The Martial Saint, starting with daily intelligence.

Damn it, how come it's so mysterious?

Just knowing about it could have an impact.

At this moment, Zhong Ming felt a pang of regret, fearing he had fallen into another trap.

But since things had come to this point, Zhong Ming had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue.

"What do you want to do?"

Li Weimin's eyes were filled with fear.

Look at this.

Zhong Ming held up the booklet in his hand.

"Go back and look at it yourself, don't look at it here."

"Am I not afraid of pollution?"

"Uh~"

"Yes, I will go back immediately."

After saying that, Zhong Ming prepared to go back.

"Wait a minute, I have something else to tell you."

Li Weimin spoke up to stop him.

"My uncle sent me a message that the battle for this intelligence station has been won."

"They're from another faction, and they don't get along with my uncle's faction. If you don't want to go to the Blood Tiger Gang with me, you'd better be prepared."

Zhong Ming frowned, cursing inwardly: Why does one bad thing after another happen!

Li Weimin began to explain.

"Wherever there are people, there is a world of intrigue. Even though we are all from Tingfeng Tower, our interests and demands may not be the same."

"Putting aside everything else, the conflict between the Listening Hall and the Wind and Rain Hall alone is quite significant."

"After all, resources are limited. If the Listening Hall gets more, the Wind and Rain Hall gets less. The stewards are also divided into several factions. This time, my uncle used a lot of favors to arrange for me to join the Blood Tiger Gang."

"At the same time, we offended some people. In exchange, we had to give up the site, which had always been under our control."

Li Weimin comforted him, saying, "As the saying goes, a new emperor brings a new court. When the other party takes office, some of the intelligence personnel I discovered will definitely be suppressed."

"Similarly, he will definitely try to win over some intelligence personnel, otherwise if this intelligence station shuts down, there's no point in him continuing as the station chief."

"Is it possible that the other party deliberately assigned you an impossible task, or intentionally sabotaged your trusted subordinates?"

Zhong Ming asked.

This is a very important question, as it will directly shake Zhong Ming's resolve to stay here.

  

The reason he didn't want to go to the Blood Tiger Gang with Li Weimin was because he disliked instability and trouble.

If I were to get a troublesome new leader, I might as well go to the new environment with Li Weimin.

At least Li Weimin could still take care of himself a little before he ran out of favors.

"What are you thinking about?"

"I think you're quite clever, but sometimes you're too clever for your own good."

"It's just a clash of factional interests, not a life-or-death struggle!"

Li Weimin reprimanded Zhong Ming without any politeness.

"At most, he'll assign you some hard and tiring work, practically sending you to your death?"

"Unless he doesn't want to work here anymore, you're someone who has been noticed by the Lord and the Master of Diting Hall. Let alone killing you, even if they want to transfer you from your post, they'll have to submit a report and make an application first."

Li Weimin lowered his voice.

"For that previous case, the leader has already approved your inclusion in the 'potential ace intelligence agent' list, and you are a key candidate for development."

"Let me give you a little heads-up: I never mentioned this after we left this door."

"The intelligence personnel of the Listening Hall are divided into five levels. The lowest level is the peripheral intelligence personnel, who only receive allowances and no salary. Even their contributions are only half of those of normal intelligence personnel."

"The second tier consists of official intelligence personnel. The first and second tiers are cannon fodder, personnel who can be discarded at any time, and it's easy to replenish them in large numbers."

"But the next three tiers are different. The third tier is 'elite intelligence agents.' Each station has a few of them. They are veterans in intelligence work and are the backbone of each station."

"Without these veterans, the site is practically blind; we can only gather some worthless intelligence."

"Elite intelligence agents are all registered in the Listening Hall. Every time there is a death or injury, the station chief must provide a reasonable explanation, and a deacon will conduct a secret investigation."

Li Weimin hesitated for a moment, but continued speaking.

"Six months ago, a station chief in the southern concession of the city was dismissed by the head of the gang simply because he was suspected of killing an elite intelligence officer. He is still under investigation."

"I heard that the other person was thrown into a hunting party, and who knows when they might die."

"As for the quasi-ace intelligence agent and the ace intelligence agent, only the hall master and the tower master know their identities."

"These two types of intelligence agents are the true strength of our Tingfeng Tower. They don't deploy easily, but once they do, they're enough to keep our tower busy for a while."

