Chapter 74 : Chapter 74
Chapter 74. Friction
The next day, just as dawn was breaking,
Xu Yuan was practicing Wandering Dragon Step in the courtyard. His figure shifted and turned within a tiny space, stirring up the withered leaves scattered across the ground.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps came from the direction of the street entrance. A martial artist came rushing over, his face full of urgency.
“Street Guard Xu, our Second Squad patrolling the western entrance has been attacked!”
Attacked?
A glint flashed through Xu Yuan’s eyes. After stopping his movement, he stood still and said, “Explain clearly.”
“It was a White Family squad. They took advantage of the morning mist to sneak over, trying to catch us off guard. But Squad Leader Liu was alert and turned the tables on them, surrounding them instead. After fighting, we killed two of them, and the remaining three fled south!”
Liu Kun was the captain of the Second Squad. He had remained at the Third Meridian Realm for a long time, and in daily life he was taciturn and steady by nature.
The martial artist reporting the news spoke very quickly. Swallowing, he continued,
“Squad Leader Liu is leading men in pursuit right now. Judging from the direction... I’m afraid they’ve already fled into Changyuan Street’s territory!”
Changyuan Street was also under Shangyang Family control, and it was not far from Changning Street.
Its Street Guard, Sun Xiaochuan, was not yet twenty-four years old, yet had long since entered the Fourth Meridian. His Thunderclap Fist had also been trained to Minor Mastery, making him another highly eye-catching young talent in recent years.
The one Lin Yue’e was mocking before?
Xu Yuan frowned and thought briefly before saying,
“Prepare a horse. Take me there to have a look.”
…
Changyuan Street, South Alley.
Two corpses lay on the ground, dressed in black brocade uniforms patterned with red lines. They were clearly White Family martial artists.
Nearby, seven or eight Shangyang Family martial artists stood around the scene, but the atmosphere was somewhat tense.
Liu Kun and three of his men stood on one side, their expressions not looking very good.
Facing them was a squad from Changyuan Street. At their head stood a burly man with a fleshy face, arms folded, wearing a leisurely expression.
“We chased them all the way here and forced them into this corner. Naturally, the final blow and the merit should belong to us,” Liu Kun said in a deep voice.
The burly man gave a snort of laughter. “Squad Leader Liu, that’s not quite right.”
“They died on our Changyuan Street territory, and the finishing strike was delivered by our brothers. By the rules, this merit naturally belongs to Changyuan Street.”
“Bullshit! If we hadn’t badly injured them and forced them to flee here, where would you have gotten the chance to swoop in and pick up the leftovers?” A young martial artist behind Liu Kun could not help but curse.
“Hey, watch how you talk.” Several men behind the burly man immediately stepped forward, hands pressing against their saber hilts, their expressions hostile.
Just as the two sides were at sword’s point and bowstring’s tension, the sound of hoofbeats approached from far to near.
Seeing that a Fourth Meridian Street Guard had arrived, both sides stopped arguing. However the matter would end, it would still depend on those in command.
Xu Yuan pulled his horse to a halt, swept his gaze across the scene, and finally looked at Liu Kun. “What happened?”
Liu Kun hurried forward and quickly reported the course of events. At the end, he lowered his voice and said,
“Street Guard Xu, they’re insisting on stealing the credit. They’re clearly trying to pick a fight on purpose.”
Gao Yuan was also a member of his squad, and Xu Yuan gave him a slight nod. Just as he was about to speak, another burst of footsteps sounded from the street entrance.
A handsome young man in a dark black brocade robe, surrounded by a group of subordinates, slowly walked over. He was none other than Changyuan Street’s Street Guard, Sun Xiaochuan.
He looked only twenty-four or twenty-five years old, with a trace of arrogance in his brows that he could not quite conceal.
“Oh? Quite lively here, isn’t it?” Sun Xiaochuan smiled faintly. His gaze lingered on Xu Yuan for a moment before he pretended to suddenly realize something. “So this must be the newly arrived Street Guard Xu? My apologies, my apologies. I’ve been swamped with affairs these past few days and haven’t yet had time to visit Changning Street. Please forgive me.”
Xu Yuan’s expression remained calm as he cupped his fists. “Street Guard Sun is too courteous.”
Sun Xiaochuan walked to the two corpses and casually nudged one with the tip of his foot before looking up with a smile.
“The men below don’t know any better. For them to quarrel over such a trivial matter is truly embarrassing in front of Street Guard Xu.”
“However, since this happened on my Changyuan Street, by the rules, both the merit and the spoils should naturally be handled by Changyuan Street. What does Street Guard Xu think?”
His tone was light, but his eyes carried a trace of scrutiny and a subtle hint of amusement.
