After Ye Qingxuan left the training grounds, Hong Qingshan's words—"Protect that younger sister of yours"—rang through his mind like the tolling of an ancient bell. As he walked beneath the government office's corridor, the shadows cast by the pillars swept across his body one after another. Light and darkness alternated, just like his state of mind.
He reached a deserted corner, and Hong Qingshan's aged voice came from behind him.
"Young man, come back."
Ye Qingxuan turned around. The old constable had followed him at some point, and the pipe bowl in his hand still gave off wisps of smoke.
"Does Captain Hong have further instructions?"
"Instructions would be putting it too strongly. I'll give you another bit of inside information." Hong Qingshan approached, lowering his voice. The smell of tobacco oil came with him. "Aside from caring about his reputation, Duan Tianbao has another fatal flaw—greed. He's been stuck at the peak of the second Body Tempering stage for years. He dreams of getting a Body Tempering Pill to break through. For that, there's nothing he wouldn't dare do."
The old constable pointed his pipe toward the Black Market in the south of the city. "That underground casino of his, built beside the Black Market, is called 'Happy Forest.' It's his moneybag. The interest on the loans inside is even more vicious than outside. Chief Constable Zhang knows about it, but he's never reported it. You understand."
After saying that, Hong Qingshan no longer spoke. He turned and walked away at an unhurried pace, leaving Ye Qingxuan with only his hunched back.
Ye Qingxuan stood where he was, but his heart had brightened.
The Body Tempering Pill and the casino. Those were Duan Tianbao's fatal weaknesses.
Before he knew it, the day off arrived. Ye Qingxuan took off his