Chapter 66

Everyone says the Shi Family has Giant Bloodline.

Wu Tie believed it.

On the road ahead, a burly man nearly three meters tall stood arrogantly, hands behind his back, disdainfully sizing up Wu Tie and his group.

The man was extraordinarily stalwart, his clothes tight against his body, revealing the outline of his mighty muscles.

His aura was even more terrifying—hard and heavy, like a great mountain standing before one, giving a feeling of being impregnable.

Behind the man, to his left and right stood two stone giants ten meters tall, with grayish-white skin.

The two stone giants wore battle skirts made of plates around their waists, thick greaves on their legs, heavy metal boots on their feet, and, like Wu Tie, only wore a heart mirror on their exposed upper bodies.

In their left hands they held tower shields almost as tall as their bodies, and in their right hands they gripped single-handed heavy axes; their aura was as hard and heavy as the man's.

Compared to the stone giants raised by the Mist Blade that Wu Tie had seen, these two stone giants exuded a richer wild aura, and their strength seemed considerably greater.

Especially when they blinked, their grayish-white eyes flashed with sharp light, giving an even more terrifying heavy pressure. These two big fellows likely activated their bloodline divine ability like Tie Bashi, or perhaps they, like Heipi, possessed a cultivation inheritance.

Shi Quan cautiously approached the man; round and chubby, he stood only 1.78 meters tall, making him look like a weak, pitiful child before the man.

He smiled awkwardly, bowed with difficulty, and said: "Sixth Lord, this is Second Lord..."

The man slapped his palm onto Shi Quan's head, lightly flicked his fingers, and Shi Quan spun like a ball. A heavy force wrapped around his body, forcing him to spin rapidly against his will.

Shi Quan cried out; the rapid spinning made him open his mouth wide, his tongue sticking out over an inch, and a strand of saliva sprayed from the tip of his tongue.

"The people Second Brother recruited… are just like you, Shi Quan—useless." While teasing Shi Quan, the man laughed: "But useless things still have some use, huh… The grain of my Shi Family isn't so easy to get into one's mouth."

The man grinned, stopped his fingers, and kicked Shi Quan in the belly.

Shi Quan yelped in pain, rolling like a ball with a "gurgling" sound along the flat street paved with huge stones, until he slammed into the base of a small building dozens of meters away, where he finally stopped.

Wu Tie and the others remained silent.

They had no acquaintance with Shi Quan, and besides, this seemed to be an internal feud within the Shi Family.

Having just arrived, no one would rashly offend the Shi Family for someone they had no connection with.

The man leisurely walked up to Wu Tie and the others' carriage; a few Shi Family members in charge of driving lowered their heads and quietly stepped aside.

"I am Shi Meng, the sixth son of this generation of the Shi Family." Shi Meng stuck out his thumb and pointed to his nose: "Second Brother Shi Fei… hehe, I've always suggested he change his name to Shi Fei, he's really fat…"

"Remember, I am the Sixth Lord of the Shi Family, Shi Meng. Shi Fei handles running errands outside; in short, he's just a gofer."

"And I, Shi Meng, command forty percent of the Shi Family's warriors." Shi Meng crossed his arms arrogantly, looking down on Wu Tie and the others thanks to his height: "Especially, the giant tribe allied with the aristocratic clans recognizes only me."

"Why? Because in this generation of the Shi Family, only I, Shi Meng, have revived the ancestors' Giant Bloodline." Shi Meng said bluntly: "So I am kin to the giant tribe, so they recognize only me, and the Shi Family's giant army obeys only my orders."

The two stone giants gave a low chuckle, bared their teeth at Wu Tie and the others, then simultaneously let out a loud roar.

The stone giants' lung capacity is enormous; a single shout kicked up a gale that made Heipi and the One-Eyed's long hair flutter wildly.

"Since you've been recruited, you count as some strength… From now on, listen to me, and you'll benefit." Shi Meng reached out, pointing his finger at each of Wu Tie and the others' noses, lightly tapping, as if trying to etch their appearances firmly into his mind.

"Remember, from now on, listen to me… you must not obey others' orders, only mine." Shi Meng grinned: "Listening to me brings benefits—for example… today I'll treat you to fine wine and meat."

"You lot of lowly whelps from the wilds, you've never eaten well or drunk well in your lives, have you?"

Shi Quan struggled to his feet from the ground, a large blood bump raised on his forehead, the corners of his eyes scraped open, blood flowing all over his face. He glared angrily this way, yet hesitated, not daring to approach.

