The City Lord's voice was filled with indifference and dominance.
The moment he spoke, the villagers were shocked and angry. Their gazes towards A Niu were full of disgust, and some even said in pain:
"Look at this! Today is your Sister Yin's wedding day, it should be a day of great joy for Huang Family Village. Why did you bring these villains here?"
They were deeply disappointed, their hands trembling slightly as they pointed at A Niu while speaking.
"Heh heh, if Sister Yin wasn't getting married, I might not have done this. You forced me! You never looked at me properly, you completely ignored my feelings. You clearly knew everything, yet you disdained my feelings."
A Niu seemed to have gone mad, glaring at them hatefully.
Seeing his shamelessness, the villagers began to curse at him.
Zhao Yannian was also in the crowd. The moment he saw the middle-aged man in the brocade robe, he recognized that he must be the City Lord of a certain city within Great Qian.
"I didn't expect a City Lord, instead of upholding justice for the common people, would oppress them. Is this truly what the world is like?"
He felt a bit disappointed, watching the villagers filled with resentment but only daring to vent it on a minor figure. He felt somewhat irritable.
Over there, perhaps because he was being cursed at too fiercely, A Niu erupted amidst the insults. He roared:
"You're nothing but a bunch of bandits yourselves! Back then, you were the ones who massacred villages! What? After living a peaceful life for over a decade, you think you're good citizens now?"
He had thrown caution to the wind, his face filled with sarcasm.
Zhao Yannian was still wondering if he should do something. Hearing this, he was taken aback. He quickly analyzed the meaning behind A Niu's words, then looked at the seemingly amiable villagers around him.
He saw that the older villagers' expressions had changed, and they continued to curse:
"You heartless dog! You ungrateful ingrate! You orphan! If we hadn't given you food, you would have died long ago. Now you're colluding with outsiders? What the hell do you want?"
"Feeding? Taking me in? Heh heh, you just treated me like a dog. Did any of you ever look at me properly? If I had known that just telling the City Lord would make you look like this, I would have done it long ago. Why would I have waited until today?"
A Niu let out a strange laugh, paused for a moment, then turned to the man in the brocade robe and said respectfully:
"City Lord, twenty years ago, they massacred the villagers because of the secret of Huang Family Village. Later, fearing they would be double-crossed, they chose to settle down here. I never expected that after so many years, they would actually think they were good people. It's simply ridiculous."
As he spoke, his face was filled with glee and madness. He felt that this secret was enough to flatten Huang Family Village, enough to make them realize the price of looking down on him.
Seeing this, Zhao Yannian quietly moved some distance away from the crowd, his head buzzing:
"My goodness, this is terrifying! Is this a bandit den? No wonder I felt something was off. Phew, is this good luck or am I just cursed?"
He thought of the few threatening auras he had felt last night and suddenly understood.
Immediately, he remembered something else. His ears twitched, and he listened intently to their conversation, afraid of missing any important information.
The turn of events had been too sudden; he no longer dared to easily jump to conclusions.
The City Lord simply nodded faintly upon hearing A Niu's words, showing none of the shock A Niu expected.
Shangguan Yan knew about the destruction of Huang Family Village, but what did that have to do with him? As long as his tribute wasn't short by a single coin, whether it was Huang Family Village or a bandit stronghold, he didn't care.
Since those bandits were sensible and their annual tribute not only wasn't less but had increased, he allowed them to operate here.
What he hadn't expected was that they weren't after wealth, but a Divine Cultivation Manual.
If it weren't for this boy, who had been looked down upon by the village since childhood, harboring resentment, and even more so, driven by jealousy because the girl he liked was getting married, coming to inform him, even he wouldn't have known about such a hidden secret.
Shangguan Yan's gaze narrowed, his thoughts swirling. He said in a deep voice:
"This official is not interested in your old affairs. As I said before, as long as you hand over the Divine Cultivation Manual, I will allow you to continue existing in the world as Huang Family Village."
As if his patience had run out, he emphasized it again.
The Village Chief, who had remained silent the entire time, stepped forward, officially beginning negotiations:
"City Lord, for the past twenty years, we have long since mended our ways, and the tribute has never been interrupted. If we were to be massacred just like this, I'm afraid it wouldn't be good for your reputation."
He knew that these important figures valued their reputation highly.
"Oh? Are you threatening this official?"
The City Lord's eyes showed mockery. He looked at the Village Chief leisurely, saying indifferently:
"Not to mention you were originally bandits, this official is discerning and judges cases like a god, clearing Huang Family Village's name. Even if you were truly good citizens, the outcome would be no different."
He spoke very casually, but it drew everyone's attention to him.
Even Zhao Yannian slightly averted his gaze. He couldn't emulate the City Lord's dominant demeanor, holding the lives of thousands in his hands.
Zhao Li didn't react much, simply focusing his attention on the so-called Divine Cultivation Manual, a thoughtful look in his eyes:
"Perhaps that is the real reason why this small Huang Family Village has over ten Dou Disciples and two Dou Masters."
Over there, the Village Chief heard this and gently shook his head, saying slowly:
"This old man is not threatening you. It's just that this is after all a mountain forest, and we are mountain bandits! Tell me, if someone were to hide in the mountains and accidentally reach the vicinity of the Imperial Capital, then spread the word, even you would likely face considerable trouble."
He spoke word by word, deliberately emphasizing the identity of his people.
As his words fell, Shangguan Yan nodded. This was also one of the reasons why 'Huang Family Village' remained twenty years ago. Such an incident happening near the Imperial Capital, right under the Emperor's nose, would result in a significant punishment even for him.
"What do you want? As long as you hand over the manual, this official will retreat."
All he sought was the manual.
"Alright, but he must die."
The Village Chief agreed, but also made a demand. He pointed at A Niu, saying if it weren't for this backstabbing wretch, how could he have ended up like this?
As long as he was given time to grow his power, where couldn't he go then?
But he was ultimately a sensible man. He clearly knew that without strength, no matter how much he talked big, the choice was in the other party's hands. Whatever he did, he had to watch the other party's expression.
Shangguan Yan nodded:
"Alright, bring the item."
He flicked a finger, and a burst of energy shot towards A Niu. Immediately after, he fell down stiffly.
Clean and decisive!
A Niu's eyes showed bewilderment even in death. It seemed he couldn't quite believe, even as he died, that he had been abandoned by someone yet again.
Zhao Li didn't stop it. People like A Niu were not worth mourning.
Seeing this, the Village Chief sighed inwardly. He knew he couldn't drag this out any longer. If Shangguan Yan truly lost his patience, most of them wouldn't survive.
He took out a sheepskin scroll from his Storage Ring and handed it to Shangguan Yan.
Zhao Li looked at the somewhat ancient Sheepskin Scroll. He was very curious as well.
His Soul Power extended, silently sweeping over the Sheepskin Scroll. A Cultivation Technique was inscribed on it. Other than that, Zhao Li didn't find anything else different.
Zhao Li quickly absorbed the content of the Cultivation Technique, dissecting and analyzing every word in his mind. Soon, Zhao Li understood its essence, and then frowned:
"Isn't this just the Qianyuan Blood Burning Technique?"
The Blood Burning Realm Breaking Technique, its rank unknown, had no cultivation restrictions. Its only effect was to burn lifespan in exchange for power.
The most crucial part was its pathetic return, barely even a tenth of what was put in. This was almost identical to the evil technique he had seen in novels before.
"Right. No matter the world, cultivation is out of reach for ordinary people. There will always be people on the path of pursuing cultivation who find so-called shortcuts and create an evil technique."
Gone.
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