Urban Martial Saint

”Are you out of your mind?” Zhao Chengshuang glared at Ye Qing and said, ”If you’ve got something to say, just say it directly. Asking me for help? Who are you trying to be polite with?”

Ye Qing smiled faintly and said, ”This matter might be a bit tricky.”

”Cut the crap, what is it!” Zhao Chengshuang said bluntly.

After a brief silence, Ye Qing said, ”I need a few guns!”

”Guns?” Zhao Chengshuang was momentarily stunned. This was indeed tricky. Although Shenchuan City had plenty of criminal elements, firearms were strictly controlled. Not just in Shenchuan, but nationwide. At most, disputes over territory or business in Shenchuan involved machetes or similar weapons—firearms were rarely used. If guns came into play, the situation escalated, becoming classified as a terrorist incident that would be met with severe crackdowns.

Take these mercenaries, for example. Their use of firearms made their actions much more severe, classifying them directly as terrorists.

Now, Ye Qing needed guns. It really wasn’t an easy situation. But on second thought—it made sense. Facing so many heavily armed mercenaries classified as terrorists, would you expect Ye Qing to fight them barehanded? It was only natural for Ye Qing to need guns. However, providing guns wasn’t something Zhao Chengshuang could decide on his own.

Seeing Zhao Chengshuang’s silence, Ye Qing said, ”If it’s too much trouble, forget it.”

”No problem!” Zhao Chengshuang waved it off. ”It’s a bit tricky to get guns through the police, but how about this—I’ll talk to my dad and see if we can borrow some handy weapons from the military district.”

”If it’s inconvenient, I can manage without guns,” Ye Qing replied.

”Don’t worry, it shouldn’t be a big problem!” Zhao Chengshuang stood up, walking out of the room. At the door, he paused and said, ”But Ye Zi, be careful this time. If they’re trying to lure you out, they may have already set a trap. This time, it’s going to be far more dangerous than before!”

Ye Qing nodded slowly, staying silent. He was well aware of the risks. Over the past few days, he had been deliberately ignoring the mercenaries, hoping to force them into making a move first. But now that Ou Keren had been captured, he had no choice but to act. And taking the initiative meant facing immense danger.

Zhao Chengshuang sighed. This time, he knew he couldn’t persuade Ye Qing otherwise. Even if he wanted to, he simply didn’t have the right to—Ou Keren had been captured, and they needed to rescue her as soon as possible. Otherwise, it would be a major blunder for the Shenchuan City police!

Zhao Chengshuang returned to the police station and immediately sent a team to search the small town in the West Suburb for any possible clues. At the same time, he called his father to discuss Ye Qing’s request for guns.

Meanwhile, in a luxurious villa in Kowloon Tong, Xiangjiang, an elderly man with snow-white hair and beard was leisurely tending to the flowers and plants he had carefully cultivated in a serene garden. His movements were precise, delicate, and gentle. The old man exuded the air of a retiree enjoying his golden years, seemingly untroubled by the world.

Aside from the old man, there was no one else in the garden. It appeared he cherished peace and disliked disturbances in his life.

However, as the old man focused on meticulously caring for his plants, a man in his forties suddenly climbed over the courtyard wall and rushed toward him.

The man’s movements were anything but subtle, yet the old man acted as if he hadn’t noticed, continuing to tend to his plants with care. The man ran up to him, stopping about five meters away, and abruptly knelt down as though showing great reverence.

”Master, bad news!” the man said gravely. ”We just received word from the Mainland—Miss has been captured by those mercenaries and even got shot. Her condition is critical. Master, should we send someone from the Mainland to rescue her?”

The old man paused, slowly turning to look at the man with a frown. ”How was she captured by those mercenaries?”

The man explained, ”They want to use her to lure Ye Qing out.”

”Ye Qing?” The old man fell silent briefly before asking, ”The Ye Qing from Shenchuan City? Li Changqing’s closed-door disciple?”

”That’s him!” the man confirmed. ”He claims to be Li Changqing’s closed-door disciple and practices the Li Style Bajiquan. But because he was born with blocked meridians, he couldn’t release internal energy and barely understands Inner Strength. Recently, for reasons unknown, his arm meridians have been unblocked—it’s quite odd!”

The old man scoffed coldly. ”Blocked meridians from birth? Li Changqing sure knows how to pick his disciples. Do you think he still believes my elder brother is alive?”

The man whispered, ”Master, the Miss… she’s still in the hands of those mercenaries. Should we…?”

