Becoming a god starts with one certificate becoming eternal.

Ye Xiao's mind raced, but his eyes remained calm as he reached out his hand.

He didn't lift the lid, he just took the box.

This box isn't just for decoration; it's for moisture, odor, and shock absorption. Once the contents are removed from the box and not used immediately, the odor dissipates first, followed by the medicinal properties, and the medicine becomes unusable in a short time.

The worst thing is to leave an empty box.

He lifted the one on the right, felt its weight in his palm, and then pushed aside a wad of old hemp wads that were padding the corners, stuffing them in tightly. The hemp wads were meant to cushion the corners and prevent shocks; even with one less box, stuffing in more wouldn't make the box feel full to the touch from the outside, and the inside wouldn't rattle.

The next moment, he fastened the button, pressed the wax back in, and used a thin layer of resin to seal the crack, turning the new crack into an old mark.

The resin is warm, so after escaping, I warmed it in my palm.

The outer box is snapped back in place, and the cover is rolled up again.

He tucked the small box under his ribs into the inner lining, tightening the cloth strap as if it added no extra weight.

The whole process took only a few breaths.

He picked up the box again, his shoulders felt heavy, but his steps remained steady, as if he hadn't stopped at all.

Shen Sheng remained in front, his gaze sweeping over the alleyway like a net. He glanced back, noticed that Ye Xiao seemed unaffected, and then continued walking.

As they turned into a dead-end alley, the three of them stopped in their tracks.

At the end of the alley stood a half-collapsed wooden door, behind which was an empty room piled with tattered burlap sacks, reeking of mildew, with bone fragments gnawed by rats on the ground. This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision; it was a place we'd agreed upon beforehand.

It's dirty, messy, nobody will remember it, and nobody will come.

He put the box down, but the cloth covering it remained tightly pressed down, leaving no gaps.

Yan Quan couldn't help but ask in a low voice:

"Lord Ye, won't you even open your eyes?"

Ye Xiao said calmly:

"Not open."

Yan Quan asked, "What if we take the wrong one?"

"I won't open it even if I took the wrong one."

Ye Xiao cut him off: "We're not just robbing the goods, we're robbing the rules. Only if the rules are intact can we be absolutely certain of success."

Shen Sheng's eyes flickered slightly, and he immediately lowered his head:

"Lord Ye is wise."

Yan Quan choked for a moment, his back teeth clenched, but he didn't push any further.

He understood that this was the only way to prevent others from framing them.

Once the box is opened here, anyone can pin the blame on what's inside. If it's not opened, whoever ends up with the box will be held responsible.

This is what smart people do.

Yan Quan asked curiously, "Lord Ye, when shall we leave?"

Ye Xiao said, "Wait for them to arrive."

Yan Quan was slightly taken aback: "Waiting for whom?"

Ye Xiao didn't look at him, only saying, "The person who should have come."

Yan Quan didn't ask any more questions. He then turned his head and peeked through the crack in the door to see if anyone would actually come.

The next moment, two very light tapping sounds came from outside the alley.

It wasn't knocking on the door, it was knocking on the wall.

Two short and one long.

Shen Sheng suppressed his breathing to a minimum, his eyes darkening as he recognized it as a commonly used code in the hall.

Ye Xiao responded with the same rhythm.

The wooden door was pushed open a crack, and a middle-aged man wearing a straw hat stepped inside. His clothes were damp with mist, but his steps were as steady as if he were walking on dry ground.

The moment he looked up, Yan Quan's heart skipped a beat. It was none other than Qin Yong, Huang Tangzhu's right-hand man.

Qin Yong entered, first glancing at the boxes, then at the three people, offering little in the way of pleasantries, his voice extremely low:

"Master Huang sent me to pick up the items."

Ye Xiao nodded, asking only one question: "What's going on on the bridge?"

Qin Yong said, "Du Wanjun ordered his men to withdraw and guard the chariot. You retreated quickly enough; he knows he can't catch up. The men are still on the bridge, checking the signal and searching for clues."

Ye Xiao hummed in agreement and pointed to the box:

"The seal wasn't broken; proceed as instructed."

