Qian Shisan

The morning light, like golden gauze, spilled over the inner gate, and the copper bell on the eaves trembled gently in the morning breeze, scattering shards of light onto Li Chen Zhou's grey-blue arrow-patterned robe.

The watchman, a lowly Banner Officer, bowed deeply as he approached, the copper ornaments on his hat glinting coldly in the moonlight. "Congratulations, Lord Li, on your promotion!"

Li Chen Zhou raised a questioning eyebrow, his fingers casually stroking the Blood Demon Blade's guard. "Oh? How so?"

"Yesterday, you led us in raiding the Hundred Flowers Brothel and confiscating the Chen Residence. The Commander approved the documents at a quarter past five in the morning!" The Banner Officer slid a brocade box from his sleeve, the cold gleam of a black iron token visible through the gaps in the sandalwood lid. "Your newly made Banner Officer's token, new robes, official documents, and even an invitation from the Nangong Prime Minister's Residence are all waiting for you on your desk."

Li Chen Zhou nodded. "Understood." His boots crunched on the swaying shadows of the phoenix trees on the blue bricks.

Inside the main hall, the air was thick with the scent of aloeswood incense. As he picked up the token, the sunlight happened to pierce through the window lattice, reflecting a dazzling light off the gilded seal script of the five characters for "Pacification Office Banner Officer."

"Congratulations, Banner Officer Li!" A booming voice broke the silence. Li Chen Zhou turned to see Captain Zhang Qiang striding in, the tassels of the saber at his waist swinging with each step. "Yesterday's operation was truly exhilarating!"

"Captain Zhang, it was thanks to your support yesterday that the brothers had the opportunity to earn merit," Li Chen Zhou said, cupping his fist in a humble gesture.

Zhang Qiang waved his hand, the fleshy folds on his face jiggling. "You're a capable kid! You deserve the credit for yesterday's case. The brothers all made a good haul, and the superiors were full of praise and rewards. You really gave me a chance to shine."

He leaned closer to Li Chen Zhou, lowering his voice, a smug look on his face. "The higher-ups have already hinted that as long as I condense my Martial Dao True Intent and reach the fifth-grade 'Profound Insight' realm, I can be promoted to Deputy Centurion."

Li Chen Zhou turned his head, feigning shock. "Really? Then you..."

Zhang Qiang's fan-like palm slapped his shoulder armor, causing it to ring. "I'm about to touch the threshold of Profound Insight!" He lowered his voice, the smell of alcohol and iron rust mixing in his breath. "Once I'm promoted to Deputy Centurion, this Captain position..."

"Then congratulations in advance, Captain Zhang, on your promotion," Li Chen Zhou said, cupping his hands in a salute.

Zhang Qiang grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Keep it down, keep it down." He patted Li Chen Zhou's shoulder. "The Captain's office is throwing a celebration banquet tonight. You absolutely must come."

Li Chen Zhou looked apologetic. "I should attend, but tonight I have to accompany Princess Xuan Yi to the Nangong Prime Minister's Residence for Miss Nangong's poetry gathering. I'm truly sorry."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qiang was secretly shocked. This guy's social circle included princesses and prime ministers. He immediately plastered on a smile. "It's alright, you go ahead and do your thing."

Li Chen Zhou pondered for a moment, then cupped his hands. "How about this? Tomorrow night at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, I'll treat. Let's have a good get-together."

Zhang Qiang's eyes lit up, and he repeatedly patted Li Chen Zhou's shoulder. "Great! It's settled then."

After parting ways with Zhang Qiang, Li Chen Zhou summoned Black Dog, White Cat, and Bookworm. The moonlight shone on the four of them, outlining their resolute figures. Along with Li Chen Zhou's promotion to Banner Officer, Black Dog, White Cat, and Bookworm had also become Banner Officers. Li Chen Zhou waved his hand. "Let's go to the Chen Residence."

They arrived at the entrance of the Chen Residence.

The seals on the Chen Residence's main gate were particularly conspicuous.

Bookworm pushed up his glasses, a cold light flashing across the lenses in the moonlight. "This is the Chen Residence of the merchant Chen Zhou, the family head."

Li Chen Zhou frowned, thinking of the Chen family he had sent to the Imperial Prison. "Is he related to Chen Chang's Chen Residence?"

"The merchant Chen Zhou outwardly runs a silk store." Bookworm's lenses reflected a cold light, and the sheepskin scroll rustled in the wind. "In reality, he's Chen Chang's cousin, handling fifty percent of his human trafficking activities." Bookworm lowered his voice, his gaze cautiously scanning the surroundings.

