Old Man Yu's Choice

After eating their breakfast of spirit rice, Old Man Yu suddenly called out to his three sons, who were about to head out to work in the fields.

Facing his three sons' puzzled gazes, Old Man Yu spoke up, "From now on, only one person needs to stay in the Spirit Field during the day. The rest of you go carry stones. I plan to build the courtyard wall higher; it might be able to block those bugs a little."

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of the three Yu brothers changed.

In their eyes, for their father to say this meant he had made up his mind to stay behind.

There was clearly still some time left, so why give up now?

"Dad!"

Yu Dashan stood up abruptly.

"Dad, believe me, there must be another way."

Yu Ershan also stood up and said.

Old Man Yu was willing to leave the chance of survival to his sons, but as his sons, how could they just watch their father go to his death?

Even the youngest, Yu Xiaoshan, had reddened eyes.

Don't let Old Man Yu's earlier talk about hiding in the cellar—claiming he would at most lose a dozen years of his lifespan—fool you; who would dare to gamble on that?

If the bugs happened to sense them, even the deepest cellar would be of no use.

"That's enough, it's settled. If you don't want to see me get eaten by bugs, then build that wall sturdy."

Old Man Yu held back, not revealing the matter of the Rare Species.

It wasn't that he didn't trust his three sons, but he understood that a Rare Species was both a blessing and a curse.

One careless move could bring disaster upon the entire family.

He knew the temperaments of his three sons all too well.

His eldest son was honest and thick-headed, without many crooked thoughts. He was sentimental and prone to acting on emotion, and he wasn't good at hiding his feelings.

To put it bluntly, he couldn't act; it would be easy for others to see that something was wrong.

His youngest son was too young, impulsive in his actions, and couldn't control himself.

Only his second son had been clever since childhood. Unfortunately, he had damaged his foundation during fetal movement, and ever since then, he had become increasingly silent, often overthinking things and carrying a heavy heart.

If Old Man Yu had to choose one son to tell the secret to, it could only be his second son.

Therefore, he planned to observe for a few more days. As long as he could be absolutely certain that the little tree was a Rare Species, he would tell his second son first.

This would also avoid any misunderstandings or a wasted celebration.

Of course, that would be a different story if his son discovered the extraordinary nature of the Rare Species in the courtyard first and guessed the truth.

Regardless, reinforcing the perimeter wall was the top priority.

Choosing to stay was a decision he had made after weighing the pros and cons.

Because this was not just a matter of a Rare Species; it was potentially the hope for his family's rise.

For ordinary trees, the possibility of surviving the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster was almost zero, but for a Rare Species, the odds were definitely high.

As long as he remained cautious and endured for a few years, waiting until his eldest son reached the Perfection of Fetal Movement, then everything would be worth it.

By then, he would use this Rare Species to directly trade for an Immortal Destiny, allowing his eldest son to break through to the Qi Refining Realm.

The reason he still had to wait a few years instead of trading it now was simple.

He could not keep it a secret.

As soon as someone came to dig up this Rare Species, the matter would inevitably be exposed. At that point, his family would be unable to protect the Immortal Destiny they had acquired; countless people would surely covet it. The longer it took, the greater the danger.

But if his eldest son had already reached the Perfection of Fetal Movement by then, he could obtain the Immortal Destiny and immediately refine it to attempt a breakthrough.

Who could take it away then?

So, in the final analysis, it all came down to a lack of strength.

Of course, keeping the Rare Species now also carried a certain risk. If this Rare Species could not survive this year's Black Annihilation Wind Disaster, then everything would be for naught. He would simply treat it as if he had never possessed it, and conclude that the Yu family lacked the fortune for it.

For the sake of this family, and for his son to travel further on the path of cultivation, he was willing to bet everything, including his life.

Only by staying could he have an excuse and a reason to build up the courtyard wall without raising suspicion.

Fortunately, for now, the little tree in the yard only looked a bit more vibrant than before; its appearance had not changed significantly, nor did it reveal any extraordinary signs in broad daylight.

Planting a tree in one's own yard was common enough; it provided shade in the summer and could be chopped down for firewood the following year.

Therefore, even if someone came to his house, they wouldn't pay it any mind.

After all, if he hadn't seen what happened last night, even he wouldn't have made such a connection.

Moreover, in the Settlement, except for the central area, most houses were built adjacent to Spirit Fields, appearing scattered and disorganized.

The nearest neighbor to his house was over a hundred meters away.

Usually, no one would bother coming to his home at all.

As such, if he built the courtyard wall higher so the little tree could not be seen from the outside, that would be enough.

As for the rest, it would depend on whether his eldest son could live up to expectations, and on fate!

Under Old Man Yu's near-angry insistence, the three brothers reluctantly accepted the arrangement. They left Yu Xiaoshan to guard the Spirit Field, while the other two followed Old Man Yu to carry stones.

Ox Ridge had a massive pile of scattered rocks. The houses in the Settlement were primarily built using materials from here; only stone houses could withstand the onslaught of the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster.

Otherwise, even if no one lived in them during the wind disaster, one would likely return the following year to find nothing but ruins, requiring the house to be rebuilt from scratch.

Coincidentally, when Old Man Yu and his sons arrived at the Stone Ridge, they discovered they weren't the only family there carrying stones.

Clearly, besides him, there were others in the Settlement who had chosen to stay behind.

A quota for the Blessed Land cost fifteen Spirit Stones, a price not every family could afford.

A family like Old Man Yu's consisted mostly of young, strong laborers skilled in cultivating the Spirit Field, placing their household income in the upper tier of the Settlement.

If even they couldn't afford it, it went without saying for those less fortunate.

By this calculation, the number of people choosing to stay this year was likely beyond imagination.

"Uncle Yu, you're planning to stay too?"

A man who looked to be in his thirties stepped forward to greet him.

"What else can I do if I don't stay?"

Old Man Yu sighed, his face filled with helplessness.

"Yeah, those big shots in the Blessed Land are clearly trying to force us to our deaths. If only..."

The middle-aged man spoke with resentment.

"Zhuzi!"

Old Man Yu scolded in a low voice. The latter shuddered instantly, cold sweat faintly breaking out on his forehead.

In daily life, grumbling a few words in one's heart was one thing, but openly cursing the big shots in the Blessed Land could implicate the entire family if word reached the wrong ears.

Because of the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster, ordinary people like them could only survive in this world by seeking shelter under the Blessed Land.

To them, the Blessed Land was the heavens.

And those big shots represented the will of heaven.

This was why, even when the price of the Blessed Land quota skyrocketed, everyone could only hold their noses and endure it, doing whatever they could to scrape the funds together rather than uniting to protest.

Not to mention the high and mighty Golden Core True Persons or the so-called Foundation Establishment "Ancestors," even a mere Qi Refining Realm Cultivator could easily slaughter an entire Settlement.

What qualifications did they have to protest?

Old Man Yu had heard before that some Blessed Lands treated ordinary people like straw dogs. By comparison, the New Moon Blessed Land was already considered relatively benevolent.

Only the ignorant would be fearless.