We're practicing all martial arts, so why did you switch to easy mode?

Chapter 45 Tao Wenxuan's Scheme Enters the Second Layer
"According to the information we have, this Wei Jie is a protector of the Rebirth Sect. He is very powerful and is very likely a martial artist who practices internal energy cultivation."

Moreover, he is elusive and difficult to capture. If Yang Zhuangshi can capture him, the county government is willing to pay two hundred taels of silver.

If Warrior Yang can kill him, I am personally willing to give Warrior Yang another hundred taels of silver!

Tao Wenxuan told Su Chen about Wei Jie, clearly hoping that Su Chen would take on the task; otherwise, he wouldn't have offered a higher price.

Faced with the temptation of three hundred taels, Su Chen did not immediately agree, for high returns meant high risks.

Tao Wenxuan has clearly stated that Wei Jie is a martial artist who practices the "Qin" skill. There are four stages in the "Qin" skill training, and the strength varies greatly between each stage.

With Su Chen's current strength, he would have to be cautious even when dealing with two martial artists of equal strength, let alone a martial artist who might be stronger than him.

This is not speculation. After all, this person is a protector of the Rebirth Sect. Even if he has not mastered the Great Strength, he is at least a martial artist who has mastered the Lesser Strength.

It should be noted that Chu Ming, who had not even reached the initial stage of Qi cultivation, was protected by two martial artists who had just entered the Qi cultivation stage. This is enough to show that martial artists of this level might just be slightly more powerful thugs within the Rebirth Sect.

As a protector, Wei Jie's strength, no matter how weak, can't be worse than that of a thug, right?

"I need to think about it. Is there a time limit for this bounty mission?" Su Chen pondered for a moment before giving his answer.

These words relieved Tao Wenxuan; the fact that he hadn't immediately refused meant there was still a chance.

However, he was secretly surprised; this brave man Yang seemed to be more powerful than he had guessed.

"No!" Tao Wenxuan shook his head and said. This bounty mission was just something he came up with on a whim, so there was no deadline.

Su Chen nodded, then looked at the two of them and said, "If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave now!"

“Brave Yang, if you want to deal with Wei Jie, I have some information. Wei Jie may appear in Blue Leaf Town in five days.”

As he spoke, Tao Wenxuan asked the clerk to bring out Wei Jie's portrait. After looking at it for a moment, Su Chen said, "Good!"

He didn't say whether he wanted to go or not, and Tao Wenxuan didn't press him for details. Instead, he had his advisor escort him away.

After seeing Su Chen off, the clerk returned to the main hall, where Tao Wenxuan asked, "Have you brought back the bodies of Chu Ming and the others?"

The advisor replied, "It has already been brought back."

"Then have their bodies hung in the marketplace as a warning to others!"

Upon hearing this, the clerk hesitated for a moment, but still nodded: "Yes!"

"Where do you think this Yang Guo is from?" Tao Wenxuan asked after a pause.

The advisor shook his head: "He doesn't seem to be from White Stone City. He seems to have appeared out of nowhere. If I'm not mistaken, 'Yang Guo' should be his alias. This person is living incognito near White Stone City."

"That makes sense, but this person is indeed very strong. It's just a pity that he can't be used by me." Tao Wenxuan didn't care and muttered to himself.

The advisor said, "If you want to recruit him, sir, why not offer him a large sum of money? I think he is extremely greedy, so this might not be a bad idea."

"No, let's wait until he survives," Tao Wenxuan shook his head.

Upon hearing this, the clerk stroked his chin, seemingly guessing something, and asked, "Is Your Excellency worried that he is no match for Wei Jie?"

Tao Wenxuan didn't answer, but instead asked, "Do you think he'll go to Blue Leaf Town in five days?"

"Well..." the advisor thought for a moment and said, "He might go, but he might not actually do anything. He seems to have his own set of behavioral standards."

As he spoke, he recalled the incident of killing Chu Ming. Su Chen delayed taking action for five days, which showed that Su Chen was not an impulsive person, but rather very cautious.

"However..." The advisor seemed to have thought of something and hesitated.

"But what?"

"My lord, the news of Wei Jie's appearance in Blue Leaf Town is too coincidental. We received this news as soon as Chu Ming died. I'm worried it might be a trap!"

Upon hearing this, Tao Wenxuan chuckled and said, "Of course there's a trap. This person probably already knows that we're the ones who made the move."

"Then, sir, you still..." "The situation in White Stone City has been stagnant for so long, it's time for someone to break it."

Tao Wenxuan shook his head, offering no further explanation.

If Su Chen were to kill Wei Jie, it would suit his purposes perfectly, and might even draw out the traitors of the Rebirth Sect, allowing him to wipe them out in one fell swoop.

If Wei Jie were to kill Su Chen, there would be no loss for him, and he wouldn't care about Su Chen's life or death.

The clerk beside him was silent for a while, then said, "Sir, recently bandits have been rampant outside the city, causing panic among the people in the city. If this continues, something unexpected may happen."

Tao Wenxuan waved his hand after hearing this: "They're just a bunch of rabble, no need to worry about them. If there's a popular uprising, we'll suppress it by force."

After that, he turned around and left.

……

Blue Leaf Town.

A dilapidated courtyard.

As the wind rustled through the grass, several blurry figures could be vaguely seen lurking in the shadows.

Tapping.

Hurried footsteps sounded, and a figure lingered furtively at the courtyard gate. After a moment, he entered the courtyard.

"Defend the Law".

Upon seeing a lean man practicing martial arts in the middle of the courtyard, the man knelt on the ground and respectfully said...

The man seemed not to hear and continued practicing martial arts. Suddenly, he kicked out with one foot, and five or six whooshing sounds immediately came from the air.

A moment later, the man landed on one foot and inadvertently stepped on a stone, which cracked with a snap.

"How are things going?"

The lean man looked at the newcomer and asked softly.

"Reporting to the Protector, the investigation has been completed. Chu Ming and the Zhao brothers were killed by a one-armed man, who is suspected to be a government henchman named Yang Guo."

Yang Guo often worked for the government, killing fugitives. He was very strong and was suspected to be a martial arts practitioner.

However, this person is very mysterious, appearing and disappearing without a trace, like a dragon whose head is seen but not its tail; we have not been able to find out where this person lives.

"Oh? Yang Guo?" Upon hearing this name, the lean man murmured, "And the other matter?"

"Reporting to the Protector, the news that you will be arriving in Blue Leaf Town in five days has been spread," the man said.

"Yes, go down. Keep a close eye on Yang Guo and the government's news, and report back to me as soon as possible."

The lean man waved his hand, and after his men had left, a smile suddenly appeared on his face: "Heh, mysterious? Appearing and disappearing without a trace? You dare to kill my men? Let's see if you can withstand my wrath!"

……

at the same time.

Back home, Su Chen looked at the more than one hundred taels of silver in front of him and pondered:

"Should I choose the Ape Arm Technique or the Iron Shirt Technique? The former might only strengthen my arms, but the latter might enhance my strength."

After thinking for a while, he made a decision and gritted his teeth, saying, "If my strength increases, my power will definitely increase greatly. I should improve my Iron Shirt skill first."

So, Su Chen recharged 100 taels and activated the simple mode of Iron Shirt - Crippled:
[Easy Mode Activated: Take a warm bath for twenty minutes to upgrade Iron Shirt - Remnant Training to Level 2.]

(End of this chapter)