Taken from a Household of Slaves

This group of people, judging from their appearance and eating habits, looked like beggars on the street. But in reality, not long ago, they not only didn't know each other, but their identities, status, and professions were also completely different.

Among them were merchants, farmers, workshop owners, and even gentry who owned fertile land. But as the nomadic tribes marched south, their identities were all unified into one:

Slave.

However, the thirty-year-old man named "Ran Lian" was different from the others. He was not captured by the Grasslands tribes when they marched south. He was originally a border soldier who was wounded and fell into a coma during a battle with the Hu people. When he woke up, he had been branded as a slave and his hands and feet were bound. He became the lowest-ranking slave among the Grasslands tribes.

In the eyes of slave owners, slaves were devoid of human dignity and no different from livestock. However, the people of the Central Plains, an agrarian civilization, certainly did not see it that way. Faced with such a situation, they found it difficult to accept, and whether out of personal dignity or a broader spiritual sense, resistance was inevitable.

Nomadic peoples of the Grasslands had rich experience and sufficient methods to suppress and eradicate the humanity and resistance of slaves, and to gradually tame and domesticate them.

In this situation, some exceptional individuals will emerge and become leaders among the slaves.

If such people are discovered by slave owners, they generally only have two paths to take. One path is to be incorporated into the slave community and assist the slave owners in managing slaves, thereby gaining a certain degree of status improvement. If they are lucky, they may even gain a certain amount of power and influence, like Heluolü. However, they will ultimately be despised. As long as the Central Plains is destroyed, their stigma will remain forever. Therefore, such people are often keen to destroy the Central Plains dynasties.

The other option is to be arrested and made an example of.

Ran Lian was such a person. Because of his physique and Qi Soul, he gained prestige. He was captured for a short time. Before he even faced a choice about his path, his fate was changed by an accident.

This unexpected event was Qiu Yan's arrival.

Qiu Yan was originally a cultivator, with his Life Cultivation at the Third Realm and his Nature Cultivation at the Fourth Realm. He was considered a figure in the cultivation world. The reason he was able to achieve such success in just a few years was due to the cooperation of his Three Bodies and their mutual exchange of resources. Others would find it difficult to compare without fortuitous opportunity.

However, even so, there are still many obstacles to fighting against a tribe on one's own. The first is that killing with Divine Ability powers will create Karma entanglements and have a huge impact on one's own Fortune. Secondly, Divine Ability can be suppressed by Qi and Blood, and if one is not careful, one may suffer a setback.

Therefore, Qiu Yan cannot be truly invincible when facing an entire tribe. There are many restraining factors, and he cannot use his strength effectively, let alone defeat a tribe.

But this did not stop him from creating chaos and using some means to release the captured slaves.

Two days have passed since Qiu Yan left Dingchang City.

Two days is enough time for a lot to happen.

In the Great Rui region, news of the Dingchang Army's triumphant return reached the imperial court, causing the emperor to faint and creating numerous disturbances. Meanwhile, the Grasslands were also in turmoil, with news of the Left Wise King's Tribe's annihilation spreading and causing widespread panic.

These tribes near the border of Great Rui were even more terrified. A large portion of them had submitted to Rouluo and migrated here to serve the Left Wise King's overall strategy. Of course, they were also greedy for the wealth of the Central Plains and wanted to band together to plunder and strengthen themselves under the protection of the Left Wise King. Now that the Wise King's tribe was destroyed, they had lost all their confidence. Any change would cause unrest, and they were already seeing threats everywhere.

Qiu Yan's arrival took advantage of this chaos. He deliberately created a diversion to open up the situation, then released the slaves and quickly retreated without lingering in battle.

Of the slaves who regained their freedom, some left along the way, and only about half of them, around six or seven hundred, are now gathered at the foot of the hill.

These people are what Qiu Yan has gained in the past two days, and they form the foundation for his future plans.

Among them, there were a few people with some prestige like Ran Lian, so they were divided into several groups, each with dozens to hundreds of people.

However, without exception, the most prestigious leaders in these groups were mostly young and strong men, while the highly respected gentry had little influence. In the Grasslands tribes, the land, reputation, and power upon which the gentry relied for their position were of no use.

However, now that Qiu Yan has rescued everyone from their desperate situation and given them hope of returning to Great Rui, the gentry's capital has resurfaced. Having returned from barbarism to the civilized world, their considerations have changed.

A sense of impending power grab naturally arose among the crowd—the gentry understood that although they had left their tribes and were no longer slaves, they were not truly out of danger. If they were alone, the chances of returning safely to the Central Plains were slim, so they still needed some guards and cannon fodder.

At the same time, they also realized that while a large number of people might seem powerful, they could also easily become targets for the Hu people. They needed to find the right balance, so they did not genuinely want to stay.

