Sneak Attack

They reclaimed wasteland, built irrigation works, constructed roads and bridges, and recruited workers from the villages around the town.

For the time being, those people did not dare to directly join them, while Ming Shu did not immediately begin inspecting and registering the farmland either. He first arranged some work for them and, by providing relief through labor, gave them grain to see them through the winter.

Both sides needed a transitional period to observe and assess each other.

The Household had entered a period of stable development. Old Zhao's side had brought the captives back from the valley to work near Baishi Village again.

Everyone had grown accustomed to this band of pirates, and their fear of them had faded considerably. They were not unbeatable, after all. They had the same one head, two hands, two feet, one mouth, and two eyes as everyone else. Why should they willingly let themselves be oppressed forever?

In educating the new generation, Ming Shu emphasized the importance of striving ceaselessly to improve oneself. It had to be cultivated from childhood.

Every five days, Ming Shu released a new weather forecast. Its accuracy had already reached fifty percent, and more and more people were beginning to believe him.

The arrow tower in the courtyard had also been rebuilt into an observation platform for stargazing, and it was taller now. Arrow towers had also been rebuilt at several key locations around the village, so they could be used for sentry duty and combat when necessary.

The second pirate to surrender was unexpectedly the master of that snow frog demon spirit who had once led the group—the big, dumb fellow.

Everyone called him Han Han, so he was registered as Han Han. He was much stronger than Tie Ju and worked with far more vigor, but he also had a much bigger appetite.

Little Zhao had previously told him that if he wanted to eat his fill, he had to work harder. He had taken those words to heart. He had performed especially well, so they had made him a regular employee ahead of schedule.

It could not really be called surrender, either. There were not many pirate secrets in his head that he could reveal. He had simply adapted to life here, accepted the way things were done here and their values, and grown fond of the environment and people here.

Thus, they naturally loosened the restrictions on him and gave him more freedom. Although the fellow was both dull-witted and reckless, when told to charge forward, he truly dared to do so.

Under Little Zhao's careful training, he had become more obedient, and even when he should not charge, people could still hold him back. That made him much easier and more convenient to use.

Another month passed quietly. Just as everyone had relaxed their guard against the pirates, the sneak attack came.

Evil Dragon Island had still noticed what was happening here, especially since the Zhao clan's caravan had come by not long ago and brought a great many fine goods.

Several nearby households had exchanged large quantities of supplies, especially ironware. Baishi Village had organized and initiated this trade, but they were the weakest and could not produce much to exchange, let alone afford to buy much.

They had merely displayed the backing behind them, using it to build good relations with their neighbors and jointly resist pirates and other outside enemies.

This naturally attracted the attention of the pirates from Evil Dragon Island as well.

At dusk, a pirate force suddenly charged over. The commotion was considerable.

The guards on patrol immediately responded. While sending word, they organized the people still working in the fields and evacuated them.

After receiving the warning, Zhao Dun and the others immediately assembled the guards and prepared for battle.

At that moment, Ming Shu was still discussing the matter of cashiers and account books with Old Zhao, Xiao Shiyi, and Lü E.

Ming Shu was still trying to teach them to handle affairs using modern accounting concepts and tools.

As for Zhao Siqi, because she had just broken through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, she was still in closed-door cultivation to consolidate her realm and cultivation. She had not participated in managing affairs for over a month.

She had only left seclusion to meet the members of the Zhao clan's caravan when they came, then hurried back into seclusion.

This was simply what closed-door cultivation was like for low-level cultivators. They still had to come out to eat and wash every day. They merely devoted more time and energy to cultivation, concentrating their strength in an effort to break through bottlenecks.

It was unlike high-level cultivators, who could go without food for long periods of time. That was more like true death seclusion.

After receiving the alarm, the few of them hurriedly set aside the matters in their hands, drew their weapons, and prepared for battle.

Lü E returned to the inner courtyard. Ming Shu climbed onto the observation platform to first determine the general situation of the enemy.

Old Zhao organized the farmers in town, sending the women, children, and elderly home while having the able-bodied take up weapons and form a defensive line in town.

At the same time, they could not fire signal arrows. It was not yet night, and the specially made fire arrows were very ineffective in daylight. Smoke signals could also transmit messages during the day, but it was dusk now. Smoke was rising from every village as cooking began, and the setting sun also weakened the effect of the smoke signals.

The enemy's attack was clearly targeted.

Ming Shu felt uneasy. He knew that he was the target. The timing was so precise that he even suspected there was an inside agent coordinating with them.

It was not only the village and the town that needed to be viewed with suspicion; several of the neighbors also had to be suspected.

Not long ago, they had witnessed the strength of his backing. Could they be trying to test his true power now?

From the high platform, Ming Shu looked into the distance and could already see the pirates' tattered flags and their men. There were only five demon spirits. The rest were merely mortal Martial Artists.

The demon spirits were Mao Xie Jiang, Qing Xie Jiang, Hei Zhao E, Zhan Ci E, and Shi Lin E.

Judging from their auras, they were probably not as simple as low-level demon spirits.

He did not know whether everyone could withstand their assault. As he calculated the fighting strength at his disposal, Ren Yuan, a fourth-stage Martial Artist who also possessed a demon spirit, was still the strongest general.

Next came Old Zhao, a fifth-stage Martial Artist; Zhao Dun and Zhao Chuan, fourth-stage Martial Artists; Chong Li, a third-stage sorcerer who also possessed a demon spirit; Zhao Siqi, who had reached the third stage of cultivation, the Foundation Establishment Realm; and then himself, a second-stage sorcerer who also possessed a demon spirit.

There was also Xiao Shiyi, a second-stage scholar in the Scholar Realm. He and the two Spirit Planter Masters did not have much combat power.

Little Zhao (Zhao Xiaojie), a third-stage Martial Artist, still had Still Water Frog—Tie Ju—and Snow Frog—Han Han. They could barely be counted as combat strength.

The remaining guards were basically first- or second-stage Martial Artists.

The first stage of Martial Artists was the Body Strengthening Realm, and the second stage was the Bronze Skin Iron Bones Realm. Only then could they be considered to possess a certain degree of combat power. The situation now was that they had to stop the five mid- to high-level fighters on the other side.

The five great pirate leaders came charging straight over with their men, their momentum fierce and imposing.

Without wanting to expose the fox demon, Ming Shu would have to personally lead his demon spirit into battle. Moreover, communication with the fox demon had not yet been properly established, and it was still quite emotional. It might not be willing to obediently fight.

A few days earlier, Ming Shu had already undone the first layer of its seal, allowing it to recover to the first stage.

Ming Shu had not spotted any pirates approaching from the other directions on the high platform, so he came down and went out with everyone to meet the enemies approaching from the east.

Those five demon spirits were actually being carried over by the group of pirates. They were the real lords and masters.

The five pirate leaders first had to bow and salute them, then invite them into their bodies, granting themselves powerful strength.

After the two crab-general demon spirits possessed their pirate hosts, the pirates relied on the hard armor that had appeared over their bodies and leaped straight over to slaughter their way through.

Zhao Dun and Zhao Chuan joined forces to face one. Old Zhao faced another.

After the Zhan Ci E and Shi Lin E demon spirits possessed two pirates, they also charged into battle. Ren Yuan blocked Zhan Ci E.