Twin Peaks Vie for Supremacy

Chen Cheng truly did not want to get dragged into any disputes.

He had sought the position of a runner at the City Guard Office for no reason other than to make Zhou Biao of the Flying Eagle Gang wary, to make the Flying Eagle Gang and the other martial world gangs hesitate before dealing with him. That way, he could cultivate martial arts in peace.

But what he had seen and heard today made him realize that there was no pure land in this world at all.

If he merely kept his head down and refused to fight, he feared that before he achieved anything in martial arts, he would be silently crushed to death.

Perhaps even people as powerful as Liu Yunfeng and Zhao Yongfeng, despite becoming constables, still had to fight and seize what they could in order to find a sliver of survival.

Chen Cheng could not help recalling the time he had drunk with Liu Yunfeng at Harmony Restaurant.

"In the eyes of the great families and noble personages of the inner city, let alone you, even I could be..."

Liu Yunfeng's throat-slitting gesture from back then remained vivid in Chen Cheng's mind.

"No matter what, today I must join the City Guard Office and become a probationary runner." A powerful sense of crisis suddenly surged into Chen Cheng's heart. He muttered inwardly, his gaze gradually hardening.

Just then, Shen Qingshuang suddenly turned to look over. Their eyes met, and a strange gleam surfaced in her beautiful eyes, carrying a hint of surprise.

As the chief constable of the Ruyi Ward branch of the City Guard Office, Shen Qingshuang's martial cultivation was at least at the Tendon Alteration Realm. Since such a powerful figure had noticed him, Chen Cheng, being the inferior party, did not dare act presumptuously. He quickly smiled and clasped his hands in salute before naturally shifting his gaze away.

"Constable Liu, it seems the person you recommended is no ordinary one."

With a faint smile that was not quite a smile, Shen Qingshuang spoke to Liu Yunfeng as he approached.

Born into a great inner-city family, she possessed formidable martial strength and served as the chief constable of the Ruyi Ward branch of the City Guard Office. She held great authority and status, usually lofty and aloof, cold as frost. Within the Ruyi Ward branch, apart from those few constables, anyone she looked at would often feel ashamed of their own inadequacy and behave with fearful trepidation.

Yet although that slightly lean youth was respectful in bearing, his expression and movements were exceptionally natural, calm and composed. Setting everything else aside, that steady temperament alone greatly surprised her.

Shen Qingshuang's sudden remark left Liu Yunfeng unsure of her meaning. After a brief moment of thought, he clasped his hands and said, "Though Chen Cheng comes from a poor family, he has the makings of greatness, a steadfast temperament, and decisive conduct. He is promising material."

"What a fine 'makings of greatness'!" Shen Qingshuang's expression suddenly turned cold. "Constable Liu, were you perhaps speaking of yourself?"

Liu Yunfeng smiled bitterly. "This subordinate would not dare."

Shen Qingshuang said evenly, "Constable Liu has skirted around the matter and said not a word about Chen Cheng's martial strength. Why is that? Could it be that Chen Cheng's martial strength is not worth mentioning?"

Liu Yunfeng was naturally guilty at heart, and he avoided the important while dwelling on the trivial. "In reply to Lady Shen, Chen Cheng cultivates a family-inherited martial art. This subordinate does not know much about it."

"What a fine 'family-inherited martial art'!" Zhao Yongfeng also walked over, his face carrying a trace of mockery. "Constable Liu's ability to spout nonsense without batting an eye has earned Zhao's admiration!"

Liu Yunfeng's expression darkened. "Constable Zhao, what do you mean by that?"

Zhao Yongfeng's lips curled crookedly, his mockery undisguised. "A mere jailer who has never even attended a martial hall probably only knows a few wild slashes and crude moves. Yet you call his three-legged-cat skills a family-inherited martial art. If you want to plant one of your own people in the City Guard Office to idle away and draw a salary, just say so. There is no need to use such a despicable excuse as family-inherited martial arts to fool Lady Shen.

"Lady Shen sees as clearly as a torch and examines matters down to the finest detail. How could she possibly let you deceive her?"

"Zhao Yongfeng, stop spouting nonsense!" Liu Yunfeng shouted angrily.

