Chapter 49: Not Resting in Peace

It all happened in a flash. Bao Yansong’s Long Saber was less than a meter from Chen Cheng’s face, about to cleave him in two.

Chen Cheng’s retreating speed suddenly increased severalfold, allowing him to easily dodge the Long Saber’s attack.

With a few successive flicks of his wrist, he once again threw out clouds of lime powder. This time, the lime covered an even wider area, turning more than half the courtyard into a vast white haze.

The moment his saber cut through empty air, Bao Yansong knew he was in trouble. He hurriedly dashed to the side, escaping the cloud of lime in the blink of an eye. Still, a small amount of powder found its way into his eyes. A sharp, stinging pain forced him to squeeze them shut.

He had anticipated that Chen Cheng might use another Hidden Weapon, but he never expected him to use such a despicable tactic again—throwing lime, and so much of it! ’Who in their right mind carries this much lime powder on them?’

’This damn constable is detestable! The man is shameless and despicable beyond belief!’

Blinded by the lime and unable to open his eyes, Bao Yansong was seething with rage. Yet, his target was a constable, and he was afraid of attracting attention, so he dared not make a sound.

"Damn constable!" he cursed under his breath through clenched teeth. He swung his Long Saber with all his might to create a whirlwind defense, while simultaneously using his other hand to wipe at his eyes with his sleeve.

’Just a few more moments. Once I clear my eyes and can see again, I’ll chop Chen Cheng into a fine paste. Nothing less will quench this hatred.’

But Chen Cheng wasn’t about to give him that chance.

Bao Yansong had achieved Great Success in his Saber Technique. Focusing solely on defense, his form was nearly flawless. ’But what good was that? If there are no openings, you create them. His inability to see, even for a moment, was a fatal flaw.’

Chen Cheng sent a flying kick, launching a stone roller from the courtyard at Bao Yansong. The roller weighed a good two to three hundred pounds; heavy and powerful, it whistled through the air as it hurtled toward him.

Hearing the sound, Bao Yansong reacted on instinct, slashing out with his full power.

BANG!

Sparks flew as the saber strike split the stone roller in two.

However, the momentum of the roller was immense, and the force of the impact sent Bao Yansong staggering back. He was just about to pull his Long Saber back into a defensive stance when he saw Chen Cheng move like the wind, his own Long Saber streaking toward the vital point of Bao Yansong’s neck.

Like a gentle breeze through a crack, the blade’s shadow left no trace. It was the Wind Chasing Technique.

Bao Yansong sensed the gravest crisis of his life. The aura around him exploded with violent power. His skin turned black with a dark, metallic sheen, becoming more than twice as tough as before. Its hardness far surpassed that of bull’s hide, evolving toward the state of Copper Hide. It was as if he was about to unleash the power of a Perfect Martial Artist of the Skin Grinding Realm, trying to block the saber with his body alone.

But Chen Cheng’s Wind Chasing Saber Technique was simply too fast. Before Bao Yansong’s transformation could complete, the Long Saber had already slit his throat.

SHHCK!

Even with his full power behind the strike, Chen Cheng failed to decapitate Bao Yansong. The blade only cut halfway through his neck.

Blood gushed like a fountain from the tear in Bao Yansong’s tough skin.

Bao Yansong dropped his Long Saber and desperately clutched his neck wound with both hands. He rasped, "You... you’re at Great Success in the Skin Grinding Realm..."

He didn’t get to finish his sentence. His body froze, his head slumped to one side, and his breathing stopped. His normally ferocious face was contorted with rage. His eyes were bulging like a bull’s, dripping scarlet blood. He had died with his eyes open, the very image of a vengeful ghost bound by deep-seated resentment.

To his dying breath, he could not comprehend it: why was Chen Cheng, a lowly Preparatory Constable, a Great Success Martial Artist of the Skin Grinding Realm?

And for a supposed Great Success Martial Artist to fight so dirtily, so despicably, so shamelessly to the extreme... From start to finish, Bao Yansong hadn’t even laid a finger on him. Who wouldn’t feel aggrieved and wronged, being killed in such a humiliating way?

"I’m still a little bit away from Great Success."

Muttering this, Chen Cheng quickly started frisking Bao Yansong’s body.

Looting corpses was a signature skill of the City Guard Department’s constables, and Chen Cheng was an expert. In a few deft movements, he pulled a heavy Money Bag and a strange, dark-green, tube-shaped device off Bao Yansong.

Chen Cheng didn’t stop there. With a few more practiced rips and tears, he stripped the black robes from Bao Yansong’s body, leaving him in his under-tunic.

The constables of the City Guard Department were not just proficient at looting corpses; they were also masters at stripping them.

Only then did Bao Yansong’s large frame finally crash to the ground.

Chen Cheng briefly examined the tube-shaped device and realized it was very similar to the Corrosive Poison Water Hidden Weapon that Liao San had described.

He aimed the tube at Bao Yansong’s ghastly face and gently pressed the device’s trigger.

PFFT!

A jet of dark-green poison shot out, splattering across Bao Yansong’s face. Wisps of white smoke instantly rose as his features corroded beyond recognition. The flesh in the affected area melted into a putrid liquid, releasing a sharp, nauseating odor.

Chen Cheng hastily held his breath and jumped back, keeping his distance.

He picked up the Long Saber that Bao Yansong had dropped and was about to leave when an idea struck him. He stepped forward again and ripped open the tunic on Bao Yansong’s chest. There, he saw that the man’s chest was dark and discolored, with several raised, lotus-shaped marks.

He flipped the body over and found the same lotus-shaped marks on his back.

’This bastard was from the Black Lotus Sect. I’ve really stepped in it this time!’

...

At the other end of the alley, a young, scrawny beggar boy in tattered clothes, his face caked with dirt, was carefully making his way into the alley.

In his experience, while quiet alleys like this were dangerous, a thorough search often yielded unexpected treasures—a valuable item or two that someone had lost.

The beggar boy was walking along when a courtyard gate suddenly flew open. Before he could even turn to see what was happening, a black cloth was thrown over his head. Everything went dark, a sharp pain blossomed on his forehead, and he lost consciousness.

A short while later, the beggar boy slowly regained consciousness. He pulled the black cloth from his face and clutched his throbbing forehead. He looked around in confusion and fear. The alley was deserted, not a soul in sight. The silence was terrifying.

All at once, his eyes lit up. Near the corner of the wall beside him, he saw several scattered copper coins.

He scrambled to pick up the copper coins, stuffing them inside his tunic. Clutching the black cloth in one hand, he got to his feet and crept to the courtyard gate to peek inside. The sight of the dead body and the blood-splattered ground scared him out of his wits. He spun around and sprinted out of the alley.

He was panicked, but he didn’t dare scream. Yelling would attract Officials from the City Guard Department or some local ruffians, and they might take the copper coins he’d just found.

...

Of course, it was Chen Cheng who had knocked the beggar boy unconscious. He had already left the alley and was now strolling nonchalantly down the main street.

’Even though it was a clean kill in self-defense, I’d rather no one knew. More importantly, that Hospital Guard was a member of the Black Lotus Sect. Even the City Guard Department is powerless against a shadowy Demon Sect like that. There’s no way I can afford to get on their bad side.’

’Did that bastard Jiang Rongxuan send this Hospital Martial Artist after me? No, probably not. The Jiang Family isn’t powerful enough to order around a Great Success Martial Artist from the Black Lotus Sect.’

’But I can’t rule out the possibility that Jiang Rongxuan was in on it. I’ll lay low and observe for a while, then decide whether I should report this to Liu Yunfeng.’

His mind made up, Chen Cheng started walking leisurely toward home.