Chapter 147: Chapter 134: Don’t Delay a Murder_1
Lu Yan grabbed the burly man and led him outside the door, saying, "This person is making groundless accusations against the Martial Marquis. This is his fate."
He then tossed him on the ground like a dead dog.
The burly man’s henchmen scurried over to help him on his feet, stumbled out of the crowd, and retreated like they were fleeing for their lives.
Lu Yan watched the direction they were fleeing in, his eyes dark and deep.
If one is marked with hatred, they cannot be let go.
But with two Martial Hunters there, it wasn’t appropriate to make a move.
"Sir, the murderer hasn’t been apprehended yet; we need to investigate further. We hope you can cooperate with the investigation later on," said one of the two Martial Hunters walking over.
"Of course."
Lu Yan nodded, then went to examine Zhou Xiang’s injuries.
"Uncle Lu, my father’s leg is broken, can it be restored?"
Tofu asked anxiously.
Lu Yan carefully inspected Zhou Xiang’s legs.
Both legs were broken, inflicted with a heavy-handed blow. The injury was severe.
In the ordinary world, there would be no chance of recovery. One would be disabled for a lifetime.
But this was the Martial World, which was home to unique entities such as Martial Food.
Some Martial Foods had the effect of healing injuries and were useful even for Limit Breaking Warriors or the Martial Marquis.
With those types of Martial Foods, recovery was possible.
Lu Yan nodded and said, "Don’t worry, I will heal your father’s injuries. Take him inside to rest first."
Meanwhile, two neighbors, who were quite friendly with Zhou Xiang, helped carry him into the house.
And Lu Yan, under the excuse of buying healing Martial Food, left the scene.
He made a small detour and started to follow the direction the burly man had gone.
Soon, he spotted the figures of the burly man and his associates.
Bearing such deep grudges against him, the burly man was definitely a hidden threat. How could Lu Yan let him continue to live with his nature?
But exactly how to do it required careful planning.
Having just made an enemy of him, killing him outright would blatantly expose that he was the murderer, wouldn’t it?
To kill this man, an alibi was needed.
The henchmen carried the burly man across a street and into a courtyard.
Lu Yan made a lap around the surrounding area, memorizing the layout.
"Got it."
Lu Yan’s eyes lit up.
Across from where the burly man lived, at a distance of about three hundred meters, stood a tavern called the Ten-Fragrance Building.
It was run by the Zhao Clan, and they sold Martial Food within.
Lu Yan went up to ask about it and bought a bowl of Deer Bone Soup.
Soup made from boiling the bones of an Iron-Boned Deer, it had healing effects when consumed by martial artists, especially for bone-related injuries.
Of course, the price was not cheap.
Although it was tier-one Martial Food, it was sold for thirty silvers, three times the price of ordinary tier-one Martial Food.
But Tofu’s family had suffered due to him, and Lu Yan naturally did not mind spending the silver.
With the Deer Bone Soup, coupled with a period of recovery, Zhou Xiang’s leg would have no problem healing.
Carrying the Deer Bone Soup, he returned to his residence.
The Deer Bone Soup was a Martial Food meant for martial artists. Zhou Xiang was just a commonplace person and would have trouble dealing with such potency.
If he ingested too much, it would not only prove ineffective, but the consequences would likely be dire.
So, Lu Yan reminded them that they should only drink a small spoonful each meal, three times a day.
One serving of Deer Bone Soup could be consumed over several days.
After giving these reminders, Lu Yan wrote a note and went to the Ming Xiang Mansion, asking the doorman to pass it on to Zhao Sirong.
As night fell...
In a private room of the Ten-Fragrance Building, Lu Yan made a mental command, and an avatar emerged from his forehead to the ground, then picked up a set of black clothes that had been prepared earlier and put it on.
In a flash, he was out of the room, hidden in the shadows.
A moment later, a graceful figure walked into the room -- it was Zhao Sirong.
"Why did Brother Lu suddenly ask me out for drinks?"
