Chapter 126 : Chapter 126
Chapter 126. The New Battle Overseer
Early morning, September 26.
The seven-meridian battle overseer who had been dispatched arrived in the Level Three zone as promised.
Zhao Yan had always been a decisive man, and he had already sent word for the four workshop masters to come to Hongyun Restaurant and familiarize themselves with the new arrival.
Dressed neatly, Xu Yuan had just reached the doorway when he saw Xiao Han striding around the street corner.
The moment Xiao Han spotted him from afar, he shook his head and laughed. “Workshop Master Xu really can keep his composure. The battle overseer has already arrived, yet you’re still in no hurry at all.”
Xu Yuan smiled faintly. “There’s no fixed hour, is there? As long as I get there before noon, that’s enough.”
After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two of them headed toward Hongyun Restaurant side by side.
At that moment, the morning light had only just begun to spread, yet the streets were already crowded with people. Patrol squads of martial artists moved back and forth through the roads, their armor clanking sharply as their expressions remained vigilant.
The shops along the street gradually lifted their shutters, and wine banners swayed gently in the breeze.
On the way there, Xu Yuan turned his head toward Xiao Han. “From the look of it, you’ve already met that battle overseer?”
Xiao Han nodded, glanced around, then lowered his voice.
“This man is called Han Li. He retired from the Level Four zone. He’s a rather overbearing person, the type whose word is final, and…”
He paused before continuing, “He also has some ties to the Third Young Master.”
At those words, Xu Yuan immediately understood.
The fighting in the Level Four zone was raging fiercely now, several times more chaotic than this side. For someone to withdraw safely at a time like this, he naturally had to have connections pulling strings behind the scenes.
It was just that Xu Yuan had not expected this man, like Huo Gang, to also be connected to the Third Young Master.
At that thought, Xu Yuan suddenly asked, “Just what kind of background does this Third Young Master have? He sounds quite influential.”
Xiao Han thought back for a moment before answering slowly.
“The Third Young Master, Shangyang Jinrong, is second only to the Eldest Miss in martial talent within the inner courtyard. His own strength is already considerable, but more importantly, his maternal clan… in earlier years, they ran a major escort agency and had deep roots throughout the Prefecture City area. They kept quite a few skilled fighters under their command.”
“With that connection in place, his words naturally carry weight within the clan. Huo Gang earned his trust because he once ran with his mother’s side in those early years.”
Great talent, deep influence…
Xu Yuan rolled those words over in his mind and said nothing more.
Xiao Han glanced at him, then lowered his voice again in reminder.
“But this time, Han Li is coming as the frontline battle overseer, and he and Huo Gang come from the same source. If anything happens, he may very well seize the chance to suppress you. You’d best be mentally prepared.”
Xu Yuan gave a slight nod, his expression unchanged.
In the past, he might indeed have been wary of this.
But now, he had already stepped into the seven-meridian level, and several of his martial arts had all reached great completion. Even if he encountered an ordinary eight-meridian martial artist, he could still retreat with his life intact.
If this man did not go looking for trouble, then so be it.
But if he did…
Then what kind of ending awaited him would be hard to say.
…
Hongyun Restaurant was not far from Changlin Ward.
The two chatted casually along the way and soon arrived downstairs.
When they climbed to the top floor, they found that Huo Gang and Yuan Danqing had already arrived ahead of them.
The injuries of both had recovered considerably, and the heavy medicinal scent around them had faded quite a bit.
Yuan Danqing remained as cold and aloof as ever. When she saw Xu Yuan enter, she merely gave him a faint glance.
Huo Gang, meanwhile, let out a lukewarm chuckle, that smile carrying an indescribable meaning.
Xiao Han frowned and cast him a sidelong look. “Workshop Master Huo seems to be in quite a good mood.”
Huo Gang shot him a glance and said coldly, “I was born liking to smile. What of it? Is it getting in your way?”
“I think it’s not that you like smiling. It’s that you like clinging to powerful thighs,” Xiao Han said with a curl of his lip.
“You—”
As usual, the two of them immediately started bickering again.
