Chapter 390: Chapter 366: This Is Definitely a Master

Because of that woman’s slander, the Kane & Ming Dojo was losing more and more students.

Zack Sutton was furious, wishing he could hire someone to beat the woman up.

Baldy Forrest knew that he was the reason his son and the dojo were being criticized, so he came by the next day to give Kyle Kane a stack of money, but Kyle didn’t take it.

"If you really want to make it up to us, then come work here!" Kyle Kane said.

Baldy Forrest was a little shocked. Because he had a criminal record, not many people nearby were willing to hire him.

He could only be a street thug, doing things that skirted the edge of the law, like collecting debts and acting as muscle for others.

"We just opened, and as you can see, we don’t have many students, so we can’t pay you much at first. Are you willing to come?"

"Why?"

Kyle Kane suddenly laughed. "Because you have a child."

Everyone here had an unfortunate childhood, but not a single one of them had given up the chance to change their fate.

***

Warren’s Martial Arts Hall.

Magnus Warren listened to his disciple’s report and burst out laughing.

"The Kane Family is really stupid, hiring even a criminal. Looks like we won’t have to do anything else before they shut down for good."

Baldy Forrest’s father had once helped his own father, so his family owed the Forrest Family a favor.

Now, the Forrest Family wanted to send their child to Warren’s Martial Arts Hall to study, and since they had come to him for help, he couldn’t easily refuse. However, his cousin, Linton Warren, absolutely refused to let a criminal’s son into their hall.

He had been racking his brain for how to refuse them, but the opening of the Kane & Ming Dojo had done him a huge favor.

He could get rid of the burden that was the Forrest Family and get his revenge at the same time. It was killing two birds with one stone.

So, he deliberately had someone pass a message to Baldy Forrest, telling him a new martial arts hall had opened in Oakhaven that was teaching for free for three months.

Sure enough, Baldy Forrest was tempted and personally brought his son to learn.

Then, the people he hired would come and stir up trouble, ruining the Kane & Ming Dojo’s reputation.

If Kane & Ming refused Cedric Forrest to protect themselves, they would inevitably offend Baldy Forrest.

Without him having to lift a finger, Baldy Forrest would surely bring his men to trash the place and not let the Kanes stay open.

He never expected the Kanes to actually accept Cedric Forrest, and now they were even hiring Baldy Forrest.

’They had a clear path to heaven but chose to break down the gates of hell instead.’

With plenty of dirt handed to him on a silver platter, he’d like to see who would still dare to go to the Kane Family to learn martial arts.

Meanwhile, at the Kane & Ming Dojo, Kyle Kane’s decision had indeed caused a massive loss of students.

The ones who remained were basically people who wanted to learn martial arts but couldn’t afford to go to Warren’s Martial Arts Hall.

Most of them were on the older side, lacked talent, and were past the optimal age for learning martial arts. Warren’s Martial Arts Hall, on the other hand, had very high requirements for talent. The more talented a person was, the lower their tuition; for those with poor talent, the fees were absurdly high.

Therefore, the appearance of the Kane & Ming Dojo perfectly met the needs of these people.

The dojo now had only seven students left: six adults and one child.

Dawn Miles changed her usual hands-off management style and decided to train the students herself.

And so, a strange sight began to appear in Oakhaven every morning. From before dawn, everyone from the Kane & Ming Dojo, except for Lucas Kane, would line up and run along the side of the road.

Kyle Kane, who was in the lead, even had weight bags strapped to his body.

Meanwhile, Dawn Miles would stand on the dojo’s roof with her hands behind her back, watching them. Anyone who slacked off would be flicked by a small pebble, and her accuracy was frighteningly high.

As a result, everyone’s respect and trust in Dawn Miles grew.

’This woman is definitely a master.’

***

Kingsford, the Whitlock Family—

After receiving a call from the Shaun Family, Young Master Kian Whitlock’s expression darkened slightly.

"You need to report such a trivial matter to me?"

A young lady from one of the Great Families of Kingsford running off to some poor, remote place to invest in and open a martial arts dojo.

’It’s nothing but a whim. Why do they need to specifically ask for my instructions?’

Kian Whitlock hung up the phone with an angry look, pinching the bridge of his nose before looking at the trusted subordinate in front of him.

"Continue."

