A Martial Saint in Chaotic Times: Starting with Grinding Proficiency

In the alley, Shen Xuantong stared at the two still-warm corpses on the ground, lost in thought.

This scoundrel is truly ruthless and decisive in his actions.

Having just broken through to the Bone Forging Realm, his foundation was terrifyingly solid, allowing him to kill a martial artist of the same realm within just a few moves.

This level of combat capability is already quite impressive.

Just then, a graceful figure appeared silently behind him.

It was Dong Mo.

"Commander, it's all taken care of," Dong Mo said, bowing. "I've anonymously leaked the Black Wind Mountain bandits' whereabouts to the patrol battalion. They should be out in force by now."

Shen Xuantong nodded slightly.

Dong Mo hesitated for a moment, then finally couldn't help but cup his hands and ask, "Commander, please forgive my ignorance. With the might of my Jingye Division, coupled with your unfathomable strength, wiping out these bandits and the merchant alliance would be a mere thunderbolt. Why go to such great lengths?"

Shen Xuantong did not turn around, but gazed at the majestic city walls in the distance. His voice was calm yet profound: "Force can only bring superficial submission, not true control. We are not here to seek momentary pleasure. If we only know how to suppress others by force, it will only backfire."

He paused, a cold smile playing on his lips. "Besides, how can we see how many shady things are hidden beneath the surface if we don't stir up this mess?"

......

Several hours later, the sky began to lighten.

The bustling inner city awakens from its slumber, the streets gradually become noisy, shops open one after another, and small vendors set up their stalls, hawking their wares.

Just then, a scream shattered the morning tranquility from the depths of a dark alleyway where few people usually ventured.

Someone's dead!

The shout instantly attracted the attention of everyone around.

Before long, a large crowd gathered at the entrance of the alley, craning their necks and pointing inside.

Soon, sharp-eyed people recognized the identity of one of the corpses.

"That...that's Wei Rong, the eldest son of the Wei family!"

These words immediately caused an uproar among the crowd.

"What? Young Master Wei?"

"Heavens! It really is Young Master Wei! How could he be dead here!"

The Wei family!

That family is one of the five major families in the inner city, second only to the Wang family in power. They are a behemoth in the entire Luochuan County, whose every move can shake the ground!

Who dares to touch the Wei family?

Who would dare kill the eldest son of the Wei family!

If this news gets out, it will be an absolute disaster!

Everyone was stunned by the horrifying scene and stood frozen in place, no one daring to step forward.

Just as everyone was discussing the matter, someone notified the county government, and dozens of constables, armed with knives, pushed through the crowd and rushed over.

When the head constable saw the body on the ground and confirmed that it was Wei Rong, he was also shocked and gasped.

He dared not delay in the slightest and immediately gave the order loudly.

"Seal off the area! No one is allowed to approach!"

"Quickly! Send someone to the Wei residence to inform the Wei family head!"

……

Meanwhile, outside Luochuan County.

On a dirt road leading to the county town, Zhou Yuan was walking slowly with four or five garrison soldiers.

He had just returned from his reconnaissance mission in Xuejiabao.

The so-called Xuejiabao was just a small village with a dozen or so households. Most of the villagers were women, children, and the elderly, and there were hardly any strong men. It simply did not have the conditions to produce and sell smuggled salt.

From beginning to end, Xuejiabao was just a front.

Zhou Yuan made a routine inspection of the village before leading his men back.

He appeared calm on the surface, but his mind was racing with calculations.

Last night, after killing Wei Rong and Gao Sheng, he did not go straight home. Instead, he went to Xuejiabao outside the city as Zhao Dacheng had told him.

The Wei family is one of the five major families in the inner city. Their influence is deeply entrenched, and they have many experts under their command. Not to mention those at the Bone Forging Realm, there must be quite a few at the Tendon Changing Realm as well.

Although he has now broken through to the Bone Forging Realm, he is still somewhat inferior to the Wei family.

Therefore, he had to be careful and not leave any loopholes.

However, Wei Rong was on his way to a secret meeting with bandits last night when the incident occurred.

If the Wei family were to investigate, their first suspect would likely be the patrol battalion that was constantly at odds with them, followed by the bandits who were allies in name only.

In any case, there's no way to suspect him for the time being, given his lowly job as a taxi driver.

Thinking of this, Zhou Yuan felt somewhat relieved.

While they were pondering, the group had already arrived at the north gate.

Zhou Yuan strode into the Patrol and Inspection Office and headed straight for the main hall.

Before even entering, I heard a burst of hearty laughter coming from inside.

Inside the lobby, Zhao Dacheng and taxi driver Wang Meng were sitting and drinking tea, chatting and laughing, as if they had encountered some great good news.

Zhou Yuan saw all of this, but his expression remained unchanged.

He stepped into the hall and greeted Zhao Dacheng, who was seated at the head of the table, with a loud clasped fist salute.

"Reporting to Inspector Qi!"

"Your subordinate has returned from investigating the salt smuggling case at Xuejiabao!"

Zhou Yuan's voice was loud and clear, echoing throughout the hall.

"An investigation has revealed that Xuejiabao has no record of selling smuggled salt!"

Zhao Dacheng stood frozen in place.

His hand, holding the teacup, hung motionless in mid-air, like a stone statue instantly weathered away.

The figure at the doorway, Zhou Yuan, who should have been a cold corpse in the wilderness outside the city, was now standing there alive.

Not only alive.

A powerful aura, possessed only by martial artists at the Bone Forging Realm, emanated from Zhou Yuan, creating a tangible pressure that made the air in the hall stagnant.

Bone Forging Realm!

Zhao Dacheng's mind went blank.

How is that possible! How long has this person been in the Skin Refining Realm?

"My lord, I have returned from my mission to Xuejiabao to investigate the smuggled salt case!"

Zhou Yuan's voice rang out again, its loud tone echoing throughout the hall, jolting Zhao Dacheng out of his shock.

He snapped back to his senses, and a warm smile instantly spread across his face, as if his earlier lapse in composure had never happened.

"Oh? Zhou the constable is back. Thanks for your hard work!"

Zhao Dacheng put down his teacup, even stood up and took a few steps, and said warmly, "Was the trip smooth? Did you encounter any unexpected events along the way?"

The "unexpected" thing he was referring to was Goldman Sachs's interception.

Zhou Yuan smiled calmly.

Goldman Sachs has no chance to create an upset.

"Thanks to Your Excellency's good fortune, everything went smoothly, and there was no smuggling of salt in Xuejiabao."

Zhao Dacheng nodded in satisfaction, looking Zhou Yuan up and down, marveling at him.

"Excellent! Excellent! Zhou Cha Tou is truly a promising young man. It's only been a few days, and he has already broken through to the Bone Forging Realm. Congratulations!"

"I was just lucky," Zhou Yuan said, neither humble nor arrogant.

"You must be tired after your long journey. Go and rest first," Zhao Dacheng waved his hand.

"Yes, I'll take my leave."

Zhou Yuan clasped his hands in a fist salute again, turned around and left without any hesitation.

Only after Zhou Yuan's figure completely disappeared through the door did Zhao Dacheng's smile vanish abruptly, replaced by an icy chill.

......