Becoming a Saint From the Iron Armor Skill

But Su Chenglin’s next words sent the constables’ newly eased hearts leaping back into their throats.

"Of course, we can’t rule out the possibility that the Zhao Family’s Hospital Martial Artists are in league with the South City Thirteen Thieves."

He’d spoken for ages without saying anything of substance. The constables remained terrified.

"Because of this major case, there’s no need to split into groups for patrols. Everyone will move as one unit.

I’ll also be on night duty at the City Guard Department. If anything happens, report to me immediately.

All right, you can go on duty now."

Su Chenglin waved his hand, then added, "Ah Cheng, come with me for a moment."

Chen Cheng followed Su Chenglin into the room. He saw the captain’s grave expression as he pulled a Whistling Arrow from his robes and handed it over.

"You offended the Zhou Family before. They’re worried about word getting out and are wary of the Lord Chief Steward, so they haven’t dared to move against you.

But it’s been a while now. They might be planning something.

Keep this Whistling Arrow on you. If anything happens, fire it immediately. A Shen Family expert nearby will come to your aid."

"Thank you, Captain Su." Chen Cheng accepted the Whistling Arrow. He noticed the character for "Shen" inscribed on it, which left him a little puzzled.

The City Guard Department issued standard Whistling Arrows to all constables on night duty. In an emergency, they could fire one to call for backup.

However, the standard-issue arrows from the City Guard Department were marked with the character for "Guard."

Su Chenglin waved a dismissive hand. "No need to thank me. If you’re going to thank anyone, thank Lord Shen. She’s the one who gave you this Whistling Arrow.

The people protecting you from the shadows were also her arrangement.

Lord Shen said you can rest easy. The Shen Family is a major family in the Inner City, after all. They won’t allow anyone who has sought their protection to be harmed."

"Thank you, Captain Su. And my thanks to Lord Shen." Chen Cheng cupped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute again. Knowing he had experts from the Shen Family secretly watching over him, he felt a bit more relieved.

"You should go." Su Chenglin waved his hand. He waited until Chen Cheng was a good distance away before letting out a long sigh. ’I wonder how far that kid can go. Ah, well. I’m just a piece of driftwood myself, struggling to stay afloat...’

That night, Chen Cheng and a dozen or so other constables patrolled the streets. They were cautious, and the night passed without incident.

By roll call the next day, news had arrived.

The Chief Constable, Shen Qingshuang, had issued an order for all chief constables to lead their men in a door-to-door search of the entire Ruyi District to apprehend the South City Thirteen Thieves.

With tens of thousands of households in Ruyi District, finding two master thieves was like searching for a needle in a haystack. The day-shift City Guard Department constables worked themselves to the bone all day without a single lead, complaining bitterly.

Of course, the night-shift constables weren’t any happier.

Master thieves tended to be active at night. An encounter with the South City Thirteen Thieves could easily cost them their lives.

With such a major case, the various chief constables would occasionally join the patrols for a lap or two, but it was mostly for show. It was still the regular constables who did the hard work, endured the exhaustion, and lived in fear.

For the next few days, the night-shift constables remained vigilant, but they never encountered the South City Thirteen Thieves.

The day-shift constables searched more than half of Ruyi District, also to no avail.

The hunt for the South City Thirteen Thieves continued.

The City Guard Department’s high-profile search for the South City Thirteen Thieves was so massive that it deterred many petty criminals. For a while, public order in the Ruyi District improved dramatically.

Even the Jianghu Gangs lay low, not daring to start turf wars with so much heat on them.

The Chief Constable, Shen Qingshuang, continued her daily routine of Cultivating Martial Dao in her courtyard, seemingly detached from worldly affairs.

Chen Cheng, however, sensed something wasn’t right.

The hunt for the South City Thirteen Thieves wasn’t limited to Ruyi District; door-to-door searches had begun in all the other districts of the South City District as well.

This wasn’t a simple search. Every place was to be inspected—noble manors, common residences, Jianghu Gang hideouts, shops, taverns, gambling dens, brothels, and every other kind of establishment.

Furthermore, as the City Guard Department Officials conducted their searches, they meticulously recorded the details of every household: the total number of people, how many resided there, how many were away, and where those who were away worked.

In the end, the search failed to capture the South City Thirteen Thieves, but it did lead to the arrest of many other major criminals wanted by the Government Office. The South City Prison was nearly filled to capacity.

The searches showed no sign of stopping and soon spread to the Four Outer City Districts.

