This martial saint is too cautious.

The next day.

During a break from martial arts practice, Lin Yan studied "The True Explanation of Earth Veins".

This book is extremely obscure, but fortunately, the author has a very high level of understanding. Once you get through the obscure parts, you'll be completely engrossed in reading it.

Boom boom boom!

"Is Junior Brother Lin here?"

There was a knock at the door. Lin Yan put the books in his pocket and got up to open the door.

"Senior Brother Zhang?"

Looking at Zhang Liang standing at the door, Lin Yan had a puzzled look on his face. Why would this person come to his house?

Senior Brother Zhang Liang is a second-level skin-smoothing expert, and he and I don't have much of a relationship at the martial arts school, so it's impossible for him to come and visit me.

"Junior Brother Lin, which room do you live in?"

Zhang Liang's attitude was indifferent. Although Lin Yan did not understand the purpose of the other party's visit, he still truthfully replied, "I live in the right wing room."

"Junior Brother Lin, could you please take me inside and have a look?"

"Senior Brother Zhang, is there something wrong?" Lin Yan didn't move; he needed a reason.

"This morning, Junior Brother Ge Hui's body was found by the river. You and Ge Hui had a conflict before his death, so Master sent the two of us to investigate."

Lin Yan was taken aback: "I do have a conflict with Ge Hui, but as fellow disciples of the martial arts school, it's not like I would resort to such a ruthless act."

"Junior Brother Lin, don't worry. It's not just you. Several other people in the martial arts school who have conflicts with Junior Brother Ge have also been investigated. It's definitely not just targeting you."

Zhang Liang offered an explanation, his expression somewhat strange.

It wasn't until the investigation that we discovered that quite a few of the martial arts school's junior disciples had conflicts with Ge Hui.

"Since it's Master's arrangement, then I'll take my senior brother inside."

Lin Yan did not insist any further. Fortunately, there were no secrets in his house. The clothes he wore after committing murders in the past had already been burned.

"I cannot disobey Master's orders, please don't be offended, Junior Brother Lin."

After leaving the house, Zhang Liang's attitude was much more relaxed than before. Ge Hui was not popular among the many fellow disciples in the martial arts school, but no matter what, fellow disciples could not kill each other.

Now that Lin Yan's suspicion has been largely ruled out, Zhang Liang's attitude has naturally changed as well.

"Where was Junior Brother Lin last night?"

"I was at home last night."

"Are there any witnesses?"

"I visited the home of the teacher who taught me to read at the hour of You (5-7 PM). Around the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), the teacher came to visit and stayed for about a quarter of an hour."

Zhang Liang nodded. If Junior Brother Lin wasn't lying, then he could be ruled out as a suspect.

The coroner's examination of the body revealed that Ge Shidi's time of death was around 7 PM.

"Thank you for telling me the truth, Junior Brother. However, Junior Brother Lin still needs to come with me to the martial arts school to see Master."

"it is good."

Lin Yan agreed. He was also full of questions and wanted to know who killed Ge Hui.

……

The backyard of the martial arts school.

When Lin Yan arrived with Zhang Liang, more than a dozen disciples had already gathered in the backyard. Each of them looked solemn and angry. Regardless of their relationship with Ge Hui, they had to show a united front of brotherhood in front of their master.

Lin Yan glanced at the crowd and, as before, found where Senior Brother Li An was and approached silently.

"Senior Brother Li, what exactly happened?"

"Last night, Ge Hui was drinking with others on a pleasure boat on the river. When he disembarked at 7 p.m. to go home, he was ambushed on the riverbank. His head was smashed with a sharp weapon such as an iron bar, and all his money was stolen. According to Ge's family, Ge Hui had more than one hundred taels of silver notes on him, all of which have disappeared."

Lin Yan felt a pang of heartache; over a hundred taels of silver notes—that should have all belonged to him.

"Does Ge Hui have that much money?"

"Ge Hui lied to his family, saying that he was going to break through the barrier for the second time. Ten days ago, his father sold the street-front shop in the south of the city and gave the proceeds of 130 taels to Ge Hui. According to Brother Hao's investigation, Ge Hui went to the boat every night for the past ten days and spent a total of 50 taels."

Li An lowered his voice: "Many people at the martial arts school know about Ge Hui's extravagant spending these days."

Lin Yan suddenly realized why his master suspected that a martial arts school disciple had done it.

Ge Hui had conflicts with many people in the martial arts school. In the past, they all looked like fellow disciples and there were rules in place at the school, so they didn't have to fight.

