Big Fish

Shen Qing rode his horse quickly towards Lieutenant Xiao Bin's residence.

During the ride, Shen Qing also took the opportunity to study the Overbearing Meridian Opening Art.

This was the follow-up technique to the Overbearing Body Forging Art, and it was a technique for the Houtian Realm.

The Houtian Realm cultivated Internal Energy. Martial artists needed to connect the opened acupoints one by one, creating a circulation within their bodies.

"It's not that difficult."

After reading it from beginning to end just once, the word "Beginner" for the Overbearing Meridian Opening Art appeared on his status panel.

Shen Qing took out several bottles of Aperture Opening Pills he had confiscated from the Huang family.

Although Aperture Opening Pills were meant for opening acupoints in the Body Tempering Realm, they could still be used by Houtian Realm cultivators.

The effect might be weaker, but a larger quantity would still work.

Shen Qing directly poured four or five pills into his mouth while furiously circulating the Overbearing Meridian Opening Art.

The medicinal power rapidly opened the nodes of his meridians, connecting several acupoints.

In just the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, nine acupoints were connected, and a trace of Internal Energy condensed in Shen Qing's dantian.

Shen Qing's realm naturally advanced to the first level of the Houtian Realm.

After another half an incense stick's worth of time, Shen Qing's aura surged again.

He broke through to the second level of the Houtian Realm.

Lin Zikai seemed to have noticed something and yelled out.

"Lord Shen! Someone ahead!"

He looked up and saw several Imperial Guards moving boxes outside Xiao Bin's mansion.

Lin Zikai rode his horse forward and cleared his throat.

The Imperial Guards quickly bowed and saluted.

"Greetings, Lieutenant Shen, Lieutenant Lin."

Lin Zikai pointed towards Xiao Bin's mansion.

"What are you doing here?"

A Colonel quickly explained.

"Oh, this."

"Last night, Lieutenant Shen had a bit of trouble escorting the confiscated goods, and General Sun discovered that this Lieutenant Xiao... Xiao Bin was the informant."

"But when we came to arrest him, we found his residence empty. Someone must have tipped him off, and he's already fled."

"General Sun ordered us to confiscate all the property."

Shen Qing sneered, "Clever."

He had just finished raiding the Huang family and interrogating Huang Zikun, and then he came to Xiao Bin's mansion. It had been less than an hour.

And Xiao Bin had already escaped?

The Scholar rode his horse closer to Shen Qing and whispered.

"Lord Shen."

Shen Qing glanced at the Scholar. His scholarly face was now stiff, and his eyes seemed to be suppressing rage.

Did Xiao Bin escaping really make him this angry? Isn't Sun Yan still around? At worst, Sun Yan can kick you a couple more times later.

"My lord, look at that teahouse in the east. The man in the purple robe on the second floor, near the east side."

"He's the one who killed Old Lei."

Shen Qing finally understood why he was so angry.

Old Lei and the Scholar had joined the Imperial Guards around the same time, only a few days apart. They were the best of friends.

Shen Qing casually glanced over and saw the man in the purple robe leisurely sipping tea.

"How can you be sure it was him?"

The Scholar gritted his teeth and said, "I don't recognize the man, but I recognize the fan on his waist."

"Old Lei was fighting a master who used a fan. He was killed by a black fan to the throat. I won't forget the appearance of that fan!"

Shen Qing nodded calmly. As long as there was confirmation, that was enough.

Shen Qing spurred his horse, moving close to the ground like an arrow.

He stopped before the teahouse, touched the ground with his right foot, and leaped high. With a light push off a nearby wonton stall, Shen Qing, like a swallow, jumped onto the second floor of the teahouse and sat down opposite the man in the purple robe.

However, the man in the purple robe remained composed and even poured Shen Qing a cup of tea.

"Someone paid to have you killed."

If you find this book interesting, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.

"I didn't want to kill anymore."

"But this lieutenant from the capital is worth... something..."

Shen Qing narrowed his eyes, his hand shot out like lightning, the sound of fierce wind accompanying his palm as it pressed down on the purple-robed man's head.

