The Path of the Martial Arts BOSS
Chapter 176 - 166 Morning Dock_2

Chapter 176: Chapter 166 Morning Dock_2

At such a critical moment, any unknown characters should be regarded with caution, especially given that the other party had brought men to surround the docks early in the morning, clearly no well-wishers.

"Feng Duozhu, do you recognize Han Wenxin?" Luo Yan asked with a smile.

Feng Yixian feigned ignorance and denied, "I have never heard of this name, naturally, I don’t know such a person."

"Is that so? But I think Feng Duozhu must recognize him, and you’ve even had some rather unpleasant dealings with him."

Luo Yan pulled a scroll of paper from his sleeve, unrolled it in front of Feng Yixian, revealing a portrait.

"This man is Han Wenxin. He was attacked and seriously wounded in broad daylight on White Water Street in the western part of the city just yesterday by a group of assassins. According to the testimonies of many passersby present, the leader of these assassins used two Light Axes as weapons."

"In the worldly society, those who use axes as weapons are even fewer than those wielding exotic armaments. And in Linchuan Prefecture, as far as I know, only Feng Duozhu is known to use such weapons. I think I shouldn’t be wrong about the person."

Luo Yan still maintained his composed smile, his words replete with cautious guesses like ’should be’ and ’I think.’ Yet his tone was very affirmative, just short of pointing directly at Feng Yixian and accusing him of being the leader of the assailants.

However, as the conversation unfolded, although the target had been correctly identified, there was no solid evidence. Feng Yixian, despite his arrogance and his use of what could be considered his signature Light Axe weapon, had his face covered during the attack.

This might seem somewhat like the act of an ostrich burying its head in the sand, for after all, there aren’t many in the entire worldly society who use Light Axes. But in the absence of concrete evidence and given Feng Yixian’s status, he still had room for rebuttal and wouldn’t be captured as easily as the average person.

Yet faced with these circumstances, Feng Yixian didn’t make any excuses and frankly admitted, "Indeed, the leader of the attack that day was none other than I. I had some business disputes with this person, but these conflicts belong to the sphere of the worldly society. As for those dealings, they are not something that should be openly discussed, so I employed some means that should remain in the dark.

"However, Six Gates shouldn’t be concerned with such matters, right?"

Feng Yixian admitted it quite openly, clearly stating that it was indeed he who attacked Han Wenxin. He also mentioned that it was a dispute within the worldly society, referring to those shady dealings understood by those present.

But what of it? The world is so vast, and there are many such similar businesses. Not to mention further afield, Linchuan Prefecture even had Shadow Pavilion dealing in these unsavory businesses.

In this era, such occurrences were all too common, to the extent that Six Gates often didn’t bother with them—too numerous to manage. And regarding these dark-on-dark, dog-eat-dog affairs, Six Gates was actually pleased to see them play out, as long as they didn’t blatantly harm the common folk or destabilize the order of Daqian.

It was because of these difficult-to-manage situations that the "Shadow Pavilion within the shadows of Daqian" came into existence. Since they couldn’t be eradicated completely, they were instead brought under control.

"It’s not that we don’t care, but rather that we’re too lazy to care," Luo Yan corrected.

"But, if it were just your usual dealings, I, like the others, would be too lazy to care. However, in this case, there’s more to it than just those dark workings."

"Feng Duozhan, do you know? Last night, Han Wenxin died, just less than two miles outside the city on the official road."

"Is that so? I truly had no knowledge of this," Feng Yixian said impassively, "After letting that Han Wenxin escape by chance yesterday, I was actually quite disappointed. I didn’t expect that he would die that night. But this is normal; for us worldly society guests, dying by the roadside is nothing out of the ordinary. Han Wenxin’s death both surprised and seemed inevitable to me.

"Sir, Han Wenxin’s death was not by my hand, and there is no need for me to lie about it. Even if I admitted it, it wouldn’t do me any harm, now would it?"

"No, it would be harmful, Feng Duozhu," Luo Yan reigned in his smile, suddenly adopting a serious demeanor, which left Feng Yixian with an unsettling sense of foreboding.

