Becoming a god starts with one certificate becoming eternal.

The woman walked slowly toward Liang Zhou, her tone flat, yet every word was as cold as ice:

"Who sent you down here?"

Liang Zhou squinted and forced a smile: "The Town Guard is indeed powerful, but I advise you to stay out of today's affairs."

The woman lifted the white jade piece slightly to fully reveal its patterns.

Liang Zhou's pupils contracted sharply, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he lowered his voice to an extremely low hue: "The Garrison Commander...you're the Garrison Commander?!"

The town magistrate said calmly, "Since you know that, you still want to resist?"

Fear flickered in Liang Zhou's eyes, but he suppressed it: "The high and mighty garrison commander of the upper city would actually interfere with the goods of the lower city?"

The town magistrate glanced down at him, his voice as soft as a blade grazing:

"I don't care if you, the courtesans, go down to the city to do your business and follow the proper rules."

"But the path you've taken today has crossed the line for the Town City Division."

"Once the line is crossed... you will have to hand over all your people, your lives, and your accounts clearly."

A cold glint flashed from Liang Zhou's sleeve, and a short blade slid out from his wrist. The blade was dark, clearly poisoned, and he aimed straight for the town envoy's throat!

Even though he was afraid and knew how powerful and terrifying the other party was, he understood that if he surrendered, he would also be doomed.

The town magistrate did not retreat.

Looking at the aggressive Liang Zhou, she simply raised her hand, her fingertips lightly touching him, as if brushing away a disobedient thread.

"Smack."

She deflected the short blade, causing the blade to veer off course. The recoil flowed back along Liang Zhou's wrist bone, instantly numbing half of his hand, and the short blade fell to the ground.

The next moment, he used a sharp leg technique, sweeping straight at her knee, trying to force her to take a step back.

The town magistrate did not retreat, but merely flicked his sleeve.

There was no sound of wind, but it felt as if an invisible whip had lashed his knee.

"Click."

A very soft sound.

Liang Zhou's legs went weak, and he half-knelt down. Sweat immediately beaded on his forehead, and his teeth clenched so tightly they made a cracking sound...

The entire kneecap was shattered.

The town magistrate raised his sleeve and lightly wiped with his fingertips, as if wiping away something that shouldn't have been there.

Another person, whose cuffs were also clean, originally wanted to offer assistance, but after seeing Liang Zhou suffer a crushing defeat in less than a breath, he immediately stopped.

The little courage I had left vanished without a trace.

The garrison commander looked down at Liang Zhou, who was kneeling on one knee, and his tone remained flat:

"You dare to attack me? You must be a desperate criminal. I'll ask you one more time, who's behind you?"

Liang Zhou gritted his teeth and refused to spit it out.

The town magistrate didn't press further. She raised her jade hand, put two fingers to her lips, and blew out a very short whistle, neither sharp nor bright, yet it pierced through the shadows on the wall.

A few breaths later, the sound of orderly footsteps rang out from outside the street corner, like iron nails being driven into the ground one by one.

More than ten town guards from the town's defenses filed in, their clothes varied but their steps were synchronized, and they split into three groups as soon as they entered.

They blocked off street corners and alleyways, controlled the Green Owl Gang's henchmen, and headed straight for the van and the wooden sign.

The garrison commander ordered a clean and efficient operation:

"First team, untie the ropes, separate them and escort them away, register them one by one."

"Second team, all suspects have been apprehended."

"Third team, seal off the vehicles, seal off the license plates, seal off the knots."

"All documents, deeds, seals, and knives shall be confiscated and taken back to the office."

The town guards responded immediately, their movements as practiced as if they had done it a thousand times before: fastening the rope, sealing the buckle, taking notes, and attaching the cord—all in one smooth motion.

Liang Zhou was lifted up by two town guards, and the short blade on the ground was also taken away.

The town envoy turned and walked up to Ye Xiao, his gaze lingering for a moment on Ye Xiao's numb wrist and the bloody marks on his palm, before calmly asking:

"You should understand that that person is beyond your capabilities, so why did you still intervene?"

Ye Xiao hadn't recovered yet, his voice deep and steady: "I owe someone a life."

The town magistrate paused slightly, as if he had heard a satisfactory reason.

The town magistrate then shifted his gaze to the black tarpaulin-covered carriage and the wooden sign, finally sweeping a glance at the surrounding shadows, his voice as cold as frost:

"From tonight onwards, this matter will be under the jurisdiction of the Town City Division."

"Anyone who dares to reach out to rescue someone, I'll chop off their hand first."

The silent breath vanished without a trace the moment those words were spoken.

