Universe Infinite Canteen

Deputy Gang Leader Jiang's face darkened a bit as he pondered which disciple was so blind as to pick this moment to steal his thunder.

But when he focused his gaze, he realized that the newcomer was a young man he did not recognize.

Moreover, the young man did not carry a cloth bag on his back, obviously indicating that he was not a member of the Beggar's Gang.

Deputy Gang Leader Jiang frowned and asked, "May I inquire the esteemed name of the gentleman before me, and to which Sect or faction does he belong?"

"My name is Ma Lu, belonging to no Sect or faction."

As soon as Ma Lu finished speaking, Deputy Gang Leader Jiang's frown grew even tighter, "Belonging to no Sect or faction, then how did you get in here? Could it be that you are a spy sent by the Heavenly Dragon Sect?"

As he spoke the latter half of his sentence, his tone turned colder, carrying a hint of chill.

"He is not a spy from the Heavenly Dragon Sect."

Before Ma Lu could speak, someone preempted him with their voice, emerging from the crowd—it was Chu Qianyuan.@@novelbin@@

Ma Lu bowed his hands in respect to Chu, "Protector Chu."

"Young... Young Master Ma, your presence here at this time must surely be for a matter of importance."

With Chu Qianyuan intercepting and addressing him like that, Deputy Gang Leader Jiang felt a surge of displeasure in his heart. Moreover, it seemed to Jiang as if the interruption by this Ma surname earlier was going to be skimmed over per Chu's suggestion, further stirring his annoyance.

Thus, he interjected, "What matter could be more urgent than the upcoming battle? Perhaps it could wait..."

"Yes." Ma Lu once again interrupted him, then unslung the package from his back and took out a small bowl.

He lifted the bowl up, and the next moment all eyes at the scene were drawn to it.

Once Deputy Gang Leader Jiang got a clear view of the small bowl in Ma Lu's hand, he couldn't help but inhale sharply and exclaimed, "The Lotus Bowl—is that the Lotus Bowl you are holding, boy?!"

"Correct, Divine Detective Gu Qingyi of the Iron Clothes Sect asked me to return this Lotus Bowl back to your Sect."

Ma Lu brought up Gu Qingyi not just to share the credit with his excellent partner, but more importantly because he needed to continue leveraging the prestigious name of the Iron Clothes Sect.

Considering the upcoming confrontation would involve influential opponents within the Beggar's Sect with numerous followers, his word as a dubious outsider with no Sect or faction would naturally be suspect.

If he could be associated with the Iron Clothes Sect, it would lend him far greater credibility.

After finishing his explanation, Ma Lu also produced the Divine Detective Token he had obtained from Gu Qingyi before they parted ways.

Deputy Gang Leader Jiang took the Divine Detective Token and thoroughly examined it, eventually nodding and saying,

"It is authentic. However, aren't there only two Divine Detectives in Green Sun County, Wen and Yuan? Where did this Divine Detective Gu come from?"

"Divine Detective Gu is the third daughter of Master Gongsun of the Iron Clothes Sect," Ma Lu explained. "She was tasked by Master Gongsun to assist the Divine Detectives Wen and Yuan in investigating the theft of the Beggar's Sect's Lotus Bowl.

"While detectives Wen and Yuan drew attention in the open, Divine Detective Gu worked in the shadows to recover the Lotus Bowl."

"Ah, is the daughter of Master Gongsun also in Yuchang County? Where is she now? Please, young friend, could you invite her out to meet us?"

Upon hearing that Ma Lu was with the Iron Clothes Sect, Vice Sect Leader Jiang's attitude softened significantly, and even the way he addressed Ma Lu changed from 'boy' to 'young friend.'

But Ma Lu said, "Divine Detective Gu is currently occupied with another pressing matter and will join us later."

"What pressing matter?"

"Divine Detective Gu has located the thieves who stole the Lotus Bowl. Right now, they are hiding inside a dye workshop in the city, and she has gone to apprehend them and bring them to justice."

