Encountering Song Ran on the Road

Of course, while this act of establishing authority had an immediate effect, not everyone would convert out of fear.

While he might make verbal threats, Yin Yunze was unlikely to actually go on a killing spree just because the other party didn't believe in him.

It would be best if they could scare her, but if not, there's plenty of time ahead anyway, so we can leave the rest to Sun Qin.

In fact, after making that harsh statement, Yin Yunze stopped caring about what the villagers thought.

Using the Earth Vein Power, Yin Yunze Earth Escape to a deserted corner. He then retrieved paper and pen from reality and transformed the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi of Upper Creek Village into characters.

After spending half an hour creating three times the number of characters of Clear Creek Village, Yin Yunze checked the situation of Upper Creek Village and found that of the village's six hundred or so people, nearly four hundred had chosen to become Yin Yunze followers.

After careful consideration, Yin Yunze decided to refrain from doing anything for the time being.

Whether it's to establish authority or to bestow rewards, a deity appearing too frequently before people ultimately lowers the overall standard.

After thinking it over and realizing he had nothing else to do, Yin Yunze decided to set off back to Clear Creek Village.

However, as he walked along the village road from Upper Creek Village to Clear Creek Village, Yin Yunze couldn't help but feel somewhat helpless.

He's supposed to be the Land God of two villages, yet he still has to rely on his own two feet to travel between them. It's really embarrassing to admit.

However, for Zhao Wan's safety, Yin Yunze felt it was best to be cautious for the time being.

As Yin Yunze walked Upper Creek Village and onto the main road, he saw two oxcarts carrying passengers slowly driving past him.

Just as Yin Yunze was wondering if he could hitch a ride, he discovered that the person leading the way with the whip was none other than Song Ran, whom he hadn't seen for several days.

After discovering it was Song Ran, Yin Yunze understood who these passengers were.

A quick glance at the passengers in the two carriages revealed that, as expected, besides the drivers, each carriage had four girls around ten years old.

Perhaps because Yin Yunze came from Upper Creek Village, and because he looked a bit dirty from the fight earlier, Song Ran didn't recognize Zhao Wan's body at first and drove the oxcart over.

"Song Ran!" Seeing Song Ran to run away, Yin Yunze quickly shouted.

"Whoa!"

Upon hearing Zhao Wan's familiar voice, Song Ran immediately reacted and stopped the oxcart.

Since the oxcart was moving slowly, no one noticed that it was rear-ending another vehicle.

Looking around, Song Ran quickly spotted Yin Yunze standing by the roadside and asked in confusion, "Xiao Wan—Little Fairy, what are you doing here? And what are you doing—"

At first, Song Ran wanted to call her Xiao Wan'er as usual, but after realizing that Zhao Wan was already the vessel for Yin Yunze's Spirit Descent, she changed her address to Xiao Xian Gu.

It's just a matter of title; whether she Xiao Wan'er or Little Fairy won't affect Song Ran, so why act like an old man? But then, Song Ran noticed that Zhao Wan, this young girl, would never show such indifference.

Upon discovering it was actually Yin Yunze, Song Ran secretly rejoiced at her own caution, then changed her words, saying, "You, fox—"

However, before Song Ran could actually say it, Yin Yunze put his finger to his lips, signaling him not to continue.

After all, these young girls on the bus had just been bought from their parents, so they must all be feeling uneasy.

If they heard Song Ran yell that again, these girls would probably be restless for the rest of the journey.

Knowing you're going to serve a fox spirit, and actually sitting with one, is never the same. Don't you see all those stories of Lord Ye who loved dragons but was terrified of them?

Seeing Yin Yunze's gesture, Song Ran understood that Yin Yunze wanted to hide his identity and immediately shut her mouth.

After glancing at Song Ran from head to toe, Yin Yunze saw no signs of an accident and asked, "Why are you back so late?"

"This isn't my fault! It's all Constable Peng— "

Upon hearing Yin Yunze's question, Song Ran instinctively wanted to shift the blame, but after thinking for a moment, she objectively replied, "Actually, Constable Peng meant well. The person he persuaded to serve the Lord Fox Immortal was someone who had received a predestined connection to the immortals, so naturally, the best of the best had to be chosen—hence, it took a little longer—"

Well, sometimes subordinates do need to spend more time to do things well.

