A Seasoned Shut-In, Waiting by a Tree Stump for a Hare

Outside Lin Family Fortress.

A burst of hurried footsteps approached, and a group of people came into view.

"Boss, you're here."

The two Medicine Gang members lying prone in the grass hurriedly rose and respectfully addressed the Hooked Nose Man at their head.

The Hooked Nose Man asked, "Where is that brat now?"

"According to the information we received, someone saw him enter Lin Family Fortress. He hasn't come out yet."

"What did the informant inside say?"

"There's no news for the moment."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the Hooked Nose Man spotted a white pigeon flying toward them.

"It's here!"

He stretched out his hand. The pigeon landed on his shoulder, and he took out the letter from its tube.

Upon opening it, his gaze immediately sharpened. It read:

"Suspect Tie Niu left Lin Family Fortress a quarter of an hour ago!"

The two members who had been keeping watch outside the fortress immediately said upon seeing this:

"That's impossible. We've been lying in wait the whole time—we never saw anyone leave."

The Hooked Nose Man snorted coldly. "What's impossible about it? He must have escaped in another direction."

Hearing this, the two fell silent, not daring to say another word.

The Hooked Nose Man's gaze flickered as he muttered, "Tie Niu, sooner or later, I'll catch you!"

Elsewhere.

After shaking off the people following him, Su Chen hurried back to White Stone City.

After leaving Misty Rain Pavilion, he had deliberately wandered around Lin Family Fortress for a long while before slipping away amid the crowds.

He did not take the main road back, instead deliberately choosing a small path.

The facts proved that this decision had been correct.

He successfully shook off his pursuers and left Lin Family Fortress safe and sound.

"Trusting Lin Family Fortress not to leak secrets is worse than believing Qin Shi Huang would come back to life and V me fifty!"

After entering White Stone City, Su Chen finally let out a breath of relief.

His experience in the martial world had still been lacking. In his haste to make money, he had nearly exposed himself.

Fortunately, he had discovered it in time. Otherwise, Lin Family Fortress might have already stabbed him in the back.

"From now on, I need to be more careful when making money. Lin Family Fortress can no longer be trusted completely!"

After returning home, Su Chen went over everything and directly placed Lin Family Fortress on his list of untrustworthy parties.

He then washed up. After working outside for three days, he had earned nearly fifty taels of silver.

Though it was still short of a hundred taels, the gains were decent enough. Naturally, he could not wrong himself.

So after washing up, Su Chen found a restaurant, ordered a whole table of dishes, and began eating by himself.

There was no need to worry about not finishing it. His appetite was now equivalent to that of three normal adult men—not to be underestimated.

After eating and drinking his fill, Su Chen generously left the meal money and departed beneath the waiter's deeply respectful gaze.

It was already afternoon. After returning home, Su Chen went straight to sleep and slept until dawn.

By the time he woke again, the sun was already shining on his backside.

After busying himself for a while, Su Chen opened the bamboo tube he had obtained from Lin Family Fortress. Inside was news from Liu Tong.

Opening it, he saw the words: "Liu Family Village, Number Fifty-Six. Burn after reading!"

Seeing those final words, he gave a soft laugh. They really made it sound mysterious.

After tearing the note into pieces, Su Chen sank into thought.

Go, or not go?

After thinking for a while, Su Chen finally made his decision. "I'll first see whether this information is true or false, then make plans from there."

Liu Family Village.

Though it was called a village, it was actually much like an ordinary town.

The entire village was fairly large, with a rough estimate of over a hundred households.

However, the homes were scattered everywhere, giving the place a disorderly feel.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Uncle Tong, I brought you food."

Before a somewhat old courtyard, a Pigtailed Child knocked on the wooden door.

With a creak.

The wooden door opened, revealing a gentle smile. Seeing the child, the man took the food from his hands.

"Er Niu, thank you."

As he spoke, the man called Uncle Tong handed the child a piece of candy.

After taking it, the child grinned and said, "Thank you, Uncle Tong!"

Just as the child was about to leave, the man asked, "Er Niu, have you seen any strangers in the village recently?"

Er Niu scratched his head. After thinking for a moment, he shook his head. "I don't think so."

"All right, then go back."

Hearing that, the man waved his hand and waited for the child to leave.

He swept his gaze around and, only after finding no suspicious people, closed the door.

On a large tree not far away, Su Chen withdrew his gaze.

"If it weren't for the government's Wanted List, who would believe this fellow was a murderer guilty of every crime imaginable?"

Recalling his observations over the past three days, Su Chen could not help shaking his head.

Ever since Su Chen had confirmed three days ago that the information from Lin Family Fortress was genuine, he had decided to take this job.

Thus, he had remained in Liu Family Village and observed Liu Tong for three days.

After three days of observation, the only thing he had learned was that Liu Tong was a shut-in.

Whether it was day or night, he stayed in the courtyard practicing martial arts almost all the time and rarely went out.

Even when he did go out, it was only to dump slop and excrement.

His meals were all delivered by this child, let alone anything else.

If Su Chen had not checked the information before coming, he would never have been able to connect a murderer with such a seasoned shut-in.

Looking at the sky, Su Chen took out the dried meat he had brought. By the time he finished eating, the sky had gradually darkened.

Those who had been working had mostly returned home, and smoke drifted from every household's chimney.

Su Chen did not act immediately. According to his observations over the past three days, Liu Tong would practice his saber technique after dinner.

He waited for roughly three hours before Liu Tong finally finished cultivating and returned to his room to wash up.

Su Chen still did not hurry. He waited quietly, closing his eyes to rest as well.

When the candle in Liu Tong's room went out, Su Chen suddenly opened his eyes and drifted lightly down from the tree branch.

Liu Tong's courtyard stood on the outskirts of Liu Family Village, relatively secluded, with few people nearby.

It was clear that he had deliberately chosen such a courtyard to live in. That made things easier for Su Chen.

Before long, Su Chen vaulted over the wall and entered the courtyard.

His movements were slow and cautious, for fear that Liu Tong might discover him.

Fortunately, he made no particularly noticeable sounds and did not alert Liu Tong.

Arriving before the window of Liu Tong's house, Su Chen took out the Misty Sweat Drug he had obtained from Qian Huan.

Qian Huan had used it to drug women unconscious. Su Chen thought it worked quite well, so he had taken some for himself.

It was like the spray-type Misty Sweat Drug he had seen in television dramas in his previous life. Su Chen had deliberately increased the dosage and used it all on Liu Tong.

It would ensure that even a martial artist at Practice Strength Perfection would be affected.

Estimating in his heart how long the Misty Sweat Drug would take to work, he waited for around five minutes.

When he heard snoring, Su Chen poked his head out and glanced inside.

He found Liu Tong lying on the bed, sleeping soundly, with that saber clutched in his hand.

With a thud.

Su Chen jumped in through the window. Looking at the unconscious Liu Tong, a trace of confusion flashed through his eyes.

"Something's wrong. There's something strange here!"

His gaze fell once more on the saber Liu Tong was gripping, and his expression abruptly changed.

He immediately realized something was wrong. How could an unconscious person still hold a saber?

"Are you pretending to sleep?"

Su Chen lowered his gaze and spoke in a probing tone.

As his words fell, Liu Tong, who had been snoring and pretending to sleep, suddenly opened his eyes.

He slowly sat up, his pair of cold, indifferent eyes settling on Su Chen.