Ancient Spring Town (Part 1)

Hanyang Road, carriage in haste.

A carriage raced down the main road, crushing the muddy ground and splashing mud in every direction.

A light rain had just fallen over Nanyue River, leaving the roads muddy and hard to travel. After going a little farther, the driver had to get down and scrape the mud off the axle, then let the horses rest as well.

As he wiped away the mud, he said, "Ten more li and we'll reach Wangchuan Prefecture, young master."

From inside the carriage, Ning Ye gave a soft "Mm." "We're not going into Wangchuan Prefecture. Take the main road around its western side."

The driver was taken aback. "Why didn't you say so earlier, young master? I could've turned off up ahead."

Ning Ye leaned against the carriage wall. "Do as you're told. I'll pay you extra."

"Oh." The driver didn't dare say anything more, but there wasn't the slightest trace of joy on his face.

Drivers, boatmen, and shopkeepers were all tradesmen who had seen the world. The driver could tell at a glance that his passenger was a cultivator.

Cultivators who could fly but chose to ride in a carriage weren't common, though they did exist. More importantly, people like that usually tried to skip out on the fare.

Ning Ye said he'd pay extra, but the driver didn't believe him. He didn't dare believe him.

He'd seen someone's head blown apart for asking for the fare. He'd also seen cultivators fly into a murderous rage over a bumpy ride.

After seeing enough, he'd learned not to trust a cultivator's word. But their business wasn't something he could refuse.

If a cultivator paid, you ought to bow three times and kowtow nine. If he didn't, you should still be grateful—to Heaven for its mercy in sparing your life, and to the cultivator for not being bloodthirsty.

Ning Ye knew the man didn't believe him, so he took out some silver and tossed it over.

The driver picked up the silver, but still didn't look the least bit happy.

Seeing his reaction, Ning Ye asked in surprise, "What, you still don't believe me?"

The driver smiled obsequiously. "How would I dare? It's just that I'm past the age of being happy over money. Meeting a good man like you makes me happy, of course. It means I might live a few more days."

What he really meant was that he'd only live a few more days.

Ning Ye was at a loss for words.

He'd wandered the world for a long time himself. How could he not know the hardships ordinary people endured?

Before the lofty immortals, the common folk had no way to resist and no hope left. If they had any hope at all, it was that someone in their family might become a cultivator and make them rich and powerful.

They were like livestock penned up for slaughter: without hope and unable to see a future, they struggled each day just to scrape together enough to eat.

If they encountered an immortal, they wouldn't even dare hope to keep enough to feed themselves.

And yet, for that very reason, these mortals weren't all that afraid of immortals. They were simply prepared to die at any moment.

If there was nothing worth living for, what was there to fear in death?

That was the way of the world. Even Ning Ye could do nothing about it. In the end, all he could do was sigh.

His consciousness entered the Thousand Mechanism Hall once more to inspect the Kunlun Mirror.

He couldn't bear to use the Soul-Lodging Token, so Ning Ye could only make an ordinary divination. Even so, he could feel that the opportunity he sought lay not far away.

Withdrawing from the Thousand Mechanism Hall, Ning Ye asked, "What's twenty li west of Wangchuan?"

The driver thought for a moment before replying, "I think it's Ancient Spring Town."

"Then that's where we'll go. I won't change my mind this time."

"Yes."

Just then, a voice came from behind them. "Ancient Spring Town? You're going to Ancient Spring Town? Perfect. Take me with you!"

Ning Ye lifted the carriage curtain and saw a woman walking toward them.

She looked somewhat familiar. Ning Ye thought for a moment, then finally remembered.

She was the woman in blue who'd performed quite well in the Trial Killing Field that day.

The woman in blue saw Ning Ye too, and looked a little surprised. "Ning Ye?"

"You know me?"

The woman in blue smiled. "You came first in the Trial Killing Field, and you're Seven Kill Heavenly Blade Zhang Liekuang's disciple. You've made a bit of a name for yourself among the newcomers. Besides, you have such a distinctive look that you're hard to forget."

Ning Ye felt a little embarrassed. "Sorry, senior sister, I don't know your name."

The woman in blue came over. "I'm Yue Xiuxiu, of the Five-Sheep Sect."

Ning Ye had fought until he passed out back then, so he hadn't known which disciples the Human Demons had taken on afterward. Now he learned that the woman had been accepted by Young Master Five-Sheep, Gongsun Ye.

That made sense. Young Master Five-Sheep was fond of women and only took beautiful female disciples.

Yue Xiuxiu was quite good-looking and talented, so Gongsun Ye naturally wouldn't pass her up.

Judging from her walk and bearing, Gongsun Ye had probably already taken her maidenhood. Of course, Ning Ye wasn't about to bring that up.

Yue Xiuxiu looked at Ning Ye, puzzled. "I already took the mission in Ancient Spring Town. Why are you going there?"

"There's a mission in Ancient Spring Town?" Ning Ye was taken aback too.

He'd come here after using the Kunlun Mirror to search for an opportunity and determine where a treasure would appear. He hadn't expected to run into Yue Xiuxiu.

So she'd come here after taking a mission.

Seeing his expression, Yue Xiuxiu understood. "So you didn't take the Ancient Spring mission?"

"I just happened to be passing through," Ning Ye replied.

When she saw that he wasn't there to compete with her for credit, Yue Xiuxiu relaxed. Her eyes turned, and she smiled. "Since that's the case, let's go together. If we run into demons later and I can't handle them, I'll have to ask senior brother to help me."

So she wanted free labor?

