

He spoke with authority, but many in the audience felt uncomfortable, including Samuel Bennett.

These were methods for killing people, but he talked about them as if he were slicing vegetables…

“M-Master. P-Please put me down…”

After William Walker’s demonstration, David Miller couldn’t take it anymore. His fleshy face turned bright red, and he felt like his neck was no longer his own.

“So young, and you can’t even take a little hardship!”

William Walker’s old face darkened as he tossed David Miller to the ground.

“Cough! Cough, cough~~~”

The burly man coughed violently, nearly unable to catch his breath, and deeply regretted getting involved.

“Forget it.”

Interrupted, William Walker lost interest in talking. He waved his hand and said, “David Miller, you’re the most idle one here. Take your junior brother Samuel Bennett home.”

At this point, he paused again:

“Have dinner before you go home!”

“Huh?”

David Miller was a bit confused, but seeing William Walker glaring at him, he quickly agreed.

“Thank you, Master!”

Samuel Bennett bowed, feeling grateful.

“Let’s go.”

David Miller rubbed his neck, grimacing in pain.

……

“This kid didn’t come home all night?”

Outside the inner city gate, a few men squatted by the roadside, looking agitated.

They hadn’t expected that a half-grown kid would dare to wander out in the evening and not return all night, and that the inner city patrol hadn’t kicked him out.

“Hey! Sixth Brother, that kid’s coming out!”

A rather skinny fellow’s eyes lit up as he looked toward the city gate.

“Made me wait all this time, that little bastard!”

Charles Harris stood up with a sinister grin.

“Wait, Sixth Brother, wait!”

Just as Charles Harris was about to step forward, he was suddenly pulled back by a younger companion, and he turned back angrily.

The small guy nervously swallowed, his legs trembling:

“L-Look at the kid’s side. That hairy guy—isn’t that the butcher Hu?”

Chapter Six: Blood Replacement?

David Miller was very wealthy.

That was Samuel Bennett’s first impression of this senior brother Miller.

There were three major districts in the outer city of Black Mountain, each with its own butcher. David Miller was the butcher of his district.

Not only was he as burly as a bear, but his two or three dozen workers were also all big and strong.

Even some of the small gangs in the outer city didn’t dare mess with them.

“Hey!”