...

...

On the soft couch, Song Yan opened his eyes, patting the plump buttocks of the beauty serving him by his side. She hurriedly got up from the couch, wrapped herself tightly in a plush blanket, bowed to him, and said timidly, "Seventh Master, this servant will take her leave first."

"Hmm."

Hearing Song Yan's response, the beauty hastily stepped out, opening the door.

A gust of bone-chilling wind mixed with snow rushed inside.

The beauty carefully walked out from the side, ignoring the cold outside and the fact that her legs were bare.

The power of authority is far greater than the cold of winter.

The door closed gently.

Song Yan comfortably leaned back on the couch, took a jug of fine wine placed on the side table, and drank a refreshing sip.

Speaking of it, he didn't hesitate for a moment to kill Yan Qi, the Second Gang Leader of the Cao Gang in Shanyang City, and then impersonate him.

In this world where order has collapsed, the hierarchy has become even more rigid amid the chaos. The dark and bloody deeds redefine the perspectives of anyone living in an era of prosperity, making them understand... just how cruel and vile people can be.

Yan Qi was precisely one of those at the upper levels of Shanyang City's exploitive hierarchy.

Neither too high nor too low, he knew the affairs above and below—exactly the kind of person Song Yan aimed to impersonate.

Yan Qi, known as Seventh Master, was the Second Gang Leader of the Cao Gang in Shanyang City, dealing in stockpiling scarce goods and human trafficking.

After all, while order has collapsed here in Shanyang City, some inland countries are still intact. Those countries send lords for "barter," selecting slaves to take away.

Of course, that is just on the surface.

In secret, the Cao Gang was collaborating with the Imperial Court.

The Imperial Court established the "Blood Tax Bureau," where taxes could be paid with humans. If a household couldn't afford the taxes, they could offer people as substitutes for several years. The court then sent these people to dangerous frontlines, collaborating with Immortals to form arrays against the Celestial Calamity Beasts.

On the other hand, the court issued "food tickets" and set up "porridge shelters." The porridge was thin but could save lives.

Had Song Yan not impersonated Yan Qi, he wouldn't have easily discovered the hidden intricacies...

The so-called "setting up of porridge shelters" was merely to see which families still had strong men.

If a household had men, who wouldn't send them to get porridge?

Thus, those strong men would come, wouldn't they?

Even if it wasn't the men fetching porridge, those distributing the food tickets could easily spot them, couldn't they?

After that, the Cao Gang would seize people, drugging them with incense, then take them away and set "Yin Ships" to transport these strong men to the frontlines.

With Yan Qi's network, Song Yan certainly knew... those strong men sent to the frontlines weren't forming arrays—they were all being "sacrificed to the Mountain God" or "sacrificed to the Sea God."

An Immortal said, people lack virtue, Heaven and Earth are furious, so sacrifices are needed to appease the wrath.

The court had to believe because it was an Immortal's word.

Clearly, they could slaughter you, yet choose to reason with you. Does it matter if the reasoning is correct or not?

What Yan Qi did was to take people.

The Yin Ship escorting was a significant task, handled by the Great Gang Leader.

The conspicuous task of "accompanying foreign lords to select people for barter" was handled by the Third Gang Leader.

The Third Gang Leader was also a woman, a beautiful woman, skilled in conversation.

Song Yan adjusted his pants and twisted his neck. After dressing in sturdy clothes, he grabbed the Ghost Head Saber, went to the courtyard, and swung it in the snowstorm, performing a set of the "Eighteen Techniques of Water Dividing and Wave Breaking."

This "Eighteen Techniques of Water Dividing and Wave Breaking" is the signature swordsmanship of the Cao Gang, derived from the technique of cutting water flows. The moves are expansive, each growing more powerful with greater strength, making it very suitable for close combat on a ship and for a burly figure like the Second Gang Leader.

After the performance, Song Yan "habitually" touched the Flying Locust Stone at his waist.

In the past, Yan Qi once pierced the throats of three Martial Artists with a single stone, ranking as one of the top hidden weapon masters in the Jianghu.

Song Yan always paid great attention to detail, so... Yan Qi's habits became his habits.

At this moment, a Cao Gang disciple outside knelt in the snow and respectfully said, "Seventh Master, that woman is visiting patients again."

Song Yan waved his hand and said in a muffled voice, "I'll go meet her."

...

...

The makeshift free clinic was set up simply in front of a bamboo grove.

The bamboo grove, all old bamboos, appeared gray and desolate. Beside it stood stones painted with red lacquer reading "No Cutting," yet the grove was full of pits and trenches. Not only were there no bamboo shoots, but even the tender bamboos were gone, resembling a dog-gnawed scene, devoid of any unique serenity of a bamboo forest.

The tent was shabby, but the doctor inside was poised and graceful.

Song Yan immediately recognized Wan'Er.

Though Wan'Er was fifty-five years old, with the cultivation resources he provided, she should still appear twenty-five. How could someone with ample Qi Blood appear old?

Yet Wan'Er was old.

Her temples grayed, and her hair was mixed with much white.

Those entering and exiting the free clinic called her "Granny Wan" or "Medicine Bodhisattva"...

The Second Gang Leader of the Cao Gang arrived in person, followed by many gang members, but he just watched from afar without intervening because everyone knew... that Granny Wan was a skilled master.

Song Yan squinted at the godly doctor in the clinic, watching her treat a child. It only took a few swift moves for the frail child to regain vitality, after which she prescribed a medicine for the mother to take home and brew.

She didn't ask for any money.

Someone in the Cao Gang praised, "Seventh Master, this old woman's medical skill is truly extraordinary, no wonder the foreign bigwigs fancy her. If a family had such a doctor, wouldn't everyone live longer and healthier lives? Impressive, impressive..."

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