Chapter 55: Filthy Land! Energy Reward Pool

As Master Hong had said, today was his first day on the job.

Upon arriving at the yamen, Zhang Lingshan had barely reached the entrance before someone immediately came forward to greet him: "It's Deputy Head Shan! Quick, please come in!"

"You know me?" Zhang Lingshan asked, surprised.

Previously, Hong Zhengdao had told him to go directly to the county yamen and that everyone would know him. Sure enough, he was recognized in an instant.

The man smiled and said, "Everyone saw the scene where Deputy Head Shan killed Chen Hui of the Sanjiang Gambling House with a single punch. You became famous overnight; who doesn't know you?"

"I see."

Zhang Lingshan nodded.

He knew the battle at Dongyang 集 would make him famous, but he hadn't expected his reputation to be this widespread.

Walking into the yamen, passing through the ceremonial gate, and entering the courtyard of the eastern barracks, he saw many people already standing on both sides of the yard. Among them was a familiar face.

It was none other than Ma Hong, the middle-aged bailiff who had represented the yamen to handle the matter after Zhang Lingshan had burned down the house.

Ma Hong had a high-boned face. Seeing Zhang Lingshan's gaze approach, he squeezed an awkward smile onto his face, his heart feeling somewhat complicated.

He still remembered telling Zhang Lingshan back then that if he didn't want to continue at the Feng Clan Pharmacy, he could come work under him.

He never expected that the young man would actually come—though not to work under him, but to stand on equal footing.

"The Chief Head is here."

Someone called out, and everyone immediately stood at attention, ceasing their whispering.

A large, smiling man walked over from the long corridor and said, "Since everyone is here, let's discuss something. The position of Deputy Head of the Zhuang (Strong) Squad has been vacant for a long time without a suitable candidate. Upon the recommendation of Master Hong Zhengdao of the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall, his disciple Zhang Lingshan is a strong candidate. What does everyone think?"

"Since Master Hong recommended him, he must be exceptional. I think it's excellent; he is perfectly suited for the position of Deputy Head of the Zhuang Squad," one person immediately shouted.

Several others followed in agreement.

Among them was Ma Hong, who was also a Deputy Head of the Zhuang Squad.

Suddenly, a discordant voice rang out: "Is it that Zhang Lingshan who fought Chen Hui in Dongyang 集? Isn't he just a Skin-Milling practitioner? How is he qualified to be a Deputy Head?"

Zhang Lingshan looked closely and saw that the speaker was a fair-faced middle-aged man with an eight-character mustache, whom he did not recognize.

The bailiff who had led him in whispered, "That is Head Hou of the Kuai (Fast) Squad. He has been trying to recommend his nephew for the Deputy Head position of the Zhuang Squad, but the Chief Head has been suppressing him. Now that he sees you've arrived, he's unhappy."

"Is being unhappy useful?" Zhang Lingshan asked.

The bailiff replied, "Uh, it's somewhat useful. He is at the peak of the Flesh-Refining stage, not much weaker than the Chief Head. It's said there are people backing him as well, so even the Chief Head is unwilling to clash with him directly."

As they spoke, the Chief Head laughed and said, "How long has it been? Zhang Lingshan has already succeeded in Flesh-Refining and is a true Flesh-Refining martial artist. If you don't believe it, you can test him."

"Fine! Then I will test him. If he cannot withstand a single palm strike from me, then the position of Deputy Head of the Zhuang Squad must go to my nephew, Hou Pingliang!" Hou Cheng shouted loudly.

The Chief Head remained unruffled. "Fine, we shall do as you say."

Zhang Lingshan sighed inwardly. He had thought that with Master Hong's influence, he could settle in peacefully, but he hadn't expected such disputes.

However, as long as the man didn't try to kill him and was merely looking for a reasonable excuse over a trivial matter, Master Hong wouldn't have the inclination or the reason to protect a junior against a senior—especially since the man had backing.

Since everyone had a patron, they would have to settle it through skill.

