Chapter 219: So You

"Re-establish… the pact?"

Fang Yue was stunned—he had no idea how to handle something like this.

"Night Captain, don't rush to refuse; let me explain slowly."

"Our Mo Cun flourished for a long time, and the reason no anomalies dare invade now is because of the ancient array left behind by Lord Mo."

"But now, the ancient array has suffered many damages we cannot repair—it's on the verge of collapse."

"In our Mo Cun, this is like a doomsday countdown. When that day truly comes, the villagers who have enjoyed decades of peace will never accept it—they'll be forced to live like ordinary villages outside, terrified every day, constantly at risk of being killed by anomalies that enter the village. No more nighttime entertainment, everyone must return home by curfew, living a life utterly unlike the one they once knew."

"I can do little about this situation—only try my best to slow the array's decay. And also… seek outside aid."

"Yes, your Gu Yue Cun's Lord Han."

"Because of the distance and the fact that your Gu Yue Cun's Lord Han rarely shows himself—he's extremely reclusive—I long believed Lord Han was merely a legend."

"Only recently, when Lord Han 'borrowed' Lao An—the Divine Doctor—did I learn this living legend is still alive… and terrifyingly strong!"

"At that moment, I thought: how wonderful it would be if Lord Han could also protect our village."

"If you hadn't come to Mo Cun, I planned to travel personally to Gu Yue Cun—to bring back Lao An and, while at it, pay my respects to Lord Han and discuss re-establishing the pact."

"As you see, the foundation of Mo Cun's survival is about to vanish. I seek a new guarantee for our village."

"That guarantee is Lord Han."

"I humbly beg Lord Han, while protecting Gu Yue Cun, to also lend a hand when disaster strikes Mo Cun. I've seen Lord Han's speed—he can easily safeguard both villages!"

"In return, Mo Cun… is willing to become a vassal village of Gu Yue Cun! We will annually pay fixed tribute of resources!"

What?!

Fang Yue froze.

The cost is not small.

Mo Cun's annual resource output includes not only the labor of its massive population but also commercial transactions fueled by heavy outside traffic and countless other sources.

Combined, these earnings form an enormous resource pool—even a portion given to Gu Yue Cun would be enough to elevate it to the level of Man Shui Cun!

If Gu Yue Cun grows stronger, his position as Captain will naturally improve.

Fang Yue had to admit—he was tempted.

Mainly… he wouldn't have to pay anything.

But the problem lies right there.

With a deep sigh, Fang Yue said helplessly, "I'm not refusing—I just can't decide whether Lord Han will agree. We're protected by him; we have no right to demand anything of him."

"I understand, I understand—I'm not asking you to do anything. I only hope you'll fully convey Mo Cun's sincere wish to Lord Han. Whatever the outcome, Mo Cun will remember Night Captain's efforts."

Saying this, Chief Captain Lang pulled out five black stones and placed them in Fang Yue's palm.

"This is my personal token. If our two villages forge a new pact, there will be even greater rewards!"

Ah, this?

Too generous!

"No no no!"

Fang Yue said it, but took the black stones anyway.

Who would turn down black stones?

【BLACK STONES!!】

Shut up!

【BLACK STONES BLACK STONES BLACK STONES BLACK STONES BLACK STONES!】

Fang Yue rolled his eyes inwardly.

The moment he took a benefit, the parchment jumped out.

This thing ate two black stones before and drove back Ma Ling'er—he suspected it hadn't fully consumed the energy then, but hoarded some for itself.

【UNFAIR!!】

【2050, sunny, in-game, the great and noble parchment has been wronged—holding a grudge, holding a grudge, holding a grudge, holding a grudge!!】

You're guilty!

If it hadn't been a true life-or-death moment, Fang Yue would never have spent two at once.

Even so, adding the five black stones from Chief Captain Lang…

Fang Yue's total black stone count now reached ten.

With money in hand, Fang Yue stood taller, feeling more confident about the caravan ahead.

Fang Yue was delighted to receive the payment; Chief Captain Lang was delighted to give it.

He wasn't afraid Fang Yue would take the money—he was afraid he wouldn't.

That would mean Gu Yue Cun lost one Captain to speak for them.

Next, he needed to win the support of the other two Captains in Gu Yue Cun—if all three lobbied Lord Han together, the chance of success would be higher.

After that, Chief Captain Lang chatted with Fang Yue a while longer, then walked to a pillar resembling a control console.