Li Weimin said, "Take Iron Fist Club for example, this time, it's enough for our building to live on for three to five years."

"I know your identity as a 'potential ace intelligence agent' because you came from my station, and I was also involved in it."

"Otherwise, I would never have known your importance in this building!"

"According to the official records, you're just a figurehead elite intelligence agent."

Li Weimin said calmly.

"So, the new station manager might suppress you and assign you some less desirable tasks, but he would never dare to touch you in the slightest."

"Anyone can be a station chief as long as they reach the Qi Refining Realm, but a qualified elite intelligence officer is not someone anyone can just take on!"

"It requires talent, but even more so, luck!"

"Originally, I only intended to train you to be an 'elite intelligence agent,' but you have lived up to expectations. With this opportunity, you have entered the sights of the Lord and the Hall Master ahead of time."

"Thank you for clearing up my doubts, stationmaster."

Zhong Ming realized what was happening and quickly added, "Thank you so much for your guidance, Station Master. I am deeply grateful and at a loss for words."

"By the way, have you ever been interested in becoming a superhuman?"

Station Master Li Weimin looked up at the sky, his voice gradually fading.

"The fate of the Great Chu is about to change!"

Li Weimin then looked at Zhong Ming.

"You have little talent or hope in martial arts, and time waits for no one; things could go wrong at any moment."

"More strength means more self-protection."

"That's all I can remind you. You're a person with your own opinions, so I won't make the decision for you."

Zhong Ming remained silent, sensing the other party's goodwill, and simply bowed in gratitude.

"If you want to become a superhuman, I can also give you a long-term mission."

"Just like the previous mission at Zhenyuan Martial Arts School, a long-term intelligence gathering mission."

"To be honest, it's a waste of talent for an elite intelligence officer to gather some trivial intelligence at the Zhenyuan Martial Arts School."

"This kind of thing doesn't even require formal intelligence personnel; an outside intelligence agent can handle it."

"Although I don't know who the new station manager is, he certainly won't let you waste your time at Zhenyuan Martial Arts School any longer."

"Foreigners' elite clubs generally have certain entry barriers; most people simply don't have the financial resources!"

···

A few days later, in the southern concession area of ​​the city.

The first-class extraordinary club – Steel Bone Club.

"Hey, is there anything I can do for you?"

A blonde foreign woman dressed as a maid, speaking in broken Mandarin, smiled at the Eastern man in front of her.

"I want to join the club and become an extraordinary person."

Zhong Ming responded with a smile.

"My name is Sophia, please follow me."

The service was very professional, and they quickly led Zhong Ming to a room.

As they passed by, they saw some foreigners making provocative gestures, but Zhong Ming pretended not to see them.

I had done my research beforehand, so there weren't any conflicts.

Because foreigners were constrained in many ways during this period, they did not have a good impression of the Chu people from the East, but they dared not provoke them at will.

The Chu people who could come to the Foreigners' Extraordinary Club were almost all local powerful families and local bigwigs.

These foreigners weren't stupid. They wouldn't dare to provoke the other party rashly before they had investigated their identity, otherwise they might accidentally be drowned in the river!

"Excuse me, sir, what is your name? Do you have any knowledge of our Steelbone Extraordinary Club?"

Sofia smiled gently.

"My name is Zhong Ming, and I do have some knowledge of your area."

Zhong Ming said calmly.

Sophia kept thinking about whether the local family with the surname "Zhong" was a powerful or influential one.

At the same time, he subtly probed Zhong Ming's other situation, but Zhong Ming just smiled and answered when he felt like answering, mostly using a smile instead of a reply.

Sofia thought to herself: These Chu people are really difficult to deal with. I've sacrificed so much, yet they remain unmoved.

"Forget it, we won't get anything out of this by probing. Let's get straight to the point!"

"Mr. Zhong Ming, since you have some knowledge of our Steel Bone Club..."

"Then you should be ready to become a great superhuman, but before that..."

Regarding pricing, we offer two options: the standard version, which costs only three silver coins per month.

"There's also a deluxe version, which costs ten silver coins per month. Which version of the extraordinary training program would you like to know?"

Sofia was ready to explain the differences between the two options to Zhong Ming.

However, Zhong Ming did not answer directly, but instead said calmly, "How much franchise fee do I need to qualify for the Steel Bone Club's supreme training program?"