Wu Tie and the others also had no reaction; Shi Meng brought a group of men who arranged for Wu Tie and the others to take up residence in Shibao.

Heipi and his followers each had their own subordinates and clansmen, and they were each assigned a large compound to live in.

Wu Tie, being a lone solitary, was given a private small courtyard, and a few stone dwarves were arranged to serve him.

Shi Meng fulfilled his promise; after Wu Tie and the others settled in, he truly sent them an extremely lavish feast: roasted meat, dried meat, smoked and roasted mushrooms, plus a cold vegetable salad.

Surprisingly, Shi Meng also had cheese and butter sent over!

That is, Wu Tie, thanks to the Old Iron inheritance, had corresponding knowledge in his shallow memory, so he recognized cheese and butter!

As for Heipi, Tie Bashi, and even the oldest, most experienced One-Eyed, where had they ever seen such things?

Besides that, Shi Meng truly sent them strong liquor.

In the fields outside Shibao, Wu Tie saw corn, as well as several other grain crops.

The Shi Family has enough fields to plant grain, so they certainly have sufficient grain for brewing liquor.

Unlike the Shi Family's liquor made from starchy roots and tubers, which is inferior, the Shi Family's grain liquor is sweet, fragrant, and mellow, with no off-flavors.

Wu Tie inexplicably took a liking to this miraculous liquid, especially the slight tipsiness after drinking, that feeling which temporarily lets one forget some pain, making him inexplicably fond of 'wine'!

"Not bad." Wu Tie lifted a small two-catty wine jar, shook it hard, and poured the last few drops of fine wine into his mouth.

A white shadow darted in—the ratfolk chieftain Lao Bai, who had been recruited together with Wu Tie and the others, sneaked furtively into Wu Tie's courtyard.

"Lao Bai?" Wu Tie put down the wine jar, grabbed the last strip of dried smoked meat, and hastily stuffed it into his mouth.

The reputation of these ratfolk is not good.

Wu Tie still remembered that, when he was young, a band of wandering wild ratfolk had passed through the Wu Family's Shibao, and inexplicably, half of the grain stored in the Wu Family's warehouse had disappeared.

He chewed the dried meat vigorously, eyes wide as he stared at Lao Bai.

Lao Bai twitched his nose, gazed longingly at Wu Tie's moving mouth, then spread his hands and sighed: "You're so stingy—when a guest comes to your door, you don't even offer a bit of hospitality?"

"I'm poor myself… where would I get anything to entertain you?" Wu Tie mumbled indistinctly.

"All right, all right, I guess you have a point." Lao Bai walked up to Wu Tie, seized the empty wine jar, stuck out his tongue, thrust it as far as possible into the jar's mouth, and licked hard at the wine residue inside.

After a long effort, Lao Bai licked the rim of the wine jar clean, then set it down and sat down opposite Wu Tie, chuckling.

"Well, I've got some news…" Lao Bai said, looking at Wu Tie with a smile.

"I'm poor, I have no money to buy your news…" Wu Tie patted his hemp long shirt, which had been given to him by Second Lord Shi when he was recruited; otherwise, he truly wouldn't have a single thread on him.

Lao Bai's face twitched, his smile stiffened for a moment, then he laughed again.

"Just owe it, owe it first—can you owe me a favor?" Lao Bai chuckled, looking at Wu Tie.

"You've just arrived in Shibao—what news could you have?" Wu Tie cocked his head at Lao Bai.

"All ratfolk under heaven are one family… the Shi Family themselves keep a group of ratfolk scouts; I just met their leader, so we're practically kin…" Lao Bai laughed brightly.

Wu Tie had nothing to say in reply.

The reproduction rate of the rat people is terrifyingly fast; as long as there is enough food, they can almost multiply at a geometric scale.

Moreover, they are naturally prone to running around everywhere, breeding offspring everywhere.

Speaking of which, the saying 'All rat people under heaven are one family' actually holds some truth; if one is willing to draw close, they can always find a thin blood relation, so calling them relatives is not wrong.

"What did he tell you?" Wu Tie looked at Lao Bai.

It must be admitted that the rat people's information is extremely sensitive; they have a miraculous innate ability, always gathering information at the fastest speed and spreading it at the highest efficiency.

Whether they are rat people raised by big or small powers, or those wandering in the wild, there are always countless channels for them to exchange information.

