The Different Village, and the Terrifying Truth

What shocked him even more was yet to come.

The villagers all had smiles on their faces and were dressed in exquisite and delicate clothes.

The woman was dressed elegantly, while the man was dressed with a sophisticated air.

They were nothing like the unsophisticated people of the past; they all had the air of officials from the imperial court.

To be honest, during his reign, the villagers worked hard, and although the arrival of players helped them maintain a basic standard of living, they couldn't eat or dress very well.

Actually, this was intentionally controlled by the Corporate Players and their elders...

They worried that if the villagers ate and dressed too well, they would be less willing to fight the strange creatures.

In their minds, only poor people are easy to fool and provoke.

Offering some rewards will motivate people to risk their lives.

Upon seeing this, his initial shock vanished, replaced by a hint of disdain and mockery.

"As expected of a young lad, he doesn't understand these upper-level intricacies, only thinking about 'you're good, I'm good, everyone's good,' it's laughable!"

He bluntly and decisively looked down on Gao Linzhi and said:

"You've given the villagers such a good life; if strange things happen in the future, why would they be willing to fight for them?"

"How much will you have to pay to get them to fight so hard?"

"Do you think I couldn't provide them with this kind of good life before?"

"Do you think I'm incompetent and can't manage the village well?"

"You think...?"

"I thought you were an idiot," Gao Linzhi interrupted him directly. "Why would you make the villagers fight to the death?"

"Is something weird necessarily scary?"

"Look around, where's the strange thing here? Strange things are in the wild. Find one near the village and show it to me."

"You've learned so much esoteric knowledge, yet you can't even solve a simple strange occurrence, forcing the villagers to risk their lives. Does your virtue match your position?"

The former Great Elder was speechless, but he was still unconvinced.

Prejudice in people's hearts is a mountain; he absolutely did not believe that a young man could manage such a complex village!

He then looked around, determined to find something amiss.

On the streets of the village.

Every street is under renovation.

Most of the houses on both sides of the street were demolished and the area was widened.

The streets were originally twisted, with dead ends, winding roads, and maze-like paths everywhere.

The purpose is to ward off strange occurrences.

Many strange things won't enter a house unless there's a riot; they'll just wander along the way.

So the village built all sorts of bizarre roads, basically trapping the strange and unusual within them, letting them wander around.

There are only a few straight roads: the main road leading to the Fourth Elder' houses in the center of the village, and other straight roads leading to the other three directions in the village.

That was for the purpose of quickly deploying troops.

They first gathered at the Fourth Elder' homes, and then quickly spread out to provide support in all directions.

If outsiders enter the village, they will find themselves trapped in a maze if they do not take the main road.

Now, people are so worried that the road isn't straight, and that others might get lost.

Three-story buildings sprang up one after another, many of them brightly colored, as if afraid of failing to attract attention.

The villagers were laughing and chatting happily.

Several villagers, heartily eating barbecue and drinking ale at a roadside stall, were chatting idly.

"Life is so good now! We used to live like animals!"

"Yes, we have to rush inside before it gets dark, and we have to be on tenterhooks in the middle of the night. Every time we fall asleep, we have to steel ourselves."

"The new Great Elder is too late."

"Yes, if we had come a few years earlier, we could have enjoyed it a few years sooner."

"Life is so good now. We just need to rent out the houses and land in the center, and then build a big house in a corner of the village, and we can live comfortably every day."

"That's right. In the past, although there were Descenders to help us with work, those guys were all very shrewd, and it was difficult to make any money off them."

The former Great Elder was stunned and disheartened.

It's only been a few months!

No, it's been two months? These villagers have already forgotten all his hard work, his tears, his blood and sweat!

Without him, those strange and monstrous creatures would have already invaded the village and started a massacre!

He sacrificed a full twenty years of his lifespan to rapidly cultivate magical arts for the sake of the village.

Now it seems like all that work was for nothing!

Nobody appreciates your kindness.

Fortunately, our ancestors remembered us and gave our departed souls a temporary resting place.

However, since there is no memorial tablet for him in the ancestral hall, he cannot stay there for long, at most six months or a year, before he will vanish into nothingness.

Just as he was lamenting, the former Great Elder suddenly heard some arguing, and he was immediately delighted.

Sure enough, he knew that the bastard young man couldn't possibly do everything well.

"This passageway is for everyone to walk through; you can't build houses here!"

"Why can't I build it? I'm building it right next to my house wall, what's it to you?"

Two households of villagers were hurling insults at each other in an alley.

The Great Elder understood after hearing just a few words.

