Mi Lan looked on in astonishment at Mi Chongshan's casual display of skill, clapping in praise as he said, "Uncle Chongshan, what a fine technique!"
"Haha, nephew Mi Lan, just a petty trick not worth mentioning," Mi Chongshan replied with a hint of pride, before stepping forward to push away the heavy boulder that was blocking the path.
The bandits had been utterly terrified when first captured, only to discover that they could easily break free with just a tiny bit of effort. Realizing that the three travelers seemed rather formidable yet had no intention of killing them, the bandits exchanged knowing glances and decided to stay put, pretending they couldn't get out and waiting for the trio to leave. After all, everyone cared about their dignity, didn't they? What if the other party noticed how easily their genuine Fertilizer Fists had been shaken off and flew into a furious rage to fight to the death? There would always be plenty of fat sheep to fleece in the future, but once your life was gone, it was gone for good. In the pugilistic world, didn't understanding human relations and worldly sophistication matter just as much?
Yet that old man Mi Chongshan, after pushing the boulder aside, turned back, took a small handful of silver coins from his tunic, and placed them by the roadside. Addressing the bandits, he said, "A few modest silver coins, consider it a treat for you good fellows to share some wine and let's be friends from now on. If you good fellows happen to cross paths with nearby mountain folk or ordinary travelers passing through in the future, I beg of you not to harm their lives. Many thanks, friends."
With that, he led Mi Lan and Qiuyue onto their horses and departed. Along the way, Mi Lan asked with a puzzled air why Mi Chongshan had given the bandits money even after capturing them.
Mi Chongshan chuckled and said, "This is how our Mi family conducts ourselves in the world. Walk the path under heaven and treat people with kindness, and most will treat you with kindness in return. If we killed this band of mountain bandits, even fiercer ones would just come to take their place. The truth is, life isn't easy for anyone. If a few dozen silver coins can trade for them returning our kindness and sparing the innocent, it may well be considered a good deed."
Mi Lan nodded thoughtfully and asked, "What if they are unwilling to treat others with kindness, and instead become even more ruthless and slaughter the innocent hereafter?"
"Then when we make our return journey, we will simply bury them all," Mi Chongshan replied.
After a full day of travel, by evening they reached Taiping Town, the largest settlement on the edge of Guju Ridge. Calling it the largest was merely relative to the small hamlets along the official road; it was far smaller than Yijia Town.
They rested for the night at a local inn, replenished their food and water, and set off again the next day. Another two days of travel would bring them to Dongshan Prefecture.
After yet another day on the road, by evening the three of them reached a Wang family village on the edge of Guju Ridge, just over a hundred miles from Dongshan Prefecture. If they departed at dawn tomorrow, they would arrive before noon. The trio intended to enter the village to ask local farmers for lodging for the night, but they found the village to be utterly impoverished and dilapidated, with seven or eight children playing by the roadside all dressed in tattered rags.
Mi Lan and his companions felt somewhat puzzled. Along their journey, they had seen plenty of small towns and villages; though not wealthy, they had always been clean, orderly, and well-fed. Why should this Wang family village, located not far from the prefectural city, be in such a state?
The children playing by the roadside grew visibly frightened when they saw the three riders approaching. They stopped playing, retreated a few steps, and quietly sized up the strangers.
The three travelers explained their purpose to an adult in the village, asking to stay for the night and promising to leave at dawn. The villagers of the Wang family village turned out to be simple and honest, and they invited the three inside.
"Good uncle, the two of us would also like to lodge here for the night. Might that be convenient?"
A voice spoke up from behind Mi Lan. Someone else was seeking a place to stay! Turning around, Mi Lan saw two men—one old, one young. As the two drew closer, Mi Lan realized his mistake: it was an elderly man in his fifties or sixties, and a youth of about eighteen or nineteen dressed in men's attire. The youth wore moon-white male garments, yet made no deliberate effort to conceal her identity as a woman. Her features were handsome, but her brows carried a trace of spirited heroism, much like a refined young gentleman of the world. Mi Lan was certain that if she changed back into women's clothing, she would be an absolute beauty.
The villagers of the Wang family village acted as if this were nothing out of the ordinary, leading all five of them to the largest and finest house in the village, followed closely by a crowd of children curiously eyeing the five strangers. Mi Lan looked at this "largest and finest house" only to find its walls covered in cracks, looking as though it could collapse at any moment.
The five of them each found a chair and seated themselves on opposite sides. A middle-aged villager brought out sweet potatoes and well water. Mi Lan, his companions, and the young woman all accepted their portions and expressed their thanks. The young woman took a sip of the well water and said nothing more, watching Mi Lan thoughtfully.
