I can only beat noobs.

Chapter 209 Please forgive me
After leaving the torture chamber, Lei Chun and his four companions walked a distance before stopping. Since their superior wanted to conduct a private interrogation, they, as subordinates, naturally knew to keep their distance to show they weren't eavesdropping.

“Our lord is still young,” Liu Yan, who had just turned forty, shook his head and said. “If it were so easy to extract the martial arts techniques from these prisoners, the position of prison warden would not have been vacant for so long.”

Those who can cultivate to the third rank are all people with unwavering willpower. Moreover, at this level of cultivation, no amount of torture can be effective against them.

Even if you use every means to extract the technique, no one can guarantee that there are no problems with it. It is very difficult to verify its authenticity. Who would practice it?

If you let your own family members practice, and something goes wrong, it could ruin their lives.

Even if someone practices it, it would take them ten or even several decades to see results. And even if they later find out it's fake, it's difficult to improve.

Another person named Zhang Dingce said, "I heard that our lord is only over twenty years old and already a fourth-rank official. With such talent, why would he choose to work for the Six Doors?"

Liu Yan lowered his voice, "It is said that Lord Gu was originally an illegitimate child, raised among the common people. He was only brought back to the family when he was a teenager. Because of his outstanding talent, he was ostracized by his brothers..."

"I see."

The others then realized what was happening.

As he spoke, Liu Dingce looked at Qi Hong, who was standing absentmindedly beside him, and teased, "What's wrong? Did you go out to Shuiyue Tower to fool around again last night? You're so listless this morning."

Lei Chun also said, "If you ask me, you might as well just marry Miss Wen'er. All that salary goes to Shuiyuelou."

Qi Hong looked up at his four colleagues, his expression somewhat grave.

The four of them were puzzled by his serious expression. In the past, when they teased him like this, he would have laughed and scolded them back.

Liu Yan's smile vanished, and he said seriously, "Has something happened at home? If so, tell us, and we'll figure something out together."

Qi Hong shook his head, his expression somewhat strange. "Last night, I heard a rumor about our lord."

Deng Wei, who had been silent until now, asked, "What rumor?"

Qi Hong said, "Do you guys remember? A few days ago, the Money Gang in Wanlei City held a martial arts contest to find a husband?"

"Of course I remember. Good heavens, all the well-known young masters in Xiazhou City went. You can imagine what a grand event it was. It's a pity we had duties to perform, otherwise we would definitely have gone to witness it."

"You want to see that stunningly beautiful and wealthy woman on the list of beauties, don't you?"

"Of course, I've never seen a woman on the list of beauties in my life, and I don't know how stunningly beautiful she is."

Lei Chun asked, "Has the result been announced? Who ultimately won?"

Liu Yan said, "Is there any need to say it? It's definitely Young Master Wushuang."

Qi Hong shook his head and said, "It's not Young Master Wushuang."

All four were surprised. "Who is that?"

"It is said that a young master from the capital has surpassed the peerless young master." Qi Hong paused here, glanced at his four colleagues, "Coincidentally, the young master from the capital is surnamed Gu, the same name as us adults."

The four of us looked at each other.

"Pfft, hahaha—" Suddenly, Liu Yan burst out laughing, "Trying to fool us, huh?"

Liu Dingce also said, "You kid, at least make your story believable. What level of cultivation does that Peerless Young Master have? Third rank! Lord Gu is only twenty. How is that possible?"

As they were talking, the five of them were suddenly startled and turned to look in the direction of the torture chamber, where a terrifying aura was erupting.

He's a Rank 3 expert!
Lei Chun's expression changed drastically. "Oh no! The Dragon-Sealing Needle has been pulled out!"

"Immediately notify the guards outside to seal the warehouse doors!"

A third-rank expert is extremely terrifying. Only by sealing their cultivation with the "Dragon-Sealing Needle" can one possibly trap them.

Once the Dragon-Sealing Needle is pulled out, it's like a dragon returning to the sea.

Every time a prisoner of the third rank regains his cultivation, he causes chaos in the prison and kills many people.

Just when all five thought they were going to die here, another cold aura erupted, also of the third rank.

Lei Chun exclaimed, "This is—"

The five people exchanged glances, and in each other's eyes they saw shock, disbelief, and deep relief.

What Qi Hong said was actually true!
Lord Gu is actually a third-rank official.

A 20-year-old third-rank official!

He defeated the peerless young master who was invincible among the younger generation of Xiazhou!

……

A moment later, both of their third-grade auras disappeared, as if nothing had happened.

"Someone is coming."

Inside the torture chamber, Lord Gu's voice could be heard.

The five men quickly stepped forward and asked respectfully, "Sir, what are your orders?"

Previously, their respect was merely superficial. Now, facing their direct superior, a mere twenty-year-old third-rank official, their attitude was completely different, filled with deep awe!

"Take this man back and replace him with a third-rank prisoner."

"Yes!"

