Police Station

Steward Huang walked in softly, treating the corpse on the floor as if it were nothing, and said respectfully, "Master, the Corpse Daoist is staying in that person's room, seemingly searching for something. However, after searching for a while, he stopped, and there has been no movement since."

Dong Lei nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "Ignore him; just keep a careful watch."

Steward Huang nodded slightly and walked out again.

However, when he left, he also took the corpse on the floor with him, his movements light and agile, handling the body as if it had no weight at all.

Clearly, this Steward Huang was also hiding his true strength, possessing superior internal martial arts.

[Yakshas Meditation Method proficiency +1]

Zhou Yan opened his eyes in excitement, not expecting that he would master the meditation method so quickly.

It seems his talent for cultivation is even higher than he had originally anticipated.

He stood up and pushed open the door, seeing that the sky outside was gradually approaching dawn.

If he didn't leave now, once the sun came out, even if a zombie were fully covered by a bamboo hat, it would still suffer great damage.

He should have left last night, but his mind had been focused on intimidating the Dong Mansion, and later he became immersed in his spoils, causing him to overlook it.

When it came down to it, he had been a cultivator for too short a time and lacked experience.

"Time to go."

Once Zhou Yan realized this, he did not hesitate and immediately began to walk outside.

Along the way, many servants of the Dong Mansion saw Zhou Yan, but none dared to step forward.

Soon, Steward Huang arrived.

"Master, are you leaving?" Steward Huang stepped forward and said respectfully.

Zhou Yan nodded slightly to Steward Huang: "Please tell Master Dong that the commission is complete, so it is only natural that I should leave."

Upon hearing this, Steward Huang felt a sudden sense of relief.

However, on the surface, he still said politely: "Master, my master has just fallen asleep; why not wait for him to see you off personally?"

"No need, I have urgent matters to attend to and must leave, so I will not bid farewell to Master Dong."

Zhou Yan did not waste any more words, and after speaking, he left the Dong Mansion under the escort of Steward Huang.

Watching Zhou Yan's figure gradually fade into the distance, Steward Huang narrowed his eyes and had the servants close the mansion gates once more.

Over the next few days, the Dong Mansion would have too many things to deal with.

Just as Zhou Yan turned a corner, he saw Ma Yan running over with an excited expression.

"Brother-in-law, you've been waiting for me all night."

He looked at the obvious water stains on Ma Yan's body, and his heart warmed slightly.

Ma Yan smiled indifferently: "I was just worried about you. You asked me to leave the Dong Mansion earlier, which didn't fit our original plan. I knew something must have gone wrong, so I didn't dare to slack off. Now that I see you are safe and sound, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief."

Zhou Yan also shook his head slightly: "Plans can't keep up with changes. The Dong Mansion is a place of surging undercurrents and complex entanglements. In such a situation, let alone making a name for ourselves, I was worried that both of us would be trapped inside."

"Indeed, two mages in a row met with misfortune; I only found out about that later."

Ma Yan nodded with a heavy face, his expression tinged with lingering fear.

If they had known about this situation earlier, they would never have waded into these muddy waters under any circumstances.

In their original plan, the main purpose of this trip to the Dong Mansion was to make a name for themselves.

They would first enter the Dong Mansion with the image of a profound mage, handle the evil spirit, and then "by chance" have their true identities discovered, thereby gaining fame.

However, he had not expected that after entering the Dong Mansion, Zhou Yan would discover a large number of irregularities.

Thus, he had sent Ma Yan away at the first opportunity.

If something were to go wrong, he might not be able to protect Ma Yan.

Fortunately, the final result was much better than expected, and because Zhou Yan had sensed the various irregularities in advance and struck first, he had intimidated everyone in the Dong Mansion without the slightest hesitation.

Otherwise, even if they had managed to leave the Dong Mansion in the end, no one could have predicted what might have happened.

Now, Zhou Yan only wanted to stay as far away from the Dong Mansion as possible.

A case of a malicious ghost harming people not only involved the dark secrets of a household but also had other deeper hidden layers, which made him feel truly horrified.

"From now on, I really must have a master, and this master must never appear," Zhou Yan said slowly to Ma Yan.

Although he had tried his best to intimidate them and avoid suspicion, he did not know how much the Dong Mansion actually believed.

At the same time, Zhou Yan would not pin all his hopes on Dong Lei, so he needed to borrow the prestige of a tiger to intimidate others.

"Don't worry, I will arrange everything," Ma Yan nodded.

While he might not understand the dark secrets of the wealthy as well as Zhou Yan, he hadn't spent years as a patrol officer for nothing.

The only thing they were grateful for now was that Dong Lei was an outsider; although he had barely established a foothold in Shen City, his influence was limited, so they were not particularly worried.

In this day and age, everyone lived on the edge, and no one could truly rest easy.

Zhou Yan had grown accustomed to such an era; although he felt some anxiety in his heart, he quickly suppressed it.

He had already done his best, so there was nothing left to worry about.

"Let's head back. I'll need to go into seclusion for a while," Zhou Yan said in a relaxed tone.

Ma Yan's interest was piqued immediately: "Did Master Dong give you more?"

In an instant, his way of addressing Dong Lei had changed once again.

"Three hundred silver dollars, plus some unexpected gains—it might reach around five hundred," Zhou Yan calculated silently before speaking.

Although he didn't think much of those magical artifacts, they were genuine, and their value was not insignificant.

If he hadn't lacked the proper channels, those artifacts alone would have been worth at least two or three hundred silver dollars.

Thinking of this, Zhou Yan secretly regretted the Five Emperors Coins he had given to Li Deyou earlier.

That item had quite a reputation; if packaged properly, it could have sold for at least fifty or sixty silver dollars.

"Five hundred silver dollars!"

Ma Yan's eyes lit up, and he couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face.

Wasn't this exactly why they took such risks?

"By the way, brother-in-law, you've been a patrolman for several years. How many silver dollars would it take to move up the ranks?" Zhou Yan suddenly asked.

He had realized that relying on himself alone was far from enough.

If he could help Ma Yan advance, it would be better for both their families and for himself.

Especially since Ma Yan was currently only a low-level patrolman, not even permitted to carry a firearm.

Ma Yan's heart stirred as he replied: "I am currently a first-class patrolman. If I promote to a third-class detective, I'll be able to carry a gun, handle cases independently, and oversee over a dozen patrolmen, with the authority to recruit my own men."

Due to its unique environment, Shen City had almost no garrisoned troops.

Therefore, the Police Station held immense power and a vast number of personnel, totaling nearly fifteen thousand men.

There was even an Assault Brigade of over three thousand men, well-equipped and with strength not inferior to a regular army.