Chapter 131: The Martial World is as Deep as the Sea

  On the 15th, just as the No. 1237 bus was about to leave the Yue Lai Inn, a voice of terror echoed throughout the inn: "Murder! Murder!!" The patrons downstairs heard this and after a brief moment of silence, they all went back to their own business. One man wearing a bamboo hat even snickered and said, "It's just murder, what's the big deal?" Someone with him said, "Accidents happen, let's not make a fuss. Come on, have a drink."

  "Cheers!"

  Before long, a group of men with the character "capture" embroidered on their chests rushed into the Yue Lai Inn. The leader shouted, "Official business, everyone retreat!" His voice was like thunder, causing the tea water to splash. The guests in the inn were originally calm and composed, but now they were all frightened: "This official has a deep and profound inner power!" They looked over and saw that the leader was tall and robust, with an angry face, dark eye sockets, and eyes that seemed like those of a hungry tiger or wolf. One hand, covered in old scars, grasped the hilt of a long knife, exuding an extraordinary aura. A young swordsman exclaimed in surprise, "It's actually the Black Cat Divine Captor! When did he arrive in Red Stone Town?" From the young swordsman's tone, it seemed that this "Black Cat Divine Captor" was not someone to be trifled with. Upon hearing the young swordsman's exclamation, the crowd gasped in shock and repeatedly said, "Quickly leave, quickly leave." In an instant, the inn was empty.

  Just as the black cat god catcher stepped onto the stairs, a group of people rushed into the inn, with one of them shouting: "This case has been taken over by our Western Factory! You all leave quickly!" The voice was sharp and shrill, but it had to be shouted loudly, piercing the eardrums. The black cat god catcher turned around, seeing the newcomers, his dark eyes flashing a hint of helplessness, then he bowed his fist in salute, saying: "Since the Western Factory's masters have taken over, naturally there's nothing for us to do. We'll take our leave, and wish you masters an early capture of the murderer, and peace in the region." With that, he waved his hand, "Let's go."

  His build was not as good as Hei Mao's, but he still lifted his head and puffed out his chest with a self-satisfied smile. "I won't send anyone." However, when he looked towards the inn, he suddenly discovered that there wasn't even one person inside. The owner, along with the little servant, had all vanished without a trace. "Damn Zhang Chong, don't let me catch your tail, or else I, Xi Chang's prison, will make you unforgettable for the rest of your life!"

  It turned out that the "Black Cat God Catcher" had no intention of solving the case from the very beginning. His initial goal was to get ahead of Xi Factory and drive away the crowd in the guest house as soon as possible, so as to prevent them from being implicated and persecuted by Xi Factory's followers. As usual, Xi Factory would arrest everyone regardless of whether they were guilty or not, and then close the case with a stroke of the pen on the merit book. Framed? Who cares!

  "Zhang, you're doing this, aren't you afraid of provoking them?" A catcher from the tea shed opposite Yue Lai Inn asked Hei Mao Shen Bu (Black Cat Divine Catcher) Zhang Chong. Zhang Chong sneered coldly, "Afraid? I am not Black Cat Divine Catcher! By the way, have you figured out who did it? Daring to kill the Western Factory's running dog, this kind of guts is worth me, Zhang, respecting him with a cup." The catcher hastily said, "Oh no, Zhang, say that quietly. You're an official, they're murderers, how can...". "Alright, alright, stop bothering! I only asked you, have you investigated clearly who it was?" "According to the information revealed by the Beggars' Sect, it should be a group of young people who did it. By the way, the Beggars' Sect's people speculate that they might have some connection with Zhao Huai... Earlier, someone saw one of the women pointing at Zhao's portrait, very agitated, seemingly familiar!"

  If Yǐn Kuàng and others were here, they would definitely be shocked to the point of breaking out in a cold sweat. Just because of Qí Xiǎoyún's casual pointing, it was actually caught by someone with ulterior motives.

  The black cat god raised an eyebrow, stroked his steel needle-like beard, and said, "This group of kids, really doesn't know the height of heaven and earth! With just a few tricks, they dare to roam the Jianghu. Do they think it's a game of hide-and-seek? Hehe, Leopard, erase their remaining traces." The leopard said, "No need to notify, the beggar gang brothers said that the enemy of those barbarians is their friend, I reckon by now the beggar gang brothers have taken care of them." "Alright! Then we don't have anything to do. Let's continue on our way! Damn it, chasing him for three years, circling half of the Ming dynasty territory, I won't believe we can't catch him. Let's go!" He said, casually slapping down a silver ingot, and left with a whirlwind of dust.

  The Yue Lai Inn across the street was also being turned upside down by the West Factory thugs, with a determination to dig three feet underground to find the culprit. The area around the Yue Lai Inn within a hundred meters was deserted, with only a few chickens clucking and dogs jumping around. A gust of wind blew an empty bamboo basket rolling down the street.

  ……

  Outside the town, a dilapidated temple on barren land.

  After washing up by the river and changing into a new set of clothes, Li Shuang's iron-green complexion finally became slightly rosier. When he reappeared before everyone, he directly asked: "Has the pursuing army caught up?" Zeng Fei, who was in charge of scouting, sighed and shook his head, saying: "No. I don't know why, but we left so many clues along the way, yet they didn't catch up. Are they really that stupid? Did we overestimate the quality of the Tianchao officials?"

  They actually wanted to lure all the officials out of the city! If it were Hei Miao, he would have probably knocked their heads with the knife handle, how infuriating! Yin Kuang and the others really didn't know that their abacus beads had been "kindly" messed up by a group of people.

