"Master, are you here to stand up for Brother Chen?" Yi Chen, head bowed as he showed off his rice, didn''t even lift his head as he spoke.


    The long table, made of solid yellow rosewood, had a wide base. Even though it had been cleaved in two by a single sword strike from Chen Liu, not a bit of the cuisine had spilled.


    This was also why Yi Chen had left half of Chen Liu''s body intact.


    There was no helping it; who could me him when the Yi Taoist had such a kind heart?


    If the food were to spill, then Chen Liu''s ashes would be gone.


    The Taoist had plenty of dishes, but some had no ashes left.


    "The Taoist jests. You merely eat a meal, and the Dragon-Tiger List loses a ranker. How could this humble monk ever convert the Taoist?" The monk ced his hands together in a gesture of respect, radiating a dignified aura, "Brother Chen has his own karma. What ce does this monk have to intervene? I only wish to form a good connection with the Taoist."


    "If it were me, I would already be on my way to inquire about Brother Chen''s wife."


    "!!!" With such abundant martial virtue, it''s a pity for the master to mingle with the Buddhist monks.


    After inwardly sighing, Yi Chen also quietly rxed a little.


    Eliminating two high-ranking martial artists from the Dragon-Tiger List in one meal was, after all, a bit excessive.


    "As long as the master isn''t here to preach about being magnanimous, that''s fine. An idental meeting is better than a nned one. Master, why not join me for a bite?"


    Yi Chen lifted his head and cordially extended an invitation.


    After some conversation, Yi Chen learned that the handsome monk before him actually had a slight connection with him. He was the nomadic monk of this generation from the Moon Wheel Temple, the demon monk Kong Xiang. The Lotus Master was also from the Moon Wheel Temple.


    As their discussion deepened, they chatted more amicably.


    "The Dragon-Tiger List actuallybels the master as the ''Mad Monk,'' which is a downright nder," Yi Chen said, hoisting his wine cup in a toast to Kong Xiang.


    "Exactly, the Peace-Keeping Department is simply ying the lute to a cow; I am very normal."


    "It was because when I traveled around the world, I ttened a notoriously evil bandit stronghold. Those bandit chiefs begged for my mercy, so I put down my knife. But then I found out that after putting down the knife, I did not be a Buddha, so I killed them all."


    "Tell me, Taoist, could you me me for this? It was the arrangement of the Buddha."


    "No problem at all, no problem. Master, eat some vegetables, stop with the wine," Yi Chen said with three ck lines appearing on his forehead, hearing for the first time a monk who could shirk responsibility onto the Buddha himself, truly a rare talent.


    At least his Yi Chengzi was more reasonable.


    Even though his actions were severe, he always reflected deeply before making a move.


    Half an hourter, Yi Chen settled the bill and left the Dragon Ascension Tower.


    Upon learning that Kong Xiang''s travels would pass through Duan Yang County, Yi Chen entrusted the monk with the remains of Zhang Biaotou and the others, leaving behind two yellow croakers as travel provisions.


    When Yi Chen first entered the city, he had sought out a local courier service in Wujang Prefecture. To his surprise, they asked for a price ten times higher than seventy-nine taels, iming it had been that way for years, questioning how it could be expensive when local couriers were hard to find.


    Yi Chen wouldn''t deal with such a swindle, so he turned around and left.


    Now, entrusting them to Kong Xiang was just right.


    After stepping out of the Dragon Ascension Tower, Yi Chen called over Little Dog, and gave him fifty taels of silver, instructing him to have someone keep an eye on the bodies that had just been carried out from the Dragon Ascension Tower as well as the movement of the brocade-clothed young master.


    Discover exclusive tales on empire


    Yi Chen always felt there was something not quite right about the appearance of Chen Liu, spending the money for some peace of mind.


    If it really was the master''s task, then that would be rather interesting.


    As for Little Dog''s ability to handle such a small matter, Yi Chen wasn''t worried.


    Snakes have snake ways, mice have mouse ways.


    Little Dog seemed clever at a nce, a local who worked as a guide with a widework. Finding people to check on the movements of bodies and people shouldn''t be a problem.