Zhao Sirong sat down in front of Lu Yan.
"Do I need a reason to invite a beauty for drinks?"
Lu Yan replied with a smile.
"You are joking, Brother Lu."
Zhao Sirong blushed slightly.
"Thanks to the token Sirong gave me, it’s a lot easier for me to purchase Martial Food. Today, I want to thank Sirong, so come, let’s have a drink," Lu Yan said, raising his glass and changing his address from ’Miss’ to ’Sirong’.
When dealing with girls, one needed to be bold and thick-skinned.
If they didn’t reject you, wouldn’t that mean you had become closer?
Zhao Sirong didn’t reject him, instead lifting her cup and clinking it against Lu Yan’s.
"Do you know if the demon beasts attacking the city have any patterns?" Lu Yan asked again.
"No, but almost every few months, they would launch an attack. So we dare not slack off. We are patrolling day and night. Oh, I just remembered, there is a pattern: every time the demon beasts attack the city, they choose to do it at night."
"Of course, we can’t let our guard down during the day either. Who knows if the demon beasts will suddenly choose to attack during the day?"
Zhao Sirong replied.
Lu Yan silently noted this and proceeded to chat with Zhao Sirong on other topics.
Meanwhile, his Martial Arts Avatar, after Zhao Sirong’s arrival, had already become active, stealthily infiltrating the courtyard where the burly man resided.
The distance between the Ten-Fragrance Building and the burly man’s residence was around three hundred meters in a straight line, within the Martial Arts Avatar’s operational range.
The burly man’s residence was pretty large, accommodating seven or eight people, all martial artists.
But apart from the burly man, all were Limit Breaking Warriors with no Martial Marquis among them.
Very quickly, Lu Yan found the bedroom where the burly man was.
"Has Young Master Lin arrived at Lingwang City yet?" The burly man’s voice came from the bedroom.
"No." Another person answered.
"Tomorrow, send someone out of the city to inform Young Master Lin that my disciple sister has been killed and falsely accused of practicing evil martial arts, and tarnishing her innocence with charges of Yin-Yang Replenishing Method."
"Young Master Lin has always admired my disciple sister. He will not let this go. I want that kid dead. Not only him, I will find his family and kill them all, leaving no one behind." The burly man’s voice came out again, filled with resounding bitterness.
"Yes." The other person replied.
Squeak!
Lu Yan pushed the door open and stepped in.
"Who let you in?"
The beefy man was just about to roar in anger.
Whoosh!
Lu Yan’s Martial Arts Avatar flashed, appearing before the bed in an instant. A palm struck down on the man’s skull.
The burly man’s head burst into pieces like a watermelon.
Then, Lu Yan’s fist struck another man in the chest, sending him flying out and crashing into a wall before collapsing to the ground, his chest punctured and devoid of breath.
"Who’s there?"
Having been alerted by the commotion, several figures hurriedly burst out of the bedrooms within the courtyard.
The commotion was caused intentionally by Lu Yan.
Only in this way could he pin down the timing of the murders. At this time, he was drinking with Zhao Sirong.
With a flash, Lu Yan left the courtyard, disappearing into the darkness.
As Lu Yan and Zhao Sirong were deep in conversation, they abruptly heard a commotion coming from outside.
They faintly heard that someone had been killed and a Martial Marquis was murdered.
The two left their private room and saw many people rushing towards a nearby private courtyard.
"Another Martial Marquis was murdered?"
Zhao Sirong’s face darkened.
"Again? Apart from Lin Qiuyu, were there others?" Lu Yan asked.
"Yes, in the past few days, five Martial Marquises have been killed, and the murderer cannot be found. Those on the side of the deceased suspect it is the doing of their rivals."
"As you know, many of the feudal lords are feuding, competing for resources, and harboring deep-seated grudges. If it weren’t for the shared threat of sectarian turmoil, they wouldn’t band together to resist the enemy. However, their conflicts will never truly be resolved."