"Ah, isn't Catcher Gu alone? Won't that be too dangerous?, The ones behind those thieves are the Heavenly Dragon Sect."

Ma Lu shook his head, "This matter is unrelated to the Heavenly Dragon Sect."

As he spoke about the dye workshop, he also observed the reactions of the people around him. He saw Chu Qianyuan's expression flicker, then he turned his head and summoned a Beggar's Gang Member, whispering a few words to him.

Ma Lu remained outwardly calm at the sight.

Vice Sect Leader Jiang appeared somewhat surprised, "Young Master Ma says the Heavenly Dragon Sect is unrelated to this matter, is that likely? The thief who stole the bowl has already admitted to being instructed by Merry Woods."

"Someone else forced him to do it, merely borrowing the name of Merry Woods to intensify the conflict between your sect and the Heavenly Dragon Sect."

While they were talking, the Law Enforcement Elder had already taken the Lotus Bowl from Ma Lu's hands and inspected it thoroughly three times.

Afterward, he did not say much, just nodded and said to Ma Lu, "Thank you, Catcher Gu, for retrieving the Lotus Bowl for the Beggar's Sect, you will be handsomely rewarded."

He paused then added, "I owe you a favor."

The first part of his statement was on behalf of the Beggar's Sect to express thanks to Ma Lu and Gu Qingyi, but the second part was a personal gesture of gratitude.

The Lotus Bowl had been under his charge, so the theft of this Beggar's Sect treasure was also his responsibility; Ma Lu finding it meant he wouldn't have to become a criminal in the Beggar's Sect.

This favor was indeed significant.

Upon hearing this, Ma Lu didn't stand on ceremony. With this sentence from him, this time's provisions would definitely not be a concern, and he might even be able to procure some seeds to take back home.

It's better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish.

Given how expensive secret medicine is, it's more cost-effective to grow it oneself, without worrying about supply being cut off.

"Actually, I have a favor to ask right now," Ma Lu continued.

"Please speak, Young Master Ma."

"I want to know if there has been any disaster in the last twenty or thirty years in Yuchang County that killed over a hundred people in one go."

"Twenty years ago, Qingzhou suffered a severe drought, and the death toll was far more than a hundred, I'm afraid it was in the tens of thousands," the Law Enforcement Elder recalled.

"Back then, outside Yuchang County, there were swarms of refugees so dense it frightened the magistrate from even daring to open the city gates."

"I'm not talking about natural calamities, but human-caused disasters," Ma Lu said.

"Whenever natural disasters strike, there will inevitably be a human disaster as well. When the refugees could no longer survive, they had to turn to banditry. During that time, Qingzhou had at least a hundred bands of robbers burning, killing, and pillaging everywhere.

"On Crouching Tiger Hill, the largest camp there, Sha's Village, was made up of mountain dwellers who couldn't make a living and eventually had to flee to the mountains for a way to survive. Their village chief, Sha Dingjun, used to be an acquaintance of mine.

"He wasn't bad at heart, but he was compelled by the times: leading the mountain people into the hills, they usually farmed there, and only went down to rob when there wasn't enough food.

"By comparison, the band of robbers that took to the mountains before them were far more vicious. The leader's name was Ren Tongtian, and his men called him Tongtian Taoist.

"Despite claiming to be a hermit, he did all sorts of evil deeds, including taking pleasure in refining pills with living people; hundreds died at his hands.

"Eventually, Gang Leader Deng couldn't stand it any longer, leading the Beggar's Sect's elites to storm Crouching Tiger Hill, engaging those bandits in fierce battle for a day and a night, wiping out everyone in their camp without a single survivor.

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"I too participated in that battle back then. Tongtian Taoist seemed to come out of nowhere, and his martial arts were truly formidable.

"I almost lost my life at his hands; fortunately, Gang Leader Deng came to my rescue just in time, executing our Beggar's Sect's supreme move, the Innate Pure Yang Palm, and killed that bandit leader."