Chapter 392: Night Patrol Search

When the night soaked the window paper like spilled ink, Li Ping'an rose silently.

Lin Xueqing and the children were already sound asleep, breathing evenly.

He walked silently to the corner of the main hall, his thoughts stirring slightly, and the Spiritual Spring Space rippled.

That set of deep-gray Night Cloak appeared in his hand out of nowhere.

The fabric remained as smooth as ever, as if each time he wore it were the first.

He tightened the sash and covered his face with the cloth.

He pushed open the rear window, and his figure drifted out like a falling leaf.

Upon landing, not even the dust in the courtyard was disturbed.

He lifted his head and looked at the sky.

The moon was hidden, the stars sparse—just the right time for moving at night.

His Divine Perception spread like an invisible tide.

First it enveloped the entire Siheyuan.

After confirming no one noticed, it quickly expanded outward.

Alleyways, streets, neighboring courtyards…

Like an invisible net, it silently covered a radius of a hundred meters.

This was a method Li Ping'an had recently figured out.

Since the Shopkeeper and his group were hiding in Four Nine City, and since they lurked in the dark like rats,

then we must search inch by inch.

area by area.

The focus is on rooms occupied by only one person.

The Shopkeeper, that old fox, would never crowd together with his underlings.

He needs a private space to think, to plot.

More importantly, he needs safety.

Li Ping'an tapped lightly on the balls of his feet, his form darting up onto the roof like a ghost.

He executed the Carefree Step to its utmost, moving soundlessly across the continuous rooftops.

The night wind blew against his face, carrying the chill of deep autumn.

He was like a Night Owl, hunting for prey in the city's dark night.

The first stop was South of the City.

This sprawling compound was dense as a beehive, an ideal place to hide.

Li Ping'an lay prone on the ridge of a tall house, eyes closed, focusing his mind.

His Divine Perception was like a fine comb, slowly sweeping over each courtyard below.

A family of five, a couple with two children, the old man's snore shook the heavens.

A three-person household, the child crying and fussing, the mother softly soothing.

A solitary old man, his cough intermittent…

Wait.

Li Ping'an's eyes narrowed.

His Divine Perception locked onto a side room deep within the compound.

There was only one person inside.

The breathing was very light, but the rhythm was off.

It was not the long, even breath of deep sleep, nor the restless agitation of insomnia.

It was… vigilance.

Even in sleep, he retained a three-part wakefulness of that sort of alertness.

Li Ping'an silently slid down from the roof.

He landed without sound, keeping close to the wall as he approached the side room.

The window paper had a hole torn in it; inside was pitch black.

But his Divine Perception could clearly sense that the person on the bed lay on his side, his right hand resting beneath the pillow.

Beneath the pillow lay a hard object.

It could be a dagger, or it could be a gun.

Li Ping'an held his breath, pressing his palm against the door panel.

He exhaled a faint burst of energy.

The bolt snapped silently from within.

He pushed the door open and entered.

The person on the bed jolted awake, yanking his right hand out from under the pillow—

A dagger flashed with cold light in the darkness.

But Li Ping'an was faster.

His form was like lightning, already at the bedside.

His fingers hooked, seizing the opponent's wrist.

Crack.

The wrist bone dislocated.

The dagger clanged to the ground.

The man was just about to shout when Li Ping'an's other hand already covered his mouth.

A force penetrated, sealing the throat acupoint.

The shout was trapped in his throat, turning into a muffled hum.

Li Ping'an, using the faint light outside the window, saw the man's face clearly.

About forty years old, ordinary appearance, the kind you couldn't pick out in a crowd.

But his eyes were fierce, like a trapped beast.

"Where is the Shopkeeper?" Li Ping'an asked softly.

The man stared at him, not answering.

Li Ping'an said nothing more.

The tendon‑splitting, bone‑misaligning hand dropped the first finger.

At the shoulder blade.

The man trembled violently, cold sweat instantly soaking his clothes.

"In... in East City..." he rasped, forcing out a few words, "Railway Dormitory... Row Three... No. 6..."

Li Ping'an released his grip.

He pulled a rope from his chest, tied the man up tightly in a few swift motions, and stuffed a cloth bundle into his mouth.

He hoisted him onto his shoulder and slipped out.

The night remained deep.

The street was empty.

He took the man to the prearranged spot—a long‑abandoned earth temple.

Chen Jianguo was already waiting there.

Seeing Li Ping'an carry the man over, his eyes lit up.

"Another one?"

"Mm." Li Ping'an set the man down, "He gave an address, maybe the Shopkeeper's hideout. You go investigate, I'll continue."

Chen Jianguo nodded heavily, calling two soldiers to carry the man away.

Li Ping'an watched them vanish into the night, then turned and slipped back into the darkness.

East City Railway Dormitory.

Li Ping'an crouched in the shadow of the wall, Divine Perception sweeping over the entire dormitory area.

Row Three, No. 6.

No one was inside.

But there were traces of life.

The bed was messy, a half bowl of hardened Bangzi Noodle Porridge sat on the table, and a few empty bottles were piled in the corner.

The person had left.

And left in a hurry.

Li Ping'an slipped into the house and searched carefully.

In the bedboard compartment, he found a small Iron Box.

Opening it, inside were several photos and a thin booklet.

The photos showed the Shopkeeper with several people, the background looking like a park.

The booklet recorded some numbers and codes, still using that same cipher.

Li Ping'an put the Iron Box away and continued searching.

Beneath the Stove's coal ash, he felt an Oilcloth Bag.

Inside was money.

A considerable amount, a thick stack, all ten‑yuan notes.

At least a few hundred yuan.

The Shopkeeper had indeed stayed here.

But he has already fled.

Li Ping'an stood in the empty house, closed his eyes and gathered his mind.

