Mei Ye Returns

"You're... Mei Ye?!"

Hearing the commotion, Tian Ge suddenly raised his disheveled head. His pupils contracted as he cried out in shock.

The night wind swept up Mei Ye's black bangs, revealing his refined and handsome face.

His trainee uniform was still stained with dried blood. He held a long saber and stood there quietly, utterly out of place amid the chaotic, bloody scene around him.

But in this high-martial society, being good-looking was useless. It would only draw the jealousy and bullying of the strong.

Mei Ye had once been the best example of that.

"Go... send a message to the captain and the others..."

Jiang Lide spoke unclearly. He had initially felt somewhat relieved at the arrival of reinforcements, but when he saw Mei Ye's pale blue uniform and tie, he was immediately disappointed again.

This was the uniform of a trainee Demon-Suppressing Guard. At most, the other party could only be at the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm.

"Indeed, this is a bit troublesome."

With a faint smile, Mei Ye stepped in front of the attacker. True qi surged through his body like rivers and crashing tides, yet his aura was still a notch weaker than his opponent's.

Was the other party at the eighth or ninth level of the Body Tempering Realm?

"It's over."

Tian Ge shakily climbed up from the ground and hurriedly hid to one side, looking at Mei Ye with mixed emotions.

His limbs had gone weak. He staggered several steps back, pressed his back tightly against the cold wall, and could not stop trembling.

They were clearly both trash at the same realm, yet at a time like this, Mei Ye was still playing the hero by standing before the attacker.

It had to be said that Tian Ge's disdain for fools like Mei Ye had deepened another layer.

Yet beneath that disdain, he also felt a faint sense of admiration.

After all, it was precisely because people like Mei Ye were willing to sacrifice themselves that petty people like him had a chance to survive!

[Current Merit Points: 800]

[Current Martial Arts:

Basic Qi-Nourishing Art: Body Tempering Level Five

Righteous Qi Saber Art: Mastered

Wind-Treading Step: Beginner]

Realizing that he might not be a match for his opponent, Mei Ye summoned the panel and decided to use his cheat.

Both martial arts had already reached mastery. Further improvement would not be cost-effective.

For now, it was better to raise his realm a little more.

With a thought, Mei Ye invested all his Merit Points into his breathing technique.

[Current Merit Points: 0]

The Merit Points transformed into a kind of energy and poured into the martial art.

Warm, pure energy raced through his meridians, instantly spreading through all four limbs and every bone in his body without the slightest obstruction.

It was as though Mei Ye had received sudden enlightenment. His true qi surged, his muscle density increased, his pores opened, and his strength rose to another level.

The true qi around him suddenly swelled by a full circle. His bones gave off faint cracking sounds, and the aura around his formerly slender body instantly became deep and solid. All his exhaustion and weakness were swept away.

[Basic Qi-Nourishing Art: Body Tempering Level Nine!]

"Hm?"

Perhaps it was an illusion, but the attacker felt the aura opposite him grow stronger.

Had this brat taken some kind of pill?

"Who goes there? State your name!"

Filled with doubts, the attacker shouted sharply. True qi quietly circulated around his body as he gathered strength for an attack.

"Take my blade!"

With his realm stabilized, Mei Ye's fighting spirit erupted. He unleashed the Wind-Treading Step at full force. With a light tap of his toes against the ground, his body blurred abruptly, trailing a faint afterimage. He moved so fast that the naked eye could barely follow, closing in on his opponent in an instant.

Splat!

Silver light flashed, and the saber sliced through the air like the wail of a vicious ghost!

The sharp saber light tore through the night wind with a piercing whistle, and a streak of snow-bright silver instantly locked onto his opponent's vital points.

The attacker was terrified. Was this brat really a trainee Demon-Suppressing Guard? How could he be this strong?

He twisted aside to evade the blade, retreating while carrying the young man on his back and putting distance between himself and Mei Ye.

But Mei Ye closed in again. With his Wind-Treading Step at mastery, his figure was like a ghost, impossible to predict.

He raised the long saber lightly, its blade reflecting the attacker's terrified face.

"Flick of Spring and Autumn!"

Enraged, the attacker raised two fingers. His true qi transformed into sharp finger force and shot toward the saber blade.

Mei Ye's expression hardened. He gripped the cold hilt with both hands, took a deep breath, twisted his waist downward, and brought both arms down with all his strength.

