Outside the pharmacy.

Muffled discussion drifted over from the cleaning crew. Lu Chao glanced their way, his gaze sweeping across their familiar, envious faces.

The sound of footsteps heralded Fatty Cui’s arrival. He trotted over, bowing and scraping as he fawned over Captain Yang and Chen Xiao.

After they went inside, he quickly sidled up to Lu Chao.

"Lu... Lu Patrol."

The scheming, difficult expression that usually graced the balding, middle-aged man’s face was gone, replaced by a purely obsequious smile.

Fatty Cui fumbled in his pocket, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and offered one to him.

Lu Chao raised an eyebrow and held up a hand to refuse.

"Where’s Old Cheng?"

"Heh, well, you know how the logistics team has been short-staffed lately."

Standing before Lu Chao, Fatty Cui awkwardly retracted the cigarette. "I was thinking, Old Cheng is retiring in a couple of years anyway," he said with a fawning smile. "So I took the liberty of discussing it with Leader Wang of the logistics team and had him transferred over there."

"What do you think...?"

he asked, trying to curry favor. His eyes were filled with cautious hope, and he paid no mind to the stares from the other cleaners.

Lu Chao fell silent at his words, then gave him a long, hard look.

The logistics team was a cushy job—no harsh weather, low risk, and the pay was exactly the same. It was a coveted position many of the cleaners wanted.

Back when he was being targeted, he had Old Cheng to thank for getting him out of trouble several times.

And now... He knew why Fatty Cui had acted on his own. He was also well aware that the only reason renting an apartment had gone so smoothly was because this man had been running around, helping him look at several different places.

It was all because of their past verbal clashes and the recent change in his own strength and status.

"Alright."

With a slight nod, Lu Chao said no more.

Their past squabbles weren’t a life-or-death grudge. The man had paid a price and apologized multiple times; there was no need to keep holding it against him.

Understanding the unspoken message, Fatty Cui visibly relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.

He laid on a bit more flattery before tactfully taking his leave.

"Looks like that Fatty Cui is really afraid of you."

Just as Fatty Cui left, Chen Xiao finished documenting the scene and came over.

There was a teasing look in his eyes, a smile playing on his lips. Lu Chao just shrugged helplessly.

Without offering an explanation, he followed him to process the paperwork for the bodies and to re-document the crime scene.

Based on his past experience recovering bodies, Lu Chao couldn’t help but frown. Something about this crime scene felt off.

"Found anything?"

Yang Wangtao strode over, his tone like a teacher testing a student. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Chen Xiao pointed to the destroyed surveillance cameras, suspecting that this was a long-premeditated operation.

"Besides, to kill four Pharmacists so easily, the culprit has to be a skilled martial artist."

Yang Wangtao was noncommittal, his gaze then turning to Lu Chao. "And you, Xiaochao."

"Captain Yang, I think there’s something wrong with the bodies."

After a moment’s thought, Lu Chao pointed to the bodies that had been moved to the side. "They all died from broken necks, but on one of them, the heart was also shattered by a concussive force."

"If the goal was just to kill them, that’s overkill... I think the killer did it on purpose, to disguise their habits or fighting style."

Oh?

At his words, Chen Xiao looked surprised, then nodded slowly.

Yang Wangtao’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes lit up as he looked at Lu Chao.

"Not bad," he offered, a rare compliment. "It seems you’ve improved a lot this past month."

Lu Chao smiled. He had indeed learned a few things from tagging along to crime scenes.

"This method of shattering the heart is actually quite similar to Qiu Shan and his group."

"Also..."

Yang Wangtao took out a list and handed it to them.

"This is the pharmacy’s inventory list. I just checked it. A lot of medicine is missing, but they took more antibiotics than anything else."

"If I’m not mistaken, the killer is likely seriously injured and in urgent need of medicine to recover."

When he finished, Lu Chao and Chen Xiao exchanged a look. They were both visibly shaken, now understanding the crucial point.

Injured, in desperate need of medicine, unable to purchase it through legitimate channels, and using a similar fighting technique.

It all pointed to one person.

"Captain, could it be..."

"It’s possible, but we can’t be certain."

In response to Chen Xiao’s question, Yang Wangtao said steadily, "It could also be someone else in disguise, trying to take advantage of the chaos to throw us off their trail."

"All in all, I’m afraid everyone will have to work a little harder for a while."

He pointed to the list of antibiotics. This was just one clue; they would still need to stake out and investigate various pharmacies and clinics.

The third squad only had four people. Other squads were also vying for the case, so the task would be anything but easy.

But investigation tasks usually came with a temporary bonus and a chance to earn merit. Lu Chao and Chen Xiao looked at each other, then both smiled and nodded, accepting the assignment.

