Immortal Cage - Chapter 58 Taking Over the Position
Leaving the stone house, Yu Lie's mood was not very pleasant. Anyone forced to work would inevitably feel a bit restless. Fortunately, as Yu Lie walked on the road, he realized that after these few days of studying the Dan technique, his skills in slaughtering and dissecting had improved, and he had taken a step forward.
With his promotion to a middle-level Dao disciple, his skin was tough, his senses sharp. Yu Lie was certain that his skills in extracting poison were now among the best, making it easier and less tiring for him to deal with poison and evil.
However, Yu Lie thought to himself, "Since I am already a middle-level Dao disciple, why should I continue to be a small leader in dealing with poison?" Thinking about this, Yu Lie narrowed his eyes.
In the alchemy room, or rather, in the entire Blackwater Town, the hierarchy of positions, apart from being related to corresponding skills and abilities, was also related to the level of Dao disciples. Take the position of dealing with poison, for example.
Even though Yu Lie's skill in extracting poison was not the best among poison handlers, now that he had been promoted to a middle-level Dao disciple, he had the opportunity to compete for the position of the leader of the poison handlers.
To hold the position of the leader of the poison handlers, the prerequisite was to be a middle-level Dao disciple. Only on this basis would there be requirements for skills in extracting poison.
As far as Yu Lie knew, the current leader of the poison handlers, Du Liang, had been transferred from another branch. Over the years, although he had mastered the skill of extracting poison, he was by no means the best in handling poison. With Yu Lie's current skills, if he wanted to surpass Du Liang in the art of extracting poison, it would not be easy, but it would be almost certain!
As for why he had not yet surpassed Du Liang in terms of skills in extracting poison and taken over his position, it was because the poison handlers were not a good branch. Most of the Dao disciples there were short-lived, and it was rare for a disciple from the lower ranks to be promoted to a middle-level Dao disciple.
With different thoughts in mind, Yu Lie pondered all the way, considering when he should make his move to take over Du Liang's position. After all, the two had a grudge, but Yu Lie pretended not to know about it externally.
Soon, he arrived at the entrance of the alchemy room. Yu Lie once again saw a crowd of people and immediately suppressed the mixed thoughts in his mind. Blending in with the crowd, he inconspicuously entered the alchemy room and headed straight for the poison handlers.
When Yu Lie finished lighting incense and offering prayers, he walked towards his own workstation and was slightly surprised. Because in his own workstation, everyone was busy, including Luo Tou, Hu Lao, and others, all engrossed in extracting poison. When Yu Lie walked in, they were still focused on their tasks and did not notice him.
Yu Lie cleared his throat and greeted them with a smile, "Everyone is here early today. Is it because there is more work recently, and you have to come in early?"
As he spoke, he rolled up his sleeves efficiently and prepared to start working on extracting poison. However, as soon as Yu Lie spoke, Luo Tou and the others all raised their heads simultaneously, staring at him intently. Instead of the usual friendly greetings, they hesitated to speak.
This strange reaction made Yu Lie furrow his brows, and as he looked closer, he noticed that Luo Tou and the others had dark circles around their eyes, as if they had stayed up all night. Their lips also had a grayish tinge, indicating that they had been affected by toxins but had not had time to detoxify.
Yu Lie subconsciously thought that this was because he had taken too long a break, causing trouble for Luo Tou and the others. However, he immediately realized that even though there were five people in his workstation, even if he had not been coming, the other four should not be in such a state. Because today, like any other day, the poison handlers were not extremely busy, and some workstations were empty, giving the workers a day off.
Before Yu Lie could speculate further, Luo Tou looked around and quickly called out to him in a low voice, "Yu Ge, come here." Yu Lie stepped over, and Luo Tou continued, "Have you offended someone?"
Just this sentence made Yu Lie's eyes narrow slightly. Patiently, he continued to listen to Luo Tou's murmurs, gradually understanding the situation. It turned out that during his retreat and break, rumors had spread in the alchemy room that he had almost offended Fang Lao. The rumors were exaggerated, and with many people talking, it was unclear who had first brought it up. But the underlying message was that Yu Lie was not associated with Fang Lao and had no backing.
After five or six days passed without any response from the alchemy room, especially the silence from Fang Lao, the rumors became more absurd. They began to say that Yu Lie was a person who engaged in usury, sold himself, and had a gambling addiction. They even said that the reason he had become a small leader in the poison handlers was because he had lied initially, and Fang Lao had turned a blind eye due to his influence.
While Luo Tou was murmuring, Lao Hu also approached Yu Lie and offered advice, "Boss, you finally woke up. You should quickly go and talk to Fang Lao, at least confirm that you know him. Otherwise, be careful, someone might come after you from behind..."
Upon hearing this, Yu Lie remained composed. He smiled and said, "Someone wants to come after me? I'm just a small leader in the poison handlers, a mere Dao disciple. What qualifications do I have to be remembered?"
