Fantasy: Immortality Begins with Absorbing Demons

Chapter Forty Martial Alliance

"The so-called Martial Alliance is a martial arts alliance set up by the government. Most of the members of the Martial Alliance are on bounty missions issued by the imperial court, hunting down wanted criminals for the government and receiving rewards."

"In addition to the guards and instructors I just mentioned, the Martial Alliance also accepts all sorts of tasks from ordinary people. Ordinary people can spend silver to ask martial artists for help."

"These are pretty much all the ways to make money in Anyan City."

After talking for so long, Pan Sheng took a sip of tea to moisten his throat.

“Right now, the most suitable position for you is a nominal one. If you are interested, I will go back to the sect later and inquire about it for you. With your current Bone Refining stage strength, a nominal position is more than enough.” Han Yi pondered for a moment, then cupped his hands in a salute and said, “Then thank you very much, Senior Brother Pan!”

"We're all fellow disciples, no need to be so polite..."

Following Pan Sheng's instructions, Han Yi easily arrived at Ruide Lane, where the Martial Alliance, an institution established by the government, was naturally located.

Although Han Yi decided to see if he could find a small gang or something to hang out with and earn some extra money, he still planned to come to the Martial Alliance.

When he arrived at Ruidefang last night, it was already late and there were few pedestrians on the road.

Now that it's daytime, pedestrians hurry along the streets of Ruidefang, and you can occasionally see a few government officials with standard long swords at their waists.

The entrance to the Martial Alliance was bustling with activity, flanked by two stone lions taller than a person. The plaque above the gate bore the two large golden characters "Martial Alliance," making it quite impressive!

After entering, Han Yi glanced at the people in the hall. He noticed that the average strength of the martial artists in the Martial Alliance was not as high as that of the Extraordinary Affairs Office.

Looking around, most of them had a combined strength between '15 and 30'. Obviously, these martial artists were at most at the Skin Refining and Bone Refining stages. Han Yi even saw some ordinary people with values ​​between '1 and 3' among them.

Just then, a commotion, like a quarrel in a market, reached his ears, and Han Yi frowned slightly.

He glanced over and saw a man seemingly arguing about something in front of the counter.

"I clearly completed this escort mission, so why aren't I paid?"

At the counter, a tall, burly man clenched his fists and roared angrily at the officials inside.

Han Yi glanced at the burly man's head and saw the value '19~28'. This burly man's strength had probably reached the late stage of Bone Refinement, making him one of the top performers among the group in the hall. In contrast, the official was just an ordinary person with a strength of '1~2'.

"You accepted this mission and completed the escort, but you lost the goods belonging to your employer."

The official behind the counter spoke slowly and deliberately.

bang, bang, bang

"Damn it, I don't care. I've done a delivery mission, and my weapons and armor are damaged. You have to pay me back!"

The burly man got more and more excited as he spoke, and the counter slammed against him with a loud bang.

Instantly, many eyes turned to them, but these eyes revealed an expression of disbelief. How could someone so ignorant dare to cause trouble here!

"Sir, watch your words, they are unseemly..." the officer said calmly, his expression unchanged.

"Sven your mother..."

The burly man was even more enraged. He rolled up his sleeves and strode forward. "You little bailiff, how dare you try to fool me!" He grabbed the bailiff by the collar.

"Tell me, will you pay me or not?"

The people around him wore mocking expressions, as if the big man was about to suffer a great misfortune.

Suddenly, a bony arm grabbed the strong man's right arm from behind.

"Where did this scoundrel come from, daring to mess with me, your master...?"

The burly man suddenly released the official's collar with his left hand, turned around and saw a thin, middle-aged man standing behind him.

Without a second thought, the burly man threw a powerful left hook at the middle-aged man's face.

The wind from the punches was whooshing.

Even though Han Yi was standing at the door, he could hear gusts of wind.

Snapped!

The middle-aged man remained calm and composed, and with a simple gesture, he grabbed the burly man's wrist.

Han Yi's eyes flashed. This middle-aged man looked thin, but the values ​​floating beside him were as high as '165~195', which was even stronger than Elder Li, whom he had seen before!

This is actually a martial artist in the Meridian Opening stage! Han Yi's eyelids twitched.

The burly man was stunned for a moment, followed by excruciating pain that went deep into his bones. The middle-aged man's two hands gripped the burly man's arms tightly, like iron clamps.

The burly man's muscles were bulging all over his body. He tried to break free with all his might, but to no avail.

The middle-aged man increased his strength again, and he cried out in pain, tears streaming down his face.

"Why is this friend so angry? Although the weather is hot, we cannot be impolite," the middle-aged man said in a low voice.

As they were talking, the burly man was dragged into the back room like a chick. "Is this the first person to cause trouble at the Martial Alliance in the past few months?"

"Yes, it just so happens that the head of the main store is still on duty today. They're really courting death..."

Only then did the gazes in the hall turn away, and people went back to doing their own things, seemingly quite familiar with this scene.

"The Huang family, Huang Shanjun, the head of the An'yan City General Store?"

Han Yi gleaned this information from the conversations of those around him.

When he was in the Strange Affairs Room, the strength of the martial artists in the main hall alone made him feel a great deal of pressure. And here at the Martial Alliance, even a guard post had the strength of the Meridian Opening stage!

My skills are still not enough!

At this moment, Han Yi had long since cast aside any trace of arrogance he felt when breaking through to the Blood Refinement stage.

"Hold on, I have to hold on, keep developing..." he silently reminded himself. 'Escort mission, transporting goods to Shanxu City, requires Bone Refinement level or higher, ten taels of silver.'

