Chapter 18: A Cheat-Like Life—It's Just That Satisfying!

"Yes!"

Chen Mu responded inwardly and picked up a card.

Wu Sihai figured that if he kept his mouth shut, Chen Mu wouldn't kill him.

He could only say he was overthinking it.

Who the hall master behind Wu Sihai was, which gang he belonged to—Chen Mu was curious, sure, but had no other thoughts about it.

If Wu Sihai told him, it would just satisfy a bit of gossip.

If he didn't, there'd be no loss either.

Use it as leverage?

Dream on!

……

Carrying Wu Sihai's corpse, Chen Mu threaded through alley after alley.

Along the way, avoiding other people, he arrived at the daytime corpse-dumping spot and tossed Wu Sihai's body into the dry well, just like he had with Wei Qi and the others.

He put the stone slab back, masking the aura.

Chen Mu returned to Changping Ward. On the way, he took out the newly picked-up card—a Training Card!

Wu Sihai was a martial artist, so of the cards Chen Mu picked from him, the one he wanted most was an Inner Force Card.

But a Training Card wasn't bad either. Although it only lasted a year, it was enough to cultivate "Remnant Cloud Palm."

And so it proved.

Back home, Chen Mu used this Training Card. In two breaths, "Remnant Cloud Palm" advanced from beginner to the Inner Chamber Realm!

One had to know that Huang Feiyang had cultivated "Remnant Cloud Palm" for half a year and had only reached minor accomplishment.

A cheat-like life—it's just that satisfying!

……

……

The news that Falling Cloud Martial Hall had been wiped out spread through the East District, causing quite a stir.

In the eyes of the lower-class folks, Luo Zhongyun was a great post-heaven expert, with high prestige and strong strength.

Falling Cloud Martial Hall's reputation wasn't bad either—as long as you paid enough silver, you could learn "Remnant Cloud Palm" and the first three layers of "Coiling Cloud Art."

Over the past few decades, the number of people who cultivated "Coiling Cloud Art" and became martial artists—if not a hundred, then eighty.

Most of these people were quite grateful to Luo Zhongyun.

Yet in a single night, Falling Cloud Martial Hall was destroyed—inevitably, sighs of lament.

But as for the news of Luo Zhaoyu's survival, from Chen Mu's observation, it seemed no one knew.

Deliberately concealed?

Speculation was speculation—this was something Chen Mu couldn't afford to get involved in.

He'd better honestly keep picking up cards; that was the steadier route.

……

Wandering around the city, two mass graves outside the city—visit once every three days.

Cards were picked up, but the quantity was limited.

An opportunity like last time, picking up multiple Inner Force Cards and Skill Cards in a mountain gully, was a special case.

Chen Mu wasn't discouraged either.

Wulong Fucheng had a daily floating population of over ten thousand, and roughly every day or two someone died.

That afternoon, Chen Mu was returning from the mass graves outside the city, walking along the road back to Huicheng, when suddenly, not far ahead, a figure shot out from the mountain forest in a panic-stricken flight.

He instinctively stopped. Two more figures burst out of the mountain forest, pursuing from behind.

The panicked figure running ahead was clearly a man of the jianghu.

The two pursuers wore a set of flame-wreathed close-fitting attire, with feathered crested caps on their heads and a tiger-head saber at their waists—overbearing and fierce.

"…Men of the Zhenwu Office?"

Chen Mu's pupils contracted slightly.

The Zhenwu Office was the violent institution the imperial court of Great Zhou had specifically established to target jianghu sects.

Its duty was to monitor the entire jianghu, arresting and killing fugitives, great bandits, and major outlaws.

Crimson Fire uniform and Fierce Tiger saber were the standard gear of a Zhenwu Guard.

The government office's Constables handled brawls, petty theft, and civil disputes.

Zhenwu Guards handled all the vicious and major cases.

When killings happened on the streets, the corpses were basically taken away by them.

Chen Mu was always arriving a step too late.

