Catching a Constable

Li Jing'an narrowed his eyes, staring at Chu Ning, his mind racing.

"Is this kid... a natural monster, or is there something else going on?"

He slowly exhaled, looking at Chu Ning with a complex expression, and said in a deep voice, "I've taught you the martial arts, so what do you say? Can you be a constable?"

Chu Ning's lips curved upwards, and he cupped his hands with ease, "Of course, but since you've taught me, why not show me a few more simple moves?"

"Teach a few more moves?" Li Jing'an's mouth twitched violently, his expression instantly turning unpredictable.

He recalled the techniques he had painstakingly practiced for a year to master, only to see this kid in front of him, after just a few gestures, practice them more refinedly than he had.

Teach a few more moves?

Wouldn't teaching a few more moves be asking for trouble?

Li Jing'an's face darkened, he let out a cold snort, turned his hand, and walked away, "Teach my ass! Whether you want to be one or not."

Chu Ning was slightly stunned. Seeing him storm off, he quickly caught up, smiling, "Hey, hey, hey, don't be angry, don't be angry, I'll be a constable, okay?"

Li Jing'an stopped in his tracks, glanced at him coldly, and grumbled, "Nonsense. You've learned the techniques, you're not going back on your word, are you?"

Chu Ning shrugged, his smile deepening, "I just want to learn more, so I can be more confident when handling cases."

The morning mist had yet to dissipate, and frost clung to the bluestone slabs.

Chu Ning stood by the county yamen, his saber at his side, his dark constable uniform making his eyes even more stern.

A bronze bell at the eaves swayed gently, startling away a crow pecking at scraps.

"Hold your waist token steady."

Li Jing'an tossed him a black iron token, its patterns coiled like snakes. "From today onwards, you are a 'Black Snake Guard' of the Qingyang Constable Camp."

The token was ice-cold in his hand, and Chu Ning's fingertip traced the raised snake patterns.

"On my first day as a constable, what should I learn?" Chu Ning asked with a slight smile, his tone calm.

"Adapt first," Li Jing'an's lips curved slightly upwards. "You'll follow me, see how the county yamen operates, and by the way... I'll take you on patrol."

Li Jing'an led Chu Ning, walking slowly. Along the way, people frequently cast looks of awe at Li Jing'an. Some shopkeepers even moved their stalls back slightly as he passed, as if afraid of provoking something they shouldn't.

Chu Ning noticed this, and his heart stirred slightly.

In this world, the weak seeing the strong, the lower class facing the powerful, were like sheep encountering a tiger, with only instinctive fear and yielding.

He had been one of them, exploited by loan sharks, living in poverty and fear. Back then, he could only lower his head when he saw the strong, afraid that a wrong glance would earn him a whipping.

He remembered those days when he was pushed to the brink, remembered the hunger, the pain, and the dignity that was ruthlessly trampled upon.

Now, he had become one of the powerful in the eyes of the weak, but that deeply ingrained sense of powerlessness had not dissipated.

He looked down at his waist token and clenched it slightly.

"As a constable, you need to become familiar with this city," Li Jing'an suddenly said.

"Familiarize yourself with its layout, its people, its dark side."

"Otherwise, how can you become a qualified constable?"

Chu Ning nodded silently.

He knew Li Jing'an was teaching him how to adapt to the role of a constable.

The two walked, one after the other, gradually entering another part of the county town.

Here, it was no longer as prosperous as the city center. The streets were narrow, the houses low, and the air was filled with a damp, decaying scent.

Li Jing'an's steps did not stop. He walked into an alley, his gaze sweeping around, as if searching for something.

"Chu Ning."

"Do you know the true face of this city?"

Chu Ning looked at the dilapidated houses before him, his eyes flickering slightly.

"The wealth gap?" he asked faintly.

Li Jing'an smiled slightly, his eyes deep. "More than just the wealth gap."

"There is real 'business' here."

"What kind of business?" Chu Ning's gaze deepened slightly.

"Follow me."

He pushed open a dilapidated wooden door, and Chu Ning followed closely.

Behind the door was a dark alley.

A faint smell of blood filled the air.

