Chapter 4: Corpses Everywhere

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  When Xia Yalai walked into the store, there were no other customers in the store, only a thin old man sitting behind the shelves. Although Xia Yalai's clothes were very tattered, he did not receive any discrimination. The old man stood up enthusiastically to welcome him, with a brilliant smile on his face and a sharp glint in his narrow eyes. Such a smiling face was just short of having the words "swindler" carved on it.

  "Respected guest, what can I get for you? We have a fresh batch of top-grade tobacco, all personally planted by the authentic Zakuto tribe! Ah, looking at your age, I suppose you're not interested in tobacco... Ah, seeing how tall and robust you are, you must be an outstanding warrior. Hmm, we have some exquisite weapons crafted by 'Thunder God's Hammer', what do you need? A fine sword or perhaps some armor? I assure you our goods are genuine products from the dwarven craftsmen, absolutely no counterfeits!"

  Mjolnir?

  Forget it.

  Xia Yali has been mixed in Ye Huo Town for so many years, where doesn't he know the moral character of these merchants?

  The whole world knows that the dwarves' craftsmanship is the best. The dwarves worship the Thunder God, so nearly half of the weapon shops on the continent are named "Thunder God's Hammer", claiming to use the dwarven craftsmanship.

  Xia Yali believed that there must be top-notch dwarf craftsmanship on the black market, but those genuine goods were very expensive, and these swindlers would never take out such precious items to face a shabbily dressed kid like him.

  As Xia Yareng didn't speak, the old man twirled his mustache and squeezed out a "men understand each other" smile: "Perhaps you need to buy some special medicine? Our store has its own pharmacist who can make any special medicine, especially that kind of thing that makes you drowsy after eating... It's really the best equipment for home travel, murder, robbery, rape... Uh, respected customer, what do you need?"

  Xia Yali has already sized up everything in this store.

  He first saw a dried sheepskin hanging in the store, which was a contract document. Under the contract document were two signatures, one of which was probably the logo of the business group to which this store belonged, and the other belonged to the large mercenary group that now occupied Wildfire Town.

  This contract represents an agreement between the shop and the current occupiers of Wildfire Town, under the protection of that mercenary group, while also following the rules of Wildfire Town. If any breach of contract occurs, the injured party can go to the protector of Wildfire Town for arbitration.

  This is considered a "legitimate" identity.

  This is a point that must be clarified first, because... there are also many black shops on the black market!

  There's no good person in Ye Huo Town... Hehe!

  "I came in after seeing the 'help wanted' sign outside." Xia Yali spoke up, his accent was from the local dialect near Wildfire Town.

  The old merchant's enthusiasm immediately decreased a lot, but he was still very polite, which made Xia Yalai feel quite comfortable. At least, not judging by appearance, it seemed somewhat more professional.

  "Judging from your accent, you're a local." The old man smiled: "Are you a demon hunter?"

  After hearing this question, Xia Yaren couldn't help but touch his own tattered cloak, as well as the fire fork inserted at his waist. Perhaps some demon hunters would dress more simply, but in this world, there absolutely wouldn't be a single demon hunter who would use a fire fork for cooking to fight against ferocious demons...

  Xia Ya's face turned slightly red, but he still nodded stiffly: "Yes."

  The old man deliberately pretended not to see Xia Yareng's tattered robe and fire fork, his eyes didn't even move a bit: "Alright, so you're here to apply? The requirements are up there, do you have any questions?"

  The brand name is clearly written on the label.

  "High price buying WOW pets"

  Requirements: Lion cub, characteristics, white hair.

  No quantity limit.

  Construction cost: 5 silver coins per unit.

  "Term of authorization: thirty days."

  "No question about it, if possible, let's sign the contract directly." Xia Yali tried to appear more mature.

  The old man looked at Xia Yareng's face carefully and sighed: "Young man, I hope you understand what you're doing. It can be seen that you are a martial artist, but... the lion beast is not an ordinary wild animal. Moreover, it's almost winter now, and during this season, magical beasts are very difficult to deal with when they are storing food for the winter. Not to mention, any wild animal becomes extremely ferocious when its young is threatened."

