Immortality by Merit and Sin Coins

Lin Shu stood up and pushed open the door.

The Fog enveloping his body not only allowed him to use Immortal Techniques, but it also sharpened his senses considerably.

As he thought, Lin Shu looked out into the courtyard.

The young widow hadn’t returned to her room to care for her frightened child all night. Instead, she had carefully dragged the three corpses to a corner of the courtyard.

She had even dug up some dirt to cover the bloodstains on the ground.

"Tsk." Lin Shu’s gaze held a hint of deep meaning, but he didn’t say much more. "If you have something to say, come inside."

"Alright."

Miss Yun, her small face smudged with dirt, clutched her sleeves nervously. After a brief hesitation, she walked into the room.

She had a feeling that, based on how casually he had turned away last night, he wouldn’t bring up that embarrassing topic again.

And things went just as Miss Yun had expected.

The young man’s gaze remained perfectly normal, even as they sat opposite each other at the dilapidated table.

When their eyes met, she was the one who felt guilty.

"What is it?" Lin Shu asked casually.

"Sir, the bodies in the courtyard..." Miss Yun snapped back to her senses.

She pointed to the large, bluestone courtyards on either side. "At night, those people might not get involved."

Her screams last night hadn’t brought any help, but they had certainly woken many people up.

The people of Black Water City don’t like to meddle in affairs at night, but once it’s daytime...

"Now that it’s light out, their gatekeepers have probably gone to report to the authorities."

Miss Yun lowered her head apologetically.

Although he had killed to save her, an act of justice, those Officials—who would squeeze blood from a stone—were experts at making things difficult for people.

"It’s fine."

Lin Shu wasn’t flustered by this. He had plenty of experience dealing with Officials.

Besides, for once, he was actually in the right.

What truly troubled him was something else entirely.

Black Water City was indeed a chaotic, isolated place.

But regrettably, the chaos wasn’t absolute.

According to the memories left behind by his predecessor...

At least two major powers, the Government and the Black Water Gang, jointly maintained a special kind of order.

And if he wanted to evolve a new Cultivation Technique, he would need enough Sin Coins.

Under this special order, killing someone might not require following the law, but it definitely required having the right background.

’This is difficult.’

Lin Shu closed his eyes, gently rubbing the spot between his brows with his fingertips.

’With my background in an opera troupe, my hopes of relying on the Government are slim indeed.’

’According to the Ma Brothers, Liu the Third paid tribute to the Black Water Gang in silver for many years. That could be an opportunity.’

’Logically, I was a member of the opera troupe too. Why can’t I inherit Third Master’s connections?’

’I just don’t know how to re-establish that connection.’

Just as Lin Shu was pondering this, a rush of hurried footsteps suddenly sounded from outside the courtyard!

As the saying goes, a widow’s doorstep is a magnet for trouble, especially with a handsome man of a similar age in her house.

But Miss Yun showed no intention of shirking responsibility. She stood up straight and said, "I’ll go with you to explain to them."

Lin Shu glanced at her, slightly surprised, but didn’t refuse.

The two had just stepped out of the house.

BAM!

The flimsy courtyard gate was violently shoved open.

Two men dressed in crisp black shirts with long sabers at their waists followed the stench of blood, frowning as they looked into the courtyard.

Clearly, these were the constables of Black Water City.

Behind them, the Gatekeeper from the neighboring courtyard was peeking over, his head craned curiously.

Judging from his expression, this old man—who had turned a deaf ear to the world last night—hadn’t rushed to report to the officials out of concern, but rather out of a desire to know what had happened in the widow’s home.

The Gatekeeper first gave Miss Yun a lecherous look, then saw Lin Shu beside her. A look of self-righteous indignation, as if his suspicions were confirmed, immediately appeared on his face.

He lowered his voice and spat, "Filthy whore."

It probably wouldn’t be long before the neighbors had a new piece of gossip to talk about.

"Lord Officials."

Miss Yun seemed to have grown accustomed to such stares. She stepped forward, about to start her explanation.

Suddenly, a figure ambled past her, followed by a practiced front kick!

BAM!

Before the Gatekeeper could react, his entire body was sent flying backward, tumbling across the street three or four times like a sack of rags.

"Cough, gack!"

The old man lay wretchedly on the ground, staring in disbelief at the adulterer. He pointed a trembling finger and stammered, "You..."

Lin Shu glanced over, his face showing not a shred of shame for hitting an old man. He said flatly, "The hell are you looking at? Look again and I’ll gouge your eyes out."

His moral standards were very low; he never was one to suffer in silence. If he slept with someone, he’d own it. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t take the blame.

"Insolence!"

The two constables’ brows shot up. They roared in anger, ready to intervene.

However, they found that while this hooligan was cursing, his body remained properly inside the courtyard, showing no sign of making another move.

It gave them a feeling of having strength but nowhere to use it.

"..."

Lin Shu calmly withdrew his gaze, not the least bit flustered.

He had been very measured with his attack.

If the old man could even be diagnosed with a minor injury, it would mean his skills were lacking.

"This... this..."

Seeing this, Miss Yun’s brain short-circuited once again.

She looked up at Lin Shu, blinking, having already forgotten what she was about to say.

"Well now, some excitement first thing in the morning."

Just then, a teasing voice came from the street.

Hearing this familiar voice, the two constables’ faces turned cold. They spun around, simultaneously drawing their long sabers halfway from their sheaths.

But the blades never left their sheaths.

A handsome, flippant young man in white robes casually pressed down on both their right arms, forcibly pushing the sabers back into their sheaths.

"My two Lord Officials, don’t get excited."

The white-robed youth draped his arms over their shoulders with a grin, looked into the courtyard, and said mockingly, "This is a family matter. We’ll handle it ourselves. No need to trouble you two."

"..."

The Officials’ faces were grim. They stared daggers at the young man’s eyes before shifting their gaze to another tall figure not far away.

That woman was also young, dressed in a simple blue gown, her thin lips pressed tightly together. A fierce light glinted in her eyes.

Neither of them carried so much as an inch of a blade, yet their presence alone overwhelmed the Officials.

"You stupid wolves, control your own pups."

The constable shook off the young man’s hand, his eyelid twitching. Though furious, he didn’t press the issue and simply turned to leave.

"Such a temper on our Lord Official. Take care now, won’t see you out."

The white-robed youth’s hand was shrugged off, but the smile never left his face as he nonchalantly brushed his sleeves.

He and the woman slowly stepped into the small courtyard, then turned and closed the gate.

CREAK.

Once the gate was shut tight.

When the two turned back around, their faces were devoid of any expression, leaving only indifference.

"Hh! Hh!"

Logically speaking, these two had just gotten them out of a tight spot.

But Miss Yun’s breathing suddenly hitched, and her face showed no gratitude at all.

She could remain calm even at the sight of dead bodies, but now she instinctively took a few steps closer to Lin Shu.

’They closed the gate to do business.’

’The kind of business the Black Water Gang handles.’

’The newcomers are two Fierce Wolves!’

"..."

Lin Shu glanced at the courtyard gate. To be honest, the Black Water Gang’s intervention was within his expectations.

After all, with Wang Xu dead, the remaining members of the opera troupe surely wouldn’t just sit idly by.

It was perfectly logical that they chose to do something similar to reporting to the officials—running to inform the Black Water Gang instead.

The only thing Lin Shu hadn’t expected was that members of the Black Water Gang could openly and brazenly intimidate Government constables on the street.

’How interesting.’