Qin Yong's gaze lingered on the seal for a moment, noticing a scratch on the corner, but he didn't ask any further questions, only saying:

"I'll take my things with me."

He paused, then added, clarifying Master Huang's meaning:

"Master Huang said that everyone should go back tonight and not return to the hall. We should wait for Tianyuan's response."

……

The following day at noon, the sun was so pale it looked as if it had been washed by fog, leaving only a layer of cold white.

Ye Xiao came out of Qingshi Lane and walked along the river street on the edge of the inner city.

Just outside the street is the river, with several arched bridges connecting the two banks. The lanterns at the bridgeheads are kept lit during the day and only lit at night. When the wind blows, they gently tap the wooden pillars, making a soft sound, like someone tapping a string.

The small boat moved slowly on the river, the sound of oars stirring up a crack in the fog. At the end of the fog line, the tall tower of the upper city pierced the sky, its shadow falling on the water, and even the boats circled around it... The rules of Tianyuan City begin on the water.

The road here is smoother than the Silent Alley, the stone slabs are cleaner, and the sound of footsteps is clearer.

Ye Xiao wasn't wearing new clothes; he was still wearing that old cotton coat.

The reason he was able to get through last night's mission was not only because of sufficient intelligence, but also because of the increased strength of the Northern Furnace over the past few days, which gave him the ability to seize those few moments of opportunity on the bridge.

And because of this, he understood one thing even more clearly: Master Huang didn't care about his life or death...

Although the process was very dangerous, the result was good, and there were even unexpected gains.

At this point, he was already ranked in the upper-middle tier within the Canglong Martial Arts Academy, but he was still no match for true powerhouses. Not to mention the Town Guardian, whose strength was unfathomable, he was no match even for Liang Zhou, who was defeated by the Town Guardian in a single move.

The street ahead suddenly narrowed, and the sound of the river seemed to be refracted by the corner of a wall.

Ye Xiao looked up and saw the blue flag with white stripes standing in the mist. The corner of the flag swayed, like a blade gently brushing against the wind.

Qingyun Escort Agency.

The same two apprentices stood at the entrance, one on each side, their gazes unwavering. They recognized Ye Xiao as soon as he approached.

The apprentice on the right didn't wait for him to explain his purpose before running straight into the escort agency to find someone.

The apprentice on the left whispered, "We've been instructed that you can go straight in when you arrive. However, if you wish to wait for Master Qin, that's fine too; he's already gone to fetch people."

Ye Xiao nodded and stepped inside.

Inside the escort agency, the smell of medicinal oil mingled with the scent of wood—clean, restrained, yet with an underlying coldness. In the outer hall, someone was practicing martial arts, the dull thuds of fists striking flesh echoing.

He didn't go any further inside, but stood there waiting for Qin Yong.

Not long after, Qin Yong appeared, his blue robe still neat, and his face still bearing that indifferent smile: "You did well last night, come with me."

The courtyard wasn't large, but it was as clean as if it had just been swept clean.

The door at the end of the corridor was half-closed, and the light was dim, yet it still illuminated people's shadows clearly.

A voice came from inside:

"Come in."

Ye Xiao and Qin Yong entered the house.

Master Huang was still sitting behind the old table. There was no wine or food on the table, only an account book and an oil lamp.

"It was done cleanly."

Master Huang looked up at Ye Xiao, a faint smile on his face: "I thought you only had a 10% chance of success, but I didn't expect you to not only succeed, but do it so well."

He lightly tapped the ledger with his fingertip:

"The shark knot you left behind during your retreat was also seen this morning."

"The situation at Tianyuan was already in turmoil last night, and now the fire has spread to the Giant Shark Gang's docks."

Ye Xiao didn't respond; he knew the other person didn't just want to praise him.

"You're quite composed."

Huang, the hall master, stared at Ye Xiao's face, his smile still lingering: "Right now, Tianyuan Escort Agency is indeed focusing all its attention on the Giant Shark Gang, but someone like Du Wanjun is as meticulous as a needle... Perhaps it won't be long before they discover the problem."