Hunting

The next morning, upon waking up, it was the third day of Ning Zheng being the Manor Lord.

With his hair a messy bird's nest, he got up, combed his hair, washed his face, brushed his teeth, and went to the toilet. Another ordinary day began.

There was nothing to teach today, so he planned to go down the mountain earlier, around noon.

After all, he was about to break through to the next realm and wanted to make good progress.

Although he could cultivate at the manor, the efficiency was too low. The constant shouting and chattering of those people made it impossible to concentrate.

Humans are strange creatures. When it was quiet before, they found it boring and wished for guests, for liveliness, for some human presence.

Now, after only a few days, they were annoyed and felt that quiet days were more comfortable.

However, Ning Zheng soon discovered that something was wrong.

[Today's Luck: 485]

?

Why did his luck value drop by fifteen points today?

Was something unlucky about to happen to him?

Ning Zheng frowned.

If he had only 15 luck points like before, wouldn't he be on the verge of death?

Ning Zheng looked closely and suddenly the prompt box above his head changed again.

[Luck Value -1]

?

It dropped again!

This was truly inexplicable.

Ning Zheng pondered for a moment, "Is it continuous? Does it drop about one point every hour or so?"

This drop in luck value might be a warning.

Was some danger approaching him, or perhaps the manor?

He didn't rush. Instead, after finishing breakfast, he decided to go to the manor to take a look.

In his opinion, there weren't many crises he faced.

1. The river demon.

He had fished up too many river demons, and now they were coming for him?

That seemed plausible.

Every day, he sent Ning Jiaojiao to their gathering place to perform seductive dances, flaunt her charms, and sing. How many good young men had she charmed away?

Now, after several years, they were finally getting angry, which was quite a slow reaction!

But what could Ning Zheng do? The main reason was that Ning Jiaojiao wanted to eat meat.

2. Crows.

Crows were not like river demons; they had very short tempers.

He never dared to provoke them.

Because he had personally witnessed the white-haired eldest brother selling pork on the next street being attacked daily.

Ning Zheng had subtly inquired, and it turned out that this person had attacked crows with a broom in his lifetime, and the crows had held a grudge ever since!

He had been dead for over a hundred years, yet they still defecated on him, bullying a weak yin spirit. This was probably what "bound by life and death" meant.

He wasn't young with white hair, but rather, as a yin spirit, he didn't wash his hair. The crows helped him wash his hair every day, and over time, his hair turned white.

Therefore, Ning Zheng absolutely dared not provoke them at the moment.

But what if, by chance, the crows suddenly took a disliking to him?

The probability of trouble from river demons and crows was relatively low. Even if something happened, Ning Zheng felt he could escape. It was the following two that were Ning Zheng's main concerns.

3. The annual market.

Perhaps some great malevolence from the spirit manor next door took a dislike to me when I went shopping?

The spirit manor was surrounded by seven or eight other spirit manors. Ning Zheng had no desire to explore or court death. He had basically never visited the neighboring spirit manors, and it was possible there was something even more malevolent than Ning Jiaojiao there.

Perhaps he would be attacked at the annual market, and even if he cleared Ning Jiaojiao's mind and unleashed her full power, she still couldn't defeat the opponent.

Therefore, this trip was perilous.

4. Demons on the manor, and any remaining remnants?

"If it's the annual market and there's danger, I won't go," Ning Zheng thought, feeling a slight panic. "On the other hand, if there are still remnants of the demons, that would be the most dangerous."

Ning Zheng had sneakily attacked them without adhering to martial ethics, but he was certain that all the demons on the mountain were dead.

But what if they had relatives?

What if some friends came to visit and found they couldn't get in touch?

After all, in this life, who doesn't have a few friends.

Birds of a feather flock together, and they are certainly not good things.

"We need to eliminate these dangers one by one and confirm where they came from," Ning Zheng pondered.

He wasn't nervous either, having seen too many crises.

Hiding in the spirit manor, figuring out the patterns and living with a group of terrifying creatures, cursing demons, weren't all those near-death experiences? Weren't they all walking a tightrope?

Along the mountain path, he opened the manor gate.

He found the open-air blacksmith shop still bustling, the "Duang~Duang" echoing through the heavens and earth.

This group of people was very enthusiastic; they now absolutely loved the forging workshop.

After starting to forge iron, many of them wanted to create +13 ultimate weapons.

Of course, most people weren't very lucky.

The weapons they forged had many flaws. The rough blanks for magic artifacts also required them to be perfectly round, without cracks, without hidden damage, and so on. Many of them experienced [forging failed], [forging failed].

"Failed the quenching again. This Emperor's Crack is too big; it definitely won't pass the cutting test."

"Didn't they say forging this blank was very simple? How come I can't even make it sturdy and solid!"

"Pad the blade, it's all padding the blade; the big one is coming soon!"

"Exactly! The more I fail, the more my proficiency increases."

"Let's go forge pipe fittings. They're simple and easy to make. Anyway, a task has been posted. The dormitory pipe construction needs them, and forging ten will get you one magic coin."

It was bustling.

Mainly because their luck wasn't very good.

After all, forging is something that heavily relies on skill, state, and luck.

But Ning Zheng believed that diligence could compensate for bad luck.

He took a walk around and found that everyone was well-assigned.