One family was being unreasonable and making a fuss; they wanted to occupy half of the passageway to build a shop and sell their goods there.

Because this alley is right next to a bustling main street, it's clearly profitable to do this.

In fact, he had already put up a "Prime Location for Rent" sign, and several potential buyers were already there looking at it.

"Boss, can you even build it? If you can't, just say so, I'll find another company."

Upon hearing this, the arrogant family quickly smiled ingratiatingly and said, "It'll be done right away. I guarantee you'll make a fortune here."

"Let me beat these two neighbors into submission first!"

"Get the hell out of here! So what if I take this land?"

"Sons, go forward and beat them!"

Soon, the four sons of the domineering family attacked the son and father of the reasonable family across the street.

The person who tried to reason with them was beaten so badly that they had no choice but to run home and lock themselves in to hide.

Subsequently, the arrogant family began to build shops.

A perfectly good alley has been squeezed out by shops, more than half of it has been reduced to a narrow passage where cars used to be able to pass, but now only dogs can pass through.

Seeing this, the former Great Elder sneered, "Look at what the once simple and honest villagers have become under your rule!"

"They're all blinded by greed and treacherous, indulging in comfort and ease; they're all ruined!"

Gao Linzhi immediately laughed, "Foolish, this precisely demonstrates economic vitality."

"Forget it, you wouldn't understand even if I told you. Just keep reading and you'll find out."

The former Great Elder looked disdainful.

Before long, two puppet guards came running over.

They were clad in black armor and moved with light, quick steps.

Upon arriving at the alley entrance, he began to report:

"We have reached alarm number 9998..."

"Start executing the work procedure now."

Ask a passerby.

Puppet A immediately led the onlookers, including the Descenders, to another alley, away from the tyrannical family's sight, to inquire about the matter.

Puppet B, on the other hand, was in charge of controlling the scene to prevent the domineering family from continuing to besiege the reasonable family.

Puppet A first asked a villager a question.

What just happened?

The villager was about to speak, but after thinking for a moment, he immediately shook his head and said, "I don't know anything."

"Don't ask me, we can't afford to offend that family."

"Assisting in the investigation is every villager's duty. You don't want to be wronged one day and have no one to tell the truth, do you?" Puppet A's words had a certain seductive and intimidating effect.

The villager said with difficulty, "Alright, I'll tell you. It's Zheng Jiucai's family that's being unreasonable, insisting on occupying the road to build their shop."

"If everyone did what he did, how would we possibly get along in the future?"

With Puppet A's patient questioning, the truth was quickly pieced together.

It's actually quite simple. The domineering family never even tried to cover it up; they just wanted to subdue others through beatings, insults, and disturbances, and then take over the territory.

The former Great Elder was stunned as he watched the puppets move methodically and steadily.

He could, of course, recognize it as a puppet at a glance.

However, in his previous impression, puppets were just an expensive and inconvenient trump card.

Puppets require human control, and if one's cultivation level is insufficient, they often cannot be controlled.

In a situation like this, sending two village soldiers to handle it would be far cheaper and more cost-effective than using puppets.

After all, village servants can repair themselves, reproduce themselves, earn money for themselves, and maintain themselves... but if a puppet is damaged or malfunctions, the owner has to pay for the materials himself.

Which one is better is obvious at a glance.

Of course, the village guards lack patience and are afraid of trouble, so the results of their handling of the situation will certainly not be satisfactory.

But they're cheap.

Cheap is good.

Puppet A quickly finished his questioning and returned to the alley between the tyrannical family and the reasonable family.

It then took photos of the scene.

Puppet B is also doing this, and the two verify each other.

After confirming the evidence, Puppet A then approached the arrogant family.

The other party was standing in front of the family's door, desperately smashing bricks at them.

It seems they don't take the puppets who maintain order seriously at all.

This family, whether they're foolish or incredibly audacious, even with puppets present, they're still causing trouble for a family that tries to reason with each other.

Puppet A then pointed to its chest and said, "Based on the situation and our estimation, there are five to seven enemies. We need ten reinforcements."

After saying that, Puppet A stood in front of the arrogant family, preventing them from breaking down the door.

"Stop! Someone just called the police, saying you're illegally occupying the road and building shops here."

"What you're doing violates village rules."

"What village rules? Who do you think you are?" the domineering family leader retorted with disdain. "What do you mean by illegal construction? I'm just building a little bit outside my own wall."

"What's illegal about this?"

The puppet explained mechanically, "The wall is yours, but the land outside isn't."

"You can only deal with the area inside the walls; the land outside is for public transportation."

"You have no right to dispose of it."

The domineering family suddenly lost their temper:

"What public transportation? I don't understand, so what?"

