"Not bad, kid! Well done!" Knocked down by my punch, Shabiao couldn't help but be stunned. But he quickly recovered, got up from the ground, and was excited, saying, "Come again!"
As he spoke, he raised his fists and was about to charge towards me again!
"Stop! Stop!"
Seeing this scene, I quickly waved to him. With my current weak state, I was afraid he could knock me down with just one punch. Of course, apart from the qi in my body, I could use the dragon's energy. However, this was not a life-and-death battle. Why bother with such arduous and thankless tasks?
Just last night, Lao Zhangtou repeatedly warned me not to use the dragon's energy as much as possible at this stage!
First, he was afraid that I would rely too much on the dragon's energy, neglecting my own cultivation. Second, in the eyes of practitioners, dragon's energy was also a coveted item. Once some ruthless people found out, who knows what malicious acts they might commit to obtain it?
I had a deep understanding of this. Didn't that snake demon from the Liu family covet the dragon's energy inside me?
Thinking of this, I very tactfully clasped my fist to Shabiao and said, "I surrender. Let's call it a day!"
"Hmm?" Upon hearing this, Shabiao couldn't help but frown. He asked, "What do you mean? Look down on me? Worried that I can't take losing?"
"No, no..."
Before I could speak, Zhang Ge hastily came forward, explaining to Shabiao, "Wang Lin was seriously injured before, and has only just recovered, so..."
"Oh?" Upon hearing this, Shabiao couldn't help but glance at me. Seeing my pale face, which didn't seem to be fake, he calmed down a bit and nodded, "Oh, I see. Alright then..."
"Ah..." He sighed quietly, Shabiao couldn't help expressing his regret. "It's a pity! I finally found a sparring partner, but I haven't had such a good time in a long while!"
Then, changing the subject, "However, the fact that you, with such serious injuries, could still knock me down, shows your strength is indeed very strong!"
"Alright! I, Lao Sha, admit defeat. Come to my house for lunch at noon, my treat! Haha..."
I have to say, Shabiao was much more straightforward than Sha-Day, never feeling embarrassed about the matter. After a few hearty laughs, he came directly to me and said, "Is that okay?"
"Since it's your kind offer, Wang Lin will certainly comply!"
Through this bout, I felt that Shabiao was a person worth befriending, straightforward and upright. This thought dispelled my immediate intent to leave and I readily accepted his invitation.
Shabiao was also very happy about this and went downstairs to prepare lunch with his people, saying he would send someone to call us later. It was only then that Zhang Ge had the opportunity to bring me and Chief Han to his house, where he introduced each member of his family to us.
In Zhang Ge's family, there were only four people: himself, his parents, and a younger brother named Zhang Fengjun. He was around the same age as me, also a college student, currently studying at the Medical College in Qianyang.
When Zhang Ge's parents learned that I had saved Zhang Ge's life several times, their enthusiasm was such that they insisted I stay longer to enjoy their hospitality and get to know them better.
I didn't agree or refuse, saying that I would see about it later.
The group chatted for a while, and soon it was time for lunch. Sha Biao sent someone to invite us, not only inviting me and Director Han, but also Zhang Ge and his family.
When we arrived at Sha Biao's house, I discovered that despite being the "headman" of the village, his house was no different from other ordinary households.
Except for Zhang Ge's family, the dozen or so Miao men from before were also present. As they say, meeting and smiling can resolve enmity. At the dinner table, everyone opened up and had another round of drinks, and all the unpleasantness naturally dissipated.
I have to say, these Miao men can really hold their liquor! Although the alcohol content of this Shuihua wine is not high, it's still white wine, and there's also a saying that "just smelling the alcohol can make you drunk". These guys were drinking like it was water, each person probably drinking over two jin, almost drinking all of Sha Biao's wine cellar!
I also drank a lot, the Shuihua wine was really fragrant, and it seemed like these people were deliberately trying to get me drunk, so I kept drinking one bowl after another! However, the alcohol just passed through my stomach and was directly converted into energy by my internal qi, so the more I drank, the more refreshed I felt.
"Huh? I didn't realize that, you lad not only fights well, your alcohol tolerance is also extraordinary?"
We hadn't had our fill of fighting with fists and now it was on the drinking table, and Sha Biao insisted on comparing our drinking capacity. We kept drinking one bowl after another until five in the afternoon, and it seemed like old man Sha was getting anxious about finishing all his wine, so we stopped.
I have to say, old man Sha wasn't actually too bad. Although he had planned to cast a curse on me and Director Han, it was just a very common and even shoddy curse. Those flesh-eating bugs looked scary, but in reality they weren't very harmful, at most causing a few vomits and diarrhea.
As for a cultivator like me, even if I drank them, it wouldn't affect me at all. Rubbish curse.
He wasn't trying to harm me and Director Han, but rather intended to use us as guinea pigs for testing his new curses. According to Sha Biao, the old man had been obsessed with making curses for a long time, especially longing for the long-lost "Wine Immortal Curse", so whenever strangers came to the village, he would try every means possible to use them to test his new curses!
Sha Biao didn't know how many times he had advised the old man, but he still stubbornly did as he pleased. It was fine when Sha Biao was around, but as soon as he left the village, the old man would find ways to make his new curses...His research on the "Wine Immortal Curse" had almost become an obsession.
The legend of the Wine Immortal Curse, I had heard of it. It was said to be a special witchcraft accidentally created by a Miao winemaker. The day he made the curse, the sky was clear, but at the moment the curse was cast, dark clouds suddenly filled the sky and it thundered and lightning. After a while, the dark clouds dispersed, and the altar was in a mess, but a jar of wine yeast appeared out of nowhere. The Miao people used this wine yeast to make an excellent brew, but those who could make the Wine Immortal Curse were few, and it had only occurred three times in the history of curse making, so whether in the Miao region or in the Central Plains, it was a fortunate event for winemakers to encounter the Wine Immortal Curse.
Old man Sha was also a winemaker, so it was completely understandable that he was obsessed with the Wine Immortal Curse.
As we were talking about the Wine Immortal Curse, the Miao man who had fought with me before and was thrown to the ground, came over with a bowl of wine, and said to me in broken Chinese, "I offended you just now, here's a bowl of wine to make peace!"
I understood his intention, he was probably saying that our conflicts were now resolved. But due to his limited Chinese vocabulary, he said it as "let's be even".
"Haha... Alright! We can be even!" Without hesitation, I took the wine bowl, not in a hurry to drink, but held it in my hands and said to everyone around, "I'm new here, and I may have offended you all earlier. Let's put it all behind with this wine! After this drink, let's be friends!"
"Yes! Friends!" Upon hearing this, Sha Biao also stood up and raised his wine bowl, saying, "After this drink, we are all good brothers, let's forget about any unpleasantness!"
I once again witnessed the Miao people's hearty attitude. Men, women, and children all raised their wine bowls and gulped down the wine. Among them, Sha Biao, having a good time, slammed his wine bowl to the ground with a bang, quite boldly, like a character from the Water Margin. Seeing this, everyone followed suit and smashed their wine bowls to the ground!
"Damn it!" Dozens of wine bowls crashed to the ground, leaving Sha Biao dumbfounded, and he cursed, "Who told you to do that! My family only has so much, now...my old man comes out, I'll have to skin you..."
This statement immediately sparked laughter throughout the room...
Haha...so hilarious, I can't take it, I'm almost crying from laughter...