The Martial Saint, starting with daily intelligence.

The most valuable items in this shipment are the extraordinary firearms and bullets, followed by other extraordinary items and cultivation resources.

As for the three hundred foreign guns that were on display, they were just there to make up the numbers and attract attention.

Inside the Iron Fist Club, President Hausen sat in his seat and sighed.

"Now that things have come to this, there has to be an explanation."

Three days have passed since James's team was killed and the cargo was stolen.

However, there are still no substantial clues.

There are several suspects: local powerful families and clans in Tianjin, or their arch-rival, the Silver Wheel Club.

"Nothing had ever happened from the domestic borders to the customs and then to the Tianjin port, but it was robbed just as it was about to be transported to the concession."

"It seems like our intelligence has been leaked."

"The problem is, only I knew that this batch of supplies included thirty extraordinary firearms!"

"Even the radio operators were unaware of the secret; the message was sent directly from the Imperial military using an encrypted code."

The secret code was known only to Chairman Hausen.

The other insiders were all high-ranking officials in the military of the Yuezhi Empire.

"It's absolutely impossible for this information to be leaked to me. Only I know this information, and I haven't mentioned it to anyone."

"So the source of the intelligence leak must be the Western Continent. But this shipment was transported by sea. With the naval power of the Great United Kingdom, if the intelligence had already been leaked, they would have intercepted it long ago. How could it have been hijacked in Jin City?"

"I just can't understand it, I really can't understand it!"

President Hausen has lost countless brain cells these past few days.

  

Through repeated investigations, several spies from other factions were uncovered, but none of them were involved in this matter.

"It can't just be bad luck on our part, like some Chu warriors trying to rob us Westerners' supplies, and our Iron Fist Club just happens to run into them?"

"How is that possible?"

Chairman Hausen absolutely refused to believe that was the reason.

How much are those two truckloads of goods worth?

Is it worth offending the Iron Fist Club for something so trivial?

The Iron Fist Club makes several trips back and forth every month, transporting rare items from the State of Chu to the Empire by sea or land, and bringing supplies from the Empire to this place.

James and his team have escorted goods countless times.

It was only because the war in the Western Continent had been exceptionally fierce in recent years that the powerful figures originally stationed in the Far East came to support the Western Continent battlefield, which made the Iron Fist Club's strength unprecedentedly weak.

It's not just the Iron Fist Club; in fact, all foreign powers have been shrinking in recent years. Many powerful figures have left the Chu Kingdom, either voluntarily or involuntarily, either to compete for destiny in the Western Continent or to stay away from the conflicts in other concessions in Southeast Asia.

Before the war broke out between the old maritime hegemon, the Great United Kingdom, and the emerging continental hegemon, the Yuezhi Empire.

Iron Fist Clubs in the Far East are not that weak.

Iron Fist Club, as one of the three extraordinary clubs within the Great Yuezhi Empire, is actually a super club, with a rank above that of a level three club.

Even in the Far East, there are still a large number of Tier 3 Iron Fist Super Clubs.

However, after the outbreak of the Western Continent War, a large number of extraordinary forces from the Far East were drawn away. The Iron Fist Club, which was originally based in the Tianjin Concession, was a legendary-level extraordinary force, and at its peak, there were more than 30 extraordinary forces of level seven or above.

After the outbreak of war, legendary superhumans and a large number of superhumans supported the Western Continent battlefield, which is why the Iron Fist Club gradually declined.

Originally, the concessions in Tianjin were not separate, but foreigners also needed to choose sides. In order to prevent the great damage to Tianjin, the Great Chu court took the opportunity to intervene.

Taking advantage of the internal discord among the foreigners, the Great Chu court won over the neutral foreigners and divided the original concessions in two, reducing their area by more than half.

On one side were the foreign forces that stood with the Great United Kingdom, and on the other side were the foreign forces that leaned towards the Yuezhi Empire.

In recent years, the Great Chu court has been encroaching on the interests of foreigners in the Far East and constantly reducing their influence and power in the region.

Take Iron Fist Club and Silver Wheel Club for example.

They were originally both third-tier clubs in the Far East, but after the main force supported the Western Continent, they were constantly weakened through various subtle means. Now, these two extraordinary clubs are not allowed to have two extraordinary individuals of the seventh rank or above, nor are they allowed to have extraordinary individuals of the ninth rank or above.

Therefore, the presidents of both the Silver Wheel Club and the Iron Fist Club are only eighth-tier superhumans.

