Arduous Cultivation, Investigator

"How many silver dollars?" Zhou Yan asked directly.

Ma Yan made a quick estimate and slightly extended two fingers: "My father still has a shred of favor left there; about two hundred silver dollars should suffice."

Zhou Yan frowned slightly upon hearing this.

It wasn't that he begrudged the two hundred silver dollars, but rather that he regretted using up that favor.

"If we don't count that favor, roughly how much would it cost?"

Ma Yan smiled faintly, shook his head, and said: "Don't place too much value on that favor. The other party is only a detective inspector; getting me promoted to detective was already his limit, and it still required two hundred silver dollars to pave the way.

After all, so many years have passed; even the greatest of favors would have faded significantly by now.

The little bit of favor remaining is just right for this purpose..."

Zhou Yan didn't speak again; having lived two lifetimes, he still didn't quite grasp the nuances of social graces and human relationships.

Ma Yan, however, was the exact opposite. He thrived in the Police Station, valued by his superiors while getting along famously with his peers—he was a natural talent for the bureaucratic world.

In this regard, it was best to leave things to him.

What he himself needed to do was to improve his own strength.

Zhou Yan lacked Ma Yan's social dexterity, but he could focus all his power within himself; that was his true strength.

The news of the evil spirit being slain at the Dong Mansion, while not earth-shattering, reached the ears of a few.

At the same time, there was news of the Dong Mansion's concubine dying of illness.

As for that cousin, he died silently, and no one paid him any mind at all.

Just as everyone assumed Dong Lei was busy holding a funeral at his residence, he had already changed his appearance and secretly arrived at the famous Phoenix Cry Teahouse in the city center.

He navigated the familiar path into a private room. Someone was already sitting inside, separated by a screen, making it impossible to see the figure on the other side. One could only judge from the silhouette and the scent that it was a slender young woman.

After sitting down, Dong Lei immediately placed the leather bag he was carrying onto the table and opened it.

"My lord, this is the funds for the second half of the year: three gold bars and one thousand silver dollars in total."

The woman on the other side waved her hand, and a figure walked over to collect the bag.

Seeing this, Dong Lei finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Tell me the situation in detail," the woman on the other side said.

Her voice was calm and ordinary, devoid of any distinct characteristics, a stark contrast to the image cast upon the screen.

Dong Lei found this unremarkable. He had been in contact with this mysterious superior for over five years, yet her true identity remained unknown.

He even suspected that the person might not be a woman at all.

However, this did not hinder his mission. As his superior, the more mysterious she was, the safer he felt.

Although Shen City was a unique place, he still did not want to expose his identity easily.

Moreover, over these past five years, he could feel that his business had been blessed by the gods, running much more smoothly than ever before.

He firmly believed that this was due to her influence behind the scenes.

Therefore, Dong Lei held his superior in high esteem and placed absolute trust in her.

"My lord, this time, your subordinate misjudged the situation..."

Dong Lei recounted the situation at his home truthfully, including the murder of his wife, the concubine's identity as a prostitute posing as a lady of good standing, and the cousin who was the mastermind behind it all.

Naturally, the "Corpse Daoist" played by Zhou Yan was also a key character.

The person on the other side remained silent for a long while after listening before finally speaking.

"Corpse Daoist!"

Dong Lei said nothing; he simply reported everything he knew and waited for her orders.

Through five years of experience, he had come to trust his superior's wisdom implicitly.

"Do not concern yourself with him. I will send someone to investigate thoroughly. Remember, you must not investigate him yourself. If you are discovered, you might provoke him. These practitioners are all daring, lawless characters..."

When she reached the end, a rare flicker of emotion surfaced in her voice, sounding almost as if she were gritting her teeth.

"Yes."

Dong Lei, of course, did not hesitate and agreed immediately.

Ever since that Corpse Daoist had tossed the cousin's corpse in front of him, he had been filled with deep apprehension.

These practitioners, as long as they possessed great strength, were all lawless individuals who would hold a grudge for the slightest slight.

Not to mention a wealthy merchant like him, even the powerful and influential had often been schemed against and suffered at their hands.

"Go now. Keep a low profile for a while. Unless I summon you, you are not to make any moves for the next six months."

"Yes."

[Yakshas Meditation Method proficiency +1]

[Yakshas Meditation Method proficiency +3]

[Yakshas Meditation Method proficiency +2]

After obtaining the Yakshas Meditation Method, Zhou Yan wished he could practice it day and night.

However, although the Yakshas Meditation Method did not harm the body, it placed immense strain on the soul. Maintaining the meditation for one hour was nearly the limit; every minute beyond that exerted tremendous pressure on his spirit.

Yet, relying on his powerful soul and a near-maniacal level of perseverance, he managed to persist for an hour and a half during his very first session.

Although Zhou Yan lay paralyzed on the ground for a long time after finishing, the copious amount of sweat he shed nearly soaking the earth beneath him, a deep arc still curled at the corners of his mouth.

Sometimes, he couldn't help but sigh to himself.

If he had possessed this level of perseverance—or even half this degree of madness—in his previous life, getting into any top-tier academy would have been a breeze.

People, when faced with life-and-death crises, are always capable of erupting with unimaginable potential.

Having the Yakshas Meditation Method squeezed out time for other training to a certain extent.

But that worked out well; since Zhou Yan's body had not yet recovered, he reduced the time spent practicing the Mystic Yin Art and used a portion of that time to practice those few incantations, striving to achieve success in the shortest time possible.

Coupled with the supplementation of a large amount of medicinal herbs, his body began to recover rapidly.

Ten days later, Ma Yan was successfully promoted to a third-class detective.

From then on, he completely shed his status as a low-level patrolman and became a detective carrying a firearm, his status greatly elevated.

Inside the old residence.

Mother Zhou sat in the main seat, with Ma Yan and Zhou Yan on the left and right, followed by the three siblings, Zhou Li, Zhou Chuan, and Zhou Jing.

"Congratulations, brother-in-law," Zhou Yan said, raising his glass.

Ma Yan dared not be negligent and hurriedly raised his glass. "Ah Yan, why stand on ceremony between us? If you hadn't been risking your life out there, I never would have been promoted. It is I who should be thanking you."

These were his heartfelt words.

Although he lacked nothing in terms of ability, experience, or prestige, he lacked the most important element: connections.

In this day and age, those without connections or money were suppressed at the very bottom.

Even if some occasionally managed to turn their lives around, the vast majority remained forever crushed at the bottom, never seeing the light of day...