This is almost an innate bloodline ability awakened in them.

Lao Bai smiled at Wu Tie, his two hands rubbing his fingers rapidly.

"I owe you a favor." Wu Tie looked helplessly at Lao Bai: "Or, once I earn some money, I am willing to pay a reasonable fee… Shi Second Uncle said we have a salary."

"Shi Second Uncle's words are useless now; Shi Sixth Uncle… holds a higher position in the Shi Family." Lao Bai quickly corrected Wu Tie's words: "Anyway, we have no connection with Shi Second Uncle, right? Whoever pays money, we work for whoever pays."

Wu Tie widened his eyes at Lao Bai, this shameless, unscrupulous guy.

After hesitating for a moment, Wu Tie nodded.

Anyway, he joined the Shi Family only for the cultivation resources it could provide. As for other things… Lao Bai's words are a bit shameless, but it's true that Wu Tie and Shi Second Uncle don't have much connection.

"Do you know why the Shi Family suddenly started recruiting people on a large scale? Even, they've taken in those wild stone dwarves."

Lao Bai narrowed his eyes at Wu Tie: "The Changsheng Sect has launched a major incursion into the Cangyan Realm; Mist Blade is the first to suffer misfortune… Although the exact process hasn't been uncovered yet, it can be confirmed that Mist Blade's Chief Steward fled, other senior members suffered heavy casualties, and Mist Blade's First Steward, leading a group of seniors, has already defected to the Changsheng Sect…"

After a moment's hesitation, Lao Bai spoke in a low voice: "My relative said that, actually, Mist Blade's First Steward has been a member of the Changsheng Sect for many years already… So this time, Mist Blade suffered a crushing defeat."

"Those Mist Blade ruffians are actually the strongest combat force in the Cangyan Realm."

"They have defected to the Changsheng Sect, and they are also the local tyrants of the Cangyan Realm; they know all the good stuff and treasures there… Mist Blade's subordinates also include my relatives, don't they? Their information is also very sensitive."

Wu Tie curled his lips… Mist Blade certainly has its own intelligence system, and it's likely all rat people…

"All rat people under heaven are one family"… Hearing that, why does Wu Tie feel like laughing?

"The Changsheng Sect came this time and doesn't intend to leave." Lao Bai let out a long sigh: "According to several of my relatives, the Changsheng Sect's Vice Sect Master Jia Zhengfeng has already made demands to the three great families…"

"The eight largest caves in the Cangyan Realm, the Changsheng Sect wants half."

"Moreover, the Lu, Yan, and Shi families must hand over half of all their annual income to the Changsheng Sect."

"The warriors of the three great families must also select half of their elite to offer to the Changsheng Sect for dispatch."

"The most deadly part is that the Changsheng Sect says all young members of the three great families must join the Changsheng Sect."

Wu Tie widened his eyes, looking incredulously at Lao Bai: "They, are they too greedy?"

Lao Bai clapped his palm and nodded firmly: "Isn't that right? It's just too greedy… If it were only like Mist Blade, taking a bit of profit each year from the three great families, everyone could live in peace."

"But the Changsheng Sect is different; they want to swallow half of the Cangyan Realm in one gulp."

"Especially, all the young people of the three great families are joining the Changsheng Sect… Not to mention how bad the Changsheng Sect's reputation is, just look at those female disciples in their sect, each one flamboyant and showy…"

Lao Bai, with a hint of a subtle smile, said softly: "Who knows, they might enter as unmarried young ladies and come out holding babies… Who would want that?"

"The little girls aren't willing, and those little boys… if they all become loyal disciples of the Changsheng Sect, will there still be the three great families?"

Wu Tie looked at Lao Bai and asked seriously: "So you mean we need to prepare for war?"

Lao Bai looked at Wu Tie, after a while he let out a heavy sigh: "War… The three great families definitely wouldn't want to directly use their own elites to fight; we would be… the cannon fodder they bought to fight to the death."

Shaking his head, Lao Bai looked at Wu Tie and smiled: "I'm old, but I still have some eyesight… Little Tie Steward, you're not simple… So please look after me more, look after me more… You owe me a favor, remember?"

Wu Tie scratched his head, nodding thoughtfully.

"The three great families are going to war with the Changsheng Sect…"

"Great, Lao Bai… Rest assured, as long as I can help, I will definitely help you."

Wu Tie laughed brightly: "All rat people under heaven are one family; from now on, I still have many things I'll need to trouble you with."