Ambush

After three rounds of drinks.

Min Baoyi was slightly tipsy. He slapped Chen Mu on the shoulder with a broad hand and laughed. "We've eaten and drunk about enough. I heard you're still unmarried—how about this old brother takes you somewhere nice? The flavor there is quite something."

The moment those words were spoken, Chen Mu naturally knew what sort of nice place it was. Before his thoughts could stir, the blood and qi within him had already surged and churned, rousing restless impulses. Then he suddenly recalled that the Gold Jade Mo Pi Fa mentioned how, before one's cultivation was complete, one had to guard one's blood and qi closely. He immediately forced down the agitation in his heart.

"Brother Min's refined interest deserves company, but I've only just begun body tempering, and my cultivation is not yet complete..."

Chen Mu politely declined.

Min Baoyi immediately slapped his thigh. "Ah, I forgot about that. The Gold Jade Mo Pi Fa truly requires you to lock down your blood and qi. If you focus on cultivating it, I'm afraid even marriage will have to be delayed by several years."

"No hurry, no hurry."

Chen Mu smiled and shook his head.

In truth, just yesterday, someone had approached Wang Gong to arrange a marriage match for him. After all, he was the newly appointed head runner of Nine Stripes Ward, valued by his superiors, with a bright future ahead of him. He was only twenty-two, and plenty of local gentry were willing to marry their daughters to him.

However, Chen Mu's mind was not on such matters for the moment. Added to that, he needed to cultivate the Gold Jade Mo Pi Fa, so he politely turned them down one by one.

"Very well. There is plenty of time ahead."

Min Baoyi rose and went downstairs with Chen Mu. Only after watching Chen Mu leave did he stroke his chin and say, "His self-control is not bad either... Well, that makes sense. At his age, if he could comprehend Saber Force, how could his will be weak?"

Saying that, he could not help thinking of those years when he had been tempering his skin. Someone had merely tempted him a little, and he could not resist going to the pleasure quarters. After that, things spiraled out of control, delaying his Skin Tempering by a full three years!

Otherwise, he might have entered the Tendon Transformation realm by now.

The past was not to be spoken of.

In any case, Xu Hongyu had taken a liking to this young man. There was no need to mention his comprehension; he was prudent and measured in his actions, and both his perseverance and self-control were worthy of praise. His background was also exceptionally clean. He was indeed worth cultivating, and Min Baoyi could now give Xu Hongyu a detailed account.

After parting from Min Baoyi.

Chen Mu had no mind to wander about, so he headed home.

When he had been drinking with Min Baoyi earlier, he had deliberately restrained himself and drunk little. Moreover, he had always held his liquor well, and now that he cultivated Skin Tempering, his blood and qi were abundant. The alcohol had barely affected him.

Yu Family, He Family, Red Gold Gang...

Chen Mu pondered the many pieces of information he had obtained from Min Baoyi. At present, the most reliable course was to remain in Nine Stripes Ward and quietly practice martial arts, occasionally deal with a few petty thieves, and collect tax silver.

In fact, after he understood the general structure of the City Guard and the open and covert struggles among the various factions, he even felt that it might have been better if he had not become a head runner and had remained an inconspicuous yamen runner.

Though a head runner was still only a minor figure to those who held true power, the position was nevertheless tied to Xu Hongyu. It was inevitable that he would enter other people's sights and invite some trouble.

But opportunities and hardships coexisted. The world had always been this way.

If he had not entered Xu Hongyu's field of vision, he could not have obtained the Gold Jade Mo Pi Fa, and several hundred taels of silver would have been sheer nonsense. Nor would he have received housewarming gifts from all the local gentry factions within just a few days.

Though no individual gift was particularly valuable, together they amounted to an income of more than a hundred taels of silver.

And it had only been a few short days.

With money, authority, and a path upward, his entire life had been turned upside down. Even if that meant getting entangled in some trouble, Chen Mu had nothing to resent. There was no free lunch in this world.

"Cultivating the Mo Pi Fa will be quick. But the Fierce Wind Saber Technique will take much longer if I want to cultivate Saber Force."

Chen Mu had previously learned from Min Baoyi.

Above Saber Force, there was indeed a realm called the Power of Saber Intent, also known as Artistic Conception. But that thing was far more elusive than Saber Force, and taking one step across was too difficult, far too difficult. Thus, there was an intermediate stage of accumulation between Force and Intent.

