Chapter 626: Relocation and the Approaching Enemy

When Zhou You arrived at Zhou Family Village, the Great-Grandfather was already at death's door, lying paralyzed on his bed; he could not speak, could not take in food or water, and only stared with a pair of eyes, breathing with a wheezing sound.

Zhou Laiwei and a group of others accompanied him by the bedside, their expressions sorrowful.

Seeing Zhou You return, a glimmer of light appeared in the Great-Grandfather's eyes, and he tried his best to reach out to him, but in the end, he could not succeed.

"Great-Grandfather, I know your intentions."

Zhou You grasped the Great-Grandfather's hand, and the old man exhaled his final breath, tilted his head, and closed his eyes.

Beside him, Zhou Laiwei's voice was hoarse, "Before the Master returned, the Great-Grandfather took advantage of the strength he had left to give instructions: from now on, whatever path Zhou Family Village takes, it shall be decided by your word alone."

The times were turbulent; there was not a single pure land in the world, and Zhou Family Village was no exception.

Bandits and robbers, floods and droughts, and famines took turns attacking; rural villages were destroyed one after another. Even with the financial support of Zhou You, Zhou Family Village had suffered several times, and the graves outside the village were as numerous as the stars.

This time, the Witch-people were attacking again, a storm was brewing, and the refugees passing by brought panic with them.

Even if Zhou You had not returned, Zhou Family Village would have had to migrate deep into the mountains to escape this war.

The Great-Grandfather was old and could not withstand the hardships of the journey; he fell ill and never recovered, finally exhausting the last of his days.

"Move, we must move, and we will never return."

Zhou You said to Zhou Laiwei, "This place is no longer viable. The Witch-people are drawing closer and are about to become the front line."

"You must quickly mobilize the clansmen and villagers and prepare as soon as possible."

Zhou Laiwei nodded, "Master, I have estimated that a total of seventy percent of the clansmen are willing to follow."

Seventy percent—this ratio was already quite good. At any time, there are people who harbor luck, talking about how difficult it is to leave their ancestral land.

That Zhou Laiwei could mobilize these people showed that his prestige in the village was not low; he had long since steadily taken over the Great-Grandfather's authority.

In fact, as the villagers went about their activities, the frequency of encountering Witch-people was increasing; in the areas where they hunted, gathered firewood, or even fetched water, traces of Witch-people living there often appeared.

As a large number of Witch-people tribes moved in from Beijing, they occupied the living space of the indigenous people with the tenacity of an invasive species.

The villagers were not the type to suffer in silence; usually, besides farming, they practiced boxing, and they had fought several battles with the Witch-people. Although they were not professional combatants, they had fought with blood and spirit, and there were casualties on both sides.

But as the number of Witch-people tribes increased, and professionals like hunters and Poison-Witches appeared, the ordinary commoners could no longer win.

The only plan now was to move! The peaceful Zhou Family Village gradually became noisy; every household packed up their belongings and set off, leading their well-fed livestock.

The village presented a rather peculiar atmosphere: noisy and bustling during the day, filled with the sounds of livestock roaring, children crying, and women cursing, but as soon as night fell, it was deathly quiet.

As a large number of the population migrated out, taking away the human vitality and bustle, the village inevitably fell into ruin.

Some dirt roads had not been stepped on for days, and even weeds had grown out.

"In a few more days, when each family has finished moving and the Great-Grandfather's seventh-day funeral rites have passed, we will return to Fucheng."

Zhou You announced this decision, and that night, Tie Niu and the others began packing and preparing.

The night sky that night was pitch black and pure, without a trace of impurity; there were no stars or clouds at all.

The village entrance was very quiet because the old yellow dog that guarded the village had also been taken away to join the main migration force.

Basically, Zhou Family Village had already presented an undefended, semi-abandoned state.

It was precisely on this night that an uninvited guest arrived suddenly.

A woman who looked like an elf came to the outskirts of Zhou Family Village, looking at the scattered lights and falling into deep thought.