They entered the torture chamber and took away the third-rank prisoner who was lying listlessly on the ground, his cultivation resealed. After they brought the new third-rank prisoner to the torture chamber, Lord Gu told them to wait outside.

Then, the power of two more Rank 3 experts erupted from the torture chamber once again.

Now they could all guess what Lord Gu was doing: he was using these third-rank prisoners to hone their martial arts skills.

All five men admired him greatly. This was an extremely dangerous undertaking, and only someone with absolute confidence in their own abilities would dare to do it.

However, this time neither of them spoke.

This short distance couldn't escape the ears of a third-rank expert. It was one thing if they didn't know before, but now that they knew their master was a third-rank expert, how dare they speak so presumptuously?
Finally, Lord Gu fought with all the third-rank prisoners before leaving with them, satisfied.

……

"We made the right choice coming here this time."

Chen Ming was in a good mood when he left the prison.

The nine third-rank prisoners contributed over 400,000 experience points to him.

Most of these people were level 75 or above, each with over 40,000 experience points. Two of them were even level 79, at the peak of the third rank.

If he hadn't been imprisoned, had his cultivation sealed by the "Dragon-Sealing Needle," and hadn't been injured, he might not have been a match for these people.

"Lord Gu."

"Greetings, Lord Gu."

"..."

People he encountered along the way greeted him either warmly or respectfully, their attitudes quite different from before.

Chen Ming naturally knew the reason; he had overheard his five subordinates' discussion. So many days had passed, and news from Wanlei City had finally reached Xiazhou City.

It must be said that the speed of news transmission in Xia Prefecture is far worse than that in Jiang Prefecture.

The third rank is a watershed moment. Reaching the third rank means becoming a top-notch master in the martial arts world and can be considered a strong person.

No matter where you are, a third-rank expert will receive the respect they deserve.

Moreover, he is such a young rank three official, and comes from a top family. Even a fool would know that this Lord Gu has a bright future, and it is only a matter of time before he enters the Divine Realm.

"Lord Gu!"

When Chen Ming returned to his office, he saw Old Zhang waiting outside the door. Upon seeing him, Old Zhang bowed deeply.

He asked with a smile, "What's the matter, Elder Zhang?"

"Lord Gu, you flatter me. I was blind and presumptuous in front of you, taking advantage of my age. Please forgive me. From now on, just call me Old Zhang." Old Zhang was somewhat apprehensive, having come specifically to apologize.

Chen Ming naturally knew that he was mostly acting, so he wouldn't hold it against him. He patted him on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, I'm not a petty person. We're all colleagues, there's no need for that."

Old Zhang began to flatter, "Lord Gu is broad-minded, with the magnanimity of the ocean!"

"Alright, I'm leaving now. I'll leave this place to you."

……

Chen Ming returned to his residence and first went to check on Xia Mudan. He found that she was awake and in much better spirits than she had been the night before.

Moreover, she reverted to her womanly attire and stopped pretending to be the peerless young master.

In other words, the people around her are trustworthy.

Chen Ming sat down on the edge of the bed, reached out to take her pulse, and asked, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm much better, thank you for your concern, Brother Gu." Xia Mudan's eyes were fixed on him, but when he looked at her, she lowered her gaze, a blush rising on her face.

Her shy and timid appearance stirred something within him.

Chen Ming swallowed hard, released his grip, coughed lightly, and said, "The sword intent within you has only been temporarily suppressed and could flare up at any time. The best solution is to find someone you trust to remove it."

She nodded gently. "Mm."

He pondered for a moment, then asked, "What's the story behind this Peerless Young Master? How do you come to have such an identity?"

He had inquired and found that there was indeed a Jiang family in Xiazhou, and it was quite far from Wanlei City. The Peerless Young Master was not someone who had only emerged in recent years; he had been famous for nearly ten years.

Chen Ming was very curious about how she managed to maintain this identity without arousing any suspicion.

Xia Mudan said, "This involves a secret of my family. My grandmother's original surname was Jiang, and she eloped with my grandfather. After my father was born, the Jiang family came to our door and wanted to take him away. However, my grandfather was also the only son in his family. So my grandmother desperately stopped them. In the end, my grandfather made an agreement with the Jiang family that if the Xia family had another son in the future, he would take the Jiang family surname."

"Unfortunately, Grandma passed away not long after. It wasn't until my father and mother married and had twins, a boy and a girl, that my father kept his promise and sent the younger brother to the Jiang family. Because of this, my mother hated my father..."

"When I was thirteen, my younger brother was murdered, his death shrouded in mystery. To avenge him, the Jiang family and my father devised a plan: I would impersonate him to lure out the enemy. As the reputation of the Peerless Young Master grew, the person who murdered my brother finally couldn't resist and decided to attack me, thus revealing my true identity..."

Xia Mudan became somewhat breathless as she spoke.

Chen Ming sat on the edge of the bed and patted her back to help her catch her breath.

She lowered her head shyly and whispered, "Thank you, Brother Gu."

(End of this chapter)