"We need to report this to the higher-ups."
Third Master Cao narrowed his eyes. "The Dragon King Society colluded with foreign devils to traffic people and refine evil things. This is a case that reaches the heavens. I suspect they took over Ping'an Cart Company precisely to get at its more accomplished bosses and Guan Ershun."
"If we can prove it, we'll have a major achievement to our names."
Third Master Cao glanced at his nephew, a smile tugging at his mouth. "If the higher-ups are pleased, they might move these old bones of mine up a notch. Or... get that rascal Xiaoliu half a government post. That would bring honor to our ancestors."
"Heh, Third Uncle, you'll have to put in a good word for me when the time comes."
Cao Xiaoliu's eyes lit up at the mention of a government post. "If I can land a job at the Earth Official's Office, who in Tianjin won't look at me with new respect?"
"Everyone who was there gets a share."
Shopkeeper Lu chimed in.
After a spell of excitement, the earlier gloom had lifted.
The night had been perilous, but their gains were enormous.
They had learned the truth behind the foreigners' corpse-raising and picked up a lead on the Dragon King Society.
"All right. We shouldn't stay here."
Shopkeeper Lu tightened the black case on his back and glanced at the sky. "Let's go back. Keep what happened tonight to yourselves. Don't go blabbing and startle the snake in the grass."
With that, he turned to Qin Geng and cupped his hands with the utmost solemnity.
"We owe this one to you, Xiao Wu."
Shopkeeper Lu spoke earnestly. "Without your Old Horse Knows the Way skill, whether we'd have come out in one piece is anyone's guess. And that final clue about the corpse's identity was crucial. We could have racked our brains forever and never thought to look there."
"That's right, Master Qin. I owe you a favor for today."
Third Master Cao's expression turned solemn as well.
"You've got real skill, Master Qin."
Cao Xiaoliu gave him a thumbs-up. "I'm training at the Mighty Martial Arts Hall, just below the southern wall of Tianjin's old city. Come find me when you're free. We can spar."
Master Miao Zhen said little, but she gave Qin Geng a slight nod. There was more approval in her eyes now.
Qin Geng smiled and returned their salute, saying it was nothing and that he'd only done what he should.
But he didn't put much stock in those empty thanks.
A major achievement? That was too far removed from his life.
Right now, only two things occupied his mind.
First were the silver dollars.
He had risked his life for that money. With it, he could buy a batch of Bone-Strengthening Powder and have tiger-bone soup too, pushing his [Martial Artist] level higher.
Second was the "master's instruction" Shopkeeper Lu had promised him.
Tonight, he had seen Master Miao Zhen's Golden Light Talisman, Third Master Cao's tomb-raiding methods, and even that bizarre Snake Corpse.
Qin Geng understood more clearly than ever that the world was vast, and its waters ran deep.
He needed someone who knew the way to guide him!
He had the Book of a Hundred Trades, and he could reach a higher level by fumbling along on his own. But that would take too long. With a renowned teacher's guidance, his experience would rise much, much faster.
Shopkeeper Lu had given his word: if his other plan fell through, he would teach Qin Geng himself. That settled it.
"Let's go!"
Qin Geng tightened his belt. Even his exhaustion seemed to ease a little.
By moonlight, the group hurried down the mountain.
Dawn had not fully broken, and Tianjin's streets lay empty. Only the breakfast shops had begun taking down their doorboards, letting out thin wisps of warmth.
The five returned from outside the city and parted ways beneath South City's walls.
Third Master Cao and his nephew hurried off to Hengtong Pawnshop with the Luoyang Shovel. They said they wanted to catch up on sleep and wash the earthy stink off themselves.
Master Miao Zhen did not linger either. She gave Lu Xingmin a Daoist salute, then headed west with her Peachwood Sword on her back.
Qin Geng had assumed she was returning to some temple for quiet cultivation. But Lu Xingmin mentioned in passing, "Master Miao Zhen may be a Daoist, but she doesn't live in a temple. There's a Children's Charity in the west of the city, an orphanage once run by the government and later abandoned. She helps care for dozens of children there who have no parents. The Daoist Human Sect believes in cultivating amid the dust and bustle of the mortal world, tempering the heart among other people."
Hearing that, Qin Geng watched the blue-robed Daoist woman walk away and felt a deeper respect for her.
In these troubled times, keeping a group of orphans fed and sheltered was a more solid form of cultivation than chanting scriptures and sitting in meditation.
Once the others had gone, Qin Geng followed Lu Xingmin back to Osmanthus Fragrance Studio.
The shop assistant was not up yet when they entered.
Lu Xingmin closed the doorboards again, shutting out the cold wind, and led Qin Geng into the back room.
It was warm inside. Lu Xingmin took off his snug black jacket and changed into a loose long gown, looking much more at ease.
He took a tin of tea leaves from a cabinet and heated a pot of water himself.
As the water boiled, the fragrance of tea filled the room.
"Sit."
Lu Xingmin poured two bowls of tea. He pushed one toward Qin Geng, took a sip from the other, and let out a long breath.
"Last night was dangerous."
Lu Xingmin set down his bowl, his fingers absently rubbing the tabletop. "When I went alone last time, I didn't dare go in. At the Heaven-Reaching Gate, I sent a paper figure ahead to scout while I crouched just inside the entrance."
He gave a bitter laugh and pointed to his leg. "I thought a paper figure had no living breath, so it could avoid those filthy things. But that Human-Speaking Snake was wicked beyond belief. It followed the trace of soul-thought left on the figure straight to me. If I hadn't severed the connection quickly, I'd have lost more than a few days' use of my leg. I might have lost my life."
Qin Geng held his tea bowl. "So you sought me out specifically for my Old Horse Knows the Way skill?"
"Yes."
Lu Xingmin nodded, his gaze fixed intently on Qin Geng. "At night, the Earth Veins there surge and churn. The place becomes a natural Soul-Confounding Formation. Forget people—even a Compass would spin wildly inside it. Without an old horse that knows the way to lead us, we'd have died trapped in there last night, even if we'd found what we came for."
With that, he rose, went to the large rosewood cabinet in the back room, and opened a hidden compartment.
There came a crisp clinking.
Lu Xingmin returned carrying three rolls of silver dollars wrapped in red paper and a letter.
Thump.
He set them on the table. They were heavy.
"Thirty silver dollars, not one missing. Count them."
Qin Geng did not stand on ceremony. He picked up a roll, rubbed one coin lightly between his thumb and forefinger, blew on it, and held it to his ear.
Hummm—
The note rang clear and long. The silver dollars were genuine.
Qin Geng tucked all three rolls into his clothes. Their hard weight rested against him, filling him with a deep sense of security.
With this money, he could keep buying medicine and build his body up another notch. He might even reach the level of Bright Force.
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