"Hey! Who's there, dare to spy on the Pillar Country Mansion!"
With a furious shout, a servant of the Shi family threw down his broom and leaped three meters high, vaulting over the wall and dashing across the rooftop like a giant gecko.
"..."
Tie Dan couldn't believe it; he had just peeked over the wall and was immediately discovered.
No wonder the aristocratic family is so formidable, with high walls and strong fortifications. Even a street sweeper possesses superb martial arts...
Seeing an agile Jianghu person with superb light skills chasing fiercely, Tie Dan said nothing, turned around, and ran.
"Stop, you little thief!"
That gecko of a servant really had nothing better to do all day, sweeping the courtyard out of boredom. Finally, a bad guy was here to provide some excitement.
Ha! Finally, a chance to showcase my skills, I can earn credit in front of the family head by catching this little thief!
"Stop!!"
The servant then chased fiercely, seeing the figure of the young thief in the green robe from afar, and hurled dark stones toward the back of his head, intent on splitting his skull.
Tie Dan didn't look back, gripping a string of coins in his hand, listening to the whistling sound of the flying darts. Occasionally he'd flick the coins, controlling them with Qi, and the sound of clanging would shatter those flying stone darts — it was a good way to practice his skills.
"Hmph! The little thief's hidden weapons are impressive! And he doesn't shout out! Who hired you to plot against my family master?"
The servant pursued for a while, launching more than a dozen darts without gaining any advantage, astonished and cooling down a bit.
After all, seeing that the thief didn't even look back yet could discern positions by sound and counterattack his darts, it suggested strong finger strength, able to shatter darts with mere coins, likely possessing superior internal power.
His stature seemed childlike, yet it was unclear if he was an insane dwarf, an expert in Bone Shrinking Skill, or even someone from the Demon Path. Calming down, he stopped and planned to talk reason.
Realizing he's no longer being chased or attacked with darts, Tie Dan didn't waste any words, suddenly turned around, and locked eyes with the servant, flicking two coins at him.
The servant, seeing the opponent suddenly turn back, revealed a plain face with some yellow paper plaster covering it, couldn't immediately identify which notable figure this was.
Seeing the opponent toss something, a flash of gold made his heart race, and he shouted, "Hold!" while pulling out a pair of short iron rods to protect himself.
But he was a step too slow, and in an instant, the pair of coins had already struck towards his face, suddenly splitting into two, bypassing the protection of his forearm, attacking from both sides like scissors, slicing through the front of his neck and cutting his carotid artery.
"Ah—!"
Being experienced, the servant immediately realized he's in trouble upon feeling a cold chill on his neck. With a shout that reverberated through half the city, he skillfully covered his neck and fell back on the ground, legs kicking a bit before lying still.
Tie Dan was taken aback, admitting he was fooled by this old hand in the Jianghu.
The money darts weren't sharp enough to decapitate but would suffice to scratch the skin, not lethal in any sense. He had planned to turn back and finish with a sword.
But with such a loud shout, others would surely come to aid. Who knows if the servant has any tricks up his sleeve; there's no time to finish him off.
Tie Dan decisively stopped, dodged into a nearby alley, sprinted through streets and lanes, and climbed a big locust tree, staying silent and hidden in the branches to observe.
By now, it was getting late. He listened to the drum sound echoing throughout the city, seeing groups of constables and house guards, carrying lanterns, jumping around the street and courtyard roofs, trying to capture bandits who infiltrated the city and plotted to assassinate the Capital Commandant.
They weren't dressed troops but Jianghu people living by the sword, eagles and hounds bred by the aristocratic families.
In some sense, Jianghu people were also Qi Refiners, known as Martial Cultivators.
They could breathe and regulate Qi, although not refining Innate True Qi, but channeling the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, tempering their muscles, bones, and skin. The widely circulated "Gang Fist Manual" in the Jianghu was originally a cultivation technique to train Heavenly Soldiers and Immortal Generals by the Immortal Venerable of the Demon Palace. Many sects' fist and palm techniques are derivatives based on these basic body techniques.
However, body refining techniques like Gang Fist also have limits, only making one as muscular as iron or steel, at most reaching the Martial God realm like the Emperor Wu, stepping on mountains and rivers, or punching void, but with no life-extending, flight or ascension effects.
Of course, people from the bottom, compared to aristocratic Gate Valve families, had far inferior natural talent, family backgrounds, opportunities, and resources. So they didn't covet immortality like the aristocrats.
People at the bottom just hoped to learn skills, serve the imperial family, be recruited to eat imperial rations, or even be enfeoffed as marquises, thus gaining honor and rising in status.
Therefore, upon hearing that someone wicked infiltrated the city and targeted aristocratic families, people of the Jianghu moved like sharks smelling blood, aiming to seize this opportunity for favor from the aristocrats.
