The next day.
The gloomy weather of last night had turned into a steady drizzle by the morning.
In the room, Song Changming donned his raincoat, with his father's familiar cough sounding in his ears, while in the woodshed his mother was concocting medicine, the bitter scent of the brew filling the air, just like always.
Whenever the weather turned cold, his elderly father would often fall ill.
"Father, Mother, I'm off."
After dressing himself properly, Song Changming announced, then stepped out the door.
Rain pounded on the raincoat, the sound echoing around him.
Soon, his long boots were soaked through with mud and water, but Song Changming paid no heed, merely quickening his pace to report to the Patrol Armor Bureau, eager not to miss the hour.
Compared to the solitude of the night, the streets in daytime, even in rain, bustled with many pedestrians, some like Song Changming wrapped in sturdy raincoats and wearing bamboo hats, or holding oil-paper umbrellas, their movements hurried.
In the morning, most were busy making a living, and few were out purely for leisure.
Song Changming's steps were swift, not stopping for a moment, following the fastest path to report for duty at the Patrol Armor Bureau on Houli Street.
At the Patrol Armor Bureau, many armored patrol guards were coming in and out, their numbers considerable.
Song Changming kept his eyes forward, his head slightly bowed, heading straight to the corner where the Night Patrol was stationed to sign in.
"Changming, hurry up, the orders have come down from above, go to the east of the city to haul bodies." Before long, Li Fu'an strode in, spotting Song Changming, he immediately spoke.
"Alright." Song Changming wasn't surprised.
Last night, the gangs fought in the streets, and surely many met their end.
You couldn't expect these gang members to clean up neatly after their brawls.
Such aftermath work naturally fell to them, the Night Patrol.
As for why they waited until this morning to instruct them to transport the bodies to be dealt with outside the city, it involved an unwritten rule.
Generally, valuables like money or relatively valuable items could be found left on the gang corpses.
These spoils naturally weren't meant for them, the Night Patrol. Normally, during the night, the on-duty patrol guards would get to them first.
After they'd finished checking the bodies, then they would let the Night Patrol do the work.
It was all understood without needing to say it out loud, nothing more to be said.
Swiftly, the two ventured through the rain towards the city's eastern gate, where a place for temporarily keeping bodies was situated.
Upon arrival, they were met with a pile of corpses resembling a small mountain; Song Changming roughly estimated there were at least forty to fifty.
If he'd just started this job, upon seeing such a number of bodies, he might have been mentally unsettled.
However, having adapted to this world and due to the nature of his role, facing these corpses no longer fazed him; his inner state was calm as water.
Already, a group of Night Patrol was there, heads down, searching the bodies with practiced movements.
"Damn, these folks work fast!" Li Fu'an remarked, unable to resist sneering at the sight.
Even though the patrol guards had already gone through the bodies, leaving little of value for them.
Sometimes with luck they might still find a hidden gem, and finding even a small coin was a gain.
Especially on a rainy night like this, patrol guards had little patience to search thoroughly, thus their chance for leftover discovery increased.
Li Fu'an muttered under his breath, yet his actions were swift, quickly joining in on the body search.
Song Changming didn't act alone either, even moving slightly faster than Li Fu'an.
Yet searching bodies was purely luck-based, and having passed through multiple hands, there was truly little left of value.
After flipping through several, he found nothing, but he did glimpse Li Fu'an discreetly pocketing something.
Everyone was on the same page, in this line of work, sharp eyes and quick hands determined success, whoever found it, kept it.
"Hmm?!"
Song Changming suddenly focused on one body's trouser leg, feeling an unusual thickness beneath his touch.
Without hesitation, he exerted force, tearing open the black trouser leg.
Inside the trouser-leg lining was sewn a palm-sized piece of strange fabric.
A hidden inner pocket?
Hidden so well, it surely contained something valuable!
Song Changming immediately pulled apart the attached fabric, retrieving the concealed item.
Inside were two folded sheets of parchment, covered in dense writing.
And also a delicate black ring, seemingly made of an unidentified metal, its surface shining ominously.
Song Changming didn't study them closely, especially given the porosity of the parchment to rain, he quickly secured them.
Moments later, the body-search ended, and Song Changming and Li Fu'an began loading the bodies onto a flat wooden cart.
Together, they dragged it outside the city, other Night Patrol doing the same.
No one mentioned the search results.
A few miles outside Donglai County City, there lies a vast river known as Luolong River.
In the city, the simplest and most convenient way to dispose of bodies is to throw them into this river.
