Twilight's Threshold Chapter 371: Collecting the Accounts (Third Watch) - Novel Cool

Chapter 371: Collecting the Accounts (Third Watch)

Chapter 371: Collecting the Accounts (Third Watch)

As Zhuang, the mine owner, narrated his story, even when he mentioned the bizarre mine, it was his tale of being poisoned by the curse that truly heightened Hu Ma's sense of urgency.

The longevity practitioner's abilities were acquired through rebirth and overcoming death, practicing energy channeling, and eventually cultivating a robust physique, immune to poisons and impervious to blades. Especially those who had reinvigorated their five viscera, even if they ingested poison, would only consider it a seasoning.

But this Zhuang, the mine owner, claimed that he was merely scratched by a dead crow sent by a sorcerer, and yet he ended up in such a dire situation. How could one not be shocked by this?

Xu exhaled slowly, then spoke calmly, "And then?"

"Didn't you ask the sorcerer here about it? Who sealed the mine and for what purpose?"

"..."

"Of course, I asked."

Zhuang sighed softly and said, "I do know the sorcerer here. Before, I often went to their village to exchange food. I was on good terms with their clan leader, Wu."

"Some of them like to use the Dark Empyrean to craft curses. I tried to accommodate them as much as possible. If there were things the mine didn't need, and they wanted them, I would give them."

"After this incident, I immediately sent someone to the Black Eye Village to ask for help in removing the curse. If that didn't work, I could at least find an intermediary to arrange a meeting with the person who cursed me and ask what was going on."

"But..."

He paused for a moment before continuing in a low voice, "The person I sent returned in half a day."

"He came back just before dusk, before dinner. He looked like he hadn't eaten for days. As soon as he returned, he went straight to the stove and started eating the freshly steamed buns one by one, not seeming to mind the heat at all. Then..."

"..."

He couldn't bring himself to continue, and instead looked at the person squeezed in the doorway.

This man had a stout build, and unlike the others who held curved meat cleavers or pitchforks, he carried a kitchen knife and wore an apron, resembling a cook.

As Zhuang glanced at him, the man's face turned pale, and he forced himself to speak, "It's not my fault! I saw Ruan Lao Liu picking up those hot buns, and he kept eating them one after another..."

"I... I was afraid he would choke, so..."

"I pushed him..."

"Then... then his head rolled off, and worms were crawling out of it..."

"..."

"What?"

Upon hearing this, everyone present turned pale, including Hu Ma and the meat cutters. Even though they had witnessed it firsthand, hearing it again sent chills down their spines.

"Only an empty shell remained..."

Zhuang spoke softly, "Inside, the worms had eaten everything. Perhaps he was already dead when he returned to the village."

As he spoke, his face also showed discomfort. He whispered, "I really don't understand what the curser wanted. He was a good young man, hardworking and diligent. After working here for a few years, he saved a few taels of silver, planning to build a small house and get married in his village!"

"But because he delivered a letter, he was harmed by such a vicious method..."

"..."

Seeing the increasingly oppressive atmosphere, Hu Ma frowned and said, "In other words, up until now, you still don't know why they cursed you?"

"Well... I guess so!"

Zhuang hesitated for a moment before nodding, "I checked Ruan's body, and there was a cloth strip from Clan Leader Wu tied around his wrist. It was Clan Leader Wu's reply, promising to come as soon as possible."

"But after waiting for several days, there's still no sign of him. The person guarding outside has become increasingly aggressive and has even sealed the mine."

"Even the supply caravan that comes every ten days hasn't shown up. Fortunately, there's still some food in the mine, so we won't starve. We wanted to send someone to investigate, but they were all afraid of the curse outside. We didn't expect you to show up at this moment..."

"..."

As he spoke, he showed a hint of guilt and said to Hu Ma, "To be honest, seeing you enter safely, I thought you were with them..."

Hu Ma snorted and said, "We were able to get in because of an old horse paving the way..."

As he spoke, he suddenly realized something and turned to the person by the door, "Go and check if my horse is still alive!"

Just a moment ago, these people considered Hu Ma an enemy, glaring at him with hatred. But now, after hearing his story, they realized their mistake and hurriedly sent someone to check on the horse. Soon, someone returned and shouted, "It's almost gone, but there's still a faint breath left..."

"So it's not dead yet..."

Hu Ma nodded and said, "I don't understand the sorcerer's rules, but this person's behavior, even in the jianghu, would be considered impolite..."

"Earlier in the forest, he tried to curse us with poison dogs, but we sensed the anomaly and called out, yet no one responded, not even giving us a bit of face."

As he spoke, he couldn't help but think of the lively and adorable young lady with silver adornments.

Just don’t know what her background is?

