Chapter 74: The Wicked Hunter in the Shan Shen Miao

Handling official business still requires personal subsidies! The 10 taels of silver allocated by Big Senior Brother Lu Qiang were barely enough to cover daily expenses.

The cost of the armor plates Li Hao obtained for self-defense, plus the healing medicine Zhou You paid for out of his own pocket, far exceeded 10 taels of gold—ten times over the budget.

"It had better be reimbursable after I get back, otherwise it's a huge loss."

Even when he left the city, Zhou You still felt a stinging pain in his heart.

The money spent on healing medicine could have been exchanged for 3 jars of Tiger Bone Wine; how much better it would have been to use it for cultivation.

After he and Li Hao left the city, their target was the gathering place of those hunters in Waishan.

Before leaving the city, the martial arts hall had already notified the hunters and sent people to negotiate the price increase with them.

The hunters had agreed on a time and place, just waiting for Zhou You and Li Hao to come and discuss the details.

"The place isn't close, we definitely won't make it today. We'll rest for the night at the stopover, eat our fill, and build up our energy."

The merchant firm's stopover was located beside a major traffic route; one could hear the cries of livestock from far away.

With people coming and going, merchant caravans leaving and entering the city used this place as a transit point to eat, rest, and incidentally have their livestock's hooves trimmed or horseshoes nailed.

"Young Master Zhou, Young Master Li, we've finally waited for you to arrive."

"The rooms are already tidied up, and the fat sheep that was stewed this afternoon will be brought to you right away. If you have no dietary restrictions, there are over a dozen types of fine wines from all over the country Zang in the backyard cellar, including some aged 10 years. Would you like to drink some?"

The local manager had already received the news and came out eagerly to welcome them.

Zhou You and Li Hao shared and ate the entire sheep, finished half a pot of rice topped with mutton soup, drank tea after the meal to aid digestion, and practiced a few sets of punches before resting.

They didn't drink alcohol, because drinking alcohol easily leads to mistakes.

Why has there been the saying of "celebratory wine" since ancient times?

Because one cannot drink while handling serious business, as it easily leads to errors; the best time is to drink after the matter is accomplished, hence it is called celebratory wine.

The next day, the two left the stopover and rushed to the meeting point.

The location was a Shan Shen Miao in Waishan.

Hunters roam the mountains and forests and are not picky about locations, as long as it can shelter them from the wind and rain.

Under normal circumstances, places where commoners gather are mostly on the plains, which is too far from Waishan, making it very difficult to replenish food and water, so there must be a transit station.

This Shan Shen Miao had long been abandoned, rarely visited, and had been occupied by the hunters as a lair.

As Zhou You and the other rushed to the Shan Shen Miao, they only felt the terrain getting higher and higher, and before they knew it, they had reached a high point.

However, the ground beneath their feet was not yet a high mountain, merely a high ground rising outside the mountains.

"Look, that's the Shan Shen Miao."

Li Hao pointed ahead.

Zhou You squinted and looked; under the blue sky and white clouds, a dilapidated building sat on the ground. The surrounding environment was complex, with piles of rubble, thorn bushes, and large patches of shrubs and grass nests scattered everywhere.

It was an excellent terrain for an ambush; even if dozens of people were hidden there, one wouldn't be able to tell.

"Let's go!"

Zhou You and the other stepped into the Shan Shen Miao, and a foul stench rushed toward them.

Inside the dim temple, a dozen or so hunters were scattered in every corner, some sitting on stones, others squatting by the windows. They carried bows and arrows, wore hunting knives at their waists, and wore animal skin hats on their heads, some even wearing complete wolf-head skins.

In the open space in the center of the temple, a huge eight-meter-tall stone bell lay tilted on the ground, mostly sunken into the earth, with only the remaining part protruding, gray and covered in dust.

"Kid, this isn't a place for you to be."

A hunter near the door stood up, reached out to grip the bone knife handle at his waist, and threatened with a murderous look in his eyes.

"We are Apprentices from the Jian Xiong Martial Arts Hall, here to discuss business."

Hearing this, the hunter laughed, revealing a mouthful of black teeth, "Pan Laoda, Wang Laohu sent two little dolls."

"Your damn days are almost over, the person has been tortured to death by you."

Following everyone's gaze, they finally found the Pan Laoda he spoke of.