But if you add money, then it's not so certain.

A hundred taels of silver may not seem like much, but all the martial arts brothers at the school have enough. However, no martial artist is without a shortage of money.

Having plenty of money means having plenty of ways to cultivate, but money is never enough.

Soon, footsteps came from behind the screen, and the crowd that had been whispering fell silent instantly.

Yang Qingfeng led Zhang Liang and eight other senior brothers out from behind the screen in the side hall.

Seeing these senior brothers, Lin Yan understood that Senior Brother Zhang was not lying. He was not the only one suspected. The other senior brothers must be investigating other disciples who were suspected. They were just reporting the investigation results to their master in the room.

Yang Qingfeng's sharp eyes swept over all the disciples, as if trying to see through their hearts. After a long while, he finally spoke: "You all know that Ge Hui was assassinated. You should be more careful when you travel in the future."

"yes!"

Lin Yan and the others agreed in unison.

Looking at the many disciples with their heads bowed, Yang Qingfeng was filled with rage. He was furious that his disciples had been murdered, but he was even more furious at Ge Hui's arrogant actions.

Among the disciples who underwent skin resurfacing at the academy, four had conflicts with him, and as many as ten disciples who had not yet successfully undergone skin resurfacing harbored resentment towards him.

As for outside the hall, after investigating early in the morning, it was discovered that Ge Hui, relying on being his disciple and a former martial artist, had done a lot of bullying of the weak.

He went to the place where Ge Hui was murdered in person. The murderer did not leave any clues. Moreover, the place where the incident occurred was on the riverbank of the painted boat, where many martial artists passed by. It was extremely difficult to investigate any suspicious persons.

In this situation, the only clue to the murder is to start with the enemies, but Ge Hui has too many enemies.

The sins of Heaven may be forgiven, but the sins of oneself are unforgivable!

Yang Qingfeng said sternly, "Cultivating martial arts begins with cultivating the mind. If anyone takes advantage of their status as a martial artist or a disciple of a martial arts school to bully the weak, they will be severely punished once discovered."

Upon hearing this, all the disciples present were startled, knowing that their master was truly angry this time.

After admonishing his disciples, Yang Qingfeng left, and everyone present breathed a slight sigh of relief, though their expressions remained solemn.

Even those who have conflicts with Ge Hui wouldn't be foolish enough to reveal their true thoughts at this moment. Even the worst person has a few friends, and Ge Hui is no exception. If they were to mock Ge Hui for deserving of death at this moment, and those who are on good terms with Ge Hui relayed their words to their master, they would only be asking for trouble.

Li An gave Lin Yan a look, and the two walked out of the courtyard.

"Junior Brother Lin, I'm getting ready to go to my temporary post."

"Is my senior brother going to take up a temporary post?"

Lin Yan was somewhat surprised. Senior Brother Li had undergone skin resurfacing two and a half years ago and had been staying at the martial arts school to practice martial arts ever since, without choosing to take up a temporary post elsewhere.

In his opinion, Senior Brother Li was planning to stay at the martial arts school and break through to the second level of skin polishing before considering taking up a temporary post. Why did he change his mind again?

Ang Lee gave a wry smile, his voice low: "I originally planned to try for the second skin resurrection before considering the temporary post, but unfortunately I failed a few days ago. If I want to try again, it will be at least three months later. During this time, I will need to recover from my injury, and the expenses will only increase."

His family background was considered average among the many disciples of the martial arts school, but after failing to achieve the second skin-refining technique, he had to consider money.

When a martial artist attempts to break through a bottleneck, if they fail, their internal energy and blood become disordered. To recover, they need medicine, which instantly increases their expenses. Furthermore, it becomes uncertain whether they will succeed in the next breakthrough.

Each of the four skin smoothing sessions was more difficult than the last.

"Junior Brother Lin, as someone who has been through this, I can only advise you not to rush into breaking through. Even if you spend a few more months refining your Qi and blood, the cost will be far lower than the cost of recovering your body after failure. If I want my body to recover, I will need to spend this much."

Ang Lee held out his hand and gestured a number. Lin Yan's pupils contracted. It was so expensive.

"One failure costs a hundred taels of silver to recover, two failures cost two hundred taels, and three failures... well, you can give up."

This is the cruelty of martial arts: cultivation is difficult, but breaking through barriers is even more difficult.

Fortunately, I have the Martial Arts Tree, and when my Qi and Blood are sufficient, I automatically break through the barrier and enter the next realm.

Otherwise, given her family's circumstances, one failure would make it difficult for her to recover.