The shouts outside announced, "Twin Rivers Guild! Chief Huang!"
Chen Ku stood up, a subconscious sense of unease washing over him. The na "Huang" particularly unsettled him, imdiately making him think of Huang Gun. At the sa ti, he recalled what the Twin Rivers Guild did in Baojiao County. An Interdiary Guild. In modern terms, it’s a business association for middlen, helping rchants sell their goods. It could connect to any industry and assist in selling anything, from introducing transactions, providing storage and accommodation, to self-operated buying and selling, acting as guarantors, debt collection, and handling transportation, loading, and customs declaration. There were tea brokers, dicine brokers, iron brokers, grain brokers... In the past, there was also a term: human trafficker. They organized the sale of people in various places. Beyond that, the biggest distinction was between official and private interdiaries. Official interdiaries possessed an interdiary license issued by the Yan. One needed certain assets or connections to beco an official interdiary, granting them trading rights for important controlled commodities like salt, iron, dicine, and grain.
So that ’interdiary’ silver plaque on Huang Gun’s body ans *this*. Chen Ku’s heart tightened slightly. Although he believed he had been flawless, even dissolving the corpse, he was still worried his actions might be exposed. Thus, he didn’t imdiately join the departing crowd, remaining prepared to escape at any mont. He waited until he heard the other apprentices shouting.
"Instructor Chai is so imposing! He directly stopped those people at the martial arts training ground! How outrageous! What right does the Twin Rivers Guild have to act like this? Huang Gun is dead, and that’s that. How dare they co to dicine King Hall, overstepping their bounds and demanding an explanation!"
Hearing this, a thought flickered through Chen Ku’s mind. It seems... this isn’t directed at , but at dicine King Hall? In that case, should I take a look?
Chen Ku followed the others to the martial arts training ground. He saw it was already firmly surrounded by hundreds of apprentices and workers from dicine King Hall, including instructors. Even the three Shopkeepers had all arrived.
Chen Ku quietly assessed the expert in the crowd. The man’s face was square, exuding a natural authority. His complexion had a faint golden hue, and he wore a gleaming, oil-green jacket. Though not tall, he stood with his hands clasped behind his back, yet he seed like a great spear poised to pierce the heavens, radiating an intense sharpness.
In front of this man stood Instructor Chai Bao of dicine King Hall’s Guardian Hall. With the head of a leopard and eyes like rings, arms of an ape and a waist like a wasp, he looked furious, holding a Green Gang Python Sinew Bow.
"Chief Huang," Chai Bao said, "with such a grand display, have you co to dicine King Hall to issue a challenge? If so, I, Chai, will oblige."
Unexpectedly, this eighth-ranked strongman of the county, Huang Muxia, rely lifted his eyelids. He glanced at Chai Bao, then dismissed him, his gaze passing over Chai Bao to settle on the three Shopkeepers standing behind him.
Huang Muxia stared at Second Shopkeeper Zhang Yuanhai and said gravely, "Zhang Yuanhai, I am here today for one thing only: did you order Huang Gun’s assassination?"
Upon hearing this question, Chen Ku’s heart relaxed. It really isn’t about .
RUSTLE~
At this mont, in the martial arts courtyard, everyone’s gaze turned to Second Shopkeeper Zhang Yuanhai. This included Store Manager Qin Sifan and Third Shopkeeper Cao Shouxiong, whose eyes also flickered slightly.
Zhang Yuanhai was inwardly furious. Even if I said similar things in front of you two, you can’t be so obvious about it! Besides, I haven’t even heard back from the people I sent.
However, at this ti, whether he was responsible or not, he couldn’t afford to leave any opening for the other party. He frowned slightly and said, "Chief Huang, your words are quite disrespectful. Not long ago, Huang Gun was accused by a Naless Person of embezzlent and subsequently fled, his whereabouts unknown. dicine King Hall has already reported the case to the Yan. Why do you claim Huang Gun is dead? And why do you say dicine King Hall is responsible?"
"He was a mber of the Huang Family," Huang Muxia countered. "When soone dies, their family must be notified. Why are you still feigning ignorance?"
Huang Muxia crossed his arms, the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes twitching as he stared intensely at Zhang Yuanhai. "He died in the Mud Tile Alley outside the city, his body obliterated by corpse-dissolving powder, leaving not even a complete corpse! dicine King Hall, you’ve gone too far! Even if he was guilty of embezzlent, once you reported it, the Yan should have handled it. Such a cri never warrants death, yet you escalated it to murder!"
The implication was clear: investigate, yes; arrest, yes; but you don’t kill the man! Embezzlent alone is not a capital offense! He was, after all, a mber of the Huang Family! Did they think the Huang Family was a re decoration? Especially with the clan elders pushing, they had to demand an explanation!
Store Manager Qin Sifan’s face was as dark as water. dicine King Hall holds such a high status, yet today we’re being berated like this? Whether we did it or not is one thing, but even if Second Brother *did* send soone, we could never admit it.
He then said, "And just because of this, you conclude that dicine King Hall committed murder? Leading so many from the Twin Rivers Guild to our doorstep—Chief Huang, you are being overly presumptuous and rude!"
This statent carried genuine anger. If Old Monk Yang hadn’t left to investigate the Peace Path matter, if Elder Yang were here, this would have been settled with a swing of his staff long ago. Who would need to reason with them then?
