High-level martial arts: Invincibility starts with basic archery.

Chapter 136 Is this matter really just going to end like this? (Please subscribe)

On the walls of Songjiabao, guards stood watch, some gazing at the boundless wilderness, some looking down at the pedestrians coming and going below, and some leaning against the walls, yawning.

Standing guard is inherently a tedious and boring task, and standing guard day after day for years is even more so.

"Xiaochun hasn't come for several days, has she?"

Someone asked a question that immediately drew everyone's attention.

"Yes, it seems like it's been three or four days?"

"Two or three days?"

"I don't know. I haven't been here since I took the day off. I heard I went hunting. I haven't seen her for so long, could something have happened to her?"

"Wang Xin," someone said, looking at a man in his twenties with a pointed chin on the left, "Didn't you go to Xiao Chun's house? How did it go? Any news?"

Seeing everyone's gaze on him, Wang Xin sighed and said, "I went there yesterday, and there was only one woman at home. She is Yang Xiaochun's sister-in-law. She said that a couple of days ago, Yang Xiaochun went hunting with his brother and a few other people, and he never came back."

The atmosphere fell silent, and everyone looked on incredulous upon hearing this.

Then, a sigh was heard.

"Sigh, why go hunting? Wouldn't it be better to just stay here and stand guard?"

"Yes, although we only get a fixed salary, it's safe. Like those people in the villages outside, who knows how many of them died at the hands of those ferocious beasts in the wild."

"Still too young."

"Still young."

After a moment of sighing, the atmosphere fell silent once more.

For them, Yang Xiaochun was not the first to do this, nor will he be the last.

A slight smile curved the corners of Wang Xin's mouth.

Just then, a cry of surprise rang out, "Look! Captain Cheng is back!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound.

In the distance, a military jeep was seen approaching.

A hint of joy appeared in Wang Xin's eyes.

The jeep quickly approached and drove into a courtyard in the fort. After parking, a man wearing a shirt and trousers opened the door and got out.

He wore sunglasses, was over 1.8 meters tall, had a buzz cut, and a burly build. His shirt was stretched high by his muscles, as if it could burst open at any moment.

His right hand, gripping a heavy machine gun with one hand.

Upon witnessing this scene, the guards on the city wall were filled with longing in their eyes.

"As expected of the captain, the W8 heavy machine gun, including the base and the bullets, weighs nearly 100 kilograms. We would have to mount it on a vehicle to use it, but the captain just lifted it up with one hand."

"You think the captain is a late-stage Flesh Refining martial artist, with at least a thousand catties of strength in one hand, and can send ordinary people like us flying with a single punch?"

"The captain went to the Thundercloud Martial Arts Academy in Anshan City for intensive training this time. I estimate that his strength has improved, and he'll reach the Entry-Level Strength realm soon, right?"

"Definitely. I heard that the master of the Mad Wind Martial Arts Academy is almost sixty years old and he is only a beginner in the Jin level. Our Captain Cheng is not even thirty years old and he has already reached the Jin level. His future achievements will definitely surpass that person's."

As they were talking, a man walked over from the other side of the city wall and started chatting enthusiastically with Cheng Lei, who had just gotten off the car.

Cheng Lei also smiled and nodded from time to time.

The two talked for a while before parting ways.

The man who came later smiled and watched the former leave, then looked up and glanced towards the city wall.

Everyone was immediately frightened and quickly straightened their backs, looking straight ahead.

This man is the deputy captain, Guan Dexi, a smiling tiger. He is mediocre in both ability and character. However, it is said that he is from Anshan City, and even Captain Cheng usually treats him with great courtesy.

These ordinary people can't afford to mess with this guy.

"I'm going to the restroom."

Wang Xin said something, then turned and walked down the stairs towards the city wall.

However, instead of heading towards the toilet as he had said, he went into the courtyard, walked further in, and knocked on the door of an office.

"Captain, are you there?"

He lowered his voice, as if afraid that others would hear him.

"Come in."

A deep, resonant voice echoed from inside the room.

With a "click," Wang Xin opened the door with a grin and went inside, not forgetting to close it behind him.

"What is it?"

Cheng Lei asked without looking up.

He was wiping the heavy machine gun on the table.

"Captain, someone in our team hasn't been on duty for several days. Something must have happened." Wang Xin's smile faded, and a look of sadness appeared on his face.

Cheng Lei paused, his right hand holding the rag still, and turned to ask, "What happened?"

"It was a young man named Yang Xiaochun, in his early twenties. He took half a day off a few days ago, and we didn't think much of it at the time. But he didn't show up for several days in a row. I went to his house to inquire and found out that he, his brother, and a few other people went hunting that afternoon and never came back."

Wang Xin's eyes reddened.

"..."

Cheng Lei was taken aback.

In the end times, death is a common occurrence.

Even the guards on night duty have been killed by ferocious beasts.

This Yang Xiaochun is quite courageous; he's not content with a stable life and dares to go out and take risks.

