Chapter 15: Chapter 15: Living Corpse (Part 1) ’It appeared.’ Lou Yi felt a surge of joy in his heart. This confirmed his speculation that as long as he persisted in practicing a certain skill for a period of time, it would appear on the attribute panel. Of course, the skill might need to be related to combat. Otherwise, why wouldn’t eating, walking, or grave digging appear? This was also why he initially only possessed the skills of chopping and splitting wood. Chopping and splitting are the most basic movements in axe skills. The next steps would be simple. As a piece of energy disappeared, the state of the Stone Throwing skill changed from unpracticed to beginner. [Name: Lou Yi] [Age: 19/55] [Realm: None] [Skills: Lou’s Axe Skill (Beginner 0/10), Stone Throwing (Beginner 0/3)] [Energy: 0] A new memory was born in Lou Yi’s mind. This time, he became a shepherd boy on the prairie, herding sheep for his master. The sheep were docile and easy to drive, but the dangers on the prairie were many, often arriving unexpectedly. Like eagles that dropped from the sky, wolves lurking in the shadows, or even a poison snake suddenly emerging from the ground... If they attacked the flock and caused losses, Lou Yi, the little shepherd, would surely be in trouble. Fortunately, he learned to use the slingshot. To fend off potential threats and protect his own life, he practiced diligently day and night. After several years, his Stone Throwing skill gradually became proficient. He mastered various Stone Throwing techniques, like the helicopter style, side-spin, and eight-character formation. The range of his throws could hit enemies within a hundred meters with a considerable probability. His keen observational skills allowed him to spot threats first, surpassing other shepherd boys by a large margin. Due to his contributions in driving away beasts and birds of prey, preventing several potential losses, he was promoted by his master to a rider. And his experience in Stone Throwing was entirely inherited by the real Lou Yi. At the same time, a faint warmth appeared within Lou Yi and even surged up to his neck. His strength and stamina didn’t noticeably increase, but changes mostly occurred in various sensory organs. His eyesight saw further, his hearing became sharper, and even his sense of smell grew more acute. Lou Yi stepped outside, walked through the reeds to the riverbank, feeling the gentle breeze, smelling the fresh scent of the river, and listening to the surrounding chirps of insects and birds, feeling content. Not too long ago, on nights like this, he would only dare to cower at home, like most people in the world. But now, having gained strength that most people couldn’t attain, his courage naturally increased. Lou Yi picked up a pebble the size of a ping-pong ball from the ground, wrapped it in the slingshot’s cloth pouch, and then started swinging it with a side-spin from his left hand. ’Whizz!’ Under the bright moonlight, the pebble could be seen quickly flying out, striking the trunk of a willow tree on the opposite bank with a crisp ’smack’. After the sound, all the surrounding calls paused for a moment. ’Not bad.’ Lou Yi was quite satisfied with this effect. Although it was only twenty meters, he couldn’t hit anything before. Next, Lou Yi began testing the various indicators of the Stone Throwing skill after reaching the beginner level. More than an hour later, he reached a general conclusion. For targets within fifty meters, the probability of hitting a watermelon-sized object was about eighty percent or more, with accuracy increasing as the distance decreased. At ranges between fifty meters and a hundred meters, the probability was around sixty to seventy percent. Beyond a hundred meters, it depended entirely on his on-the-spot performance, requiring a bit of luck. ’At the beginner level, achieving this standard is remarkable. Imagine reaching proficiency!’ Lou Yi wasn’t greedy — he felt that he wasn’t any worse than an Olympic athlete at this point. As for the power of the stone, he couldn’t quantify it yet and would have to see in future battles. But when thrown with full force, even striking smaller trees made the leaves rustle. After completing the tests, Lou Yi casually tied the slingshot around his waist as a belt and returned home to sleep. ... The next day. As soon as Lou Yi stepped out of the house, he saw a robust man in his thirties standing at the Qi Family’s gate, raising his hands, kicking his legs, twisting his hips, doing awkward morning exercises, and making ’hum-hum’ sounds. ’Boss Qi.’ Lou Yi naturally recognized him as Qi Family’s eldest son, Qi Long, who had inherited his father’s business and was the biggest butcher among the surrounding villages and towns. Due to the relationship between the two families, Lou Yi had no intention of greeting him and walked right past. "Lou Yi." Unexpectedly, Qi Long had already noticed him, stopped his morning exercises, and called out to Lou Yi. Lou Yi stopped, turned, and looked at him. Among the four Qi brothers, Qi Long resembled Butcher Qi the most. Square face, thick eyebrows, bulging cheeks — he looked like someone not to be trifled with. Most notably, his aggressive gaze made people uncomfortable. "How are you considering what I said before?" "What subject?" "Don’t play dumb with me. I’m asking if you’ll move." "I won’t move." Lou Yi turned and left, unwilling to deal with this brute. "You little bastard!" Unexpectedly, Qi Long, enraged and humiliated, rushed up from behind, reaching with his right hand toward Lou Yi’s neck to grab him. ’Swoosh!’ The next moment, Qi Long’s action froze, cold sweat suddenly streaming down his forehead. An ordinary axe pressed against his neck, conveying a chilling sensation he could clearly feel. And he hadn’t even seen how Lou Yi moved. In just a daze, his life and death were in the other’s hands. ’What the hell?’ Qi Long thought, frozen stiff, not daring to move. "What did you just say? Say it again?" Lou Yi looked calmly at Boss Qi. The more Lou Yi acted like this, the more fearful Qi Long became. "I... I said I am the little bastard. Ayi, please don’t hold it against me..." Qi Long stammered. "Remember, you have a family of ten, and I only have one miserable life." Lou Yi ’smacked’ Qi Long’s face several times, turning it red. Lou Yi didn’t care what Qi Long thought, and continued walking towards the hill. Only leaving Qi Long standing there, his face changing between various shades of emotion. Back at the house. Butcher Qi, who was lying on a lounge chair, released the tobacco pipe from his mouth and casually asked, "What’s wrong? Why do you look so bad?" "Dad, are we really going against Lou Yi?" Qi Long couldn’t help but ask. "What do you mean against? Does he deserve it?" Butcher Qi said disdainfully, "If it weren’t for his dead father’s connections and worrying about those people gossiping, combined with not affecting your second brother’s future, I would have driven him away long ago." "If he’s sensible, I could even give him a few more pieces of silver as compensation. If he doesn’t listen, well, that’s like putting an axe in a swallow’s mouth — asking for trouble!" "If it doesn’t work out, can’t we fill in that ditch next door and build a house for your fourth brother there?" Qi Long said. "What kind of nonsense is that!" Butcher Qi suddenly leapt from the chair and gave his eldest son a slap, "This way, how would I keep my face?" "If we can’t even handle a snotty-nosed brat, how would others view me?" "Fine, fine, you’re the boss, you decide." Qi Long said, holding his reddened face with slight grievance. He felt he might be overthinking it. Although Lou Yi’s skills earlier were impressive, perhaps it was just because he hadn’t woken up properly that morning. As the saying goes, two fists cannot fight against four hands. The Qi Family had so many people; his years of butchering gave him strength far beyond the average person, his second brother was a mighty archer, and his third brother had great prospects in the city practicing martial arts. Could they not handle a brat? Boss Qi did not know. The brat in his eyes would soon meet a real brat at the burial ground. That night. Lou Yi, carrying a shovel, went to the cemetery. He hadn’t dug much before he heard strange sounds not far away. He pushed aside the grass, reached the scene, and looked at the black figure swiftly breaking through the soil, completely puzzled. ’What on earth is this?’ ...