"A thief has infiltrated the city, spying on the Pillar Country Mansion!"
"An assassin dare plot against the Capital Commandant!"
"They say it's a sword-wielding person in a green robe! Catch him, dead or alive! Cut him into a thousand pieces!"
"Housekeeper Shi said so! Capture the thief's head, reward of a hundred taels! A cultivation technique manual!"
"Opportunity! Stay away! It's my chance!"
"..."
Well, Tie Dan was very familiar with this routine, after all, when he was trained like a dog, this was the path of death soldier's lackey he was headed for.
Thus, in fact, he had also practiced Body Refining Techniques, although not the proper "Gang Fist," but a Gate Valve's improved secret tradition named "Dog-shaped Fist," custom training a human's and dog's special body refinement skill, teaching one how to crouch like a wolfdog, enhancing explosive power in a short time.
If not for this, considering his underage physique, none of his past predicaments could have been overcome.
Anyway, routine of Jianghu people was something Tie Dan had seen often, over the months of cultivating Qing and learning martial arts. Naturally, he knew his current competence well.
Can't win.
Humans and beasts aren't the same; won't just fight you with bare hands like claws. They'd use knives, swords, staffs, bows, hidden weapons, even lime poison.
Moreover, martial artists skilled in Gang Fist wouldn't be much inferior to tigers and leopards, as in the common practice of the Shuofang Army, proficient warriors would often use sword and horse skills, exerting eight to nine layers of Gang Fist power, enough to pull ten horses and tear apart wolves and tigers. And those Martial Gods mastering Forty Layers Gang Fist could likely punch a dragon to death with a single hit.
So if it's one-on-one, Tie Dan, relying on his pure sword energy, wasn't afraid, but if outnumbered, his small frame wouldn't withstand a single hit.
Tie Dan had seen enough of the miserable fate of cornered beasts ensnared and hunted; naturally, he wouldn't land in a dead zone.
Must strike first.
Therefore, Tie Dan stripped off his green robe, wrapped his iron sword, hid it in the tree, wore just a single layer of clothing, rolled in a mud pit until he was a black lump, then crouched low into an alley.
Utilizing his hunting skills honed on the grasslands over the years, Tie Dan stealthily followed behind a group of constables, holding his breath and hiding in lantern shadows, waiting for them to reach a crossroads, turn, and disappear. Suddenly he circulated his sword energy, forming a sword finger, and thrust! A sword pierced through!
The last constable hadn't turned the corner and was caught off guard, getting pierced through the throat with a sword! Gurgling a burst of blood, he was overpowered by Tie Dan's middle and index fingers striking the temple! Instantly, skull shattered, falling down dead!
Tie Dan quickly stepped back, propped up the body, grabbed the officer's lantern, pulled off his waist card, took the black hat, and pushed the corpse into the nearby gutter, not making a sound. Without delay, he stood up, straightened his back, and walked away.
Carrying the lantern, he turned several corners, hearing the wind whistling and the clatter of quick steps — those were martial artists breathing heavily, stepping on tiles and bricks, running across rooftops using Gentle Tone Skills.
These people, standing tall and seeing far, certainly noticed Tie Dan passing through the alley. However, as it grew darker, seeing him wearing a black hat and carrying a government lantern, they just assumed he was a short-statured government official, and no one jumped down for a thorough check.
So Tie Dan swaggered back to the Shi Mansion, swaggering before those two pillars again.
By now, with the house attacked by thieves, the closed mansion gate was wide open, the Capital Commandant's personal soldiers, fully armed, lined the entrance like door gods, while the servants equipped with bows and crossbows had ascended the outer courtyard tower, keeping a vigilant watch with torches for thieves.
But such a small scene couldn't intimidate Tie Dan, who grew up in a military town.
He just carried the lantern, met the eyes of house guards, ignored the overhead bows and crossbows, slowly walked forward, and before they spoke, raised his waist card.
"Sent by Captain Hu."
"Captain Hu?" "The new one?" "Yes, didn't he just host a banquet at Xinghua Inn today?" "Said to be Eunuch Lin's adopted son." "Castrated dog..."
The house guards and soldiers found it inexplicable, but didn't dare offend such a favored individual. Looking at Tie Dan again, they saw him covered in muddy water and said disdainfully,
"Why so dirty?"
Tie Dan remained expressionless,
"A group shouted 'catch the thief' and knocked me into a ditch."
The house guards looked at each other, but seeing the kid calm and confident, casually called a house servant over,
"Said to be sent by Captain Hu, take him to see the second steward."
Tie Dan remained expressionless,
"Be kind to fetch me some water for washing; don't want to dirty your carpet."
The servant sighed and said,
"Follow me to the side courtyard."