"In the past few days, more than ten feudal lords have declared disputes, and if it weren’t for the Zhao Clan’s mediation, they probably would have fought by now."
Zhao Sirong explained.
"This seems orchestrated to stir up strife among the feudal lords."
Lu Yan said.
"Many of our elders think the same. That’s why they have been making every effort to track down the murderer in recent days, but so far, there hasn’t been much progress."
Zhao Sirong replied.
As the two were talking, they also approached the courtyard in question.
It was the private residence of the beefy man who was killed.
Soon, the Martial Hunters arrived.
This time, five Martial Hunters arrived.
Two of them were those who had investigated the Lin Qiuyu case during the day.
The Martial Hunters entered the courtyard and carried out their investigation.
Shortly after, two of the Martial Hunters quickly walked out and headed in the direction of the tofu shop, but after only a few steps, they spotted Lu Yan and quickly approached him.
"Lu Ren..."
The two Martial Hunters positioned themselves on either side of Lu Yan.
"Officers, what can I do for you?" Lu Yan asked, his face calm.
"Lin Chang is dead."
One of the Martial Hunters said.
The name of the burly man who had been killed was Lin Chang.
"Was it Lin Chang who was killed?"
Lu Yan looked shocked.
"Earlier today, Lin Chang had a grudge against you, yet he was murdered in his bedroom tonight. It’s hard not to suspect that you were the one who did it."
One of the Martial Hunters said.
"Officers, when was Lin Chang killed? Are there any witnesses?" Lu Yan inquired.
"About two incense sticks ago, several of Lin Chang’s disciples saw the murderer, but they weren’t able to make out his appearance."
The previous Martial Hunter noted.
"Two incense sticks ago, I was having a drink and a conversation with Miss Sirong. I didn’t leave for even a moment. How could I have killed Lin Chang? Are you suggesting that I have a Doppelganger?"
Lu Yan said, defending himself.
"Miss Sirong, is what he’s saying true?"
The Martial Hunter turned to Zhao Sirong.
Zhao Sirong holds a high position within the Zhao Clan, so these Martial Hunters naturally recognized her.
"What Lu Ren said is correct. He was with me the whole time, drinking. He didn’t leave once."
Zhao Sirong said, sneaking a glance at Lu Yan.
She wasn’t a fool. She realized there was something odd about Lu Yan asking her out surprisingly for a drink at a location so close to where the crime occurred.
But Lu Yan had spent the entire time drinking with her. He hadn’t left at all, not even to go to the restroom.
Although she found the circumstances weird, she couldn’t figure out how it was possible.
"He never left?"
The two Martial Hunters furrowed their brows.
Although Lin Chang was murdered, Lu Yan, the person with the biggest suspicion, actually had an alibi stating that he was not at the scene of the crime, hence he didn’t have the time to commit murder.
They had no choice but to let Lu Yan go and join the other Martial Hunters to continue their investigation.
"Sirong, shall we continue drinking?"
Lu Yan asked.
"Brother Lu, you’ve accomplished your goal, do we still need to drink?"
Zhao Sirong responded with a cryptic smile, testing the waters.
"Sirong, you’re joking. My aim was to get you drunk and take you home; that certainly hasn’t been accomplished."
Lu Yan said, seeming quite serious.
"You’re such a smooth talker. But I won’t fall for it, I’m leaving."
Zhao Sirong waved her hand and left, leaving only her beautiful silhouette behind. Her ponytail swayed left and right in the air.
"If you’re not falling for this, what else would you fall for?"
Lu Yan rubbed his nose as he walked back to his residence.
In the following days, Lingwang City was restive and enigmatic.
This was because Martial Marquises were being killed every day.
All told, ten Martial Marquises had been murdered. And each crime scene left behind some sort of clue that pointed to the deceased’s rivals.
Even though the accused parties strongly denied the allegations, this only further intensified the conflicts between these already hostile feudal lords. Even the mediation efforts of the Zhao Clan couldn’t ease the tension.
Some of the feudal lords even engaged in fierce confrontations within Lingwang City.