Li Chen Zhou's heart tightened, and he said silently, "Then his death wasn't unjust."

He was the first to step into the main hall, and a thick, bloody smell assaulted his senses.

Sunlight shone in through the shattered window lattice, illuminating the dark red bloodstains on the ground.

Li Chen Zhou crouched down, his fingers tracing the traces of the battle on the ground. "Four experts, one using a saber, one wielding a sword, one skilled in palm techniques, and one proficient in leg techniques..."

"We've checked, nothing is missing, and the house wasn't ransacked. It wasn't a robbery," Bookworm said, reading from the scroll.

"Have the bodies been examined?" Li Chen Zhou asked, looking at the positions where the Chen Residence's people were killed.

Bookworm flipped through the scroll in his hand from time to time. "Yes, judging from their attacks, they were decisive and fatal. They were professionals."

"The attackers had such obvious characteristics. Are there any records of experts entering and leaving the Capital City that match?" Li Chen Zhou asked again.

Bookworm recalled the information provided by the intelligence department and said, "Not openly."

Li Chen Zhou's boot tip flipped up half of a broken sword, the cloud patterns on the blade exactly the same as those on the rack in the Imperial Prison. He suddenly spun around, his python-patterned cloak unfurling like a black lotus in the moonlight. "How long are you going to watch, Your Excellency?"

A black shadow flickered on the eaves, the seventh-grade movement technique as fast as a ghost.

"Don't even think about escaping, Soul Absorption Art..." Li Chen Zhou spread his five fingers, his Qi energy like a dragon, and the blue bricks three zhang away cracked in response.

The moment the black shadow crashed into the screen wall, a cloud of blood suddenly exploded from its sleeve.

The person was trying to escape quickly, using the blood mist as cover.

"Hmph, still trying to run?" Li Chen Zhou snorted coldly.

The other hand also rose up: "Soul Absorption Art."

Li Chen Zhou's palms had already formed a lotus seal. The blood droplets in the sky froze in mid-air, swirling backwards and pulling the black shadow back to the stone steps.

Li Chen Zhou's slender hand clamped down on the other party's throat, making them feel like they were about to suffocate.

"Who are you... I'll give you one chance to speak..."

Having witnessed Li Chen Zhou's power, the other party lost the will to resist.

"Ugh..."

The other party was unable to make a sound, choked by Li Chen Zhou.

Li Chen Zhou let go: "Dare to play tricks, and I'll make you regret coming into this world."

The other party coughed twice, clutching their throat, before weakly saying, "I heard the Chen family was exterminated, and no one has come these past few days, so I thought I'd come in and grab something. I was caught as soon as I came in."

The other party's voice was delicate, and it was only when they spoke that everyone realized they were a woman.

Li Chen Zhou looked displeased. Seeing Li Chen Zhou's expression, the other party quickly said anxiously, "Don't kill me, I can provide you with information."

"This is your last chance." Li Chen Zhou's cold voice made her shiver even in the scorching sun.

"My name is Qian Shisan. On the night the Chen Residence was massacred, I was actually outside and saw something."

Hearing her words, a glimmer of hope arose in everyone's hearts.

"That night, I was outside the Chen Residence, planning to sneak in and steal something, but I suddenly noticed a few experts who entered the Chen Residence one step ahead of me. Before long, I heard screams coming from inside. Scared, I quickly ran away."

The Bookworm couldn't wait to ask, "Did you see what those people looked like?"

Qian Shisan tapped her finger lightly on her lips, carefully recalling, and slowly said, "Those people were wearing masks, so their faces weren't clear, but their characteristics were obvious. One was a cripple who walked with a limp, another had a very thick arm and was bald, and there were two others who were relatively thin, but one was holding a saber and the other was holding a sword."

The White Cat next to him frowned slightly upon hearing this and asked suspiciously, "It was so dark at night, how could you see so clearly?"

Qian Shisan rolled her eyes at the White Cat's question, then took a pair of lenses from her bosom and tossed them over, explaining, "These were tribute from the Western Regions. With them, seeing at night is as clear as seeing during the day."

After the White Cat tried them, he nodded slightly and said to Li Chen Zhou with certainty, "My lord, then there's no problem. The one with the walking problem is Crippled Foot, and the bald one with the thick arms is Iron Arm Arhat. With these two, the saber and sword aren't hard to deduce either – they're the Soul Severing Blade and the Life Taking Sword."

Hearing the White Cat's words, the others were all heavy-hearted.