………....

"Wanted: Blood Butcher, leader of Black Wind Stronghold outside An'yan City, Black Rock Mountains, status unknown, strength suspected to be at the Meridian Opening stage, skilled in swordsmanship, reward: one thousand taels of silver!"

"Wanted: Luan Biao, 'Azure Scale Sword,' near Anyan City. Origin unknown. Strength: Mid-stage Blood Refinement..."

Han Yi browsed through the various tasks on the notice board. After skipping over tasks like escorting goods or guarding the courtyard, the number one on the wanted list was none other than the leader of Black Wind Stronghold!

"Black Wind Stronghold's leader, Blood Butcher... one thousand taels!!!" Looking at the information on the wanted poster, Han Yi had to admit he was tempted.

If he can take down Blood Butcher, he probably won't have to worry about money for several years.

However, given his Blood Slaughter's strength at the Meridian Opening stage, coupled with the 'Black Wind Horse,' Han Yi guessed that there were very few people in Anyan City who could rival him.

Otherwise, with such a high bounty, how could Blood Butcher always be ranked first on the wanted list!

Han Yi continued looking down at the wanted list.

"Hey, isn't this an old acquaintance!"

His eyes lit up when he saw a familiar name on the wanted list.

"Wanted: Tie Sha, the second-in-command of Black Wind Stronghold, outside An Yan City, in the Black Rock Mountains. Status unknown. Strength: early stage of Blood Refinement. Skilled in using a knife. Reward: 100 taels of silver."

Tie Sha was someone Han Yi had fought before, although Han Yi only managed to defeat him because he had the advantage of using a 'Molotov cocktail'.

But now Han Yi believes that he can easily take down Tie Sha even without those tricks!

However, unless Han Yi could catch Tie Sha alone and fight him one-on-one, he simply wouldn't have that opportunity. But he could try using the wanted poster for this person.

Han Yi looked at the wanted poster at the very bottom of the wanted list.

"Wanted: Wu Awei, 'Silver Sword,' suspected to be near Anyan City. Status unknown. Strength: early stage of Bone Refinement. Skilled in swordsmanship. Reward: 25 taels of silver."

This guy is only at the early stage of Bone Refining, while I am at the early stage of Blood Refining. I'm a whole realm stronger than him, so this should be pretty safe, right?

After all, Han Yi's greatest strength lies in defeating the weak with the strong!

"Besides, I haven't experienced any real combat since I broke through to the Blood Refining stage. Without seeing blood, even if I have high stats, my combat power will definitely be weak."

Just like the bandit Han Yi encountered during his first mission with the Ninth Squad, even though his overall strength was clearly much higher than that bandit's.

However, he was caught off guard by the bandits' sudden outburst and ended up in a sorry state. "To celebrate my breakthrough to the Blood Refining stage, I'll use you as a sacrificial offering, Ah Wei!"

Most importantly, you get a lot of money after completing the bounty, which is a good way to earn some extra cash and supplement your empty wallet!

Han Yi asked the officer for a wanted poster with Wu Awei's portrait on it, folded it casually, and put it in his pocket.

----------------

Bang, bang, bang

"All is well..."

It was late at night, past midnight, and the faint sound of the night watchman striking the gong could be heard on the streets of Chang Le Fang.

Han Yi was dressed in a black outfit, completely covered up, with only his bright eyes showing.

He crouched in the shadow of a tall building, from where he could survey the surrounding area and have a clear view of most of Chang Le Fang. In the stillness of the night, all the households in Chang Le Fang were already fast asleep.

Like Changningfang, Changlefang is located at the border of two forces, and there is no major force protecting its territory.

However, Chang Le Fang was mostly inhabited by merchants and wealthy people, making it much richer than Chang Ning Fang, a slum.

Today is the third day. Since receiving the wanted notice that day, Han Yi has been resting during the day and coming here to keep watch every night.

The arrest warrant records the location, time, and method of Wu Awei's previous crimes.

Based on these records, Han Yi discovered that although Wu Awei committed crimes at irregular times, the intervals were as short as five or six days and as long as eleven or twelve days, with each crime occurring no more than two weeks apart before he would come out and cause trouble.

Moreover, Wu Awei was quite clever, specifically targeting Chang Le Fang and Chang Ning Fang in An Yan City, areas without powerful backers. Coupled with his considerable strength, no one could subdue him for a short time. His methods weren't particularly sophisticated; Wu Awei usually used sleeping powder to knock the girls unconscious, then took the opportunity to commit lewd acts. On one occasion, he was even caught red-handed.

But Wu Awei's long sword moved with lightning speed, instantly wounding the person who discovered him, and he calmly left before the officials arrived.

A despicable and lewd womanizer, who also used a long sword, was thus nicknamed 'Silver Sword'.

This incident caused widespread panic in both Changningfang and Changlefang.

Families with young, unmarried women are living in fear, wishing they could hire more guards to watch over their homes. As a result, the price of hiring guards in the Martial Alliance has recently skyrocketed.

Of course, the families harmed by Wu Awei would not give up and went to the county government to file complaints, asking the government to intervene.

The government simply agreed, instructing the patrol office to send out more teams of constables to patrol at night, and then posted a bounty notice in the martial arts alliance.

However, this matter involves Changningfang, a no-man's-land, and Wu Awei is quite skilled. The patrolling constables are just going through the motions and killing time.

This is what allowed Wu Awei to become so arrogant and domineering, and to this day he remains at large.