They were assigned as chefs, miners, blacksmiths, and an enforcement team to prevent these people from stealing. They were weighed when entering and exiting, and a giant scale was set up in the distance, called a fair scale.

Everyone had to step on it when entering and exiting, and they could also take the opportunity to weigh themselves.

It was evident that the management system had improved greatly.

After all, the steward took a 5% cut, and Jiu Cai Rong certainly wouldn't let these bastards who were constantly opening treasure chests steal from him.

There was also a group of people busy in the dormitories, further improving them and creating mechanisms like pipe showers and pipe feeding.

Ning Zheng went to take a look.

The current dormitories were like a super-large square toilet. The ground was dug very deep, about four or five stories high. Periodically, showers would flush, and rotating iron net bed frames would hang in mid-air.

At this height, Ning Zheng peered down and felt a bit of acrophobia!

This was equivalent to sleeping on iron net hammocks suspended from a tall building.

If someone fell in, they wouldn't be able to swim out; they could only slide slowly along the slope into the pipes and then into the septic tank. The muddy smell would be truly miserable!

But some people weren't afraid; they played for the thrill.

At this moment, these people were working at high altitudes without safety ropes. Not only that, but they even deliberately jumped back and forth on the iron pipes and beds, showing off their skills like monkeys, laughing and joking, just playing some extreme sport.

They weren't afraid of falling.

They even shouted things like, "Something will happen sooner or later, but it's fine if I play at noon," and "I can find Red Bull for sponsorship," all sorts of nonsense, highlighting their stubbornness.

After walking around, Ning Zheng was unfazed. Instead, he admired their practical skills.

It had only been two days, and it had become like this. This organizational strength and enthusiasm were also thanks to the Money Boy, who had great strength and was naturally suited for hard labor like moving bricks and digging mines.

He could be called the pangolin of another world, perfectly suited for the job.

Ning Zheng pondered for a moment and was actually somewhat satisfied: "It seems I can set my expectations for them higher! This Sword Forging Manor might truly become big and strong?"

At this moment, Jiu Cai Rong also walked over and respectfully greeted him, "Steward, we would like the method for forging finished magic artifacts."

In other games.

This [skill book] would definitely have to be purchased from an NPC or redeemed.

But this game was conscientious, especially the old steward, who had a gentle personality and tried his best to help with reasonable requests.

"Why do you want this?" Ning Zheng frowned. "Haven't you just started forging rough blanks for magic artifacts?"

He had previously given them the first part of the basic forging book, and he still had the second part. The method for forging magic artifacts was not necessary to give them, as they had no materials.

"We want to forge magic artifacts," Jiu Cai Rong said. "As for materials, we plan to hunt crows."

Ning Zheng was startled.

So this was the source of the danger. These guys wanted to provoke the crows right from the start?

When crows airdropped things, it was considered a favor, a gift from the crow lords. Did they really think the crows had no offensive capabilities?

Scratching people was no joke, and they could even peck. The sight of a swarm of birds flying together was terrifying to imagine.

Provoke it?

There must be tens of thousands of them.

There's no need to elaborate on such an exaggerated number.

Based on the manor's population ratio, it's like a hundred people fighting tens of thousands of crows, only to be pecked to death.

He wanted to stop them, but after thinking about it, he decided not to say anything.

Crisis and opportunity coexist.

If they succeed, it would indeed be a good thing.

Besides, they're the ones who will be targeted. What does that have to do with me, Ning?

It just so happens that I don't plan on going up the mountain frequently anytime soon. It's the perfect time to distance myself, sit back, and watch the tigers fight, observing the crow airdrop and the crow swarm battle from below.

If they can't win and suffer defeat, they can just hide in their dorms and not go out. The crows won't be able to get in; they'll just fly around outside.

Anyway, the Money Boy doesn't need to bask in the sun and likes living in caves. At worst, we can switch to an underground manor, forge iron underground, and create an underground manor.

If it works out, we might even get crow demon beasts to make meat fields.

Ning Zheng has never been one to shy away.

Not fighting for resources, not becoming stronger, just lying low and hiding, will absolutely not lead to peace.

Because sooner or later, your weakness will make you someone else's cultivation resource, and then you'll only regret your timidity and wasted time.

You never know which will come first, danger or tomorrow.

Besides, as long as they kill enough and lure out the crow leader, Ning Zheng will have a chance to use the "good luck" of "using an ounce of force to overcome a thousand pounds," and secretly shoot a cold arrow with his bow and arrow, coincidentally killing it.

This is an opportunity to obtain meat fields.

If it succeeds, cultivation will definitely speed up.

Ning Jiaojiao also needs meat fields. Consuming a large amount of flesh and blood will accelerate her transformation, give her higher self-awareness, break free from the shackles of her past life, and embark on the path of yin cultivation, with the real possibility of "coming back to life."

"You are very brave, wanting to change your fate as manor slaves. I am very pleased, but this will also be a very dangerous challenge."

Ning Zheng said, "If you insist on doing this, I suggest you reinforce the dormitories on the first floor and build roofs for the blacksmith shop on the second floor, so it's not so open-air."

Jiu Cai Rong stroked his chin. "Are you afraid of rain, and then we won't be able to forge iron?"

"Mm, it's about like rain, and not being able to forge iron." Ning Zheng thought about the scene and felt it was too much to bear.