In comparison, even Henry Webb's second sister Emily Webb, standing nearby, was outshone.

Most of the men practicing skin tempering on the scene had their eyes drawn to this female disciple.

There was a faint sense of cleanliness about this woman, something ordinary poor people did not possess.

Henry Webb also noticed these people, and couldn't help but glance a few more times at the most eye-catching female disciple.

"The women's academy over there was disbanded, and everyone was merged over here. They said there weren't enough people." Samuel Hayes whispered from the side.

"Third Senior Brother, you're well-informed—do you know that prettiest junior sister?" a man nearby leaned over and asked with a smile.

"Of course I know her." Samuel Hayes nodded. "But you all better not get any ideas about her. Her name is Susan King, the second daughter of the well-known Jiang family in town. Her family is wealthy, and her own talent is among the best from the women's academy. I think only Ethan Blake is a bit stronger than her.

Most importantly, this junior sister's temperament isn't exactly pleasant." At this, he shook his head, clearly not fond of Susan King.

Henry Webb listened in silence and didn't join the conversation.

He had been secretly searching for information about his eldest sister and parents.

As for his eldest sister, the trouble now was that even the entire Blackwater Gang was slowly dwindling in numbers, becoming more and more desolate, and was on the verge of disbanding.

As for his parents, the only news came from Samuel Hayes, which was just confirmation of their disappearance.

Other than that, there was nothing else he could do.

So his mind wasn't on relationships at all right now. All he thought about every day was training hard, so that once he had some standing, he could secretly search for his family.

No matter what, when he first arrived, his parents and eldest sister gave him a lot of care and support.

He was someone who valued bonds over blood. Blood ties didn't matter to him, but this kindness, he had to repay.

"Look, everyone who tried to talk to her has come back, right?" Samuel Hayes said with a schadenfreude smile. "This Junior Sister Lane isn't in the same circle as us. You all better keep your heads clear."

Henry Webb looked over when he heard this.

Sure enough, the senior and junior brothers who had gone over were all coldly dismissed by the new Junior Sister Lane.

Susan King glanced around, then walked alone to a corner and started skin tempering. No one knew why a girl like her would choose to practice a martial art like Hui Shan Fist, which was so damaging to the skin.

Samuel Hayes and a few other senior brothers gossiped for a while, but seeing there was nothing more to say, they naturally dispersed.

Henry Webb didn't mind, rested for a bit, then stepped forward to continue with the second round of skin tempering.

Over these days, he had already noticed that the last bit of black on the boundary-breaking pearl in his chest was about to be completed.

So he felt a sense of anticipation, and his training was full of energy.

But the more he looked forward to that last bit of blackness, the slower it seemed to progress.

Time flew by.

Day after day of training passed. The blackness on the boundary-breaking pearl grew denser, and the last bit of blank space grew smaller and smaller.

Meanwhile, the skin tempering stage was gradually deepening.

According to Old Man Grant's rules, only two months were given for skin tempering. If you couldn't succeed and get started within two months, then it would be impossible to succeed afterward.

That meant your talent just wasn't enough, and no matter how much you trained, your achievements would be limited.

There were six senior and junior brothers training skin tempering together with Henry Webb.

Including Henry Webb, that made seven.

Henry Webb buried himself in hard training, not saying a word.

Suddenly, one morning.

Third Senior Brother Samuel Hayes was unusually quiet. It was a bit out of character.

Henry Webb had just taken off his coat and was about to roll up his sleeves to start training, when he saw two of the senior and junior brothers who usually trained with him, fully dressed and carrying their luggage, quietly leaving through the side door.

"They're not training at this time...?" someone nearby said in surprise.

"They're done. They won't be training anymore." Samuel Hayes said calmly.

Everyone around understood and fell silent.

Only a junior brother who had just joined this month looked confused.

Not far away, Old Man Grant was once again showing off, explaining the moves of Hui Shan Fist to the newcomers.

From time to time, he would snap a willow branch at them.

The new guys could only endure it, and some hurried to the inner room to bring out snacks as offerings.

Old Zheng was as secretive and slow-paced as ever, just like when Henry Webb first joined.

Henry Webb stayed silent, calculating his own skin tempering time.

There was only half a month left. If he still couldn't make it, he would have no choice but to leave in disappointment.

Thinking of this, he silently rolled up his sleeves, walked to a wooden basin, and began a new day of skin tempering.

Samuel Hayes was unusually quiet as well, going off to a corner to practice sparring with someone.

The large courtyard was divided into three sections: one for newcomers, one for skin tempering, and one for sparring. The ground in the middle was marked with white chalk lines, clearly separating the areas.

Time continued to pass day by day.

The two-month deadline drew closer and closer.

Soon, two more people couldn't handle the psychological pressure and left early.

And new people joined the skin tempering stage.

Henry Webb worked hard in silence, but the redness on his fists always faded quickly, never reaching the level of ox-hide.