Name: Jiang Feng
Fortune: None
Cultivation Technique: Prison Guard Health Care Skill (Entry Level)
Skills: Prison Guard Long Fist (Entry Level)
Realm: Ninth Grade (Skin Refining)
Divine Power: Immortality
"Finally reached entry level in everything."
Jiang Feng nodded to himself.
This so-called Prison Guard Health Care Skill and Prison Guard Long Fist are both the standard issue for low-class prison guards at Zhenbei Prison.
The prison was damp and gloomy.
Ordinary people who stay in a place like this too long are bound to develop all kinds of problems.
And as for the lowest-ranking prison guards at Zhenbei Prison, aren't all of them just ordinary folks?
So, the Court distributed the Prison Guard Health Care Skill and Prison Guard Long Fist for low-class guards to cultivate, so they could serve in these harsh conditions for the Court over the long run.
Very few managed to actually cultivate these techniques to any meaningful degree.
Even fewer became Grade-Entering Martial Artists and stood out from the low-class guards because of it.
Yet today, Jiang Feng had become a Grade-Entering Martial Artist, with both cultivation technique and fist technique reaching entry level, all because he refused to do a favor for that old man in Cell Thirty and gained fortune from it.
If the other low-class prison guards ever found out, wouldn't they be enraged to death?
Jiang Feng felt even more convinced—he had to keep lying low in the prison, not coming out until he'd gathered enough fortune points to truly protect himself.
After all, he's just immortal.
Not undying.
If some maniac came along and hacked him to death, it'd all be for nothing.
Day in, day out.
Jiang Feng kept up his routine, delivering food to the inmates in the cells under his charge.
Just like that, ten days passed.
Pushing the wooden cart, he came to Cell Thirty again.
The old man inside was still scribbling and drawing on the floor with a stone, while Jiang Feng, expressionless, brought him a generous bowl of porridge with extra pickled vegetables.
This time, the old man didn't reach out to take it.
Jiang Feng placed the porridge on the floor, then pushed his cart and left.
After he left.
The old man finally looked up, his cold gaze flashing as he watched Jiang Feng's figure fade into the gloom of the corridor.
He'd tried to bribe Jiang Feng that day, and when it failed, he'd had no patience and handed the Jade Pendant to one of the other prison guards—a naive-looking one. Ten days later, still not a peep of news; he knew that jade was wasted for nothing.
And deep down, somehow blamed Jiang Feng for it.
"Jiang Feng, hurry over and have a chicken leg. Da Zhuang's sister gave birth to a son, so he bought chicken legs for us to celebrate—grab one and get some good luck!"
Jiang Feng pushed his wooden cart back to the workroom.
Inside, three other low-class guards like him were congregated.
One of them, who's logged some years in the prison and gets respect as Squad Leader Uncle Huo, munched on a chicken leg as he spoke.
"Everyone gets one, don't be shy. Tonight let's drink at Xiaoyue Building—my treat!"
Da Zhuang was sitting inside.
Just past twenty.
Chubby and fair-skinned.
Squatting on the long bench, he called out in his usual boisterous way.
Uncle Huo and the other guard, Niu Wang, both clapped and cheered in excitement.
"You all go ahead, my stomach's been bad lately, always feeling off. So I won't be drinking tonight either—I'll go practice my fist form."
Jiang Feng waved it off.
Making up an excuse, he left the workroom.
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean? I treat you to chicken and booze and you don't appreciate it?"
Da Zhuang was unhappy at being refused, and hopped off the bench.
"That's just how Jiang Feng is, don't worry about him. We'll eat,"
said Uncle Huo.
"It's not like I asked him for money. Why'd he have to be so stingy?"
Da Zhuang looked sulky.
Lately, he kept feeling like Jiang Feng was always dodging him.
Wouldn't you stay away from him?
In the memories of the previous owner.
Da Zhuang was gutsy and addicted to gambling; every guard in the prison working with him had lent him money before. If he won, he'd sometimes treat people to drinks or peanuts, but for just his sister giving birth, he's springing for chicken and drinks at Xiaoyue Building?
No way Jiang Feng believed it.
If anyone should treat, it ought to be his brother-in-law.
Thinking of how the old man in Cell Thirty had been acting recently, plus how Da Zhuang suddenly started splurging just a few days after Jiang Feng refused the old man, always bringing food for the group—Jiang Feng could easily guess the old man had handed the Jade Pendant to Da Zhuang instead.
As for whether Da Zhuang did the old man's bidding, Jiang Feng couldn't say.
But knowing Da Zhuang's gambler nature, he'd probably milk it for all it's worth—only walking away after the old man had nothing left to squeeze.
And for an old man who can toss out a hundred-tael Jade Pendant just like that, can you imagine his background?
Getting tangled with someone like that—what good could a low-class guard expect?
Thinking back to how he'd turned the old man down.
Jiang Feng thought for a moment, then decided not to leave the prison for a while—he'd eat and sleep here for now.
Even if it's damp, cold, and foul-smelling, you get used to it in time; and most importantly, it's safe—nobody in Dragon Capital has the guts to barge into Zhenbei Prison.
He checked his status panel.
Everything else was the same, but he noticed a number 5 after Fortune.
He figured those fortune points must be from refusing to go drinking with Da Zhuang at Xiaoyue Building tonight.
That made him even more sure—Da Zhuang was carrying some serious bad karma.
He briefly considered warning Uncle Huo not to go either, but quickly thought better of it. Uncle Huo, as squad leader, had always taken care of the team, even looked after the previous owner.
But with just a single sentence, could he really keep Uncle Huo from drinking with Da Zhuang, or steer clear of him? No way Jiang Feng could pull that off.
No way he could just blurt out everything he suspected to Uncle Huo!
If the guy took it the wrong way, thought Jiang Feng was sowing discord, he'd really be done for.
Best to avoid trouble and act like he knows nothing.
So, Jiang Feng stayed put in the prison for the day.
Set up a spot to sleep in the workroom where the wood carts were kept.
When it got to three or four in the morning.
Jiang Feng heard Dali Temple officers coming to fetch a prisoner overnight. After they'd left, he peeked toward Cell Thirty—sure enough, the old man was gone.
Whatever reason the Dali Temple officers had for taking him...
Jiang Feng could tell something big was brewing these days.
At the very least, best not to step outside—bet that whole ten days, the old man was busy drawing talismans and cursing him.
The next day.
Jiang Feng assumed Uncle Huo and Niu Wang wouldn't be back to work so soon, but when check-in time rolled around, both showed up in the workroom smelling of booze—looked like they'd done plenty of drinking at Xiaoyue Building with Da Zhuang last night.
Jiang Feng opened his mouth, wanting to ask if anything had happened, but in the end just pushed his cart and got to work.
Old man just got taken away; if anything big's going down, it'll probably be in a few days.
After he finished his round and came back to the workroom, he saw Uncle Huo yawning as he said, "Jiang Feng, help Da Zhuang with his work today, will you? He probably drank too much last night—still hasn't turned up."
"Alright."
Jiang Feng answered offhand.
And then checked his panel to see any changes.