The incomparably sharp saber crashed down. The attacker's powerful finger force struck the blade, only to vanish like a mud ox sinking into the sea, shattering and dispersing without moving the blade in the slightest.

The attacker's face went deathly pale. Cold sweat streamed down his face, his heart pounded wildly, and the shadow of death wrapped around him.

Splat!

A long gash stretched from his shoulder down to his abdomen and across his limbs. His flesh split open like blooming roses.

Blood splattered across the asphalt. Wails, blood, and white bones danced together in the air.

The attacker fell dead.

The young man he had carried also broke free and rolled several times across the ground. His pale face was covered in bruises, but his expression was stiff, as though he had lost all awareness.

Mei Ye sheathed his saber, suppressing its icy blade aura. His expression was calm, and his presence was heavy and steady as a mountain.

"No way!"

Tian Ge, who had watched from the side, stood dumbfounded. The saber in his hand clanged onto the ground.

Was that really his classmate?

Back in training, hadn't Mei Ye often been dragged out as a negative example?

Had he been possessed?

Or had some Immortal Emperor been reborn in his body?

For a moment, Tian Ge began to suspect Mei Ye.

Just as Tian Ge's thoughts ran wild, a series of sharp sounds tore through the air from nearby.

Someone ran along the walls of the alley, flying from eave to eave, casting crisscrossing shadows across the ground.

He landed in an instant, then drew his long saber. He wore the same style of uniform as Jiang Lide, proclaiming his identity.

It was Zheng Xiujie, captain of the Demon-Suppressing Guard.

As Zheng Xiujie landed, the powerful aura of the Qi Gathering Realm made Tian Ge submit and feel reverence.

He looked at the attacker who had only recently died on the ground, then at the young man nearby whose eyes were unfocused and whose expression was blank. His expression immediately relaxed.

He looked around and saw Jiang Lide lying on the ground, coughing blood, as well as the two trainee Demon-Suppressing Guards nearby.

After thinking for a moment, he understood the whole situation.

"Old Jiang, thanks to you for stopping that cultist!"

Zheng Xiujie laughed heartily and helped Jiang Lide up, his tone full of praise.

"Captain Zheng..."

Jiang Lide coughed, his breathing weak.

Zheng Xiujie quickly fed Jiang Lide a pill.

As the pill entered his stomach, warmth filled his body and Jiang Lide's complexion improved somewhat.

"Old Jiang, you've rendered great merit this time," Zheng Xiujie said enviously. "To stop that cultist from escaping, you risked your life and successfully intercepted him. Such strength and determination earn my admiration! My admiration!"

Tian Ge wore a strange expression. Zheng Xiujie was the captain of their team. His temperament was neither good nor bad.

It was rather amusing to hear him praise someone who had been beaten down in a few moves by the cultist.

What would he do if he knew Mei Ye was the one who had killed the cultist?

"Captain Zheng..."

Zheng Xiujie was still praising Jiang Lide, but Jiang Lide had already raised a hand in embarrassment to stop him.

"I didn't kill him!"

Jiang Lide said, holding back a breath.

"Oh? You didn't kill him?" Zheng Xiujie froze and looked at Jiang Lide in confusion. "Then someone else did? That can't be, can it? Besides you, who else is here?"

Jiang Lide's expression was complicated. If he had not witnessed that boy displaying his might with his own eyes, he would not have believed it either.

He looked at Mei Ye and raised a hand to point at the calm young man.

"What? Him?"

Zheng Xiujie was full of suspicion. He stared at Mei Ye's face for a long time before finally remembering that this kid was Mei Ye, a newcomer who had just graduated and joined this year.

"Old Jiang, are you joking with me?"

Zheng Xiujie said to Jiang Lide. Trainee Demon-Suppressing Guards were not supposed to fight enemies head-on because their skills were insufficient.

The real frontline fighting strength was still veterans like them.

"I... am not..."

Jiang Lide said helplessly. He did not speak much, but he never lied.

Knowing Jiang Lide well, Zheng Xiujie was half-convinced and half-doubtful. He looked toward Tian Ge in the corner.

"You're Tian Ge, right?" Zheng Xiujie asked. He had trained Tian Ge before. "Did Mei really kill this cultist?"

