Chapter 60: Chapter Sixty: When You

The atmosphere.

Instantly grew oppressive.

The world seemed to freeze, all things losing sound.

The hunched, bald old man’s smile stiffened; finally, he extended his withered, claw-like hand and repeatedly rubbed his cheeks, forcing a brilliant grin through sheer physical effort before cheerfully speaking:

“Good.”

“Perfect.”

“Our village is remote, hardly anyone comes, and when they do, they look down on our things.”

“Finally, we’ve met someone who truly likes them.”

“No need for a return gift—that would be insulting us.”

The village chief slapped his chest and said: “We may be poor, but we have pride.”

“Mrs. Du, go to my house and bring me the black hen I’ve raised—give it to the young man to take.”

“It nourishes the blood, strengthens the spleen, and replenishes yin and blood—best for women.”

Mrs. Du’s eyes locked onto Dou Changsheng without moving, her lips quivering several times as if to speak, yet she ultimately held back, forcing herself to remain silent.

Seeing this, the village chief snapped: “What are you standing there for?”

“Hurry up and go.”

“If you delay the young man, word will spread, and outsiders will think we’re rude.”

“How many times have I told you? People can be poor, but they must not lose their backbone or forget propriety.”

Mrs. Du finally averted her gaze, her voice hoarse: “Wait.”

She lifted her burden and walked toward the village. After watching her leave, the village chief’s smile widened further as he chuckled, “Young man, your surname is Dou, right?”

“I felt you looked familiar just now—my fault, I didn’t recognize you right away.”

“A top-tier name on the Renbang, a young hero.”

“First appearance on the list, ranked seventy-ninth—truly a rare talent of this world.”

“For a great figure like you to visit our humble village brings us great honor.”

“We should have slaughtered a chicken and a sheep to properly host Young Master Dou, but lately the village has been inconvenient—just a few days ago, Old Li from the east end wandered into the forest and got lost; by the time we found him, he was already dead from starvation.”

“We held Old Li’s funeral last night, and the village has been busy these past days.”

“We’re sorry for the poor hospitality.”

“The village is poor—we can only offer a black hen as compensation.”

As the village chief finished speaking, Mrs. Du returned, holding a black hen with a small head, short neck, black eyes, tiny comb, and short wings.

Ignoring the hen’s struggles, the village chief’s withered, claw-like hand snatched it away and personally placed it into Dou Changsheng’s hands, then adopted a dismissive posture, as if he never wished to see Dou Changsheng again.

Dou Changsheng knew when to stop—he did not press further.

The situation here felt wrong; doubts stirred in his mind.

How dangerous has the world become?

Where are all these dangerous people coming from?

Cities being dangerous is understandable—after all, men die for wealth, birds for food; the wealthy gather in big cities, and so do the strong, which is why major cities produce so many experts.

But this remote village should have seen no martial artists in a lifetime—why, with me, every single one here is dangerous?

Dou Changsheng felt the village was too perilous—he wanted to return to the city.

Dou Changsheng lifted the black hen, gazed deeply at the village chief, then at Mrs. Du, and finally turned and left.

Watching Dou Changsheng’s figure fade into the distance, the village chief’s smile slowly vanished; his gaze grew deep, fixed on Mrs. Du with chilling malice, his expression dark and ghostly, like a demon.

A cold voice spoke: “You were about to leave, weren’t you?”

“Don’t forget—you begged me desperately back then.”

“I pitied you, so I allowed you to dwell here.”

“How many years has it been?”

“And now you plan to betray me?”

“Old Li didn’t want to live—do you, too, want to die?”

Mrs. Du let out a bitter laugh, pointed to herself, then pulled—snatching a handful of dry, silver-white hair, letting it drift slowly into the wind, scattering across the ground.

“Is this living?”

“Neither human nor ghost?”

The village chief sneered: “To live, how can you avoid paying a price?”

“All of you are too greedy—you want to live, yet also stay healthy, free of illness.”

“But where in this world does such a thing exist?”

“In my youth, I was a famed beauty—now look at this wretched form. To whom do I complain?”

“I’ve always been too kind, so people keep betraying me.”

“A hundred years ago, I went to Changzhoucheng, where there was an ancient battlefield saturated with yin energy. I impersonated the governor of Changzhou and, using imperial authority, reshaped the city’s layout to establish a Yin Gathering Array.”

“Today, the pure yin energy collected has nearly reached its limit; in the coming days, anomalies will inevitably multiply.”

“Old Li thought death would end it all—he’s a fool dreaming.”

“These past days, I’ve used secret arts to reassemble his corpse; after ninety-nine days, I will awaken him.”

“Unless I speak, even dead, he will become a ghost and serve me.”

“I’ll give you a piece of news: Dagang City is recently turbulent. The master of the Mechanism Sect, Divine Mechanism Hundred Forge—Gongshu Duwang, has been extremely active. He’s exploiting the destruction of the border fortresses between Liang and the North by Beijin, stoking outrage among Liang’s warlords, and weaving alliances across the land—he’s preparing to cause chaos.”

“Your Du clan, as a major Liang family, stands first in the line of fire.”

Mrs. Du shook her head: “When I first came, I still cared for the Du clan—but these days, neither human nor ghost, the Dus have their own fortune. Don’t count on this half-dead old woman.”

The village chief sneered: “Stubborn mouth.”

“Don’t worry—I have no intentions.”

“I seek only to carve out the Nether Realm and establish reincarnation.”

“I tell you this merely as a heads-up—if you wish to save the Du clan, you may always come to me.”

“The price is simple: my barren village cannot truly become a Nether Realm—each attempt fails. The dead here have lain too long—their death qi and yin energy are stale. I need many living people to die violently.”

“The last generation’s Renbang rank eleven—your strength is enough to spark a great calamity.”

Mrs. Du fell silent, then spoke with difficulty: “You, Master of the Ming Dao, are a Tianbang powerhouse—you’d find it easier.”

Master of the Ming Dao sneered: “Though I often deal with the dead, I’ve never stained my hands with blood—I’ve never killed a single soul.”

“I am a good man.”

“I have always stood opposed to evil!”

“Pack your things—this place has been discovered by that demoness. We must move.”