Chapter 42: Chapter 41: Sense of Superiority

’Huh? Why is this village so quiet?’

Shen Shiyin slowly rode a large, cyan horse with a hint of Demon Beast blood through the village, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings.

Revisiting an old haunt, he felt no nostalgia, only a sense of strangeness.

How to put it?

It was too quiet!

A village of nearly two thousand people,

but the roads were nearly empty.

Back when he was in charge,

Dawan Village was never exactly bustling, but at least it wasn’t this desolate!

"Don’t tell me our dear young master bit off more than he could chew?"

"Look at the white banners hanging in front of those houses. Someone in their families must have died recently."

"It was the Spirit Grain harvest not long ago. Perhaps they were attacked by Demon Beasts from the mountains, causing heavy casualties among the villagers. That would explain this predicament."

"Hmph! If you ask me, he deserves it!"

"Stealing someone’s life’s work without the skill to back it up. I wonder how much of this year’s Spirit Grain yield was ruined by Demon Beasts, and how much that ’young master’ of ours will have to pay out of his own pocket to cover the deficit?"

Behind Shen Shiyin, Shen Shaochong, who was also riding a cyan horse, spoke with unconcealed glee.

A scornful sneer touched the corners of his lips.

Evidently, Shen Shaochong was extremely displeased with Shen Changchuan for "seizing" their family’s livelihood.

And he had every right to be.

Ever since his family lost their position in Dawan Village and was forced to return to Tian Nan City, things had unfolded exactly as Shen Shaochong had expected.

Around Dawan Village, he had been "Young Master Shen," the one whom disciples from other nearby Immortal Cultivation Clans vied to flatter and curry favor with.

But in Tian Nan City, he was reduced to a mere lackey, forced to trail behind the true scions and play the sycophant.

This precipitous fall in status was almost more than Shen Shaochong could bear.

It caused him to harbor a deep, secret hatred for Shen Changchuan, the one who had stolen their family’s "livelihood."

Now, returning to witness the village’s wretched state, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of vengeful satisfaction.

"Alright, you. Keep your mouth shut later. He’s the Patriarch’s son, after all. Show a little respect."

Shen Shiyin, riding ahead, heard him and turned back to quietly rebuke Shen Shaochong.

However, while Shen Shiyin appeared to be scolding him, he was inwardly gloating.

Having served as the Dawan Village Guardian for so many years, he knew exactly how much profit could be skimmed from the post.

Being forced out by Shen Changchuan had led to significant losses, and Shen Shiyin had been resentful from the start.

It was just that circumstances had left him no choice but to accept it.

Now, only half a year later, he saw Dawan Village in a state of cold desolation.

Villagers were dressed in mourning clothes, and joss paper was scattered along the roadside.

One look at such a scene was enough to guess what had transpired.

Nine times out of ten, something terrible had happened, resulting in heavy losses.

Seeing his "rival’s" misfortune gave Shen Shiyin a sense of satisfaction as refreshing as drinking a bowl of iced plum soup on a scorching summer day!

However, being a middle-aged man of experience, he had long since learned not to let his inner glee show on his face.

「Before long,」

The entrance to the village’s main hall came into view up ahead.

Shen Changchuan was already standing at the door, waiting to receive them.

"Haha! My dear nephew, it’s been a while! I trust you’ve been well?"

Shen Shiyin dismounted, laughed heartily, and strode forward to greet him.

"Thank you for your concern, Uncle. Everything is alright."

Shen Changchuan replied, cupping his fist in salute.

After a round of polite pleasantries,

the group entered the main hall.

"Dawan Village has twelve fine acres of Spirit Fields, but it is located in the Barbaric Territory, far from the bustling heart of the Tian Nan Domain. It must be difficult for you to stay here, nephew?"

After taking a sip of the tea a servant had brought, Shen Shiyin looked at Shen Changchuan and asked in a teasing tone.

"It is. This place... it’s really not fit for human habitation."

Shen Changchuan nodded with profound agreement as he said this.

Although the profits from managing Dawan Village were immense,

the standard of living was a world away from a prosperous, fully developed place like Tian Nan City!

"Never mind the other things. Just a few months ago, during the rainy season, it poured for two whole months. I felt like I was about to grow mold just staying in my room."

"What was even more terrifying was the army of mountain leeches that crawled out with the rain from who knows what godforsaken corner of the mountains. It was absolutely unbearable!"

"They were dense, writhing masses, covering the mountains and fields, swarming over the trees and grass. The forests outside looked like they’d come alive, with branches and leaves sprouting countless tentacles that stretched and groped through the air. The slightest movement would send them shooting over with a sickening THWAP. If a beast in the wilderness wasn’t careful, it would be instantly covered by those teeming, squirming things. In a matter of moments, it would be sucked dry of blood and reduced to a desiccated husk. The whole area was like a forbidden Demon Cave!"

Just talking about it and recalling those horrific scenes made Shen Changchuan break out in goosebumps, the hair on his arms standing on end.

Even though one or two months had passed, the memory still cast a great shadow over him.

"And that’s not all. There are far too many Demon Beasts around here."

"Right after I arrived, I had to kill a Pig Demon just outside the village. Not long after, a Crocodile Demon appeared in the Dawan River. We managed to take care of it, but only after sacrificing several lives. Then, just a few days ago, during the Spirit Grain harvest, a Gale Falcon came down from the sky..."

As he spoke of these events, Shen Changchuan couldn’t stop himself from venting.

This constant stream of deadly battles didn’t even include the ambush laid for him by the He Mountain Four Fierce!

The past six months had been a minefield of crises!

Back when he was in Tian Nan City, it was never this dangerous—not in the city itself, nor even in the remote mountain areas far beyond its walls!

’No wonder no other Shen Family disciples with any real status fought over this godforsaken place, even with its twelve acres of Spirit Fields.’

Hearing this, Shen Shiyin was left dumbfounded. Three separate Demon Beast incidents in just half a year?

The rainy season’s leech infestation was one thing; he had experienced that every year during his time in Dawan Village.

But as for Demon Beasts...

In all his years as guardian, only the giant Demon Pig that appeared toward the end of his tenure had caused any real trouble.

It was nothing as absurd as what Shen Changchuan described!

’Does this kid have some special constitution that attracts Demon Beasts, or is he just cursed with terrible luck?’

Thinking this, Shen Shiyin couldn’t help but look at Shen Changchuan with a flicker of pity.

But that pity was quickly followed by a burgeoning sense of superiority.

’With so many disasters, there’s no way this kid hasn’t run Dawan Village into the ground!’

Never mind that Crocodile Demon, he had heard of the notorious Gale Falcon. That was a beast even a Qi Introduction Late Stage Cultivator would struggle against!

Against a Gale Falcon, this kid would have been utterly powerless.

He thought back to what he’d seen upon entering the village.

The whole place was deserted, joss paper littered the roads, and white mourning banners hung from many doorways.

’The reason is obvious. In a desperate bid to save as much Spirit Grain as possible from the Gale Falcon, this kid must have forced the villagers to harvest under threat from the Demon Beast, leading to massive casualties!’

’But even by throwing away human lives,’

’I doubt he could have saved more than thirty percent of the Spirit Grain from a Gale Falcon. That would be the absolute limit!’

’This kid is in for a catastrophic loss!’

At this thought, a sneer flashed through Shen Shiyin’s mind.

’This is what you get, you youngsters. You see someone else making a profit, use your connections to swoop in and steal their life’s work, and then screw it all up when you try to run it yourself.’

’He deserves to lose every last copper!’

Shen Shiyin sneered to himself.