Lord Fox

Compared to Yun Niang's panic, Lin Shu was clearly much more composed.

He understood the thought processes of those who walked the gray and black areas of society all too well.

When dealing with government runners, one needed to prepare a specific set of excuses, but when encountering people from the Blackwater Gang, things became much simpler.

After all, strictly speaking, the theater troupe had never joined the gang, so there was no issue of saving face for the organization.

As long as Lin Shu could prove that his value was higher than Liu the Third's, he wouldn't even need to explain the reason for the killing.

Sure enough.

The young man in white had no intention of asking questions; he walked straight toward the three corpses in the courtyard.

He bent down, repeatedly fiddling with Liu the Third's jaw, carefully observing the five puncture holes in the bone.

"Sister Yan, it's immortal arts—some kind of claw technique. In terms of spell power alone, it doesn't exceed the seventh rank of Qi Refining."

"The execution is decent; it should have been a one-hit kill, with no prolonged struggle."

At the same time, the woman in the green shirt turned and approached Lin Shu.

Her face was exquisite; even though she was stern and unsmiling, from Lin Shu's perspective, she was an undeniably fair and beautiful woman.

At this moment, the woman leaned in close without a word.

She gently sniffed Lin Shu's earlobe, then his shoulder, her nose slowly moving downward until it rested against his chest.

The two were very close, their movements intimate.

Lin Shu's eyelids twitched.

Under the perception enhanced by the mist throughout his body, he sensed an extremely dangerous aura emanating from this woman.

It was a level of threat that could no longer be compensated for by playing a few small tricks.

"..."

Yan Jin raised her hand and flipped back the white fur cloak.

She extended her fingertips, reaching toward the empty, gruesome cavity of his chest.

Clack.

Just then, five slender fingers slowly clamped down on her delicate wrist.

Faced with the obstruction, Yan Jin was not in the habit of wasting words; she exerted force casually, intending to continue her investigation.

Yet, her fingertips remained stuck in place.

"Hmm?"

Even if Yan Jin had only mobilized a sliver of spiritual energy, it was not something an ordinary person could block.

She looked up, frowning. "You don't want to be touched?"

A fierce glint flickered in those eyes.

Even the previous government runners hadn't dared to meet this woman's gaze for too long, let alone an ordinary person.

Lin Shu lowered his eyes slightly, his expression devoid of any fear, instead carrying a hint of mockery. "Can I touch you?"

In order not to let Master Liu the Third's silver go to waste, he was more than happy to demonstrate his value to these two.

But that did not include the phantom of the White Wolf inside his chest, which was inextricably linked to his own life.

"No."

Yan Jin was silent for a moment, then slowly straightened her body.

Through the powerful grip of that right hand, she felt its owner's attitude.

The young man before her hadn't said much.

Yet, from his seemingly cynical eyes, she could perceive a ferocity that was ready to fight to the death at any moment.

This contradicted her intentions, so she let it go.

With that thought, Yan Jin withdrew her hand casually.

"Just call me Bai Feng; we're all on the same side from now on."

The young man in white finished checking the corpses and strolled over, a smile returning to his indifferent face.

"Sister Yan, how is it?"

"He hasn't practiced internal arts; he's merely tainted by the aura of the immortals. Once that spiritual energy dissipates, he will die," Yan Jin said indifferently.

"Is that so?" Bai Feng clicked his tongue and looked at Lin Shu again, the smile on his face thinning. "Then he can only be a fox."

The Blackwater Gang had four major halls. Whether one was a martial artist with innate talent or a cultivator who had grasped internal arts, they were qualified to join Wolf Hall.

Only when one's cultivation reached a certain level could they be granted a wolf name, transforming from a cub into a true Fierce Wolf.

There were also those who, by some twist of fate, stumbled upon immortal relics. Lacking the necessary destiny, they only grasped a move or two. Once the spiritual energy absorbed from the relic was exhausted, they would fade into the crowd.

The Blackwater Gang didn't waste such people; after all, they could still be put to use for a while.

"Fine, there happens to be a vacancy in Green Willow Alley. I'll arrange for someone to guide you there later."

After hearing Yan Jin's words, Bai Feng was clearly somewhat disinterested.

He waved his hand, "If you run into any trouble in the future, just look for Sister Yan. I have things to attend to, so I'll be taking my leave."

Before his voice had even faded, Bai Feng had already pushed open the courtyard gate and slipped away.

"..."

The corner of Yan Jin's eye twitched, a hint of annoyance surfacing.

But she was not one for words; she merely cast a casual glance at Lin Shu and walked away in silence.

Three people had died in the city, but to the Blackwater Gang, it seemed like nothing of consequence.

A single word was enough to resolve it, and even the local authorities dared not interfere.

Until the two of them left, they hadn't even asked for Lin Shu's name, nor had they ever sought his opinion.

The courtyard returned to silence.

"Whew!"

Yun Niang suddenly lost her strength, her body going limp. She had to grip Lin Shu's arm tightly with both palms to keep from collapsing to the ground.

She swallowed hard, staring at the young man's profile in disbelief.

The person before her had actually dared to grab the wrist of a fierce wolf!