Zhao Yongfeng flicked his sleeve. "Whether it is nonsense or not will naturally become clear after the contest. When the time comes, I would like to see whether Constable Liu can still be so tough-talking!"

"Enough!" Shen Qingshuang waved a hand, stopping their argument. "With Elder Zou and Instructor Yang present, you two are constables of the City Guard Office. Do not make yourselves a laughingstock."

Zou Bingliang, master of Tiger Might Martial Hall, and Yang Tai, instructor of Six Harmonies Martial Hall, exchanged glances, then repeatedly clasped their hands and said they would not dare.

The two strongest constables of the Ruyi Ward branch of the City Guard Office, Liu Yunfeng and Zhao Yongfeng, had long been at odds, earning the name of the Twin Peaks vying for supremacy. Martial halls had their own ways of surviving, and as martial world people, Zou Bingliang and Yang Tai had always adhered to the principle of offending neither side.

If disciples from both halls had not needed to enter the City Guard Office, and neither side had wanted to lose a slot, they would never have waded into these muddy waters.

Their disciples competing for the probationary runner slots had already vaguely offended Liu Yunfeng. At this moment, they absolutely did not dare add fuel to the fire.

Zou Bingliang hurriedly said, "Lady Shen, since everyone has arrived, why not begin the assessment now?"

Yang Tai also chimed in, "Elder Zou is quite right."

The two of them desperately wanted to leave the City Guard Office, unwilling to remain even a moment longer.

"Mm." Shen Qingshuang nodded slightly in agreement, then fell into thought again. "One person is to be eliminated from among these six, but what would be the most suitable way to conduct the contest?"

How could Zou Bingliang and Yang Tai dare offer any suggestions? Both lowered their heads and pretended to ponder deeply, while secretly waiting for Liu Yunfeng and Zhao Yongfeng to speak.

Shen Qingshuang glanced at Liu Yunfeng. Seeing that he seemed unwilling to speak, she turned to Zhao Yongfeng. "Constable Zhao, how do you think this contest should proceed?"

Zhao Yongfeng had already made his calculations. He had just greeted the five martial hall disciples and promised them benefits in exchange for teaching Chen Cheng a lesson and humiliating Liu Yunfeng.

He immediately said, "It is simple. The disciples of Tiger Might Martial Hall and Six Harmonies Martial Hall have all cultivated martial arts at their halls. Their strength is not much weaker than that of official runners, so there is naturally no need to assess them further.

"On the other hand, this Chen Cheng recommended by Constable Liu claims to have learned some family-inherited martial art. He is clearly putting on a bold front. Why not choose the weakest among the martial hall disciples to fight Chen Cheng? The winner stays, while the loser is directly eliminated. Nothing could be more straightforward."

Both openly and covertly, he still did not forget to undermine Liu Yunfeng.

"Mm, that does not seem inappropriate." Shen Qingshuang nodded, then turned to Liu Yunfeng. "Constable Liu, what do you think?"

After some thought, Liu Yunfeng said, "It would naturally be best if we could simply and directly select the weakest person. But how do we know whether the person Constable Zhao selects is truly the weakest among the five?

"If he selects the strongest, and Chen Cheng is unfortunate enough to lose, would that not be unfair?"

Shen Qingshuang nodded slightly. "Constable Liu's words make some sense as well.

"Constable Zhao, tell us then: how can we determine which of the five is the weakest?"

Zhao Yongfeng's expression stiffened, and for a moment he had no answer.

Shen Qingshuang turned to Zou Bingliang and Yang Tai. "What do you two think?"

The two exchanged a glance. Zou Bingliang forced himself to say, "Lady Shen, these five disciples consist of three disciples from our Tiger Might Martial Hall and two from Six Harmonies Martial Hall.

"The two disciples of Six Harmonies Martial Hall have cultivated the Six Harmonies Saber Technique to nearly the level of great mastery. When it comes to saber arts, the three disciples of our Tiger Might Martial Hall are absolutely no match for them.

"As for the three disciples of our Tiger Might Martial Hall, this old man knows their strength. Li Lin entered the hall the latest and has trained for the shortest time, so he is also somewhat weaker. Having him compete against Chen Cheng should be fair."