"Here's the thing, my name is Ling Ziyu, I'm from the main city of Min Nan County. Years ago, my older brother was ambushed and killed at Lonely Wolf Mountain. When I found him, someone had already buried him. But the family token he always carried was gone, and that item means everything to my family."
"I heard, little brother, that you're often running past that part of the mountain. Could it have been you who buried him?"
"If you were the one who buried him, I don't want a single tael of silver from my brother's body. As long as you give back that token, I'll even pay you 100 taels of silver as compensation. How does that sound?"
Ling Ziyu looked at Lin Chang'sheng, clasped his fists, and spoke.
He'd already questioned five Mu City locals who'd been in the mountains that year—Lin Chang'sheng was the last one.
"Gao Yang?"
Hearing Ling Ziyu's words, Lin Chang'sheng's heart skipped a beat, then he immediately shook his head. "Sorry, brother, I do run in the mountains, but I never buried anyone. You might want to ask somewhere else."
"No?..."
Upon hearing this, Ling Ziyu's face showed his disappointment. He clasped his fists. "If not, then never mind, I'll go ask someone else."
Ling Ziyu led the old man away. As he turned, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.
[Sun and Moon Breathing Technique Experience +1!]
Lin Chang'sheng stood in the courtyard, basking in the sunlight. Messages kept popping up on his panel.
Behind Ling Ziyu, the old man swept his gaze across the unburned pile of bamboo shavings outside Lin Chang'sheng's courtyard. His eyes narrowed, footsteps quickening to catch up to Ling Ziyu.
Lin Chang'sheng sat in the yard, sunbathing.
"Ah! Chang'sheng, hurry—there's a roach!"
About a quarter of an hour later, suddenly, a shriek came from Yu Wenjing's room. Her voice trembled, as if she'd seen a ghost.
"Huh? Roach?"
Startled by Wenjing's scream, Lin Chang'sheng walked to her room, only to find she was in the back room. He walked that way but saw the door was latched from the inside. Gathering inner strength, he sent a surge through the latch, instantly shattering it, and entered the room.
Inside, Yu Wenjing was crouched in a corner, her stunning face filled with terror and her body trembling. She had nothing but a towel over her, her curves faintly visible.
On the floor there was a big washbasin, half-full of steaming water.
"Where's the roach?"
Lin Chang'sheng quickly looked away and asked.
"Under that table—there's a bunch of them."
Yu Wenjing's beautiful face showed pure terror, and she was shaking.
"It's fine, I'll kill them all."
Lin Chang'sheng stepped up, moved the table, found seven or eight roaches, stomped each dead, then grabbed a broom and swept them out. He turned to Wenjing: "There you go, all gone."
Lin Chang'sheng left and shut the door behind him.
"Girls are too timid, being scared of a few roaches..."
Lin Chang'sheng shook his head and strolled out to keep soaking up the sun.
"That's it, he saw everything..."
Wenjing closed the door, a blush blooming across her lovely face, seriously embarrassed—she'd only had a towel on just now!
......
East Street.
Five miles away, at a small estate.
"Someone nearby saw Lin Chang'sheng practicing with a bow! There's still a pile of half-burned bamboo shavings outside his yard. Not far from his home there's a bamboo grove, and you can see where it's been cut!"
"That night, the gang leader and thirty-odd of our brothers were killed by arrows made from shaved bamboo like this!"
"Whoever wiped out the gang—if it wasn't Lin Chang'sheng, he had something to do with it!"
An old man in black stared in the direction of Lin Chang'sheng's house, a flicker of fear in his eyes.
The gang leader was a second-class expert, shot down with four arrows by this guy!
If he wanted to kill me, it'd be even easier!
"Killing the gang leader is one thing, but you—you shouldn't have killed my son!"
Old Li's eyes flashed with hatred. "Even if there's no bounty, I'll make you die! I'll avenge my boy!"
Liu Li's son was shot dead by that same killer at Ma Family Manor that night.
......
Lin Chang'sheng was in his yard.
Suddenly, a chill spread through his chest, and he frowned.
Should've been warm, sunbathing like this. But the cold kept growing, so Lin Chang'sheng pulled open his collar and checked—there, on his chest, a skull-shaped mark the size of an egg had appeared.
It looked almost alive, like it might crawl off his skin!
"What is this? How the hell did it show up on me?"
Seeing the mark, Lin Chang'sheng's heart dropped. He immediately thought of the Yin Qi Invasion notice on his panel.
Wasn't Yin Qi Invasion supposed to be weakened?
Lin Chang'sheng quickly activated the Sun and Moon Breathing Technique. Inner strength surged down his meridians, and he watched as the skull mark faded, then vanished for good.
He checked his panel—Yin Qi Invasion was still there!
"Looks like I've got to level up faster,"
Lin Chang'sheng pressed a hand to his chest, muttering to himself.
The skull mark had just popped up from nowhere—who knew what the hell it was. Either way, he knew one thing: as long as he got strong enough, and his aura powerful enough, the Yin Qi Invasion state would disappear.
......
Evening.
Yu Wenjing finished cooking and called Lin Chang'sheng to eat.
They sat across from each other. Maybe because Lin Chang'sheng had just seen all of her that afternoon, Wenjing kept her head down, her beautiful cheeks flushed bright red, clearly embarrassed.
"Wenjing, your cooking has shot up lately!"
Seeing her awkwardness, Lin Chang'sheng switched the subject right away.
"You mean it?"
A soft light sparkled in her pretty eyes.
"Of course! Didn't you see I had two whole bowls?"
Lin Chang'sheng burst out laughing. Seeing him act like nothing awkward had happened earlier, Wenjing relaxed, and started chatting and joking with him again.
......
Grand Canal.
A thousand miles away.
In a vast, luxurious manor.
A white-robed, handsome young man sat at his desk reading documents.
Just then, a black-clad figure glided silently before him, dropping to one knee. "Young master, the Divine Eagle Guard has arrived at the Grand Canal to investigate the Princess's ship explosion."
"I know."
"Keep digging."
After hearing the report, the white-robed youth waved a hand. The black-clad man retreated a few steps, then slipped away into the night.
"Divine Eagle Guard? So what?"
A shadow flickered in the youth's eyes as he spoke in a low, cold voice. "They all died with nothing left. I'll have to see: besides me, who else can you choose?"
......
East Street.
Late at night, bugs buzzing in the darkness.
Lin Chang'sheng's house.
[Hundred Herbs Pharmacopoeia (Great Perfection)!]
"Tomorrow I'll finally become an official Medicine Boy."
Lin Chang'sheng was sitting in a chair in his yard, gazing at his panel, his eyes bright with anticipation.
After two days of hard work, he'd mastered every last bit of the Hundred Herbs Pharmacopoeia.
His mind was now brimming with its complete knowledge.
At Hundred Herbs Hall, as long as you pass the Pharmacopoeia recitation test, you can start preparing herbal mixtures, assisting the alchemists, or even working the front shop as a pharmacist.
Of course, pharmacists earn more.
Assisting an alchemist as a medicine boy means lower pay, but better prospects.
Lin Chang'sheng didn't come here just for silver—he wanted entry into alchemy, because with his Great Dao is Simple panel, becoming a full alchemist was practically a walk in the park.
The thought of popping Qi Blood Pills like candy and watching his Qi Blood Inner Power soar made Lin Chang'sheng incredibly eager for the future.
Suddenly, a robe's swishing sound broke the night.
A masked man in black landed in the courtyard. Seeing Lin Chang'sheng sitting under the jujube tree, the masked man froze for a split second.