What shocked Yun Niang even more was that the she-wolf had strangely not flown into a rage, but had chosen to concede instead.

"Go get me another set of clothes."

Lin Shu set aside his usual demeanor for once, looking calmly at his right palm.

It was truly a place with immortals; just by looking at the exterior, one could not tell the depth of a person at all.

It wasn't that the woman surnamed Yan lacked the ability to continue.

It was simply unnecessary.

The two of them had come to recruit subordinates for the Blackwater Gang.

Yan Jin had clearly seen through his background and realized that the mist could not be replenished.

If she had continued to exert force and drained this person dry, it would only result in the Blackwater Gang losing a thug.

"At least I have an identity now."

Lin Shu clenched his fingers and smiled.

He was a man who could let go of things as easily as he picked them up.

Judging by the attitude of the bailiffs earlier, with the skin of the Blackwater Gang draped over him, his room for maneuver in the future would be much greater.

Having successfully made a connection with the Blackwater Gang, Lin Shu was now even more interested in this place.

However, if he remembered correctly, before Liu San died, he had mentioned selling the widow to Green Willow Alley... that seemed to be a brothel.

A strange look emerged in Lin Shu's eyes.

Watching over a brothel—wouldn't that make him a pimp?

No, that wasn't right; a pimp welcomes and sends off guests, while he was doing the work of a thug. "Security Manager" would be a more fitting title.

Inside the dilapidated courtyard.

Lin Shu changed into a black shirt.

The small widow's late husband had a build similar to his, so it fit passably well. The fabric was quite comfortable, though it had been washed until it was somewhat faded.

"Sir..."

Yun Niang pursed her lips, wanting to say something, but in the end, she let out a soft sigh.

She always felt that although her benefactor's words and actions were a bit strange, he was not a bad person and shouldn't be getting involved with the Blackwater Gang.

But for the ordinary people in the city, Cunning Fox Hall was an existence they could never hope to reach.

Even if they hated them enough to want to tear them limb from limb, if they actually ran into them, they would still have to obediently call out "Lord Fox."

This was a promotion; she should be congratulating Lin Shu, not raining on his parade.

"..."

Lin Shu sat on a bamboo chair, closing his eyes to rest while waiting for the people from Green Willow Alley, all the while familiarizing himself with the immortal arts in his mind.

However, the courtyard was visited first by a cripple.

A dirty, aged face appeared behind the crack in the gate, cautiously peering at the situation inside until he saw a familiar face.

"You... you're not dead!"

Old Cripple cried out in excitement, hopping into the courtyard with his crutch.

He began to pat Lin Shu all over, pinching his arms and shaking his legs, "The hands are still here, and the legs are still here too!"

Seeing this, Yun Niang froze for a moment, her heart tightening instinctively.

She knew that even Fierce Wolf's touch had been rejected by Lin Shu, let alone that of an old beggar.

Yet, to her surprise, Lin Shu sat quietly, showing no signs of anger and allowing the old man to spray saliva everywhere as he spoke.

Only when the cripple calmed down slightly did he ask, "Why did you come here?"

"I... I..."

Old Yang faltered.

He could have used this opportunity to brag about how loyal he was, but after a moment of hesitation, he awkwardly scratched his messy, bird's-nest hair.

"Wang Xu is dead. They're going to report it to the Blackwater Gang, and I was afraid of losing my life, so I had to slip away."

"I didn't know where to go after I got out, and I thought, since we've known each other, I should at least come to collect your remains..."

By custom, if wretches from the South Suburb like them died in the West City and no one claimed the body, they usually ended up rotting in the wilderness.

Old Cripple truly didn't dare to do anything else; this was the only thing he could think of.

"I'm so grateful to you, really, for wishing me well." Lin Shu rolled his eyes.

"Heh... heh..." Old Yang let out a self-deprecating laugh.

Suddenly, he realized something was wrong. He glanced at the three familiar corpses in the courtyard and couldn't help but swallow hard.

Liu San and the Ma Brothers were all dead!

That meant the rumors he had heard in the neighboring street were true—the Blackwater Gang had a new Lord Fox!

"It's good that you're fine, it's good that you're fine."

Old Yang hurriedly stood up, his heart in a panic, and carefully wiped the spot on the other man's shoulder that he had dirtied. "You go on with your business, I'll head back now."

He stumbled over to pick up his crutch.

The years of suffering in the opera troupe had long since taught Old Yang about the rigid hierarchy of Blackwater City, and he dared not hope for anything else.

The thin, small figure outside the courtyard watched this scene with curiosity, then bowed and scraped before Lin Shu, saying respectfully, "Lord Fox, Xiao Liu is here to lead you over for the handover."

The people from Green Willow Alley had arrived.

Lin Shu rose slowly. He didn't rush to leave, but instead called out to the old cripple first: "Have you decided where you're going?"

The opera troupe was gone, and that courtyard in the South Suburb would soon be occupied by others.

"Ah? Not... not yet." Old Yang said sheepishly.

Lin Shu nodded toward the servant outside the courtyard, stepped out, and said casually, "Then let's go."

Hearing this, Old Yang stood frozen.

It took him a long time to realize what the other man meant.

This was... he was going to take him along?!