Li Qing couldn't help looking behind him.
A cloud of dust was rising from the road behind, with two flags planted at the very front.
"All-Under-Heaven Escort Agency! Travel All Under Heaven!"
At the sight, Li Qing's heart lifted.
The escort caravan's here. Maybe I can follow them for a while, and perhaps hitch a ride and buy some dry rations.
With his tired legs, Li Qing soon reached the relay station.
At a glance, he saw quite a few people inside—at least five or six.
They were divided between two tables. Three burly men sat at one, looking strong and powerful.
At the other sat a young man and woman. Sheathed swords rested on their table, and they were clearly martial artists who roamed the Jianghu.
The man was handsome and dashing, while the woman was pretty and charming. They looked to be in their twenties and seemed like a pair of senior brother and junior sister.
Besides those five, there was also a young waiter and a middle-aged shopkeeper.
Li Qing thought it over. They don't look like they're together. There shouldn't be much danger.
Just as he was about to go in, the waiter shouted, "Hey, what are you doing? Beggars aren't allowed in."
"Go sit somewhere else!" The waiter came over with a dark look, already shooing him away.
Li Qing paused. Only then did he remember how tattered he looked. He certainly didn't seem like someone with money, so it was only natural for people to chase him off.
He raised a hand. "Hold on. Look at this."
As he spoke, he pulled a piece of silver from his pocket. It was at least one mace of silver, equivalent to a hundred copper coins.
The waiter saw it, and his expression instantly changed from impatient to respectful. "Oh! Sorry, honored guest. This humble one has a foul mouth and failed to recognize a true Buddha."
"Please, come in!"
Li Qing casually tossed him the silver. "Bring me a few good dishes, and fill my kettle with water. Do you have any old clothes here? I'll buy a set."
"One mace of silver should be enough, right?"
"More than enough! There'll be some left over!"
"Keep the change as a tip. Now go take care of it."
The waiter hurriedly nodded and led him to a seat in the corner.
Soon, he brought over a pot of rough tea and said with a beaming smile, "Please take your time, honored guest!"
Li Qing nodded and waved him off. "All right."
He poured himself a cup. The tea was yellow but clear. It didn't have much fragrance, but it was good enough to quench his thirst.
However, Li Qing didn't drink it. As a transmigrator, he had read far too many stories.
There were plenty of sinister inns that specialized in robbing travelers.
He carefully watched the people at the other two tables while waiting for the escort caravan outside.
Rumble, rumble, rumble.
The sound of wheels grinding over the ground rang out, and a convoy of carriages arrived outside.
Li Qing took a close look. There were at least ten people in the group, all strong, strapping young men.
At their head was a middle-aged man who looked to be around forty. He stood at least seven feet tall, with powerful muscles plainly visible beneath his clothes. He gripped a Five-Tiger Door-Breaking Saber in his hand, had a goatee on his chin, and his eyes gleamed with shrewdness.
The middle-aged man walked in with two subordinates and spoke in a booming voice.
"Waiter, fifty steamed buns, two jin of braised meat, and a basin of cold tea."
The waiter immediately hurried over. "Please have a seat, honored guests."
The head escort and his two subordinates sat down. The young man and woman, along with the three burly customers, all turned to look at the escorts.
The relay station suddenly grew quiet. The waiter brought over tea and set it on the escorts' table.
The head escort poured himself a cup but didn't drink. Instead, he took out a silver needle and inserted it into the tea.
He also circled the needle around the cup once.
When he was done, he looked toward an Escort Guard beside him.
The other man actually pulled a palm-sized mouse cage from his sleeve. Inside was a little mouse.
He set the tea in front of the little mouse, which quickly came over and stuck out its tongue to drink.
Watching this, Li Qing's eyes widened. Holy crap, they're using a live creature to test for poison? These people are way ahead of their time!
No wonder they travel all over the world. They're incredibly cautious. Impressive.
Li Qing couldn't help praising them. I'll have to be careful from now on, too.
A moment later, the waiter came out carrying a food box and hurried to Li Qing's table, serving him three dishes.
One plate of stir-fried greens, one plate of braised meat, one bowl of vegetable soup, and a bowl of white rice—it seemed to be the best food the relay station had to offer.
There was also a kettle filled with clean water.
Li Qing looked at the food before him. Though disappointed, he could only accept it.
After all, this was a poor, out-of-the-way place. Having food like this was already pretty good.
But Li Qing didn't pick up his chopsticks. He simply waited in silence.
At the other two tables, the waiter was serving them food as well.
The young man and woman seemed to test theirs with silver needles, and the three burly men did the same.
They all seemed to have plenty of experience. By comparison, Li Qing was the odd one out.
Just then, the waiter quietly came over with a set of gray clothes.
"Honored guest, I have a set of old clothes here. Would you like to see if they fit?"
Li Qing took the clothes. They had been washed very clean. Though old, they weren't torn and would cover him just fine.
He smiled and nodded. "Not bad. Thank you."
The waiter's face showed a trace of a smile when he heard Li Qing thank him.
"You're welcome."
"Slurp..."
A low, wet sucking sound rang out, and Li Qing's heart jolted.
He abruptly turned to look at the waiter. The man's face wore a smile, his eyes full of obsequiousness, but Li Qing couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong with it.
"Is there anything else you need, honored guest?"
Li Qing shook his head. "No."
The waiter hurriedly put on another ingratiating smile and headed toward the back hall, but Li Qing grew more and more uneasy.
He had clearly heard the sound of someone sucking in saliva, as though something had drooled and then sucked the drool back in.
It was the sort of sound someone made when there was a delicious dish right in front of them and they could barely restrain themselves.
A chill crawled over him, and his gaze darted around on its own.
His eyes fell on the shopkeeper, who was behind the counter fiddling with an abacus. He held a writing brush in his hand and seemed to be writing something.
From beginning to end, the shopkeeper didn't seem to have looked up once.
As he watched closely, Li Qing suddenly felt his skin crawl. He saw something wriggling on the shopkeeper's neck.
Looking carefully, it appeared to be a plump white maggot.
It rolled off and landed on the tabletop behind the counter.
A chill shot from the soles of Li Qing's feet straight to his head. He shot to his feet.
Damn, did I run into a ghost? How unlucky can I be?
Why do I keep running into these Anomalies?
Li Qing's expression shifted repeatedly. Is it really like those novels say?
Once you gain mysterious powers, you'll keep attracting mysterious things? That's ridiculous.
At that thought, he suddenly slapped the table.
"Oh no, I dropped something."
He snatched up his waterskin and the clothes, then headed outside. His face was full of anxiety, as if he really had lost something.