He sighed and said, "Go to Accountant Ding's office later and withdraw five hundred yuan. Just say I asked you to do it and send it to the family."

"Yes, but, Captain, about this..."

Wang Xin stammered.

"Is there something else going on?"

Cheng Lei keenly sensed something.

"That's right."

Wang Xin looked around.

"It's just the two of us here, so just say what you want to say."

Cheng Lei frowned.

"Yes."

Wang Xin began his narration, but was interrupted halfway through.

"You mean, the bandits outside the city were wiped out, not a single one survived?"

An expression of disbelief appeared on Cheng Lei's face.

"That's what Yang Xiaochun said."

Wang Xin continued, "However, Captain, I haven't heard any news of bandits appearing outside the city these past few days. Many people from other places have confirmed this."

"If that's the case, it would be a great thing."

Cheng Lei muttered to himself.

The band of bandits outside the city weren't the first group, but they were definitely the most troublesome.

He personally led the troops out of the city to suppress the previous bandits, eliminating and driving away many of them. However, every two or three months of peace, new bandits would appear, which annoyed him greatly.

This group was even more cunning, playing a guerrilla war against him. He even suspected that there might be some of his spies in the city, specifically watching him.

Now that this gang of bandits has been wiped out, it can be considered a karmic cycle, and retribution is inevitable.

"Do you know who did it?"

"According to Yang Xiaochun, they were from Chenjia Village. One of them was a masked archer who used a bow with a draw weight of about 200 jin and wiped out the entire band of bandits."

"Chenjia Village?"

Cheng Lei tried hard to recall. He remembered that there was indeed a village called Chenjiazhai nearby, but it seemed to be a small village.

A bow with a draw weight of 200 jin should be around the third level of Body Tempering.

"Are there such people in Chenjia Village?"

He could hardly believe it.

With his skills and the aid of firearms, he could have done it, but the bow and arrows that person used were not so simple.

"The information I gathered is this: Captain, all twenty or thirty of those bandits' horses have been taken away by the people of Chenjia Village." Wang Xin emphasized this point.

That was the real purpose of his trip.

Yang Xiaochun and his ilk are too foolish, or rather, too greedy.

He fantasized about swallowing so much food all by himself, without even considering his own strength. This time he didn't come back because either he had an accident on the way and was attacked by a ferocious beast, or he perished in Chenjia Village.

Of course, he had to learn from this experience and tell the captain that if he stepped in, no matter how good the sharpshooter was, he wouldn't be a match for the captain.

However, things don't seem to be going in the direction he expected.

"Is that so? Then I'd like to meet this sharpshooter."

A smile appeared on Cheng Lei's face.

"?"

Wang Xin's mouth opened slightly, and he hurriedly said, "Team leader, Yang Xiaochun's death may be related to the people of Chenjia Village."

"What do you mean?"

A look of wariness flashed in Cheng Lei's eyes.

Wang Xin swallowed hard and said, "After Yang Xiaochun learned that it was the people from Chenjiazhai who took the horse bandits' horse, he went home and told his elder brother Yang Mu about it. The two of them then found a few helpers and drove out of Songjiabao in the afternoon. They should have gone to Chenjiazhai. And then, they never came back."

Are you sure?

Cheng Lei squinted.

"Sure."

Wang Xin nodded repeatedly, "I went to his house to inquire about it, and his sister-in-law told me herself."

"So, Yang Xiaochun got into trouble because he wanted those wildebeest mounts? The person who killed them was very likely the one from Chen Family Village, that sharpshooter?"

"That's right!"

Wang Xin gave a thumbs up, "The captain is incredibly smart; he figured everything out in no time."

"Yang Xiaochun and his gang really deserved what they got."

Cheng Lei snorted coldly.

He wanted to take back what he said, but then thought better of it. Yang Xiaochun and the others died a worthy death, but their families would definitely have a hard time from now on.

A mere 500 yuan is nothing to me, but for a family that has lost its breadwinner, it is like sending charcoal in snowy weather.

The air suddenly fell silent.

"Anything else?"

Cheng Lei looked at Wang Xin across from him with a puzzled expression.

Wang Xin was conflicted.

He waited for Cheng Lei to return, not to run errands for him and deliver 500 yuan to that woman, even though she was already his. Giving it to her was the same as giving it to himself.

What he wants is several thousand or even tens of thousands of yuan!

Otherwise, he would have told the vice-captain about this the day before.

"team leader,"

Finally, he made up his mind and said unwillingly, "Is this all going to end like this? Yang Xiaochun was indeed wrong, but does he deserve to pay with his life? The people of Chenjiazhai are completely disregarding Songjiabao, Captain!"

After saying that, he wiped away his tears. "Yang Xiaochun was a pretty good young man. He hadn't been here for the past few days, and everyone missed him. But then, he just died so mysteriously. When I think about it, I can't help but cry."

Thank you so much to reader 1522 for the 100 Qidian Coins reward!

(End of this chapter)