  Li Shuangmu sat down with his legs crossed and said, "Still too impulsive." Everyone didn't understand what he meant. Was it the previous killing spree? It didn't seem like it. Killing was something everyone had agreed on, where did the impulsiveness come from? Li Shuangmu could only sigh and shake his head, not explaining, "Can't tell you that I have a mild OCD, can I?" He couldn't help but press his chest again. Just before this, a big puddle of soy sauce had been spilled here.

  Yin Kuang glanced at Li Shuangmu and sighed, then said: "If the official errand didn't bring them here, there's no way to inquire about the West Factory's movements. Now that we've committed another crime, returning to the small town is clearly impossible, that would be jumping into a trap." Bai Jing scratched his head and said: "What should we do then? Shouldn't we call someone who can run fast to go back and bring them here?" As he spoke, Bai Jing looked towards Wang Ning leaning against the beam, the implication couldn't be clearer.

  Wan Ning gave him a sideways glance, cracking sunflower seeds with a self-satisfied expression. "What a hassle. Can't just find a beggar? Haven't you guys ever mixed in the martial arts world or read any wuxia novels? Nine out of ten beggars are helpful. Since ancient times, the Beggars' Sect has been known for being well-informed. If this is indeed the martial arts world, how could there not be a Beggars' Sect?" As he spoke, he spat out another sunflower seed shell. It was really unknown where he got so many banana-flavored sunflower seeds from; wherever he went, he would always be cracking them with a self-satisfied expression.

  "Uh."

  Everyone thought about it and it seemed to be true indeed.

  "Gentlemen, are you looking for the Beggars' Sect for something?"

  A sudden noise came, and then a young man in tattered clothes, holding a broken bowl in one hand and a bamboo stick in the other, walked into the temple from the gate. In an instant, a strong stench spread throughout the temple, and several girls couldn't help but cover their mouths, their faces pale as iron. But the beggar seemed to be completely unbothered, sitting calmly on the ground.

  Li Shuang, Wang Ning, Yin Kuang, Bai Jue and others immediately became vigilant, able to appear silently outside the Temple of Earth, avoiding people's perception. This beggar was obviously not an ordinary person. Just one point, his perception was higher than anyone present, including Wang Ning with 17 points of perception!

  "Gentlemen, no need to be tense, I'm just a beggar with no ill intentions. Hehe, I'm just curious, which hero is it that dares to kill someone from the Western Factory in broad daylight? Tsk tsk, just this bravery alone makes me admire him greatly. Originally, I wanted to follow along and investigate, but unexpectedly, my actions disrupted your plans, and I feel guilty about it, so I've come to apologize." As he spoke, he smiled and bowed, with a very familiar air about him.

  Li Shuang raised an eyebrow and said, "Could it be that you are the ones..." The beggar said, "I originally thought that you were careless and left many clues behind, so I erased them to prevent the Western Factory's pursuers from catching up. But I didn't expect this was your plan, and I ended up doing a good deed but with bad intentions. My heart is filled with regret." Everyone listened and their mouths twitched involuntarily. Wang Ning said, "You've been following us?" The beggar smiled and said, "Please forgive me, please forgive me. However, just now I heard that you seem to be having trouble gathering information, and this friend mentioned the Beggars' Sect... Ah, to make up for your losses, I'll reveal myself. Although my martial arts skills are average and can't compare to yours, I do know a thing or two about Jianghu gossip. As an apology, I'm willing to give you three pieces of information for free. What do you think?"

  Yin Kuang said in a low voice, "This beggar is no ordinary person. The jianghu indeed has its tigers and dragons hidden. Fortunately, our righteous reputation precedes us; otherwise, he wouldn't be sitting in front of me laughing and chatting, but rather waiting with his knife. It seems this reputation still comes in handy." Thinking thus, he said, "We do need information urgently. If you're willing to help, we'll be eternally grateful. As for the apology, let's just forget it. You two are also kind-hearted."

  The beggar smiled frankly, "So, what do you friends want to know?" From "young hero" to "friends", it's clear that his impression of Yin Kuang and others has started to improve.

  Everyone looked at me, I looked at you, and finally, everyone looked at Yin Kuang. Yin Kuang let out a bitter laugh and said: "Then I'll ask the questions. First, I'd like to ask if the current East Factory Director, Wan Yulou, was really killed by Zhao Huai'an." This question was asked with a hidden meaning. Yin Kuang didn't directly ask "Was Wan Yulou killed by Zhao Huai'an?", but rather questioned whether Zhao Huai'an had killed Wan Yulou. The former would have been easy to arouse suspicion, after all, if Wan Yulou were dead, it would be common knowledge, and if Yin Kuang asked the question in that way, it would seem strange. Indeed, upon hearing Yin Kuang's question, the beggar smiled and countered: "Then, young master, who do you think has the audacity to openly confront the corrupt officials of the imperial court? And whose sword is fast enough to easily kill Wan Yulou, who has extremely high martial arts skills?"

  "It seems Wan Yu Lou is already dead. The plot has begun!" everyone thought.

  "Second question, is the Western Factory's Rain Flower Field already taking action against Zhao Huai'an?" The beggar said: "It seems like you're quite concerned about Zhao Da Xia's affairs? You and him... Hehe, I heard that Rain Flower Field has received a secret edict from a certain high-ranking official, left the capital, and is apparently chasing after a palace maid who escaped from the palace. I don't know much about this either. As for whether it's a pretext to deal with Zhao Da Xia, I have no idea."

  The crowd in Class 1237 once again confirmed one thing: "The main storyline hasn't really started yet!"

  As for why everyone is so concerned about the plot of the original play, it's because of a sentence spoken by Yoon Gwang while talking on the road earlier, no, or rather, Principal's hint:

  The greatest heroism is for the country and for the people!

  Since it's just for fun, might as well go all out and have a big time. Being timid and hesitant will never lead to great accomplishments!!