To Kill

Huang Tian shook his head. "Tomorrow will not be too late either." He would not officially take office until tomorrow, so walking in now was somewhat improper. Understanding his point, Luo Chan glanced back at the guards peering out with curiosity, and said with a smile, "Too many ears around here. Why don't we find a quiet spot to talk?" Huang Tian raised an eyebrow and nodded. "Fine." The two walked about a hundred paces before taking seats at a roadside tea stall tucked in a corner. "Two bowls of plain tea." "Right away!" The tea stall proprietor served the tea, and upon seeing Luo Chan's official uniform, he consciously kept his distance. Taking a sip of tea, Luo Chan began, "Since you take office tomorrow, allow me to first brief you on the situation at the Company Office... "The office usually has one chief officer and one deputy. The previous chief was transferred away, leaving only Deputy Qi Hong. She is a spirited woman, possessor of seventh-rank strength, and very popular with the men. "Beneath Boss Qi are three Platoon Commanders. I am one of them, and the other two are brothers named Tang Fu and Tang Gui. They aren't bad sorts, though their manner of doing things can be a bit slick. "Beneath the Platoon Commanders are nine squad commanders, each leading ten men. Factor in the scribes and clerks, and the yamen has a little over a hundred people in total..." Over a hundred men, with even the lowest among them having developed force—it was a formidable force. Huang Tian nodded slightly. Although these assessments were merely Luo Chan's personal views, they gave him an initial impression of his future subordinates. This was precisely the benefit of having a confidant. After finishing his brief overview of the yamen, Luo Chan glanced around, lowered his voice, and said with some concern, "Company Commander, I heard that Merit Recording Officer Huang Qian took a leave of absence. Rumor has it he bought a Qi Gathering Pill and intends to go into seclusion to take it and draw qi. If he succeeds, it could prove troublesome." Huang Qian? A Qi Gathering Pill? Huang Tian smiled nonchalantly. "No matter. Even if he succeeds in drawing qi, he is still far from breaking through to the middle three ranks. There is no need to worry." Even if Huang Qian successfully channeled spiritual qi into true qi, that was only clearing the first hurdle. Afterward, he would still need to gradually temper his blood and nurture his true qi before he could achieve a breakthrough. Just like Huang Tian at present—he had long crossed the threshold of drawing qi, yet he still required half a month to break through. For Huang Qian, it would undoubtedly take far longer; half a year or even a full year was entirely normal. By then, who knew what realm Huang Tian himself would have reached? Why would he ever need to care whether Huang Qian broke through to the sixth rank? Seeing Huang Tian's relaxed, utterly unbothered demeanor, Luo Chan set his worries aside and smiled. "Apart from that, there is nothing else." "Drink tea." "Right." The two sat and drank their tea for a while before parting ways. Huang Tian returned to Qinghui Garden, retreated to the rear garden, swallowed several Blood Condensation Pills, and diligently practiced his stances and fist forms to temper his blood and true qi. The next morning arrived veiled in hazy mist. With Heng'er attending him, he donned his Probationary Company Commander uniform, fastened his waist badge and saber, and set out for the Company Office. *Hm? Someone is watching me?* The moment he stepped out the door, he sensed two gazes fixed intently upon him from behind. Yet there was no malice, giving him none of that prickly feeling of a blade at his back. *Must be the ones assigned to protect me from the shadows...* Realizing this, he paid them no further mind and proceeded on foot toward the Company Office. The distance between the two places was not great, and he arrived before long. When he reached the entrance of the Company Office, over a hundred men stood assembled in an imposing formation. Under the lead of a tall, heroic woman sporting a high ponytail, they all bowed in unison. "Greetings, Company Commander!" The roar of their voices rose in unison, scattering perching birds and causing passersby to stop and stare. "No need for ceremony. At ease." "Thank you, Company Commander!" The crowd straightened, and a flurry of mixed looks fell upon Huang Tian—envy, jealousy, curiosity, reverence, eager ambition... all manner of sentiments. "Please enter the yamen, Company Commander." Qi Hong, the woman leading them, stepped aside, and the subordinates parted like water, clearing a path. Clad in his dark black official uniform, Huang Tian strode through the crowd and entered the yamen. Passing into the yamen and reaching the main hall, Huang Tian took the primary seat. Qi Hong, Luo Chan, and two others stood before the dais to report their names and strength. Qi Hong, seventh rank, adept in sword arts. The brothers Tang Fu and Tang Gui, eighth rank, adept in saber arts, possessing a combined assault technique. Luo Chan, eighth rank, adept in palm techniques. Having heard their respective introductions, Huang Tian nodded and waved them off, then summoned an old clerk to brief him on the general state of Baoqing Ward. "Within the ward, there are in total..." The elderly clerk held a ledger, speaking at an unhurried pace. As Huang Tian listened, he opened his mental switch. Instantly, countless voice lines surged into his ears. *Hm? Another black line?* An exceptionally thick, pitch-black voice line pierced through the void, causing his brow to knit. His gaze followed along the line. *Whoosh—* The vision shifted to a private guest room inside a tavern. "Fang He, have you lost your mind? How dare you come looking for me at my lodgings? If anyone notices, we're both dead!" a middle-aged man with a hooked nose and triangular eyes hissed in agitation. "Senior Brother Zhang Yu, what are you panicking for?" The one called Fang He was a fair-faced, beardless youth. He gave a light chuckle and said, "Right now, the Commandery Yamen, the Martial Restraint Guard, and Six Doors are all hunting you down. Yet you had the guts to flee into the commandery seat to hide. With such astonishing nerve, why lose your composure the moment you see me?" Zhang Yu snorted coldly. "The most dangerous place is the safest place. Who would ever suspect that after killing the county magistrate and county commandant, with warrants out for me everywhere, I would dare hide in the commandery seat—especially disguised right in Baoqing Ward under the very noses of the Martial Restraint Guard? Naturally, I am safe and sound. "Yet you are a Six Doors Bronze-Badge Constable and a seventh-rank martial artist. Your status is hardly obscure! If someone happens to notice you and spots me by extension, neither of us will have a grave to be buried in!" Fang He leaned back in his chair, stretching lazily. "Senior Brother, you worry too much. Though I am a Bronze-Badge Constable, I have always maintained a low profile. Who would be watching me?" "A low profile? Does that include barging straight into my hideout?!" Zhang Yu snarled. Were it not for the fact that Fang He, as a mole planted inside Six Doors, held no small value to their sect, Zhang Yu would have struck him half to death with a palm strike right then and there. "Come now, I told you not to worry, didn't I? Your junior brother never slips up," Fang He said with a grin. "Besides, I came this time to deliver healing medicines and tonics for you." He pulled several porcelain bottles from his sleeve and tossed them over. Zhang Yu caught them gingerly, pulled out the stoppers to inspect them, and found that they truly were high-grade pills. His expression softened slightly, though his brow remained furrowed. "Even if you needed to deliver medicine, you didn't have to come in person. Couldn't you have sent a trusted subordinate?" Fang He chuckled. "A trusted subordinate? My men don't know I'm a mole for the Feihong Sect. If I had them deliver medicine and they laid eyes on a wanted murderer like you, who knows what they might do..." Zhang Yu gave a cold huff, disinclined to argue further. "You didn't come today just to bring me medicine, did you?" Fang He nodded, his demeanor turning solemn. "The sect handed down an order. You are to cooperate with people arriving from the sect to kill another person." "Who?" "The Martial Restraint Guard's Probationary Company Commander of Baoqing Ward, Huang Tian!"