Bang! Bang!
From the dark, silent room beside him came the sound of something heavy crashing to the ground.
Then came a terrified whimper.
Clearly, whoever was inside had been badly frightened.
"..."
Lin Shu stood alone in the pitch-black alley.
Weariness flickered in his eyes.
It wasn't the weakness that came after running out of strength, but the discomfort of having his vitality rapidly drained away.
He lowered his gaze to his fingertips as the black qi slowly dissipated.
Compared to the Bright Moon Claw Technique he'd used against Liu the Third earlier, which had only gathered a few streaks of flowing light, this Immortal Method was brutally powerful—several times more so.
That wasn't just because it had advanced by one grade.
Lin Shu could vaguely sense that ever since he had invested Evil Coins, the Immortal Method itself had begun developing in a strange direction.
Of course, the price of such a terrifying effect was that its cost far exceeded his expectations.
The mist that had been nourishing the White Wolf apparition and, in turn, keeping Lin Shu alive was now less than thirty percent of what it had been.
"Tsk."
Lin Shu turned and sat on the stone steps beside him.
Corpses lay scattered in disarray on either side.
[Kill and rob, earn a golden belt; build bridges and mend roads, leave no bones behind. Take one worthless life, receive five Evil Coins.]
[Life and death are ordained by heaven; snatch a life from Yama's hands. Save one wretched life, receive one Virtue Coin.]
Prompts about Evil Coins and Virtue Coins sprang up in a dense mass.
Lin Shu could almost hear the coins clinking against one another.
The gaunt man was worth five coins, and the rest weren't far behind, each valued at three.
Twenty-nine black copper coins dropped into Lin Shu's sleeve in all.
He'd expected to receive a fair number of Evil Coins. After all, these men were clearly much stronger than Liu the Third, so it was only natural that they'd be worth more.
But the twenty separate Virtue Coin prompts surprised him a little.
There were only twenty people in Magpie Nest, counting Sister Hua and Old Yang.
They hadn't planned to let a single one escape—they'd shaken the yolks right out of every egg.
Lin Shu braced himself on the ground and surveyed the corpses strewn across the alley. He shook his head and sighed, "You lot really went too far."
He'd rested enough.
He patted down his clothes and lazily glanced toward the alley's entrance.
"Officer, come in and collect the bodies."
"..."
Beneath the shabby red lantern, someone slowly stepped into view.
It was still that dark, weather-beaten face.
Chang Yi looked over with a complicated expression. His scabbard hung at his waist, and his hand gripped the hilt tightly.
In truth, he'd arrived earlier.
After making up some excuse about a stomachache to get away from his senior for a while, he'd rushed straight to Green Willow Alley without wasting a moment.
Chang Yi had waited in the shadows, watching Qin Yunhai and the other martial hall disciples enter the alley.
He'd simply been hesitating.
He'd been trying to figure out what situation to act in, and what excuse to give, so he wouldn't look like a hired thug who'd taken money to back Cunning Fox Hall.
But what Chang Yi hadn't expected—in fact, what had frightened him a little—was this:
In the brief moment he'd hesitated, the whole affair had turned absurd, then ended with the speed of thunder before anyone could cover their ears.
The strength Lin Shu had displayed had sent a chill through even him.
The aura from that Immortal Method had surpassed what someone in early Qi Condensation should possess. It seemed to be approaching mid Qi Condensation.
No wonder... no wonder the other man hadn't panicked at all!
In his eyes, Chang Yi's well-intentioned advice had probably just been meddling.
"You're no fox."
Chang Yi's throat was dry, and his voice had grown hoarse. "You're a wolf!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he finally understood why his hand had instinctively stayed on his sword hilt.
As a Purple Flood Dragon Constable, his duty from the day he'd taken office was to deal with the Fierce Wolves who roamed the city.
And the man before him was a Young Wolf, not yet fully grown!
"Quit talking. Get to work first."
Lin Shu rolled his eyes and casually pointed at the corpses strewn across the ground.
"Oh."
The surging thoughts in Chang Yi's mind were interrupted. He nodded without thinking and let go of his sword hilt.
A death had occurred in his jurisdiction, so of course he should examine the body first, then report it to the Yamen.
Just then, an angry roar came from outside the alley.
"Who the hell told you to come here!"
The old constable hurried over. When he saw the corpses covering the alley, shock and fury mingled on his face, and his anger boiled over.
His fingers clenched and unclenched. He nearly slapped Chang Yi across the face.
"I... I wanted to come take a look, senior... I was just about to examine the bodies..."
