N0v3lRealm was the platform where this chapter was initially revealed on N0v3l.B1n.
Chapter 141 - Embark
A strange scene could be witnessed in the Northern town today. A cart seemed to be carrying what seemed like a large number of clothes. Two men were transporting it, with one pushing and the other pulling it. Just a little distance from the cart, a teenage boy was walking.
If it were not for it being winter and there being fewer people outside, there would have probably been a large crowd to witness this scene. The three people walked for a few minutes and soon reached the town center.
The three came to a stop in front of the town center and looked at the large number of people there. The two men who were transporting the cart were the clerks of the clothes shop from Lin Mu had bought the clothes, while he himself was walking in front of it.
The two clerks were rather shocked by the large number of people that were standing there in front of the town center. All of the people seemed to be armed and were mostly dressed in dark clothes. Some had their faces covered with large straw hats, while others had them revealed.
Most of them had average-looking faces and seemed to be commoners. But the unique aura that was arising from their group was anything but common. Even the two clerks who were not cultivators could feel the vibe in the air.
All the armed people also saw the three people approach the building and were staring at the large number of clothes. Some looked puzzled while others were indifferent. But soon their eyes went wide as they spotted the person that was walking in front of the cart.
Their gazes turned serious as they stared at them with intent. The clerks who noticed this became nervous and wondered what was happening.
"Hey, do you think we made a mistake coming here?" One of the clerks spoke.
"I don’t know, but I certainly don’t like their gazes." The other responded.
"Me too. It’s as if they’re going to cut us up." The first man spoke, feeling a little afraid.
Suddenly they saw the armed people approaching them at a quick pace. They became even more nervous and were now holding their breaths. For commoners such as them, even normal warriors were too much to handle and they would not offend them.
The people came to a halt in front of Lin Mu and looked at him.
"Look, I think they’re offended by him." The clerk spoke.
"Maybe he did something wrong." The other clerk replied.
But just as he spoke this, the armed people suddenly shouted out in unison.
"Greetings, senior Lin Mu."
Upon hearing the greeting, Lin Mu was once again stuck in an awkward situation. He didn’t know how to respond, so just spoke whatever that came to his mind.
"Greetings." He spoke, eliciting silence from them.
"What did they say? Senior?" The clerk spoke, feeling confused.
"Yeah, it seems like it. But why would they do so?" The other clerk responded.
The armed people were none other than the reinforcements of the Hei Corps that had pointed their weapons at Lin Mu yesterday morning. They had turned even more zealous now and had responded more enthusiastically.
"That was a little too much, don’t you think senior?" Lin Mu spoke in his mind.
"It does indeed. But I can’t really tell much about the human’s habits or etiquettes. They vary a lot." Xukong spoke in an unsure tone.
It was at this moment that one of the people came forward to Lin Mu.
"That will be good. Though I also want to hunt some spirit beasts on the way, will that be fine?" Lin Mu replied.
"It’s no problem. We will have to kill some anyway, as it’s likely we’ll be attacked." Hei Yingjie replied.
Lin Mu nodded in acknowledgment and then looked at Hei Wan.
"Alright then, we leave right away." She spoke and walked towards the door.
The three of them descended down the floors and exited the town center. The reinforcements were already ready, waiting for them. One of them called the carriage and the three of them entered it.
While they traveled in the carriage, the others proceeded on foot. Though in a small surprise to Lin Mu, instead of going towards the western entrance, they were instead going towards the northern entrance.
"Why are we going this way?" Lin Mu questioned.
"We will be going in from the northern part of the forest, Hei Bao and the mercenaries will be going from the North-Western part. That way we can meet in the middle and cover a wider distance." Hei Wan answered.
"I see." Lin Mu spoke and went silent.
"They seem wary," Xukong spoke in Lin Mu’s mind.
"You think so, senior?" Lin Mu replied.
"Yes, the obvious choice would be to go to the northwestern part directly, but they seem to want to avoid it for some reason, I can’t tell why," Xukong spoke
Lin Mu thought over senior Xukong’s words but didn’t speak anything. He stayed in silence until they reached the edge of the forest. It only took them fifteen minutes to reach it, and not long after the reinforcements had reached there as well.
The trio left the carriage and looked at the reinforcements.
Hei Wan came forwards and cleared her throat before speaking.
"You all have already been informed. Split into your teams and proceed."
"YES LEADER!" They shouted in unison before rapidly rearranging themselves into multiple teams.
A few minutes later everyone had left except for eight people. Lin Mu guessed that these were the other eight members of his team.
Hei Wan then turned to Hei Yingjie and Lin Mu.
"I’ll leave this up to you all now. Be safe and avoid any unnecessary danger." Hei Wan spoke with concern.
Her eyes lingered on Lin Mu for a little longer than normal, which he sensed. He felt that it was a little strange, but didn’t mind it too much.
"Don’t worry, I’ll ensure that we are safe." Hei Yingjie responded.
Hei Wan cupped her hands in respect before entering the carriage and returning to the town. Lin Mu was a little surprised by her gesture, but not that she had left so quick. They had already known that Hei Wan will be taking care of the town while the rest were out investigating.
One of the eight members of Hei corps came forward and spoke, "Should we leave now, Seniors?"
"Yes, it is time. Let’s embark." Hei Yingjie declared.
——————End Of Volume 1——————