The henchmen of the Green Owl Gang still dared not move, not even daring to make a sound. Any one of the Town Guards could easily make them suffer, let alone the dozen or so Town Guards and the Town Envoy.

After Liang Zhou was arrested, he finally panicked and growled in a low voice:

"Does your Town Guard really intend to get involved in this mess? You'll regret it!"

The town magistrate remained completely unfazed, not even turning his head, and simply said, "Take your words back to the headquarters. I'd like to see if the people behind you dare to rescue someone from my hands."

The narrow street seemed to be completely flattened by her words, and even the wind dared not venture out.

The girls were separated and protected by the town guards. Some were carrying cloaks, some were untying ropes, and some were keeping count of heads. Everything was done in an orderly manner.

The order of the narrow street seemed to be held down by an iron hand, and everything seemed quiet, even the sizzling sound of the oil in the pan sounded jarring.

Ye Xiao stood at the edge of the lamplight, his face half-covered by a mask, the numbness in his wrists had subsided considerably.

But he wasn't in a hurry to leave.

It's not fear.

He knew very well that now that he had made his move, it was impossible for him to leave silently.

The officers of the Town Guard moved cleanly and methodically, like a knife scraping through a case file.

The town envoy made no move, simply standing in the wind, suppressing all the demons and monsters.

I don't know how much time passed.

The town magistrate finally turned his gaze back to Ye Xiao, his tone as flat as if he were reciting a line of text:

"You owe her a life; saving her isn't a bad thing."

"But the way you rescued people caused a commotion and disrupted my plans."

She paused for a moment, as if giving him a breather, or perhaps time to assess the situation:

"I can pretend I didn't see you."

"It also allows others to see you."

"It depends on your choice."

The wind grew a little colder.

Ye Xiao understood.

As long as the other party doesn't deliberately erase his traces but records everything truthfully, the Green Owl Gang will know about his actions. At that time, they will search the entire city for him like dogs smelling blood.

Ye Xiao raised his eyes, his voice steady:

"What does the garrison commander want?"

The town magistrate glanced at him, as if he were a reasonably competent chess piece, and said indifferently:

"It's easier to talk to smart people."

"You're wearing a mask; you're clearly trying to remain anonymous."

"I can let you continue as a member, as long as you join the Green Owl Gang."

Ye Xiao didn't answer immediately, but instead asked, "To which stage?"

The garrison commander's lips barely curved into a smile: "First, make the gray sleeves, and do it within ten days."

Ye Xiao's heart sank, but he didn't let his breathing become erratic.

Even though he is not what he used to be, becoming Gray Sleeve of the Green Owl Gang is still not an easy task.

Moreover, it's only for a short ten days.

"What if it exceeds the time limit?" Ye Xiao asked.

The town magistrate said without any hesitation, "If you can't do it in ten days, you're worthless to me... If you can, my men will come looking for you."

His words were cold and direct.

But Ye Xiao understood even more clearly that she wasn't recruiting people, but rather making moves.

Success is success, failure is abandonment.

Ye Xiao continued, "If I really succeed, how will your people find me? And how will I confirm that the person who comes belongs to the Town Guard?"

The town magistrate paused for a moment, took out a wooden plaque, flicked it with his finger, and the plaque fell into Ye Xiao's hand: "After you become Gray Sleeve, just bring the same token when you come to our door. Only the Town Guard could make the hidden patterns on the back of this wooden plaque."

After taking the wooden plaque, Ye Xiao put it directly into his pocket and asked, "With your status and abilities, destroying the Green Owl Gang shouldn't be difficult. Why go through all this trouble?"

"The Green Owl Gang is not as simple as you think."

The town magistrate said calmly, "Although it is only a power in the lower city, it has connections with the aristocratic families of the upper city, and most importantly..."

She didn't continue, but Ye Xiao understood that there were secrets within the Qingxiao Gang.

That's not something he has the right to ask or concern about now.

"You want me to do more than just become Greysleeves, right?" Ye Xiao said in a deep voice.

The town magistrate's eyes flickered slightly as he said:

"You are indeed a smart man. Gray Sleeves is only the first step. The second step is to become the leader of the Green Owl Gang."

"You'll only be of help to me once you actually take the second step."

Ye Xiao paused for a moment, without answering directly:

"As far as I know, the Green Owl Gang has eight hall masters, each in charge of one of the gang's eight branches. These positions are fixed; there will be neither more nor fewer."

The town magistrate said nonchalantly, "The position of hall master will soon be vacant, so you need to become Gray Sleeve as soon as possible and improve your strength."