Yin Yunze had considered many reasons Song Ran come back late, but he never imagined it would be because Peng Shulan wanted to handle things more neatly.

That's true; if you just buy a few young girls, there are plenty available outside the county town.

However, selecting those with good qualifications does require a lot of effort.

After all, girls with good looks are always in high demand.

Thinking this, Yin Yunze glanced at the girls on the bus again and found that the quality of these girls was indeed higher than expected. Even though they all looked pale and thin because they were not well-fed, each of them had a good foundation.

With enough food and proper care, they can all be beauties in the making.

However, among these eight girls, Yin Yunze also noticed one who was different from the other seven and didn't seem to come from a poor family.

Although all eight of them had only done a simple wash and were wearing very ordinary clothes.

But this girl was clearly different from the other seven.

Although she was thirteen or fourteen years old, she was significantly taller than other girls her age around her.

Not only did he not look like he had ever been hungry, but he was also the most handsome of the eight people, and he didn't even show the timidity of someone from a poor family.

Looking at the other girls, he unconsciously exuded a kind of pride that came from his very bones.

Compared to the other girls around her, she stood out conspicuously.

If the other girls were clearly bought to serve others, this girl looked more like a wealthy person visiting someone's home.

At that moment, the girl frowned upon hearing Song Ran's words, as if she had something to say. However, in the end, she said nothing.

Then, the girl's gaze shifted from Song Ran to Yin Yunze, and she cast a hint of hostility at him.

This left Yin Yunze feeling somewhat bewildered. What had he done to suddenly be targeted by someone?

No, do you girls all become hostile so easily?

At this moment, Song Ran finally realized something was wrong. She quickly got out of the car, knelt down in front of Yin Yunze, and asked in a low voice, "Where did you come from?"

Despite asking the question, Song Ran's gaze still drifted towards Upper Creek Village.

Song Ran's appearance immediately attracted the attention of the girls on the bus, who all turned their gazes toward her, curious about Yin Yunze's identity.

Upon hearing this, Yin Yunze withdrew his gaze and looked at Song Ran, saying, "I just came from Upper Creek Village."

"Upper Creek Village?" Upon hearing this place name, Song Ran's brows furrowed deeply. "What are you going there for? That place is not simple—you have no idea, there's an old weasel there just like you!"

Not that I'm trying to boost anyone's ego, but I've heard from some powerful spirits—no, some evil spirits—that that old weasel has already attained enlightenment and isn't someone you can mess with! Also, that woman Liu Zhu is no ordinary person; she's managed to support her Liu family since she was a teenager—"

Upon hearing the information from Song Ran, Yin Yunze couldn't help but reflect again, realizing that he had indeed not been cautious enough.

Although Sun Qin has surpassed Song Ran in authority in Clear Creek Village, she still cannot match the Song family, who have been village chiefs for decades or even centuries, when it comes to these local secrets.

Yin Yunze now suspects that Liu Zhu may have discovered Song Ran's absence from the village before plotting this.

Otherwise, how could it have been such a coincidence!

Everything was fine for the past few months, but then this happened in the last few days.

Qi Siyuan knew some things, but since he was a newcomer, he had to be careful about what he said.

The same words, spoken by Song Ran, were meant as a well-intentioned reminder. But if Qi Siyuan were to say them, someone with a narrow mind might perceive it as Qi Siyuan looking down on him, boosting the morale of others while diminishing his own.

After all, Qi Siyuan didn't know Yin Yunze's temper, and none of the evil spirits he had dealt with before had a good temper.

Besides, since Sun Qin had already mentioned it, Qi Siyuan naturally had no intention of touching that sensitive topic.

All I can say is that Yin Yunze was really getting carried away back then.

"Yes! That place is indeed not simple—" Looking at Song Ran with mixed feelings, Yin Yunze smiled helplessly, "—All I did there was burn a yellow-skinned old rat and chop a slightly crooked bamboo."