Li Xiuwen reached into Brother Ji's shattered chest, pulled out the Butterfly Knife, and rinsed it in the filthy water.
He also fished a few odds and ends out of Brother Ji's pockets: a lighter, cigarettes, three hundred dollars...
"Broke as fucking hell. These punks have no idea how to save money. No wonder they never get anywhere."
"Wait, there's something inside this pocket lining."
Li Xiuwen slit the lining open with the Butterfly Knife and pulled out a rag. Unfolding it revealed a thin booklet of golden oilpaper.
Inside were densely packed, tiny characters and diagrams of little figures practicing martial forms.
"Moving-Mountain Style... Binding Armor Skill... A secret manual from some martial arts school? Never heard of it."
The Enclave alone had over a hundred martial schools,
let alone Fragrant Sea and the Prosperous State.
There were so many schools in this world that even an expert couldn't possibly recognize them all, much less a novice like him.
"I'll put it away for now. I can't blindly practice something of unknown origin. I'll study it back home and see whether it's safe to learn."
Li Xiuwen stripped off his blood-spattered clothes, dragged Brother Ji's corpse into the filthy channel, and scrubbed it thoroughly, washing away his scent and fingerprints.
The Soul-Crushing Powder might also let someone trace this back to the Sea Sand Style, so he had to wash that away too.
There was no law in the Enclave, only a few underworld rules established by the gangs.
Apart from Third Master, nobody cared whether Brother Ji lived or died.
It never hurt to err on the side of caution.
As for the corpse, he had no way to dispose of it anytime soon. Leaving it in the Sewers was his best option.
Bodies turned up here every day. It was already the customary dumping ground after gang brawls.
As he passed the exit, Li Xiuwen noticed a charred palm print sunk three inches into the wall.
It looked as though a blazing-hot, palm-shaped branding iron had been pressed into it.
It showed signs of age.
There were also bullet craters nearby, left by gang shootouts,
but they seemed insignificant beside that charred palm print.
"One palm strike burned a huge crater into the wall... How many years of training would that take? Could Old Huang do it?"
"The Enclave is full of hidden masters. I need to keep a low profile at all times."
Leaving the Sewers, Li Xiuwen disappeared into the night.
At the Thirteen Guardians' headquarters,
Third Master rested his chin on his hand, pretending to doze. Impatience showed on his face. "Where's Rotten-Life Ji? He's the only one missing. Making me wait for him-he must think he's really something!"
"Third Master, Aji's been getting a little full of himself lately," a lean, wiry man with triangular eyes said with a chuckle.
He was Venomous Snake, the Thirteen Guardians' second-in-command. His strength was about equal to Brother Ji's; his greater seniority had earned him second place.
But Brother Ji was good at business and brought in more protection money. Combined with his unusual connections, that had made him more favored by Third Master in recent years.
"I know what he's scheming. If he didn't have a cousin in the Thunder God Shed, I'd have purged him long ago," Third Master said with a smile.
"Third Master, I'll go find Brother Ji." A young Street Thug raised his hand and volunteered.
Third Master waved him off. The Street Thug took off his shoes and waded away through the sewage.
Five minutes later, the Street Thug came rushing back. Trembling all over, he stammered, "Third Master... Brother Ji... is dead."
"What?!" Third Master's cloudy old eyes widened, and an intimidating aura erupted from him.
"Someone killed him? Where? Take me there!" Venomous Snake looked shocked too.
Brother Ji's large body leaned against the wall, his head hanging like a smashed melon.
Third Master limped over, his expression grim.
Venomous Snake had already inspected the wounds. "A penetrating wound through the left chest. The killer ambushed him from behind. His head was smashed by a powerful palm strike."
"Whew..." Third Master breathed a sigh of relief. "Looks like the enemy is only at the azure membrane level. Otherwise, there'd have been no need for all that trouble."
"I'm just worried Aji offended someone he shouldn't have," Venomous Snake said. "Third Master, should we investigate?"
Third Master thought for a moment. "Yes, but keep this quiet... Don't let Dao Youming find out."
Unknown to most, Brother Ji had a cousin in the Thunder God Shed.
The Thunder God Shed was a hall under Ever Joy, much like Hesheng Tu.
Brother Ji had originally run with the Thunder God Shed. His unruly behavior had broken their rules, and their boss, Thunder God Lo, had nearly subjected him to "Three Knives, Six Holes."
That meant driving three sharp blades through his body, leaving six holes. It was a brutal gang punishment.
Ming Youdao had pleaded for him, and only then had the boss spared Brother Ji, expelling him from the Thunder God Shed and forbidding him from joining any Ever Joy hall.
Ming Youdao and Third Master were old acquaintances, so he had entrusted Brother Ji to Third Master.
If Ming Youdao learned of Brother Ji's death, Third Master couldn't predict what would happen either.
He was the Thunder God Shed's strongest enforcer, a man of considerable standing in the gang.
"Third Master, you can't keep a fire wrapped in paper. Ming Youdao will find out sooner or later," Venomous Snake said, sounding troubled.
"No matter. We're only staying here another month. Once we finish this last job, we'll pull out of the Enclave," Third Master said with a smile.
"True. No matter how capable Ming Youdao is, he can't chase us outside the Enclave and kill us."
"Burn Rotten-Life Ji's corpse. If Ming Youdao asks about him this month, tell him Brother Ji went outside the Enclave to have some fun, and we don't know where he is either," Third Master said.
"I told Aji long ago to rein himself in a little. Too bad his talent was so poor. He only reached the azure membrane level by stuffing himself with fish balls. The drugs got into his system and clouded his mind." Venomous Snake shrugged with a cold smile.
"Heh. In this life, death comes sooner or later. That punk Ji just went a step ahead of us... That's why I want to wash my hands of it all," Third Master said quietly.
At ten that night,
at Chen's Noodle Factory,
Li Xiuwen returned wearing the shabby clothes he had bought in the Enclave.
His aunt and uncle were still working in the factory.
"A Wen, finished practicing with your friend?" his uncle asked with a smile.
"Yeah. Uncle, it's so late. You two should get some rest," Li Xiuwen said.
"Ah, I just can't bear to part with these machines," his uncle said.
"A Wen, what did your friend at the martial arts school say about our situation?" his aunt asked hopefully.
Li Xiuwen shook his head and sighed. "Nobody wants to get involved. These days, everyone just wants to protect themselves. Playing the hero only gets you dragged into trouble."
"Let's not cause any more trouble. In three days, we'll give these machines to Brother Ji and sell them off cheap. Consider it paying to avoid disaster," his uncle said.
"Without machines,
how are we supposed to make money? They're our lifeline," his aunt said, her eyes reddening. Soon she began to sob.
Pained, his uncle put his arms around her. "We'll do it all by hand. We'll just earn a little less. As long as we still have our name, we can support you."
"We'll be fine as long as we have something to eat. We won't starve... But A Wen needs Fist Training. We finally had something to hope for." His aunt trembled.
Suddenly, she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her.
Li Xiuwen hugged his aunt and uncle. "There's always a way. Don't worry. We still have three days, don't we?
"When Brother Ji came demanding money a while ago, he mentioned that he'd apparently offended someone and gotten injured.
"Who knows? Heaven punishes wicked men like him. In a few days, some wandering hero might pass by and casually slap him to death."
"That's true. When you live that kind of life... sooner or later, you have to pay," his aunt said.
Before you continue