But since they were both going to Ancient Spring Town, Ning Ye couldn't very well refuse. He nodded. "All right."

The two of them then rode together toward Ancient Spring Town.

On the way, Ning Ye learned that demons had been causing trouble in Ancient Spring Town. According to the locals, they were only minor demons, so the Black and White Divine Palace had issued a mission for a Cang Xiang Realm disciple.

Missions to slay demons and monsters like this were usually taken by several disciples together. Yue Xiuxiu's willingness to take it on alone showed she had some confidence in herself.

Half an hour later, the carriage arrived in Ancient Spring Town.

Once they reached the town, they saw that every household had shut its doors. Many people peered at them through cracks, but not a single person came out to greet them.

Yue Xiuxiu was displeased. She called out, "We're disciples of the Black and White Divine Palace, here by order to slay demons and monsters! Where is the person in charge? Come out and greet us at once!"

Instead, even those peeking at them vanished in an instant. Not a single person came outside.

Yue Xiuxiu was taken aback. Fortunately, an old man came hurrying over just then. His clothes were ragged and his face was ashen. He dropped to the ground and cried, "Your humble servant, Feng Jiu, welcomes the immortal masters! I've prepared food and wine for you. Please, follow me."

Seeing him act so obsequiously, Yue Xiuxiu finally calmed down.

They followed Feng Jiu to the town hall, where several servants had already hurriedly laid out food and wine.

Yue Xiuxiu took one sip, then spat it out and cursed, "What kind of lousy wine is this? And these dishes—serving us wild greens is practically asking for death!"

Feng Jiu was so frightened he prostrated himself on the ground. "Demons have run rampant, and the townsfolk have suffered terrible slaughter. We truly have nothing else to serve you!"

Hearing that only made Yue Xiuxiu angrier. "You knew demons were running rampant and the townsfolk were being slaughtered, yet you didn't report it for half a year. Then, when we arrived, everyone shut their doors instead of coming out. You've chilled our hearts. What exactly are you people up to?"

Feng Jiu trembled with fear and didn't dare answer.

Ning Ye was the one who spoke. "It's because they fear immortals even more than demons."

"What?" Yue Xiuxiu stared at Ning Ye in surprise. "They'd rather be slaughtered by demons than report it?"

The news that demons were in Ancient Spring Town hadn't come from the town itself. A traveler had learned of it and passed the word along. Otherwise, the matter wouldn't have dragged on this long.

Ning Ye didn't answer. He casually blasted open a door beside them, and several villagers tumbled out from behind it, all of them gaunt and sallow.

Ning Ye said, "Go check their houses. See if you can find a single grain of rice."

Yue Xiuxiu rushed inside and rummaged through the cupboards. As expected, she couldn't find a single grain of rice or drop of water.

Yue Xiuxiu was utterly perplexed. "Why? They've already suffered this badly at the hands of demons. Why are they still more afraid of immortals?"

Ning Ye sneered. "You think the lack of food and water was the demons' doing?"

"Wasn't it?" Yue Xiuxiu shot back.

Ning Ye replied, "When have demons ever eaten rice?"

Yue Xiuxiu opened her mouth, but couldn't answer.

The town chief, Feng Jiu, could only kowtow over and over, not daring to speak.

Yue Xiuxiu finally understood. The food and water in this town had probably been stripped away by the people in power.

Yue Xiuxiu shook her head. "I don't understand. Aren't there spirit fields on the immortal mountains? I don't need food and water from mortals."

Ning Ye sneered. "But the government does. And it's not just food and water. Goods and labor all have value. Immortals may have the power to reach the heavens, but who would use that power for mortals? Since ancient times, immortals have cultivated arts of slaughter, seeking only to become stronger. How many have cultivated the arts of fertile fields and abundant harvests? Any cultivator kind enough to do that probably couldn't compete with the other Immortal Sects and would've been wiped out long ago."

The Heaven's Mechanism Sect had been a benevolent sect, and so they'd been wiped out.

In this world, if you weren't strong, you could only die. But the power that made you strong was the power to kill, the power to plunder.

Were demons frightening?

Of course they were.

But when demons came out, they only ate one or two people.

When immortals came out, they could leave not a blade of grass standing.

That was why, even when demons caused trouble, the common folk often didn't dare report it. Some were even relieved—fewer people meant fewer mouths competing for food.

When the people had no power before the immortals, how were they supposed to survive?

Only by dying.

Once enough people died, those left behind could live.

Yue Xiuxiu considered herself a kind person, but she'd never stopped to think about how she'd immediately demanded bloodshed upon arriving. Faced with the paltry food the townsfolk had managed to scrape together, all she could do was complain that it was garbage.

Was she evil?

Not necessarily. But she was powerless to fight the tide of the world, so she could only accept it.

That was reality.

Anyone who tried to change it had been wiped out.

Some of the powerful were content to enjoy their privilege.

Among the rest, those with a shred of conscience but no power to change things could only go with the flow.

So Ning Ye told her, and she understood. But there was still nothing she could do. She would keep walking her own path. To her, not deliberately hurting anyone was the greatest kindness she could manage.

Even so, perhaps a moment of carelessness, a single arbitrary action, would cause the common folk to suffer.

Like now.

Just as Yue Xiuxiu began to understand, a sinister voice chuckled. "So she's just a greenhorn who doesn't understand a thing."

"Demons?" At those words, Yue Xiuxiu charged out. Her power surged, and the town hall collapsed into ruins.

The town chief stared blankly at the scene. He'd been prepared for it, so he felt nothing at all.