Chapter 54: Dead and Injured Everywhere, White Robes Release the Gods

After Tu Laosan died, the Wild Fox Gang sent people to the martial arts hall to demand those 500 taels of silver.

"The person is already dead, so the grievances are wiped clean; this money should be returned exactly as it was."

The messenger sent by the Wild Fox Gang spoke with great justification.

The implication was that this silver was originally to buy Tu Laosan's safety, and since he was dead, there was no need to pay it.

This was truly disgusting!

Those in gangs really are unscrupulous; they even covet blood money, which is somewhat desperate.

"I will break your legs to help you remember, and in the future, watch where you are going when you enter a door."

"Once you have entered the gates of the martial arts hall, neither the person nor the silver has anything to do with you."

"If you dare to come again, I won't just break your legs—I will take your life."

Lu Qiang smashed the messenger's legs with a punch, using his actions to tell the other party that not a single cent would be returned.

Afterwards, the side of Tu Laoer did not even dare to let out a fart.

Zhou You only found out about this matter later.

His Senior Brother had blocked a disaster for him and kept the 500 taels of silver for him in the name of the martial arts hall.

When the incident happened, he was carrying a bag of silver, following the address to Xingren Tang to buy injury medicine and Secret Medicine.

Xingren Tang sounds fragrant and sweet, but the name actually has deep meaning... the benevolent heart of the apricot grove.

This medical clinic has been open in Gongliang City for over a hundred years and is unique in its treatment of bruises and external injuries.

Its medical skills are high and its medicines are good; the only drawback is that it is expensive.

The cost was not a problem in Zhou You's view; he now had 700 taels of silver, which was a burden to carry on his person, so he would feel at ease only after spending it as soon as possible.

"Sob, sob, sob, Father, Mother."

Walking on the street, the scent of human life rushed toward him, and fine charcoal particles drifted with the wind.

Under the ruins and broken walls, a child lay beside the remains of their parents, crying bitterly.

A group of ragged refugees picked through the ruins for items that could still be used, not even missing pots and pans.

The passing Constables shook their heads; there were simply too many similar incidents to manage.

The clash between the two gangs affected more than hundreds of households, and the casualties were countless.

A sound of chanting came, and several people in white robes walked toward him.

Believers of the Release God Sect!

This group of people in white robes busied themselves, searching through the ruins for severed limbs, piecing together complete remains, and wrapping them in cloth after wiping them clean.

Each corpse was tidied up and carried out of the city for cremation amidst the sound of chanting.

"Thanks to these believers, the dead and injured in the city can be buried."

"I heard that for some gang members from the Wild Fox Gang and the Mourning Dog Gang, their own families didn't care, yet the Release God Sect still collected their remains."

Since entering the city, the Release God Sect has developed in a low-key manner and does not conflict with the locals.

Whenever there are deaths, injuries, or illnesses with no one to collect the remains, people in white robes appear to clean up.

The hygiene in the city has greatly improved because of this group of Release God Sect believers.

For example, after this gang clash, it was thanks to the people in white robes treating the wounded and clearing the corpses everywhere that an epidemic was avoided.

"Young man, please donate some money!"

A person in white robes blocked Zhou You's path, holding out their hand to ask for money.

Zhou You had seen this scene once before and was not unfamiliar with it.

"I don't have any, get lost!"

Zhou You was blunt; even if he had money, he wouldn't give it.

The person in white robes was not angry and said with lowered brows, "May the gods have mercy on you."

Having said that, they turned and left.

Zhou You arrived at the street where Xingren Tang was located and found simple stretchers everywhere along the road, filled with all kinds of wounded people.

This street did not just have Xingren Tang; due to the cluster effect, there were dozens of medical clinics and pharmacies of all sizes.

Looking at this sight, most of the wounded from the gang clash had gathered on this street.

Blood and pus flowed through the cracks in the stones, and large flies flew about in the air, their bodies stained with blood.

All around were groans and wails of varying intensity.

Often, someone would kick their legs, twitch a few times, and then never move again.