"Originally, whether Han Wenxin was alive or dead was not my business, as I have said before. After all, he was not a citizen of Daqian but was from Northern Zhou and even had deep connections with some powerful figure in the Northern Zhou Court. His death, if it were to be investigated, certainly wouldn’t concern us, even though he died on Daqian’s soil."

"But the person who killed him is not ordinary. As the Squad Leader of Cao Gang, and having associations with the East Sea, you must be aware of the situation there," Luo Yan glanced meaningfully at the cargo ships moored at the docks, clearly indicating he knew where these ships sailed from.

"Based on the traces left at the scene, the person who killed Han Wenxin is undoubtedly Japanese Ninja. There were many hidden weapons commonly used by Japanese Ninjas left behind," Luo Yan drew a Meteor Dart from his sleeve—with four even corners and edges—an item known in Japan as a ’handheld sword.’

"Feng Duozhu, you attacked Han Wenxin in the afternoon, and by evening, he was killed by a Japanese Ninja’s hand. This fact leaves me no choice but to suspect you. Normally, worldly society disputes that don’t affect the common people are not our concern at Six Gates, and even less so when it’s a case of the underworld policing itself. But when it comes to collusion with Japanese, we at Six Gates simply cannot overlook it."

"Feng Duozhu, now tell me, would admitting to killing Han Wenxin be harmful to you or not!"

Feng Yixian could no longer maintain his calm demeanor. Ever since Luo Yan mentioned the ’Japanese,’ his smile had vanished, replaced by a gloominess he couldn’t hide.

Private dealings with Japan are seen as a grave act of treason; in this era, there are no such things as immigrants. A country’s imprint cannot be erased from its people’s identity. Even if relations between two countries were good, a Daqian person couldn’t just become Japanese, especially when Japanese pirates frequently raided Daqian’s maritime trade and vessels, hardly a sign of a friendly nation.

Of course, the situation between Daqian and Northern Zhou was different. After all, both countries were inhabited by Central Plains people, and Northern Zhou was formerly the Great Zhou Dynasty that reigned over the Central Plains. To the world, they were all seen as Central Plains people.

"What is your name, sir?" Feng Yixian finally asked Luo Yan for his name.

It was Luo Yan who had led the Six Gates constables to surround the docks, and Feng Yixian hadn’t taken him seriously—such was the confidence of someone at the top echelon in Linchuan Prefecture. He wasn’t intimidated by an upstart from afar. Moreover, with the support of Lin Tengyuan, a Silver Seal Constable from the Six Gates stationed in Linchuan Prefecture, he felt no fear.

But now he realized he had underestimated this unknown young man.

"Luo Yan," Luo Yan said blandly, "Silver Seal Constable Luo Yan of Six Gates. This is Bu Lengchuan, also a Silver Seal constable. We are both peers of Lin Tengyuan, Duozhu Feng, and I’m afraid Mr. Lin is in no position to command us."

Luo Yan simply introduced his and Bu Lengchuan’s names along with their ranks within Six Gates. He did not mention whom they had apprenticed under. Relying on a master’s connections to advance wasn’t something to be proud of. Despite Luo Yan and Bu Lengchuan actually having real merits and abilities, one couldn’t help what others might think. As such, Luo Yan seldom mentioned his apprenticeship while outside.

However, Feng Yixian could still make a guess, after all, there were only a few Silver Seal constables around twenty years old in the entire Six Gates, and they were far better known than other long-serving Silver Seal constables.

"So it turns out both of you apprenticed under Chasing Wind Divine Constable and Blood Hand Divine Constable. I truly have long admired your great reputations. I can swear to the heavens that although I’ve committed many unjust acts in my life, I have never committed treason. Should I break this oath, may thunder strike me down and deny me a peaceful death," Feng Yixian struggled to suppress the gloom from his expression, replacing it with a smile as he flattered the two men from Luo Yang, speaking righteously and making a solemn oath. His swiftly changing expressions were truly as versatile as some kind of color-changing reptile, an admirable feat indeed.

However, Luo Yan was utterly unimpressed, stating directly, "Whether you’re innocent or not is not for you to decide, but for us. Now, you need only surrender without a fight."

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.