The pillar was only one meter tall, its top shaped like a disc.

As Chief Captain Lang pressed his palm onto the disc…

Hummm!!

A network of glowing patterns spread from the spiral structure of the Di He, extending across the entire Mo Cun.

Fang Yue was stunned to see every inch of Mo Cun's ground covered in these glowing lines, stretching all the way to the village's boundaries—the famed Life and Death Line—before finally stopping.

"This is our Mo Cun's ancient anomaly-expelling array. Look closely—you'll see many lines are damaged, each pattern different. Fortunately, the array still functions, though protection in some areas has certainly weakened."

"This phenomenon is growing more frequent—the entire array is riddled with holes; total failure is only a matter of time. Even the core… "

Chief Captain Lang pointed to the pillar before him.

The various crack-like marks and traces were distributed across the pillar's body, as if it could shatter into a pile of rubble at any moment.

"This matter concerns the most core secret of Mo Cun. I must ask Captain Ye to keep it confidential. As for Lord Han's matter, thank you for your trouble."

"I'll do my best."

Those words were already enough.

Chief Captain Lang nodded in satisfaction.

Telling an outsider the greatest secret of one's own village actually carried a very great risk.

But Mo Cun had already reached the point where it could not break without being rebuilt.

Even if it was like throwing a doctor at a desperate illness, he still had to find a way out for Mo Cun. He could not let Mo Cun decline in his generation.

Fang Yue looked at the glowing patterns below and noticed that it seemed only here, in the core control area, could these patterns be seen.

The villagers below all acted as if they hadn't noticed, turning a deaf ear to these patterns.

"They truly cannot see them. Without me activating the formation on this side, these patterns are normally in a hidden state."

Saying this, Chief Captain Lang suddenly seemed to notice something and froze for a moment.

"What's wrong?"

"... Over there, and over there. Last time I checked, those weren't damaged."

In the directions Chief Captain Lang pointed with a frown, one was a black dot in midair.

The formation enclosing the entire village presented itself as a square barrier outline, forming a perfect seal around the village.

Naturally, the air above wasn't left out either.

Only now, it seemed damage to the barrier had also appeared in the air.

The other direction he pointed was toward the village entrance.

The village entrance... last night...

Chief Captain Lang glanced at Fang Yue, lost in thought.

"Chief Captain Lang? Chief Captain Lang!"

Fang Yue called out twice before Chief Captain Lang suddenly snapped out of his thoughts.

"Wh-what's wrong?"

"Is there really no way to repair the ancient formation? Perhaps Lord Han, or Lord Lan of Man Shui Cun, might have a way to repair it?"

"It's useless. As far as I know, Lord Han and Lord Lan don't specialize in formations. Only our village's missing Lord Mo was..."

"I see..."

Fang Yue sighed. Then there was nothing he could do either. He could only go back and ask Lord Han if he'd like to take on the side job of protecting Mo Cun.

Just as he was thinking this, Fang Yue's peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of a Black Crow banner slowly rising along a railing in the direction of the village's north side.

"Um... that direction over there, isn't that the Black Crow Merchant Group?"

Fang Yue hurriedly asked.

"It really is. I've been chatting so happily I forgot the time. Here, you go down first."

Although Chief Captain Lang couldn't completely repair the ancient formation, based on the authentic traces left by Lord Mo, simple patching was still possible. If the formation's collapse could be delayed, then delay it. This was the last effort Chief Captain Lang could make.

Fang Yue said goodbye to Chief Captain Lang and headed straight for the Black Crow Merchant Group's large tent.

Sprinting all the way there, quite a few people pointed and whispered about Fang Yue.

First, because his face was unfamiliar, and second, because few people ran like that in the street.

"Ye..."

While running, Fang Yue seemed to hear Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu's voice, but he didn't pay it any mind.

In no time, he charged into the Black Crow Merchant Group's large tent.

Finally... finally he could buy things!

Fang Yue excitedly moved to enter, but was stopped by a person at the door whose clothes were embroidered with the Black Crow emblem.

"Invitation letter."

"... What?"

"Our Black Crow Merchant Group has reached the final Black Crow auction time, which is also the most precious item brought by this merchant group. Only those with sufficient wealth and status locally can receive our Black Crow invitation letter to attend the Black Crow Auction.

If during the past few days, the few people who bid the highest, they can also receive our Black Crow invitation letter.

So, this guest, do you have a Black Crow invitation letter?"

The doorkeeper spoke in detail and politely.

