Chapter 23: Great Success (Please follow, bookmark, and vote with monthly tickets and recommendation votes)

"It's done!"

Su Mu returned calmly to his rented courtyard. Only after closing the gate did a look of relief wash over his face.

A figure poked half a body out from the room—who else could it be but Yang Jin?

"Phew!"

Yang Jin also let out a long sigh of relief. "In that case, before leaving the city, Xing Zhaofu certainly won't dare to target you again. However, once the attack on Black Dragon Fortress begins, he will undoubtedly try every possible way to make sure you die outside the city walls."

"The attack on Black Dragon Fortress is set for one month from now," Su Mu said. "Xing Zhaofu needs to recruit more men; he will head out of the city to suppress the bandits in a month."

A month. Su Mu couldn't help but sigh.

A month was ultimately too short. Even with his current identity and profession granting him at least 10 points a day, he would only have 300 points in a month. At most, he could train the Wave-Breaking Saber Technique to the Great Success stage.

It sounded impressive, but he certainly wouldn't be a match for Xing Zhaofu, who was at the second stage of Body Tempering.

Unfortunately, he had just attempted to use Sima Heyuxing to avoid the bandit-suppression mission, only to be flatly rejected by Heyuxing. Heyuxing had even dangled a carrot in front of him, promising that if he achieved merit during the attack on Black Dragon Fortress, he would be promoted to Constable.

Su Mu took such words for nothing more than hot air.

"Yang Jin, did you not learn any Body Tempering methods back when you were in the military?" Su Mu asked contemplatively.

"I did," Yang Jin said after a moment of silence. "But my aptitude was poor; I couldn't even reach the first stage of Body Tempering. I cannot teach you this method."

"Rules?"

"Military techniques cannot be passed on externally," Yang Jin nodded. "Furthermore, military Body Tempering methods are somewhat domineering and cause immense damage to the body. Unless there is absolutely no other way, I do not recommend you practice them."

…………

Since killing the Pink Wolf Du Qian, Su Mu's life had returned to its usual tranquility.

Xing Zhaofu was busy preparing troops, and perhaps due to the intimidation of Sima Heyuxing, he did not come looking for trouble with Su Mu. Yang Jin was also busy with something unknown, as he had been nowhere to be seen since that day.

Su Mu was happy with the peace. He kept a low profile, clocking in and patrolling the streets daily, fulfilling his duties as a constable with diligence.

In the blink of an eye, twenty days had passed.

Su Mu sat cross-legged in his room, his eyes bright and spirited. As the hour of the Rat passed, the contents of his panel quietly changed.

【Name: Su Mu】 【Identity: Constable (Clerk)】 【Points: 300】 【Martial Arts: Wave-Breaking Saber Technique (Minor Success/+), Archery (Beginner/+)】

Finally, the points were full!

A "+" sign appeared simultaneously after both the Wave-Breaking Saber Technique and Archery. He had waited a long time for this day.

In truth, his Wave-Breaking Saber Technique had already reached Minor Success; even without the system, he could have slowly trained it to Great Success given enough time. While that would have saved some points, Su Mu had no intention of doing so.

To reach Great Success through hard training alone would take at least several years, and he did not have that much time. A mere Minor Success level of the Wave-Breaking Saber Technique would be insufficient to deal with the crises he faced.

"Wave-Breaking Saber Technique, allocate points!" Su Mu murmured in his heart without the slightest hesitation.

In an instant, the three hundred points were exhausted.

Countless experiences flooded into Su Mu's mind out of thin air. It was as if the forgotten memories of training through the harshest summer and winter heat were resurfacing. It felt exactly like personal experience: training bitterly every day—practicing the saber when the sun rose, practicing when it set, practicing in the rain, and practicing amidst the falling snow.

Seasons passed, and several years felt like a mere instant.

When Su Mu opened his eyes again, his entire body was drenched in sweat. The sky outside the window was already turning a pale grey. An entire night had passed.