As for the issue of water pollution, it has never been a problem since ancient times.
The river is full of ominous fish, and these bodies, once sunk, leave not even a trace by the end of the day.
"Hurry up, I've heard that the bandits outside the city are getting serious lately, we can't stay long," Li Fu'an said, wiping the rain off his face as they reached the riverbank.
Song Changming had also heard about this and didn't want to stay longer either.
Both of them struggled to throw the bodies into the river, made heavier by the soaking rain.
Li Fu'an, being older, found it hard to straighten his back after they finished moving the bodies.
"Changming, let's sit for a while, let me catch my breath," Li Fu'an said, panting.
"Alright, Brother Li, you rest while I keep a lookout," Song Changming nodded, scanning the surroundings.
Should there really be bandits, he would grab Li Fu'an immediately and run back.
However, just as Song Changming walked a few steps away, he suddenly halted, vaguely hearing something.
"Changming, what's the matter?" Li Fu'an, sitting on a large stone by the river, noticed and asked.
"Nothing, maybe I drank too much rainwater, Brother Li, I need to relieve myself," Song Changming turned back jokingly.
"What are you saying, hurry on," Li Fu'an laughed along and looked away.
Song Changming walked a bit further, and after confirming Li Fu'an couldn't see him, he curiously reached into his bosom and took out the Black Ring he had just found on a corpse.
"Was it you who made the sound?"
The ring was dark and glossy, with a mysterious and eerie light swirling on its surface.
"Heh heh heh, indeed it was I, young one, you react quite quickly," the ring's voice confirmed that Song Changming hadn't been hallucinating.
"..." Song Changming fell silent for a moment.
"Young one, don't stay silent. This meeting with me today is a grand fortune for you, a rare opportunity in a thousand years," the ring spoke slowly.
"Opportunity?"
"As long as you do as I say, I can help you attain wealth, power, divine skills, even immortality!"
The voice from the ring sounded like that of a highly esteemed elder, with an aged, authoritative tone that inspired belief.
The words were full of temptation, and to an average or weak-minded person, they might seem like a divine providence, inspiring worship of the elder within the ring as an immortal.
But Song Changming did not rush to judgment, instead asking, "So, what exactly are you? A person? Or the ring?"
"Young one, if you were to know my true identity, it would bring you unspeakable calamity. Do you really wish to find out?"
"No, thank you." Song Changming immediately lost interest, indifferent to whether the ring's words were true or false.
The ring let out a soft snort and continued.
"Those two parchment scrolls you found are copies of the 'Soul-breaking Saber' and 'Great Strength Bull Demon Skill' that I previously had someone transcribe. While not exceptionally profound, they're well-suited for someone like you who hasn't begun martial arts training yet.
If not for the previous owner's misfortune, dying before even starting, this opportunity wouldn't have fallen to you."
Song Changming understood, realizing that the ring, previously picked up by some gang member, had ended up in his possession after that person's death.
"There's no such thing as a free lunch, what do you need me to do in return?" Song Changming glanced back towards Li Fu'an, confirming he wasn't approaching before continuing to ask.
"Conceal my existence and seek the things I need. First, I want you to drop blood on the ring; our destinies will be one, and I will help you swiftly gain strength and achieve everything you desire!"
Perhaps realizing this young man wasn't easily swayed, the voice within the ring adopted a more serious tone.
"Well, how about it?"
Song Changming stared at the ring, his face showing no signs of temptation, leaving the consciousness within unsure of his thoughts.
"If you don't believe, you could first try practicing the martial arts on the parchment. Why would I deceive you?"
Heh heh heh, by making such an offer, who could refuse?
After all, if it's true, that could mean boundless wealth and the ultimate temptation of immortality!
"Changming, time to head back!" Li Fu'an's voice, blending with the rain, called from afar.
"Coming." Song Changming took one last look at the ring in his hand, then, as if casually tossing a pebble, threw the ring and its endless temptations into the vast river and turned away.
Immortality?
For others, or any other sentient beings, it might be an irresistible temptation.
But for Song Changming, it was something he already possessed; why crave for it again?
As for wealth, power, and divine skills, with his long life, he had the time to gradually seek and accumulate; he could achieve them all without relying on such mysterious and unfathomable external aids, adding unnecessary risks.
Besides, the ring elder's laugh was unpleasant; he disliked it…
In the river, a fish happened to swim by, saw the glow of the object, and swallowed it whole with a flick of its tail, rippling the water. This unknown but alluring opportunity disappeared without a trace.
...