But Fang Yue was a bit dumbfounded.

That's not how it's supposed to go.

No invitation letter and they won't even let him in?

Just as Fang Yue was wondering whether to go back and find Chief Captain Lang or Captain Huo, someone behind him suddenly spoke up.

"He... is with... us."

The voice was somewhat halting, a completely unfamiliar voice.

Fang Yue turned and looked. The ones who came to his rescue were two black-robed figures.

Strangely, the hands extended by the black-robed figures were in the form of black smoke, and in their hands they held something resembling an envelope, stamped with a Black Crow red seal.

This was the Black Crow invitation letter.

"So you have someone bringing you. Please enter."

The black-robed figure put away the Black Crow invitation letter, turned their head, and seemed to glance at Fang Yue, but with a face of pitch-black smoke, Fang Yue couldn't make anything out.

The other black-robed figure, however, really seemed to shove their face right up against his, staring at him intently. Only after being pulled away by the taller black-robed figure did they stop shoving their face at Fang Yue.

Acquaintances?

Fire Captain?

And in disguise too?

Fang Yue found it a little strange, but as long as someone brought him in, he didn't care about the rest.

He silently followed the two black-robed figures inside.

Unlike the large flat tent seen from outside.

The inside was unexpectedly spacious.

Layer upon layer of descending stairs led straight down to the final auction house stage.

And each level branched off into many seats for the guests to sit.

Once the two black-robed figures went inside, they casually found a high spot and sat down.

Fang Yue hesitated for a moment, then squeezed in beside them.

The shorter black-robed figure immediately turned his head and stared at him.

"Uh... thanks to the two of you for helping out earlier. By the way, what should I call you two?"

"... Hei Da. She's Hei Er."

Professional!!

Fang Yue instantly realized he shouldn't have come over so rashly.

Once the danger had passed, Fang Yue had long since put away the Human Skin Mask.

Now he was showing his true face.

"Ahem... my name is Niu Niu!"

The shorter black-robed figure suddenly froze, as if hearing a somewhat familiar name, and fell into thought.

The taller black-robed figure, on the other hand, didn't care.

The three of them sat up high, quietly waiting.

Slowly, the surrounding seats also began to fill up.

Fang Yue noticed that most of the people had come in disguise to attend the auction.

They seemed very careful about protecting their identity information, afraid of being recognized after leaving.

He glanced at the black-robed pair beside him.

Hei Er seemed rather inexperienced, curious about everything, often turning her head to look around.

At the same time, she seemed to pay him special attention.

Hei Da, on the other hand, was very calm and composed, looking every bit the seasoned customer.

"These two don't look like Fire Captain either... then who was it?"

Fang Yue frowned and thought it over, but simply couldn't figure out who in Mo Cun both knew him and had this kind of strange black robe.

That said, the disguise effect of this black robe really was impressive—you couldn't even see the face.

Fang Yue was a little tempted, but just looking at the material told him it wasn't cheap...

"Um... where did you get your black robes?"

"... Auction."

Just as he thought!

Looks like the Black Crow Merchant Group has quite a few good things.

Fang Yue rubbed his hands together, full of anticipation.

At this point, the Black Crow Auction venue was almost completely full.

The tent flap at the entrance had already been pulled shut with a thick black curtain, blocking out the sunlight, blending in with the surrounding tents to form a completely enclosed environment.

One could even faintly see a faint sheen reflecting off it, as if it were something extraordinary, probably able to block out sound as well.

Is it about to start...

Fang Yue's excitement grew. On the auction stage, a middle-aged man in formal attire was slowly walking out from behind the curtain.

"Welcome, every—"

Crash!!

The black curtain that had already sealed the entrance was suddenly ripped open, as if a hole had been torn in it. The harsh sound echoed through the entire tent, and the host who had just begun to speak froze on the spot.

Everyone turned their heads in unison to look at the entrance, only to see a delicately dressed woman with a head of fiery red hair, stepping gracefully inside.

Fire Captain?!

Fang Yue was stunned for a moment. Instinctively, he wanted to cover his face and avoid being recognized by her.

But it was too late. Fire Captain, who had originally been heading down the stairs, spotted Fang Yue at a glance.

"So you're here!"

Changing direction, Fire Captain unceremoniously walked straight to the seat beside Fang Yue and plopped down.

"Alright, stop staring at me one by one, continue the auction."

"Y-yes!"

Sleepy...

(End of chapter)