Life in the City

"That's not all! The master also gave us a bottle of Jin Origin Pill, a full ten of them!"

Ji Qingqing picked up the jade bottle containing the Jin Origin Pill and waved it in front of everyone.

"What? There's also the Jin Origin Pill!"

"Sister Qingqing, you've really struck gold! Compared to this, our Meridian-Unblocking Pill don't even seem appealing anymore!"

Lin Amei's eyes widened, then she teased with a smile.

Everyone laughed, but no one dared to touch the bottle of Jin Origin Pill.

The Jin Origin Pill is a second-tier pill, only usable by martial artists with Nei Jin.

Of these ten people, only Ji Qingqing possessed Nei Jin cultivation.

"Here's what I'm thinking. I'll keep this bottle of Jin Origin Pill for now."

"When any of you break through to the Nei Jin, I will reward you with one."

"If you can't break through, don't blame me for not giving it to you!"

Ji Qingqing teased everyone in the same way.

"Really? Sister Qingqing, don't worry, I will definitely cultivate with all my might! Even if not for myself, it's for that Jin Origin Pill you have!"

Lin Amei was the first to speak with a smile, and everyone burst into laughter.

After leaving the tent area, Lu Feng wandered around the city alone.

There were far fewer pedestrians on the street, and many shops had already closed, with only the medicine shop and the weapon shop still lit up.

As he walked along, he discovered that at least tens of thousands of people were still trapped in the city.

The majority of them were ordinary people without any cultivation.

They were survivors who had escaped from various places during the previous invasion of monsters and were temporarily settled in a corner of the west of the city.

Lu Feng crossed the street and unknowingly arrived at that area.

The scene before him was somewhat different from what he had imagined.

A large open space was densely covered with tree branches, and next to each branch was a piece of animal hide or a few bundles of dry grass, which served as a sleeping area.

Hundreds of people were busy here, and most of them had smiles on their faces.

Several elderly women squatted on the ground, sorting through the freshly skinned animal hides and spreading them out to dry.

An old man sat on a wooden stool, holding a bone needle and a leather rope, stitching animal hide into a simple garment.

Several children squatted nearby to help, occasionally getting their hands pricked by the animal hair. They would cry out "Ouch!" and jump up, shaking their hands, which made the adults laugh.

Some people did nothing but lie down and sleep next to the tree branches, wrapped in animal skins.

There were no beds, no blankets, but they slept soundly.

Lu Feng stood at the edge of the open space for a moment before finally stepping inside.

He approached an old man who was sewing animal hides, squatted down, and tried to keep his eyes as low as possible.

"Old man, may I ask what you are doing?"

The old man raised his head, saw Lu Feng's dark-colored attire and the token at his waist, his hand trembled, he quickly put down his needlework, stood up, and bowed.

"Don't mention it, sir. My name is Lao Guai, please just call me by my name."

As he spoke, he turned around, moved the rock he had been sitting on, wiped it vigorously with his sleeve, blew on it twice, and then carefully pushed it in front of Lu Feng.

"Please have a seat, sir!"

Lu Feng looked at the uneven stone, and without refusing, sat down.

He was afraid that if he didn't sit down, the old man would keep standing and lost in thought.

"Please sit down. I just wanted to ask you something."

"No need, no need. I can stand." Lao Guai waved his hands repeatedly.

"It's inconvenient for you to talk while standing like that, sit down!"

Lao Guai hesitated for a moment, then finally plopped down on the ground, his back ramrod straight.

He straightened his worn-out sleeves and spoke first:

"Whatever you may ask, I will answer to the best of my knowledge."

Lu Feng pointed to the group of people who were busy working.

What are you doing?

"Making animal clothing!"

"As requested by the Demon-Slaying Bureau?"

"No, that's not it. It was something the village chief organized everyone to do together."

Lao Guai's tone became more serious as he spoke.

"The weather is going to get cold soon. The adults are out there slaying monsters, protecting us, and giving us food."

"We can't do much else, but sewing a few animal skins will do us a small token of our appreciation."

Lu Feng paused for a moment, looking at the Lao Guai's tattered, patched-up shirt.

"The Demon-Slaying Bureau has no shortage of clothes. I see none of you have a decent set of clothes, why don't you make yourselves a set first?"

Upon hearing this, Lao Guai immediately stood up, his expression as if he had been offended.

"That won't do! How could we possibly be worthy of wearing new animal-feather clothing?"

"I'd be content with just having something to eat and a place to cover my head."

He paused, then added, his tone becoming more relaxed.

"Once we drive all the monsters out, I, Lao Guai, will definitely make myself a decent animal costume, wear it, and get a good night's sleep."

Lu Feng's eyes suddenly welled up with tears, and he didn't continue the conversation.

He turned to look at the other side of the clearing, where branches were densely packed together, each with some dry grass or tattered animal hides laid out beside it.

What are those branches for?

"Where I sleep at night."

"With so many people, we were worried about them sleeping in disarray, so we stuck tree branches in the ground, and each family stayed in their own spot."

Lu Feng looked at the tree branches.

A gust of wind blew, and several tree branches swayed crookedly.

The dry grass spread on the ground was so thin that you could see the mud underneath.

When the weather is nice, it's bearable, but when it rains, these people don't even have anywhere to shelter.

A wave of sorrow washed over him, but he didn't know what to say.

Seeing that Lu Feng remained silent, Lao Guai started talking on his own.

"Speaking of which, my son might even know him. His name is Li Feng, and he also works in the Demon-Slaying Bureau Division."

"Li Feng... I vaguely remember him. Where is he now?"

He didn't actually know him, but looking at Lao Guai's expectant face, he couldn't bear to say he didn't know.

"He's just unlucky!"

"He died fighting the demonic beasts, but let me tell you, my lad killed two whole demonic beasts! All your hard work in training him wasn't in vain!"

Lu Feng looked at Lao Guai. When he spoke of his son's death, he didn't shed tears, didn't choke up, and didn't even pause.

He said it so casually, as if he were talking about someone else's story.

"If the monsters attack, where do you plan to escape to?"

"You jest, sir!"

"The monsters haven't come yet! When that day comes, I'll Lao Guai and fight them to the death. If I'm lucky enough to take one with me, that'll be a huge win!"

He had a smile on his face the whole time.

Lu Feng could find neither fear nor sadness on his face.

That smile wasn't faked; it was a kind of serene composure that arose from having nothing left to lose.

Lu Feng did not ask any further questions.

He sat on the rock, listening to Lao Guai say many things in fits and starts.

Lao Guai is from Canglan City. Canglan City originally had hundreds of thousands of people, but after the monsters broke through the city, less than 10,000 people escaped here.

These 10,000 people have made this open space filled with tree branches their second home.

Lao Guai said that no one mentions returning to Canglan City anymore.

Although this place is dilapidated and crowded, at least there are no monsters chasing after it.

If this place falls, many people probably won't even want to escape anymore.