Killing Men Pays Better Than Killing Pigs

Butcher Zhang was sitting at the doorway picking his teeth when he heard the commotion at the chopping block. He turned to look, surprise flickering in his eyes.

In just three days, the kid had already found his way in.

He really was born to slaughter pigs.

"Master, these past two days of slaughtering pigs and chopping meat, I feel like I've gotten a lot stronger," Chen Jing casually explained.

"Listen to you brag. You work yourself to the bone every day—of course you'd get stronger," Butcher Zhang said dismissively.

"Enough. Clean up and get ready to close up."

"We'll use the leftover meat to treat ourselves tonight and make two bowls of pork noodles."

Just then, a burst of commotion suddenly rose from the street outside.

Chen Jing poked his head out and saw a group of people coming down the street. At the front was Instructor Wang, the town's Militia Instructor, followed by two young men pulling a flatbed cart.

Someone lay on the cart, a blood-soaked rag wrapped around his neck. His face was ashen, and he was clearly dead beyond doubt.

"Make way! Make way!"

Instructor Wang shouted loudly. The neighbors all crowded around, chattering at once.

"Good heavens, isn't that Old Sun?"

"How did he die?"

"That's terrifying! Such a huge gash in his neck..."

Hearing the commotion, Butcher Zhang's expression changed. He strode out, shoved through the crowd, and his face immediately darkened when he looked.

The man lying on the flatbed cart was Sun Dali, an old acquaintance of his. He was a hunter who often came to drink with Butcher Zhang.

"Old Wang, what happened?" Butcher Zhang asked in a deep voice.

Instructor Wang sighed and wiped the sweat from his face. "Old Sun left town yesterday to hunt and didn't return all night."

"This morning, someone found his body by the roadside three li outside town. His throat had been cut, and all the game and silver on him were gone. Judging by the method, it was most likely wandering bandits."

"Wandering bandits?" Someone in the crowd sucked in a cold breath.

"We heard some time ago that wandering bandits were causing trouble up north. Who would have thought they'd feel their way all the way here?"

"What are we supposed to do now..."

Instructor Wang waved his hand and shouted, "Everyone, listen up! Be careful when entering or leaving town lately. Don't go outside after dark."

"I've already sent someone to report to the county. Before the government troops and constables arrive, everyone needs to keep their own eyes peeled."

He paused, then added:

"Every household, bar your doors tight at night. Those with weapons, keep them ready. If anything happens, strike the gong at once!"

Another wave of unrest passed through the crowd. Everyone scattered back to their homes, fear and unease written across their faces.

Butcher Zhang stood beside the cart, staring at Sun Dali's corpse for a long while. In the end, he let out a heavy sigh and turned back into the butcher shop.

"Master..." Chen Jing followed him inside.

"Old Sun and I knew each other for more than ten years. Every winter, he'd bring me wild game."

"He was a good hunter, and his archery was deadly accurate. I never thought he'd fall into the hands of wandering bandits."

He fell silent for a while, then suddenly lifted his head and glanced at Chen Jing. "Kid, these are troubled times. Master that pig-slaughtering."

"If you ever run into wandering bandits or mountain brigands and have to draw your blade, treat those turtle bastards like pigs and chop them down!"

Chen Jing nodded.

Yet his heart was far heavier than Butcher Zhang imagined.

He was not some local native who had never seen the world. He was a transmigrator.

He knew that the world was in chaos now. Uprisings broke out from time to time across the land, wanted notices plastered the town gates, and human lives were worth less than grass.

Today, the dead man was Old Sun the hunter. Tomorrow, it might be him.

He had to raise his strength as quickly as possible.

That night, Butcher Zhang drank some wine and went to sleep, his snoring even louder than usual.

As usual, Chen Jing slaughtered two pigs, gaining ten points of proficiency.

After slaughtering the pigs, he did not hurry back into his room. Instead, he stood in the courtyard with the Butcher Knife in hand.

The north wind howled, and the moonlight was bleak.

Chen Jing gripped the Butcher Knife and swung it again and again, pairing his movements with the crude footwork he had devised himself.

Bleeding, gutting, boning, chopping meat—every technique for wielding a blade surfaced in his mind one after another, blending together as one.

His blade moved so fast that it even tore out sharp whistles through the air.

After practicing for roughly half an hour, his proficiency rose by another four points.

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Now, he could gain roughly thirty-five points of proficiency in a day. To break through to Minor Accomplishment in his blade technique, he would need around half a month.

Three days passed after Old Sun's body was discovered, and Shuang'an Town remained as peaceful as ever.

But Instructor Wang brought back another piece of terrible news: Black Stone Village, thirty li from Shuang'an Town, had been slaughtered by wandering bandits. Not a single villager survived.

The atmosphere in Shuang'an Town grew increasingly tense, and even during the day, there were fewer people on the streets.

Business at the butcher shop also declined somewhat. Butcher Zhang's face was black as the bottom of a pot as he sat on the steps smoking his dry pipe, frequently bursting into curses that the wandering bandits were all sons of bitches.

Still, although the situation outside was worsening, Chen Jing's Pig-Slaughtering Blade Technique continued to improve steadily.

Martial Arts: Pig-Slaughtering Blade Technique (Minor Accomplishment: 103/500)

That night, Chen Jing had finished slaughtering pigs and practicing his blade, and was about to return to his room to rest.

Suddenly, he heard a faint sound coming from beyond the courtyard wall.

His steps halted. He held his breath and listened carefully.

Footsteps.

More than one person.

Chen Jing's heart tightened. Without making a sound, he retreated into the main room. Butcher Zhang had been drinking and was currently snoring away.

Chen Jing suddenly shook him awake.

"Master, there's movement outside."

Butcher Zhang jolted upright, more than half his drunken haze instantly gone.

He snatched up the Bone-Carving Knife beside his bed and lowered his voice.

"People?"

Chen Jing nodded.

"How many?"

"I don't know. From the footsteps, at least two."

A vicious glint flashed through Butcher Zhang's eyes. "Damn it, they're most likely the wandering bandits Old Wang mentioned."

"Kid, are you scared?"

Chen Jing tightened his grip around the Butcher Knife. The icy touch of its hilt gradually steadied his racing heart.

"No."

"Good." Butcher Zhang grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

"Come with me. I'll teach you something—how you kill pigs is how you kill men."

The two positioned themselves, one to the left and one to the right.

Each hid in the shadows behind the door, holding their breath and concentrating.

A faint landing sound came from the courtyard, followed by stealthy footsteps creeping closer.

Under the moonlight, two figures slipped into the courtyard one after the other, each carrying a gleaming steel blade.

"This is the butcher's shop. There's bound to be meat and silver here,"

the man in front said in a low voice.

"Hurry up. Kill the people first, so we don't alert anyone else,"

the man behind urged.

The two crept up to the door and pushed it open.

They slipped inside one after the other.

The instant they stepped over the threshold, Butcher Zhang sprang into action, viciously driving the Bone-Carving Knife toward the first man's neck!

That movement, that force.

It was exactly the same as the first cut made when bleeding a pig!

Pshk!

The first man did not even have time to scream before blood burst from his neck like a fountain, and his whole body crumpled limply to the ground.

"Ol—"

The second man had only shouted one word when Chen Jing drove a knife into his kidney from behind!

This strike carried the boost of the [Butcher] talent, embodying the essence of speed, precision, and ruthlessness!

The thick Butcher Knife sank entirely into the man's lower back. Chen Jing could even feel the blade slicing through flesh, blood, and organs.

The man gave a muffled grunt and collapsed on the spot. His body twitched several times before going still.

Blood spread across the ground, no different from pig's blood.

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