...

「For several days.」

Lu Chao balanced his time between the Patrol Department and the boxing hall.

Some days he was patrolling the streets and recovering bodies, staking out pharmacies to help with the investigation. On others, he was training hard at the hall, honing his body and strength and developing his Life Energy.

「Then one day.」

"As expected of Senior Brother Shen, he defeated that guy in just three moves."

"I heard his Life Energy has already reached 30. He’s no pushover."

"With Senior Brother Shen’s talent, he’ll probably reach the Professional Level before the end of the year."

"Speaking of which, a lot of people from other martial arts halls have been coming to spar these past few days... Do you guys think Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall might be behind it?"

Muttered discussions arose from all corners of the training hall as dozens of eyes focused on the central ring.

A young man in a cyan Martial Arts uniform was pale, clutching his torso as he knelt on the ground.

He was a fighter from Flying Eagle Martial Arts Hall who had come to Jinshi Boxing Hall first thing in the morning to issue a sparring challenge.

He was defeated by Shen Tianchen in less than three moves.

"You’re too weak."

His tone was flat. In the ring, Shen Tianchen remained perfectly nonchalant, his posture ramrod straight as he looked down on his opponent.

"You..."

Sensing the contempt in Shen Tianchen’s gaze, the youth from Flying Eagle Martial Arts Hall flushed beet-red. His expression was livid.

But with such a gap in their strength, he couldn’t argue.

He could only retreat from the stage in disgrace, following an elder out of the hall.

Instantly, cheers erupted inside the boxing hall. More and more gazes turned to Shen Tianchen on the stage, filled with admiration.

Senior Brother Xu, Senior Brother Sun, and others quickly swarmed around him, showering him with compliments.

"Senior Brother Lu, do you think it’s a sure thing that Senior Brother Shen will break through to the Professional Level?"

In the rest area, a sweat-drenched Li Dong wiped his brow as he asked curiously. His pale gray training uniform was soaked through.

Lu Chao didn’t answer the question. He just met the boy’s gaze and offered a gentle reminder, "You’ve only been here two months, haven’t you?"

"Uh..."

For a moment, Li Dong was stunned.

Then, realization dawned. His expression faltered, and he let out an embarrassed laugh.

A moment later, he pushed through his exhaustion and, with a mix of grim determination and hope, walked back into the training area.

The progress of others had little to do with him.

His most pressing goal was to reach the Fighting Level as quickly as possible.

"That kid."

Shaking his head, a panel flashed before Lu Chao’s eyes.

He could clearly see Li Dong’s Life Energy. His progress was slow. If he didn’t give it his all, he would have a hard time breaking through Rock Hide.

As for Shen Tianchen.

Lu Chao glanced at him from afar, a flicker in his eyes, before quietly looking away.

Perhaps because the recent martial arts tournament had brought the hall overnight fame, more and more people were showing up for "sparring exchanges."

Some wanted to make a name for themselves by defeating Jinshi Boxing Hall, attracting media attention and funding. Others just wanted to test the waters and find some easy targets.

And beyond that...

"Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall..."

His gaze swept over several other young fighters from other halls who were waiting in the sparring area.

Perhaps realizing Shen Tianchen was too tough a nut to crack, they quickly changed targets and began approaching Senior Brother Xu and the others. One of them was even watching him, and their eyes met for an instant.

The thought sparked a memory of recent rumors.

Shen Tianchen had made his name at the tournament by challenging Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall in a single, decisive battle.

The two halls had naturally become rivals.

It was possible that Thunder Extreme was behind some of these recent challenges, trying to gauge the hall’s true strength.

’Whatever. That’s a problem for the higher-ups.’

Shaking his head, Lu Chao put it out of his mind.

Master Luo, Senior Brother Zheng, and the others weren’t weaklings. Since they dared to make that move in the first place, they must have a way to handle the fallout.

With that, he decided to head to the training area and continue his own practice.

But unexpectedly...

"Excuse me, Junior Brother."

An unfamiliar young man from the waiting area strode over, looking as if he’d been observing him for some time.

"May I ask, are you Junior Brother Lu Chao?"

"Oh?"

Lu Chao’s eyebrow twitched, but he nodded slowly.

’I’m not exactly famous at the hall,’ Lu Chao thought. ’For him to know who I am, he must have done his homework.’

"Heh heh."

The young man chuckled, his expression visibly relaxing. A hint of smug relief flashed in his eyes.

’Finally found the weakest one,’ he thought, cupping his fists. "I am Lv Chengfeng of Cangyun Martial Arts Hall."

"I can see that Junior Brother Lu has a solid foundation and a steady aura."

He was smiling, but his eyes held a calculating, mocking glint. "I was wondering if you would honor me with a sparring match?"