It appeared to be an abandoned village, yet there were still dozens of households with lights on, which was very peculiar in this land.

"I heard from my foster father that his ancestral home was nearby, yet as time passed and hundreds of years went by, that small village should have long since ceased to exist."

"I shall rest here for a moment; I cannot stay the night, lest I implicate the people here." In the middle of the night, someone knocked on the door, "Master of the Hall, someone is asking for lodging."

Zhou You heard the Disciple of the martial arts hall reporting through the door and did not take it to heart, waving his hand, "There are so many empty houses in the village, just clear one out for them."

The Disciple did not leave after hearing this, but asked for instructions, "Does the Master of the Hall want to go and see?"

Hmm, the implication was that this guest was extraordinary.

The uninvited guest was a woman, a very beautiful woman, who was more dazzling than a torch or lamp in the night.

What was even rarer was that she had come alone, her clothes slightly dusty, bearing the weariness of a long journey.

Her beauty was so absolute that even the worldly Disciples of the martial arts hall felt amazed, intuitively sensing that this woman had a significant background.

When Zhou You saw the 'uninvited guest', he was slightly stunned, and memories surfaced in his mind as two unrelated figures overlapped.

"So it is her!"

During his last trip to Chongguang Cheng, Zhou You organized an underground auction and delivered Heavy Talismans into the hands of the Thousand Faces Hall; among the 9 Heavy Talismans, one was bought by a mysterious woman.

In a version that was absolutely correct and without error!

Although that woman had slightly disguised herself, her Qi and blood could not be changed; she was precisely the uninvited guest before him.

She had clearly revealed her true face today; naturally beautiful and unable to hide her charm, she was none other than the number one on the Beauty List... Zhu Qinghua.

It was said that the Thousand Faces Hall spent a great fortune to invite 'Young Master Feibai', the most skilled at painting beauties among the Eight Great Families of the North and South, to paint a beauty in black and white, so lifelike that even a single strand of hair was no different from the real person.

Zhou You had not believed it originally, but now that he saw Zhu Qinghua in person, he was certain: no matter how brilliant a master of painting was, they could not restore a beauty of natural creation.

Even though his own wives and concubines were all beauties, he was slightly distracted when he saw Zhu Qinghua.

What was strange was that when he saw her last time, she had many attendants, but now she was alone.

But since the other party did not say, it was not convenient for Zhou You to ask.

"You are the master of this place; I, Zhu, have intruded rashly, please forgive me."

Zhu Qinghua bowed slightly, "I only seek to rest my feet for a moment and will not disturb you further."

"It is no matter, only there are no female family members in the house to receive you, please forgive me."

Zhu Qinghua smiled slightly, "When traveling, one should not be bound by minor details; it is no matter."

"I have yet to ask for your honorable name."

"I am Zhou You; this place is Zhou Family Village, my ancestral home."

When Zhu Qinghua heard 'Zhou Family Village', she sighed at the coincidence; her foster father was also surnamed Zhou and also came from a small village.

But she would not assume that this place was the village where her foster father was born; Zhou was a common surname, and there were countless similar villages, whose ability to resist natural and man-made disasters was very poor—perhaps her foster father's hometown had already disappeared many years ago.

She could tell that the Zhou You before her possessed fist techniques, and even among civilian martial artists, he belonged to the outstanding elite.

However, compared to the predicament she faced, the strength of one person was no different from a cup of water trying to put out a cartload of burning firewood.

After an hour or two, Zhu Qinghua estimated that it was about time, so she stood up to take her leave, "..."

Suddenly, a harsh, noisy sound erupted outside the village, like countless steel needles striking glass, as if desperate to pierce through all things.

"They came so quickly?"

Zhu Qinghua's face turned pale, and she hurriedly stood up, "Host, please close the door; no matter what you hear, do not go out. They are here for me, and I will lead them elsewhere."

Zhou You said nothing; he glanced over and saw that the mud on the soles of Zhu Qinghua's shoes was stained with blood.

(End of chapter)