"That man claimed to be a compiler, but as far as I know, compilers usually work in the Book Pavilion, serving in the Imperial City. Why would someone come to the frontier? There's probably something fishy going on. Besides, his methods clearly suggest a left-wing military or spiritualist, not a civil official..."

Not far from Ran Lian, an old man was talking to other people.

He recognized the man as Cui Ping, an elder from a village in Hebei Circuit, who was a distant relative of the prominent Cui Clan. He had been captured by chance during a deep dive into the northern region.

When Ran Lian was arrested, this man was quite dignified and helpful. However, after he was released, he gradually revealed his intention to seize command. He was no longer close to Ran Lian and instead became somewhat wary of him, repeatedly damaging Ran Lian's prestige with his words.

"That old man has been getting more and more active these days, Brother Lian, you have to be careful. I know his purpose very well, he wants to trick a few people into becoming his bodyguards so he can return to the Central Plains. You can't let him take advantage of you and steal your men!"

Beside Ran Lian, a boy who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen years old sneered, "This humble one reminds you."

The boy's face was full of arrogance. He was shirtless, and his body was covered with whip marks, indicating that he had been whipped countless times. The scars were deep and difficult to remove.

The boy's name was Shi Jin. He was also a slave, but unlike Ran Lian and the others, he was of mixed race. His mother was from the Central Plains and was also a captured slave, while his father was from the Grasslands. He had been discriminated against since birth and had experienced various hardships. Now, he was extreme in temperament and prone to fighting.

In fact, of the more than 600 people gathered at the foot of the hill, at least nearly 100 were nomads from the Grasslands who had been enslaved after being defeated in tribal wars.

After Qiu Yan released the slaves, he allowed those who did not wish to follow him to leave. He did not force these Grasslands people to leave, but most of them did not leave. Instead, they expressed their desire to follow Qiu Yan, which is why they followed him all the way here.

However, Shi Jin was not one of them; he accompanied them because he admired Ran Lian.

"Let this old man cause trouble," another man laughed before Ran Lian could speak. This man had a sallow complexion and was skin and bones, but his eyes were bright and piercing as he looked at Cui Ping. "He won't be able to keep this up for long. All his efforts are in vain, and he might even bring trouble upon himself. He hasn't figured out that cultivator's purpose yet."

This man was named Fu Yong. He was originally a merchant who traveled to the frontier, often buying and selling contraband, making a profit from the price difference. But as the saying goes, "He who walks by the river will eventually get his shoes wet," and he was eventually discovered by the border guards. After a chase, he had no choice but to flee into the Grasslands, hoping to find refuge with a tribe based on his past business connections. However, having lost his usefulness, he was thrown into slavery.

This realization made him see the true nature of the Grasslands tribes and understand that it was useless to use the logic of the Central Plains to analyze their behavior. This unexpected freedom, after hearing Qiu Yan reveal his identity, immediately gave him an idea: to seize the opportunity, get rid of his past troubles, and make a fortune again.

Shi Jin glanced at him. "Old Fu, are you saying this because you've figured out what that Central Plains official is thinking?"

Fu Yong smiled and asked in return, "Do you remember what Qiu Xiuzhuan said after he rescued us?"

"What's so difficult about that?" Shi Jin raised an eyebrow, took a big bite of the meat in his hand, swallowed it, and said, "Isn't it just that you saved our lives and are now trying to take advantage of our kindness? You say the Hu people are brutal, trying to incite your rebellion and use it against you. It seems you want to kill some people, but that has nothing to do with me. According to you, I am also a Hu!"

Fu Yong shook his head and said, "This is not about repaying a debt of gratitude. He saved us and freed us from enslavement, which is already a debt of gratitude. It is the right thing to do to repay this debt. To simply leave would be unrighteous and would damage one's virtue. There is a story in the Central Plains Zigong redeeming people. You probably haven't heard of it, but you should understand that human nature is inherently evil, and most of what people do is for their own benefit. If there is no benefit in saving people, over time, naturally no one will do it. Therefore, doing good without expecting anything in return is not a good thing."

"Hey! That's interesting. But he saved us, preventing us from becoming slaves, so he certainly deserves some repayment. In my opinion, being a slave is worse than death, but I still have many things to do and don't want to die now. In that case, I'll see how I repay his kindness." Shi Jin nodded, a mischievous smile on his face. "However, according to you, aren't those he saved and who left all ungrateful? But judging from the looks of it, those who left are probably safer than us."

"After that group leaves, they'll be in danger. The Grasslands are no safe place. Whether they head north or south, every step will be fraught with peril, and they might not be able to return safely. Otherwise, why do you think those old fogies wouldn't leave? But since they're unwilling to repay the favor, they naturally have to bear the risks. They can't blame anyone else. Besides..."

Before Fu Yong could finish speaking, a voice came from behind him—

"You have some insight; you are the kind of person the young master needs. Come with me up the mountain to see him."

Fu Yong was startled and quickly looked in the direction of the sound, only to see Qiu An.

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