    Yi Chen patted Little Miao on the shoulder and whispered instructions. Little Miao, upon hearing them, immediately darted out.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ...


    ...


    The night in Wujang Prefecture was much quieter than the day.


    The streets were silent, an asional biting wind swept by, rustling through the leaves and over the rooftiles, making an eerie whooshing sound.


    At this hour, only a handful of taverns and brothels still had their lights on.


    The residences along the street had mostly turned their lights out.


    There was only a middle-aged night watchman, carrying a battered copper gong, intermittently striking it and shouting, ''The air is dry, be careful with candles and fires.''


    Yi Chen, d in a cloak borrowed from the Overlord Chicken, dodged the pedestrians, creeping towards a certain residence.


    The night was dark, the wind was high, perfect for a killing.


    During the day, the more he thought about it, the more he felt something was off. Chen Liu, no matter what, was a skilled practitioner of the Qi Refinement Realm. For such a dashing young master to insult him in public, and for Chen Liu to not even have the courage to retort, was strange indeed.


    Even if the Chen Family''s son-inw had fallen on hard times, from phoenix to a less-than-chicken status, his worth shouldn''t have plummeted to such an extent.


    Upon closer consideration, the dashing young master''s words seemed more like an attempt to disassociate himself from the situation and stir up trouble.


    "Chen Liu, just say you can''t afford to offend Qian Yueru and want to use the Taoist as a stepping stone to ascend the ranks and join the main Chen Family in the capital," Yi Chen muttered.


    "Losing is normal, winning would mean regaining some face for the Chen Family of Longjiang Prefecture. Chen Liu, you truly have a knack for strategic nning."


    "Taoist, should we ept his challenge? It would serve as a warm-up for the grand battle with the Sword Immortal this afternoon," he teased.


    The way this was framed, it wasn''t just a p in Chen Liu''s face—it was as if he was being pped with his own behind.


    In such a scenario, if it wasn''t due to oppressive strength, it must be ss oppression at work.


    Yi Chen, whom in his previous life had been terrified by a dump truck ident, now wanted to uncover the hidden calctions of others upon detecting their subtle signs.


    Therefore, he divided his investigation into three paths.


    One route was handled by the hound, tracking Chen Liu''s ashes to determine if anyone was behind the scenes.


    As long as no one intentionally concealed it, the destination of Chen Liu''s remains could certainly be tracked by the hound, who knew the territory like the back of its paw.


    Sometimes not finding information is information in itself.


    Yi Chen hadn''t scattered Chen Liu''s ashes during the day out of mercy; he just used them as bait.


    When the mad monk Kong Xiang said that he would have been on his way to find Chen Liu''s wife right now, Yi Chen knew he''d won.


    He had outsmarted Kong Xiang by far too much.


    Kong Xiang was only in the fifthyer, while he, Yi Chengzi, was in the vast skyyer.


    Although Kong Xiang was prudent, he was clearly not prudent enough.


    After all, who goes fishing without baiting the spot?


    Keeping Chen Liu''s body could verify whether someone was behind him and could also lure out the whereabouts of Chen Liu''s wife.


    This was truly a clever n to follow the vine to get to the melon.


    Of course, if Chen Liu''s wife or whoever was behind him was ruthless enough to discard such a renowned underling as chaff, then Yi Chen would ept it.


    Who goes fishing without evering up empty-handed?


    The second team was naturally Yi Chen himself.


    He had kept a close watch on the dandy all afternoon, then left in feigned dejection to mislead others.


    The third team was the real trump card, Miao Zi.


    As a Casanova and a spiritual beast, Miao Zi possessed the ability tomand the respect of all the stray cats in the city, leading them with an unquestioned authority.


    There was no shortage of stray cats in Wujang Prefecture and with Miao Zi''s arrival, a new king was crowned.


    After all, with the two previous arrangements in ce, who would pay attention to cats?


    So, the cat brigade aplished a great feat.


    The fish that Little Miao ate at noon was not eaten for nothing.