"Zhang Lingshan, what are you standing there for? Come out and take my palm strike. Let me see how your Red Line Fist has progressed. Heh." Hou Cheng gave a light, disdainful laugh.

Zhang Lingshan took a step forward, entered the center of the courtyard, cupped his hands, and said, "Zhang Lingshan of the Hong Clan Martial Arts Hall requests instruction from Head Hou."

"Don't be polite. Take this!"

Hou Cheng was smiling during the first half of his sentence, but suddenly roared during the second. He lunged forward, his palm shooting out from his sleeve like a venomous snake, the wind from the strike rushing toward Zhang Lingshan's chest.

Zhang Lingshan showed no fear. He swiftly assumed the Sun-Supporting Stance, his right hand clenched in a fist in front, while his left hand's fingers were pressed together to form a bird's beak.

*Thud!*

His left "beak" jabbed upward sharply. Blood energy surged from his fingertips, and a red dot instantly landed on Hou Cheng's wrist.

Hou Cheng felt a sharp pain, and his palm strike recoiled.

At that moment, Zhang Lingshan's right fist surged upward in a "Heaven-Piercing Cannon" strike. With a loud *bang*, he struck Hou Cheng's forearm. The violent force sent Hou Cheng's arm flipping back, and he was forced to stumble backward several steps.

"I stand corrected," Zhang Lingshan said, cupping his hands. His aura immediately calmed, and the red lines on his hands retreated into his body.

On the other hand, Hou Cheng's chest heaved as he gasped for air like an ox. Whether out of shame or genuine shock from the punch, his expression fluctuated wildly. After a long silence, he finally huffed, "Fine, I was careless. I concede this time."

With that, he marched away, leading the bailiffs of the Kuai Squad.

Chief Head Pang Hu stared at their retreating backs, his eyes narrowing slightly before he quickly regained his smile. "Since Head Hou has no objections, it is settled. Head Wang, I leave Brother Zhang Lingshan to you. Train him well; don't let such a talent go to waste."

"Yes, Chief Head," Wang Yue responded quickly.

Pang Hu nodded. "Then disperse. Return to your duties."

The crowd dispersed immediately. Zhang Lingshan followed behind Wang Yue to the Zhuang Squad barracks.

"Brother Shan, sit. Don't be formal; we are family now," Wang Yue said with a smile.

Once Zhang Lingshan was seated, Wang Yue exchanged a few pleasantries before getting to the point. "Our Zhuang Squad has two main tasks. One is handling sudden incidents in the markets during the day—such as fires, vandalism, or street brawls. We handle all of that."

Zhang Lingshan nodded, understanding.

Just like when he had burned down the house, it was Deputy Head Ma Hong who had led the team to handle it.

In truth, Ma Hong hadn't done much; instead, he had even collected money from him. So, this job was essentially a money-collecting job—a good assignment.

Wang Yue continued, "The other task is night watch."

"Night watch?" Zhang Lingshan was stunned.

Didn't everyone stay indoors at night? What was there to watch? Sitting at home?

"Haha, Brother Shan, you don't know yet."

Seeing Zhang Lingshan's expression, Wang Yue knew what he was thinking. He asked with a smile, "Have you never gone out at night, Brother Shan?"

Zhang Lingshan asked in surprise, "Is it allowed? My parents taught me from a young age never to open the windows or doors at night. So, forget going out—I've never even walked into the courtyard."

Actually, he had gone out.

When he had killed Fang Qiuyue and broken into Li Fu's house, he had gone out, and he had made two trips in total without anything happening. This made Zhang Lingshan wonder: was the night truly that dangerous?

At this moment, he looked at Wang Yue intently, listening closely, knowing he was about to learn the truth about the night.

"Your parents were not wrong," Wang Yue began, validating his parents' caution, "but that is merely the rule for ordinary people. We are Flesh-Refining martial artists with powerful blood energy in our bodies; evil spirits do not dare approach us easily. Therefore, as long as you avoid the 'Filthy Lands,' you can walk freely throughout the entire Outer City."

"Filthy Lands?" Zhang Lingsan looked confused.