Caught in a lie, Chang Yi's face filled with guilt, and he began stammering.
"Examine my ass!"
The old constable grabbed his arm and snapped furiously, "Come with me. Now."
"..."
Lin Shu watched the scene unfold calmly, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
A moment later, he slowly rose to his feet, feeling a little helpless.
All these corpses were bad for business. Master Lin was so weak right now that he couldn't exactly carry them away himself.
"Officer, hold on." As he spoke, he ambled over to the two men.
"Hiss!"
The old constable caught a whiff of the blood rushing toward him and instinctively edged away.
Then his eyes narrowed, full of warning. He lowered his voice and said, "Stinking fox, don't go looking for trouble!"
"What's the rush? I'm just curious. I wanted to ask you something." Lin Shu stretched lazily.
"Hm?" Chang Yi looked over in confusion, unsure what Lin Shu was doing.
Was he trying to help him out?
But Lin Shu was with the Blackwater Gang. What constable would listen to a fox?
Before Chang Yi could figure it out, Lin Shu reached out and began vigorously rubbing the back of his head.
Chang Yi stared blankly as his brain began to shut down. "..."
"This kid's dumb as a post, and he made you so angry, Officer."
Lin Shu rubbed that head of black charcoal with satisfaction and smiled. "If you ask me, why not just take that Purple Flood Dragon off him and stick it to your chest instead? Wouldn't that work?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? Of course... of course not."
At that, the old constable's face went pale. He glanced guiltily at the head of black charcoal beside him, afraid Chang Yi might catch on.
The Yamen had only asked him to show Chang Yi the ropes.
He was already out of line pretending to be Chang Yi's senior, but the boy was honest, obedient, and easy to handle.
Strictly speaking, this greenhorn, who was only fifteen years old, was his proper superior.
"So that won't do, huh?"
Lin Shu seemed to give it serious thought, but the smile on his face quickly vanished.
His eyes turned cold as he stared straight at the old bastard and said calmly, "Then why don't you spit out what you're supposed to return?"
"What? What is there to return?"
The old constable reacted as if someone had stepped on his tail, his voice suddenly turning shrill. He tugged at Chang Yi, whose face was full of confusion, and tried to leave. "Come on. Don't listen to this crook's nonsense!"
Unfortunately, he couldn't take a step.
Smack—
In an instant, a sharp, vicious slap cracked across the old constable's face!
The slap stunned not only the old constable but Chang Yi as well. He was completely baffled by what was happening.
Why would a fox dare attack a constable for no reason?!
"How about now? Remember yet?" Lin Shu rubbed his wrist.
"You..."
The old constable stood there, dazed, clutching his face. His lips trembled, and the humiliation in his eyes quickly flared into fury!
He instinctively reached for his sword, but then glanced at the other man's clothes, drenched in blood.
Then he looked at Chang Yi, who stood beside them like a wooden post.
A moment later, the old constable swallowed hard and fixed the young man with a venomous stare.
Reluctantly, he pulled a small cloth pouch from his robes, shoved it into Chang Yi's arms, then said nothing as he stormed out of Green Willow Alley.
"What is this?"
After watching his senior get slapped, Chang Yi had never expected him to actually hand something over. His whole understanding of the world seemed to be crumbling.
Lin Shu's backing was apparently much more terrifying than he'd imagined!
"Dirty money. Want it?" Lin Shu raised an eyebrow.
"No." Chang Yi tossed the pouch away without thinking.
"Then it's mine." Lin Shu caught it and tucked it into his robes.
"Why?" Chang Yi stared blankly as Lin Shu turned and strode away.
"It's money to buy my life. The life is mine, so of course I'm entitled to a share... Oh, and hurry up and clean this place up. I'm opening for business tomorrow."
Lin Shu was already walking away. He waved a hand casually.
For Good Fortune Martial Hall to clear the alley, they must have paid a hefty price.
And that old bastard had taken money to buy Lin Shu's life, yet still dared come swaggering into Green Willow Alley.
So naturally, Lin Shu had thrown his weight around to vent his anger.
The only thing he found amusing was that, right up to the end, that head of black charcoal still hadn't realized the old constable wasn't truly afraid of him, the fox. He was afraid of his "junior."
Taking dirty money might not amount to much in chaotic Blackwater City.
But if word got out that he'd pocketed his superior's share, the old constable could kiss his career goodbye.
"Phew."
Lin Shu let out a long breath, rubbing the Evil Coins and Virtue Coins in his palm as he pushed open the door to Magpie Nest.
After working himself to the bone for so long, it was time to enjoy himself.
Before you continue