Chapter 56 - 57: Extreme Bone Shrinking Skill, Disguise at Will

Chapter 56: Chapter 57: Extreme Bone Shrinking Skill, Disguise at Will

Lanye Town.

As Su Chen strolled down the street, an increasing sense of unease settled over him. A prickly sensation crawled down his spine, as if unseen eyes were boring into his back. This feeling had been lingering vaguely ever since he stepped foot into Lanye Town, but as he continued walking, it grew undeniably clear. It even stirred a restless anxiety deep within him.

"Something isn’t right. I should get out of here first," he thought.

Su Chen looked around, his scrutinizing gaze sweeping across the faces of the pedestrians, yet he noticed nothing out of the ordinary. However, as the heavy dread in his chest thickened, he acted decisively and turned to leave.

"Someone is watching me."

The moment he turned around, that sense of being watched intensified sharply, as though countless pairs of eyes were locked onto him. Without a moment’s hesitation, he quickened his pace. Not long after, Su Chen furrowed his brows. The crowd on the street had suddenly swelled, which only heightened his suspicions. He squeezed through the throng of people and ducked into a narrow alleyway, walking briskly while remaining hyper-aware of his surroundings.

Once in the alley, the feeling of being watched faded slightly, but the anxiety gripping his heart hardly lessened. After a series of rapid turns, Su Chen leaped over a tall wall, taking a shortcut to slip right out of Lanye Town. Upon reaching the outskirts, his unease gradually dissipated.

Su Chen glanced over his shoulder. Instantly, several pairs of eyes met his, but they darted away within a fraction of a second.

"This Lanye Town is strange. People are intentionally disguising themselves as vendors and pedestrians. If I weren’t so well-versed in the Disguise Technique, I probably wouldn’t have noticed," he thought.

Over time, Su Chen had thoroughly mastered the Disguise Technique, equipping him with various methods to determine if someone was wearing a facade.

"It seems my cover was blown. There must be many Rebirth Sect members hiding in Lanye Town. That’s how they managed to lock onto me the second I showed up." Standing quietly, Su Chen mulled over the situation until a plan formed in his mind. He turned and sprinted away, disappearing into a forest trail in the blink of an eye.

Seeing this, the hidden observers immediately fanned out, desperately trying to track him down.

Not long after, a group of men emerged from the town, led by Wei Jie.

"Where is he?" Wei Jie demanded, scanning the area.

"He spotted us and slipped away. Our men couldn’t keep up with him," a subordinate replied.

"As expected of an Assassin from the Government Office. With such sharp instincts and caution, it’s no wonder he managed to kill Zhu Ming. However, I’m not afraid of you showing up—I’m only afraid you won’t!" Wei Jie wasn’t angry; instead, he let out a cold laugh. He then turned to his men. "He’ll be back. Keep a close eye out. If he shows up again, you don’t need to fight him. Just do whatever it takes to keep him inside Lanye Town."

"Yes, sir!"

Having given his orders, Wei Jie led his men back into the town.

Not far away, deep within the woods, a figure peeked out from behind a tree, taking in the entire scene. A smile crept onto Su Chen’s face when he saw Wei Jie.

"It really is you, Wei Jie!" he thought.

The moment he sensed something was off, Su Chen had suspected this was all a trap orchestrated by Wei Jie. It turned out he was right. Unfortunately for them, Su Chen’s sharp instincts had seen right through it before it could snap shut.

He had come to Lanye Town hoping to try his luck and see if he could track down Wei Jie. After all, the intel he had received from the County Magistrate’s Office was severely outdated, and there was a high chance his target had already moved on. Unexpectedly, not only had Wei Jie stayed, but he had also cast a massive net over Lanye Town, waiting for Su Chen to walk right into his trap.

Fortunately, Su Chen’s deep understanding of the Disguise Technique and his profound strength allowed him to shake off his tails and lure Wei Jie out by turning the trap against him. Now that Wei Jie’s presence in Lanye Town was confirmed, it was Su Chen’s turn to hunt.

"If I go back in dressed as the ’One-Armed Yang Guo,’ I’ll definitely be spotted again. I have no idea how many men Wei Jie has stationed in Lanye Town right now, so it’s best to adopt a new identity."

His mind made up, Su Chen slipped away through the forest. Since Lanye Town was currently a no-go zone, he needed to find a neighboring town to change his disguise before returning to investigate Wei Jie’s hideout.

After hiking for about ten kilometers, Su Chen arrived at a small town and swapped his outfit. He was about to head back but hesitated on second thought.

"Since I still have money on me, why not just use Krypton Gold to upgrade the Bone Shrinking Skill to its limit? Let’s see if I can shave off some height. Otherwise, I’ll still stick out like a sore thumb when I sneak back into Lanye Town."

He decided to go for it. Once this mission was over, he would earn a reward of 300 taels—more than enough to use Krypton Gold on his Iron Cloth Shirt later. Su Chen sought out a Money Shop, exchanged his silver for gold, and left the town.

After spending some time on it, he successfully maxed out the Bone Shrinking Skill.

"I never expected that mastering the Bone Shrinking Skill to its absolute limit would allow me to reduce my height by a full twenty centimeters, not to mention subtly altering my facial muscles! If I combine this with my Disguise Technique, it’ll be unstoppable!"

He ran a quick test on the skill’s effects. In an instant, his height dropped from 1.88 meters to 1.68 meters—a direct reduction of twenty centimeters. Furthermore, he found he could exercise basic control over his facial muscles, allowing him to subtly alter his natural features. Even though they were only minor adjustments, when paired with the Disguise Technique, he looked like a completely different person. It was even more absurd than the notorious sorcery of modern makeup.

Before his transformation, he had been a dashing, elegant, and handsome young master. But after applying his disguise and shrinking his bones, he turned into an average, greasy middle-aged man. The stark contrast was like a vast chasm.

Armed with this double layer of security, Su Chen confidently strode back into Lanye Town. However, after spending some time inside, he could still sense that subtle, lingering feeling of being watched. This left him thoroughly perplexed.

"Strange. I’ve turned myself into an old codger, so why are Wei Jie’s men still paying attention to me?"

The scrutiny wasn’t nearly as blatant as before, but it was undoubtedly still there. Refusing to believe his flawless disguise had failed, Su Chen took a long stroll around the town, only to confirm that prying eyes were constantly tracking his movements.

"It seems I’ve severely underestimated the grip Wei Jie and his men have on this town. It doesn’t matter what I look like; as long as I’m not a recognized local, I’ll be targeted!"

It wasn’t until he stepped outside the borders of Lanye Town that the watching eyes finally vanished, cementing his theory. Glancing up at the darkening sky, Su Chen shook his head.

"I’ll call it a day and figure out a new plan tomorrow. With so many people in Lanye Town, there’s no way Wei Jie can keep tabs on every single one of them!" he thought.

He then left the area and found an inn in a neighboring town for the night.

The next morning at dawn, Su Chen changed his disguise yet again. This time, he dressed as a rugged farmer. Hauling a sack of homegrown grain, he blended in with a group of villagers from neighboring settlements and entered the town.

This time, he didn’t sense any suspicious gazes. Playing his part to perfection, he dutifully set up shop on the street and sold his grain. Once his stock was depleted, Su Chen used the earnings to purchase everyday necessities while covertly scanning the crowds for a target.

Soon enough, his gaze locked onto a slightly burly young man. He had seen this very man in Wei Jie’s entourage.