It turned out that in the dim corner against a pillar, a village girl had her hands tied behind her back and was pinned to the pillar by a sharp blade piercing through her palm. She was bleeding, her messy hair covering her face, and she was motionless as if dead.

The hunter named Pan Laoda was bare-chested with a dark back, embracing the village girl and ravaging her relentlessly. Zhou You's eyelids twitched; he glanced at Li Hao and found that his expression was also very ugly.

Although they had been mentally prepared, they still underestimated the level of disgust of this bunch of scum.

"Hoo, hoo, hoo, where is the Second Master? Tell him to come and talk! I'm busy!"

"The Second Master is out on business, Pan Laoda, you'd better finish up soon!"

"Coming, I'm coming!"

Pan Laoda panted heavily, roared once, then regained his calm, and a moment later walked to the front wearing a tattered coat.

The smell of sweat and blood on him was pungent, and his aura was even more fierce and cruel.

"You two?"

Pan Laoda picked up a water basin and took a big gulp, "What did Wang Laohu send you here to talk about?"

Zhou You said calmly, "To talk about the price increase; we don't think it's very reasonable."

"Wait a moment..."

Pan Laoda instructed his subordinates nonchalantly, "That woman couldn't take the torture and is already dead; take the corpse down and throw it out to feed the dogs."

After speaking, he turned back, "Hmm, can you two make the decisions?"

This was a deliberate attempt to give the two a show of force!

Li Hao smiled, "We don't need to make the decisions, we are only conveying the Hall Master's meaning."

"A price increase is impossible!"

A mouthful of thick phlegm was spat onto the ground, shattering the floor tile and revealing a large web of cracks.

The two's eyelids twitched; the hunter leader Pan Laoda was also a martial artist with internal force. The phlegm contained internal force and shattered the floor tile, clearly having cultivated to a profound level.

"If you can't make decisions, why did you come? To play around with your grandfather?"

The atmosphere became tense.

The hunters stood up one by one, some pressing their hands to their sword hilts, others gripping their bow tips, surrounding them from all directions.

The surrounding light grew dimmer, and a dense crowd of heads filled his vision.

The smell of blood grew stronger! Zhou You faintly heard the rustling of bushes outside, mixed with a few muffled barks of dogs.

Hunting dogs; this group of hunters had even brought hunting dogs.

Hunting dogs are not pet dogs; their claws and teeth are sharp, and after special training, they dare to fight tigers and wolves, possessing extremely strong combat power.

Zhou You suddenly remembered the mention of feeding the dogs earlier; could it be that they usually feed the hunting dogs human flesh? "Kid, just the two of you, you're only fit to kneel down and suck for me."

Pan Laoda straightened his waist and stepped forward, teasing while gripping his sword hilt, "You look quite handsome, let Grandpa dote on you."

Tired of living! Zhou You's brows twitched, the tendons in his legs tightened, and killing intent surged into his heart.

Pan Laoda chuckled lewdly, "I was just worrying about not catching a woman to vent my fire; you two little brats have delicate skin and tender meat and delivered yourselves to my door. We aren't picky, we'll make do with you."

A hunter to the side reminded him, "Don't kill them; we still need to take a message to Wang Laohu. The items from the tiger must go up in price."

"The brothers come through wind and rain, risking our lives to kill tigers, yet the tiger goods we sell are cheaper than pig offal."

The surrounding hunters agreed one after another, "Every time we surround and kill a tiger, at least two or three brothers die; it's just not worth it!"

Pan Laoda said heavily, "Wang Laohu doesn't treat us like human beings; I've endured this for a long time."

"Our Second Master said, if the brothers are pushed too far, we will go join the Cloud-Touching Stronghold and become mountain bandits."

At Jietian Ling in Xishan, there is a mountain stronghold occupied by a group of bandits; because the terrain is so high and surrounded by swirling clouds and mist, it is named the Cloud-Touching Stronghold.

The Cloud-Touching Stronghold gathers a gang of fugitives who have committed murder and bandits who rob houses, making it a notorious den of dragons and tigers.

Although this group of hunters commits all kinds of evil, compared to the Cloud-Touching Stronghold, they are equivalent to primary school students who haven't graduated.

No wonder they have the confidence to cause trouble for the martial arts school; they have found a new employer.

(End of this chapter)