With his back against the wooden door, Su Mu's legs went weak, and he slumped to the ground.
A wave of embarrassing flattery came from outside the door, followed by the sound of disorderly footsteps.
After a long moment, the alley fell silent once more.
By now, the sky was already showing the pale light of dawn.
Su Mu felt as though he had just cheated death.
Even when he was exchanging blades with the third-in-command of the Black Dragon Stronghold, he hadn't felt so close to death.
Just a moment ago, he had truly felt a murderous intent emanating from Chief Xing.
If he had shown the slightest hesitation, he was certain Chief Xing would have ruthlessly struck him down.
After all, if they killed him, they could just pin the blame on the Black Dragon Stronghold. Who would ever seek justice on his behalf?
'The Black Dragon Stronghold raided South City last night. Killing the third-in-command who led them is definitely a great accomplishment.'
Su Mu mused grimly, 'Even so, they'd kill to silence a witness just for the credit? Don't these people have a shred of conscience?'
Su Mu wasn't a fool. From the way the constables were fawning over Chief Xing, he had already figured it out: the credit for killing the Black Dragon Stronghold's third-in-command could only belong to Chief Xing.
As the one who had actually killed the man, he had naturally become an inconvenience.
'In this world, a beggar on the street might kill for a few dozen three-zhu coins, and an Official will kill for merit.'
Su Mu murmured to himself, 'It's so hard for an ordinary person to survive.'
He had tried his best to keep a low profile and was always amicable with others, never intending to make any enemies.
But in the end, he didn't go looking for trouble; trouble came looking for him.
For a fleeting moment, Su Mu wanted to join the South City Bureau right away. His status would improve, the rate at which his panel awarded Points would increase, and he could bring his saber technique to the Perfection Realm much sooner.
But he quickly banished the thought from his mind.
If he had once harbored ambitions of climbing the ranks from a constable to a head constable, seeing Chief Xing's lawless behavior firsthand had shattered all hope for that path.
It wasn't that he held himself to some high moral standard, but rather that a man like Chief Xing would likely never give him a chance to advance.
Especially since Chief Xing had already wanted to kill him. If he joined the South City Bureau now, wouldn't that be serving himself up on a platter?
The cautionary tale of Liu Feng was right before his eyes.
A constable certainly had more status than an ordinary person, but within the South City Bureau, they were nothing more than expendable pawns, ready to be sacrificed at a moment's notice.
"Whatever. I'll stop thinking about it for now. First things first, I need to master the Submerging Wave Saber Technique and bring it to the Realm of Perfection," Su Mu sighed to himself.
Once his Submerging Wave Saber Technique reached Perfection, he would have options—he could attack or retreat as needed.
If worst came to worst, he could always seek out that person known as "Taiping."
At the end of the day, strength was the only true foundation he could rely on.
Despite not having slept most of the night, Su Mu forced himself up. He made a quick bite to eat, slung his bow and arrows over his back, tucked his woodcutting knife into his belt, and headed out of the city.
Only by fulfilling his duties as a Hunter would his panel's Points increase. Right now, he was desperate for more strength and couldn't afford to slack off.
As he left the alley, Su Mu happened to see a few constables escorting Liu Hongyu home.
The Liu Hai couple had been murdered last night, but Liu Hongyu had been spared.
In the span of just a few days, first Liu Feng had died, and now the Liu Hai couple were gone too. Liu Hongyu was now truly all alone in the world.
She looked dazed, her face etched with sorrow.
As they passed each other, she suddenly turned to look at Su Mu's retreating figure, a vague sense of familiarity striking her.
...
"A Hunter?"
At the South City Gate, a guard stopped Su Mu, his eyes flicking to the bow and arrows on his back.
Before Su Mu could say a word, someone darted out from the side, a sycophantic smile plastered on his face. "Brother Liu, he's with our Hunting Gang. He's young and doesn't know any better. Please, forgive him."
Sun Dazhao grabbed the guard's hand.
Su Mu saw clearly as he pressed a silver piece, weighing about one tael, into the soldier's hand.
The soldier pocketed the silver without batting an eye. "Oh, from the Hunting Gang. Alright, you can go."
