Helping Himself

Faced with the Kai clan's treasure vault and its mountain of ill-gotten wealth, Wenlong certainly saw no reason to stand on ceremony.

He first put all the gold and silver into his storage space without bothering to pack it. The gold and silver alone almost filled the space.

He also stored every weapon and piece of equipment inside, taking anything worthwhile until the space was completely full.

Before leaving, he sabotaged the mechanism on the main door so they could not enter the vault. Even a day later, they would not discover the theft, and the Kai clan would remain off guard.

Wenlong wanted to return and reap the Kai clan's wealth once more. He could not let them take precautions ahead of time and interfere with his next harvest.

Once everything was done, Wenlong silently found Shitou and Wenzhu, joined up with them, and hurried back to the Wen clan's Ancestral Grounds overnight.

By noon the next day, Wenlong had returned to the Ancestral Grounds with Shi Tian and Wenzhu.

In the simple meeting hall, the uncles and aunts who managed the clan had all taken their seats. Shitou and Wenzhu were among them.

The current clan chief, Long'er's father, Wen Tiancheng, sat at the head. Now that Wenlong had returned from Wan Family Town, everyone watched him eagerly, hoping for a great haul.

"Everyone, I cleaned out the Kai clan chief's entire treasure vault. Tonight, I'll go back for their grain and stir up some trouble." Wenlong finished speaking and smiled at everyone.

"Good! Wonderful!" Everyone broke into excited chatter, slapping the wooden tables with loud cracks.

With all those valuables in hand, they probably would not have to worry about food or clothing for who knew how many years.

Seeing how happily everyone was chatting, Wenlong continued, "Once I go back and stir things up, they'll definitely send people out to search. We'll send people out to ambush them too."

Wen Tiancheng slapped the wooden table with his broad hand. "Good. If they come in force, we'll hide in the mountains and stay out of sight. If only a few come, we'll capture those we can and make them slaves. Otherwise, they die."

"Father, we're thinking along the same lines. I'll go alone this time. Shitou and Wenzhu can gather information. After all, they're good at lightness arts and can run fast." Wenlong also thought his father's plan was sound.

"Mm, be careful. Once Shitou gets word, we'll take our bows and arrows and ambush them." Wen Tiancheng was worried that something might happen to his son, which was why he cautioned him.

Beside him, Long'er's mother looked deeply worried. Seeing this, Wenlong hurried over to reassure her.

Then he turned to ask his father, "Father, the clan hasn't built a treasure vault yet, so I'll put everything in the Secret Passage. We can take it out whenever the clan needs it."

"All right. Leave it there for now." The clansmen all voiced their agreement.

If they took the valuables out now, there really would be nowhere to put them. Wenlong had said it himself: this was the wealth of an entire treasure vault.

"I'll leave the rest for you to arrange." Without waiting for anyone to answer, Wenlong took his mother's hand and walked out of the hall.

He went with his mother to the Ancestral Hall, used his Mental Power to open the door to the Secret Passage, and led her inside.

Once the door closed, glowing stones lit the Secret Passage, making it quite bright.

Wenlong took all the valuables out of his storage space, filling an open area with heaps of treasure.

Long'er's mother had never seen so much gold, silver, and treasure. Her mouth fell open in shock and stayed that way for a long time.

Wenlong rummaged through the treasure for pearl necklaces, gold bracelets, gold rings, gold earrings, and gem-studded hair ornaments, then put them all on his mother.

When Long'er's mother came to her senses, she did not dare accept them. Wenlong pretended to be angry. "Mother, your son risked his life for these. If anyone objects, they can go bring back some treasure themselves."

Thinking about it, she realized he was right. Her son had risked his life to bring these things back, so why could she not use them? Nor did she want to upset him.

So she happily said, "All right, all right. I'll listen to my Long'er."

Seeing his mother so happy filled him with satisfaction. "Look, my mother is as beautiful as a princess! Hahaha..." Wenlong looked at her finery and laughed as he praised her.

"You and your smooth tongue." His mother laughed as she spoke. What woman did not love looking beautiful? She simply had never had the means before.

After reassuring his mother, he left the Secret Passage and began preparing for that night's operation.

Night fell, and Wenlong slipped into the Kai clan's compound like a phantom. The grounds were quiet, as though nothing had happened the night before.

He first found the place where the bolts of cloth were stored and put all the fabric into his storage space.

His second target was the granary. Already familiar with the route, he filled his storage space with grain.

Only then did he slip into the main house, satisfied. In his several visits to this compound, he had never touched the main house. This time, Wenlong planned to do something big.

While he was at it, he would kill their clan chief too. Letting them plunge into chaos for a while would be no bad thing.

Wenlong entered the main house without a sound and found the stern-faced old man he had seen two days earlier. The man was fast asleep in bed.

In case the man knew martial arts, Wenlong had to kill him with a single strike. Not daring to be careless, he drew three Shadowless Returning Needles and used Shadow Hand to send them at the old man.

By the time Wenlong used Shadow Hand to retrieve the Shadowless Needles, the old man's snoring had stopped, and he lay utterly still.

It seemed Wenlong had overestimated his strength. He had died so easily in bed, without the slightest reaction.

Unhurriedly, Wenlong found something to start a fire and set the main house's furniture and sundries alight. The flames quickly spread.

He then hid in a dark spot in the central courtyard, hoping to attack a few of their guards amid the chaos and weaken the Kai clan's strength in the process.

By then, the Kai clan had descended into confusion. Some fought the fire while others shouted for help, their voices rising in a clamor. Before long, flames soared into the sky.

Wenlong took advantage of the chaos to kill several guards. Still, he did not dare grow careless. He knew he could not linger too long; slipping out of Wan Family Town amid the confusion would be safer.

Not long after he left Wan Family Town, the sky began to brighten. Behind him, the town had become a pot of boiling chaos. Perhaps they had discovered that their clan chief had been murdered.

Meanwhile, the Wen clan had already made its arrangements. Shitou and Linzi watched from hiding for any movements by the Kai clan's search parties, ready to pass word to the others promptly.

After the sun rose, Wenlong met up with Shitou. He saw that Linzi was also concealed in the woods, ready to send any news back to the clan.

It seemed the Kai clan would not be sending anyone out anytime soon. Their clan chief was dead, and such a major incident would keep them thoroughly occupied.

After discussing it with Shitou, Wenlong decided to return to the village first and ambush them another day.

Leaving Shitou and Linzi to continue gathering information, Wenlong headed back to the village. Once they had news, he would return to ambush the enemy.

Sure enough, things went just as Wenlong had expected. Their clan chief's death was a major affair, and they had no mind to send anyone out to find the killer.

The haul this time was substantial enough for a bountiful New Year. After discussing it, the clansmen also decided to send some grain to the aunts' families so they could enjoy a good New Year too.

Wenlong knew very well that the villagers outside lived in unimaginable poverty. With officials, landlords, and local tyrants stripping them layer by layer, how could they possibly have decent lives?

The hardships of those at the bottom were easy to imagine. It was no exaggeration to say that their clothes could not cover their bodies and their food could not fill their bellies.

It seemed safer for him to deliver the grain himself, lest an accident cause unnecessary losses.

His paternal uncles could not conveniently show themselves now, so he would have to ask his two maternal uncles to help. He would also bring Wenzhu, Wenye, and Daniu.