Divine Perception extended outward like a spider web, catching any possible clue.

None.

The Shopkeeper was like a drop of water, evaporated into the air.

Li Ping'an was not discouraged.

He moved on to the next area.

In the following nights, Li Ping'an repeated the method.

Each night he changed the area, searching inch by inch with Divine Perception.

Like a comb, he left no trace unnoticed.

On the second night, in a block of tube‑shaped apartments in West City, he found a second subordinate.

The man was Camouflaged as a sick patient, staying home all day without going out.

The house was piled with Chinese herbs, the smell pungent.

But Li Ping'an's Divine Perception sensed that the man's "illness" was feigned.

His breathing was strong, heartbeat steady, not at all like a chronically ill person.

The capture went smoothly.

The man didn't even have time to resist before he was restrained.

When he was bound, he stared intently at Li Ping'an.

"You... how did you find me?"

Li Ping'an gave no answer.

He hoisted the man and left.

On the third night, in a sprawling courtyard in North of City.

This time the target was more cunning.

Living at the deepest part of the courtyard, there were households on every side.

It seemed the most dangerous, but was actually the safest.

Who would think the fugitive was hidden in the middle of the crowd?

But Li Ping'an found him.

Because that man's room always kept the curtains drawn tight.

Both day and night, it was the same.

More importantly, his breathing rhythm was completely different from the surrounding neighbors.

It was the lingering quality unique to martial artists.

There was resistance during the capture.

The man's kung fu was not weak; his grappling was fierce and cunning.

But Li Ping'an's Tai Chi had reached the consummate stage.

With a soft yet powerful pull and guide, the opponent's force was completely neutralized.

Baji Quan struck up close, subduing the enemy with a single blow.

When the man was pressed to the ground, he gritted his teeth and said, "Shopkeeper will avenge us."

Li Ping'an stared at him coldly.

"I am waiting."

All three subordinates were caught.

They were all handed over to Zhou Zhengwei.

The interrogation results arrived one after another.

The first disclosed address was true, but the Shopkeeper had already moved.

The second was stubborn, and after three days finally spoke, saying the Shopkeeper might have gone to South of City.

The third was even more obstinate, and to this day has not revealed a single word.

But those things no longer mattered.

What mattered was that the Shopkeeper had now become truly a solitary loner.

All his henchmen were broken, his wings completely severed.

How much longer can he hide?

Li Ping'an stood on the rooftop, watching the sky gradually turn pale.

After several consecutive nights of searching, even a master's body felt fatigue.

But he still could not stop.

Only the Shopkeeper remained.

He was also the hardest to find.

Such a person, once determined to hide, can burrow deeper than a mouse.

Li Ping'an took a deep breath of the cool morning air.

Divine Perception spread again.

This time, he changed his line of thought.

No longer limited to "a room inhabited by only one person".

Instead, he searched for places that "should house more than one person, yet only one person is present".

For example, a house that should accommodate a family of three, but only one person's aura is present.

Or a room where people come and go by day, yet is empty at night.

For example...

His Divine Perception swept over an old residential district.

It suddenly halted.

There was a secluded courtyard there, with women's clothes hanging in the yard and flower pots on the windowsill.

It appeared to be a harmonious household.

But inside, only a man's breathing could be heard.

And that breathing...

Li Ping'an's gaze tightened.

It was lingering, deep, bearing a unique rhythm.

It was a hallmark of internal martial arts cultivated to a certain realm.

He quietly approached.

He scaled the wall into the courtyard, landing silently.

He pressed against the window, peering inside through the curtain slit.

The interior was simply furnished, yet tidy.

Tea set was placed on the table, and a calligraphy painting hung on the wall.

A man sat with his back to the window at the table, holding a book.

From his back, he looked about fifty, thin and gaunt.

Li Ping'an held his breath.

His Divine Perception slowly seeped into the room.

At the moment he touched that person——

That person suddenly turned his head!

His gaze flashed like lightning, shooting straight out the window!

Li Ping'an's heart jolted.

He had been discovered!

He hesitated not, smashing through the window to enter!

The shattering glass rang piercingly.

That person had already leapt up from the chair, now holding a short dagger.

The blade's light was like snow, slashing straight at his face!

Li Ping'an sidestepped to avoid it, his right hand snaking out like a spirit serpent to seize the opponent's wrist.

The man reacted extremely fast, turning the blade to slice at Li Ping'an's fingers.

In the cramped room, they exchanged over ten moves in an instant.

Fist winds howled, blade light flickered.

Tables and chairs overturned, the tea set shattered.

Li Ping'an grew more astonished the longer they fought.

This person's martial skill far surpassed that of the three lackeys before.

Moreover, every move was vicious, all-out fighting for life.

But he felt no fear.

Tai Chi intention flowed through his whole body, using softness to overcome hardness, stillness to control motion.

Finally, he seized an opening.

A "Deflect, Parry and Punch" struck the opponent's chest.

The man grunted, staggered back several steps, and hit the wall.

A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Li Ping'an closed in, his fingers tapping in succession to seal several of the man's major acupoints.

The man went limp on the ground, staring fixedly at Li Ping'an.

His eyes held shock, reluctance, and… relief.

"Where is the Shopkeeper?" Li Ping'an asked.

The man laughed.

His smile was bleak.

"You… will never find him."

Having said that, his head lolled to the side and he fainted.

Li Ping'an crouched down to examine the man's mouth.

There was no poison.

It seemed the man had not intended to kill himself.

He hoisted the man onto his shoulder and left the small courtyard.

Morning light already bathed the street.

Early risers began their busy work, cooking smoke curling upward.

A new day had begun.

Li Ping'an lifted his gaze toward the distance.

Shopkeeper, where exactly are you hiding?

He muttered to himself.

Then he vanished into the morning mist.