The Reckoning Begins (Seeking Follow-up!)

All sounds are hushed, save for the tolling of a bell.

Chen Yuan dared not follow too closely, nor could he find a suitable opening to strike, so he trailed far behind.

The two moved one after the other, leaving the outskirts of Funiu Mountain and arriving in the outer city district of Qingyuan County.

Chen Yuan's plan was simple: if Zhang Hong returned home, he would seize the chance to ambush him. Capturing him would be a great merit; if no opportunity arose, he would return to report to Li Song and let him handle the matter.

However, Chen Yuan noticed that Zhang Hong did not head home. Instead, he arrived at a secluded alley, stopped before an inconspicuous, low-slung house, and knocked on the door in a rhythmic pattern.

The door opened a crack, and after Zhang Hong scanned his surroundings several times and found nothing amiss, he slipped inside.

Chen Yuan felt a flicker of doubt.

Is this Zhang Hong's home? It doesn't look like it; a martial artist at the peak of Skin Refining wouldn't live in a place like this.

Could it be that he intends to sell off the precious herbs in his possession?

Chen Yuan could only guess, preparing to wait outside for a while.

If he were truly here to sell goods, he would inevitably have to come back out.

While waiting, he did not remain idle. To capture a martial artist at the peak of Skin Refining, even with a sneak attack, carried risks; once the target reacted, a fierce battle would be unavoidable.

This went against the Dao of Survival, and Chen Yuan was unwilling to take such risks. He wanted a foolproof outcome, so he secretly prepared a "little surprise" for Zhang Hong.

Zhang Hong walked into the room and sat down.

Opposite him sat the Masked Man.

"I presume you have successfully obtained something of value?" The Masked Man's voice was hoarse, though it was unclear if it was intentionally disguised.

Zhang Hong did not dawdle. He placed his pouch on the table, untied it, and revealed the fresh Stone Scale Flowers to the Masked Man.

"Precious Stone Scale Flowers," he said calmly. "Take a look. Their value should be enough to purchase that Bone-Nurturing Pill."

The Masked Man's expression remained unreadable, but his rapid movement to stand up and carefully inspect the batch of flowers showed he held them in high regard.

After a moment, the Masked Man nodded. "Not bad. The quality is decent. Combined with the deposit you paid earlier, it is enough to buy the Bone-Nurturing Pill, with a dozen taels of silver left over."

As he spoke, he walked into a side room. When he returned, he held a wooden box and a money bag.

He placed them on the table and pushed them toward Zhang Hong. "Here is the Bone-Nurturing Pill you wanted, along with the remaining silver. Check the goods."

Zhang Hong's breathing grew slightly ragged. His hands trembled as he opened the wooden box, revealing a smooth, plump, dark-gray pill. A heavy, medicinal fragrance wafted out.

This was the Bone-Nurturing Pill he had craved for years!

In truth, the cost-effectiveness of the Bone-Nurturing Pill was poor, far inferior to the Bone-Strengthening Pill.

Moreover, the refining process was cumbersome and required expensive precious herbs, so few were willing to refine it, making it a rare sight on the market.

Yet, since the Bone-Nurturing Pill existed, it had its own justification.

Its true value lay in its ability to repair bones and heal internal injuries.

Several years ago, Zhang Hong had attempted to break through the Bone Realm, only to fail. The chaotic surge of his blood and qi had damaged his bones and tendons.

Without healing those injuries, he would have no hope of reaching the Bone Realm in this lifetime. Over the years, he had tried numerous methods and wasted much wealth, but with little success.

During that time, he had missed out on Bone-Nurturing Pills due to a lack of funds, so now that one had appeared, he was determined to secure it, even at the risk of his life!

If he dragged this out any longer, his age would increase and his blood and qi would wither; even if he healed his injuries, the hope of breaking through the Bone Realm would be slim.

This might be his only chance to break through in this life.