A search of this scale naturally stretched the City Guard Department’s manpower thin. The City Lord’s Mansion itself issued a direct order, mobilizing the Protectorate Army stationed outside the city to join the effort.

For a time, the whole of Linji City was in an uproar, a palpable sense of panic in the air.

’How could such a massive operation just be for the South City Thirteen Thieves?’ Chen Cheng knew the truth: the Linji City Government Office was finally making its move against the Black Lotus Sect.

In a major event of this magnitude, a humble street patrol constable like Chen Cheng was, of course, insignificant. He still had to trudge through his grueling daily patrols.

The night shift was usually much easier than the day shift; you could wander around a bit and then head back to the City Guard Department to rest. But things were different now. A night on duty for Chen Cheng meant constantly walking the streets and alleys, with no chance to slack off.

He could secretly practice his Iron Armor Skill while on patrol, but after a long and tiring night, Chen Cheng had no energy left to practice his Wind Chasing Saber Technique.

On this night, a full moon hung high in the sky.

Chen Cheng, Mu Chuan, and the others were walking down a wide street. The moonlight was so bright it bathed the pavement in a silver glow, making the lantern in Mu Chuan’s hand seem dim by comparison.

With no news of the South City Thirteen Thieves for days, and with Officials scouring the city during the day, Chen Cheng and his night-shift group had begun to let their guard down.

As before, they split into several groups, each patrolling their designated streets and alleys.

"Just a few more days and this night-shift rotation will be over. When we switch to days, we’ll probably be stuck with those miserable searches. It’s not as carefree as our night shift."

Mu Chuan said nonchalantly, trailing behind Chen Cheng.

Like the other constables, he had long since put the whole business with the so-called South City Thirteen Thieves out of his mind.

"Yeah, I don’t want to switch to the day shift either," another official constable chimed in.

"Stay sharp. Don’t get careless," Chen Cheng rebuked.

Including Chen Cheng, their group now consisted of only three official constables and two Preparatory Constables; they were short on numbers.

With Officials searching everywhere during the day, the criminals were all lying low. That made the nights even more dangerous.

’While I’m not afraid of the South City Thirteen Thieves, we could run into someone even more dangerous. It’s never wrong to be ready to run or call for backup.’

Mu Chuan and the others didn’t dare argue, quickly agreeing.

The group walked down a long street and reached the corner. Just as they were about to turn back, they suddenly spotted two figures with sabers standing furtively in the shadows of a courtyard wall in a nearby alley.

"Who goes there?" Chen Cheng shouted, his hand on his saber.

Mu Chuan and the others also drew their Constable’s Sabers, on high alert.

"Lord Officer, we’re Hospital Martial Artists from a nearby estate."

The two seemed startled. One of them answered in a flustered voice.

As he spoke, he gestured for his companion to sheathe his Long Saber. They began to walk slowly toward Chen Cheng’s group along the wall. "We just saw a suspicious figure run off toward the northern alley," he said as he approached.

"We were afraid it was a bandit and didn’t dare give chase. It’s a good thing you Lord Officers are here. I can show you the way."

Hearing that they were local Hospital Martial Artists, Mu Chuan and the others relaxed.

"We just came from that direction. How could we have missed him?" Mu Chuan asked.

"Perhaps he was well hidden, and you Lord Officers didn’t see him," the man replied.

The two men were dressed in the typical attire of Hospital Martial Artists, but they kept their heads bowed, intentionally staying in the shadows of the wall.

Chen Cheng frowned and walked forward to meet them, his expression unreadable.

"Are you Hospital Martial Artists from Master Ma’s estate?"

The man hesitated for a split second before forcing a smile. "That’s right."

"Ah, I see. Come a little closer and tell us where the thief went." Chen Cheng smiled, pretending to sheathe his Constable’s Saber.

"Of course." The man quickened his pace, but his right hand, hidden behind his back, stealthily gripped the hilt of his saber.

When he was less than two meters from Chen Cheng, he stooped a little lower, pointing with his left hand as he walked. "Lord Officer, it should be the second alley to the north..."

Before he could finish his sentence, he silently closed the distance until he was less than a meter from Chen Cheng.

The man spun around abruptly, a vicious, triumphant gleam in his eyes, his right hand flashing forward with his saber.

A surprise attack from such close range—Chen Cheng was as good as dead!

But before his right hand could even complete its swing, Chen Cheng’s Constable’s Saber had already descended like a bolt of lightning!

SPLAT!

A head tumbled to the ground. The triumphant glint in its wide-open eyes vanished, replaced by shock and disbelief before the light faded from them completely.