56: Code name: Shura!

Reception Room.

"You wouldn't visit without a reason."

After Captain Fu entered the room, he laughed heartily at the two of them,

"You two distinguished guests wouldn't normally come to my humble abode."

Guan Zhenyue looked over the various torture implements in the room and smiled faintly,

"Your way of hosting guests in the Patrol Guard is truly unique."

"If it weren't for a matter of importance, I wouldn't come to this godforsaken place."

Captain Fu was not annoyed.

It would be a miracle if the Patrol Guard were well-liked.

He looked at Elder He, who was sitting upright,

"Since that is the case, I presume Elder He has something to discuss with me?"

"I heard my nephew committed an offense and was brought into the Patrol Guard."

Elder He's fingers tapped slowly on the table, emitting a crisp sound,

"I hope the Patrol Guard can provide me with a reasonable explanation."

"Otherwise, should I consider this as causing trouble for my Martial Arts Pavilion?"

Captain Fu smiled slightly, "The explanation is that your nephew killed the grandson of Director Chen of the War Preparation Bureau."

"Is this reason sufficient?"

Cough, cough!

Upon hearing this, Guan Zhenyue, who was drinking tea, was so startled he nearly choked to death.

If he remembered correctly, that old geezer Chen Zhaoan's grandson had already advanced to a Martial Artist two years ago, right?

Two years had passed, and with no lack of resources, he should have at least reached the Late Stage of the One-Star Realm, right?

If he had been stabbed by some ignorant Martial Artist in the wild, he could understand that.

But Li Canglan?

He was just in the Duel Arena fighting in the ring a few days ago.

He only had the strength of the Body Tempering Realm; even if his talent was astonishing and he had improved over the past few days,

at most, he would be at the Early Stage of the One-Star Realm.

With just that, he could kill the grandson of that guy Chen Zhaoan?

Elder He's face also twitched.

He had guessed that the brat had caused him trouble.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been taken away by the Patrol Guard, requiring him to come and bail him out.

But he never expected that this trouble would be even harder to clean up than he had imagined!

As expected, there are very few geniuses who are well-behaved!

Elder He did not say anything about whether the evidence was conclusive.

As the head of the Patrol Guard, Captain Fu would not—and would not deign to—use lies to deceive them.

Elder He tried to remain calm and said in a deep voice, "Since that is the case, how does Envoy Fu intend to deal with my nephew?"

"According to the laws for Martial Artists, if Martial Artists kill each other, they must pay with their lives."

Upon hearing this, both Guan Zhenyue and Elder He felt their hearts tighten.

However, Captain Fu's next sentence made them both heave a sigh of relief.

"However, the Patrol Guard has collected some intelligence; the deceased, Chen Qinian, often extorted Martial Artists leaving the city."

"Even some of the deceased Martial Artists had intricate connections to him."

Captain Fu picked up his teacup and took a slow sip, "However, this only suggests that Chen Qinian might have also targeted He Xinghai, but this cannot serve as evidence for acquittal."

This was completely different from the conclusion of excessive self-defense that Captain Fu had previously made.

But what kind of shrewd person was Captain Fu?

When it came to lying, he could do it without changing his expression or heart rate.

Elder He said in a deep voice, "At this point, let's stop beating around the bush and speak frankly."

Captain Fu said indifferently, "Exile to the Vanguard Camp for half a year."

"As long as he can survive, his guilt can be absolved."

Elder He's gaze was grave.

This was not Captain Fu being lenient, but strictly following the laws for Martial Artists.

For committing murder, the death penalty would just be letting the murderer off too easily.

Being exiled to the Vanguard Camp is the punishment that most criminals receive.

Facing all kinds of dangers, it is almost a certain death sentence.

Unless one performs unparalleled meritorious service, there is almost no hope of leaving the Vanguard Camp!

Of course, because Li Canglan's crime was not as severe, the duration was only half a year.

But in half a year, those who can survive are already as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns!

"Envoy Fu, is there no second option?"

If there were a choice, going to the Vanguard Camp would definitely be the worst strategy.