After all, one side belongs to the Great United Kingdom, and the other to the Great Yuezhi Empire. These two hegemonic powers are now locked in a fierce battle in the Western Continent.

The two extraordinary clubs are pretty much the same; they're bound to fight whenever they meet.

At any given time, the neutrals constitute the majority.

Foreigners are also divided into many factions.

Everyone lives in the concession, and your two factions fight every day. Today you kill my people, tomorrow I'll smash your place.

When the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer as well.

Other foreign powers are suffering greatly.

We're here to do business, not to have you fight.

Therefore, dismembering the two forces was almost in the interest of both the Great Chu court and the neutral foreign forces.

Both the Great United Kingdom and the Great Yuezhi Empire now only have one extraordinary club left, both are level two clubs, and each can only have one extraordinary level eight club president.

Iron Fist Club originally had many allies, as did Silver Wheel Club.

However, under pressure from various forces, those allies were forced to withdraw from Tianjin.

This kind of thing didn't just happen in Tianjin; it happened almost simultaneously in various coastal areas.

What remains in the Tianjin concessions is the Iron Fist Club, but in other coastal cities, it may be other second-tier super clubs.

As the influence of foreigners in the Far East gradually weakened, the Great Chu court and local powerful warlords were also constantly encroaching on the foreigners' territory and interests.

Like boiling a frog in lukewarm water, it's a process of slowly taking away bits and pieces, cutting away at each small step.

Just like a while ago, a foreigner's extraordinary club went to challenge a local martial arts school, which was actually for revenge and to save face.

As for how much face can be saved, that's a matter of opinion.

But for these extraordinary clubs, doing nothing is not an option.

If you can't do it, that's a matter of ability; but if you do nothing, that's a matter of attitude.

These foreign powers are backed by national-level forces. The world's focus is currently on the war in the Western Continent, but that doesn't mean the Far East should be abandoned.

Of course, it would be suicidal for these extraordinary clubs to clash head-on with the local powerful families and government officials, so they can only save face by challenging the clubs in this way.

And this was only a first-tier extraordinary club's appearance; even second-tier extraordinary clubs wouldn't dare to play recklessly.

Before they cultivate their Qi, superhumans almost always outclass martial artists, so attacking a small martial arts school is almost a guaranteed victory; it's hard for them to lose.

However, it's different when you challenge a martial arts school. Their disciples and followers at the Qi Refining Realm will take action. Once you reach that level, the foreigners' extraordinary system doesn't have much of an advantage.

With their elite players transferred out, their club's limited manpower might not be enough to win.

In recent years, the interests of foreigners have been eroded and squeezed, and even the Western continent has tacitly accepted it, with only a few weak protests coming from the embassy.

Those whose virtue does not match their position will surely suffer the consequences!

Now that foreigners are no longer powerful enough in the Far East, it is no longer appropriate for them to continue occupying so many interests and territories.

Therefore, foreigners have been the ones being bullied in recent years, and they dare not clash with local forces at all.

Of course, the local warlord families were merely seizing the interests and share from foreigners; some bottom lines still needed to be observed.

The Great Chu court wanted to take the opportunity to reclaim the leased land, but the local powerful families and warlords might not be willing to do so.

After all, the foreigners just left, they didn't die.

With the war in the Western Continent over, destiny has returned to its rightful place, and the region will surely rejoin the Far East.

The local powerful warlords didn't want to completely offend the foreigners, so they had only ever tried to erode the foreigners' interests.

Local powerful families not only have the audacity to seize market share and territory from foreigners, but they also have the ambition to do so.

But risking your life against foreigners? Forget about it.

This is something that Chairman Hausen simply cannot understand.

Although the area where James and his group were attacked has been cleared, some traces of true qi can still be found, so it is highly likely that it was done by a local martial artist.

He simply couldn't understand what benefit this would bring to the local forces.

These supply operations happen several times a month, each costing tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. What good would it do them to offend the Iron Fist Club for such a small amount of money?

It's only a few hundred thousand silver dollars!

Even slightly wealthy Qi Refining experts have assets exceeding this amount.

Moreover, they not only robbed the goods but also killed people, clearly aiming for a fight to the death.

It's only a matter of time before the major supernatural clubs return to the Far East after the Western Continent War ends; this is a consensus among everyone.

"Unless the other party knew what James was transporting from the beginning!"

"Therefore, it can only be that the Imperial military leaked the information."

"That's the only way; otherwise, I'd be the one failing in my duty!"

President Hausen squinted and said softly.

"Therefore, it must be so."

