Chapter 80: Human Life is Cheap

Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Human Life is Cheap

Upon reaching the outskirts of Tilan Mountain, Fang Xu moved to a new spot. He continued hunting beasts before starting a fire to roast meat and drink wine.

His luck seemed pretty good today; he soon ran into a small group of over a dozen people. Martial Artists loved their alcohol. In this era, most Martial Artists enjoyed having a drink or two when they had nothing else to do, perhaps because there were so few other forms of entertainment.

The small group of over a dozen men was just as boorish. After forcing Fang Xu to take a sip of the wine and eat a piece of roasted meat to ensure nothing was poisoned, they violently shooed him away, seizing his hunted beasts and fine wine.

Fang Xu left, feigning resentment. Hiding in the shadows, he quietly waited for the six slots on his friend list to slowly fill up. These six new "friends" were from Jizhou. Among them, two had a Life Value that had reached forty-five percent, while the remaining four were at fifteen percent. With his goal achieved, he didn’t linger in the mountains and headed straight back to Fenglin Town.

However, just as he reached the outskirts of the town, Fang Xu witnessed a scene that made his blood boil.

Over a dozen Martial Artists were clustered around a middle-aged man dressed in luxurious brocade robes. Two of the Martial Artists were violently driving Old Xu’s entire family out of their home on the edge of town, seemingly intending to seize their courtyard.

Fang Xu hid in the shadows. Watching those Martial Artists punch and kick Old Xu’s family, a faint glint of murderous intent flashed through his eyes. But he quickly concealed it. These people were strong. The accompanying Martial Artists all seemed to have reached the Martial Master realm, and the two men standing beside the middle-aged man in brocade robes exuded an aura comparable to Li Xun!

"Second Young Master, who would have thought we’d find such a pretty girl in this middle of nowhere!"

While grappling with Old Xu, the two Martial Artists had suddenly noticed the young girl hiding behind him and couldn’t help but yell excitedly.

Hearing this, a sharp light flashed in the middle-aged man’s eyes, and he immediately stepped forward to take a look.

Old Xu and his wife paled drastically. Shielding their son and daughter tightly behind them, they pleaded with the middle-aged man and the other Martial Artists, "My lords, we yield the courtyard to you! Please, just don’t make things difficult for the children!"

The middle-aged man ignored them completely and walked straight toward the young girl hiding behind Old Xu.

The girl shrank back in terror while Old Xu and his wife blocked the middle-aged man’s path with everything they had. After his outstretched hand was dodged several times, the middle-aged man let out a cold snort. Without even seeming to make a move, the heads of Old Xu and his wife exploded like watermelons smashed by an iron hammer!

Red and white matter splattered across the faces of the young girl and boy behind them. The siblings stared in sheer horror at their headless parents before both fainted from the shock.

The middle-aged man slowly crouched down, drew a handkerchief from his sleeve, and gently wiped the blood from the young girl’s face. After inspecting her for a moment, he nodded in satisfaction and stood up.

"Fetch some water and wash her clean.

"Right, wash this boy clean too."

With that said, he headed straight into the small courtyard. Two of the Martial Artists stepped forward, scooped up the unconscious siblings, and carried them inside.

Watching this unfold, Fang Xu clenched his fists, his face ashen with fury. He had anticipated that the opening of the Tilan Mountain ruins and the massive influx of Martial Artists into Fenglin Town would bring suffering to the local residents, but he never expected these bastards to be so rampant! In broad daylight, they seized people’s homes, slaughtered the common people, and didn’t even spare a girl who hadn’t yet come of age.

He cursed them as animals in his heart, though his mind spun rapidly. These people were powerful, far beyond his ability to handle. If he wanted to make them pay, he had to pit them against an even bigger threat!

Suppressing the rage in his heart, Fang Xu went straight to Mrs. Wang’s small courtyard. Relying on his younger brother who was a Government Soldier, Wang Ergou had previously built a two-courtyard compound in the town. Compared to the surrounding dilapidated houses, it looked quite luxurious. The nail that sticks out gets hammered down; such a prominent courtyard would undoubtedly be targeted by some major factions. Although Mrs. Wang was not a peerless beauty, she was quite charming. Worried about her safety, Fang Xu planned to have her hide in Zhiyuan Hall for the time being.

