This Martial Saint is Too Cautious

"Young Master Lin, something terrible has happened!"

Xia Mingtang burst through the door again. Hearing the footsteps, Lin Yan had already put away his longsword, a look of resignation on his face.

'Old Xia is just like Second Senior Brother... always, "Young Master Lin, this is terrible!" instead of "First Senior Brother, this is terrible!"'

"Old Xia, what is it now?"

"Young Master Lin, I just got some news. The Wei Family is threatening the Traveling Merchants again. This time, they're threatening them directly. They said that no matter how high our offer is, if anyone dares to sell us herbs, they can expect their families to be ruined. All the Traveling Merchants are terrified. They don't dare sell to us anymore."

Lin Yan's brow furrowed at Xia Mingtang's words. All he wanted was to train his martial arts in peace and explore the mountains, not get involved in conflicts.

'Why does the Wei Family have to be so aggressive?'

"Won't the Sanshan County Inspection Bureau do anything about it?"

"The Inspection Bureau never gets involved in business conflicts or territory disputes. It's not just Sanshan County; it's the same in our Guangping County and all the others."

Lin Yan was reminded that, in the end, this world was governed by the law of the jungle.

The Inspection Bureau might have powers similar to the Patrol Officers of his past life, but their reasons for existing were completely different. The Inspection Bureau was established to rake in tax revenue; they only maintained public order to ensure taxes could be collected without disruption.

If a major family lacked the strength to hold its territory or protect its businesses, the Inspection Bureau couldn't care less. After all, it made no difference to them who was paying the taxes.

This was precisely why Madam Lin had chosen to sponsor him after her husband's death.

"When are the Traveling Merchants due to deliver the next batch of herbs?" Lin Yan asked.

"These Traveling Merchants usually collect from the villages once a month. It'll be over half a month until the next batch is gathered."

"I understand. What's the Wei Family's reputation like?"

Xia Mingtang was taken aback, not expecting Lin Yan's question. He replied, "The Wei Family has a terrible reputation among the people of Sanshan County. They treat Martial Artists and commoners completely differently. The Elixirs they sell to Martial Artists are priced similarly to what our Boss charges, but the herbs they sell to common people are fifty percent more expensive. They also frequently take advantage of families with a seriously ill member, giving them high-interest loans. When the family can't repay the principal and interest, they're forced to sell their own children."

Lin Yan simply nodded without saying anything more. Xia Mingtang had expected this reaction. 'Young Master Lin definitely doesn't want to provoke the Wei Family,' he thought. Fortunately, he had already sent a message to the Boss, who would surely send someone to deal with the situation.

'If even Lord Zhang came back, the Wei Family wouldn't dare act so outrageously.'

...

Guangping County, Tang Mansion.

As Tang Tang listened to the steward's report, a look of exhaustion crept onto her face.

"Young Mistress, should we send a message to Lin Yan and have him negotiate with the Wei Family?"

"Lin Yan only reached the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing a month ago. The Wei Family Patriarch has been at that level for eight years, and his son reached it last year. It wouldn't go well for Lin Yan if he went to the Wei Family."

Tang Tang waved her hand dismissively. The Wei Family's decision to target the Tang Family now wasn't just because Zhang Xin had left.

'I'm afraid the Wei Family has already caught wind of the situation here in Guangping County Town.'

Otherwise, the Wei Family would have to tread carefully even if she sent Xia Mingtang to negotiate, let alone Lin Yan.

Because Xia Mingtang represented the full might of the Tang Family.

To make the Wei Family submit, they would have to be beaten into submission. The Tang Family had the power to do so, but right now, it wasn't necessary.

"Put the Sanshan County matter aside for now. If the herbs are lost, they're lost. Just have Lin Yan and his men guard those mountains well."

She no longer had the luxury of worrying about Sanshan County.

Through her family's connections in the Prefecture City, she had learned something of the reasons behind the major upheaval in Guangping County.

As the foremost family in Guangping County Town, one wrong move could now lead to the Tang Family's complete annihilation.

Compared to her family's very survival, the losses in Sanshan County were no longer within Tang Tang's scope of concern.

...

「Half a month later.」The Martial Arts Tree reached a height of three feet and two inches, and Lin Yan emerged from his obsessive study of Sword Intent.

More than ten days of intense study had allowed him to fully master the Silk Binding Sword Intent. Further progress, however, would not come overnight.

「That night.」

Lin Yan changed into black clothes, scaled the courtyard wall, and vanished into the moonlit night.

The town of Sanshan County, nestled between mountains on three sides, was only half the size of Guangping County, and it had a stark divide between the rich and the poor.

A river served as the dividing line. West of the river lay sprawling, single-story hovels, while the east was home to elegant, orderly mansions of gray brick and black tile.

Lin Yan had already located the Wei Family's residence a few days prior. 'As a Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist, I'm a person of some standing now. All I want is to train in peace and maintain the dignity that comes with being a Martial Artist.'

'Unfortunately, the Wei Family refuses to afford me that dignity.'

'Fortunately, from what Xia Mingtang said, the Wei Family is nothing but scum. They've forfeited their right to be treated as human.'

...

「Late that night.」

The Central Courtyard of the Wei residence, training grounds.

Having completed a set of his Spear Technique, Wei Shaoyou set down his spear. A maidservant hurried forward with water to wipe the sweat from his body.

"Old Dao, how did it go?"

Wei Shaoyou's hand snaked into the maidservant's robes, groping her wantonly. The girl trembled but dared not stop him.

