Third floor of the Fortune-Full Tower, Heaven-Class Private Room.
The curtains hung half-lowered, candle flames flickered, and the scent of cosmetics swirled through the room with the fragrance of wine.
Tang Hao reclined against the headboard with his robe half open and the brocade quilt piled around his waist. Candlelight licked the old scars on his chest, making them shine. The girl had just gotten out of bed, saying she would fetch him something hot to eat downstairs.
Tang Hao hadn't stopped her.
Their exertions hadn't lasted long, but they had taken plenty out of him. His stomach growled with hunger.
He gazed at the shadows overhead on the curtains, both hands tucked behind his head, unable to wipe the curve from his lips.
Cao Tie and Qian Jiu, two seasoned hands from the Red Tiger Gang, both at the peak of the Qi-Blood Third Level, against a sixty-year-old bag of bones who shuffled papers—even half an hour was more than they needed.
Tang Hao stretched beneath the quilt, right down to his toes, while the abacus beads in his head clattered nonstop.
Get the booklet, hand it to the county commandant, collect the remaining payment-three hundred and fifty taels of silver and two fourth-grade Bone Tempering Pills.
Bone Tempering Pills.
Those words alone were enough to quicken his heartbeat. He had only just secured his footing at the Qi-Blood Third Level, and every step upward had to be paved with resources.
The Heaven Patrol Office's salary and rewards weren't enough to fill the gaps between his teeth. Bone Tempering Pills were different: they were genuinely good stuff, capable of tempering his bones more deeply. Add his merits from this campaign against the evil sect and the county commandant's connections, and arranging his official appointment as Deputy Patrol Chief would