"I'm taking this spot, so what?"

"My grandson was once the village Patrol Team captain, what are you going to do with me? What are you going to do about it?"

Puppet A coldly stated, "The facts have been established, and it is entirely your responsibility. We are now issuing you three warnings."

"First warning: Remove immediately and restore to original condition."

"We will give you a chance to correct your behavior and avoid any further punishment."

"Get out of here, I won't tear it down!" the domineering family leader roared angrily.

"Second warning. Demolish it immediately and pay the fine, or you will be arrested and punished!"

The tyrannical family leader. "Damn it!"

"I've lived here for decades!"

"I'll build it however I want!"

"What right do you outsiders have to tell me what to do?"

"I can take a few extras privately, and nobody will say a word!"

"Three warnings. If you don't pay the fine, we'll demolish the structure and force you to do hard labor," Puppet A stepped forward and said.

"Hmph, get lost, you bastard! I have connections backing me up!"

"The Great Elder is my backer!"

"Try touching me!" The domineering family began to push and shove the puppet armor.

"Hey, what are you doing!" The domineering leader of the family was immediately pinned down by the puppet armor.

Immediately, more than a dozen puppets appeared in a swarm.

They rushed out from all directions and seized the entire domineering family, including the husband and sons.

Not long after, a fat woman came out of the yard.

When she saw her husband and son being taken away, she immediately lay down on the ground and screamed.

"Heavens above, fellow villagers, elders, and ancestors, please take a look!"

"Open your eyes and look!"

"These monsters are oppressing us villagers!"

At that moment, two more puppets rushed out, picked him up, and carried him away.

"You dare to molest me? You're dead!"

"Indecent assault!"

The other villagers came out one by one to watch the excitement.

"Look at this Zheng family, they used to be the most domineering family in the village."

"I heard that he has some close ties with the former Great Elder, and he throws tantrums whenever he gets into trouble. Nobody wants to get involved, and nobody dares to."

"Now that the new Great Elder has arrived, the heavens are clear!"

"Yes, these black-armored people don't care who you are. If you violate the village rules, they'll arrest you all and make you smash stones with those Descenders."

After reading it, the Great Elder remained silent for a long time.

He was completely stunned.

He could see the other party's firm control from just a small incident.

There was also the support of the villagers.

In the past, he didn't care about these things at all.

He has many things to do, and he mainly focuses his energy on improving his spellcasting skills.

These matters were all left to a few elders to handle.

The elders often couldn't be bothered to get involved, and the Captain would handle it rather than bothering to deal with it.

Therefore, whoever is close to them benefits.

But now, he saw a neat, orderly, fair and just village.

If a problem occurs, there will be sufficient manpower to handle it immediately.

No more fussing, full of patience.

This is something he could never do before.

"How?"

Do you still feel worse than you were before?

Gao Linzhi kills people by destroying their spirit.

The former Great Elder had nothing to say.

What just happened was even more shocking than when the other party killed him with a fireball.

It could be said that he was previously killed physically, and now he has been killed mentally.

He was finally convinced and had nothing more to say.

"Alright, I concede. I can tell you those secrets." Suddenly, the former Great Elder gave a cold laugh.

"Alright, go ahead and tell me, the reefs a thousand miles away on the sea..." Gao Linzhi asked again.

"Hmph, you want to know about things from a thousand miles away? Then I'll tell you, but the truth is terrifying. Do you really want to know?" the former Great Elder said with a hint of vengeance.

Although they may be convinced in their hearts, they won't admit it verbally.

"Whatever, go ahead and say it."

"Ridiculous. If you remain ignorant, you can live a peaceful life," the former Great Elder said disdainfully. "But once you know the truth, you'll never sleep soundly again."

"Stop talking nonsense."

"Hmph, an ancient secret passed down only among the Great Elder."

"Our Wolf Snake Island, Eagle Island, Tiger Leopard Island, and more than a dozen other nearby islands all live inside the mouth of a giant creature called the Great Chariot."

"This Great Chariot is said to have a billion hands and a billion mouths."

"Every entrance has Archipelago."

"One day, a tiny hand emerged from the side of the Great Chariot, and this tiny hand wreaked havoc on several islands."

"Finally, the people from our four villages were forced to commit violence by officials from the imperial court, resulting in the deaths of over a thousand people, before they finally joined forces to suppress the rebellion and imprison the people in the West Mountain."

"It's that mountain near West Wolf Village."

Gao Linzhi nodded.

He remembered.

He went to West Wolf Village before, wanting to hunt some high-level monsters, and saw a Five Finger Mountain.