The Efficiency of Practicing Slicing on People

Bai Deyuan was so frightened that cold sweat poured down his forehead. He dropped to his knees with a thud and hurriedly defended himself:

"May My Lord Li see clearly—Zhou Yunhan was the head shopkeeper in Green Mountain City. This commoner has never concerned himself with White Horse Pharmacy's daily operations."

"He colluded with Clear Wind Stronghold in secret. I truly knew nothing of it."

"Whether you knew or not will only be clear after an investigation."

Li Dingfang's tone sank slightly as he said sternly:

"Patriarch Bai, Six Gates needs your cooperation. Everyone in White Horse Pharmacy, from top to bottom, inside and out, must be thoroughly investigated."

"The account books, warehouses, and correspondence—nothing can be missing."

"If there are still moles from Clear Wind Stronghold hiding in your Bai family, digging them out early will be a good thing for your Bai family as well."

How would Bai Deyuan dare say even half a no? If this case were pursued seriously, he, Bai Deyuan, as the family head, would at the very least be guilty of negligence.

The more conveniences Zhou Yunhan had provided Clear Wind Stronghold over the years, the heavier the suspicion on the Bai family became.

If Zhou Yunhan had not been like a cornered dog leaping over a wall in the end and made a move against Bai Zhixing, Bai Deyuan would never have been able to wash clean this connection no matter what.

At the thought of this, the cold sweat on his back had already soaked through his inner robe. He immediately nodded again and again and hastily said:

"This commoner will fully cooperate with Six Gates!"

Li Dingfang did not dwell on this matter any longer. He turned to Chen Jing and Cheng Qingshi, his expression easing slightly.

"You two foiled Clear Wind Stronghold's plot tonight. This was a righteous act of chivalry and justice. Six Gates will issue rewards according to the rules."

"The bounty for Little Brother Chen's previous killing of a wanted criminal will also be issued together."

He paused, his gaze lingering on Chen Jing for an extra breath, a half-smiling expression appearing on his face.

"Little Brother Chen, let me give you a reminder."

Li Dingfang said slowly, "If you have clues in the future, remember to report them to Six Gates. Do not take matters into your own hands."

"This time, you were lucky."

"But a person's luck cannot stay good forever. Wouldn't you agree?"

Chen Jing's heart chilled slightly.

Li Dingfang had said it lightly, but Chen Jing could weigh the weight in those words. This constable of Six Gates was clearly giving him a warning.

He had previously been attacked by a wanted criminal, yet had not explained the matter of Zhou Fan. If Li Dingfang had not been sharp and ordered Duan Mu to send people to keep watch...

The impact of this incident might have been even worse.

He had won by luck this time. What about next time?

Chen Jing was sincerely convinced. He cupped his hands and said, "I will respectfully heed My Lord's teachings."

When they came out of Six Gates, the sky was already faintly bright.

The great fire at Hundred Flowers Pavilion was being extinguished.

Cheng Lianshan led his disciples back to Lianshan Martial Arts Hall. Su Ru had already invited a physician to wait in the hall.

The physician carefully examined Chen Jing and Cheng Qingshi from head to toe. Fortunately, both of them had been wearing the close-fitting soft armor Mei Qinghe had given them.

Even though they had been hacked a few times amid the chaos, they only had superficial bruises and had not injured their muscles or bones.

The physician prescribed several packets of medicine to invigorate blood and disperse bruising.

Then he left behind some excellent wound medicine before taking his leave.

Cheng Lianshan sat in the seat of honor in the inner hall, his gaze sweeping over the disciples. The robes on Cheng Qingshi's body still bore scorch marks from the fire, and the specks of blood spattered across Chen Jing's lapels had already dried into dark brown.

"Qingshi, you did very well this time."

Cheng Lianshan's tone carried heartfelt gratification.

He understood his own son. He was born for martial arts, with a cold exterior and a warm heart. If he had not taken the initiative to go to Hundred Flowers Pavilion together with Chen Jing, then with Chen Jing alone, facing the siege of several dozen bladesmen, it would probably have been very difficult for him to retreat in one piece.

Cheng Qingshi cupped his fists and bowed.

"Your child merely did what was within his duty."

Cheng Lianshan's gaze turned to Chen Jing again, and he said with some emotion, "Little Jing, I never expected you to possess such a sharp and fierce set of saber techniques."

