The most eye-catching feature was the large, purple sun embroidered on his chest. Trimmed with golden thread, it shimmered in the surrounding lamplight.

Xu Yang’s gaze tightened. He knew this was the symbol of a Purple Sun Sect Inner Sect Disciple.

"Greetings, Senior Brother Sun Jian!" Jin Lei’s expression changed as he hurried forward and clasped his hands in a salute.

Sun Jian looked down on them imperiously. "What happened? Why did you send a distress signal?"

Jin Lei replied, "A group of thieves broke in, injured us, and stole a Spirit Medicine."

"Useless trash. Which way did they run?" Sun Jian snapped.

Not daring to hesitate, Jin Lei quickly pointed in the direction the thieves had fled.

With a tap of his toes, Sun Jian instantly vanished in a streak of red light.

"Gu Haoming, Hu Fengyi, you stay here and guard the place. The rest of us will give chase," Jin Lei said through gritted teeth.

If they didn’t recover the item, there would be hell to pay. The value of a single Spirit Medicine was far greater than the lives of a few Outer Disciples like them.

With that, he took off in the direction Sun Jian had disappeared.

"Let’s go!" Lu Ren grunted, forcing himself to follow despite his injuries.

Xu Yang dropped the corpse he was holding and vaulted onto the rooftop in a single leap. ’I’m afraid I’m about to get dragged down by these idiots,’ he thought.

"You’ve formed Gang Qi?"

Even at a time like this, Lu Ren couldn’t contain his curiosity.

Tapping his toes on the rooftop, Xu Yang unleashed a burst of Gang Qi and launched himself into the air. "I was just lucky enough to achieve Qi Cultivation Gang yesterday."

The corner of Lu Ren’s mouth twitched. ’This guy always has a cultivation breakthrough at the most critical moments.’

’If it weren’t for tonight’s incident, he never would have revealed that he’d achieved Qi Cultivation Gang.’

The two of them quickly caught up to Jin Lei, but there was no sign of the thieves who had stolen the Spirit Medicine. After a while, Law Enforcement Disciples from Cyan Yang City also joined the search.

But even by dawn, it was as if the thieves had vanished into thin air; they were nowhere to be found.

His face grim, Jin Lei led Xu Yang and Lu Ren back to the Hundred Medicine Hall.

As soon as they entered the Hundred Medicine Hall and stepped into the rear courtyard, they saw Gu Haoming and Hu Fengyi standing to the side with their heads bowed, not daring to even breathe too loudly.

Directly ahead of them sat Outer Sect Steward Zhao Qing, his face dark. He emanated such an oppressive aura that the very air seemed to freeze.

Jin Lei steeled himself and stepped forward, saluting. "This disciple greets Steward Zhao."

Zhao Qing snorted coldly. "You useless piece of trash. You tried to pull chestnuts from the fire, and now you’ve set yourself ablaze, haven’t you? A single Spirit Medicine... even ten of your lives wouldn’t be enough to pay for it."

He had only come to ask a few casual questions, but it hadn’t taken him long to figure out what scheme Jin Lei and his group were plotting.

Beads of sweat instantly broke out on Jin Lei’s forehead, and his face went deathly pale.

"Steward Zhao, please save us! We will be sure to reward you generously in the future!"

Jin Lei staggered forward and grabbed Zhao Qing’s hand, discreetly slipping several silver banknotes into it.

Zhao Qing glanced down, then his hand retreated unconsciously into his sleeve. "The death penalty may be avoided, but you cannot escape punishment. I hereby sentence you to forfeit three months of your contribution points. Do you accept this?"

Jin Lei nodded hastily. "I accept. This disciple accepts wholeheartedly."

’It’s only three months of contribution points. Not making him pay for the Spirit Medicine is already an act of mercy beyond the law.’

Zhao Qing’s gaze swept over the group, and he growled, "Remember this: the Spirit Medicine only arrived last night as the shop was closing. There wasn’t enough time to send it to the Sect."

The disciples nodded hastily.

Zhao Qing continued, "Lu Ren, Gu Haoming, and Hu Fengyi, you are fined one month of contribution points. Do you accept?"

’Isn’t Xu Yang going to be punished?’

The three of them were stunned for a moment, but they too nodded in a hurry.

"The Sect’s rewards and punishments are clearly defined. Xu Yang performed a meritorious service by killing Liu San, which allowed the Sect to identify the culprits. The contribution points you three are being fined will be awarded to him," Zhao Qing said, looking at Xu Yang.

Xu Yang felt neither joy nor sorrow, but he put on a grateful expression, saluted, and said, "Thank you, Steward Zhao."

’The ones who wanted to earn merit failed, while I, who had no such intention, ended up with three months of contribution points taken from Lu Ren and the other two. I wonder if they’ll hold a grudge against me for this.’

’I was fully prepared to be punished along with them. I never expected to be rewarded.’

Lu Ren’s expression was complicated. He recalled his earlier conversation with Xu Yang, how he had confidently assured him that if he just played it smart, he could tag along and earn some merit too.

Who would have thought that they would be the ones nearly beaten to death, and that it would be Xu Yang who saved their lives by killing Liu San and sending the distress signal?

Now, they were all being punished with the loss of contribution points, while Xu Yang alone had earned merit.

Jin Lei asked, "If I may be so bold, Steward, have we locked down the location of these thieves?"

Zhao Qing nodded. "Just now, people from the Cyan Yang City Law Enforcement Department came to see the body. They recognized the man Xu Yang killed as Liu San, a member of a small gang in the south of the city called the Iron Eagle Gang. They’ve already gone to make the arrests. The Spirit Medicine should be recovered shortly."

Jin Lei breathed a silent sigh of relief. ’So they’ve already identified the culprits. No wonder Steward Zhao was willing to help cover for us.’

None of them spoke, standing silently to the side as they waited. After a while, an Outer Disciple dressed in black walked in from outside, saluted, and said, "Reporting to Steward Zhao, the Spirit Medicine has been recovered. However, the leaders of the Iron Eagle Gang have all fled. We request the Steward’s assistance in escorting the Spirit Medicine back to the Sect."

Outer Disciples dressed in black were Law Enforcement Disciples of the Purple Sun Sect. Generally, one couldn’t enter the Law Enforcement Hall without having connections in the Purple Sun Sect’s Inner Sect.

Unlike ordinary Outer Disciples like Xu Yang, who had to scrounge for missions, Law Enforcement Hall disciples earned a high number of contribution points just by patrolling Cyan Yang City every day.

Zhao Qing snorted coldly. "They were smart enough to know they couldn’t just swallow something belonging to my Purple Sun Sect. Otherwise, even if they fled to the ends of the earth, they would only find a dead end."

He was never worried about not recovering the Spirit Medicine. With Liu San’s life left behind as a message, the leaders of the Iron Eagle Gang wouldn’t have dared to take the Spirit Medicine even if they had it.

Even if the men escaped, the item had to stay.