Chapter 189 – Sixth Rank Enforcer Woodson, Raking in The Blood Gold - Part 3
The next day.
With Yan Mu backing him up, and after showing a glimpse of his strength, Li Yuan officially became a freelance enforcer and moved into the provisional lodging for enforcers, the Peakside Pavilion.
The Peakside Pavilion was a series of detached buildings along Heart Hill, originally built by wealthy locals as a scenic retreat. Now the martial alliance had requisitioned it as housing for its new hires. Given the danger of undying husk infiltration, it made sense to keep everyone spread out in separate quarters.
There, Li Yuan met the only other freelance enforcer, a figure who lived next door, wearing a conical hat and wrapped in a cloak from head to toe.
Upon seeing Li Yuan, the stranger rasped out a single phrase, “Chang Tianli.”
Li Yuan glanced at the numbers hovering above this man’s head, 500~520. He felt his confidence grow. Imitating that hoarse tone, he replied, “Woodson.”[1]
The two exchanged a curt nod before swiftly returning to their respective rooms, making no attempt at further conversation.
Not long after, a few seventh rank martial artists came by to pay Li Yuan a visit. He declined to see them, and after a couple of rejections, they stopped coming.
By dusk, the pounding of hooves echoed at the base of Heart HIll, a lone rider galloping at full speed. One of the disciples stationed to watch the mountain hurried up to deliver Li Yuan’s first assignment.
There had been outbreaks of madness in four separate townships on the far western side of Eastspring County. Yuan Zongzi of the Sacred Fire Palace and Yan Mu of the Holy Tree Temple had already departed to two of those areas. The remaining two spots needed Li Yuan and Zhou Qing to check them out.
For each location, they’d send a sixth rank enforcer, plus two seventh rank experts and a contingent of sect followers. Li Yuan randomly picked Fishgut Wharf and set out with over a hundred men.
Despite being called a town, Fishgut Wharf was really just a slightly larger version of Little Ink Village—a small settlement with cramped housing and people living close together.