On the Road

In the mountain forest, Rumble, rumble.

The ground trembled slightly, kicking up clouds of dust. A caravan of five carts laden with various supplies, escorted by a team of forty or fifty men, was making its way through the woods.

"Faster! Pick up the pace! We're only ten miles from Great Bay Village!"

"Don't slack off! Push through to the destination, and you'll have plenty of time to rest!"

The Team Leader, dressed in grey martial attire, paced back and forth, his face taut as he shouted orders.

The commoners in the caravan, already exhausted from the long trek, gritted their teeth and forced themselves to keep going, their minds filled only with the thought of resting once they reached their destination.

At this moment, At the front of the caravan, Flanking the relatively ornate carriage at the lead, two tall steeds trotted half a length ahead, guarding the sides.

Sitting on the horse to the left was an old man of sixty or seventy. Though his temples were frosted with age, his eyes remained sharp. A large decapitation blade was slung across his back, and he exuded an aura of rugged valor.

To the right was a man with an honest face and a burly build. Hanging from his waist was a three-foot-long mace, its head covered in ferocious iron spikes and weighing several hundred pounds.

"Xiao Chuan, your old man is truly biased! You're his son, after all. Even if we don't expect you to be like those eldest young masters sent to govern large cities in luxury, you should at least be sent to a small town! What kind of nonsense is this, banishing you to this godforsaken Great Bay Village?"

"We've been traveling for three months just to get here. This place is practically on the very edge of what the Tian Nan Shen Family can control!"

"What possible benefit could a dump like this have for your cultivation?"

The rugged old man grumbled while riding his horse, occasionally patting the animal's head, causing it to snort.

His words betrayed his deep indignation at the treatment of the young man inside the carriage.

"Maternal Grandfather, the Patriarch has over fifty children. I am merely an unremarkable illegitimate son."

"Though I am called an illegitimate son of the Patriarch, to a cultivation family like the Shen Family, I am no more than a servant."

Inside the carriage, Fifteen-year-old Shen Changchuan spoke calmly, his face bearing a maturity that belied his years.

He spoke without much expression.

"My mother had to pay a heavy price just to secure this assignment for me to oversee Great Bay Village."

"It is only because this village is far from Tiannan City, located at the very border of the Shen Family's territory, and produces nothing but Spirit Grain from its Spirit Fields, that it fell to me."

"Otherwise, for a place like the prosperous towns near Tiannan City, someone of my status wouldn't even dare to dream of it."

At this point, Shen Changchuan could not help but sigh, explaining slowly to the rugged old man beside him.

The tough old man, named Han Qinhu, was Shen Changchuan's Maternal Grandfather.

Han Qinhu was born a simple mountain farmer, but he possessed innate talent from a young age. As a youth, he could wrestle tigers and leopards, and later, under the guidance of a master, he perfected his blade techniques.

After entering the martial world as an adult, he earned a reputation as an Innate Hero in the Mortal Realm.

Yet, even a renowned Innate Hero of the mortal world was nothing in the eyes of cultivators.

It is said that many years ago, Han Qinhu suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of a cultivator, which led him to abandon the martial world, return to his hometown, marry, and have three sons and two daughters.

As for the specifics of that humiliation, Han Qinhu remained tight-lipped, guarding the secret for half a lifetime; no one ever found out.

Twenty years ago, By a stroke of luck, the middle-aged Han Qinhu managed to connect with a steward of the Shen Family, a cultivation clan, and sent his beautiful daughter to serve as a maid.

A few years later, the man Shen Changchuan secretly dubbed a "human seed-sower"—his half-brother's father and the Shen Family Patriarch, Shen Fuxing—had a drunken encounter with Shen Changchuan's mother, leading to his birth.

Precisely because of this, Compared to the eldest young masters born to the First Madam or Second Madam—who were products of alliances between cultivation families—or even the illegitimate children born to concubines from powerful mortal royal or noble clans, Shen Changchuan's status was among the lowest of the Patriarch's fifty-plus children.

After all, his mother's background and his maternal family's influence were, in the eyes of other noble clans, royal families, and even immortal sects, no different from those of mortal farmers.