"Of course there is."

Captain Fu laughed, "Redeeming oneself through service; it's the same everywhere."

"Become a Shadow Guard of my Patrol Guard. Before accumulating ten meritorious deeds, you may not join any other organization."

"After performing the meritorious service, whether you want to continue staying in the Patrol Guard or join another organization, both are fine."

"Of course, during this period, he will only be an ordinary Shadow Guard. No matter how great his contributions, he will not be able to be promoted."

What he wanted was to first persuade the uninformed Elder He and Guan Zhenyue.

Then let these two do the ideological work on Li Canglan!

Only in this way could he keep the other party in the Patrol Guard!

Elder He and Guan Zhenyue exchanged a look.

Good heavens, is that what he was waiting for here?

The people of Shenxia Country are always inclined toward compromise.

After first giving a punishment of exile to the Vanguard Camp.

Joining the Patrol Guard is a painless punishment.

Even for many people, joining the Patrol Guard is a cushy job!

The only decent punishment is probably the special status of the Shadow Guard, which cannot be revealed to others in public.

It cannot be like the Patrol Guard, with a transcendent status.

And unable to be promoted.

Elder He understood that this guy probably also discovered Li Canglan's extraordinary talent.

Such a punishment can be considered as going with the flow, granting a favor.

Redeeming oneself through service; handling special matters with special methods.

In this era, there is definitely preferential treatment for geniuses.

Not to mention that Elder He still didn't know that Li Canglan had actually only acted in excessive self-defense.

"I need to talk to my nephew before I can give you an answer."

Captain Fu was not at all surprised by Elder He's answer.

As long as one is a normal person, one should know how to choose.

And this was exactly Captain Fu's goal!

Interrogation Room.

Seeing Elder He come in, Li Canglan stood up quickly.

"Uncle He, how did it go?"

Elder He informed Li Canglan of the two conditions offered by Captain Fu and waited quietly for his reply.

Li Canglan pondered in his heart.

The two choices, which could be considered punishments for others, were actually not particularly difficult for him.

Although the Vanguard Camp is dangerous, it also represents opportunities.

The more monsters he hunts, the more opportunities he has to obtain crystal cores.

It's just that in the Vanguard Camp, he would be equivalent to a criminal, a prisoner.

But becoming a Shadow Guard does not have this drawback.

Although Li Canglan wasn't that particular, he didn't want an unearned stain on his record.

Surviving in the Vanguard Camp, although it would make people look at him differently, it would also make people think that he had done something evil.

He was an ordinary person and still cared about the opinions of others.

"Uncle He, I have decided to choose the second path."

His strength was insufficient now, and he only had the right to choose between the two.

It was impossible for him to fight his way out of the Patrol Guard alone and become an enemy of the authorities.

...

After the two arrived at the reception room, Captain Fu dismissed everyone.

He brought Li Canglan alone to his office.

Captain Fu took out a token engraved with a sword mark and pushed it in front of Li Canglan, "Choose one. Which of your identities will you use to serve as a Shadow Guard?"

Li Canglan's heart skipped a beat, and his vigilance suddenly soared.

Could he see through his disguise?

"No need to be afraid."

"This mask must have been given to you by Old He, right?"

"This is indeed a good item, but it is not enough to deceive a Five-Star Martial Artist like me."

Seeing Li Canglan's vigilant expression, Captain Fu continued, "You don't need to worry; if you don't want to reveal your true identity, I won't expose you."

Li Canglan remained silent.

He knew that Captain Fu was hinting at him not to play any petty tricks.

In the face of absolute strength, any conspiracy or trickery is futile!

This was definitely not just empty talk.

After a moment of silence, Li Canglan said, "Let's just use the current identity."

Captain Fu had no objections.

Regardless of which identity, the other party was working for the Patrol Guard.

Plus, with He Qianxun and Guan Zhenyue vouching for him.

Captain Fu was not worried that the other party would do anything out of line.

Thus, Li Canglan also obtained his new codename.

It was completely different from the codename he had taken in the Duel Arena.

Asura!