Sun Dazhao thanked him profusely, then pulled Su Mu into a nearby alley.
"What were you thinking, kid? How could you just show up so brazenly?"
Sun Dazhao led Su Mu into a courtyard. He glanced back, and only after confirming no one was around did he shut the door and speak.
"Master Sun, what's going on? I haven't done anything wrong."
Su Mu asked in confusion.
'Could Chief Xing have had a change of heart and decided to come after me after all?'
'No, that's not right. Chief Xing knows where I live. If he really wanted to get me, he wouldn't have to go through all this trouble.'
"Last night, the third-in-command of the Black Dragon Stronghold led an attack on the South City Bureau."
Sun Dazhao said in a low voice, "They say the bandits disguised themselves as Hunters to get into the city. Now the South City Bureau is rounding up Hunters everywhere. They've all been taken to the Bureau!"
"Isn't the Hunting Gang just the biggest organization of Hunters in South City?"
Su Mu blurted out.
"Why are you saying the quiet part out loud?!"
Sun Dazhao rolled his eyes and said irritably, "To prove our innocence, our Gang Leader 'donated' more than half his fortune to the South City Bureau. What, you think I'd still be here talking to you otherwise? I'd have packed my bags and skipped town long ago."
Su Mu was speechless. 'So you can prove your innocence just by paying them off?' he thought. 'The South City Bureau is just using this as an excuse to extort money.'
"But Hunters are all poor," Su Mu said. "If anyone had real money, who would go out hunting? You're exposed to the wind and sun, and you risk getting attacked by wild beasts at any moment. There isn't much profit to be squeezed from arresting us."
"That just shows you're still young and don't know how vicious the world can be."
Sun Dazhao sneered. "You think the South City Bureau is arresting Hunters for a few taels of silver?"
Wrong! Dead wrong!
"Let me tell you, if you get dragged into the South City Bureau, you're better off if you have money. They'll bleed you dry, but you might have a chance of getting out. If you don't have money... then you can just wait to die."
"Wait to die?"
Su Mu asked with a frown.
"The Black Dragon Stronghold attacked the South City Bureau. If the Bureau doesn't wipe out the Stronghold in retaliation, our dear South City Sima isn't going to be able to hold on to his post."
Sun Dazhao continued, "But the Black Dragon Stronghold has been entrenched outside the city for years. How could they be easy to destroy? The constables of the South City Bureau alone aren't nearly enough."
"Among common folk, Hunters are considered relatively skilled. That makes them perfect to use as the vanguard."
His face was full of scorn, but a flash of deep sorrow crossed his eyes.
Su Mu found it strange. 'Sun Dazhao usually has a smile on his face, but he's a gang member through and through, ruthless when it's time to take his cut. How could he actually feel sad for the other Hunters?'
'It just goes to show,' Su Mu thought, 'that even men like him, living on the fringes, might retain some shred of conscience.'
"Xiaosu, you remind me of myself when I was young, so I want to give you a hand."
Sun Dazhao continued, "So, what do you say? Interested in joining the Hunting Gang?"
"If you join the Hunting Gang, you won't get forcibly conscripted by the South City Bureau this time..."
Su Mu looked at Sun Dazhao's old, wrinkled face, which resembled a dried orange peel. He started to say something, but then stopped.
'Are you sure you were anything like me when you were young?'
"Don't just look at how old I am now," Sun Dazhao said, noticing Su Mu's gaze and growing a little annoyed. "Twenty years ago, I, Sun Dazhao, was one of the handsomest faces in South City! You're only a tiny bit better-looking than I was!"
"You're still very handsome now,"
Su Mu said against his better judgment, feeling a little sullied by the lie.
"Forget it. Let's get back to business."
Sun Dazhao waved his hand. "Join the Hunting Gang, and if you manage to catch the Gang Leader's eye, you might even get to learn a Body Tempering Technique. If you become a Martial Artist and rise to become a Hall Master or Incense Master, well, then I'll be relying on you to pull me up."
"Body Tempering Technique?"
Su Mu's ears perked up. "Master Sun, can you tell me more about that?"