Wang Yue explained, "First, you must understand that so-called evil spirits and anomalies often have a place where they reside; they do not wander aimlessly.

"That place of residence is the Filthy Land.

"Filthy Lands are heavy with Yin energy, making them suitable for their survival. Within them, evil spirits are as steady as Mount Tai. Mortals must not trespass; those who enter will inevitably be eroded by evil energy.

"However, if they leave the Filthy Land, their anomalous power is greatly diminished. The further they are from it, the weaker they become.

"If they are unlucky and encounter us, we only need to activate our blood energy to disperse them.

"So, while others dare not walk the night, we Flesh-Refining martial artists can walk it freely!"

Wang Yue smiled proudly. At this moment, even an expert of the Bone-Tempering stage did not seem as confident as him.

Zhang Lingshan chewed on his words and raised a question: "Then how do we distinguish a Filthy Land? If we accidentally enter one at night, even with our strong Flesh-Refining blood energy, wouldn't we still die from the evil energy invading our bodies?"

Wang Yue laughed and said to Ma Hong, "I told you Brother Shan was a smart one; he went straight to the crux of the matter. Haha, Ma Hong, tell him how to identify these Filthy Lands."

"Brother Shan, what follows is a top secret of our yamen. Just look, do not leak it," Ma Hong said solemnly as he unrolled a scroll.

It was a map.

It was a layout of their Jin City Outer City.

Within it, there were various markings of different colors.

Ma Hong pointed to a white marking and said, "White represents 'Weak'—newly formed Filthy Lands, such as the Li Fu house you are familiar with.

"Grey represents 'Relatively Weak.' If Li Fu's house were left unchecked and he caused you harm, that place would upgrade to grey, and the Filthy Land would spread to your home.

"Fortunately, we were lucky; someone helped deal with the Li Fu house."

Hearing this, Zhang Lingshan nodded, understanding Ma Hong's meaning.

He clearly didn't realize that he was the one who had dealt with Li Fu; he assumed some powerful figure had appeared that night to burn the house and handle Li Fu in passing.

Ma Hong continued pointing, explaining, "Blue represents 'Stronger.' If you accidentally enter, you must leave immediately, otherwise, you are highly likely to die. Even if you survive, you will fall gravely ill.

"Yellow represents 'Strong.' If you enter, you have a one-in-ten chance of survival!

"Orange represents 'Ferocious.' Entering means certain death!

"Red represents 'Great Calamity.' You will die without a place to be buried!"

Ma Hong emphasized the last few colors heavily, indicating that one must avoid those places at all costs, staying as far away as possible, even during the day.

Looking at the map, those areas were almost all abandoned zones; ordinary people wouldn't be foolish enough to go there.

At this moment, Zhang Lingshan didn't know what others thought of these color markings. He had only one thought in his mind.

*'Damn it! These aren't markings for Filthy Lands; this is clearly a reward pool for me to accumulate energy!'*

If he weren't in the same room as Ma Hong and Wang Yue, he would have jumped up in excitement.

The Ghost Mansion happened to be open.

With this map, why not take a stroll through the white areas tonight? If he didn't absorb a few evil spirits, wouldn't his position as Deputy Head of the Zhuang Squad be for nothing?

*'Right, Master Hong arranged for me to join the Zhuang Squad specifically so I would learn this map, didn't he?'*

A sudden realization struck Zhang Lingshan.

Master Hong, of course, did not know he could absorb evil spirits. The reason for doing this must be that there was something he needed Zhang Lingshan to do at night.

Without this map, if he ran around blindly at night, he would surely stumble into a Filthy Land and die.

But with this map, he could avoid danger and move through the entire Outer City unimpeded.

Regardless of Master Hong's plans, joining the Zhuang Squad and being able to work the night watch was an extremely beneficial development for him.

To deal with the anomalous copper man and the Buddhist chants of the Golden Light Temple, he had to seize the time and do everything in his power to increase his strength.

Therefore, regarding the night watch, no one was to compete with him—not even Ma Hong or Wang Yue.

This night shift—I, Zhang Lingshan, am definitely staying up for it!