Remnants

Seeing how Chen Cheng valued trust and kept his word, Tang Yunlong and the other distinguished guests all revealed looks of appreciation.

Xiao Yi remained all smiles, giving no hint of what he was pondering. He merely walked over to the still-befuddled Liang Guang and, after a few words, struck up a familiar rapport with him, looking as though they had met too late.

"Eldest Brother, Third Junior Sister, what do you think?"

In the distance, Zhu Mingyuan withdrew his gaze from the small gate, his tone casual.

"No interest."

Chu Meng's voice was calm to the point of indifference, as if everything outside the gate had nothing to do with him and was not worth a moment of his attention.

"Useless."

Ye Qiluo parted her lips slightly, but the words she spoke were as hard and cold as ice chips.

"On the path of martial arts, the most fundamental things will always be one's innate bones and resources. To pin the hope of advancing one's realm on suddenly gaining enlightenment..."

"I'm not saying it's absolutely impossible, but if you happen to strike it rich through sheer luck once or twice, can it succeed every single time?"

"If he cannot condense the third incense of blood qi, he will never be qualified to truly step through the doors of the Inner Hall. Compared with us..."

She raised her chin slightly, unable to conceal her pride.

"In the end, he is not one of our kind."

South Outer City.

Beneath the enormous city gate, a notice from the Patrol General Office had just been pasted onto the grimy brick wall. The glue had not yet dried, and gave off a faint dampness in the cold wind blowing through the gate passage.

Two constables stood guard on either side with hands pressed to their sword hilts, their faces as stiff as the wall bricks.

The crowd around them was packed shoulder to shoulder. Most craned their necks, yet could not read, anxiously asking, "What does it say!? Raising taxes!? Or are they... recruiting soldiers again!?"

"Silence!"

At that moment, a clerk from the Patrol Office stepped forward and proclaimed in a ringing voice.

"An investigation has found that although the den of the Red Moon Nunnery's evil fiends has been destroyed, the chief culprit remains at large, and the remnants have yet to be purged!"

"Should anyone be harboring them in town or countryside, acting suspiciously, or know the whereabouts of their evil arts and artifacts... report it first to your local ward head or Patrol Office!"

"Once verified, rewards shall be granted according to merit, with no upper limit! Anyone who conceals information, fails to report it, or even colludes to shield them shall, once discovered, be punished as guilty as the fiends themselves!"

The clerk's voice abruptly rose, biting down hard on the words "equally guilty," which crashed into the noisy crowd like a block of ice.

The crowd fell silent for an instant, then exploded with a buzzing uproar.

"Whoa! No upper limit on the reward?! They're really willing to spend big..."

"Report them first? Who knows which family has a ghost hidden on their kang bed? Before you collect the reward silver, some evil thing might slit your throat first!"

"There'll always be people who aren't afraid of death. Who knows how long things will be chaotic this time..."

The discussions boiled over, but every pair of eyes held something different.

Some were utterly unconcerned, spat on the ground, and turned to leave. Some hunched their necks and let their eyes dart about, whether from fear of trouble or guilty consciences unknown. There were also several indistinct-faced men staring at the words "reward," their Adam's apples bobbing as their fingers unconsciously rubbed at the corners of their clothes.

The notice's edges curled slightly in the wind. Its bright red official seal resembled a single eye, coldly looking down at the hurried figures passing beneath the city gate.

Like water dropped into a wok of boiling oil, this news was bound to stir up ripples—or hidden flames—within South Outer City, which had only just suffered great turmoil and was still reeling in fright.

Beyond the crowd, in an inconspicuous corner, a figure paused.

Their gaze swept over the four words "evil arts and artifacts," then their eyes lowered. Pulling their conical hat down, they silently followed the crowd into the city.

Bitter Locust Village, within its dark, pothole-ridden alleys, a crude stretcher creaked and swayed.

Chen Hao lay upon it, his face ashen. A few bloodstains still seeped through the front of his clothes, and his whole body radiated weakness and misery.

The two youths carrying the stretcher were disciples who had only recently entered White Ape Hall. They stumbled along unevenly, their noses wrinkling in disgust from time to time at the surrounding stench.

"We're here, up ahead is..."

Chen Hao raised a hand and pointed at a ramshackle shed.

As if granted a pardon, the two youths hastened their steps. They only wanted to deliver him home quickly so they could leave this hellish place sooner.

"Mother, Grandfather..."

"A-Hao, you... how did you end up like this!?"

Hearing the commotion, Madam Wang hurried out, with Chen Yong and Old Chen following close behind.

The instant they saw Chen Hao's current state, all three faces turned grave to the extreme.

Yet Chen Hao still stubbornly saved face. "I only suffered a few minor injuries. I'll be fine after resting for a few days."

After speaking, Chen Hao looked at the two youths again.

"Thank you for your trouble, Junior Brothers... Once I'm feeling better in a few days, I'll definitely treat you to drinks!"

"...Senior Brother, get some proper rest. Stop talking."

The two youths gave a perfunctory reply. They carried Chen Hao into the house, set him on the bed, and immediately took their leave.

After leaving that alley.

Both youths could not help rolling their eyes.

"This Senior Brother Chen is way too good at putting on airs... Seeing how he spoke and acted before, I always thought his family was well-off. Turns out he's one of the lowest of the low, a destitute commoner..."

"And he said he'd treat us to drinks? Last night, if the Hall Master himself hadn't gone to Fortune Pavilion to settle the bill, White Ape Hall's reputation would have been utterly disgraced by Chen Hao..."

"People like him are too fake, too unreliable... We should keep our distance from him from now on..."

"Isn't that the truth?"

Back at the shed.

Chen Hao briefly explained how he had been robbed the previous night.

After hearing it, Old Chen collapsed into the corner against the wall. His already haggard face from a sleepless night instantly seemed to age many years.

A Martial Artist...

Despair clearly showed in the old man's eyes.

His grandson, upon whom the entire family had pinned all their hopes, had finally become a true Martial Artist...

Yet he had still been beaten until he could not even get out of bed, robbed clean to the bone...

Then this martial...

Had this martial training not all been for nothing?

"A-Hao!"

Madam Wang's reaction was completely different. She sprang to the bedside, her eyes bloodshot and a low growl rolling from her throat.

"Since you know who did it, why didn't you ask the Hall Master to help you? Why didn't you report it to the Patrol Office? Th-that was over a hundred taels of silver! It was this whole family's hope!"

"...Mother, things like this require evidence..."

Chen Hao was deeply troubled, his voice full of mournful desolation.

"I suspect it was Lu Feng from the hall, but the Hall Master said that at the time of the incident, Lu Feng was inside the Martial Hall and had not gone anywhere..."

Before he could finish.

A burst of chaotic, heavy footsteps suddenly sounded in the alley outside, drawing nearer from afar with undisguised arrogance and menace, heading straight for the low shed.

Bang!

The wooden door was kicked open, its hinges shattering at once.

The first to enter were two broad-shouldered, thick-waisted Giant Tiger Gang members. Their eyes were fierce as they swept the room, then they stepped aside.

Next, a sinister-faced middle-aged man in a brocade short jacket strolled inside.

He was around forty, with two gleaming strips of mustache, slightly bulging temples, and large knuckles on both hands. He was Hu Biao, deputy leader of the Giant Tiger Gang.

"I heard the Chen family of Bitter Locust Village produced an impressive Martial Artist lord. I suppose that would be this one?"

Hu Biao glanced at Chen Hao sprawled on the bed, a cold smile tugging at his mouth.

"That would be me..."

Thinking the other party had come to make his acquaintance, Chen Hao immediately piled a smile onto his face.