”No need!” The old man waved dismissively. ”Their target is Ye Qing. As long as Ye Qing lives, Keren won’t be harmed. Tell our people to protect her from the shadows. Unless absolutely necessary, don’t take any action. I don’t wish to expose my identity prematurely.”

”Understood!” The man nodded, quickly standing and preparing to leave.

”Wait!” the old man suddenly stopped him. After a brief pause, he said gravely, ”These mercenaries are now useless. They dared to hurt Keren—don’t let them die so easily!”

”Master, you mean…” The man looked alarmed.

The old man glanced at him and said quietly, ”I want to test the Gu Insects I’ve just developed on them.”

”Yes!” The man immediately complied, though his face betrayed his growing fear of the unspoken horrors associated with those Gu Insects.

”Go,” the old man said with a wave, indifferent to the man’s fear, as though he regarded it all as inconsequential.

The man dared not linger and swiftly climbed over the garden wall to leave.

The old man turned back to his plants, meticulously tending to them as if nothing had transpired.

Soon, a middle-aged man entered through the front gate. Spotting the old man, he quickly approached and said, ”Dad, your health isn’t great. You should rest indoors more. I’ve already hired a gardener to take care of these—why are you still doing this yourself?”

”Hahaha…” The old man chuckled. ”If I sit around all day, I’ll rot away. Besides, these flowers and plants are ones I personally cultivated. How could I let someone else tend to them? Go focus on your business. I might be old, but I can still manage some gardening—it’s relaxing.”

The middle-aged man sighed, knowing his father couldn’t be persuaded. ”Alright, but take care of your health, okay? If you ever feel tired, just let the gardener handle it!”

”Don’t worry about me. I’m not a child!” the old man said with a smile. ”By the way, when is Keren coming back?”

The middle-aged man chuckled. ”Your granddaughter is still in Shenchuan handling a case. She’ll be back soon once it’s resolved.”

The old man sighed. ”Ah, a young lady taking on so much. Why be a police officer of all things? It’s such a dangerous job. You should talk her into switching careers.”

The middle-aged man laughed. ”Dad, Keren’s dream is to be a police officer and uphold justice. Don’t worry—I’ve already spoken to Director Wang. We’ll transfer her to a desk job soon so it’s less risky.”

The old man nodded approvingly. ”That’s how it should be. A young woman should be working in an office, not running around taking risks every day.”

”Hahaha…” The middle-aged man chuckled. ”Dad, don’t worry. When Keren was little, you had her trained in all kinds of martial arts and even acupuncture. During her training, even her instructors weren’t her match. Those criminals don’t stand a chance against her!”

”Even so, we can’t let our guard down!” the old man said firmly. ”Just make sure she’s transferred to a desk job as soon as possible.”

”Alright, alright. Once she’s back, I’ll arrange it,” the middle-aged man replied helplessly.

”That’s more like it!” The old man’s tone softened into approval as he waved his hand. ”Now go focus on your company’s business. You don’t need to worry about me.”

The middle-aged man nodded, bid his father farewell, and left the garden.

As the man receded into the distance, the old man’s benevolent demeanor gradually gave way to a sharp, almost predatory ruthlessness. After a long silence, he sighed and returned to trimming his plants, as though the earlier conversation had never happened.

The middle-aged man was oblivious to his father’s true nature. He had no idea what his father really did, nor did Ou Keren. In this family, the old man’s secrets ran deep. Apart from the man who frequently contacted him, no one else had any clue about his hidden identity.

Back in Shenchuan City, as nightfall approached, Zhao Chengshuang arrived once more at Tian Sheng. This time, he brought a team with him. Judging by their upright posture and confident strides, they were clearly well-trained.

Zhao Chengshuang led the team into Ye Qing’s office. Addressing Ye Qing, who was inside, he said, ”Ye Zi, these are the people my dad sent to assist you. They’re Special Forces trained right here at the Shenchuan Military District. This is Captain Feng. My dad has already coordinated with the police—this operation will be a joint effort between the military and police. From now on, Captain Feng and his men are at your command to assist with the rescue.”

After introducing Captain Feng, Zhao Chengshuang turned to him and said, ”Captain Feng, this is Ye Qing. He will be the mission commander for this operation.”

Captain Feng gave Ye Qing a glance, his displeasure evident. Such a reaction wasn’t surprising. As the leader of Shenchuan’s elite Special Forces, renowned throughout the military district, Captain Feng was used to calling the shots. Being assigned to cooperate with the police and, even worse, take orders from someone outside the military, understandably didn’t sit well with him.