The Ge Pao Society

The next day, Lin Qing headed to the Iron Thread Fist Martial Hall as usual.

He wanted to ask Zhang Shun whether he knew where to find the Ge Pao Society.

But he noticed that Zhang Shun was nowhere to be seen in the martial hall.

For the time being, he could only suppress his thoughts and train as usual, sparring with his fellow disciples.

He simply kept a closer eye out for Zhang Shun.

Zhang Shun had a mysterious background and an extensive network.

He had to know a thing or two about the Ge Pao Society.

But Zhang Shun didn't show up for two whole days.

It wasn't until the afternoon of the third day that Lin Qing saw Zhang Shun appear at the martial hall. He seemed to have just returned from taking care of something, looking travel-worn.

Yet the air of superiority between his brows, the sort that came with being an inner disciple, seemed even stronger than before.

Lin Qing knew his chance had come.

He waited until Zhang Shun had finished instructing several disciples and had a moment to spare, then greeted him with a smile.

"Senior Brother Zhang, it's been many days. You look even more dashing than before. I take it your cultivation has advanced again?"

Lin Qing wore a smile.

Zhang Shun glanced at him. He didn't have a bad impression of Lin Qing, who had once done dirty work alongside him and now stood out among the outer disciples. In particular, Lin Qing had always been respectful.

He gave a slight nod, his tone fairly even. "Mm. I ran an errand for Master. How has your training been going lately, Junior Brother Lin?"

"Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother. I'm still making steady progress."

Lin Qing smiled. "Now that you're an inner disciple, Senior Brother, you must be busy with all sorts of matters. It's rare to see you."

"I wonder if you'd do me the honor of letting me treat you to a drink today, so I can hear your words of wisdom?"

At that, a pleased look appeared on Zhang Shun's face.

Since breaking through to become an inner disciple, his status had risen.

But the outer disciples who used to call him brother had either grown distant because of the gap between them or turned cold out of jealousy.

There weren't many like Lin Qing, who took the initiative to greet him, remained humble, and knew how to behave.

He thought it over, then nodded. "Sounds good. I'm a little hungry anyway."

The two went to a private room at a respectable restaurant in the Inner City.

A few small dishes and a pot of warmed wine were set out in the private room.

Seeing Zhang Shun relax, Lin Qing raised his cup in a toast. "Thank you for all your guidance over the years, Senior Brother."

"I wouldn't call it guidance. I was only teaching you because Master told me to."

After they drank a cup together, Lin Qing set his cup down, his tone filled with feeling. "To be honest, Senior Brother, I'm not surprised in the least that you made it into the inner sect."

Zhang Shun raised an eyebrow, signaling for him to continue.

"Do you remember when we were first practicing the basic fist and footwork?"

"While the rest of us were still figuring out the stances, you'd already started tying sandbags to your legs and training your explosive power."

As he spoke, Lin Qing pointed to his own calf.

"Back then, everyone said in private that you trained like a madman. Looking back now, with that kind of grit and foresight, you were bound to make it into the inner sect."

The words brought back memories for Zhang Shun.

The corners of his mouth lifted into a smile, and he nodded lightly.

The words rang true. He really had put in more effort than the others.

Seeing how pleased Zhang Shun was, Lin Qing seized the moment and spoke with even more conviction.

"With your character and foundation, breaking through to the Organ Cleansing Realm seems only a matter of time to me."

Zhang Shun broke into a smile, looking quite high-spirited.

Clearly, Lin Qing's praise had pleased him.

"The Organ Cleansing Realm is tough," Zhang Shun said with a laugh and a shake of his head.

Lin Qing paused, then lowered his voice a little. "When you took me to earn some extra money, Senior Brother, I knew you had plenty of connections and were no ordinary man. Now that you've joined the inner sect, don't forget to give your little brother a hand."

After hearing Lin Qing's successive compliments, Zhang Shun felt thoroughly at ease.

He waved a hand, but the smile on his face had grown noticeably broader.

