Fishing with a Straight Hook

With a single sentence from Dug, Feng Zhong knew he had been accepted.

He could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. "Seventh Brother, what are your plans next? I'll cooperate with all my strength. Should we first use Qiu Yuanlang to lure the Iron Palm Gang's hall masters back? I can post a notice in Luyang City saying that Qiu Yuanlang is dying and wishes to see several hall masters before he dies. As long as they hear the news, no matter how far away they are, they'll come to verify it themselves."

This guy's advanced skill was way too BUG!

A genuine shit-stirring stick. Even without borrowing his tailwind, this guy would have found it easy to grow stronger. No wonder he had said he would add a few more flames to his fire in Luyang City...

But his weakness was probably offense and defense. Once his rank was exposed and others targeted him, the odds of him dying were far too high. The faster he grew, the easier it would be for someone else to reap what he had sown.

Getting a firm grasp on one's Keyword in the Simulation Arena really was quite a test...

Dug glanced at him. "That will work."

Wang San said, "Seventh Brother, you can't take everything he says at face value. He can lure monsters, but he can't control how big the monsters he lures are! He can bring over the Iron Palm Gang's hall masters, sure, but we don't know how many people they'll bring, how they'll come, or when they'll arrive. There are too many unknowns. We can't keep our guard up day and night, can we?"

"I can add a date to the notice." Feng Zhong shot Wang San a glare and said unhappily, "Wang San, we're on the same team. Can you stop targeting me all the time? I only prepared some black dog blood for you. I didn't actually splash it on you. If it had been anyone else, they'd have killed you the moment they learned your identity. Qiu Yuanlang is here. Han Zuo and the others, maybe not, but Qiu Muqian and the rest are Qiu Yuanlang's children. They definitely won't go far, and they won't be able to bring back many reinforcements anytime soon. If you have a better suggestion, just say it. No one's stopping you..."

Wang San opened his mouth, but said nothing. He turned away and silently tended to his severed hand. His skills focused on intimidation and explosive bursts; he truly could not play much of a role in the broader picture.

"We can also post a notice saying that Qiu Yuanlang has discovered who in the Iron Palm Gang is a Heavenly Demon." Dug ignored the bickering pair and intended to make full use of Feng Zhong's skill. "Four candidates infiltrated a tiny Feng Family. I refuse to believe a massive Iron Palm Gang doesn't have even one."

"Good idea." Feng Zhong said, "Right. Keep those whose Keywords are useful; get rid of those whose aren't. We can't let these people lurk around us. I think we can expand the scope to all of Luyang City and say we have a list of suspected Heavenly Demons hidden within the city."

"Not for now." Dug looked at Feng Zhong and shook his head. "If we release a list of suspects, the ones we draw in may not necessarily be candidates, but investigators from the various gangs. The real candidates won't need to come themselves. They can send someone else to take a look and verify whether it's true. Anyone with even slightly clever methods won't expose themselves at all. We need to handle things step by step. Take it steady."

"Seventh Brother is right." Feng Zhong chuckled. "I was too anxious."

That night.

After Dug and the other two worked through a series of deductions about what came next, they had Wang San frighten Qiu Yuanlang a little and easily seized the Iron Palm Gang's Martial Arts manuals. They spent the rest of their time cultivating Martial Arts.

Improved attributes did indeed increase their combat strength, but contestants in the Simulation Arena all had ways to raise their attributes. At a time like this, Martial Arts could determine victory or defeat.

With identical attributes, if one person practiced Martial Arts and the other did not, then when they met, the one who had trained would certainly win.

Moreover, attributes could be weakened if countered, but Martial Arts learned could not. Even a mosquito's leg was still meat. At a critical moment, Martial Arts might be what turned the tables.

Besides, with bodies improved by their attributes, as long as they understood things like meridians and acupoints, practicing Martial Arts would yield twice the result with half the effort. Thus, in the Simulation Arena, any contestant with even a shred of competitive spirit would use every possible method to enhance their strength.

The Iron Palm Gang's two most famous Martial Arts sets were "Iron Sand Palm" and the lightness skill movement technique acquired from the Qiao Family Sacred Land, "Eight Steps Chasing Cicada."

Like the Feng Family's "Shattering Gold and Breaking Jade Hand," Iron Sand Palm was also an external art. One cultivated Internal Energy from the outside in, while also using methods such as thrusting one's hands into sand to temper the palms, then maintaining them with medicinal power. At high levels, the palms would become warm and smooth like jade, yet harder than steel. The cultivation process was extremely long and complicated, so Dug naturally discarded it.

