Stirling's expression shifted, but he remained silent.

  One breath, two breaths, three breaths... a good dozen breaths passed, but Stirling didn't move an inch.

  The Night Watchmen nearby thought Stirling was about to erupt. And they had already gripped their swords, ready to strike. But after waiting for so long with no movement from Stirling, he stood there like a lost soul.

  "Get out of here!"

  Finally, the man grew impatient and shouted.

  Stirling glanced at the man and gave a mysterious smile. Then, he walked out of the passage without looking back.

  "Rubbish..."

  They were utterly disdainful of Stirling's behavior in enduring the provocation without complaint. Shaking their heads, they entered the cave.

  As soon as the three entered the cave, they saw Charlie kneeling on the ground, head slumped, his arms stretched long by chains. One of them went over at once to check on him and then called out to the others.

  "He's unconscious."

  The leader stepped forward, grabbed Charlie by the hair, and pulled him up. "What's going on?" he said, sounding confused.

  "How did the boy torture him so far?"

  "What do we do?" Someone asked from the side.

  "Feed him, and we will leave."

  The leader said, then took out an oiled-paper packet from his pocket.

  Carefully opening the paper package, there was a pinch of white powder inside.

  The leader searched around and picked up the bowl Stirling had used. He saw that the water was gone and blood stained the rim.

  A sneer crossed his lips. Then, he pulled down his trousers and urinated into the bowl.

  After urinating, he pulled up his pants, picked up the bowl, and returned to Charlie's side. He pinched Charlie's mouth open. First, he poured white powder into it. Then, he fed him the urine from the bowl.

  Having done this, the three began with panache to clean up the evidence. In just a dozen breaths, they wiped away all traces, leaving no clues for even the professionals.

  The leader lifted Charlie's eyelids and saw much bloodshot in the eyes. He knew the drug was working. He waved his hand and hurried to lead the other two out of the door.

  As they passed the rest area, the three said to the guard on duty:

  "The prisoner has passed out. We will come back when he wakes up!"

  "Yes, sir." The guard replied. He knew the surprise interrogation was against procedure. But these three were high-ranking. He couldn't risk offending them as a lowly guard.

  Stirling had just come out of the dungeon. He didn't know who sent the three men, but he had a good idea of their intentions.

  "Sure enough, there are many drafty holes on the inner-city wall. I must improve my strength soon to avoid being blown away by the winds of the inner city."

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Stirling sighed inwardly, then prepared to go to the dojo to inform Master Kim that he was moving in.

  As a disciple, everyone living in the dojo would get a spacious private room. They often had aligned maids and servants.

  Before he became a disciple, Stirling shared a large dormitory with others. So, he had a daily commute to protect his secret.

  Now, while living in the dojo was still somewhat restrictive, it was at least much safer.

  Carrying his bundle, Stirling walked back to the dojo. He saw the fellows still working hard at their boxing in the courtyard.

  Stirling's quick rise seemed to motivate them. Their earlier laziness disappeared, replaced by fresh energy. Now, their punches were fierce.

  As Stirling entered, the group paused their practice immediately. They bowed in greeting, "Senior Brother Luis."

  Stirling recalled that as a disciple, he ranked higher than them. They could only call him Senior Brother. This meant Joe Mosley was the youngest junior brother again.

  "Where is Senior Brother Figo?"

  Stirling looked around but didn't see Figo.

  "Senior Brother Figo went to the inner city," Sean said.

  "I heard he's joined the Stanleys as a houseman!" someone else added.

  "The Stanleys..." Stirling nodded a tad.

  The inner city of Farfield City was home to three prominent families: the Stanleys, the Marshalls, and the Karls.

  In this inner city, the city magistrate and Patrol Shaman were not the only ones with power. These families also held significant influence.

  The Stanleys ruled the city's salt and food trade. The Marshalls, linked to Myosotis Palace, ran the herbs and medicine trade. City Magistrate Hoffmann supported The Karls, ran the ironware and clothing trade.

  Among them, the Stanleys were quite weaker. But to ordinary people, they were still a behemoth.

  "Brother Luis, are you leaving for lunch today? My treat!"

  Sean called out again.

  "No, thanks. I will be on duty this afternoon, so I am not available to join this time."

  Stirling apologized, then headed towards the side rooms in the back courtyard.

  In the backyard, Stirling found Master Kim sitting and sipping tea, just like usual. He stepped forward, bowed, and said,

  "Master, I have a request."

  Master Kim put down the teapot and smiled with a twinkle.

  "Let me guess, are you thinking of moving back in?"

  "Huh?"

  Stirling was a little surprised and looked up at Master Kim.

  "Last night's commotion was rather loud; everyone in Farfield City knows about it. Very well, you can move back in. I'll have someone clean a side room for you."

  Master Kim was obviously prepared.

  "Appreciate your help, Master!"

  Stirling felt surprised. He thought this Blood-Boiling Realm samurai was not only skilled but likely had a few informants too. Stirling was happy to be his disciple. For just forty silver coins, he had a grandmaster bodyguard. It was good value for the money.

  "Practice your boxing hard. Once you enter the Viscera-Refining Stage, you will truly metamorphose!"

  Master Kim's expression returned to seriousness. Stirling's joining the Night Watch was, in theory, somewhat reluctantly arranged by Master Kim.

  After all, Stirling had to patrol during the day, leaving only the evenings for training.

  But everyone may choose. As his master, Master Kim couldn't meddle in his disciple's private life. He could focus only on teaching him well. Martial arts training costs a lot of money and valuable medicine. So, without a proper job, how could he afford it?

  "Follow your instructions."

  Stirling bowed again.

  From that day forward, Stirling moved into the dojo.

  At night, Stirling resumed drug use.

  He could refine the Yearning malice he used nightly for bone forging. This didn't interfere with the enhanced hematopoietic pill. Using both together sped up the bone-forging process.

  Besides, he also needed to improve his King Kong boxing level.

  Master Kim says viscera-refining is a big step for samurai. It works by using the skin and periosteum to compress the body's vital energy and blood. This helps build a strong virl within the viscera.

  This potent force ties to fist strength. The boxing practice shapes the force create.

  The better the boxing technique, the quicker to build this force. This links to the saying: "Blood flows through the viscera; fist strength circulates throughout the body."

  Once a samurai begins viscera-refining, they need to use their fist strength to manage the flow of aether and blood to the viscera. Over time, this will cultivate a trace of powerful internal force called Virl. Therefore, good fist techniques are extremely crucial for a samurai's viscera-refining.

  However, many fist techniques exist worldwide, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. So, the quality of viscera-refining is up to the Virl intensity.

  Considering the Calamity Stars, there are 108 major forces and over 3,000 minor forces. Adding the samurai, there are likely tens of thousands of Virl in the world.

  Stirling sighed. It was tough for a samurai to refine their viscera. They faced various challenges, like fist and movements techniques. No wonder very few samurai could achieve the Wind Rider stage. This path was quite winding and bumpy.