The Blade-Wielding Legend-Chapter 1409 - 726: Pressing Step by Step

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In the bustling East Market, arrest officer Zhang from the government was banging the copper gong, shouting with all his might:

"Every household, watch your kids! There's a kidnapper on the loose in the Capital—"

The sound of drums caught the attention of every passerby.

A street punk squatting in the corner of a wall, with a straw dangling from his mouth, joked, "Yo, Officer Zhang, kidnappers in the Capital aren't a rarity, is this really necessary?"

"You don't know shit!"

Officer Zhang glared at him and cursed, "If you don't know, shut your mouth. Just think, if it were ordinary kidnappers, would I be doing this? If you dare say more nonsense, you'll regret it!"

The punk shrank his neck, chuckled and dared not speak further.

But Officer Zhang's eyes flickered, and he stepped forward, saying, "Spread the word, tell your brothers to keep an eye out. See where kids have been missing recently. If you catch someone, there's a reward of five hundred taels of silver!"

"Five hundred taels?"

The punk gasped, his eyes glowing, "Does Officer Zhang mean his words?"

"It's the court's bounty, not a penny short!"

"Got it~"

The punk instantly got up, dusted off his pants, and dashed into a dark alley.

Listening to their conversation, the surrounding citizens looked at each other in surprise.

Soon, all kinds of rumors began to spread throughout the street...

The sound of the copper gong in the East Market still echoed when the iron hooves of the Captain Bureau's fast riders clattered into South City.

The hoofbeats thundered like dense lightning across the bluestone alley, scaring away sparrows hiding from the rain under the eaves.

The blacksmith's apprentice Zhao Sanshui had just clamped down an iron-red plowshare when a government officer at the alley entrance snatched away the hanging lantern, letting the firelight of steel knives and iron rulers pour into the workshop.

"Search! Don't miss any nook or cranny!"

Captain of the Captain's Office Wang Biao roared, sparks flying everywhere. The steam from the neighboring steamed bun shop was brutally dispersed, revealing Shuntian Prefecture's government officials who rushed straight to the corner behind the stove piled with clutter, frightening the boss lady gripping a greasy rag, frozen in place.

Apprentice Zhao Sanshui stared dumbfounded, at the kitchen's Aunt Lee being dragged out by these government officers.

Captain Wang Biao slapped her a few times and yelled, "Black Crow, have you stolen any kids recently?"

"I'm wronged..."

The cook hadn't finished speaking when she was slapped again, causing her face to swell.

Her eyes darted in fearful panic, not daring to speak further.

"Take her back for further questioning, find the next one!"

Wang Biao directly took her away and rushed to the next location.

Under the Tianqiao, "Iron-Armed Ape" Sun Qi was performing monkey tricks to rapturous applause when two Daoists from the Law Enforcement Hall dropped down from the rooftops, pinning the monkey and kicking Sun Qi over...

On Waterwheel Alley, the West Beggar "Crippled Liu" was chewing a half sheet of cold bread when he bumped into a Captain Bureau soldier with a firearm, the black muzzle pressed against his lower back, eyes cold as iron.

"Old Liu, whip out the kids hidden under your mat! The officers have orders, even those missing limbs need to be checked!"

"Gentlemen, let's talk it out."

Beggar leader "Crippled Liu" crushed the cold bread, trembling with fear, used his Dog-beating Stick to pick out the curled-up urchins from under the moldy mat, lining them up for inspection…

In the pugilistic world of Three Religions and Nine Sects, there were indeed many cases of child trafficking, life extraction, and mutilation.

Take for instance the seemingly honest cook lady, known as the demon of the Yan Sect, who had privately committed numerous wicked deeds.

That monkey performer Sun Qi—commanded his monkey to abduct infants in the dead of night.

Previously, these matters were overseen by the government officials.

But now the court has ordered the Captain Bureau to investigate personally, and they are all suffering.

However, the news trickling in made Luo Mingzi feel that something was wrong.

These child traffickers were beaten half to death, yet no clues were found.

The demon from Japan needed freshly born infants to suck blood. The Capital isn't very big nor very small, and there aren't many infants meeting the criteria. If many children were disappearing, there would surely be a big commotion.

There was only one possibility:

The opponent was obtaining infants from elsewhere!

"Let's go to the Cao Gang!"

......

Although the Cao Gang was rooted in the Canal's lifeline, its headquarters wasn't in Jinmen, but near the Tonghui River Pier.

You could also call this river the Tongji River, reconstructed under the supervision of Guo Shoujing over a hundred years ago. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

The choice of location for the Cao Gang headquarters was deliberate.

Much like their relationship with the court.

The two can't be too far apart. The Cao Gang has a long history, monopolizing Northern Canal transport for centuries, holding the lifeline of grain transport from the Capital to Tianjin Port, transporting three million bushels of court grain annually, sustaining the Capital.

When Great Xuan was established, they helped drive away the Golden Tent Wolf Country, earning the reward "Cao Yun Tongji" gold medal hanging in the hall to symbolize honor. Their relations with various offices like the Ministry of Revenue and Ministry of Industry are deeply intertwined.

But they also can't be too close, as the Cao Gang is a pugilistic world gang.

It's like they chose their location, surviving in the gap between the court and the pugilistic world.

"We're unlikely to see Hong Zhenyue."

Tian Qianhu murmured while walking, "This General Leader of the Cao Gang, rumored to be half a step into Grandmaster, nearing fifty, has a chance for one last breakthrough, so he has been in seclusion for years."

"It doesn't matter if we can't see him."

Luo Mingzi said with a grimace, "Both on water and land near the Capital, Cao Gang's intelligence is the most informed. They must uncover traces of those deeds done in secrecy!"

With that said, the two led a large group to the Cao Gang headquarters.

The Cao Gang headquarters was quite intriguing. Though it was built on the pier, the outside was filled with towering stacks of pungent, salty-smelling cargo boxes, forming a giant maze, guarded by disciples at the top and corners.

It was built to resist the Golden Tent Wolf Country back then.