The old man waiting nearby hurried forward. "Young Master, she's been sent to the room. I guarantee you'll be thoroughly satisfied."

"The meek ones are no fun. I prefer them stubborn."

Wei Shaoyou laughed licentiously. A few days ago, he'd taken a liking to a beautiful woman in town. He had his steward, Old Dao, arrange to have her husband poisoned. To pay for the man's treatment, the family ended up fifty taels of silver in debt to the apothecary.

'If you can't pay the money, you pay with your body.'

Back at the main house of the Central Courtyard, the sounds of sobbing from within brought an excited look to Wei Shaoyou's face. But just as he was about to push the door open, a sudden scream echoed from the rear courtyard.

"Intruder—"

But the voice was cut off abruptly. Wei Shaoyou froze. "Give me my spear."

"Quick, give me the spear!"

The steward didn't react at first, only handing over the long spear he was holding after Wei Shaoyou's second roar.

Wei Shaoyou gripped the shaft, the spear's tip aimed at the courtyard gate, his entire presence surging with power.

A figure clad in black and masked appeared at the gate, a human head dangling from his hand.

When he got a clear look at the face on the severed head, Wei Shaoyou's pupils contracted. "You killed my father?"

Lin Yan didn't answer. He simply started walking toward him.

'It hadn't taken much time to kill the Wei Patriarch. I ambushed him from the shadows, striking the instant he sensed danger. He may have sensed it, but his reaction was still no match for my blade.'

Lin Yan's pace was unhurried, yet each step seemed to land on Wei Shaoyou's heart. The calm, composed aura of the intruder made Wei Shaoyou instinctively tighten his grip on his spear.

"You killed my father... you're courting death!"

Wei Shaoyou roared and brandished his spear. But instead of thrusting at Lin Yan, he swept it toward the steward at his side. The steward's body was sent flying toward Lin Yan as a distraction, while Wei Shaoyou used the recoil to propel himself backward toward the courtyard wall.

The moment he saw his father's head, Wei Shaoyou knew he was no match for this man in black.

'My father was at the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing for eight years, yet he was killed without a sound. This man must be one of the absolute strongest at the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing.'

'If I don't run, I'll die.'

'Unbelievable. Another one who uses his own people as bait.'

For a moment, Lin Yan was speechless, watching Wei Shaoyou use his steward's body to block the way while he himself turned to flee.

'What kind of people do I keep running into?'

'First Wang Heng of the Wang Family, and now this Wei Shaoyou. Their first instinct isn't to avenge their fathers, but to run for their lives.'

'As Mengzi said: He who is so unfilial has forfeited his humanity and deserves to be slain!'

Lin Yan sidestepped, easily avoiding the steward's body. The longsword in his hand became a whistling streak of Jinghong light as it shot forward.

He didn't turn back, but as a Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist, his Perception alerted him to the mortal danger at his back. Glancing at the courtyard wall, still twenty feet away, he gritted his teeth and spun around.

"To hell with this!"

Wei Shaoyou gripped his spear, his Qi Blood erupting with full force. The moment he spun around, he thrust his spear out, meeting the streak of Jinghong light under the moon.

CLANG!

The tip of his spear trembled, and a flicker of joy ignited in Wei Shaoyou's heart. But in the next instant, his entire body froze, locked in his spear-wielding stance. Three breaths later, a fountain of blood burst from his throat, and the long spear clattered to the ground.

'How... how was he so fast?'

'Is he a Fourth-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist?'

'Could he be one of Father's old enemies, who broke through to the Fourth-Time of Skin Smoothing and came back for revenge?'

'Father, you've gotten me killed!'

Lin Yan walked over to Wei Shaoyou's corpse and, out of habit, stabbed it a few more times to be sure. He had no idea what Wei Shaoyou had been thinking, only that the man's final expression was very complex.

'Couldn't make sense of it at all.'

After searching Wei Shaoyou's body for a moment, Lin Yan walked toward the door of the Central Courtyard's main house, a money bag in hand.

He pushed the door open. Inside, a woman clad only in thin gauze stared at him in terror, her arms wrapped tightly around her chest.

Seeing the woman, Lin Yan froze for three full breaths, as if he hadn't expected to find anyone inside. In the next instant, he flashed behind her and precisely chopped the back of her neck with the edge of his hand.

Watching the unconscious woman collapse to the ground, her robes slipping away, Lin Yan's eyes held an unreadable expression. He then began to search the house. A few dozen breaths later, he emerged, looking satisfied.

...

Back in his own courtyard.

Lin Yan wiped the blood from his longsword, returned it to the weapon rack, and then burned his black clothes.

In the rooms of the Wei father and son, he had found three thousand taels worth of silver banknotes. In addition, he'd found a bottle and a half of Tiger Bone Tempering Pills—fifteen pills in total.

'It seems the Wei Patriarch had given up on breaking through to the Fourth-Time of Skin Smoothing and was spending all his silver coins on his son instead. And in the end, it all went to me.'

'The suspicion for this shouldn't fall on me.'

Lin Yan had planned this out before he acted, and now he reviewed his plan once more.

'In the eyes of the world, I only just reached the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing. I couldn't possibly be a match for both the Wei father and son.'

'And even if they did suspect me, I left a contingency. That woman is my alibi.'

'Thanks to Stone Waist Barbarian Ridge, I can increase my height by half a foot, so my height won't match the description.'

'As far as I know, there's no known Martial Arts Cultivation Technique that can alter one's bone structure and height.'

'Perhaps such a technique exists, but it's definitely beyond the reach of any Skin Smoothing Martial Artist.'