After he explained his intentions, Mrs. Wang glanced at the small courtyard with reluctance. The savings she had accumulated over her years of marriage to Wang Ergou had all been handed over to the Government Office as fines after the recent fire at the Yizhuang. This small courtyard was effectively her entire livelihood, and she didn’t want to abandon it. But when she heard about what happened to Old Xu’s family, fear won out over everything else. She quickly packed a few changes of clothes and followed Fang Xu to Zhiyuan Hall.

Upon hearing Fang Xu’s account, Lu Qingluo also put on a grave expression. She immediately looked at Mrs. Wang and said, "There are still some empty rooms in Zhiyuan Hall. Please pick one and settle in, Sister."

Mrs. Wang nodded gratefully, chose a room in the outer courtyard, and went to clean it.

"Senior Sister, these foreign Martial Artists are completely unrestrained. The townspeople are bound to suffer, and Zhiyuan Hall won’t be very safe either," Fang Xu said grimly.

Lu Qingluo was currently only at the Eighth Realm of the Martial Disciple stage. Although he possessed the strength to kill any Martial Artist below the Martial Master realm, he still wasn’t strong enough.

"Young Master Yun said before he left that he would send people from the Yun Family to look after us," Lu Qingluo said, her face lined with worry. "I just wonder where the Yun Family’s people are now."

Fang Xu pondered for a moment but said nothing. The three people living in Zhiyuan Hall were the ones he shared the deepest bonds with in this world. If anything happened to them, the consequences would be unimaginable!

He knew he had to think of a way. Since his own strength was lacking, he could only continue to borrow power!

Right now, among the factions he had connections with, the witches were one. South Witch and her people weren’t weak. But as remnants of the Dusk Cloud Kingdom, South Witch was treated like a rat in the street across the entire Yu Kingdom. With so many Martial Artists pouring into Fenglin Town, she likely wouldn’t dare show her face easily.

Through Yun Wan and Yun Qing, the Yun Family could be counted on to some extent. However, Yun Qing had returned home, and the Yun Family’s people hadn’t arrived in Fenglin Town yet.

Excluding the Yun Family and the witches, the only person he could rely on was Li Xun. After interacting with him for many days, Fang Xu had realized that while Li Xun was a bit eccentric, he wasn’t too difficult to deal with. Perhaps he could give it a try.

"Senior Sister, I leave Mrs. Wang and Mu Yun in your care. I need to go out for a bit."

Cupping his hands toward Lu Qingluo, Fang Xu left Zhiyuan Hall and headed straight for the town’s Government Office. Seeing it was him, the Golden Scale Guards at the gate let him in without asking any questions.

Inside the Government Office courtyard, Li Xingchao, Yun Jin, and Xu Liang were discussing matters, while Li Xun stood quietly to the side, not daring to interrupt. Upon seeing Fang Xu arrive, Li Xun cupped his hands to the three men, then approached Fang Xu with a frown. "What happened?"

Fang Xu’s mind raced. He immediately cupped his hands and shouted, "I beg the Crown Prince to save my life!"

His shout instantly caught the attention of Li Xingchao and the other two standing nearby.

"Xun’Er, who is this man?" Li Xingchao asked, frowning.

Li Xun turned around and cupped his hands. "Reporting to Father, this man is named Fang Xu. He is a Martial Artist from Fenglin Town who accompanied me in handling the incident with the witches."

"Fang Xu?" Yun Jin frowned slightly and asked. "Is he the Fang Xu that Wan’Er saw last?"

Li Xun cupped his hands. "Exactly."

Li Xingchao pondered for a moment before saying, "Come here and speak."

Hearing this, Fang Xu looked at Li Xun. Seeing no objection from him, he walked directly up to the three men.

"This humble one, Fang Xu, greets the Seventh Prince and the two seniors."

Li Xingchao gave a subtle nod. "Why did you cry out for Xun’Er to save your life just now?"

Not daring to be negligent, Fang Xu recounted everything he had witnessed today in detail, along with his own concerns.

Li Xingchao remained silent after listening. His reaction made Fang Xu’s heart sink slightly.

It seemed this Seventh Prince couldn’t care less about the lives of the common people. In his eyes, human lives were as expendable as weeds! It made sense, though. When Li Xingchao first arrived in Fenglin Town, hadn’t the Golden Scale Guards slaughtered so many people that blood flowed like rivers through the streets?