It was called Multiple Power of Intent.

As the name implied, after mastering one kind of Saber Force, one could cultivate other saber techniques as well. If one could cultivate a second kind of Saber Force, then combining the two would form Dual Power of Intent, stronger than a single Force.

But mastering even one kind of Force was already difficult for martial artists. Many practiced bitterly their entire lives without reaching that realm. Mastering Multiple Power of Intent was harder still.

As for the higher Triple Power of Intent, Quadruple Power of Intent...

Those capable of reaching such a level were few and far between, and were basically all great figures. Even Min Baoyi knew of very few.

"Ordinary people do not have so much energy or time to cultivate multiple kinds of Saber Force, but with the System Panel, I don't have that problem. At most, within half a year, I'll be able to master a second kind of Saber Force."

Chen Mu secretly nodded to himself over this. At the very least, the path he had chosen before had not been wrong.

Even cultivating many saber techniques would not let him touch the higher realm of Artistic Conception, but at least he could steadily master Multiple Power of Intent and maintain an advantage in the realm of technique. That would be what set him apart from others.

As he pondered.

Without realizing it, Chen Mu walked into a somewhat secluded street alley.

By the time he came back to his senses, he was already in the middle of the quiet alley.

Since it was broad daylight and still noon, Chen Mu paid it no mind and continued straight ahead.

Yet after walking farther, several figures suddenly emerged from the nearest corner ahead. They all wore short old clothes, carrying either clubs or gleaming machetes, their eyes filled with ferocity.

"Hm?"

Chen Mu frowned slightly.

He suddenly heard movement behind him. Turning his head to look back, he saw several more figures shuffling out from the rear of the alley. Each was dressed in ragged clothing, but every one of them carried a vicious air.

Villains had appeared both before and behind him. Chen Mu finally became certain—these were not gang thugs merely passing through. They had come for him!

Though he had not worn his yamen uniform when he went drinking with Min Baoyi, claiming that these people who had come for him did not recognize him would be utterly absurd... To draw blades against a head runner in Nine Stripes Ward in broad daylight was sheer audacity.

Let alone ordinary villains, even a gang as formidable as the Red Gold Gang would inevitably provoke the fury of Xu Hongyu, the Chief Constable, if it dared act this way. Even if she directly led men to wipe out the Red Gold Gang, it would be entirely justified!

Chen Mu asked himself whether he had offended anyone in the past few days.

His face darkening slightly, Chen Mu did not stop. Instead, he continued forward, while his right hand had already gripped the hilt of the Yamen Saber at his waist. These days, his blade never left his person; he would never let go of this most crucial weapon at any time.

More and more villains came toward him.

At least seventeen or eighteen people had turned out from the alley corner, making Chen Mu's frown deepen.

There were at least thirty or forty people before and behind him. Even with the world in chaos, it was impossible for such a large force to set up an ambush here in broad daylight without alerting all sides.

These people said nothing and simply walked toward him. Once they came within four or five meters of Chen Mu, the leaders simultaneously threw a cloud of white powder at him, accompanied by a pungent odor.

Chen Mu had long been on guard and reacted with extreme speed. He immediately shut his eyes tight and leapt backward, avoiding the lime powder raining down at his head.

Not long ago, I used this stuff to ambush Tang Quan, and now someone is using the same trick to ambush me. The net of Heaven is vast, and retribution never misses...

And Min Baoyi had just told him that as long as he was cautious, nothing would happen on this turf. Yet not long after they parted, the slap in the face came as fast as lightning.

The distance had been close, but Chen Mu had ultimately avoided most of it. Only a tiny amount had touched him, with little effect. The instant he evaded it, he surged forward again with savage force, the Yamen Saber in his hand whipping like a raging gale before crashing down!

Raging Wind Chaos, West Wind Howl!

Crack!

The lead man raised his blade to meet it, but with only one slash, Chen Mu's ferocious strike violently broke his stance. The Yamen Saber in Chen Mu's hand scraped down along the other man's blade, scattering sparks. In one stroke, it cut through his throat, and blood immediately gushed out.

"In broad daylight, you dare murder a yamen officer. Are you trying to rebel?"

Chen Mu shouted coldly, his voice ringing through the entire alley. Borrowing the killing might of that strike, he stunned all the villains for a moment.