Yuan Danqing lowered her eyes and said nothing. She had long since grown used to it.
Xu Yuan watched quietly from the side, but Xiao Han’s earlier warning surfaced again in his mind.
From the same source…
Now that was interesting.
Not long after, footsteps sounded outside the door, and everyone immediately fell silent.
The door was pushed open, and Chief Overseer Zhao walked in with another man.
That man looked to be around fifty years old. His temples were already touched with gray, yet his skin was strangely smooth and delicate, carrying an unnatural flush that gave him an oddly mismatched appearance.
Zhao Yan swept his gaze over the room and introduced him calmly. “This is Han Li, Battle Overseer Han.”
“From now on, he will be responsible for the frontline fighting. Apart from major strategic matters, which must still be reported to me, everything else will be handled by him.”
Han Li nodded at the group, his gaze passing over their faces one by one.
When his eyes fell on Huo Gang, he gave a slight nod. Then his gaze passed over Yuan Danqing and Xiao Han in turn… before finally pausing briefly on Xu Yuan, then withdrawing.
Afterward, Zhao Yan gave a few more perfunctory instructions and then left directly.
For him, with Han Li sharing the frontline burden, his own load became much lighter.
Moreover, neither his monthly stipend nor the profits from the wards would be affected because of it, so naturally, the less extra trouble, the better.
After Zhao Yan left, Han Li withdrew his gaze and said flatly, “Bring me the current strategic map first.”
Xiao Han promptly rose and took down the map hanging on the wall, spreading it across the table.
Han Li lowered his head and studied it for a moment before speaking.
“Before coming here, I already gained a general understanding of the situation on this side.”
He lifted a hand and pointed at the map, his tone deep and steady.
“At present, the family controls nearly two-thirds of the Level Three zone and has been squeezing the Bai Family tighter and tighter. In a situation like this, if the Bai Family wants to expand its room to survive, then naturally it will choose to break the rules.”
At that point, he lifted his eyes to look at Huo Gang and Yuan Danqing, his tone calm. “The two of you were somewhat reckless before.”
Huo Gang’s expression turned a little awkward, but he did not argue.
Yuan Danqing’s expression remained unchanged. She merely lowered her gaze slightly.
Han Li then shifted his gaze to Xu Yuan and Xiao Han and said with a half-smile, “Now, someone like Workshop Master Xu and Workshop Master Xiao handled matters very steadily indeed.”
It sounded like praise, but paired with that faintly smiling expression, it clearly carried a trace of mockery.
Xu Yuan silently glanced at Huo Gang.
For a moment, he could not help feeling that having backing really was convenient. No matter what one said or did, others would openly take one’s side.
Xiao Han, however, could not hold back and wanted to explain. “Battle Overseer Han, actually, at the time it was—”
Before he could finish, Han Li raised a hand and cut him off.
“That’s enough. There’s no need for unnecessary words.”
He withdrew his gaze, his tone turning businesslike.
“Now that I’ve arrived, I will personally lead the workshop masters to the front line and hold the field myself. That Bai Family seven-meridian fighter will not be able to stir up any real waves.”
He paused, then added, “Two days from now, we will advance on the Bai Family stronghold. This time, we must shatter the Bai Family’s fangs and leave them with no strength to rise again!”
…
September 27.
After Xu Yuan returned to Changlin Ward and finished arranging the matters inside the courtyard, he had just entered the quiet chamber to begin cultivating when someone came to report in.
“Workshop Master Xu, something terrible has happened.”
The speaker was one of the ward’s clerks, his expression somewhat grave. “We just received word from the battle overseer’s side. The resource supply line in the Level Three zone was ambushed and slaughtered by the Bai Family last night!”
Xu Yuan’s expression changed slightly. “The supply line was intercepted?”
“As I recall, the one leading the escort was a five-meridian martial artist, correct?”
“That’s right. That five-meridian martial artist is now missing.”
The clerk nodded and cupped his hands.
“Battle Overseer Han suspects the Bai Family sent a six-meridian fighter to act, so he has issued an order… for you to escort this new supply line.”