Chapter 630 - 456: A Double Jackpot at the Start (2)

Zheng Yi nodded repeatedly, "Thank you for the advice, Steward Qing. I’ve taken note of it. Don’t worry, we’re not stupid. The reason we’ve been interacting more with other villages lately is just to exchange goods that we don’t have."

With many things, it’s somewhat feasible to keep secrets if it’s only the villagers of Riverbend Village involved.

But now, they are in contact with three villages at once. The frequent interactions and various trades happen every day.

If this were in a relatively larger city, keeping secrets would be easier.

But around the mines, in such a relatively closed environment, going unnoticed is almost impossible.

Even if the guards at the main roads are slack, they won’t detect issues once or twice, but over time they will surely notice something off.

It’s no surprise that those people above know about it.

Zheng Yi’s words seemed directed at Zhao Qing, but they were actually meant for those behind Zhao Qing.

Zhao Tianming had not yet returned, while Zheng Yi proceeded step by step according to his plan.

Through the three villages - Flint Village, Xiyuan Village, and Luma Village, he had connected all the villages around the mines together.

Those people may not know about the existence of Riverbend Village, but they know that there are capable individuals behind these three villages, who can provide an endless supply of meat.

After the salt from Flint Village arrived, Zheng Yi began another task.

Curing meat!

As the level of cultivation increased, the hunting skills of the villagers in Riverbend Village became more proficient.

Although the Zhao Family doesn’t manage affairs, to maintain the stability of the mines, they periodically send experts to clear powerful demon beasts that might appear nearby.

Without strong predators, the ordinary creatures nearby proliferate like rabbits on the plain.

As long as one dares to violate the Zhao Family’s ban, there’s no issue catching as much game as desired.

But catching too much, problems arise.

Riverbend Village can’t consume all this meat; trading can only manage a portion, and after a day or two, the rest will spoil if not consumed soon.

Turning it into cured meat for long-term storage has become the best solution at present.

To store supplies, Zheng Yi specifically organized the villagers to build two wooden houses as warehouses.

Wooden houses aren’t the best solution; it’s just that in the current situation, it’s inconvenient to cause too much commotion.

"My lord!" Zhou Kunshan rushed into the deepest part of the mine excitedly, "I just heard from the guards that Zhao Tianming is about to return. Quite a few guards are already preparing to welcome Zhao Tianming back."

"He’s finally coming." Zheng Yi said gloomily.

With the continuation of trade, many secrets of Riverbend Village were becoming hard to conceal.

If this guy doesn’t come back soon, Zheng Yi might have to choose to take action in advance.

If things came to that, all of Zheng Yi’s plans would almost have to be scrapped and started anew.

They would have to expose themselves to the sunlight early.

"Prepare..." Just as Zheng Yi was about to issue orders to implement the plan against Zhao Tianming,

his face suddenly showed a look of surprise: "Damn it, why does it have to be at this time."

The Guardian Spirit he placed in the dense forest behind Riverbend Village was activated by something.

"Hopefully, it won’t be Zhao Family people?"

Zheng Yi raised his hand, motioning Zhou Kunshan to remain silent. Closing his eyes, Zheng Yi quickly saw the situation on the other side of the Guardian Spirit.

About ten people were visible to his eyes.

Among them were two Zhao Family members, each fanned and wiped by two eunuchs beside them.

The rest were soldiers in military attire.

One of them looked at the sun in the sky and cursed, "That waste Zhao Mingtang, hunting and ending up dead here?"

Another gritted his teeth, "That waste is dead, and yet he drags us into this, making us find him. I refuse to acknowledge that such trash is of our Zhao Family bloodline."

Zheng Yi was thinking if these two could provide any interesting information.

But suddenly, a soldier coldly snorted, "Who’s there, daring to eavesdrop on two lords’ conversation?"

Raising his hand, he hurled a fireball at Zheng Yi’s direction.

The fireball was powerful, and Zheng Yi instinctively attempted to block the attack.

The next moment, he felt just darkness before his eyes, and he fell into complete blackness.

When he opened his eyes again, he was still in the deepest part of the mine.

"What do we do now?" Zheng Yi was at a loss momentarily.

Although Zhao Tianming was not at the mine three days continuously, he still had control over the mines.

Zheng Yi was certain that as long as Zhao Tianming reviewed the recent records of the mines, he would probably discover the problem.

But the situation with the Zhao Family couldn’t be ignored either. Although the Guardian Spirit was placed far away, the individuals from the Zhao Family were strong.

Even a waste like Zhao Mingtang could find Riverbend Village, so these individuals certainly could as well.

Based on Zhao Mingtang’s behavior back then, Zheng Yi could deduce the reaction of these individuals.

If he weren’t present, these individuals might directly slaughter everyone in Riverbend Village.

"Do we need to resolve both sides?" After the initial panic, Zheng Yi felt somewhat excited.

His mind started to operate rapidly, contemplating the possibility of resolving both sides at once.

"Wait. Perhaps it’s not impossible." Zheng Yi’s eyes suddenly lit up.

"Zhou Kunshan, I’m heading back to the village to deal with those Zhao Family members." Without waiting for Zhou Kunshan to inquire, Zheng Yi continued, "In half an hour, find a way to approach Zhao Tianming and inform him that there’s trouble with the Zhao Family people, and he should quickly go for rescue."

"As for the location, take him to the place behind the mountain, where I helped you break through. Do you understand?"

Zhou Kunshan’s expression was extremely serious: "Understood, my lord. No matter what, I’ll bring him over."

Before he could finish speaking, Zheng Yi’s figure had already vanished from the mine.

Just as Zheng Yi had imagined, the two Zhao Family disciples swiftly discovered hunting traces.

After all, to catch prey quickly, the people of Riverbend Village hadn’t had time to hide the scene.

"Judging by the situation here, it looks like human work," a guard spoke in an uninflected tone.

The two Zhao Family members were furious.

"Such audacity, daring to violate the ban and hunt at will. I suppose they are tired of living."

"Heh, heh, heh, all these years, it’s indeed the first time I’ve seen someone so blatantly violating our Zhao Family ban."

"Wait... do you think this person might be the one who killed Zhao Mingtang?"

The other Zhao Family disciple nodded seriously, "I think it’s very possible. Perhaps Zhao Mingtang discovered them secretly hunting, and that’s why they killed to silence him."

"But somehow it doesn’t add up. Look at this Fire Spiritual Qi; it’s at most at the Qi Refining Stage. Even if Zhao Mingtang was a waste, the people around him weren’t weak. A few at the Qi Refining Stage alone wouldn’t have been able to kill him."

"Maybe, they’ve got an expert, who knows."

"Should we go back and get reinforcements?"

"No need for that. We’re not useless garbage like Zhao Mingtang. Even if the opponent is a Crystal Stage expert, we don’t need to worry too much."

"True, in this Cangyan Realm, there can’t be experts we don’t know about. It must be someone who got lucky and stumbled upon some Heavenly and Earthly Treasures, gaining their current level of cultivation."

"If they’ve been quietly hiding to cultivate, we might indeed have no way to deal with them. But to be so bold as to lay hands on our Zhao Family members? It’s time to show them what true power is."

Although they hadn’t confirmed Zheng Yi’s presence, they were certain that there was such a person.

At this moment, Zheng Yi was rushing quickly towards Riverbend Village,

constantly praying in his heart that those guys’ actions wouldn’t be too quick. If they entered the village now, Riverbend Village would surely suffer heavy losses.