Chapter 1

Bathed in the bright moonlight, overlooking the vast and dense fruit grove forest, one could also experience a sense of winding greenery, deep and boundless silence, especially the mist that seemed to be a layer of gauze covering the forest, adding a touch of mystery to this marsh forest where life and death coexist.

Of course, this mysterious feeling would probably only exist among ordinary people or martial cultivators. For the primordial cultivators who coexist with heaven and earth and can defy fate, no matter how vast and dense the fruit grove forest is, entering it would be like strolling through a backyard, leisurely and at ease.

The marsh forest in autumn and winter is often shrouded in thick fog. However, compared to the summer, the slightly more reassuring aspect is that the methane content in the fog is relatively low, making it less lethal. However, if not fully prepared, it is best not to leave the houses covered with marsh wormwood at night, as wandering through the dense fog at night could lead to poisoning and death at any moment.

This point is absolutely etched in the hearts of the marsh slaves who live in the heart of the fruit grove forest, as no one would joke with their own life. However, in a village of a thousand marsh slaves in the northwest of the fruit grove forest, a figure as silent as a weasel quietly approached a large wooden house to the north of the village in the dead of night.

Through the mist as dense as rain, one could vaguely see that it was a man in his thirties, with a rugged and strong face. In late autumn, he was only wearing a single patched shirt, with sleeves torn to the elbows, but his thick skin seemed to make him less afraid of the cold. At this moment, he had marsh wormwood inserted in his nostrils and held marsh wormwood vines in his mouth. His eyes, though slightly weary, were sharp and alert, with a hint of nervousness.

"At this time, Dagu, the guard of the food warehouse, should be asleep!" The man whispered, his body leaning against the wooden house, his eyes darting around.

Beside the wooden door of the house, which was locked with a rusty iron chain, a man even more robust than the night traveler was snoring, his snores rising and falling with his body, clearly in a deep sleep.

A hint of joy flashed in the night traveler's eyes. He moved with great skill, nimbly climbing over the sharp antlers, then tiptoed to the wooden door and quietly tried to remove the iron chain.

The night traveler moved extremely quietly, his mind highly focused, afraid of making even the slightest sound, so much so that he didn't notice the snoring gradually becoming more peaceful.

Before long, the iron chain, which was only wrapped a few times, was removed. The night traveler quietly opened the door and crouched to enter. At that moment, the snoring guard suddenly opened his eyes, stood up, and stared at the slightly ajar wooden door, a cold smile on his face, with a hint of anger.

When the night traveler emerged carrying a large, dark object, the surrounding area was suddenly illuminated by firelight, and the crowd made him turn pale with fear. His body trembled, and the object he was holding fell to the ground—it was nearly a hundred pounds of dried meat.

With a thud, the night traveler knelt down, his face ashen, and bowed to the crowd surrounding the wooden house, pleading, "Lord Anze, spare my life!"

"Spare your life?" A man in a wolf fur coat with a silver nose ring glared at the night traveler, a shadow of darkness in his eyes. "Dakang, you should know what the food warehouse is, right?"

Dakang hurriedly replied, "Lord Anze, Dakang knows. The food warehouse is where food is stored, the lifeline of the thousand people in the northwest of the fruit grove. Besides the food needed for daily life, there are also the quotas to be handed over to the master..."

"Since you know that, how could you dare to steal, without being prepared to lose your head?" Anze looked at the crowd around him sternly. "The master has a rule: anyone who steals from the food warehouse shall be killed."

"Exactly, he should be killed!" Dagu, the guard of the food warehouse, awkwardly rubbed his buttocks. "Lord Anze, the hundred pounds of black deer meat lost last month was definitely stolen by Dakang, and it even got me twenty lashes!"

The crowd echoed, and Dakang was immediately condemned by all. Hearing the cries for his death, Dakang slumped to the ground, his mind not filled with regret but with thoughts of his orphaned wife and child.

Raising his hand, the crowd's noise suddenly ceased, showing the high prestige of Lord Anze. Satisfied, he looked around and his expression, illuminated by the firelight, suddenly became sinister. "Dakang, you heard that, right? Killing you is the will of everyone. Why did you steal? Dagu, Dafeng, take him away!"

