Start with acting, and you'll achieve immortality!

The veins on Hu Guan's forehead bulged, and yellow mud from the corners of his mouth dripped onto his clothes with his heavy breathing.

He stared intently at Ren Jun in the hall, the ruthlessness in his eyes finally overshadowing his awe of the prefect's seal.

When he was a bandit in the mountains, he had countless lives on his hands. Now that he has finally put on an official robe, how can he just let him go?

"Your Excellency, you're leaving our brothers no way out!"

Hu Guan grinned, letting out a short, shrill whistle.

The whistle echoed over the government office, its sound jarring.

The dozen or so trusted constables who had already retreated to the corner turned pale upon hearing this voice.

He suddenly drew the gleaming sword from his waist.

These men were all ruthless bandits who had followed him down the mountain years ago. Each of them had several lives on their hands, and they knew that if Hu Guan fell, they would all die as well.

"Follow me and fight our way out! Once we're inside those towering mountains, no one can touch us!"

Hu Lie also looked crazed, drew his long sword from his waist, and loudly echoed his words.

Li Ping reacted extremely quickly.

Amidst the crisp sound of the constables drawing their swords, he shrank back.

In a flash, it darted under the offering table on the west side of the main hall.

A long red cloth hung from the altar, just enough to cover his body.

He clutched the chipped pickle knife to his chest, tucked his head into his knees, and shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Senior brother! The rebels are trying to silence me! Protect me, their great hero!"

Ren Jun stood in the hall, not even blinking.

He raised his right hand and gently waved his fingers towards the outside of the hall.

Dozens of burly men clad in black armor suddenly emerged from the previously deserted walls of the government office and from the rooftops on either side.

These men all had stern expressions, and they carried heavy crossbows made of black iron, specially crafted by the Daqian army.

The arrowhead faintly glowed with runic light, radiating a sharp luster.

This is an armor-piercing crossbow specially designed by the county soldiers to deal with low-level cultivators; a single crossbow can easily pierce two layers of heavy armor.

A burly man in heavy armor strode into the courtyard, a broadsword the size of a door hanging from his waist. With each step he took, the bluestone slabs on the ground trembled.

"The county soldiers are here to carry out their duties; those who surrender will be spared death!"

The burly man roared, his voice booming so loudly that the leaves on the surrounding trees rustled and fell.

This man was none other than Lin Tong, the commander of the guards under the prefect's residence.

Hu Guan's trusted men, seeing the dozens of powerful crossbows gleaming with talismanic light on the roof, abruptly halted their advance.

They had witnessed the power of this armor-piercing crossbow; a single arrow could turn even a Qi Refining Realm cultivator's body into a sieve.

Clang!

It's unclear who dropped their knife first, but the crisp sound of metal striking the ground was particularly jarring in the courtyard.

In the blink of an eye, all the swords and spears in the courtyard fell to the ground.

The group of yamen runners who usually bullied everyone in the county town all raised their hands and obediently squatted down.

Hu Guan stood frozen in place, just about to circulate his spiritual energy, when he was locked onto by Lin Tong's icy gaze.

"County Commandant Hu, this knife of mine hasn't seen blood in a long time."

Lin Tong gripped the hilt of his sword and chuckled coldly.

Ren Jun unrolled the bright yellow document, his voice ringing out calmly in the hall:

"Hu Guan, the magistrate of Xiyun County, gathered a group of wicked bandits three years ago to rob merchant caravans in the prefecture."

"He robbed a total of 6,000 shi of tax grain and 800 jin of spiritual sand. Afterwards, he bribed the former prefect's subordinates, forged his origins, and usurped the position of county magistrate. During his tenure, he colluded with mountain bandits and secretly possessed cultivation techniques. His crimes are obvious."

Hu Guan's face was ashen.

He knew that his past of buying his way into office had been thoroughly investigated, and there was no chance of turning things around.

His legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground, allowing two black-armored soldiers to approach him, pierce his collarbone with specially made black iron chains, and drag him away like a dead dog.

Hu Lie also failed to escape; his hands were tied behind his back by two soldiers, causing him to scream in agony.

Li Ping peeked out from under the offering table, and seeing that the dust had settled, he scurried out.

He dusted off his knees, trotted over to Ren Jun, and beamed with a genuine smile.

"Your Excellency, the Inspector, is awe-inspiring! Commander Lin has descended like a divine army! I, Li Ping, have been lurking among the rebels, living in constant fear, all for the sake of cooperating with you today to break this deadlock."

"Now that the traitors have been brought to justice, the people of Xiyun County can finally live in peace."