"The Black Snake Guard specializes in cases of martial artists causing trouble," Li Jing'an turned and stepped into the courtyard, his black boots crushing the thin frost. "Your first assignment is to investigate the massacre of the grain merchants in the West Market."

The scorched wooden door leaned against the wall, and the plaque above the lintel, bearing the inscription "Virtue supports all things," was cracked into three pieces.

Chu Ning's eyes flickered. Three days ago, the entire Zhao family, seventeen people, had died overnight. Their bodies were all purplish-blue, and the coroner couldn't find any poison. It was as if their lifeblood had been drained by someone.

Li Jing'an kicked open half of a cabinet. Among the moldy rice grains were dark red particles. He picked one up and sniffed it, his eyes darkening.

"Crimson Blood Sand, the main ingredient for refining Blood Pills."

Hearing this, a scene flashed through Chu Ning's mind.

Half a month ago, when he was trading at Shen Ji Leather Shop, Shen Yan had a gilded incense pouch hanging from his waist. Chu Ning hadn't paid it any mind at the time, but the bloody smell at that moment was remarkably similar to the smell of Crimson Blood Sand.

He frowned slightly, about to speak, but Li Jing'an suddenly stopped.

As they passed through the corridor, a disheveled old beggar was curled up in the shadow of a pillar, a half-moldy flatbread lying in his broken bowl.

Li Jing'an bent down and placed a piece of broken silver in his palm.

"Three days ago, did you see anything here?"

The old beggar's cloudy eyes bulged violently. His withered claws dug into the bluestone tiles, as if struggling from some nightmare.

"A ghost... a ghost with a blue face and fangs!" His voice was hoarse and trembling, filled with bone-chilling terror. "It... it was clinging to Shopkeeper Zhao's back... sucking... sucking his blood..."

Before he could finish, the veins on his neck suddenly bulged, and black, ink-like blood gushed from his seven orifices.

Chu Ning's eyes sharpened, and his rusty saber was drawn three inches, the thunder patterns surging within the scabbard.

But Li Jing'an steadily held his wrist, his two fingers probing the old beggar's forehead, his tone cold and emotionless.

"Soul Seizing Technique."

A strand of Yin energy, as black as night, shot out from the corpse's crown, instantly transforming into a ferocious ghost face with bared fangs, lunging straight at Li Jing'an.

Li Jing'an flicked his finger. The black energy, as if encountering the scorching sun, let out a shrill scream and vanished in the morning light in the blink of an eye.

He flicked the ashes from his fingertips, his gaze deep.

"The work of the Blood Refining Hall."

Chu Ning narrowed his eyes. "The Blood Refining Hall?"

"They extract the lifeblood of living people to refine Blood Pills," Li Jing'an said indifferently, as if stating the most ordinary of facts.

"What are Blood Pills used for?" Chu Ning pressed.

"Blood Pills can help them break through their cultivation, but..." Li Jing'an paused, his gaze darkening. "I suspect their use goes far beyond that."

Chu Ning clenched his fists, his voice low. "Does the government not care?"

"The government?" Li Jing'an scoffed, his tone full of disdain. "As long as it doesn't affect their rule or their salaries, why would they block others' path to wealth? Moreover, some people... are the very ones providing the protection."

Chu Ning's heart sank.

"The rich and powerful have Ranked Martial Artists protecting them, but the poor do not. And in this world, the poor are the vast majority," Li Jing'an said slowly.

"So, they can not only exploit the poor's wealth but also drain their lifeblood to aid their own cultivation breakthroughs."

Chu Ning fell silent, his fingertips turning slightly white.

Why were so many people in this world destitute?

He recalled his elder sister's helplessness when they were hounded by loan sharks, the despair when their home was bare, and the scene of him being whipped and rolling in the snow on that cold winter night.

In the past, he was merely livestock to be slaughtered.

Today, relying on the Chaos Divine Order to overdraft his future, with the hilt of his saber in hand, he finally stood on the other side.

But this was still far from enough.

The wind blew into the corridor, carrying a faint scent of blood.

His gaze turned cold. He needed to quickly repay the price for the second level of the Thunderclap Saber Art, and then find Li Jing'an to learn other cultivation techniques.