It was only because he possessed a shred of cultivation talent, combined with the mature mindset of his past life and a cautious approach, that he survived; otherwise, in the backstabbing Shen Family Manor, he would have lived worse than a servant.

After all, In a cultivation family like the Shen Family, there was no such thing as brotherly affection.

"Actually, being further away is fine; it suits my wishes perfectly. At the very least, I can avoid the infighting within the family and stay clear of the vortex created by the First and Second Madams."

"Otherwise, with my current standing, even the smallest ripple in the family could crush me against the shore."

Speaking of this, Shen Changchuan felt a lingering sense of dread.

This was not him being overly anxious; it was a very real possibility.

Two years ago, one of his half-brothers had simply shown a bit too much talent for cultivation, and as a result, he was found dead with seven stabs in his back.

How could a commoner like him, born as a mere nobody in his past life, ever hope to participate in the sinister power struggles of these great families?

To be honest, back when he was at the Shen Mansion, he could be said to have lived in constant fear and trepidation, terrified that he might lose his life at any moment for reasons unknown.

By comparison, being sent out to this Great Bay Village, far from Tiannan City, couldn't possibly be any worse than that.

"Sigh, that is true."

"It's a bit far, but at least there isn't all that nonsense to deal with."

Hearing this, Han Qinhu opened his mouth and muttered, though his voice dropped low, clearly not daring to discuss the private affairs of the immortal household in public.

However, he was perfectly clear about the situation in his heart. The power struggle between the First Madam and the Second Madam in the back courtyard of the Shen Family Patriarch, Shen Fuxing, was something even the outside world had heard whispers of. As Shen Changchuan's Maternal Grandfather, he knew even deeper inside information.

But as a mere mortal, Han Qinhu dared not delve too deeply into such private matters. After all, trouble comes from the mouth. Having roamed the pugilistic world in his youth and experienced the ways of the world, Han Qinhu understood what could be said and what could not.

"I heard that a total of twelve mu of Spirit Field have been cultivated in Great Bay Village. If managed well, after paying the family's share, it wouldn't be a bad foundation to hold."

In truth, Han Qinhu had no complaints about being stationed at Great Bay Village. As a mere mortal in the eyes of the immortals, what right did he have to be picky? He knew how many renowned heroes of the mortal world had served as dogs for the immortals for years without ever tasting a single bowl of Spirit Rice.

And Great Bay Village, so it was said, had a full twelve mu of Spirit Field! As long as the annual quota of Spirit Grain was paid to the Shen Family, the rest belonged to the guardian. By relying on his grandson, he might even get to taste the Spirit Rice that immortals ate for cultivation. That was a treasure that, if consumed regularly, offered a chance to Attract Qi to the Dao!

It was precisely for this reason that when he received word from his daughter that his own grandson, Shen Changchuan, was being sent out to guard a post and needed help, he had abandoned most of his wealth and business, bringing his eldest son, Han Dayong, and most of his servants to follow his grandson to his new post.

To put it nicely, he was going to help his grandson and assist with the management of the post. To put it bluntly, he was eagerly clinging to his grandson's coattails, hoping that when one person attains the Dao, their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven, and that he could bring his family's younger generation along for the ride.

One had to know that there were many famous martial artists outside who wanted to be dogs for the immortals but lacked the connections! If not for the blood relation, how could such a good opportunity ever fall to him, Han Qinhu?

His earlier muttering was merely to voice his indignation at the treatment his grandson, Shen Changchuan, had received. In reality, he was looking forward to the trip to Great Bay Village with bated breath. He hadn't slept well for days leading up to their departure. How could he possibly have any real reason to complain?

Shen Changchuan chatted idly with his Maternal Grandfather, Han Qinhu, taking the opportunity to broaden his own horizons, having grown up in the deep confines of a great mansion, and to learn about the general state of the mortal world. To his right, his eldest uncle, Han Dayong, rode in silence, unable to squeeze out a single word for half the day, and did not join in their idle chatter.

Just then, suddenly, "Ah!" A shrill, miserable scream erupted from the road ahead.

Shen Changchuan was jolted into alertness. Something had happened!