Before the newly dead corpses could stink, someone would notify the people in white robes to come and clean them up, wrapping them in cloth and taking them away.

The lack of medical care and medicine was a common situation here.

Even if the high-ranking gang members were injured, they had long since received proper treatment.

Only the low-level gang members, with no money and no power, could not afford injury medicine and were just thrown by the side of the road, left to lie there and wait for death.

Zhou You walked along the way, and every medical clinic and pharmacy was strictly guarded, fearing someone would break in.

In fact, they were overthinking it; these wounded people couldn't even stand steadily, so where would they have the strength to smash and loot?

"Heh heh heh!"

In a corner by the street, a blood-soaked wounded person saw Zhou You, and hope appeared in their eyes.

There were seven or eight knife wounds on their face, which had long been hacked into a bloody mess, and their nose and ears were gone.

Their wrists were bare, their left and right hands were missing, and they were already a complete cripple.

"Zhou You, I'm here, save me."

Gao Qiang shouted with a hoarse throat, but when it came out, it was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.

During last night's clash, the Crazy Horse Gang was unwilling to be left out and sent men to participate, attacking the Wild Fox Gang's assets.

Gao Qiang participated as a minor leader, taking his brothers to loot wantonly and filling his pockets to the brim.

As it turned out, he was unlucky; while retreating, he ran into a Force-using martial artist from the Wild Fox Gang.

Enemies are especially red-eyed when they meet; the Wild Fox Gang hated petty thieves who fished in troubled waters the most, let alone scum from the Wild Horse Gang.

Once the Force-using martial artist made a move, he easily beat all of his subordinates to death.

Gao Qiang still wanted to resist, but his hands were blown apart and his lumbar vertebrae were kicked until they snapped, and he was tossed onto the ground like trash.

His bad luck had not yet stopped; he was then hacked beyond recognition by the members of the Wild Fox Gang.

The Wild Horse Gang firmly refused to admit to any acts of looting during the chaos, so the dead and wounded went unclaimed.

Gao Qiang was mixed in with the injured low-level gang members and dragged to this street to let fate decide his end.

The medical clinics and pharmacies on the street kept their doors tightly shut; they would not treat injuries without seeing silver, ignoring you even if you screamed until your throat tore.

No one cared whether he lived or died, and he could only lie among a group of stinking wounded, waiting desperately for death.

He could clearly smell the stench of his rotting wounds, his life slipping away inch by inch.

In his desperation, he saw Zhou You passing by, as if he had grasped a straw to save his life.

"Save me, Zhou You, we are good friends."

Gao Qiang's hoarse throat wheezed incessantly, and he waved his bare arms desperately.

Zhou You would surely be able to see him; given the friendship they had shared since growing up together, he would certainly pay for his treatment and medicine.

His injuries were not that severe; 10 taels of silver would be enough.

These god-damned doctors, they wouldn't save a life without seeing silver; they were simply cold-blooded beasts.

Once he recovered from his injuries, he would set fire to this street.

"Hm?"

Zhou You suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked around, but saw nothing.

He resumed his stride, and the sign for Xingren Tang came into view not far away; he had arrived at his destination quickly.

Until Gao Qiang's body had completely gone cold, he never waited for his savior.

"Another one dead, come over and clear it away."

A person in a white robe carried a shroud, wrapped Gao Qiang from head to toe, and piled him onto a flatbed cart.

On the flatbed cart, dozens of stacked corpses lay quietly, deathly silent.

These corpses were unclaimed, and their final destination was to be taken outside the city for cremation, their ashes scattered into the soil of the fields.

Outside the city, hundreds of bonfires burned fiercely, black smoke rising to the clouds, burning so intensely that the air distorted and crackled with popping sounds.

Individual human lives were nothing more than dust blown away by the wind, insignificant.

"Heaven is about to die, people suffer calamities; release my divine prescription to see eternal life."

"Three inches of soil, entrusting a precarious life; if the world's prison is not broken, one sinks into oblivion."

The chanting of the person in the white robe drifted through the wind, faint and indistinct.