Find a Patron, Pay Homage at the Dock!

"How did things go with the black market?" Tu Kui turned and asked one of his underlings.

"Master Kui, ever since that black market visit when that kid showed up, he has never gone again. In fact, over the past three months, he has rarely even stepped outside White Snake Martial School. All his transactions have been handled through people from the Far Army Escort Bureau."

A trace of surprise appeared in Tu Kui's eyes. "That kid is so young, yet he's this cautious."

"Master Kui, what value could that kid possibly have, for you to keep thinking about him for so long?"

Instructor Wang said respectfully, "With your talent, Master Kui, reaching the Sinews-and-Bones Realm is only a matter of time. With that kid's aptitude, he probably couldn't catch up to you even on horseback. Why trouble yourself over him?"

"Just a passing whim."

Tu Kui smiled and ordered, "In that case, kill the man from the black market who has been buying things for him. I'd like to see how long he can hole up in the martial school without coming out."

Early in the morning, the sky was gray and overcast.

Lin Nan got up early and was just about to change clothes and head to the training ground to practice.

"Brother Lin, something's wrong!"

Liu Feng rushed in frantically.

Lin Nan paused. "What happened?"

"That A Qing, the one who often helped you buy supplies from the black market, has disappeared."

Liu Feng looked grim. "This morning, my father sent people to look for him. They found his body by the Verdant Maple River in the north of the city."

"A Qing was one of the skilled men from my escort bureau. He practiced our bureau's lightness skill, Grass Skimmer. No one could match him when it came to fleeing. Even an ordinary third-level Blood-Qi Realm martial artist would need quite some time to catch him. How could this have happened?"

Lin Nan frowned. He had already been cautious enough—whenever he commissioned the purchase of demon meat, he always bundled it with a great many other supplies.

Yet Blood Blade Sect had still set its sights on him.

"It was Blood Blade Sect. They've finally made their move. They want to cut off my resource channels and force me to leave the martial school myself."

Liu Feng was stunned for a moment, then flared with anger. "Damn it, they still haven't given up? It's been three months already!"

"Not only that, I even suspect Instructor Wang, who came to see me yesterday, is one of their people."

Several streaks of cold light flashed through Lin Nan's eyes.

"A task that is easy and pays well—where could there be such a pie falling from the sky? They were probably trying to lure me out of the city."

Liu Feng said indignantly, "Damn it, Brother Lin, don't panic. I'll go back and ask my father to act! My father is also a third-level Skin-and-Flesh Realm expert. He's not much weaker than Tu Kui! With him watching over you, they won't touch a single hair on your head!"

"How old is your father, and how old is Tu Kui?" Lin Nan shook his head.

"Besides, Blood Blade Sect stands behind Tu Kui. I don't want to drag your father into this mess as well."

"Then what do we do?" Liu Feng grew anxious.

"At this point, there's only... one way!" Lin Nan said expressionlessly. After getting dressed, he took the remaining two taels or so of loose silver from the wooden cabinet.

He headed toward Master Jie's courtyard.

"Watch closely, Fengzi. I'll only teach this once." Lin Nan gave a cold laugh.

Then he strode quickly toward Master Jie's courtyard.

At the time, Master Jie was standing beside a small pond in his sleeping clothes, brushing his teeth with a locust branch.

The moment he turned around, he saw Lin Nan standing behind him with his head lowered and his body bent in a respectful bow.

"What are you doing here?!" Master Jie jumped in fright.

"Master, I... I missed you."

Lin Nan's eyes reddened as he pinched the fine silver between his fingers and quietly slipped it into Master Jie's sleeve.

"I was poor from childhood and grew up in the school. To me, the martial school is my home! Seeing Master is like seeing my own father!"

Master Jie felt the silver in his sleeve, and a kindly smile swiftly appeared on his face.

"Good child, good child. You look so troubled; I suppose you've encountered some difficulty."

Lin Nan looked "greatly shocked." "Master, truly, nothing escapes your discerning eye. To tell you the truth, this disciple recently..."

Lin Nan recounted the entire cause and effect of his grudge with Tu Kui, focusing on how Blood Blade Sect bullied the common people and harmed the loyal and good. Unable to bear Tu Scar's conduct, he had fought for justice and slain that scum—a moving tale indeed.

"Now Tu Kui has sent people to block my door day and night. This disciple truly cannot rest easy!"

"Your situation is indeed troublesome. Unfortunately, this old man is not your bodyguard, and I cannot protect you at every moment." Master Jie sighed softly.

"Nor can I take the initiative to attack Tu Kui. If I did, it would be no different from declaring war on Blood Blade Sect."

"I beg Master to point out a clear road!"

Lin Nan clasped his fists with both hands, his eyes bloodshot, looking as though he would die if Master Jie refused to save him.

"In your situation, the only solution is to find a patron and pay homage at the dock."

"Find a patron and pay homage at the dock?"

"Indeed. Do you know why Tu Kui charges through the Outer City without fear or restraint?" Master Jie stroked his goatee and smiled.

"Because he is a third-level Skin-and-Flesh Realm martial artist?"

"A third-level Skin-and-Flesh Realm martial artist is shit. You can grab a whole handful of them in the Inner City."

Master Jie sneered. "What he relies on is nothing more than his position as a hall master of Blood Blade Sect. Blood Blade Sect's sect master, Qin Yue, comes from a branch of the Qin Family in the Inner City. That is why the three gangs and three martial schools of the Outer City must show them some measure of respect."

"Before you possess absolute strength, relying on the protection of a faction is an excellent way to obtain resources. It isn't about bowing beneath others. So what if you can fight? What the hell is fighting worth? If you roam the world without any backing, you're just a little nobody."

Lin Nan was deeply moved by those words.

"I have a path here that can connect you to some contacts in the Inner City. But whether the important people there take a liking to you and groom you as an affiliated deacon will depend on your own fortune. If they do not favor you, then there is nothing I can do."

Master Jie shook his head and said no more.

"Three days from now, wait here."

Lin Nan's face brightened with delight, and he repeatedly clasped his fists in thanks.

Three days later, in the morning.

Lin Nan waited early in the main hall of White Snake Martial School. To his surprise, Zhong Jing was already waiting there as well.

Besides Zhong Jing, there were another seven or eight disciples older than Lin Nan. He remembered that several of them had once been inner disciples in previous years and now held affiliated posts in the Outer City, so they were rarely seen in ordinary times.

Now, they too stood there, waiting uneasily.

Before long, hearty laughter rang out from the entrance to the main hall.

Master Jie was leading a man and two women toward the hall, showing them the utmost respect.

One man and one woman wore luxurious attire and chatted merrily. Only the woman in white at the back remained silent.

"Let me introduce you. These are all outstanding young talents of my White Snake Martial School. If any catch your eye, feel free to choose."

"Master Jie is too polite. I once heard my father mention that when Master Jie was young, you also made a name for yourself in the Inner City. You were known as the Silver Python Fist King, settling grudges and repaying kindness as your heart desired—how carefree that must have been."

One of the young men smiled faintly.

"I am ashamed, ashamed. Back then, I roamed the martial world alongside your father. In the blink of an eye, thirty years have passed. Your father has become the renowned head of the Mo Family, Elder Mo of the Inner City, while I have wasted half my life lingering in the Outer City."

Master Jie sighed with feeling.

Everyone's expressions shifted slightly. So the master had such a past.

"Let me introduce you. These three are important guests from the Inner City: Mo Ming of the Mo Family, Fu Wangqing of the Fu Family, and Li Nianru of the Li Family. Hurry and pay your respects to the three of them."

"Greetings, esteemed guests!"