"We’ve found out what the Morgan Family and the Warner Family were hiding. Aurora Sinclair hasn’t appeared recently, not because she returned to Sunstone, but because her meridians were destroyed by a Regulator."

"Really? Is Aurora Sinclair dead?" Kian Whitlock’s eyes widened instantly, a look of pleasant surprise on his face.

The subordinate’s face showed a hint of uncertainty. "She’s probably not dead. Although those masters only brought Aurora Sinclair’s junior sister back to Sunstone, the Morgan Family has been constantly sending people out of Kingsford recently. I suspect Aurora Sinclair might have escaped."

The smile on Kian Whitlock’s face faded slightly. He said in a low voice, "She really is an unkillable monster."

"I believe now is the best time to kill Aurora Sinclair."

"Of course it’s a good time." Kian Whitlock’s gaze was filled with killing intent. "Send the order: all Whitlock Family forces are to hunt down and kill Aurora Sinclair!"

"Yes—"

***

The Grants of Crestfall didn’t receive specific instructions from the Shaun Family and were even scolded: "You need to ask for instructions for such a small matter?"

After a moment of thought, the Head of the Warren Family told the Warren Great Martial Master, "Let things run their course. It’s a test of their own abilities."

When Linton Warren found out, he was overjoyed. That very day, he announced a tuition reduction, aiming to directly crush the Kane Martial Arts Hall.

But the Kane Family remained "Zen" about it, with an attitude of "if you come, I’ll teach; if you leave, I won’t force you to stay." This, in turn, attracted many curious onlookers in town who came to see what was going on.

But as soon as they arrived, they would discover that the Fist Technique the Kanes were teaching had changed.

It didn’t seem to be the old Kane Family Boxing, but a new kind of Basic Boxing Skill. It felt very simple at first, but it was very difficult to master.

This, instead, sparked everyone’s competitive spirit.

Far from being crushed, the Kane & Ming Dojo ended up with more and more students staying.

When the youngest student, Cedric Forrest, became a Martial Artist after just one week, it shocked the entire dojo.

That very day, the news was spread by Baldy Forrest and his lackeys.

The number of people rushing to the Kane & Ming Dojo instantly increased, but the dojo issued a new rule:

[Aside from current students, the dojo will only teach the first 10 people to arrive each day for free. Those who come after will be charged according to their arrival order—the later you arrive, the more expensive it is. A maximum of 50 people will be taught each day.]

This rule was established by Dawn Miles before she left.

At first, the Kanes didn’t understand, but after implementing it for a month, they couldn’t help but admire her foresight.

This rule not only helped the Kane Family screen for the first batch of high-quality students but also enhanced their good reputation.

Martial arts training emphasizes perseverance. People who can stick to waking up early already have willpower and determination beyond the ordinary.

This was beneficial for the Kanes’ teaching, and the results with these students were better than with others, which helped spread their reputation by word-of-mouth.

Furthermore, the 50-person limit was to protect the Kane Family from being completely suppressed by the Warren Family in the early stages.

An enrollment of 50 students was just small potatoes to Warren’s Martial Arts Hall; it posed no threat to them.

Naturally, they would no longer focus their attention on the Kane Family.

The Kane Family just needed to bide their time and hide their strength, slowly accumulating connections and a good reputation.

They were waiting for the moment when a quantitative change would lead to a qualitative one.

***

A tree-lined path, lush and green.

Surrounded by dense mountain forests, a plain black sedan drove slowly along it.

The car window was open, and a pleasant singing voice drifted out from inside.

"Ditto Miles..."

"Present, Master."

"Can you sing in a different voice?"

"Apologies, Master. Ditto Miles’s song library only contains the three songs recorded by Father."

Dawn Miles: ...

Alvin Morgan’s singing continued to loop inside the car, making the tips of Dawn Miles’s ears turn red.

’I wonder who wrote the lyrics? They’re all such sentimental lines.’

[Before I met you, I never thought about the future. After I met you, you became my future. This world is cold, but because of you, it has become warm. I love you, Aurora...]

"Ditto Miles, can you—"

"Level one alert!"

Suddenly, the song playing from Ditto Miles was replaced by a danger warning alarm.

"Master, thermal weapons detected ahead. Requesting permission to activate level one protection mode..."