Blood Fiend Cult (Seeking Follows, Seeking Votes)

The group nodded.

From the first murder in Wheat Valley Alley to the eighth, less than a single month had passed.

These were merely a few cultists and a young girl Young Master; just how many people stood behind the Blood Fiend Cult remained an unknown.

If this matter were left unchecked, more people would undoubtedly die by their poisonous hands.

Lin Zhenwu continued, "To prevent the Blood Fiend Cult from returning, I will remain stationed in Willow Town."

"Shao Pengshu, Tan Hong, you two shall depart for Baiyuan County tomorrow and report this matter truthfully."

"Understood," the two replied respectfully.

"As for the credit..." He paused, looking toward Fang Xiao, "Handle it as Instructor Fang has arranged."

Shao Pengshu's expression flickered with hesitation.

Fang Xiao's arrangement was for Shao Pengshu to claim this credit exclusively, thereby earning a promotion and the duty of protecting that young master.

But now the situation had changed; the killer was not a single individual, but the Blood Fiend Cult, which devoured internal organs.

Even if they had only killed a few cultists and gathered little evidence, the credit would likely be far greater than originally anticipated.

Under these circumstances, to have him take all the credit alone would surely invite a great deal of resentment...

Tan Hong was fine; as a subordinate, if he had merit, Tan Hong would certainly receive his share.

Shao Pengshu looked at Hou Ping, his face full of sincerity as he cupped his hands in apology, "Chief Constable Hou, I have offended you twice; I ask for your forgiveness."

Following this, he looked toward Lin Zhenwu, "Chief Instructor Lin, I know you have no interest in such minor credit, and Instructor Fang would not want it either, but Chief Constable Hou..."

"Chief Constable Hou's credit naturally cannot be lacking." Before Shao Pengshu could finish, Lin Zhenwu interrupted, "Instructor Fang needs you to climb the ranks, so you shall climb."

"As for Chief Constable Hou's side..." Lin Zhenwu mused, "I recall that Chief Constable Hou has a son, yes? One who is very interested in martial arts?"

Hou Ping's eyes flashed, and he hurriedly replied, "Yes, that useless boy of mine—he is no good with books, but he has a sturdy frame and loves to wield blades and spears."

"That is perfect. Chief Constable Hou, why not let Shao Pengshu bring him into the Criminal Defense Division?"

"Thank you, Instructor Lin!"

Hou Ping was overjoyed.

He had already guessed why Fang Xiao wanted to give the credit to Shao Pengshu—it was for the sake of that young master—and he had never expected any credit for himself.

At his age, still serving as a chief constable in a small town, his life's path was essentially set.

For him, the best reward was not for himself, but for his son, Hou Wuchun.

Hou Wuchun was poor at his studies, but he had grown up stronger than his peers and was a fine seed for martial arts. If he could enter the Criminal Defense Division to receive guidance and training, he would surely become an expert in refining blood and qi in the future.

"Furthermore, Shao Pengshu, besides your promotion, you should receive a fair amount of silver as a reward. Bring it out."

"Even if Instructor Lin had not mentioned it, I intended to do so."

Seeing that no one else spoke, Lin Zhenwu did not wish to waste time, "Very well, that is the gist of it. Everyone may leave; I have matters to discuss with Instructor Fang."

The group tactfully departed, leaving only Lin Zhenwu and Fang Xiao in the yamen hall.

"Lin Zhenwu, did you not say you did not want to interfere in my affairs? Why then arrange for Hou Ping's son to enter the Criminal Defense Division?"

Fang Xiao sat upright in his chair, his expression shifting between light and shadow. The trajectory of events had completely exceeded his expectations; had it not been for the mysterious person helping in the shadows, his plans would have come to nothing.

Yet, if that mysterious person was the Young Master, he felt that everything he had done seemed somewhat redundant.

A martial arts expert who could rival Lin Zhenwu—why would he need him to arrange for Shao Pengshu's protection? Perhaps only someone like the Criminal Defense Division's Chief Instructor Lin would be qualified.

But was the Young Master a mysterious expert?

He was not certain.

And he dared not believe it.

A martial artist nearing the completion of the Blood Activation Realm, in less than a month?