Lin Tong glanced at Li Ping and said in a deep voice, "You little rascal, you were pretty quick to dodge just now."

Li Ping wasn't embarrassed at all, and chuckled, "I'm too weak to even kill a chicken. If I didn't dodge, wouldn't I be causing trouble for you gentlemen?"

Ren Jun smiled and said to Commander Lin, "Commander Lin, although this boy has no cultivation, he did deserve some credit for successfully luring out Hu Guan's henchmen. Of the crimes mentioned earlier, let's waive the charge of coercion and instead record his merit as an assistant."

Lin Tong nodded: "Since the Inspector has spoken, then we shall do as you say."

"Thank you, sir! Thank you, Commander Lin!"

Li Ping hurriedly bowed.

His suspicion of being a fake thief was completely cleared in front of the entire county government, thanks to Ren Jun's words.

From now on, in Xiyun County, who would dare to use this matter to cause him trouble?

Large contingents of county soldiers began confiscating property from the county government office and the Hu residence.

In less than half an hour, the Hu family's accumulated wealth, accumulated over generations, was carried out like a flowing river to the open space in front of the county government hall.

Besides large boxes of ordinary gold and silver, there were also several boxes of spirit sand emitting a faint glow, and some low-grade pills in porcelain bottles.

Lin Tong came out from the back room, holding a slightly worn blue thread-bound book, and handed it to Ren Jun.

"My lord, this was found hidden in the wall of Hu Guan's bedroom; it should be the privately kept martial arts manual."

Ren Jun took the book, flipped through it casually, and then waved to Li Ping, who was standing to the side.

"Zizhi, come here."

Li Ping's eyes lit up, and he jogged over.

"This book, 'The Small Heavenly Circuit Qi Guiding Technique,' is just an ordinary method and cannot be considered a secret manual in the Great Qian Dynasty."

"But for a mortal like you with no foundation, it is the gentlest approach, and unlikely to cause any trouble."

Ren Jun placed the thread-bound book in Li Ping's hands.

"Your master instructed that if you survive this day, this item will be given to you. Whether you can be freed from your mortal status in the future depends on your own destiny."

Li Ping accepted the book with both hands.

The paper felt a bit rough to the touch, with a faint, pleasant fragrance, and a very subtle blue glow emanated from the text.

This is the technique that allows one to transcend the divide between immortals and mortals!

In this Great Qian Dynasty, mortals are regarded as pigs, and powerful families monopolize cultivation techniques.

Without this stroke of luck, a lowly official like him would never have even come close to mastering any cultivation technique in his entire life.

"Thank you, senior brother! Thank you, teacher!"

Li Ping took a deep breath and carefully tucked the book into his pocket.

The scalding heat seeped through his clothes, making his heart beat a few steps faster.

Ren Jun looked at him, a complex expression flashing in his eyes.

"Zizhi, this technique is good, but it is not easy to cultivate. If there is anything you don't understand, you can come to the back office of the county government in the next few days. In a few days, I will be escorting Hu Guan back to Jiangning."

Li Ping readily agreed, but in his heart he had made up his mind to avoid coming to the county government office for the next few days if possible.

There are cheap tutors in Jiangning, but the situation is too complicated, and he doesn't want to get involved.

After taking his leave, Li Ping practically jogged out of the county government office.

As soon as I reached the street corner, I saw my sister-in-law, Zhang, pacing anxiously back and forth.

Upon seeing Li Ping emerge safely, Zhang hurriedly came forward and pulled him up and down to look him over.

"Erlang, are you alright? I just heard that a fight broke out in the government office, with flashing swords and all that. It scared me to death!"

Just as Li Ping was about to offer words of comfort, a blood-covered constable came tumbling and crawling from the street corner.

Upon seeing Li Ping, the man clung to him like a drowning man grasping at a straw, scrambling and crawling towards him, shouting desperately:

"Li Ping! Run! Hu Guan's eldest son, Hu Lie, escaped during the chaos of battle! He's taking a few of his former subordinates with him and is heading towards your house! He says he's going to kill your whole family to vent his anger!"

The smile on Li Ping's face abruptly stopped at the corner of his mouth.

Zhang was so frightened that her face turned pale, and she grabbed his sleeve.

Li Ping tucked the "Small Heavenly Circuit Qi Guiding Technique," which he had painstakingly acquired, further into his pocket.

With his other hand, he touched the rusty iron knife he used to cut pickled vegetables in his pocket.

"You're from the Hu family, right?"

Li Ping spat on the ground, turned his head and shouted at the constable.

"Lead the way! I want to see how many heads they have!"