Strongest Scammer: Scamming The World, One Death At A Time-Chapter 647: Harrow Edge Town

As Han Yu approached, he saw massive bone trophies hanging above the main gate. Skull fragments of spirit beasts. Claws the size of shields. Strange fangs. Each one was a story of survival and death.

Among all the towns he had passed on his way, this one felt different.

This was not a place people settled to live peacefully.

This was a place people came to gamble with their lives.

Han Yu pulled his horse to a stop at the gate. The guards examined him briefly, noted his travelling gear and lack of clan symbols, and let him pass without questioning.

He entered Harrow Edge Town and immediately felt the shift in atmosphere.

Tension with vigilance and opportunity with danger.

These were the emotions that hung in the air.

Han Yu smiled to himself.

"This place might be interesting."

He tapped the horse's sides and rode deeper in, ready to begin the next step of his journey. Han Yu guided the black horse through the busy stone streets of Harrow Edge Town, his eyes sweeping the surroundings while he kept his spiritual sense suppressed.

Even he knew better than to charge straight into the Harrow Mountains without preparation. Everything he had heard about the place painted it as one of the most treacherous regions in this part of the Continent.

He had passed forests filled with low tier beasts and plains that had the occasional wild creature or opportunistic rogue cultivator. But the Harrow Mountains were in another league entirely.

There were beasts capable of swallowing a man whole.There were unpredictable cliffs where the wind cut like blades.There were valleys filled with poisonous mists and rivers that boiled in the summer and froze solid within an hour in the winter.There were rogue cultivators who came to the mountains to escape law, bounty or vengeance. These were the people who would cut a throat for a single silver if it meant they could get away with it.

Han Yu rode through the town gates and guided his horse down the main road, passing itinerants with large herb baskets on their backs, armored guards patrolling on horseback, mercenaries sharpening their blades and street vendors selling charms that claimed to protect against mountain spirits.

He needed food. A hot bath. A proper bed. And the latest information.

He spotted a sprawling tavern with an inn attached to it, a large wooden sign swinging above the archway. The place was bustling and noisy. Just what he needed.

He dismounted and walked toward the stable. A skinny stable hand rushed up nervously."Master, shall I take the horse?"

Han Yu tossed a silver coin without slowing his steps. The boy caught it with wide eyes as Han Yu said, "Feed him well. Give him water. Clean him. If he is hurt when I return, I will know."

The boy paled and nodded rapidly.

Han Yu stepped into the tavern.

The moment he entered, he was greeted by heat, noise, flickering lantern light and the smell of sweat, broth, wine and wet fur.

Cultivators in rugged clothes sat at crowded tables. Government guards in uniform leaned against the walls while eating grilled meat for lunch. Hunters boasted about their kills. Herb gatherers with scratches on their arms bargained with buyers. A few men with bandaged limbs drank quietly in a corner.

The place felt alive.

Han Yu scanned the room carefully.

Two Core Condensation cultivators. One was wearing the official armor of the government, speaking with two junior guards. The other was seated at a table with three rough looking men who appeared to be his subordinates. That one had a thick scar across his chin and an arrogant posture.

Han Yu did not detect anything that suggested they were Zhao Liumen's people. But he kept them noted in the back of his mind.

He found a seat in a corner that gave him a clear view of the room, then waved a server over.

"One bowl of thick pork noodles. Extra broth. And hot tea."

The server bowed and hurried off.

While he waited, Han Yu did what he did best outside the sect. He listened.

All around him were sparks of conversation, floating like embers in the tavern's noisy air.

At a long table to his left, three hunters were talking loudly, drunk on cheap beer.

"I swear on the mountain's frozen balls, I thought it was going to claw my head clean off!"

"Do not lie. You ran the moment it roared."

"I ran to flank it!"

"You ran like a wet chicken, you bastard."

Laughter burst around the table.

"Still, a Yellow Tufted Panther is no joke," a calmer voice said. "Early Core Condensation realm. We will not be that lucky every hunt."

The hunter with the missing teeth raised his cup proudly."We made a fortune. Enough to drink for a week or two and still have enough left to buy new armor."

A man beside him corrected, "Enough to buy new armor for you. Not for us. You owe us."

More laughter.

At another table, two herb gatherers were whispering.

"I heard beast activity dropped near the outer ring. Only a few Wind Hare packs and one Mossback Bear."

"That is a good sign. Means the mountains ares calm again."

"Calm for now. Calm never lasts in the Harrow Mountains."

Han Yu sipped his tea as it arrived. Calm indeed. A calm mountain was a rare blessing. But he also knew news from last month meant little when one step could lead into a region where beasts migrated overnight.

So far, everything he heard made his journey sound easier.

It was when the independent Core Condensation cultivator spoke that everything shifted.

Han Yu heard his deep voice clearly over the noise.

"Listen carefully," the scarred cultivator said to his three men. "This is not some common weed we are talking about. This herb was glowing."

"Blue?" one subordinate asked with confusion.

"Pure blue. Like it was carved from ice. And the cold from it could be felt from thirty meters away. The kind of cold that seeps into your bones."