Ping'an County, County Government.
Chen Yuan slowly awoke, smelling a trace of alcohol, feeling some discomfort in his stomach as acid churned.
"I... wasn't I just washing my feet? Why is there a smell of alcohol on me?"
As everyone knows, after drinking, you shouldn't…
Yes, that's right! Drive!
And tomorrow was the day Chen Yuan had been looking forward to, number eighty-eight's day to go back home for a matchmaking visit.
Chen Yuan had just taken some time out of his busy schedule to say farewell to number eighty-eight.
With time, they had developed a bit of a "relationship."
Chen Yuan's focused gaze briefly surveyed his surroundings, somewhat shocked.
Woody, simplistic tables and chairs, slightly yellowing pillars, and green bedding spread over his body.
"Where... where is this?"
Chen Yuan stood up, rushed to the water tank, then froze.
The water reflected a face, with thick eyebrows, a high nose bridge, deep pupils, and a determined visage.
But, this wasn't him!
"I... I time-traveled?"
Just as Chen Yuan was questioning his life, suddenly, he fell silent for a moment, his gaze stiffened, and he suddenly thought about whether the police would check his Quark browser history if he suddenly died.
"Damn!!!"
Chen Yuan clearly remembered he hadn't used private browsing!
He was not afraid of his body breaking, but he wanted to maintain innocence in the human world!
Right after, before Chen Yuan could feel ashamed and annoyed, remembering his social death,
a tidal wave of memories surged in, entered his brain, and flowed rapidly.
Chen Yuan, a government official in Ping'an County of Nanling Prefecture, Qingzhou, in the Great Jin Dynasty, earning less than two silvers a month.
His parents had died early of illness, he was raised by his uncle, who later fell severely ill and, worried about him, used connections and silver to get him into the government.
Thinking of this, Chen Yuan felt a sense of relief, as he was now without family ties, all alone.
Most importantly, people whose parents had both died generally led uncomplicated lives.
After a long silence, Chen Yuan's voice tentatively filled the room:
"System?"
Unfortunately, the system did not respond to him.
"Sign-in?"
Chen Yuan said again.
...
...
"Without any Golden Finger, what should I do..."
Inside the County Government, Chen Yuan's brow furrowed deeply.
For seven days, Chen Yuan had called the system countless times, but not once had he received a reply.
If it were a normal ancient world, it would have been fine, but in the past few days, Chen Yuan had come to understand that this was a world where Martial Arts reigned supreme.
Legend had it that there were strong individuals who could sever rivers with a sword or shatter mountains with a fist...
If his own talent had been outstanding, Chen Yuan wouldn't have expected the Golden Finger so much, but he tried to practice martial arts, only to find his talents seemed rather ordinary.
He totally lacked the flair that a transmigrator should have.
"Forget it, at least I have the status of a government official..." Chen Yuan sighed.
Over a few days, Chen Yuan had accepted reality, the Golden Finger had not favored him.
The only consolation was that he wasn't starting in hell, having the identity of a constable in the County Government meant he wouldn't fall into dire poverty, as long as he accepted his mediocrity.
"Brother Yuan, the arrest officer has called for us!"
While Chen Yuan was lost in thought, a young figure hurriedly burst in.
"What happened?" Chen Yuan immediately stood up, reaching quickly for the knife handle at his waist, displaying the extreme insecurity within.
"We've found a trace of Tie Shou!"
Chen Yuan's gaze hardened; the name "Tie Shou" had frequently echoed in his ears these past few days, a skilled hand at the Blood Refining Level of the Foundation Establishment Realm, who had committed several murders in Ping'an County.
The County Magistrate was furious and ordered that Tie Shou be captured within a set timeframe.
All this had not let Chen Yuan rest well, and just when it seemed as if Tie Shou had vanished without a trace from the human world, they now had finally found a clue, no wonder arrest officer Huang Xing was so eager to gather the government officials.
"Let's go!"