If he could enter the Zhenwu Office, then this ability to pick up cards would be maximized in effect.

First, he could come into contact with all kinds of murder scenes, getting close to corpses.

Second, the Zhenwu Office's intelligence channels were the most well-informed!

The importance of information went without saying.

If he got into the Zhenwu Office, why would Chen Mu still need to run around everywhere every day?

His subordinates would naturally report murder cases and corpse discoveries!

Gang clashes, jianghu vendettas, street brawls…

He could learn of them all at the first moment!

Too bad…

To enter the Town Wu Siwei, the first hurdle is having a clean background.

Chen Mu, this "gang member," didn't even need to wait for review—he was already eliminated, unless someone on the inside recommended him!

Clearly, that wasn't realistic.

"Right, I think the Town Wu Siwei's Guard minimum requirement is also Fourth Stage of the Postnatal realm?"

Chen Mu recalled the relevant information in his mind and couldn't help clicking his tongue.

Fourth Stage of the Postnatal realm is required to serve as a Guard, and even then it's the lowest rank—Iron Guard.

First to Third Stage of the Postnatal realm, inside the Town Wu Siwei, can only serve as a Strongman.

That's right, just a laborer—not even qualified to wear the Scarlet Flame uniform, let alone wield the Fierce Tiger Blade.

"With my current cultivation, even if I enter the Town Wu Siwei, I'd just be a Strongman, only slightly better than the lowest menial laborer…"

Thinking of this, Chen Mu shook his head and stopped dwelling on it.

He lifted his foot and continued walking, but his direction shifted slightly, following behind three figures—one fleeing, two in pursuit.

With the Town Wu Siwei's Guards personally taking action, the fleeing person most likely wouldn't end well.

If that person died…

"Hoo!"

Chen Mu took a deep breath, steadied his mind, activated "Heavenly Wolf Scenting the Moon," and tracked the scent from afar.

This walk lasted an hour.

A bloody smell suddenly drifted from afar, locked onto by "Heavenly Wolf Scenting the Moon."

Chen Mu's eyes lit up. He stopped, waited two quarter-hours on the open field as if taking a leisurely stroll, looked around to make sure no one was watching, then performed "Spirit Serpent Steps" and, following the bloody scent, darted over.

In no time, he entered a mountain stream.

【Corpse discovered. Pick up?】

"Yes!"

From a distance of seven or eight meters, he picked up the card, then turned and left without even seeing the corpse.

With the card in hand, whether or not he saw the corpse no longer mattered.

……

He quickly left the mountain.

Once thoroughly far away, Chen Mu checked the card.

Cultivation Card!

Duration: three and a half years!

The dead man's cultivation wasn't low!

Chen Mu was thrilled but didn't rush to use it.

He returned to the city, got home, then used the Cultivation Card to cultivate "Shattered Gold Palm."

Buzz buzz~

His consciousness transformed into a small figure, performing the palm technique over and over.

An invisible membrane of light covered his body, stimulating and strengthening the bones of his palms.

When he stopped, the realm of "Shattered Gold Palm" advanced from Entry to Mastery to Perfected!

At this realm, once "Shattered Gold Palm" was activated, both palms turned pitch-black—impervious to blade and spear, untouched by water and fire!

……

……

Changde Ward.

Blood Wolf Gang headquarters.

"Old Yang, where did Boss Wu go?"

A burly man with a bare head and a face full of stubble looked at one of Wu Sihai's trusted lieutenants and asked, "It's been three days now—why hasn't the boss come back?"

"No idea."

The questioned big man was puzzled and bewildered. "That night, after the boss told us to scatter, he said he was going home, so we left. Where the boss went, we really don't know."

"This…"

The dozen or so people in the hall, some sitting and some standing, frowned upon hearing this.

As the big boss, Wu Sihai's whereabouts were generally known to those under him.

But this time was a bit strange—three days and still no sign of him.

Not only Wu Sihai.

The only remaining small boss, Wei Qi, also hadn't shown himself again!

Things…

Were not quite right!