"No matter what, Manager Hu has great skills. If he can get into the valley, it means he can get out. He’s a great savior..."

Chief Zhuang, hearing this, didn’t know how to respond. He just hurriedly clasped his hands and said, "In our mine, the lives of a hundred or so men depend entirely on your care..."

"This guy..."

Hu Ma wasn’t at all pleased by the flattery. He just glanced at the seemingly honest Chief Zhuang and cursed him in his heart as an old fox.

When Chief Zhuang said this, everyone’s eyes immediately turned to Hu Ma. Just now, when Hu Ma showed his skills, they all saw how capable he was. Adding to that, he represented the Red Lantern Society from above, and his demeanor was impressive. In the midst of their anxiety, they truly pinned their hopes on him.

"Let’s not talk about other things for now."

Facing so many people’s gazes, Hu Ma neither confirmed nor denied it. He changed the subject, "The wine has been served for so long, but why hasn’t any food been brought out?"

"We’ve been traveling for so long, can you arrange some food for us!"

"..."

"Yes, yes..."

Chief Zhuang, hearing this, hurriedly signaled to a few people nearby. They seemed a bit reluctant, whispering to each other. It seemed that their rations were getting fewer each day, and they were reluctant to waste them.

But Chief Zhuang scolded them, "Saving a few bites won’t help you last a day or two longer. First, take care of the manager who came from above."

"… If it’s really not enough, then white, green, or even red, bring them out!"

"Are we in the Blood Feast Mine, and we can starve to death?"

"..."

His subordinates hurried off. They had plenty of hands, and soon a tray of large white steamed buns and a few bowls of meat were brought out. The two jars of wine on the table were also real, and could be drunk.

Chief Zhuang, being considerate, arranged the food and then retreated, saying he had other matters to arrange.

Hu Ma also leaned his ear slightly, listened for a moment, and, confirming no one was eavesdropping, turned to Old Abacus and said, "Brother, what do you think is going on in this mine?"

Old Abacus first scooped some wine from the jar to smell it, then poured it into a bowl and tasted it, nodding. "First, let me teach you young ones a lesson. When you encounter a sorcerer, you can eat hot food, like these freshly steamed buns and stewed meat."

"Cold food, you should be more cautious, to avoid getting tricked."

"However, you Year-End Guardians are different from others. I once heard that some Year-End Guardians, when poisoned by curses, would drink a large bowl of arsenic to kill the bugs inside them..."

"Of course, this depends on the skill levels. That Chief Zhuang clearly doesn’t have such deep skills, and the curses he encountered were clearly more powerful..."

"..."

After showing off, he turned to Hu Ma, "Chief Zhuang doesn’t seem to be lying, of course, precisely because they are in this situation, they are now more willing to talk. Otherwise, just to seize the mine, they would have fought us until blood flowed everywhere."

"He was also testing you just now, to see your skills. If your skills were inferior to his, he probably wouldn’t have been so honest about the mysterious ore vein."

"..."

"Indeed."

Hu Ma also saw this and smiled, "The key is that the situation arose suddenly. Who knows how much of what this brother said is true and how much is false? To engage in a fight with an unknown sorcerer based on a few words, would that be worth it?"

"Of course, we can’t be used as a shield, fighting to the death with that outsider, only to let the people in the mine benefit..."

Old Abacus sipped his wine leisurely and said, "But now that we’ve encountered this, it wouldn’t make sense to do nothing. We came from the Red Lantern Society, and we bear a responsibility. If we don’t step up now, no one will respect us in the future."

Hu Ma took a deep breath and said, "That’s exactly the point. So, according to you..."

Old Abacus chuckled, "Brother Hu, what do you think is the most important thing to do when we arrive here?"

Hu Ma looked at him and smiled, "Settle the accounts?"

"Oh..."

Old Abacus immediately gave Hu Ma a thumbs up and smiled, "I knew it was right to come with you."

"Exactly, since Chief Zhuang said this, we don’t need to care whether he’s telling the truth or lying. Taking over the mine is the main thing."

"If it’s true, we can take it over, understand the situation, and then discuss how to deal with the sorcerer outside, right?"

"If it’s false, well, if he insists on giving us this handle, can we be blamed?"

"..."

"Taking advantage of someone’s weakness? That’s a bit unscrupulous..."

Hu Ma, listening, couldn’t help but laugh, "My master and I are from the camp, we are honest people, and we don’t do such unscrupulous things. But Uncle Xu said we should follow your advice after we come out..."

"..."

"Then let’s do it this way. The Blood New Year Beast and the Golden Thread Centipede have been cut out in large numbers. They probably haven’t had time to transport them out yet, right?"

(End of Chapter)

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