"It's the reinforcement signal from the Patrol Armor Bureau!" Li Fu'an's expression changed slightly as he recognized the signal smoke from the Patrol Armor Bureau, and he immediately reacted.
"Let's go."
Only a Patrol Guard or Patrol Captain could release this signal smoke, and they must have encountered a tricky problem; otherwise, they wouldn't seek reinforcements.
Of course, the reinforcements would only be other members of the Patrol Guard, not them, the Night Patrols, who lacked combat strength.
Li Fu'an didn't want to get involved and wanted to drag Song Changming away.
However, Song Changming's feet seemed rooted to the ground, and he didn't move.
In the past, in such situations, he always chose to protect himself and avoided leaving at the first sign, following Li Fu'an.
But this time, he hesitated a bit.
The Soul-breaking Saber had just made a breakthrough, and he was looking for an opportunity to prove himself.
This was an opportunity, albeit a risky one since he wasn't clear about the situation.
Being too hasty might mean not earning merit but losing his life instead.
Even though he had one life in reserve, it had taken him more than ten years to save up...
Should he gamble?
"Changming?" Li Fu'an was puzzled as he could not move Song Changming.
This kid used to be very clever and would have been long gone by now; why was he so sluggish today?
Song Changming took one last look at the dark alley, his thoughts churned a few times, and finally, he turned to leave with Li Fu'an.
He decided to wait; his sword skill still had room for improvement, and there were clearly other opportunities with more certainty. Why take the risk this time?
Stay calm; it's good to be decisive, but there's no need to be reckless.
His advantage lay in time; he had plenty of time to accumulate and wait, so there was no need for rash bravery.
A few days later, Song Changming heard about that night.
To capture a highly rewarded thief, more than a dozen Patrol Guards died, and finally, the director of Houli Street had to personally intervene to successfully capture him.
Song Changming was fortunate not to act impulsively that night; otherwise, another Night Patrol might have been added to the death list.
To render several Patrol Captains helpless, with Patrol Guards suffering heavy casualties, and even to disturb the director, this level of criminal was too much for ten people like him to handle.
"Still not strong enough..." Song Changming lamented.
While becoming a Patrol Guard promised a brighter future and better treatment, he needed enough strength to protect himself.
After that, Song Changming still practiced his sword daily and worked diligently every night, improving daily.
Time flew by, with winter giving way to spring, and spring to summer, and half a year had passed.
Inside the fence, in the courtyard, Song Changming was bare-chested, revealing his strong muscles.
Approaching nineteen, he was shedding his youthful awkwardness, with a face showing more vigor.
With a long sword in hand, he swung continuously, the roaring sword wind fierce and imposing.
Suddenly, Song Changming's blade shifted, and the fierce strength vanished instantly.
His eyes shone brighter and brighter, and visibly, his strikes became faster and harder to predict.
Buzz!
At one moment, as the sword wind rose again, it emitted a ghostly wail, chilling to the bone.
A swordsman of the Ghost Blade Faction practiced to minor achievement, gaining a strand of Yin Ghost Blade Technique!
And now, Heaven Rewards Diligence, Song Changming's sword skill finally had some success!
He stopped and sheathed his blade.
The sword blade scraped the ground, sending dirt flying, leaving a few inches deep sword mark, showing substantial power.
Though Song Changming had not formally refined his body, his physique naturally grew much stronger after practicing with the sword.
"Minor Success Realm!"
Song Changming wiped the sweat off his face, feeling the strand of sword momentum he had just unleashed, joy evident on his face.
After half a year practicing the sword, this thread of sword momentum was his biggest gain!
This was also an important standard for judging the achievement of sword skills.
Often, among expert swordsmen, the competitor is whose sword skill is more exquisite and whose sword momentum stronger.
Only those who grasp the power of 'momentum' can be called experts.
[Soul-breaking Saber: Minor Achievement (0/2000)]
"This should be enough."
Song Changming sheathed his sword and stood firm; this wave of accumulation now gave him confidence in his own strength.
With enough strength, many things became easier.
On this day.
Houli Street, Fugui Restaurant.
Liang Chuan Mountain led a group of Patrol Guards charging inside, startling many diners on the first floor.
"Lord Official, what's going on here?" The restaurant shopkeeper saw that Liang Chuan Mountain and the others were not there to dine and quickly stepped forward to greet them.
"We're here to make an arrest; stay out of this." Liang Chuan Mountain said with a stern face and then led the Patrol Guards briskly upstairs.
"It's here!" A scout whispered, pointing to a private room on the third floor.
"Are you sure?" Liang Chuan Mountain squinted at the private room, asking.
"Absolutely, the leader of the Tengya Mountain Bandit Army, Chen Beihu, listed on the wanted order worth one hundred silver coins, appeared on Changting Street before, and now he's drifted to our Houli Street!" The scout said with conviction.
The Patrol Guards behind him all had eyes sparkling at the mention of the one hundred silver coins reward.
This wasn't a small amount, almost enough to match two years of their salary.
Liang Chuan Mountain no longer hesitated, raised his hand, and the Patrol Guards immediately aimed their hand crossbows at the private room.
One of the Patrol Guards kicked open the wooden door of the private room, only to find it empty, with a large open window letting in the summer breeze.
Seeing this, the Patrol Guards immediately looked out the window, where they saw a burly man with a wide-brimmed hat hiding his face, clashing weapons with several Patrol Guards standing guard outside the restaurant.
"Chase!" Liang Chuan Mountain snorted coldly and ordered in a low voice.
"Sir, should we send up a signal smoke?" A Patrol Guard asked.
"Signal, my ass! Do you want me to share this merit? A mere bandit worth a hundred silver, today I will take him down!" Liang Chuan Mountain glared at the Patrol Guard and leaped from the third-floor pavilion to personally pursue.
"Damn it!" Chen Beihu chopped down a pestering Patrol Guard and quickly fled.
He had only come to the county city to buy grain, thinking that keeping a low profile while mingling with the crowd was very safe.
Unexpectedly, he ended up on the wanted list with a reward, no longer an unknown pawn in the Bandit Army.
Although he was happy to have made a name for himself and become a notable figure, the premise was that he had to escape the county city safely; otherwise, the joy would be premature.
Another restaurant on Houli Street.
"You say Liang Chuan Mountain is in pursuit of a wanted criminal?" Sun Wenyan listened to his scout's urgent report and put down his wine cup.
"It seems to be someone from the Tengya Mountain Bandit Army who appeared on Changting Street previously," the scout said.
"Bandit army..." Sun Wenyan frowned even more tightly.
Considering that the felon had the identity of a rebellious bandit and a reward on his head, this merit was significant; he then asked, "Have they caught him?"
"They probably haven't yet; that bandit is very cunning. He had already fled with injuries," the scout said, having witnessed Liang Chuan Mountain attempting to capture someone in the street.
Sun Wenyan smiled slightly, pleased that they hadn't caught him yet.
Liang Chuan Mountain hadn't signaled for help yet, probably not wanting to share the glory.
But now that Sun Wenyan knew about it, he couldn't let this juicy piece of merit fall into the mouth of another Patrol Captain.
"Let's go, arrest him!" Sun Wenyan quickly stood up and ordered his Patrol Guards.