Meanwhile, Mi Lan took out a variety of foods he had purchased from the previous town out of his Storage Bag. Just as he was about to take a large bite, he noticed that most of the children were staring hungrily at the roasted chicken in front of him. He hastily instructed Qiuyue to take all the snacks and candies from the Storage Bag and distribute them to every child in the village. Unbeknownst to Mi Lan, a sudden gleam of light appeared in the eyes of the young woman sitting opposite him.
Watching the children eating with such relish, Mi Lan could no longer hold back the questions in his heart and asked, "Pardon me, uncle, but why is this Wang family village in such a state? From what I've seen, you are simple, hospitable folk, and you certainly don't seem like the sort to idle away your days. Why is the village so impoverished?"
The middle-aged man paused slightly, wiped the corner of his eye, and said, "Our village wasn't like this originally. Ever since a major incident happened seven years ago, alas..."
Seven years ago? A major incident? Mi Lan suddenly recalled a past event Qin Nana had mentioned—the Wang family village on the edge of Guju Ridge. Could this be that very village?
As it turned out, seven years ago, during the battle between the old Evil Cultivator and Qin Nana's master, Muyu Qing, not only was the village flattened, but a small breach was also blasted into the edge of Guju Ridge. Qin Anbang had sent men to repair the village before leaving with his entourage. To Qin Anbang and Sima Nan, having mountains and rivers damaged by high-level cultivators was a perfectly normal occurrence, and they hadn't paid it much mind.
Yet this brought endless hardship to the ordinary folk of the Wang family village. Before long, fierce beasts and spirit beasts began spilling out from Guju Ridge. After the villagers reported it to the authorities, the Arrest Bureau quickly dispatched men to fight the escaped beasts, forcibly driving them back.
However, the villagers of the Wang family village were left quite depressed. The houses they had painstakingly repaired and the fields they had replanted were once again battered beyond recognition. Yet when they looked at the Arrest Bureau personnel, covered in wounds and missing limbs, still risking their lives to fight the monsters for them, the villagers simply hadn't the heart to ask for government-funded repairs; they could only pay to rebuild their homes and replant their fields out of their own pockets.
Alas, good times never last. A month or two later, the spirit beasts and fierce beasts poured out once more. This time, they happened to run right into the disciples of the Heavenly Blade Sect, who were conducting their annual training in the outer bounds of Guju Ridge. Most of these Heavenly Blade Sect disciples were fresh out in the pugilistic world, just at the age where they dreamed of roaming the martial realm with their blades and upholding chivalric justice. Seeing fierce beasts invading the Wang family village and bullying ordinary folk, could they possibly endure it? Decisively, they formed a group and rushed right in to fight! As it turned out, the spirit beasts and fierce beasts were no pushovers; they beat the greenhorns until their formations fell apart and they suffered a disastrous defeat. After all, the greenhorns had originally planned to find a small pack of low-level monsters in the outer reaches of Guju Ridge to beat up together.
In a panic, the greenhorns hurriedly sent word back to their sect for reinforcements, whereupon a hundred elite disciples of the sect, backed by elder martial uncles overseeing the field, arrived at the battlefield, preparing for an all-out assault. Then followed a flurry of magical treasures and heavenly blades flying everywhere, with beast hide and human blood blending into a single color... and the Wang family village was dismantled all over again.
Creatures capable of absorbing spiritual Qi to cultivate were known as spirit beasts, most of which possessed strength below the level of Qi Control. Once a spirit beast reached Great Accomplishment, it could comprehend human nature and become a fierce beast, and upon reaching the Tongxuan Realm, it could be called a beast king. The fierce beasts running out from the outer periphery could not defeat the disciples and elders of the Heavenly Blade Sect, but having gained human intelligence and a bit of cunning, they returned to report to the beast king that all its underlings were nearly wiped out. And so the battle began anew. Though the beast king and the elders sat in command, whenever the disciples couldn't hold their ground, the seniors would step up to trade blows themselves. Over the span of six years, they fought more than a dozen times. During this period, members of the Arrest Bureau came by a few times out of concern for the villagers' safety, but seeing that the villagers were being well protected by the Heavenly Blade Sect and that very few people had died over the years, they simply left the matter alone. After all, in the eyes of the Arrest Bureau, the fierce beasts and the Heavenly Blade Sect were just dogs biting dogs; as long as they didn't bite human beings, the sects could bite each other however they pleased.