With a forceful push, he slammed the man's head onto the tea table. The thick table shattered into pieces, tea splashing everywhere. The surrounding patrons cried out in alarm, but upon seeing Shen Qing's Imperial Guard uniform, they swallowed their curses.

Shen Qing let out a cold laugh.

"Tadpoles have markings of frogs, are you trying to fool your mom?"

"You're pretending to be a master now?"

The purple-robed man's vision swam from the impact. He struggled with all his might to lift his head, seemingly wanting to say something.

But Shen Qing had no desire to listen. He directly kicked the man's face with his eight-inch foot, sending him unconscious.

Footsteps echoed from the stairs of the teahouse. Lin Zikai and the others rushed up, quickly clearing the second floor.

The scholar suddenly charged forward, furiously kicking the purple-robed man as if to vent his rage.

Shen Qing glanced at the scholar, who seemed to have gone mad, and muttered under his breath.

"Haven't you eaten? Kick him in the vital spots!"

The scholar's eyes reddened, and he nodded vigorously.

"Thank you, sir!"

With that, the scholar swept his right foot back in a wide arc, channeling all his strength into a powerful kick towards the purple-robed man's groin.

With a bang, everyone seemed to hear the sound of crushed eggs.

The purple-robed man's eyes snapped open, as if they would pop out of his head. The next moment, he rolled his eyes and fainted again.

The Imperial Guards on the second floor of the teahouse all instinctively squeezed their legs together, as if feeling a phantom pain.

Lin Zikai clenched his legs and slowly shuffled over to Shen Qing.

"Lord Shen, is it really okay to beat him like this? We haven't even interrogated him yet."

Shen Qing sat down by the tea table. Lin Zikai quickly wiped the table with his robe, found a clean cup, poured a cup of tea, and handed it to Shen Qing.

Shen Qing took a sip. "It's fine. A Houtian Realm martial artist isn't that easily broken."

Lin Zikai's pupils contracted.

Houtian Realm?

A Houtian Realm martial artist was instantly defeated by Shen Qing with a single palm strike? Just how strong was Shen Qing?

A faint feeling arose in Lin Zikai that he wasn't just joining a pirate ship, but perhaps a massive vessel.

Thinking this, Lin Zikai immediately shouted, "Hey, you! Find me some chains."

He then strode over to the scholar and grabbed him.

"Scholar, I call you scholar, but you really think you're a scholar? Kicking like that has any force?"

"Get out of the way, get out of the way, let this lieutenant show you how it's done!"

With that, Lin Zikai raised his right foot, channeling the strength of his entire body into his toes with a twist of his waist. This kick even produced a whistling sound.

The purple-robed man was kicked flying, the sound of cracking bones crisp and clear. At the same time, the corner of a black and white token was revealed.

Lin Zikai picked it up and his expression froze. He then hurried towards Shen Qing, his breathing becoming ragged.

"Sir! Sir! It's a big fish! This is a big fish!"

Shen Qing took the token. It had a black background with a white dragon pattern. Shen Qing found it very familiar.

Black Dog and Old Li heard the commotion and also gathered around. They looked at the token for a few moments but couldn't make out what it was.

"Lieutenant Lin, what is this thing? Why is it a big fish?"

Lin Zikai smiled mysteriously. "You guys haven't been in the Imperial Guards for long, you haven't seen much."

"What this token represents was quite significant a few years ago."

Shen Qing's furrowed brow relaxed. "The White Dragon Cult, right? They're not completely wiped out yet?"

Upon hearing "White Dragon Cult," Black Dog and Old Li also remembered something. "Are they remnants of Northern Yuan?"

"Precisely." Shen Qing rubbed the token, recalling books he had read at home as a child.

The dynasty before the Great Wu Dynasty was the Northern Yuan Dynasty. After its fall, not all its people were eliminated. The remaining remnants established the White Dragon Cult, which had been causing trouble in the Great Wu Dynasty.

The Great Wu Dynasty had been relentlessly hunting these remnants, even offering immense rewards.

Looking at it this way...

It really was a big fish.