Liu Yunfei and Liang Youheng exchanged a glance.

The two of them had personally seen the corpses of those bladesmen last night.

Severed arms and broken limbs had been scattered all over the ground, the cuts smooth and clean. A few corpses had practically been split in half.

That bloody and brutal scene made even them, who had seen plenty of jianghu killing, feel a chill rise in their hearts.

Chen Jing said truthfully:

"I would not dare deceive Master."

"This saber technique of mine was trained by slaughtering pigs. I went to work at the slaughterhouse not only to earn silver, but also to practice the saber."

Liu Yunfei froze for a moment, then laughed in sudden understanding. "So that's how it was. I really thought you just liked slaughtering pigs that much."

"Still, that said, to train a pig-slaughtering blade technique to this level—Little Junior Brother, you're one of a kind."

Zhang Chengji, Mei Qinghe, and the others also sighed in wonder one after another, finding this little junior brother, Chen Jing, more and more worthy of fresh regard.

Cheng Lianshan waved a hand and sighed.

"This is very good. In the end, it gives you one more means to preserve your life."

"This world is in turmoil. Clear Wind Stronghold is gathering all kinds of desperadoes from North Chuan outside, howling together in the mountain forests, and who knows how many people like Zhou Yunhan they've buried inside Green Mountain City."

"In the future, even if you're moving about within the city, you must be much more careful. You absolutely must not be careless."

All the disciples put away their smiles and answered in unison.

They had been busy for an entire night.

By the time he returned to his residence, the sky was already bright.

Chen Jing lay on the bed, and only then did every tendon and bone in his body completely relax.

The chirping of morning birds came from outside the window. He closed his eyes, and in his mind, he began reviewing the battle at Hundred Flowers Pavilion.

In this battle, it seemed as if they had all withdrawn unscathed, but if there had been even the slightest misstep, it would have been a fall into ten thousand kalpas with no return. Therefore, Chen Jing was accustomed to checking for leaks and filling gaps.

After all, when it came to risking one's life, the margin for error was extremely low.

One mistake, and there would never again be a chance to correct it.

Once he finished reviewing it.

Only then did Chen Jing turn his attention to the system panel in his mind.

After last night's bloody battle, he had cut down a full twenty or so blade-wielders, and the proficiency of his Pig-Slaughtering Blade Technique had surged by 270 points.

On top of that, the Blood-Qi Realm expert Zhou Yunhan had kept had contributed 100 proficiency points on his own, for a total income of 370 points.

Pig-Slaughtering Blade Technique (Great Accomplishment: 1315/5000)

Chen Jing stared at this number and began calculating in his heart.

The proficiency earned from cutting people down in one night was equal to seven or eight days of slaughtering pigs. Could it be that the true good place to cultivate blade technique was on the battlefield, killing enemies?

However, as for matters in the army.

Butcher Zhang and Instructor Wang had both told him about them before.

Soldiers in the army did not have battles to fight at every moment. Most of the time was spent drilling, garrisoning, and patrolling the borders.

In years of peace, one might not see a single war for three to five years.

If he truly wanted to rely on fighting wars to grind proficiency, he would still have to wait for the right opportunity.

However, right now, the Central Plains were growing more chaotic by the day.

The surrounding barbarians had also begun to eye them like tigers watching their prey, whether in the north, the Western Regions, the southwest, or the Shu Region where he was.

The situation was gradually growing tense everywhere.

Before the New Year, the Western Rong had knocked at the pass in North Chuan; this was exactly that.

Once war broke out, perhaps he could also consider joining the army for a while.

Aside from joining the army, there was actually another place that also possessed the legal authority to cut people down, and that was Six Gates, which was responsible for hunting bandits and making arrests.

However, wanting to enter Six Gates was not that easy.

There were only times when Six Gates took the initiative to select people; there had never been a precedent of someone taking the initiative to pledge themselves.

No matter what, the fastest way to improve his blade technique at present was still slaughtering pigs. Though dull, its advantage lay in stability.

What was more, he could still earn a wage every day by slaughtering pigs now, killing two birds with one stone.

Thinking of this, Chen Jing could not be bothered to rest.

He flipped over, sprang up from the bed, practiced two rounds of fist techniques in the courtyard, ate breakfast, picked up his slaughtering knife, and went to the Slaughterhouse again.

Come wind or rain, the pig slaughtering could not stop.

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