Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Making a Bet
The joy that had just bloomed in Peng Li’s heart instantly vanished.
’There’s a fourth person here!’
The moment Luo Anning appeared, Peng Li lost all will to fight.
With a flick of his wrist, he unleashed his Wind-Breaking Sword Momentum with all his might, creating a dozen sword images as he shot backward.
The instant he launched himself into the air, the tendons in Peng Li’s body tightened. With a burst of tendon-quenching power, he forcefully shattered his own thin, narrow sword, sending countless shards flying at Su Mu.
Peng Li was fast, but a searing flash of light from a saber was faster.
As the light of the saber slashed across his waist, the blade hummed like muffled thunder.
"You..."
Peng Li’s gaunt face twisted in despair.
The fragments of the shattered sword struck Su Mu, tearing his clothes with the clang of metal on metal.
But the shards, sharp enough to rip an ordinary man to shreds, only left faint white marks on his skin. With a mere flex of his muscles, they all clattered to the ground.
’Body Tempering Extreme Realm!’
Peng Li’s eyes filled with disbelief.
He looked down.
He saw his own lower body plummeting, blood and organs scattering like a torrential rain.
One wrong move had cost him everything.
In the instant before he closed his eyes for the last time, Peng Li saw the wind lift Su Mu’s tattered Constable Uniform, revealing the Brocade and Ink Shirt beneath.
’So that’s it. I can’t complain about this loss...’
The last thought flashed through Peng Li’s mind, and his lingering obsessions vanished.
......
Su Mu sheathed his saber, looted Peng Li’s corpse, and only then, with the spoils in hand, did he turn to look at the other battle.
He turned just in time to see Luo Anning pull her longsword from the dwarf’s heart.
Compared to the bloody mess on his end, the dwarf’s death had been almost elegant.
With a gentle flick of her wrist, Luo Anning slung the blood from her blade, and the sword gleamed brightly once more.
’What a fine sword!’
Su Mu felt a pang of envy.
The saber he used was the one Sun Dazhao from the Hunting Gang had given him. It was a slight improvement over the standard-issue Constable Saber, but not by much.
It was nothing compared to a Divine Weapon like the one in Luo Anning’s hands.
Luo Anning casually sheathed her sword. Pointing at the dwarf, she said to Su Mu, "That’s Gao Yuanhua, eighty-ninth on the fugitives’ list. The Government Office has a bounty of one thousand two hundred taels of silver on him. I have no use for it. You can take his head and claim the reward."
’One thousand two hundred taels of silver, and she just gives it away.’
’Luo Anning is a good person.’
Su Mu praised her silently and accepted her kind offer without a moment’s hesitation.
"How much is Peng Li’s bounty?"
Su Mu asked casually as he started searching Gao Yuanhua’s body.
"Eight hundred taels,"
Luo Anning said.
Su Mu found some scattered silver on Gao Yuanhua, not even adding up to twenty taels. He was instantly disappointed.
"He’s a notorious fugitive, but he’s this broke,"
he grumbled.
"The Martial Dao is an expensive pursuit. Besides, people like them spend their money on wine and women, throwing it around like dirt. They can’t hold onto it,"
Luo Anning said.
"If you ever need silver, you can come to me."
Luo Anning hesitated for a moment before adding softly, "Besides, any problem that can be solved with silver isn’t a real problem."
Su Mu: "..."
’Do you have any idea how much people hate it when you say things like that?’
’What are people like Wei Yongfu—who have to risk their lives for a few hundred taels—supposed to think?’
"What I mean is—"
Luo Anning explained, "With your level of strength, there are many ways to earn money. But some of those ways—like what they did—will only ruin your future."
She pointed to the bodies of Peng Li and Gao Yuanhua and said earnestly, "When we cultivate the Martial Dao, the stronger we become, the more important it is to stay true to ourselves.
If you need silver, I can help you."
"I have a respectable job. I don’t need to resort to robbery,"
Su Mu said.
’Look at them, so dirt poor they didn’t have two coins to rub together. What kind of future is there in that?’
’It just goes to show how important it is to pick the right career.’
’Why would I give up being a perfectly good official to become a bandit? You’d have to be a complete idiot.’
"Su Mu, since you were able to kill Peng Li, it means you’re strong enough to go out and temper yourself beyond the city."
Luo Anning thought for a moment. "Have you considered resigning from your constable post to go out and train with me?"
Before officially becoming Taiping Captains, the White Clothes of the Taiping Bureau generally go out to train on their own to hone their cultivation and strength.