Huang Muxia retorted, "Arbitrary? In all of Baojiao County, corpse-dissolving powder is most easily produced by your dicine King Hall. Furthermore, you have the strongest motive for murder and silencing a witness." After Huang Muxia calmly stated this, his tone turned cold as he addressed Zhang Yuanhai directly:
"Especially you, Zhang Yuanhai! Do you think I don’t know? When you were first transferred here from Qiu Dragon Mansion to be a Shopkeeper, you were alone, with no one under your command. You ca to the Twin Rivers Guild seeking my help, invoking connections and asking , for your family’s sake, to assign soone capable to you. So, I sent Huang Gun. Over these past few years, how many secrets that Huang Gun shouldn’t have known passed between you two? You have the greatest motive to silence him by death!"
As these words were spoken, countless apprentices and instructors began to look at Zhang Yuanhai with suspicion.
Zhang Yuanhai’s face turned ashen. Even if I *wanted* to kill him, I didn’t actually do it! Being so blatantly accused by Huang Muxia was intolerable. He suddenly roared, "Insolent! Audacious! Utter nonsense! Instructor Chai! Drive him out imdiately!"
Although Chai Bao was also sowhat swayed by Huang Muxia’s words, he knew that if he didn’t act now, Huang Muxia would tear dicine King Hall’s reputation to shreds and trample it underfoot.
"Please leave!" Chai Bao swiftly drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and aid directly at Huang Muxia.
"It’s one of the Six Ultimate Skills, the ’Sky Eagle Eight Arrows’ of the Guardian Hall!" soone exclaid.
Everyone around Chen Ku exclaid in amazent.
However, in the very instant Chai Bao drew his bow, Huang Muxia’s figure suddenly shot forward.
"Are you qualified to make leave?"
The two were initially separated by over thirty ters. With that leap, Huang Muxia was like a fierce tiger with wings; he unleashed Teleportation, crossing forty to fifty ters in an instant.
So fast! Chen Ku only saw a blur. Is the Realm beyond Inner Qi so incredible? Fast enough to surpass any animal, even a cheetah!
WHOOSH!
In an instant, gusts of wind filled Huang Muxia’s sleeves. His sweeping palm strike was like a great saber whistling through the air on a battlefield.
SWOOSH!
Almost simultaneously with Huang Muxia’s movent, Chai Bao loosed the arrow from his bow like a flash of lightning, but it pierced only an afterimage.
Chai Bao’s expression flickered.
BANG!!
In the next instant, the two n collided. An arrow, stained with blood, flew off into the distance. Huang Muxia, however, had already brought his hand down like a cleaver onto the Green Gang Python Sinew Bow that Chai Bao held up to block.
CRACK!
The precious Green Gang Python Sinew Bow, worth a thousand gold pieces, was seized by Huang Muxia. With a twist, he snapped the bowstring and wrenched the bow from Chai Bao’s grasp.
BANG!
Another instant, and Chai Bao was sent staggering back nearly ten ters. Huang Muxia had only a bloody scratch on his arm—a superficial wound—while Chai Bao had been knocked back. Victory and defeat were decided in that single exchange.
"In this wretched county," Huang Muxia declared, "among the so-called top ten experts, I utterly despise that ridiculous ’Counselor, Sharp Blade, Dragon, Tiger, Leopard’ jingle. However, the county governnt office ranked eighth and you ninth. That alone proves the gap between us. Besides..." He glanced at the Treasure Bow he had seized. "I specialize in hand-to-hand combat; you specialize in archery. At three hundred ters, you might have an advantage. But at a re thirty-odd ters, you use a bow while I use my fists? How could you possibly be faster than ?"
With that, he contemptuously tossed the Treasure Bow to the ground and stepped on it. He then declared in a deep voice, "If dicine King Hall doesn’t give an explanation today—clarify exactly how Huang Gun died—this matter won’t be over! The Twin Rivers Guild will settle scores with you here today!"
At this mont, Chen Ku stared at Huang Muxia’s bleeding arm. In just three to five breaths... the strongman’s wound had already begun to heal and scab over.
His pupils contracted in shock. Such terrifying self-healing speed! Is he even human? Could it be that cultivators in the Realm above Inner Qi all possess such monstrous regenerative abilities?
At this mont, everyone else in dicine King Hall was also enraged. They looked towards the three Shopkeepers. Although the earlier exchange had been too fast for most to see clearly, one thing was evident: Instructor Chai had been defeated.
Paradoxically, this defeat galvanized them. United in shared indignation, they gathered closer, looking to the three Shopkeepers, seemingly waiting for a command to erupt into a massive guild brawl.
Chen Ku reasoned inwardly, There’s no escaping this situation. I might as well just go through the motions and fight if I have to.
But just as the tension in the air, thick as gunpowder, was about to ignite...
"Does dicine King Hall need to explain its actions to a whelp like you, little tiger?"
A voice ca from the arched entrance of the martial arts training ground, and then a tall, elderly man walked in. He carried an indigo dragon head stick. With each step he took, perfectly synchronized with his breathing, small whirlwinds seed to stir in the air around him, as if his respiration itself was disturbing the airflow.
"Yang Luochen!"
A man’s reputation, like a tree’s shadow, precedes him!
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