Hearing his captain's question, Tian Ge jolted and hurriedly stood up, reacting much faster than he normally did during training.

"Y-Yes!"

Tian Ge hurriedly replied, then glanced at Mei Ye with a complicated expression.

"The cultist really was killed by Mei Ye. He cut him down with a single strike."

Zheng Xiujie was stunned. He looked again at Mei Ye, who stood there calm and composed, and for a moment, his brain seemed unable to process it.

"You... Mei... you're actually this strong?"

Zheng Xiujie asked in disbelief. He remembered Mei Ye. In their circle, people called someone like him a "vase."

The sort who could rise to prominence by relying on his face and climbing into women's beds.

However, Mei Ye himself was somewhat old-fashioned. Even though he knew his looks were perhaps unusual, he had never considered taking a thirty-year shortcut.

He still trained with the team like an ordinary newcomer. Even when some veterans bullied him out of jealousy, he endured it quietly.

And someone like that had actually killed a cultist who normally required a full-fledged Demon-Suppressing Guard to defeat?

"Captain Zheng."

Mei Ye crossed his arms. His tone did not ripple in the slightest, but every word was clear. "I'm here to report back to the team."

"Report back for what?"

Zheng Xiujie froze, his brows furrowing together.

Mei Ye sighed inwardly. Sure enough, compared with capturing cultists, the matter on his side did not seem important.

"Today, while my two companions and I were on patrol, we were attacked by a Dog Demon. My two companions died. After killing the Dog Demon, I hurried here."

After hearing Mei Ye's words, Zheng Xiujie clicked his tongue. Only then did he remember that when the captain had gathered people to surround the cultists earlier, some were missing.

At the time, he had been anxious and had received a scolding from the captain.

But in the rush to suppress the cultists, he had forgotten about it.

"You were the only one who came back alive? And you even killed a cultist here?"

Zheng Xiujie felt that Mei Ye had some real ability.

"I broke through on the spot." Mei Ye spoke as though his words were not shocking enough. "Isn't it normal for martial artists to break through their realms in life-and-death situations?"

Zheng Xiujie's mouth twitched. Did it have to be this melodramatic? Wasn't that something that only happened in television dramas?

"Fine, I'll assume you really did break through on the spot. What about those two?"

"They died. The Dog Demon ate everything but their heads. It was awful."

"..."

Zheng Xiujie was silent for a second. After a while, he sighed. "This is how it is for those who dedicate themselves to humanity. Give me the location. Someone will go collect their bodies later."

Although he had doubts about Mei Ye's words, the truth would eventually come to light.

At the Demon Suppression Bureau, no criminal could act recklessly.

Mei Ye nodded and told Zheng Xiujie where they had been attacked.

A short while later, Zheng Xiujie reported the situation to the captain.

Captain Wei Wushuang led the captains over. When he saw the cultist on the ground, he was delighted.

"You're Mei Ye?"

Wei Wushuang nodded at Mei Ye, his eyes filled with appreciation. "A hero truly emerges in youth. You've rendered great service!"

"It was my duty."

Mei Ye clasped his fists without being either arrogant or servile.

"Excellent! You're truly an outstanding young man. To kill a cultist at such a young age, your future is bound to be limitless!"

Wei Wushuang's gaze lingered briefly on Mei Ye's handsome face. After a moment of thought, his eyes brightened. "Your surname is Mei. What is your relationship with the Langya Mei Clan?"

"I have nothing to do with the Jiangzuo Alliance."

Mei Ye complained inwardly. There was a commercial club in the southeast called the Jiangzuo Alliance. Its leader was elusive, and rumors spread through the martial world that he was exceptionally shrewd and brilliantly gifted. He was known as Mei Lang.

He came from Langya, which was why the Langya Mei Clan had also risen greatly in fame.

"Oh? You aren't from the Langya Mei Clan?"

Wei Wushuang was surprised. Without the identity of a second-generation heir, he was still this strong? Why had he never heard of someone like this before? Why was someone like him working as a trainee Demon-Suppressing Guard?

Wei Wushuang swept Mei Ye with his spiritual sense again and was astonished to discover that Mei Ye was already an expert at the ninth level of the Body Tempering Realm.

He could not help feeling delighted at the sight of talent. A genius of commoner birth like this had no backing yet. He might as well take him under his wing. Once the boy soared to great heights, he could become Wei Wushuang's right-hand man.