"Military intelligence was leaked. Silver Wheel and his gang of bastards hired local martial arts forces to steal the goods and kill James and his men."

"Only these bastards would dare to kill members of our Iron Fist Club."

Despite the fierce competition for interests between various forces in the Great Chu and foreign powers in recent years, not many people have actually died; everyone has kept it to a minimum.

Even if there are some casualties, they are all martial artists in the Body Tempering stage or extraordinary individuals below the third level of the Extraordinary Realm.

As for Qi Refining Warriors and experts at the fourth level or above, the number of them over the past few years can be counted on one hand.

The more Chairman Hausen spoke, the brighter his eyes became.

Regardless of the truth, the blame must be placed on the Silver Wheel Club. Only in this way can the Imperial Military and the Club headquarters avoid taking the main responsibility upon themselves.

Moreover, only they have the courage and the motive.

Thinking of this, Chairman Hausen immediately went to the telegraph room, preparing to polish the investigation and summary of this period of time and then personally send it to headquarters and the military.

···

Meanwhile, inside the Li family pawnshop.

"Your subordinate greets the stationmaster."

"Haha, Ah Ming, I've missed you so much these past few days."

Station Master Li Weimin looked very confident and his aura was almost uncontrollable.

"Zhong Ming will be there whenever you need him, stationmaster."

Zhong Ming chimed in, sensing that the other person was in a particularly good mood.

"Ha ha."

"I owe you a lot this time, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining."

"It's all thanks to your good fortune, Station Master. I was just doing what I was supposed to do."

"This time, I truly owe you a favor. If there's anything I can do, as long as it's within my duty, I'll help you."

Station manager Li Weimin's smile faded.

"In addition, your reward for this matter has been decided, and it was personally ordered by the Lord."

"Keep up the good work, the author really admires you."

"Everything is thanks to the station manager's leadership. The original poster should reward the station manager handsomely. Without the station manager's wisdom and skillful leadership, how could I be where I am today?"

Zhong Ming quickly expressed his loyalty.

"Alright, let's put aside the flattery for now; it's annoying to hear too much of it."

"Yes, stationmaster is right. I will certainly remember it."

Okay, I'll remember that, but I won't change it.

Station Master Li Weimin seemed to understand the unspoken meaning, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up.

"This is yours, one thousand silver dollars."

"In addition, there are 5,000 contribution points, which have already been recorded in your merit book."

Zhong Ming first took the silver note, but then immediately handed it back.

"Station manager, you decide how to divide it; I'll do as you say."

Station manager Li Weimin frowned.

"Are you trying to make me make a mistake?!"

"This~"

Zhong Ming was taken aback and was speechless.

Do you think I'm the kind of person who covets credit and rewards from my subordinates?

"Besides, this was personally ordered by the original poster; you're trying to get me killed!"

"Take it back."

Li Weimin sternly rebuked him.

"Yes, yes, I am ashamed. I judged you with the mind of a petty person."

"My admiration for you, Station Master, is like a surging river, endless and unstoppable, like the Yellow River overflowing its banks."

Li Weimin waved his hand.

"I owe a lot to you this time, and I benefited from your success. The host has already given me my share."

"Now that I have broken through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, it would be somewhat inappropriate for me to continue serving as the station chief here."

Then he lowered his voice and said.

"Two months from now, I will be transferred to the East City Wharf to serve as the third leader of the Blood Tiger Gang."

"If you want to continue working for me, I'll transfer you there too."

"You know how lucrative things are at the docks."

Li Weimin gave a knowing look, a look that everyone understood.

Zhong Ming certainly knew how profitable the docks were.

Jinmen Wharf was the largest maritime transportation hub in the northern part of the Great Chu. Even a tiny sliver of it, barely visible from under a fingernail, supported hundreds of thousands of refugees outside the city, and its profits were immense.

The territory isn't very large, but there are a lot of powerful forces within it.

The area, spanning over ten square kilometers, was divided into small blocks, each occupied by a different power or gang.

Any force that manages to gain a foothold in the docks is either very powerful itself or has a powerful backer.

As far as Zhong Ming knew, Zhenyuan Martial Arts School had always wanted to get involved in the dock business, but had no clue how and had been unable to break into the market.

It was almost entirely controlled by local powerful families, government officials, and foreign influence.

It involves a great deal of things; it requires not only strength, but also connections and influence.

Outside forces simply cannot get involved in the dock business. Even the top-tier, cross-continental forces of the Great Chu cannot. If any outsider tries to get involved in the dock business, they will be met with full resistance from the entire Tianjin forces.