Two Realms Shuttle Gate: Don t Call Me a Demon!

Chapter 69: Chapter 67: Shaoshan Town

Riding on Horned Scale Horses, a group of people stepped into the vast plain.

Looking around, the terrain was flat and expansive. Although the weather was bone-chillingly cold, various wildflowers and wild grasses on the plain still stood resilient, swaying uncertainly in the cold wind.

“It’s indeed much safer outside.”

Having traveled a distance, Su Jie and the others hadn’t encountered any dangers, unlike the perilous environments within the borders of Ghost Ridge Palace.

This was also easy to understand. Good territories were always occupied by the powerful; no one coveted poor and inhospitable lands.

In the history of Blue Star Hua Country, fertile and expansive plains were always occupied by the Zhongyuan Dynasty, while ethnic minorities mostly lived in resource-poor areas of mountains, snowfields, and high altitudes.

Was it because they didn’t want to live in the comfortable climate and resource-rich plains?

Of course not, it was simply because they couldn’t defeat the Zhongyuan Dynasty.

The same logic applied to Ghost Ridge Palace. Nowadays, with the righteous sects flourishing and powerful, Ghost Ridge Palace could only reluctantly settle in the mountains, amidst pervasive crises, harsh environments, and scarce resources.

In the past, during the prime of the Demon Path, various Demon Cultivation Sects had also occupied the fertile plains. Few people preferred the environment of deep mountains and old forests.

Even in cultivation, aside from some Spiritual Mountain Blessed Lands, people preferred staying in the plains.

Walking on the plain without the rugged mountain paths and steep cliffs, the disciples of Ghost Ridge Palace could finally let go of the reins and gallop across the grassland on their horses, increasing their speed by more than tenfold.

In half a day’s effort, everyone crossed the grassland plain and could already see signs of human habitation.

Smoke curled upward from cooking fires, and a small village appeared in their view.

Peasants were tending the fields, women spun and picked mulberry, children played and frolicked, chickens crowed and dogs barked, neighbors heard each other.

Su Jie and the others passed near the village on their Horned Scale Horses.

Thud, thud.

The village bell was rung as a peasant working in the field spotted the group of dozens of horsemen, immediately changed expression, ran back to the village to give the alarm, shouting about bandits and the like.

It turned out that they mistook Su Jie and his companions for marauding bandits.

Young and strong villagers came running out with pitchforks and hoes, warily eyeing the passing group of dozens of horsemen.

This road wasn’t frequently traveled by the Ghost Ridge Palace’s black market caravan. It was densely populated and congested with visitors, so typically, black market caravans took detours, but this time, due to the task at hand, Su Jie and his companions had to take this relatively unfamiliar shortcut.

Looking at the small village of over three hundred people before him, Pei Haibing’s fingers twitched slightly, his eyes filled with bloodthirsty greed. Ultimately, he restrained the impulse to attack the village.

They still had a task to complete, and engaging in such an act would cause a huge commotion, quickly alerting the local government, and even leading to a siege by reputable sects—a surefire way to court disaster.

“Try to avoid densely populated areas and choose less-traveled paths,” Pei Haibing issued a new order, perhaps noting that his group was attracting too much attention.

Following the map’s directions, the horsemen set off again, this time avoiding crowded areas and taking more secluded roads.

Although they still encountered villages and travelers along the way, the frequency was significantly reduced.

Su Jie rode on horseback, contemplating the world outside as described in the books.

The location where Su Jie and his companions now found themselves was within the borders of Da Li Dynasty, Qingzhou, Jia Shao Prefecture.

Qingzhou was the largest grain-producing area of the Da Li Dynasty, with a population too large to qualify as sparse.

Especially in the backward Tianyuan World, a large population was needed to maintain farm operations.

Despite the cultivators possessing various Divine Powers and magic techniques, they never demeaned themselves by engaging in agricultural production.

The lower class commoners naturally couldn’t rely on such conveniences; they could only depend on human labor and water buffalo-driven mills.

“Ahead is Shaoshan Town. We’re running low on supplies; we need to go there to purchase goods. Those who are called out by name will be responsible for the shopping,” Pei Haibing ordered as he pulled the troop to a halt for rest after three days, also arranging their tasks.

This was indeed a fact; not every disciple had a Storage Bag equipped; almost all Outer Disciples lacked this item, and supplies had to be carried by the team. The constant travel had already depleted most of it, and replenishment was indeed necessary.

“Su Jie, Xu Tu, Chen Qin’an…” Pei Haibing called out seven or eight names, including coincidentally, Su Jie, Gu Weonian, and Chen Yun.