Their training consists of hunting monsters and demons in the periphery of the Daxing Mountain Range. If they happen to run into a fugitive on the list, they’ll take action as well.
Luo Anning had been training nearby, which is how she discovered the Yin Spirit Grass.
Although the Daxing Mountain Range is fraught with danger, it is also filled with opportunities, and one might find all sorts of Treasures of Heaven and Earth.
"’Cultivating the Martial Dao through real combat is sometimes much faster than just training in seclusion.’"
Luo Anning continued, "Slaying monsters and demons also accumulates merits. Even if you don’t end up becoming a Taiping Captain, those merits can be exchanged for Martial Arts techniques and Elixirs. They won’t go to waste."
"I won’t resign from my constable post."
Su Mu shook his head resolutely.
’Could tempering myself in real combat possibly be more beneficial than being a constable?’
’My position as a constable gives me anywhere from forty to eighty Points every single day.’
"Unless a rule one day forbids me from serving in both the South City Bureau and the Taiping Bureau, I won’t voluntarily resign my post as a constable."
Su Mu continued, "However, what you said about training... it’s not out of the question. If you need help dealing with monsters and demons in the future, feel free to find me.
’To be honest, I sometimes moonlight as a Ghostwriter to make ends meet.’"
’My career as a Ghostwriter hasn’t even officially begun.’
"Slaying monsters and evil spirits is part of our duty as Taiping Bureau White Clothes. What does that have to do with being a Ghostwriter?"
Luo Anning was getting confused. "You can’t have it both ways..."
A Ghostwriter gets paid for their services, but the Taiping Bureau White Clothes already receive a salary. Plus, they earn merits for slaying monsters and evil spirits.
"Just kidding."
Su Mu laughed sheepishly. He was starting to think Luo Anning wouldn’t make a very good client.
’This girl is too by-the-book. It’s fine for her to just give me money, but helping her slay monsters for money is a problem?’
’Okay, I guess that does look a bit greedy.’
"I was just kidding. Slaying monsters and demons is a duty I can’t ignore. Feel free to find me anytime. No charge,"
Su Mu said.
......
Wuling City, South City.
South City Government Office.
A young dandy tugged at his ill-fitting Sima uniform.
"Second Young Master, this Outer City is a complete cesspool with nothing fun to do. Why don’t we give up on this Sima position? If you want to be an official, we can just get you an assignment in the Inner City."
A middle-aged man dressed as a steward followed the young dandy, nagging him earnestly. "Only the disfavored sons of noble families get sent to the Outer City. I’ve heard that fugitives on the list often show up here, not to mention monsters and demons.
’Look what happened to Hu Yuxing—he was murdered, and they still haven’t caught the killer.’"
"You don’t know shit."
Wang Guan curled his lip. "Don’t look at me as just a Sima. It won’t be long before I earn a promotion through my own merit.
’What’s so great about relying on your parents? I, Wang Guan, will rely on my own abilities.’"
The steward grumbled internally. ’As if anyone in the Inner City doesn’t know that you, Second Young Master Wang, are useless at both scholarship and fighting.’
’Besides, what kind of merits could you possibly earn here in the South City Bureau?’
’Do you really think you can govern the South City Bureau?’
’Do you even have the skill for that?’
"Second Young Master, it’s not so easy to build a career. A Sima is responsible for the Outer City’s security, which means hunting down fugitives and thieves..."
The steward trailed off. He wanted to ask if his young master could really handle any of that, but he held his tongue.
"Heh, Steward, I know my father sent you to watch me. How about we make a bet?"
Wang Guan grinned. "Within ten days, if I can capture a fugitive from the wanted list, you’ll hand over that Famous Sword Qiushui of yours. If I can’t, I’ll give you ten Blood Exchange Pills. What do you say?"
The steward’s eyes flickered. The Famous Sword Qiushui had been a reward from the Patriarch for a great service he’d once performed by chance. He had treasured it ever since.
The Blood Exchange Pill was an auxiliary elixir that helped one break through from the Fourth Stage of Body Tempering to the Blood Transformation Realm. A single pill could save several months of arduous training; it was not only expensive but also incredibly rare.
"Are you serious?"
the steward said thoughtfully.
"Of course I am. Who in all of Wuling City doesn’t know that I, Second Young Master Wang, am a man of my word when it comes to bets? But let me be clear first: as long as the South City Bureau makes the capture, it counts as mine. I’m not saying I have to do it with my own two hands,"
Wang Guan said.
"Fine, I’ll take that bet!"
After a moment’s thought, the steward agreed through clenched teeth.
......
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