Burying corpses was always dull, dangerous, and foul-smelling.
Although an urgent job had been added before dawn, the day as a whole had remained calm and uneventful.
By afternoon, the corpse buriers had finished burying the bodies and started modifying the handcart with axes.
Once that was done, they went hunting and gathering medicinal herbs.
Everything remained calm and natural, and Du En was as usual.
This made Ning Caize, Wei Ming, and the others unable to stop muttering inwardly, an instinctive sense of awe rising in their hearts.
Because once they had calmed down, the more they thought about it, the more uneasy they became; the more they thought about it, the more anxious they grew.
Yet even in the face of such a major matter, Du En could still maintain his usual state, appearing extraordinarily ordinary. It was genuinely hard not to feel that way.
After finishing the many miscellaneous tasks, they pulled the handcart back.
Of course, it was not the people who pulled it. Du En had gone and caught two Grey Jackals and given them a thorough beating. They had then become obedient and docile, willingly serving as beasts of burden and pulling the handcart on their own.
Since they were individuals that had nearly transformed into demon beasts, they were barely usable.
Rumble~
The sound of the wheels turning came from far away, drawing near, and the neighbors around the corpse buriers' courtyard could not help changing color.
Who had died?
After exchanging glances, they saw that no one from any household had died, and began to scratch their heads in confusion.
If no one had died, why had the corpse hauler come here?
Wait, no—that was wrong. The corpse-collecting work did not seem to be done by them either!
So had they come to see the corpse buriers? To pay a visit?
"Damn, what rotten luck!"
When someone thought of this, he could not help speaking.
The next moment, a slap flew over, swelling the speaker's face and leaving him dizzy and disoriented.
"What did you just say?!"
"Huh?" After the dizziness eased somewhat, the man, who had still been dazed and angry, finally saw who had struck him. He immediately shuddered and put on the look of a bootlicking cur. "Oh, it's Lord Liu! I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about that lowly bunch of corpse men!"
Only then did Liu Qixiang's expression ease. He said, "I knew you didn't have that kind of nerve. All right, hand over the spirit stones!"
"Huh? Lord Liu, didn't we just pay this month's protection fee?"
"What? Are you blind? Can't you see? This place is no longer under the Blood Eagle Gang's control. It's become our Green Robe Gang's territory. Of course the protection fee has to be calculated and paid again!"
Liu Qixiang tugged at the clothes he was wearing. The garment bearing the Blood Eagle emblem was gone, swiftly replaced by a green outfit.
Only then did the people understand what this situation actually meant. For a moment, they were utterly at a loss.
Wait, yesterday this was still the Blood Eagle Gang's territory. How had it become the Green Robe Gang's today?
Something was wrong!
"Lord Liu, you aren't joking, are you?"
"Would I joke with you?!"
Liu Qixiang immediately slapped him again, arrogant and overbearing. "Listen well. The rules have changed. Three Low-grade Spirit Stones per person. You must pay tonight. If you can't pay, hm!"
He sneered and drew his knife.
The people's expressions changed drastically, but they were angry and dared not speak. After all, being hacked by a knife hurt—and could kill!
Rumble~ Clack.
The halted sound of the wheels made Liu Qixiang's gaze shift over instinctively.
He had initially thought it was the corpse hauler, someone not to be trifled with. But the cart was being pulled not by oxen, but by panting jackals, and the people sitting on it were not corpse haulers, but corpse buriers.
What was going on?
They had claimed yesterday that they had no spirit stones, yet today they had somehow gotten their hands on a handcart?
Liu Qixiang froze for a moment, then reacted. Realizing that he might have been played, he immediately left the others behind and strode over aggressively.
Du En and the others naturally noticed, and they could not help sighing inwardly.
The Green Robe Gang had moved fast. The leaders of the two gangs had only just died last night, yet in less than a day, they had already taken over the territory and sent people to collect protection fees anew.
No, it was also possible that these people who had switched sides had taken matters into their own hands, hoping to make a quick profit.
But the original boss had only just died a bizarre death. Would these people really have the nerve to do something like that?
Something seemed off. The Green Robe Gang's movements were simply too fast!
As their thoughts churned, Liu Qixiang had already stopped in front of the handcart.
"Hss..."
The two Grey Jackals knew very well how to act like dogs. They now lowered their bodies of their own accord and bared their teeth at the ill-intentioned outsider, low growls of menace rumbling in their throats.
Hearing this, Liu Qixiang immediately wanted to kick them to death. But just as he raised his foot, his vision blurred. When he hurriedly shifted his gaze back, he saw that Du En was already standing in front of him.
Startled, he instinctively took two steps back.
With all eyes upon him, he immediately flew into a rage out of humiliation.
"Du En, you dared to play me, didn't you! You had money to buy a handcart, but no money to pay the protection fee? You..."
"Oh, you mean this? The corpse haulers didn't want it, so I modified it a little and brought it here to use."
Du En calmly cut him off. His voice drifted somewhat, as though he had deliberately put weight on certain words.
As expected, Liu Qixiang fell into the trap on the spot and instinctively asked, "They didn't want it? Were they such good people?"
"Of course not. They were mainly afraid."
"Afraid of what?"
"Nothing much. This cart transported corpses this morning. You should be quite familiar with it. Your Blood Eagle Gang's leader was half of the corpse."
Hiss!
A chill shot through him and his hair stood on end. Liu Qixiang staggered back several yards, eyes widening in shock, his voice hoarse and frantic. "Are you fucking crazy? You dare use a cart like this?!"
It was not only him who was horrified. After freezing, the other onlookers all spun around in unison, and amid a series of bangs, hurriedly shoved themselves inside and locked their doors.
I was wondering why the Bully Gang had been replaced here. I was wondering why someone had pounded on the corpse buriers' door before dawn. I was wondering why the corpse buriers had suddenly become so wealthy that they could even get a cart!
So that's what happened!
If you fucking want to kill yourselves, don't drag us into it!
Faced with the reactions of these normal people, Ning Caize and Wei Ming exchanged awkward glances with the others.
Only then did they realize that their previous lack of thought, returning together while sitting on the cart, had seemed rather outrageous.
They could only say that, under Du En's influence, their thinking had already strayed somewhat from that of ordinary people in the Underlying Layer.
"So, what do you know?"
Du En asked the horrified Liu Qixiang again.
"I don't know! I don't know anything! Don't get me killed, kid!"
Liu Qixiang answered in panic, his eyes darting in every direction, terrified that the murderer might hear him.
He truly did not seem to know the truth. However, all sorts of rumors and exaggerated accounts had probably already spread rapidly among the former members of the two gangs, which was why Liu Qixiang was so frightened.
Du En nodded inwardly, then said, "So, the Green Robe Gang sent you to collect the protection fee?"
Why should I honestly answer your question?
Liu Qixiang very much wanted to say that, but when he met Du En's calm eyes and then looked at the modified handcart used to haul goods and people, his mouth went dry. He simply could not summon the nerve.
"That is indeed the case. The hall masters were just recruited by the Green Robe Gang, and immediately received orders to collect the protection fee. It was urgent, so I came over here."
Otherwise, who would be willing to come here? It stank all day long!
Of course, he did not dare say that now.
He only hoped that Du En would stop stirring up trouble and let him leave in one piece.
Liu Qixiang was filled with regret now—regret that he had come over of his own accord!
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