Chapter 136: Drought Demon Brings Disaster
Chapter 136: Drought Demon Brings Disaster
Since they left, door, Hu Ma hurriedly, War, He didn’t rest even for a moment, Even Zhou Datong felt, need to hurry, start, he didn’t explain, they had fled for three hundred miles, which seemed to slow down the pace, and the attitude also became more relaxed.
This day had Just Passed Noon, Noon, they found a roadside inn, and stayed to rest. feet. The Inn was located next to an official road, with five or six large grass huts, and a large horse shed.
Hu Ma spent two silver coins, and booked a large common room that could sleep a dozen people, not allowing others to enter, then bought some noodles, and fetched some firewood, outside the house, he boiled water, and cooked noodles to eat.
The Salted Meat They Brought Themselves, also went to the inn tofetch some salted meat, garlic, and ate it while talking about the news.
It was also to warm oneself, and get some news, The place looked more Like a Past Life Movie or TV show, In those days, such inns were everywhere, especially outside, within a radius of dozens of miles, people might gather here, you talk and would hear many stories.
These People Didn’t know each Other, but talked about various places and friends, Many were from the south to the north, and all would be excited to hear the war, But The old inn had a few cups of wine, peanuts, war and talk about the news.
He Drankly poured water for the feet, and continued talking about the news.
"Old Friend, I really need it, please have a cup."
Hu Ma Arrived at this point, and immediately greeted a traveling merchant with a toast, who was also a seasoned traveler, with a glance, he saw the appearance of Second Uncle, who looked much younger, but after returning to the village, he brought people to cut the years.
The Old Man’s that empty,, just been a long emptied, but it was also to talk about the news.
“Ah, how much thanks……”
The Old Merchant heard Hu Ma wanted to invite him for a drink, so he happily accepted, but didn’t use his own flask, went to the counter and asked for a cup.
He indeed was thirsty, but also had a wealth of experiences, and and poured the wine into the cup, he took the first sip, looked the wine, “ Exhaust, it just looked at the color,and smelled the first Uncle war a few sips of wine, and continued talking about the news.
"I reckon that your master isn’t really counting on you to make money. Sending you out serves two purposes: to save some food for the family and, if the worst comes to the worst, to avoid the family watching each other starve to death..."
"Yes."
Hearing the old man's words, Hu Ma nodded and added more wine, saying, "But my brothers and I, when we were in the village, did learn a few tricks from our elders. We have some skills."
"Only, we don’t know where to find a way to turn these skills into silver."
"..."
"Skills?"
The old man glanced at the knife on Hu Ma’s waist, smiled, and spoke more politely, "That makes it easier to find work. You can go work as a bodyguard for a wealthy family."
"These days, it’s chaotic, and wealthy families are always on edge."
"Of course, joining the Blood Food Gang would be the best. Those lords live off blood food, and the authorities don’t dare to provoke them. They live the most comfortable lives..."
"..."
"But it’s not easy. The Blood Food Gang has strict rules and doesn’t take in just anyone."
"..."
"Our members from the Blood Food Gang are well-respected when we go out..."
Hu Ma thought for a moment and chatted a bit more before addressing the old man, "I heard you mention that the Man Cang Town on the other side of the mountain is suffering from a drought demon?"
"They pooled money to hire someone to deal with it. How much of a reward are they offering now?"
"..."
"That’s why you were willing to treat this old man to wine?"
The old man smiled and looked at Hu Ma, saying, "So you were gathering information."
"Yes, it’s true. I’ve been to Man Cang Town a few times for business. It used to be a great place, with beautiful water and fertile fields, and every household had full granaries. But in recent years, the rain has become less and less each year."
"Last year, there were only two light rains, and the river stopped flowing. Some knowledgeable people say it’s a drought demon. If it’s not removed, there might not be any rain next year."
"Once that underground wanderer gains power, it might bring more disasters!"
"They have indeed pooled money to hire experts. They’ve dug up many graves to find that wanderer but haven’t succeeded, causing several fights and many deaths."
"Currently, they have pooled over 200 taels of silver and are asking us traders to spread the word. If someone can help remove it, it will be a great deed!"
"However, I think you shouldn’t get involved."
"It’s something only experts can do. If you can’t handle it, you’ll just make people resent you."
"..."
"Thank you, Old Sir. I was just asking out of curiosity. I know my own limits."
Hu Ma smiled, thanked the old man, and chatted a bit more before going to sleep.
"Since there’s nothing else to do, I might as well go check it out."
Although he said it was just a casual inquiry, Hu Ma had taken it to heart.
These hundreds of taels of silver could actually be earned.
The Book of Year-Taming has methods to find and remove drought demons.
And unlike the traditional thinking of reincarnated ones, this method is actually quite simple.
In his previous life, influenced by TV and movies, he thought drought demons were extremely powerful.
Some even described them as ancient deities, flying and diving, but according to the Book of Year-Taming, a drought demon is just a type of evil spirit, a corpse affected by feng shui and transformed.
Once it gains power, it becomes formidable, but before that, even villagers can burn it if they find it.
There are various types of evil spirits in this world, such as wandering filth, evil spirits, and malevolent beings. The old turtle he encountered in Niujia Bay was the most powerful he had seen, almost a malevolent being. This drought demon is just an evil spirit, and a relatively weak one.
If he can remove it and earn hundreds of taels of silver, he won’t be losing out.
As for the task assigned by the Red Lantern Lady Association, Hu Ma never intended to take it.
The reason is simple: the wealthy household died under mysterious circumstances.
Dozens of people, from the master to the maids, all died in one night, and their faces were covered with yellow paper. It sounds eerie and terrifying... a fool would go investigate this.
As for how to complete the task?
He could use this trip to earn more silver and then go to the city to smooth things over. What task can’t be completed with a nod from the higher-ups? Whether he completes the task or bribes them with silver, there’s no essential difference.
Hu Ma doesn’t see any difference.
Of course, he can’t just sit idle. He does need to take on a few jobs to earn more silver. After all, he needs to prepare for his future trips to the city and to buy the necessary items to further study and master the techniques in the Book of Year-Taming...
It’s all about money! The more he calculates, the more pressure he feels. This trip, he wants to earn at least a thousand taels of silver. Anything less would feel like a loss.
With this in mind, he returned to his room and saw Zhou Datong and the others with red faces from drinking. He smiled and instructed, "Finish up early and rest. We leave early tomorrow."
"We’re going to Man Cang Town to make some money."
(End of Chapter)
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