Chen Yuan didn't dare delay; if he let the arrest officer down at this time, he would inevitably suffer later on, considering the arrest officer's significant influence in Ping'an County.
It was not only his rank as a ninth-grade official but also his affiliation with the Huang family from Ping'an County.
Even the county magistrate and county constable had to take him seriously.
To capture Tie Shou, the county government had mobilized all available government officials, amounting to more than twenty, and added to that, hundreds of temporary white servants; the force was undeniably massive.
Although Tie Shou himself was at the Blood Refining Level, even Huang, an arrest officer who was a level higher than him, was reluctant to confront those iron hands directly.
As for Chen Yuan, he was just an ordinary government official at the Skin Refining Level, barely qualifying as a martial artist.
"Chen Yuan, Wang Ping, you take eight white servants and guard Beijie."
"Li..."
Huang Xing, with a grave expression, scanned the eight government officials and several dozen white servants, speaking in a low voice:
"No matter which direction Tie Shou flees from, stop him at all costs. Anyone who dares to cut corners and lets Tie Shou escape, don't blame me for turning my back on you afterward!"
Huang Xing's large figure imposed a sense of oppression on everyone.
"Yes, this subordinate obeys!"
Chen Yuan's voice joined in unison with the others.
After instructing them, Huang Xing led the government officials on a house-to-house search; the last trace of Tie Shou vanished within a few thousand meters.
"Brother Yuan, I'm a bit nervous."
Wang Ping lowered his voice slightly.
Even though Chen Yuan was also quite panicked internally — after all, this was his first time facing such a formidable martial artist from Jianghu, who was rumored to have claimed no fewer than ten lives in Ping'an County —
he still maintained a basic calm on the surface:
"Don't panic, the arrest officer is a high-level expert at the Bone Refining Level. With the help of our fellow government officials, capturing Tie Shou won't be difficult."
Wang Ping seemed somewhat reassured by Chen Yuan's composure, whispering:
"Brother Yuan, how come I've noticed that you've been different these past few days?"
Chen Yuan's heart skipped a beat, his body hairs bristling:
"Different how? I'm still the same old me."
"I can't put my finger on it... just feels different. A few days ago, when I asked you to join me at the brothel, you declined too."
"How could a man born of this world stoop so low?"
"I..."
"Something's happening!" Chen Yuan's whisper reached the ears of Wang Ping and a few white servants.
No sooner had Chen Yuan spoken when they all heard several screams followed by the furious roar of the arrest officer, Huang Xing:
"Tie Shou, you're dead!"
"Hmph, a bunch of government constables trying to catch me? Maybe in your next life..."
"Quick, chase him!"
Huang Xing's tone was tinged with shock and anger.
"Can our luck be this bad..." Chen Yuan muttered to himself, gripping his long knife tightly.
Then...
Chen Yuan saw a thin figure rushing towards them, followed closely by the arrest officer, Huang Xing.
"Stop him!" Huang Xing bellowed.
Chen Yuan looked around; several white servants were fumbling with their blades, leaving only Wang Ping and himself in the middle of the road.
"Scram!"
With a low growl, Tie Shou's arms momentarily turned green as he reached for Chen Yuan and Wang Ping.
"Kill!"
Wang Ping was the first to react, his shout seeming to empower him as he swung his knife at the grasping hand.
"Bang!"
The hand collided with the long knife, instantly shattering it, and Wang Ping was sent flying by Tie Shou's powerful strike, followed by a sinister smile from Tie Shou and a swift movement to grasp Chen Yuan's throat.
"Whish!"
In an instant, just as Wang Ping was struck, a handful of lime was thrown. Tie Shou covered his eyes, and Chen Yuan stabbed with his knife while Huang Xing arrived just in time to strike Tie Shou's back, causing him to stagger unsteadily.
"Pfft."
The long knife pierced through him.
Chen Yuan's expression stiffened, a cool stream of qi flowing from Tie Shou's dead body into his mind.
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