Bounty Notice

Impressive! Truly impressive! Even the head runners, usually so calm, aloof, and high and mighty, beamed with warm, welcoming smiles the moment they laid eyes on Tian Fuliang. Such was the imposing authority of Tian Fuliang, Deputy Office Chief and second-in-command of the Nanquan Lane Suppression Office! In all of vast Nanquan Lane, he stood beneath only one man, yet above tens of thousands! Looking up at Tian Fuliang in his fish-scale uniform on the high platform, Chen Ping'an could clearly sense the yearning coming from Monkey and Dashan. Monkey in particular was trembling slightly. It was not out of fear, but sheer excitement! Tian Fuliang stood upon the platform, casting his gaze over the assembled runners. During ordinary pre-shift assemblies, the head runners would sit placidly in their large armchairs. Today, not one of them sat. All stood behind Tian Fuliang, wearing attentive smiles. "Colleagues, it has been some time since we last met. Seeing your spirit and vigor today, you truly prove yourselves to be the elite of our Nanquan Lane Suppression Office!" Tian Fuliang opened with polite pleasantries. Even so, the crowd could only listen in quiet reverence. Tian Fuliang then gradually steered toward his main topic. Chen Ping'an also came to understand why Tian Fuliang, in his role as deputy office chief, was attending today's pre-shift assembly in person. "A bounty notice?" "Next door, the Qingliu Lane Suppression Office launched an assault against the Black Carp Gang, but a minor mishap occurred during the encirclement. A tiny fraction of their members managed to break out. According to our intelligence, some of the remaining Black Carp Gang fugitives have fled into Nanquan Lane." "The Black Carp Gang is a faction slightly more formidable than the Tiger Head Gang. They wield considerable influence over in neighboring Qingliu Lane." "Around a dozen Black Carp Gang fugitives escaped this time. The two most prominent among them are Flounder, the deputy gang chief, and Trash Fish, a senior chief." "According to our latest intelligence, Flounder's escape route should take him in another direction toward Qiwan Lane. Meanwhile, Senior Chief Trash Fish is heading straight for Nanquan Lane." "Flounder, the Black Carp Gang's deputy chief, has mastered tendon changing and possesses cultivation at the qi and blood third layer, perfected. More than a few head runners in our office would be no match for him in a one-on-one fight. Anyone who provides actionable clues will be rewarded with ten taels of silver and recorded one medium merit. Anyone who kills or captures him on the spot will be credited with a major merit." "Senior Chief Trash Fish has mastered skin tempering and stepped into the flesh tempering level, possessing cultivation at the qi and blood second layer. Anyone who provides actionable clues will be rewarded with five taels of silver and recorded one minor merit. Anyone who kills or captures him on the spot will be credited with a medium merit and rewarded ten taels of silver." "In addition, there are numerous other Black Carp Gang fugitives. The bounty notice reads as follows..." "..." As Tian Fuliang continued, the eyes of many runners below began to gleam. Even Chen Ping'an felt a faint surge of excitement. Within the Suppression Office, merits were held in the highest esteem! Whether an unregistered temporary runner wished to become a registered runner, a registered runner hoped to become a reserve head runner, or a head runner sought to climb even higher... Every single step was intimately tied to the word "merit." To advance within the Suppression Office, martial realm was crucial, but merits were just as vital. The former was the foundation, while the latter was an absolute prerequisite! Accumulating merits the routine way was agonizingly slow. It took several years at best, and a dozen or even twenty-odd years at worst. By the time a suitable opportunity finally presented itself, you would be well along in years, your qi and blood decayed, and the chance would pass you by. Consequently, nearly every runner and temporary runner whose future remained uncertain was desperate to earn merits. And a bounty notice was just such an opportunity! The major, medium, and minor merits Tian Fuliang had just mentioned were different gradations of achievement. Naturally, the merits he spoke of were ranked at the lane level. Higher up, there were district-level merits, and even commandery-city-level merits. Of course, achievements at those levels were unfathomably grand. A single medium merit at the lane level was enough for an unregistered temporary runner to become a registered runner. A major merit was sufficient to qualify a registered runner to contend for the rank of reserve head runner. With such news announced, how could the runners present not be thrilled? Naturally, for a registered runner to vie for reserve head runner, meeting the merit requirement had to be paired with a certain level of martial cultivation. *Qi and blood second layer! If someone can kill him on the spot, they'll earn a medium merit! The qi and blood second layer...* Chen Ping'an looked straight ahead, contemplating in silence. He had now stepped into the qi and blood second layer, but if he wanted to slay a fellow martial cultivator of the same level, his strength might still fall short. *If I can reach the qi and blood second layer, perfected... then I'll have an immense chance!* While Chen Ping'an was lost in thought, Tian Fuliang delivered another piece of news from the platform, driving the runners' fervor to its peak. "By the way, there is one fortunate detail: during their breakout, both Flounder and Trash Fish suffered varying degrees of injury. For the time being, their combat strength falls far short of their true realms!" The moment Tian Fuliang said this, the runners began rubbing their palms and rolling up their sleeves in eager anticipation. Earlier, some runners had harbored doubts—even if they happened to run into one of them, their own strength was lacking, and failing to secure the merit might cost them their lives instead. But now, their chances of success had increased substantially. "That's fantastic!" Monkey thumped his chest excitedly. "Ping'an, Dashan, forget about major or medium merits—even if I can just provide an actionable clue, that's still one minor merit. A single minor merit would shave years off my wait! Factoring in the merits I've already accumulated, I'd be awfully close to becoming a registered runner!" "Indeed," Chen Ping'an nodded. Beside them, Dashan's eyes also sparkled with excitement. He might be simple and honest, but that did not make him a fool. With an opportunity like this, Dashan naturally wanted to seize it as well. "When we patrol the streets today, we must be extra thorough and scour every corner," Monkey proposed. Chen Ping'an and Dashan agreed in unison. "Say, Old Qin, are you interested?" Monkey turned toward Old Qin, his eyes still bright with excitement. "I'm old, too old for this. Count me out. The future belongs to you young folks. You go give it your all." Old Qin waved a hand in refusal, wearing a look of total disinterest in putting forth any effort. Hearing that, Monkey could not help feeling a bit disappointed. If they could get Old Qin to join them, their chances would be far greater. If they happened to cross paths with Trash Fish, having Old Qin's qi and blood second layer combat power would be enough to steadily suppress the injured fugitive. No matter how much Old Qin's qi and blood had decayed or how worn out by age he was, he could still fight at the level of the qi and blood first layer, perfected. Having announced the details of the bounty notice, Tian Fuliang smiled warmly. "The peace and stability of Nanquan Lane's tens of thousands of common folk rests entirely upon your shoulders, colleagues!" "Your Excellency Tian flatters us!" the runners responded one after another, protesting that they dared not claim such praise.