Low-Rank Aberration Slaughterer

It was afternoon.

Jiang Yan and Tang Long had both arrived at the square, and the patrol members who needed to support Qingshan Village were there as well.

The slanting sunlight stretched everyone's shadows long. Jiang Yan glanced at the dazzling sun and estimated the time.

"Chief Ren should be here soon. Otherwise, it'll be dark by the time we reach Qingshan Village."

As he thought this, Ren Yuan hurried into the square.

He wore a black martial outfit and carried a massive cleaver on his back, giving him a stern, imposing air.

Ren Yuan looked over the group. Tang Long nodded to him, indicating that everyone had arrived and everything was ready.

"Let's go."

Ren Yuan said nothing more. He immediately led the group out of Yuyang Village, heading toward Qingshan Village.

No one in the patrol squad spoke. They moved briskly, and most of them were veterans with a sense of discipline.

Including Jiang Yan, Tang Long, and Ren Yuan, the entire group numbered only eighteen. Tang Long took the lead, Jiang Yan brought up the rear, and Ren Yuan stayed in the middle, ready to support either end.

They left the village and crossed the fields. A large pond came into view.

Jiang Yan's expression shifted when he saw it. This was where he had gone on his first patrol.

It was here that Shan Renhu had taught him so much—knowledge and experience. It was here that he had first killed an aberration on his own.

This place could be considered one of my starting points... Jiang Yan thought to himself.

The pond's surface was calm. An occasional breeze stirred only faint ripples.

Every so often, a large fish leaped from the water, its scales gleaming in the sunlight.

The fish here were caught once a year, and could help make up for the shortage of meat in winter.

The group's footsteps pattered along quickly, but everyone kept low, watchful of their surroundings. They were at the edge of the village now, where they might encounter aberrations.

"I remember... What was that aberration I killed here called?

"I remember—it was a Submerged Grass aberration!"

Jiang Yan recalled, instinctively turning his gaze toward one corner of the pond.

Uh...

There, a thick, grass-shaped aberration was stretching its body.

Then Jiang Yan glanced at his pitiful Weird Value: a mere 1 point.

"Although I wouldn't dare risk taking on some unknown aberrations, these are already known and weak. I can use them to farm Weird Value..."

As his thoughts turned, Jiang Yan suddenly saw the light. He had found a low-risk way to safely gain Weird Value.

So,

half a quarter of an hour later,

Jiang Yan sheathed his long sword, put away the Blazing Flames Talisman, and rejoined the group.

Shan Renhu was standing fairly close to Jiang Yan, and had clearly seen him kill the Submerged Grass aberration.

Jiang Yan had smacked the Submerged Grass into the air with a horizontal swing of his sword, then cut it down with two vertical slashes.

"Brother Jiang, I'm pretty sure I told you before that aberrations like Submerged Grass aren't much of a threat."

"Mm, I know."

Weird Value: 3

Jiang Yan silently glanced at his increased Weird Value, slung his long sword over his back again, and turned to Shan Renhu. With a serious expression, he said, "I know this aberration isn't much of a threat, but whenever I see one, I can't help wanting to take it on. If I don't kill it, I just can't feel at ease."

"Submerged Grass is still an aberration. There's no harm in killing it."

Jiang Yan gave Shan Renhu a solemn explanation. At that moment, he wanted to establish a persona for himself: low-rank aberration slaughterer.

After all, he really would become a man like that.

Farm low-level monsters for Weird Value, then steadily improve his martial arts without the slightest danger...

Leaving Yuyang Village and following the Talisman Path west, it took about an hour and a half to reach Qingshan Village.

Qingshan Village lay southwest of the Dahe Gang's mining district. South of the village was a vast reed marsh, rich in fish and teeming with birds.

At that moment, two people appeared at the entrance to Qingshan Village.

A man and a woman.

The woman was about twenty years old. She rode a horse, dressed like a martial artist, with a long sword strapped to her back.

The man was an extraordinarily burly fellow, his muscles powerfully built. His arm was thicker than the thigh of the woman beside him.

"What kind of godforsaken place is this? I've been walking all day, and only now have I finally found a village."

"Ptooey!" The man spat out the blade of grass he had been chewing and glanced at the woman beside him, his expression turning hostile. "Ou Yanling, don't try to fool me. If you don't have relatives in Guihua City, and can't pay me for escorting you there, don't blame me if I turn on you."

"Brother Xia, how could I lie about something like that? I really do have relatives in Guihua City. Just escort me there, and I'll pay you, without fail."

"Hmph!" Xia Fengdu snorted coldly, cursing himself as a fool.

Greed had gotten the better of him. He'd been taken in by the reward this young woman had promised, but now it seemed like nothing but empty promises. If they got to Guihua City and her relatives had no money—or refused to pay on her behalf—he'd be the one losing out big time.

"Should I collect a little interest first?"

His gaze suddenly turned predatory as he stared fixedly at Ou Yanling.

A while later,

he reluctantly looked away. Forget it. He wasn't that desperate.

The young woman had a nice name and a pleasant voice, but her looks... left a lot to be desired.

He glanced at the village before them and suggested, "Let's stay the night in the village. We can get something hot to eat, too."

It was phrased as a suggestion, but the woman didn't get a chance to respond. He gave the reins a light tug, and the horse trotted off briskly.

They turned down a narrow path and disappeared from sight.

The woman raised her eyes, gazing at the unfamiliar village and its strange surroundings, her expression utterly calm.

She urged her horse on and followed Xia Fengshe into the village.

The two had traveled all the way here without seeing a single person.

"This village..." A hint of wariness entered Xia Fengshe's eyes. "Something's not right."

There was no patrol at the edge of the village, and no one was working in the fields.

"Could there be an aberration?"

Xia Fengshe's face twitched. He wanted to turn back, but just then Ou Yanling caught up with him and asked, puzzled, "Brother Xia, why did you stop?"

"Is something wrong with this village?"

Of course there was something wrong. They hadn't even seen the patrol team.

But the sun had already set. Though it wasn't completely dark yet, he still decided to enter the village.

There was no other choice. If they spent the night outdoors, they were sure to encounter an aberration, while the danger in this village was only a suspicion.

What if there wasn't an aberration?

Besides, even if there was one, as long as it wasn't a Blood Sha, a Body Refining Realm martial artist like him could handle it.

After all, Xia Fengshe wasn't merely an ordinary Body Refining Realm martial artist. He also practiced External Cultivation, and his strength ranked among the very best at his level.

He decided that if there was an aberration in this village, he would extend a helping hand, slay it, and rid the village of its troubles.

He would also ask for a little reward. He'd spent more than ten days escorting Ou Yanling, this young woman, and hadn't earned a single copper coin.

He still didn't know what had possessed him to agree to help this penniless young woman. The hard-won experience he'd gained from years of wandering the martial world might as well have been fed to the dogs.