In fact, as soon as Luo Tou and Lao Hu spoke, Yu Lie immediately knew that the person likely coming after him from behind was most likely Du Liang, the leader of the poison handlers. Because Yu Lie had been low-key in the alchemy room all this time. If it weren't for Du Liang getting involved in the usury incident, Yu Lie wouldn't have had any enemies. And he couldn't understand why, without showing any hostility towards Du Liang, the latter had started targeting him after staying quiet for half a month while he was on break.
It seemed like a test of rumors to see if Yu Lie had any backing in the alchemy room or the town.
As Yu Lie looked around, he immediately realized that Luo Tou and the others had been affected because of him. For over ten days, not a single person above a middle-level Dao disciple had supported him in the alchemy room, and Du Liang believed that Yu Lie had no background, so he had started to target him for real.
While Yu Lie and Luo Tou were whispering, suddenly a voice sounded behind him, "Hey, who is this person? What are you doing in the poison handlers? Outsiders are not allowed in!" Yu Lie furrowed his brows and turned to see that it was not Du Liang but someone vaguely familiar to him, a person with a round face and small eyes, who did not seem like a dignified person.
Luo Tou immediately introduced, "It's, it's Yu Tuo Er who's here." The newcomer glanced at Yu Lie and exclaimed, "Oh! So this person with the hat is Yu Tuo Er."
Due to recent changes, Yu Lie was currently bald. However, his eyebrows had grown back after a few days of studying the Dan technique at home. His head was still covered with stubble, almost like a bald head, so he wore a hat when going out.
The round-faced person made a sarcastic remark, "Why is Yu Tuo Er here? After missing work for so many days, can he still be the boss? Our workstation has been busy with many tasks lately, all related to fishing, and we haven't seen him come to help."
Yu Lie looked down at his workstation and realized that some of his belongings had been cleared away and replaced with others. The round-faced Dao disciple paid no attention and came over, picked up a teapot from the workstation, sipped it leisurely, and pointed to a corner of the workstation, saying, "Surname Yu, right now, I am the boss here. You go work over there first!"
It dawned on Yu Lie that he had been set up, as his position as the small leader of the poison handlers had been taken over by someone. This matter was undoubtedly orchestrated by Du Liang! However, the other party did not personally intervene but sent someone to replace Yu Lie.
Standing in the middle of the room, Yu Lie looked at the round-faced Dao disciple with a smile. Faced with the fact that his position had been schemed against during his short break, and his colleagues had been implicated, he did not show any signs of anger. Instead, he calmly said, "Friend, are you sure you want to get involved in this matter? Are you taking over my position?"
The round-faced Dao disciple squinted his eyes slightly. This person had been arranged by Du Liang to deliberately replace Yu Lie's position and offend him. However, there were only a few small leaders in the poison handlers, and the other party had likely paid a price to come over and take the position.
The round-faced Dao disciple cleared his throat and said, "If you don't want to work, I dare not let you go. The neighboring branch is short of a few medicine slaves. If you continue to be lazy and violate the rules of the workstation, my family will immediately send you over to be a medicine slave."
As a small leader in the poison handlers, he indeed had the authority to deal with Dao disciples who violated the rules or fell behind in their work, but it required the approval of the leader. Upon hearing the round-faced Dao disciple's words, Luo Tou's face showed urgency, and he kept signaling to Yu Lie. Hu Lao also approached the round-faced Dao disciple, intending to say something.
However, Yu Lie, upon hearing this, did not say a word. With a loud bang, the round-faced Dao disciple was suddenly sent flying backward, his body tumbling like a ball, and the teapot in his hand shattered. Yu Lie was not interested in listening to the other party's nonsense and casually kicked him out.
The round-faced Dao disciple was not seriously injured, as Yu Lie had not used much force. At most, he had broken a few ribs, requiring him to lie in bed for a month or two.
The round-faced Dao disciple's face turned pale, never expecting that Yu Lie would dare to act in the poison handlers and be so ruthless.
"You! You..." The round-faced Dao disciple's voice trembled, sounding like a pig being slaughtered. "He's fighting in the poison handlers!"
Footsteps sounded from the neighboring workstation, and several Dao disciples immediately leaned over to see what was happening. A cold and eerie feeling swept through the surroundings, making Luo Tou, Hu Lao, and others feel a chill. The ghostly soldiers' statues made of mud and wood were buzzing and swaying, as if some monster was about to emerge. The atmosphere was filled with a sense of foreboding, enveloping everyone in the room.
As the production hub of the town, the alchemy room strictly prohibited private fights to avoid damaging the property. Violators would face severe punishment!
Luo Tou and Hu Lao's expressions changed, and they immediately looked at Yu Lie, utterly surprised. They had never expected Yu Lie to act without any patience, as he had not shown any signs of anger. Yu Lie stood calmly in the room, waiting for the crowd to gather around him, as he was waiting for Du Liang to come out...