Lin Zhenwu's expression was indifferent as he shifted his gaze away from his long spear, "I truly did not want to intervene. Your affairs with the Chu Family, and that so-called Third Young Master Chu Ming, are all troublesome. The current state of your declining blood and qi is largely due to the Chu Family."

"I thought that once you waited for that Chu Family young master to die of illness, you could return to the Criminal Defense Division, yet you somehow used some method to save a person whose foundations were severely damaged."

"I know even less what means you used to turn a hedonistic, unambitious illegitimate son into the top candidate of the Academy Exam."

"As comrades who once entered and exited the battlefield together, I can only say this: Fang Xiao, I admire you, but I also pity you."

"For a woman, for an illegitimate son, is it worth it?"

Lin Zhenwu's gaze flickered, staring fixedly at Fang Xiao.

Listening, Fang Xiao's face showed little fluctuation, only speaking indifferently, "Qingning saved my life."

"Since Qingning was killed by the Chu Family, why do you not wipe out the Chu Family? Do not tell me you lack the strength."

"Qingning would not allow it. She said that place was her final resting place."

"Just for those words?"

"Yes."

"Sigh..."

After a long silence, Lin Zhenwu spoke slowly: "You have never changed; you are still the same as you were in your youth, repaying a drop of kindness with a gushing spring."

"Decades have passed. Those around me have either died on the battlefield or perished in the struggles for power. Now, there is only a stubborn old mule of a friend like you left."

"That young master, I will protect."

"Then many thanks to Chief Instructor Lin." Fang Xiao relaxed his tense face for once.

The yamen hall fell into silence again.

After a moment, Fang Xiao glanced outside, stood up, and said: "The time is about right. If Chief Instructor Lin has no other business, I shall take my leave."

Lin Zhenwu did not speak. Only when Fang Xiao reached the entrance of the yamen hall did he ask: "You are truly not returning to Baiyuan County?"

Fang Xiao stood where he was, his voice suddenly turning icy: "I swore an oath: the day I set foot in Baiyuan County again will be the day the Chu Family is wiped out."

"Isn't that a good thing? Avenging Qingning," Lin Zhenwu asked, puzzled.

"But I also promised Qingning that I would not lay a hand on the Chu Family."

"Therefore, I cannot go back."

"...You just have to be stubborn."

Willow Town, the small courtyard at the end of West Street.

The oil lamp flickered. In the dim room, Chu Ming sat before a desk, upon which three books were laid out.

One was the half-volume of the Blood Fiend Body-Forging Technique obtained from the bailiff Yuan Chengji, and the other two were those obtained from killing the Teahouse Owner today.

His gaze fell upon them, reading the titles on the two books: Blood Fiend Body-Forging Technique and Blood Claw Hand.

"A complete Blood Activation Realm Blood Fiend Body-Forging Technique, and a martial skill to boot."

He moved the oil lamp closer. This world was fine in every way, except for the lack of electricity; at night, one had to rely on oil lamps. When the wind blew, the flickering light made his eyes ache.

Yet, even so, it could not dampen his urgent desire to study the two books.

Chu Ming first flipped through the complete Blood Fiend Body-Forging Technique. He had scanned the first half so many times yesterday that it was already etched into his mind.

Skipping that part, he quickly flipped through the latter half of the Blood Fiend Technique.

Reading ten lines at a glance with a photographic memory, it did not take him long to finish.

At the same time, in his mind, the small puddle belonging to the Blood Fiend Body-Forging Technique evolved into a larger one.

This was something he had controlled deliberately.

What Chu Ming wanted was not to cultivate this bloodthirsty technique, but to deduce and optimize it, creating a new technique just as he had with the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique.

Just like yesterday, he first tried to channel the lake water of the body-forging technique into the puddle.

The puddle expanded and grew, evolving into a small stream.

This stream then connected to the rivers and lakes in his mind where the travelogues, Book of Songs, military strategies, and the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique resided.

Gathering, dispersing, refining...

Discarding the bloodthirsty aspect, exposing the fierce lethality.

Before long, the sensation he had felt when optimizing the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique returned.

The corners of his mouth twitched, and a smile appeared on his face.