Xu Yuan had been drawing too much attention these past few days. As another outstanding member of the younger generation, Sun Xiaochuan inevitably found it unpleasant to watch, and now he rather intended to make an issue out of it.
Xu Yuan glanced at Liu Kun, who immediately understood and said in a low voice,
“During the pursuit, our men also suffered light injuries. By the time those last three fled here, they were already at the end of their strength.”
Xu Yuan nodded and looked at Sun Xiaochuan.
“Street Guard Sun, the men were heavily wounded by our Changning Street squad during pursuit and forced into your territory. Logically speaking, merit should mainly be determined by who did the work in the chase.”
“However, since they fell on Changyuan Street and your brothers also took action, how about splitting the merit eighty-twenty?”
Sun Xiaochuan gave no direct response. The burly man behind him bared his teeth in a grin.
“Street Guard Xu, those words aren’t quite right. Among martial artists, it’s always the harder fist that gets the final say.”
“Since both Street Guards are here, why not follow the old rule? Let the two of you spar... whichever side wins gets the merit.”
The moment those words came out, the eyes of Changyuan Street’s men all lit up, and the way they looked at Xu Yuan carried the flavor of watching a good show.
Though Sun Xiaochuan said nothing, the smile at the corner of his mouth deepened slightly, clearly showing silent approval.
He had already been in the Fourth Meridian for half a year, and his Thunderclap Fist had reached Minor Mastery. If he made a move now, it would be the perfect chance to beat down the other party’s momentum.
The most dazzling genius in Changlin Ward used to be me, and from now on it will only be me! Sun Xiaochuan thought inwardly.
Xu Yuan’s gaze turned cold. To force a duel in the middle of the street like this was clearly putting him on the spot. No matter whether he won or lost, it would affect the prestige of him as a newly appointed Street Guard.
He glanced at that burly man and sneered inwardly. This was completely backwards. Since when did a superior go fight tooth and nail over the interests of the people below?
Naturally, Xu Yuan could not be bothered to do such thankless work. After a brief thought, he said,
“Street Guard Sun, you and I each bear responsibility for a whole street’s defenses and have important duties on our shoulders. If either of us were injured in a clash and delayed proper business, that would be for the worse.”
“How about this instead? Let each of us send our subordinates to compete. Best two out of three. It would both liven things up and decide the outcome. What do you think?”
Sun Xiaochuan sneered inwardly. Xu Yuan made it sound high-minded, but wasn’t he just afraid?
Still, since Xu Yuan had already raised the matter to that level, Sun Xiaochuan could not contradict him. Otherwise, the consequences could be minor or major depending on how it was handled.
“Fine.” Sun Xiaochuan nodded, completely at ease.
The burly man under him was named Lu Kui. He stood at the peak of the Third Meridian, and before cultivating Thunderclap Fist, he had also trained in a body-hardening technique. Among martial artists of the same realm, he rarely met an equal.
As for the three captains under Xu Yuan, they had all been newly transferred in, and their true abilities were unclear. But no matter how one looked at it, none of them seemed likely to steadily defeat Lu Kui.
With his hands clasped behind his back, Sun Xiaochuan said, “Lu Kui, go exchange a few moves with Changning Street’s friends.”
“Gladly!” Lu Kui let out a savage grin and strode forward.
He stood eight chi tall, with arms thicker than an ordinary man’s thighs. The moment he took his place in the field, he exuded a sense of pressure.
Xu Yuan looked behind him. “Liu Kun, go give it a try.”
“Yes.” Liu Kun answered in a deep voice and stepped out from the ranks.
Lu Kui truly lived up to his bear-like body. His moves were broad and open, each carrying tremendous force.
By contrast, Liu Kun fought steadily, but was somewhat rigid and methodical. Even when his attacks connected, they failed to break through Lu Kui’s defense. In the end, after taking a punch to the shoulder, he chose to concede.
The next two rounds were contests between Second Meridian members, and there the difference was far less obvious than it had been between Lu Kui and Liu Kun.
The fighter Changyuan Street sent out was an unremarkable middle-aged martial artist, while Liu Kun’s squad put forward a young man whose eyes burned with hostility.
They had worked themselves to the bone to counter-kill White Family martial artists, only to end up arguing with Changyuan Street’s people over the reward. They had long since been holding in a belly full of anger.
So when he fought now, he was truly fierce. Every move he made aimed for mutual damage and an exchange of injuries. The other side had reservations and quickly admitted defeat.
In the third round, Gao Yuan volunteered himself and stepped into the ring.
He was clearly superior in technique. Within just a few moves, he forced his opponent into such disarray that the man could only hurriedly raise his hand and surrender.
In the end, Changning Street won two rounds and lost one.
…