Dagu and Dafeng were Lord Anze's right-hand men. Dagu was impulsive, while Dafeng was more cunning. As Dagu rolled up his sleeves to step forward, Dafeng, standing to Anze's right, raised his thick eyebrows and suddenly said, "Lord, can we spare Dakang's life?"

"Dafeng, what do you mean? Are you asking me to defy the master's rules?" Anze looked at Dafeng with a cold gaze.

A glimmer of hope flashed in Dakang's eyes, while Dagu stood frozen. "Exactly, Dafeng, are you out of your mind? Asking for mercy for Dakang? If Lord Anze defies the master's rules, he could lose his position and even the right to cultivate, can you bear that responsibility?"

Dafeng shook his head unconcernedly, his eyes fixed on Anze. "Lord, Dafeng has always been your loyal subordinate and would never do anything to harm you. Please trust me!"

"Then give me a reason to spare Dakang. If it's within the rules, I can consider it," Anze seemed to trust Dafeng and took a step back.

"The winter hunt is approaching, and our northwest household is already short of able-bodied men. If we kill Dakang, it will be even harder to meet the quotas," Dafeng replied. "If we fail to meet the master's quotas, the punishment will be severe."

Anze fell into deep thought. As the head of the household, he enjoyed the greatest power in the marsh slave village and the right to cultivate, but he also had to bear the corresponding responsibilities. If he failed, all his power would be nothing, and the master would never want an incompetent head of the household.

This situation gave Dakang even more hope, and he looked at Dafeng with gratitude, thinking that he had misjudged him, believing him to be a cunning person, but now he was the only one speaking up for him.

"Many hands make light work, and Dakang is a capable man. During the autumn hunt, if it weren't for him, that flower python would have escaped!" Dafeng continued. "Of course, such a serious crime as theft cannot be forgiven so easily. I remember the master's rule: if a marsh slave makes a significant contribution to the village, it can offset his crimes."

Anze nodded. "Dafeng, what contribution can Dakang make?"

Dafeng looked at Dakang, his expression suddenly turning sinister. "Dakang's wife, Xiaohui, is about to give birth. If he can offer her to the village as a birth mother, it would be a significant contribution to the village's population growth..."

Dafeng's words sparked a flurry of discussion. Dagu, who had previously opposed sparing Dakang's life, looked pleased. The "birth mother" was essentially a communal asset of the village, used only for reproduction, and before she became pregnant, every adult male could have relations with her. Dafeng had long coveted Xiaohui.

"Dafeng, you beast!" Dakang, who had been grateful to Dafeng, was now trembling with anger, spitting out his words. "How could you come up with such a despicable idea..."

"Good intentions are taken for granted!" Dafeng looked at Dakang with disdain and sneered. "Dakang, you newcomers are so proud. No matter who you were before, you are now a marsh slave. Talking about dignity and integrity is meaningless. Living is the only hard truth. If you die, your wife Xiaohui will end up on this path anyway."

"Damn..." Dakang suddenly stood up. "I, Lu Kang, became a thief for my son, but my wife, even if she dies, will never become a prostitute..."

As Dafeng became furious, a sinister smile appeared on Anze's face. "Lu Kang? What is your surname? It seems you were someone of status before, but now you are a marsh slave. In the northwest household, you must obey me. If you don't follow Dafeng's suggestion, I have no reason to spare your life!"

"As a man, I stand tall and straight. I cannot beg for my life by sacrificing my wife's honor. I, Lu Kang, will never do that!" Lu Kang looked directly at Anze. "Lord, if you want to kill me, do it!"

Anze grinned. In fact, he also coveted Xiaohui's plump body, and Dafeng's suggestion was deeply to his liking. However, Lu Kang's current integrity left Anze with no way to back down. He waved his hand. "Take him away and execute him at the east gate!"

Dagu and Dafeng exchanged glances, both spitting out thick saliva and walking toward Lu Kang. At that moment, a young but powerful roar suddenly echoed, "Stop!"

Page break

Page break