「The next day, at the patrol team’s station, in the main building.」

Wang De sat behind the desk, looked at Li Yuan, and pushed the roster over.

"A new batch of outer members transferred from the Wang family has arrived. The guard team took the lion’s share, and the patrol team got a few."

Wang De looked up at Li Yuan.

"Two of the newcomers are assigned to you."

"Zhao Hu, Qi Refining Second Level. Zheng Xiaoman, Qi Refining Second Level."

Wang De’s finger moved further down the list.

"There’s one more: Sun Liang."

Li Yuan was taken aback for a moment.

’Sun Liang... That’s the guy who rushed to the front during a guard rotation and ended up with internal injuries.’

"Are his injuries healed?"

"Mostly. The guard team provided some Healing Elixirs." Wang De set his brush down and leaned back in his chair.

"All three of them are under you."

Three people. One veteran patrolman, two freshly assigned rookies.

"First, take the two newcomers and teach them the rules and procedures of patrolling."

Wang De paused, then added another sentence.

"And not just patrolling, teach them the basics of outer perimeter patrols as well. We’re short-handed right now, and there’s no telling who might need to be sent out and when. It’s best they have a foundation in advance."

"After you’ve taught them, let them handle the daily patrols inside the marketplace. That will free you up."

Li Yuan acknowledged with a sound and scanned the information on the roster, memorizing the two newcomers’ names and basic details.

"Where are they?"

"Waiting in the courtyard."

Li Yuan left the main building and walked into the courtyard.

Three people were standing at the base of the wall.

The one at the front was wearing a gray cloth patrol uniform that still had creases in it, clearly brand new. He was in his early twenties, not tall, but with broad shoulders.

His features were crowded onto a square face, and his eyes, though not large, were very bright. He was nervously scanning the courtyard back and forth.

This was Zhao Hu.

The one next to him was even younger, around eighteen or nineteen. He was slender with a fair complexion and a pointed chin. His posture was stiff, and he didn’t seem to know what to do with his hands, constantly clenching and unclenching them. He had a cloth bag slung over his back, so stuffed it looked like he’d packed everything he owned.

Zheng Xiaoman.

When the two saw Li Yuan emerge, their gazes simultaneously fell on the deputy captain’s token at his waist. They cupped their fists in unison.

"Greetings, Deputy Li."

Their voices were out of sync—one loud, one soft—and the mixture sounded slightly comical.

Li Yuan nodded, his gaze shifting to the third person.

Sun Liang was leaning against the corner of the wall. Seeing Li Yuan, he cracked a grin that passed for a smile. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

"Deputy Li, long time no see."

His voice had the same old tone, but it lacked its former strength.

"Feeling better?"

"Not dead yet." Sun Liang lowered the leg he had propped against the wall and stood up straight.

"Guess you could say I was lucky. I was recuperating the whole time, so I missed the more dangerous stuff that came later."

Li Yuan walked in front, with Zhao Hu and Zheng Xiaoman trailing at the rear.

Sun Liang had his own patrol duties and didn’t need Li Yuan to guide him.

"The rules of the patrol aren’t complicated."

Li Yuan spoke as he walked, his voice not loud, his pace unhurried.

"The two main streets, east and west, and the four side alleys, north and south—you walk them at least once a day. Stall rent is collected at the beginning of each month. New stalls must be registered, and you need to check if old stalls have any outstanding fees."

"If you encounter a dispute, first ask about the situation before handling it. If you’re not sure, don’t make a decision on your own. Come back and find me or Captain Wang."

"No magical duels, no theft, and no forced transactions are allowed in the marketplace. For violators, depending on the severity of the offense, the punishment is a fine of Spirit Stones, expulsion from the marketplace, or reporting them to the administration office."

"Don’t accept bribes. If you’re caught, losing your salary will be the least of your worries..."

Li Yuan was reciting the most basic rules. His original self had been a patrol officer for several years, and he knew this stuff by heart.

Zhao Hu and Zheng Xiaoman listened attentively.

When they reached the middle of East Street, Li Yuan stopped.

The stalls on both sides of East Street were packed tightly together.

What was different from before was the composition of the stalls.

The stalls of the local Loose Cultivators were still there, in the same locations, but the desolation in front of them stood in sharp contrast to the bustling activity before the neighboring itinerant merchants’ stalls.

An old vendor selling ore fragments was squatting behind his stall, dozing off, looking like he hadn’t made a single sale all day. But at a temporary stall set up by an itinerant merchant next door, three or four Loose Cultivators were gathered around, picking through goods, the sound of their haggling quite loud.