"So you're merely a commoner?" Wei Wushuang praised. "To reach such a realm through your own efforts as a commoner, your talent is rare in this world."

Wei Wushuang took a small booklet from his robes. "I see that you are on the verge of another breakthrough. This is a cultivation technique from our bureau. Take it as a personal reward from me. Of course, the Demon Suppression Bureau will have separate rewards for you as well."

"Thank you, Captain."

No reason to refuse a free gift.

Mei Ye accepted the booklet without the slightest hesitation. When he flipped it open, he saw the title written on the first page: Evil-Suppressing Demon-Subduing Art.

It was the standard cultivation technique of the Demon Suppression Bureau after the Basic Qi-Nourishing Art.

Giving it to Mei Ye in advance was Wei Wushuang's gesture of goodwill.

Mei Ye closed the booklet and looked at Wei Wushuang, who wore a faint smile. His emotions churned, but he forcefully suppressed them.

Not far away, Tian Ge saw the treatment Mei Ye received and was consumed with jealousy, wishing he could take his place.

Wei Wushuang was a powerful local official. With his favor, Mei Ye was bound to rise through the ranks.

Why? Why did all the good things fall into Mei Ye's lap?

"Captain! I have something to report!"

Jealousy nearly tore Tian Ge apart.

He shouted and put on a righteous expression, as though his eyes could not tolerate even a grain of sand.

Wei Wushuang's attention shifted to him. He glanced at Tian Ge, his face darkening. "Speak."

"I report Mei Ye!"

Tian Ge pointed at Mei Ye, his expression filled with grief and indignation.

"This man is my classmate. His talent is mediocre, and he has always ranked at the bottom in training.

Yet today, he killed a cultist above his level. That would have been utterly unimaginable before.

Though I am pleased by his improvement, for the sake of the Demon Suppression Bureau and the people of Jiangbei City, I believe he must be hiding an unspeakable secret."

Tian Ge clasped his fists and said angrily,

"Captain, please investigate thoroughly!"

"Tian Ge!"

Zheng Xiujie's expression changed drastically. At a time like this, couldn't this brat read the room?

Even if there really was something suspicious, couldn't they discuss it after going back?

That bastard's thoughts were written all over his face!

Sure enough, after hearing Tian Ge's words, Wei Wushuang's expression immediately darkened.

"Captain Zheng, are you the one training this man?"

"Captain, I accept responsibility. I have failed in my leadership."

Zheng Xiujie's face went pale, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

"Forget it. We should show some tolerance toward the younger generation," Wei Wushuang said calmly. But his next words nearly made Zheng Xiujie's heart leap into his throat. "However, remember this: educating newcomers is the solid foundation for preserving and carrying on the Demon Suppression Bureau.

Old Zheng, you still need to raise your awareness in this regard."

Zheng Xiujie's legs went weak, and he could not help pressing them together.

"Captain Zheng, this Mei Ye... I think he has potential."

Wei Wushuang patted Mei Ye's shoulder. "I intend to bring Little Mei under my command. What do you think?"

How could Zheng Xiujie dare refuse? He said bitterly,

"The people I train are cultivated for the nation and the court. It would be Little Mei's good fortune to serve at the captain's side."

"Good."

Wei Wushuang nodded faintly and looked at Mei Ye.

"In a few days, report to my directly subordinate Second Team."

"Yes."

Mei Ye clasped his fists, then added, "But Captain, I should inform you that I was previously attacked by a Dog Demon.

Though I narrowly survived, two of my companions died as well. If I cannot avenge them, my heart will never be at peace."

"Someone in Jiangbei City attacked personnel of the Demon Suppression Bureau. The nature of this matter is rather serious." Wei Wushuang nodded and frowned. "I'll have someone investigate it."

"Thank you, Captain."

Mei Ye smiled. "But to be honest, I already have a lead on the person behind it. I only hope the captain will grant me the authority to investigate."

"You want to take revenge yourself?"

Wei Wushuang looked surprised. He stared at Mei Ye for several seconds, confirming that he was not talking nonsense.

"Very well. Go investigate, then. I trust you will not bring me a wrongful conviction."

Wei Wushuang nodded as he spoke, leaving Zheng Xiujie greatly astonished.

The captain actually trusted Mei Ye this much?