  "I know what I'm doing, it's not my first time doing this." Xia Yareng puffed out his chest: "But thanks for the reminder anyway."

  The old man regained his composure, turned around and pulled out a contract from the drawer behind the shelf, throwing it onto the table in front of Xiayalei. He looked at him: "You can read, right? Do you need me to read it aloud for you?"

  "It doesn't matter."

  Xia Yali read through the contract and found no problem with it.

  "Sign your name below and leave a fingerprint." The old man narrowed his eyes at the young man: "What's your name?"

  "Xia Ya." The young demon hunter replied vaguely, as he had always felt a little ashamed of the name, so he didn't reveal his full name.

  "What's your surname? Xia Ya? Hmm, what a strange name." The old man asked again.

  Xia Yali looked at him and didn't respond.

  The old man smiled slightly and didn't continue to ask. In a place like Wildfire Town, many people were wanted by the law, so it wasn't unusual for them not to reveal their full names or even use fake names.

  "I need some money up front." Xia Yali said with a very embarrassed expression.

  This approach is common in black market transactions where a down payment is required. Typically, one percent of the goods' price can be requested as an advance payment.

  After all, the things people are looking for are generally hard to get and many require risking one's life.

  Of course, in order to prevent some people from using this method to cheat money - you signed the contract and took the advance payment and ran away, that's not okay!

  If you dare to do so, you will be expelled by the occupiers of Wildfire Town, and at best beaten up, or at worst hanged.

  Unless you never come to Wildfire Town again.

  Of course, if you die in the process of completing the task, then there's no need to repay it.

  The old man quickly laid out five copper plates on the table, and it was clear that he had seen Xia Yareng's embarrassment: "Young man, take it to eat a full meal, eating well will give you energy to work."

  "Thank you, I'm already full." Xia Yairen quickly put away the copper plate and contract, hesitated for a moment, and couldn't help but ask: "Why would someone want to buy a lion beast cub? The fur is not valuable, the meat doesn't taste good, and this low-level magical beast doesn't even have a magic core."

  "It seems you're not entirely ignorant about the beast." The old merchant replied, "Lion cubs are born with snow-white fur, and only shed it to turn fiery red when they mature. Alas... recently, a trend has emerged among the nobles in the capital, thinking that lion cubs with all-white coats are adorable, and many nobles like to buy them as pets... Hehe, nobles are always like this - they spend money, and someone else goes out of their way to get it. It's quite fair."

  Xia Yali didn't say anything else, preparing to leave. The old man behind him added a sentence: "Considering you're very young, I'll tell you an important message. It's said that someone saw a lion-like beast on a mountain north of Wildfire Town. Hehe, I'm giving you a clear direction so you won't waste time searching."

  Xia Yali didn't look back and left a sentence "thank you" before walking out with her head held high.

  In the shop, the old man sat back down, lowered his head and recorded a few entries in an account book.

  At this time, a fellow who had just finished his work in the back of the store came out and smiled: "Sir, do you have any business?"

  "It's nothing, just a young kid who is going to work hard for money." The old merchant shook his head: "What a pity, a young life. I wish him good luck. Hopefully my five copper coins won't be thrown into the water."

  "You're always so kind!" The fellow flattered, showing a mouthful of yellow teeth as he smiled: "Have you forgotten the saying that's been passed down here? In Wildfire Town, there are dead people buried everywhere."

  ……

  …………

  Five copper coins were fully utilized by Xia Yaler.

  He spent half a day's worth of wages in the blacksmith's shop, spending three copper coins on a rusty axe and one copper coin on a piece of dark rye flatbread. The last copper coin was exchanged for a small amount of the cheapest inferior wine - not because he had a drinking problem, but as an excellent hunter, he knew that during this cold season, when hunting in the mountains, having a drink could keep his body warm.

  Carrying an axe, with flatbread and a wineskin in his bosom, still wearing that tattered wolf-pelt cloak and those worn-out grass shoes, Xiaya Lei walked out of Wildfire Town, heading north.