He devoted more of his energy to the lightness skill "Eight Steps Chasing Cicada."

Eight Steps Chasing Cicada was not merely a lightness skill; it also contained combat moves. For instance, its first move, Questioning Leg, had one leap more than ten feet into the air and attack the opponent's head with a kick. If that missed, the other foot would strike again. It mixed feints with real attacks and contained intricate transformations, so it truly could increase Dug's combat strength.

But for the current Dug, the increase was limited. First, his Internal Energy was insufficient to support a leap of more than ten feet. Second, if he had time to jump up, he would have already rushed over and stabbed his opponent full of holes.

Still, having it was better than not having it.

As Dug practiced the techniques of "Eight Steps Chasing Cicada," he was considering finding an internal cultivation art better suited to him. Compared to external arts and lightness skills, internal cultivation would obviously aid him more. Most lightness skills also required Internal Energy as support.

At dawn the next day.

The sky had only just begun to brighten. Dug and the other two were still practicing when Liu Cheng, the newly appointed Hall Master of Justice Hall, came to pay his respects of his own accord.

Seeing Liu Cheng, Dug stopped his movements and smiled. "Hall Master Liu, you're up quite early."

Liu Cheng cupped his fists and said respectfully, "Gang Leader, the Peacekeeping Gang has only just been established, and there are countless affairs to handle. This subordinate does not dare sleep in."

"It's fine to sleep a little longer." Dug smiled. "You're not like us. Only by getting enough rest can you do twice the work with half the effort."

Looking at the energetic Dug and his companions, Liu Cheng sighed inwardly at the Heavenly Demons' boundless vigor, then smiled. "Gang Leader possesses the body of a Heavenly Demon. Naturally, this subordinate does not dare compare himself to you. But matters cannot be delayed. Sleeping a little less won't kill me."

He paused, then continued, "Gang Leader, neither Qiu Muqian nor Han Zuo returned yesterday. They must have learned what happened here and fled to take refuge elsewhere, or to seek reinforcements. The former Gang Leader was an old friend of Tong Shihong, Sect Master of the Divine Fist Gate. Tong Shihong is one of the foremost masters of this age, and his Overlord Fist has reached the realm of the divine. His Martial Arts surpass the former Gang Leader's by an unknown margin. I ask that Gang Leader make preparations early. The Iron Palm Gang's businesses outside the city must also be reclaimed as soon as possible. If we wait too long, unforeseen changes may arise."

Yesterday, Liu Cheng had publicly acknowledged Feng Qi as Gang Leader, cutting off his own retreat long ago. For his own safety, he had to plan wholeheartedly for Dug. At the thought of the consequences should Dug fail, he could not sleep even if he tried.

"Mm, I already have a plan." Dug glanced at him and nodded. He pointed at the notice Feng Zhong had written beforehand. "Post this notice later. Before repelling external threats, we must first settle internal ones. We need to find the Heavenly Demons within the Peacekeeping Gang before discussing anything else. There should be quite a few people coming today, having heard the news, to air their grievances and plead their cases. I plan to establish a Hall of Grievance Redressal within the gang. From now on, Wang San will handle wrongful and false cases, along with all kinds of injustices. Find several incense masters to assist him..."

"Yes." Liu Cheng nodded and went over to pick up the notice Feng Zhong had written. Upon seeing its contents, he could not help but freeze. "Gang Leader, if you already know who the Heavenly Demon is, why not simply go and capture him directly? Why write such a notice?"

"The former Gang Leader knows, not me." Dug said. "After telling me yesterday, the former Gang Leader fell unconscious again. The reason I wrote this notice is to intimidate the Heavenly Demon in the gang and see whether we can bluff him into revealing himself."

"Wouldn't it be better to ask the former Gang Leader directly once he wakes up?" Liu Cheng asked. "Why go to such unnecessary lengths and alert the snake in the grass?"

"Look at the second notice." Dug pointed to the sheet below it.

Liu Cheng looked over the second notice, and his expression immediately changed. His voice trembled. "The former Gang Leader is at death's door?"

"Mm." Dug sighed. "The former Gang Leader's injuries are too severe. I fear he does not have many days left. We are the Peacekeeping Gang. We must preserve the final dignity of a dying man and cannot press him too harshly. Post that notice in Luyang City. The former Gang Leader's final wish is to see his children one last time. We will do our best to fulfill it..."

Your fishing method was way too obvious!

Only an idiot would take the bait!

Liu Cheng fell silent for a moment. Feeling that he could not keep slapping his new Gang Leader in the face, he forced himself to say, "Gang Leader is indeed peerlessly righteous."