10: Chapter 10 Jiang Qian is dead, only now do the tracking experts arrive.

Li Yuan returned to his own rest quarters; as a Corpse Collector, he had a room to himself.

Perhaps it was due to superstition, or maybe some other reason.

But within the military camp, Li Yuan felt that everyone was quite easy to get along with.

People would sometimes give Li Yuan small gifts.

They often told Li Yuan that if they died, he must bring them back so their remains could at least be buried in their hometown.

Lying on his bed, Li Yuan was still processing the martial arts experience of that Jin Kingdom assassin.

Relying on the martial Internal Energy obtained from him, Li Yuan's Internal Energy accumulation had reached the seventh grade.

This time, he had also restocked some qi and blood pills from the assassin's body.

Advancing to the seventh grade was only a matter of time.

Of course, the quality of the Medicinal Pills obtained from this Jin Kingdom assassin was far inferior to those from the Ninth-Grade Mortal Immortal.

Li Yuan surmised that the border should remain stable for a while.

This Jin Kingdom assassin, Jiang Qian, was no ordinary figure.

His death would shake the entire Jin Kingdom.

Before the Jin Kingdom's imperial court could reach a decision, the Yingyang Pass area would enjoy a brief period of peace.

During this time, he would focus on tempering his physique and further elevating his martial arts strength.

Amidst his hesitation, Li Yuan recalled the Treasure Map he had obtained earlier.

Since even Ninth-Grade Mortal Immortals fought desperately for it, that so-called "Tai Xuan Divine Art" was bound to be extraordinary.

But upon reflection, Li Yuan felt that now was not the best time.

It would be better to go once his martial arts progress hit a Bottleneck and it became difficult to improve further.

Resting alone in his small room, he rehearsed various martial arts techniques in his mind.

This assassin Jiang Qian's martial arts experience was truly quite useful.

Through observation, Li Yuan had learned many assassination and stealth-killing techniques.

Among them were techniques like Disguise and Transfiguration.

These methods were considered unorthodox, and many Martial Artists looked down on them.

But Li Yuan was a pragmatist; if it was useful, then it was worth learning.

By lunchtime, the news of the Jin Kingdom assassin's demise had spread completely.

Recently, he had thrown the troops at Yingyang Pass into a state of panic, with tens of thousands living in constant worry.

Now that he was dead, Yingyang Pass would certainly have a grand celebration.

At the same time, many people were asking how this person had died.

Some even came to ask Li Yuan.

Many knew that Jiang Qian's corpse had been wheeled back by Li Yuan.

Faced with their inquiries, Li Yuan gave the same rehearsed answers.

Regardless of what he said, no one would suspect him, so he didn't need to worry much.

The following period went exactly as Li Yuan had anticipated.

The Jin Kingdom began to retreat and avoid conflict, and peaceful days returned to Yingyang Pass.

The Jin Kingdom was a young nation, established for only a little over ninety years.

But precisely because it was young, the various factions within the country were actually more united.

There wasn't much corruption in the country, and everything was improving.

In the border conflicts with Da Shun, they often held the upper hand.

In contrast, the Da Shun Dynasty, which prided itself on being a great power, appeared to have a deep Foundation, but in reality, internal factions were constantly at odds.

Whether it was the court officials or the Sects within the country, everyone only considered their own interests.

Without unity, it was no wonder they had been pushed to this point by the Jin Kingdom.

During these ten-plus days of peace, Li Yuan focused all his energy on tempering and improving his physique.

The army also encouraged soldiers to practice martial arts, so Li Yuan could train openly.

He just had to put on a bit of an act when someone was watching, so as not to appear too exceptional.

When disguising himself, Li Yuan would use the Langhe Breath-Hiding Art.

Relying on this technique, even if City Lord Liu and the others stood right in front of him and looked closely,

they still wouldn't be able to discern Li Yuan's true strength.

With the crisis resolved, the military camp was to be moved forward again.

The front line needed to advance and contest for territory.

Given another chance to advance, City Lord Liu and the others certainly wouldn't be foolish enough to repeat their old mistakes.

This time, the camp would be situated in a better location to take full advantage of the geography.

While Yingyang Pass was busy handling these matters, the tracking expert arranged by the imperial court finally arrived.

The original notice had said he would arrive in half a month.

But before this tracking expert could arrive, that Jin Kingdom assassin, Jiang Qian, had already perished.

He came even later, arriving twenty days after Yingyang Pass received the notification.

Military orders are as absolute as mountains, yet this tracking expert didn't seem to care much.

Despite him being many days late, City Lord Liu still hosted him with great courtesy.

When the camp heard the news, everyone was filled with doubt.

The ghostly assassin of the Jin Kingdom was already dead, so what was he here for?

Just to sponge off the front-line camp's rations and eat some good food?

Amidst the general confusion, that afternoon, the tracking expert took a squad and headed toward the very front lines.

With the title of a tracking expert, how could he return without claiming any merit?

Although Jiang Qian was dead, it didn't mean there weren't other opportunities to earn military merit.

This was the front line of the border, where assassinations and covert killings were rampant.

On this trip, he had to catch at least a couple of assassins to show the world that he had resolved a major crisis.

Li Yuan and his fellow soldiers were resting in the camp.

Aside from cultivation and martial arts practice, they would also gather to chat when they had free time.

In their conversations, besides the mysterious expert, the most discussed topic was this newly arrived tracking expert.

"Now that's what you call smart—only showing up when something big happens."

"If he gets lucky and solves it, that's a huge merit."

"Not like us folks at Yingyang Pass, stuck here every day with our heads on the line."

"If we lose our lives one day, we won't even have much merit to show for it."

Nearby, Uncle Chen, who was familiar with Li Yuan, spoke with a complaining expression.

Naturally, he didn't want this new tracking expert to earn any merit.

If the credit went to City Lord Liu, he would reward the soldiers below him.

But when someone sent by the imperial court took the credit, they would just leave.

"Do you think this tracking expert only took his time coming here because he knew the assassin was dead?"

"It's possible. Once he saw the danger was gone, he wanted to swoop in and steal the credit."

The group speculated, tearing the tracking expert's reputation to shreds.

Of course, he was indeed under suspicion for that.

He was nearly five days late, and the reasons for that were hard to say.

During their chatter, a voice suddenly cut in from behind: "Watch your words. If Lord Shu hears you, even the City Lord won't be able to explain it away."

The tone held a warning, but there was no intention of pursuing the matter further.

Hearing this, everyone turned to see Vice General Wang Jiuxing and hurriedly rose to salute.

"Vice General..."

Seeing them about to apologize and explain, he quickly raised a hand to interrupt.

"I know and understand the resentment in your hearts."

"But Lord Shu is here at Yingyang Pass to help, so do not slander him."

Wang Jiuxing knew these soldiers were loyal to their own generals, so he naturally wouldn't punish them.

"Vice General, is this Lord Shu really some kind of tracking expert...?"

A young soldier in the crowd asked.

Hearing this, Wang Jiuxing nodded immediately without any hesitation.

"He has a title in Da Shun; he is known as the Immortal Chaser."

"It is said that even experts at the level of Immortal of the Mortal Realm cannot escape his eyes when they hide themselves."

"When he is in the imperial palace, no assassin dares to set foot inside."

"If there are still Jin Kingdom assassins lurking on the front lines, he should be able to root them out quickly..."

Before Wang Jiuxing could finish, a messenger rushed over in search of him.

"Vice General, something has happened at the front lines..."

"Lord Shu was ambushed by a lurking assassin and is severely injured!"