Temple of Ten Thousand Emperors, Tianxuan Ancestor

The elderly, women, and children stayed behind to clear the aftermath. They piled the raiders' heads in the distance, building a mound of skulls to deter any other raiders who might attack.

The able-bodied mounted the Dragon-Scaled Horses and charged toward the raiders' lair. As they passed small oases, they displayed Big-Bearded Chen's head and told the locals that the bandits had been wiped out. Peace would return to this land, now under the rule of the Tianxuan Immortal Gate.

The leaders and clan chiefs of the oases cautiously asked Fifth Master Zhang how much Source they would have to pay for protection.

Fifth Master Zhang told Lin Xian that the Azure Mist Sect used to collect only ten jin of Source a year—less than one jin a month. By that standard, it had been a protector of the region.

But everything had changed when Big-Bearded Chen arrived. The Azure Mist Sect no longer cleared out raiders; even when it sent people, they merely went through the motions. Meanwhile, the oasis tribes had to pay Big-Bearded Chen four or five jin of Source every month. The crushing tax had left them miserable.

"If the Heavenly Jade Sacred Land wants lasting peace here, we can't keep draining the land dry."

With a sweep of his hand, Lin Xian made a pledge to the people of this land. "All the taxes imposed by the Azure Mist Sect and Big-Bearded Chen are abolished. From today onward, each oasis need only pay ten jin of Source a year."

"In addition, every oasis must build a temple in exchange for protection."

"Build a temple?" Everyone froze. Even Ye Fan asked in confusion, "What's the point?"

"The Northern Region is poor and barren. It produces Source Stones, which are both the root of its suffering and