As Su Mu gripped the long saber gifted by Sun Dachao once more, a sensation arose within him. The blade felt like an extension of his arm, responding to his will with effortless ease.

The thirteen forms of the Wave-Breaking Saber Technique, along with its various variations, flowed through his mind like running water. All the moves had been integrated and mastered; from this point on, his execution of the technique was no longer bound by rigid forms or changes.

With the saber technique at Great Success, as long as he held the blade, two or three armed bandits would be no match for him, and even five or six would be manageable. As long as he didn't encounter a Body Tempering martial artist proficient in combat, he could handle them with ease.

Among the constables of the South City Division, those who could train a saber technique to Great Success could be counted on one hand.

"A pity, the gap between me and Xing Zhaofu is still quite large," Su Mu thought to himself.

Glancing at the panel, he saw that moving the Wave-Breaking Saber Technique from Great Success to Perfection would require a staggering one thousand points.

"The base points for a constable are 10 per day, with 'performance' fluctuating between 0 and 10. Just patrolling the streets yields at most two or three performance points. Only by catching criminals on the Wanted List will performance points skyrocket," Su Mu reasoned. "Not to mention, criminals on the Wanted List aren't easy to encounter, and even if I did, I might not be their match. Even if I only collect base points, it will only take three months to accumulate one thousand points."

As long as he could return alive from Black Dragon Fortress, he would have enough time to build his strength. He could even find a way to obtain a Body Tempering method.

"Black Dragon Fortress..." Su Mu murmured to himself.

With only ten days left before the expedition, it was clearly too late to train the Wave-Breaking Saber Technique to Perfection.

"Great Success isn't enough, but if I add these, they might prove useful at a critical moment."

Su Mu fumbled in his robes and spread his hand across the table. Five round spheres rolled across the surface.

Killing the Pink Wolf Du Qian had not only earned him face before Sima Heyuxing and a reward of one hundred taels of silver, but it had also yielded these five smoke bombs. Yang Jin scoffed at such things, but Su Mu felt that Du Qian was the villain, not the smoke bombs. Thus, he had unceremoniously pocketed all five.

"A flower thief like Du Qian wouldn't keep any excess wealth; he didn't even carry martial arts manuals on him. However, these five smoke bombs are worth a hundred gold pieces; used well, they might even save my life."

After thinking for a while, Su Mu felt a bit more confident. He carefully tucked the smoke bombs close to his body, placed his long saber beside him, and finally lay down to sleep.

…………

Outside the city, Black Dragon Fortress.

A bronze-skinned man strode into the Assembly Hall.

"Big Brother, just as you expected, the South City Division has indeed sent troops again!" the man shouted. "That bastard Xing Zhaofu—if he were hiding in the city, it would be hard to kill him. Since he dares to come out, I will definitely tear his head off to avenge Third Brother!"

Although the South City Division had not loudly publicized the death of the Black Dragon Fortress's Third Leader, the fortress itself didn't actually know who had killed him. In fact, even if the South City Division had released the news, the person who killed the Third Leader wouldn't have been Xing Zhaofu, but rather He Yuxing's nephew.

Xing Zhaofu had stolen Su Mu's credit, but that credit ultimately never fell to him. However, since Xing Zhaofu was the Constable of the South City Division, the Second Leader of Black Dragon Fortress thought it was certain that the blame for the Third Leader's death would be pinned on him.

"The South City Division is determined to fight us to the death. Do they truly think I am a soft target?" The First Leader of Black Dragon Fortress sat imposingly in the hall, saying coldly, "In that case, do not blame me for being ruthless. I shall use you all to break through to the fourth stage of Body Tempering!"

Before his voice had even faded, a thick black mist suddenly emerged from his pupils. On the surface of his skin, strange and profound patterns appeared, looking like tattoos filled with an eerie beauty.

(End of Chapter)