“Brother Pei, we’re on our way.”

Bowing, Su Jie didn’t say anything else; he turned his horse toward Shaoshan Town, the named disciples following in suit.

…

Half an hour later.

Su Jie could see Shaoshan Town marked on the map from afar.

It was a moderately sized town, mostly surrounded by land cultivated by the townspeople, who were wearing rather thin clothes as they worked in the fields.

“Hmm, a glow of Spiritual Power.”

Standing on a small dirt mound, Su Jie saw fluctuations of Spiritual Energy to the southeast of Shaoshan Town.

There lay a faint spirit land where the veins of the earth were permeating the surface with Spiritual Power, suitable for cultivating some ordinary Spirit Grain.

Su Jie’s vision was quite good; he could clearly see the nearby spirit field with towering buildings, flying eaves, and couplets hanging between them.

Moreover, there were some Cultivators with Spiritual Power tending to the fields.

Some were employing a rain-making technique, with small clusters of dark clouds forming above the spirit field, drizzling rain mixed with Spiritual Power onto the land.

Others enslaved a kind of burrowing worm that easily turned over acres of soil to plant spirit plant seeds.

Some were carefully protecting the fields, with a formation in place above the spirit field that prevented insects and birds from pecking.

The span of this spirit field was not very large, at most just over eighty acres, and there were only a few Cultivators managing it, which was starkly different from the labor-intensive ordinary fields.

“Let’s go over there.”

Su Jie led the way into Shaoshan Town.

The town was primarily built of wooden structures, and families that could afford to live in bluestone brick houses were relatively wealthy locals.

From what Su Jie could see, most of the townspeople weren’t living well. It wasn’t that they couldn’t survive, but the paleness of their faces and their numb expressions said enough. Even in the dead of winter, they were still clad in thin clothing, and most families were struggling to get by, barely subsisting above the poverty line.

“Time to pay the monthly fee, the autumn harvest ended a half a month ago. Anyone who hasn’t paid up yet, make it snappy.”

Just as they entered the town, Su Jie witnessed a bizarre scene. A group of arrogant individuals were going door to door, knocking and announcing.

Su Jie didn’t ask further and headed directly to the town’s grain shop, only to see a long queue forming there.

A large number of townspeople had carts filled with sacks of grain, paying their dues to several men who looked like managers.

“Ah, the Chu Family’s fee has gone up again this year.”

“What can we do, we’ve still got to pay the fee!”

“Hopefully they’ll weigh less on the scales.”

“Expecting the Chu Family to be charitable is like seeing a pink elephant in your dreams.”

The townspeople discussed quietly among themselves, and the arrival of Su Jie and his group, as outsiders, attracted quite a few glances.

“Didn’t expect we’d have to pay a fee here too.”

Gu Weonian seemed quite sentimental, reminded of the monthly fee he paid to Taoist Qiu every month.

“These townspeople aren’t living any better, barely getting enough food and clothing. It’s only on paper that everyone has plenty to eat and wear.”Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Chen Yun scoffed. Ghost Ridge Palace received many books from the outside world stored in the Book Collection Pavilion, which included non-Cultivation related books accessible to ordinary Disciples.

Those books were mostly written by scholars of the Da Li Dynasty, depicting Da Li as a peaceful and prosperous kingdom where swords were sheathed, wars ceased, and the citizens lived comfortably and contentedly.

But taking Shaoshan Town as a microcosm, it was clear the people were barely clothed and fed, burdened with heavy land fees, far from living comfortably.

“Hey, where are you folks from? Do you know this is Chu Family territory? Keep spouting nonsense, and I’ll smash that ugly face of yours.”

A grain shop manager, who just happened to pass by, overheard Chen Yun’s comments and immediately glared hostilely.

Chen Yun’s face darkened. Ever since Su Jie had saved her life, several centipede-like scars had marred her face. Being a woman, she was particularly sensitive to comments about her appearance.

“What nonsense Chu Family, they’re just a local tyrant of a small town.”

Chen Yun suppressed her urge to kill and simply kicked the Chu Family manager, sending him flying.

This action stirred up a hornet’s nest as several Chu Family managers began shouting around.

Others tried to continue the trouble but were promptly sent scrambling by Chen Yun charging at them on horseback.

“Let’s grab some supplies from the shop and prepare to leave.”

Su Jie did not stop Chen Yun’s impulsive action, and as he spoke, his eyes caught a glimpse of a honey bee flying across the street. “We shouldn’t engage in a big fight here, let’s move quickly.”