"Quit buttering me up. Drink."

"Yes, Senior Brother. I'll drink to you."

Lin Qing raised his cup with a smile, his tone sincere.

Zhang Shun felt as if Lin Qing's flattery had massaged him from head to toe. His vanity was thoroughly gratified, and he found Lin Qing much more agreeable.

He thought this junior brother not only had a decent knack for learning.

More rare still, he knew how to get along with people, how to behave, and how to respect his elders.

He was far better than those ungrateful wretches.

Zhang Shun had helped plenty of other disciples before, but precious few knew how to repay him.

Without realizing it, he let go of much of his inner disciple airs.

As the wine warmed them and the conversation flowed, Zhang Shun grew more talkative.

Lin Qing studied his expression, knowing the moment had come.

He set his cup down and casually lowered his voice. "Senior Brother Zhang, you're well-traveled and well-informed..."

"Hey, quit calling me Senior Brother. Just call me Brother Shunzi," Zhang Shun said, waving a hand.

"Here's the thing, Brother Shunzi. I've run into some trouble lately and wanted to ask your advice."

"Oh? What is it? Go ahead." Zhang Shun was in a good mood and answered at once.

"Have you ever heard of the Ge Pao Society, Senior Brother?"

Lin Qing looked Zhang Shun straight in the eyes and asked slowly.

Zhang Shun's hand, which was holding his wine cup, suddenly stopped. Much of the drunkenness vanished from his face.

He looked at Lin Qing, deeply startled. "The Ge Pao Society? How do you know about that organization?"

Lin Qing answered frankly, taking two black iron tokens from his robe and placing them on the table. "To be honest, a few nights ago, two blind thieves broke into my house. I dealt with them."

"These were found on them."

Zhang Shun picked up the tokens and examined them closely, especially the numbers on the backs. The shock on his face deepened.

He abruptly looked up at Lin Qing, his voice changing. "Six, One."

"These are the Sun Brothers' tokens. They're fairly well-known in the Ge Pao Society. Their nickname is the Farmer Twin Fists."

"The two of them specialize in tracking and assassination. They've assassinated several experts in the Second Barrier Realm."

"And now, they fell at your hands?"

Lin Qing felt at a loss for words over the plain and unadorned nickname Farmer Twin Fists.

But this wasn't the time to dwell on that, so he continued asking, "Senior Brother Zhang, do you know why the Ge Pao Society is targeting me?"

"Who's behind the bounty on my life?"

Zhang Shun looked at Lin Qing's questioning gaze, then at the tokens on the table. He fell silent for a moment, seemingly making up his mind.

Lowering his voice to a near-whisper, he said, "Junior Brother Lin, since you've asked and dealt with the Sun Brothers, I won't hide it from you. I have heard some rumors."

"A few days ago, a steward from a prominent lineage in the Inner City approached the head of the Ge Pao Society and offered a hefty bounty to take someone's life."

"The ones who took the job were the Farmer Twin Fists. Now that they've failed and vanished without a trace, the Ge Pao Society has already declared the mission a failure."

"I heard the client who put out the bounty is still considering whether to raise it and send more powerful men..."

Lin Qing's heart sank.

Sure enough, someone had hired the Ge Pao Society to kill him.

"Which lineage?" he pressed.

Zhang Shun shook his head. "The Ge Pao Society's rules don't allow either side to know the other's exact identity. Everything goes through an intermediary to keep things secret. I don't know which lineage it was."

He looked at Lin Qing, his tone carrying a note of warning. "Junior Brother Lin, think carefully. Whom have you offended lately?"

"Anyone able to put out a bounty through the Ge Pao Society is no ordinary family."

Lin Qing looked bewildered. "Apart from managing the medicine shop, I spend my days training at the martial hall. I've kept out of trouble. I truly can't think of any prominent lineage I've offended."

That was what he said, but inside, his heart had already begun to turn cold.

A murderous aura surged through him in an instant.

The trail led straight to the Pan Family!