I Can Devour Spirits

Chapter 142: Swill Liu

Liu Genshan lived in a large compound in South City, an old widower without children, who survived by collecting swill.

Rotten leftovers piled up at closed restaurant entrances; he’d haul these out to nearby villages, selling them to pig farmers for a meager ration.

Due to the overwhelming stench, he’d often start work early, dragging a shabby cart to load the swill from each restaurant into large barrels, then haul them out of the city...

Ruan Fengshan was fretting when he suddenly saw a shadow on the road, pulling a ramshackle cart, staggering toward him. The large wooden barrel on the cart was greasy and reeked unbearably...

Ruan Fengshan turned to Luan Jingfu and said, "Find a way to get out of the city yourself. Don’t alert the constables signaling at the gate, or I’ll kill you."

"Yes, Squad Leader!" At this moment, Luan Jingfu’s demeanor was obedient like a servant.

Currently, only Ruan Fengshan and Luan Jingfu were in the dim alley. Luan Jingfu didn’t call Ruan Fengshan a shopkeeper but a squad leader!

Ruan Fengshan’s figure flickered, darted out of the alley, and stuck to the shadow by the wall, circling behind the widower pulling the swill cart. Then Ruan Fengshan crouched low and vanished like a ghost.

Ruan Fengshan had crawled under the swill cart, gripping the gaps in the cart’s boards to hang beneath it.

The widower felt a sudden weight on his shoulder, glanced back, thinking the wheel had caught on a pebble, adjusted slightly, and continued to stagger slowly toward the South City gate with the swill cart.

The swill cart was three zhang from the gate, and the constables were already holding their noses against the stench. A young constable cursed, "Swill Liu, aren’t you dead yet? Stinks like hell!"

"Quick, open the gate and let him out!"

Ruan Fengshan hung motionless beneath the swill cart, but the cart kept swaying, oil-tinged swill persistently spilling from the greasy barrel, dripping through the cart’s gaps onto Ruan Fengshan’s face, sliding over his lips...

South of Xianggu County, there’s a Chaotic Tomb Ridge.

On the Nine Provinces Continent, great importance is placed on burials, with most families having ancestral graves.

However, this Chaotic Tomb Ridge is typically used by charity houses.

Many who died unnatural deaths or unclaimed corpses cannot be allowed to rot, as that could easily cause an epidemic.

Nameless corpses are examined by forensic doctors, and if unclaimed for three days, rolled in straw mats, and buried at this Chaotic Tomb Ridge.

Thus, the Chaotic Tomb Ridge holds the ghost souls of those who died abnormal deaths!

Currently, it’s the hour of mao, the darkest and deepest moment of the night, sky devoid of the moon with only a single large star hanging in the firmament...

Duan Rong carrying a lantern, drove the vehicle from the official road, turning into the Chaotic Tomb Ridge...

In the pitch-black night, countless grave mounds resembled buns, with scattered ghostly fires swirling with the night breeze...

Duan Rong sat in the escort vehicle, his eyes scanning around, ears perked to the sounds around him.

Duan Rong’s escort vehicle had just turned in when two heads popped up from behind a grave in the distance. Both were dressed as servants, and beside them lay a man, short and stout, with a fleshy head and ears, asking the pair, "Did you see clearly? Who is that?"

"Seems like Duan Rong, the intern escort master from the Second Escort Team!" one servant replied.

"Seems?" the short-stout man demanded sharply.

"It’s definitely Duan Rong! The intern escort master!" the other servant answered.

"An intern escort master, that’s good!" The short-stout man suddenly stood up, whispered to his comrades behind, "Brothers, grab your weapons, attack!"

Atop the grave, shadows moved, causing ghost fires to flicker erratically...

Duan Rong noticed the strange movement of the ghost fires atop the grave, immediately focused his gaze, seeing shadows leaping out from the swirling ghost fires!

More than ten men, dressed in tight outfits, with knives at their waists, surrounded Duan Rong. The sound of knives scraping soon echoed, blades glinting brightly in the dark.

Duan Rong stood on the escort vehicle, gaze darting; he noticed among them, four holding crossbows, hiding at the back, crossbow arrows aimed at him.

In the darkness, Duan Rong’s eyes glinted as he calculated whether he could dodge the barrage of arrows using Cloud Serpent Step combined with Bone Shrinking Technique...

At this moment, all enemies hidden in the shadows had revealed themselves. Contrary to appearances, he felt safest now.

With master-level Cloud Serpent Step and Bone Shrinking Technique, he was confident in his safety, as long as he wasn’t blindsided by a sudden arrow attack. Currently, the crossbow arrows couldn’t harm him!

Suddenly, the short-stout man jumped out wielding a knife, asking, "Kid, where’s the gold?"

Duan Rong’s gaze sharpened, sizing up the man, noting his round, ball-like physique, with a rotund face where features seemed squished together, and his fleshy nose shining under the dim lantern light.

Duan Rong knew this man was their leader, likely the mastermind. He steeled his gaze, drew a knife, breaking the iron lock on the chest beside his feet. Infusing his inner breath into it, he flicked his toe, causing the heavy steel lid to snap open, revealing the brilliant gold shining in the dark.

Duan Rong also gasped in shock. The gold’s gleam in the night was incredibly dazzling. More importantly, Ruan Fengshan had truly tasked him with transporting a thousand pounds of gold.

In reality, when he opened the chest, Duan Rong already mentally prepared for it to contain anything but gold.

A thousand pounds of gold, gleaming brilliantly at Duan Rong’s feet!

"Gang Leader! It’s the gold!"

"I know it’s gold!"

Yu Wenlong chuckled, his fleshy nose quivering with laughter, holding a knife, he said to Duan Rong, "Little brother, you’ve had a hard time. I’ll see you off!"

Yu Wenlong suddenly attacked Duan Rong with the knife; Duan Rong immediately jumped off the escort vehicle, brandishing his knife in defense.

Their weapons clashed; Daun Rong instantly discerned Yu Wenlong’s realm—Inner Breath Realm Second Level! Duan Rong’s mind raced, suddenly dispersing the inner breath he’d infused into his Cow Tail Saber. Without the inner breath’s support, his Cow Tail Saber flew backward!

Yu Wenlong’s gaze turned vicious. As Duan Rong’s Cow Tail Saber flew from his hand, Yu Wenlong stabbed into Duan Rong’s chest, right at the heart.

The knife blade, gleaming coldly, pierced through Duan Rong’s body, its tip emerging from Duan Rong’s back, drenched in crimson blood...

Yu Wenlong’s face revealed an excited bloodlust expression, yet the dazzling golden gleam continually stimulated his nerves. Seeing the intern escort master’s low realm had indeed allowed him to stab through the heart within one encounter, Yu Wenlong drew the knife and kicked Duan Rong flying.

Yu Wenlong kicked Duan Rong flying, then lunged at the escort vehicle filled with gold, displaying a mesmerized expression, grabbing a palm-sized gold piece, biting it, eyes crazed with ecstasy shouted, "Gold! A thousand pounds of gold!"

This Yu Wenlong was the gang leader of one of the two major gangs in Xianggu County—the Bitter Fate Gang.

The surrounding gang members saw Duan Rong killed in one move by their gang leader, immediately relaxed, all greedily eyeing the gold on the escort vehicle.

Yu Wenlong saw the crowd gathering; he closed the steel chest lid with a snap, facial expression serious, "Brothers, we’ve got the gold. This job was worth it! We’ll handle the aftermath, then hide at my uncle’s rural house for a month, to avoid trouble from Yuan Shun Escort Agency!"

The surrounding gang members cheered in joy upon hearing this.