To save enough silver for the pill, he had racked his brains for the past month, eventually setting his sights on the Herb Garden he was assigned to guard.

If he could find a way to extract a batch of precious herbs to sell, he could scrape together the silver.

But how to get them out without implicating himself had been the real puzzle.

He had originally intended to devise a plan to shift all the blame onto Chen Yuan.

After much deliberation, he realized he had reached a dead end. Chen Yuan wasn't a fool, and neither were the Herb Garden steward or Manager Li; it was impossible to completely clear his own name.

He who is unwilling to sacrifice anything will gain nothing.

Realizing this, he conceived the plan to throw himself into the fray, pinning the primary blame on the thieves who had previously attacked the Herb Garden, while he and Chen Yuan would take minor blame, thus avoiding suspicion.

For the entire plan, he only needed to sacrifice less than ten taels of silver to reap dozens in return.

After coming up with this scheme, he was stunned by his own brilliance; it was a plan with great potential, taking full advantage of the timing, location, and people.

Truly, necessity is the mother of invention.

Afterward, he found his good friend Huang Yongbo to discuss the matter and polish the details, finally executing it perfectly tonight, leading Chen Yuan and Manager Li around by the nose.

Zhang Hong closed the wooden box with satisfaction and tucked the money bag into his robes.

The remaining silver would serve as payment for Huang Yongbo.

Pushing open the wooden door, Zhang Hong stepped out silently and walked back toward his home with his head bowed.

Chen Yuan, who had been lying in wait, breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Zhang Hong walking in his direction.

He didn't know where Zhang Hong lived, so he had simply gambled on the path leading to the more affluent area. Fortunately, he had guessed correctly.

Just as Zhang Hong was passing an alleyway with a light step, Chen Yuan moved, throwing the lime in his hand toward Zhang Hong's eyes with lightning speed.

Zhang Hong had never expected an ambush here; caught off guard, he fell for the trap, his eyes burning and stinging as tears streamed down his face.

However, the tears reacted with the lime, intensifying the burning sensation until it felt as if he were going blind.

Chen Yuan was kind-hearted and truly could not bear to watch Zhang Hong continue to suffer. As he threw the lime, he stepped forward, dodging Zhang Hong's wild flailing, and struck his temple with a precise palm strike.

Down in a second.

Seeing Zhang Hong, whose strength was not necessarily inferior to his own, taken out in an instant, Chen Yuan couldn't help but sigh—being a backstabber was truly satisfying.

This lime was also incredibly useful; he would have to keep more on him in the future.

Whether for sneak attacks or escaping, it had miraculous effects.

Chen Yuan had no intention of killing him; instead, he stuffed Zhang Hong into a sack, hoisted him onto his shoulder, and headed toward the Li Family Herb Garden on Funiu Mountain.

Zhang Hong had no intention of killing him, only wanting to frame him to seize profit.

Chen Yuan was merely returning the favor, fighting to defend his own property.

Moreover, in this situation, a living person was clearly more valuable than a dead one.

As for what fate awaited Zhang Hong after being handed over to the Li Family, that was not something Chen Yuan needed to worry about.

He also suppressed the urge to loot the body.

Even if he knew Zhang Hong likely had a large amount of silver or other treasures on him, he absolutely could not take them.

The Li Family would inevitably interrogate Zhang Hong, and if they discovered the goods didn't match up, they would naturally suspect him, which would be a loss that outweighed the gain.

Since he was going to claim credit, he had to demonstrate his loyalty.

The Li Family was powerful and wealthy; if he could leave a good impression through this matter and be valued, the long-term benefits would be immeasurable.

It was the same principle as not embezzling the quota losses—one must not lose the big for the sake of the small.

After glancing at the inconspicuous house in the distance, Chen Yuan quickened his pace and left.

Tonight was destined to be restless.

Huang Yongbo, along with the people inside that house, would all become targets of the Li Family's reckoning.