The itinerant merchants sold a more diverse range of goods of better quality, and their prices were more competitive. They procured their wares from other marketplaces, some even farther away. By dealing in large volumes through wide channels, they kept their costs lower than the local Loose Cultivators.

"Since the itinerant merchants arrived, the local Loose Cultivators have lost a lot of business," Li Yuan said curtly. "But when you’re on patrol, don’t worry about who’s stealing whose business. Just maintain order."

Zhao Hu nodded along, and Zheng Xiaoman nodded as well, both with serious expressions on their faces.

As they reached the middle of North Alley, a clamor came from up ahead.

A Loose Cultivator in his forties stood in front of his stall, his face flushed red, pointing at an itinerant merchant’s stall diagonally opposite him. His voice was raised to a shout.

"You outsiders! You show up here and you just have to drive the prices down this low! I’ve been selling these ore fragments for three Spirit Stones a portion for two years! You come along and sell them for two and a half. Are you deliberately trying to run us out of business?!"

The itinerant merchant being yelled at was a tall, thin man in his early thirties. Faced with the Loose Cultivator’s shouts, he spread his hands with an innocent look on his face.

"My fellow cultivator, the price is fair, and all sales are voluntary. I’m not forcing anyone to buy from me."

"Bullshit!" The Loose Cultivator slammed his hand on the stall’s surface, causing the fragments to CLATTER. "If you didn’t undercut prices, who would buy from you? I’ve been here for two years, and you show up for three days and steal all my customers!"

Several nearby vendors craned their necks to watch the commotion. Some local Loose Cultivators chimed in to support their peer, while passing itinerant merchants looked on with cold indifference.

Li Yuan quickened his pace, walked over, and flashed his waist token.

Seeing the deputy captain’s token, the Loose Cultivator immediately lowered his voice a few notches, but his words remained sharp.

"Deputy Li, you be the judge. These outside itinerant merchants are driving prices rock-bottom. We locals can’t do business at all."

Li Yuan glanced at the surfaces of both stalls.

The Loose Cultivator’s ore fragments were of average quality, varied in size, and not well-presented. The itinerant merchant’s fragments were of similar quality, but they were sorted into bags by size and grade, and the price was indeed half a Spirit Stone lower.

"The marketplace has no rules on pricing. How much you sell for is your own business," Li Yuan said in a flat tone.

The Loose Cultivator opened his mouth to say more, but Li Yuan raised a hand to stop him.

"But disturbing the peace is not allowed. If you have a complaint, you can take it to the administration office. Causing a scene here affects other people’s business. If you keep this up, this will no longer be a mediation."

The Loose Cultivator’s expression changed. He gritted his teeth, finally withdrew the hand he had slammed on the stall, muttered a couple of words, and reluctantly sat back down behind it.

The itinerant merchant didn’t say anything more either, simply lowering his head and continuing to organize his goods.

Li Yuan turned and continued walking, leading the two recruits.

After they had walked a few steps, Zhao Hu came up from behind and asked in a low voice, "Deputy, does this kind of thing happen often?"

"It’s been happening more often recently."

Li Yuan didn’t turn back.

"The itinerant merchants have come, bringing new sources of goods and new prices, so the local Loose Cultivators’ business has taken a hit. But most of the itinerant merchants follow the rules—they pay their stall fees and don’t engage in forced transactions. The marketplace rules don’t cover their pricing. It’s the local Loose Cultivators who are causing trouble."

"It’ll get better after the itinerant merchants finish their business and leave. But not by much. Many of the local Loose Cultivators have had their Spirit Stones earned away by the itinerant merchants, so they have no money to spend for a while."

Zhao Hu let out an "Oh" and shrank back again.

The three of them continued down North Alley. As they walked, Li Yuan pointed things out—which alley entrance was prone to disputes, which vendors were familiar faces you didn’t need to worry about, and which spots were gathering places for new Loose Cultivators that required extra attention.

When they reached the end of North Alley, Li Yuan saw that Old Zhang’s spot was empty. The few shallow pits at the base of the wall were still there.

Along the patrol route, Li Yuan also bought some materials for making Exorcism Talismans.

The materials for Exorcism Talismans were different from those for Cleaning Talismans; at the very least, he had to switch to a different kind of Spiritual Ink.

After they had completed most of the patrol route, Li Yuan also briefly explained some of the basics of outer perimeter patrols.

It wasn’t as detailed as how He Shou had taught him. Li Yuan only covered the most basic parts.

How to tell if a track belonged to a Demon Beast or a common animal. How to determine the age of a claw print. How to react when encountering a Demon Beast. When to fight, and when to run.

"The most important rule is to come back alive."

Zhao Hu and Zheng Xiaoman both nodded, their expressions grim.