Zhong Ming looked at Sophia, who was clearly taken aback and took a moment to recover.

"I can't make this decision; only the chairman can."

"Please wait a moment, sir. I'll go and fetch the president right away."

Sophia was already intimidated and roughly guessed that Zhong Ming's background was not simple, so she dared not be negligent.

Soon after, Sophia led the president to the meeting.

"I'm Benjamin Gordon, president of the Steelbone Club. You can also call me by my nickname, Steelbone!"

"Transcendent Level Six!"

President Benjamin extended his right hand to introduce himself to Zhong Ming.

"I am deeply grateful to President Steelbone for taking the time out of his busy schedule to meet with me."

Zhong Ming nodded slightly to show his respect.

Before coming, Zhong Ming had read some information about Benjamin and knew that he preferred to call himself "Steelbow," so he was just trying to please him.

President Steelbone glanced at Sophia, waved his hand, and gestured for her to leave. Sophia nodded and considerately closed the door, giving the two of them some space.

President Steelbone, seated in the main seat, exuded an aura of authority and pressure, and spoke directly: "I heard that Mr. Zhong desires a spot in the Supreme Training Program?"

Zhong Ming nodded: "That's right. I hope President Steelbone can grant my wish. I have always longed for Steelbone Club's Supreme Training Program, and I hope you can make it happen."

"Furthermore, I have already prepared the funds for the Supreme Training Program."

Zhong Ming took out two silver notes, each worth one hundred silver dollars, which could be exchanged at the Great Chu Trading Company or the concession bank at any time.

The Steel Bone Guild Master glanced at the two silver notes on the table, remaining expressionless.

"Since Mr. Zhong is aware of the Supreme Training Program, he should understand that our club's Supreme Training Program is generally conducted by invitation only and is not sold directly to the public."

Zhong Ming smiled before speaking.

"Does President Steelbone mean we have to pay more?"

President Steelbone was slightly stunned, but after realizing what was happening, he burst into laughter.

"Haha~"

"Mr. Chung, you are quite amusing."

"I guarantee you've never met the most straightforward and direct person from Chu."

"Does President Cyborg prefer that kind of roundabout approach?"

President Steelbone spoke in a relaxed tone, as if he were talking to an old friend.

"Damn it, doing business with you Chu people is always so roundabout, always using things that are hard to understand, and constantly spouting idioms and ancient poems."

President Benjamin spoke with a strange accent, mimicking the tone of an old man.

It's all about classical Chinese phrases and sayings like "cocoa beans need to be ground to become useful" and "northern and southern carts."

The Steel Bone Guild Leader, looking constipated, complained, "Ming, do you know what? Doing business with you Chu people is really, really tiring!"

"Isn't it just about becoming a superhuman at the club? I offer the price, you pay, it's a business transaction, a mutually agreeable arrangement. Why all the unnecessary complications?"

Zhong Ming nodded in agreement.

"Those old scholars are actually annoying to most of us Chu people, but they are elders and scholars, so we can only go along with them out of politeness."

"Nami, it's so much more comfortable talking to someone like you~"

"But even so, the extra money should not be reduced by a single penny."

The president of Steelbone changes his mood very quickly.

"That's natural; it's what it should be, that's what it should be."

"Three hundred silver dollars, the extra one hundred silver dollars is a service fee. After all, the number of places in the Supreme Training Program is always fixed. If there is one extra place, one person must be kicked out."

"You know what I mean."

The Steel Bone Guild Master gave him a look, and although Zhong Ming didn't think that way, he still nodded.

"What a load of rubbish! The training program is just a matter of a word from you. Stop pretending."

"Well, when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head."

"Any expense is worthwhile if it leads to becoming a superhuman!"

Zhong Ming then took out another silver note worth one hundred silver dollars and handed it over.

"President Steelbone, I have a small favor to ask, and I hope you can grant it to me."

The other party raised an eyebrow, but was pleased to have just closed a deal.

"Oh, dear Ming, just tell me what's wrong. I'll do anything I can to help you."

Zhong Ming said calmly.

"If I remember correctly, after becoming a superhuman, I can get a letter of recommendation."

"I need a recommendation letter from a Tier 2 or Tier 3 Extraordinary Club. I want a recommendation letter from the Iron Fist Club."

The other party put away the silver note and asked seriously.

"The Iron Fist Club isn't easy to get into, this might not be very convenient, right?"