Destiny is ashes

Chapter 1139 Entrusting Supernatural Powers

Looking at these arrogant noble riders, Cang Linzu couldn't help but recall the time when the Heavenly Will Demonic Sect was searching for the Child of Calamity outside Mingshan City in the Northern Frontier.

The riders from the Demonic Sect and the riders from the Divine Capital Family spoke the same words and shared the exact same thoughts.

Obtain the best batch of seeds at a low cost.

No, it's still different.

Canglinzu silently shook his head in his heart.

Because of the Demonic Sect's tone... perhaps they needed to disguise it. After all, their goal was to recruit rather than simply enslave, so they sounded a bit softer, and their words contained a hint of enticement and expectation, unlike those of a particularly prominent clan or aristocratic family.

The tone of the Shenjing family, their haughty and arrogant attitude that treats people like dirt and doesn't even bother to pretend, is clearly more authentic.

Pretenders can never learn true arrogance because they still care about rationality and whether their words and actions can convince the other party; their posture is deliberate.

The real masters, the nobles born with a silver spoon in their mouths, are superior to others from birth. Their very existence is high and mighty, and they would never consider whether their actions are reasonable.

As his thoughts raced, Canglinzu stepped forward.

He frowned, his gaze sweeping over the group of arrogant riders before finally settling on the leader. He asked in a deep voice, "What are you doing here?"

The rider leader was impatiently whipping the ground, driving away several refugees who were nearby.

Upon hearing this question, his expression immediately turned sour. He turned around, ready to rebuke which fool dared to meddle.

However, when he saw the armor on Cang Linzu's body that belonged to a lieutenant general under Gu Yunzhi, he swallowed his words back.

His mind raced, as if he suddenly remembered something. The arrogance in his eyes was instantly replaced by surprise and apprehension. He forced a smile, and his tone immediately softened: "Is it Cang Linzu... Cang Xiaojiang?"

"Haha, I didn't know it was you in person, my apologies. Thank you for your trouble. We are here on the orders of our patriarch to give these refugees a way to survive."

At this point, he scratched his head and said frankly and intimately, "You must know how expensive labor is in the capital. Recently, there have been strange changes and unrest on all sides. The family is short of people, so we need some servants to do things."

He gestured towards the refugee camp with his lip: "These refugees are cheap and worthless, but there are some good seeds among them. We can spend a little money to buy their lives cheaply, and with a little training, whether they become guards or maids, it's a sure-fire deal."

These words were extremely harsh, treating human life as a commodity that could be valued, but even Cang Linzu had to admit that it was indeed the truth. He did not doubt this because the logic was sound.

Back then, when the Demonic Sect took these children of calamity there, it was ostensibly to save them, but in reality, it was also an investment and cultivation. Ultimately, those who could struggle to survive from the disaster of mountains of corpses and seas of blood were themselves destined for good fortune, and their physical constitution and temperament were far superior to ordinary people. Among them, the best of the best could naturally be selected, and good seeds could be obtained.

These powerful families had clearly also recognized this risk-free and highly profitable opportunity.

Having said that, he seemed to have no reason to refuse them. All he could offer these refugees was enough food to last them through the day. With his mere salary and wealth as a lieutenant general, he probably wouldn't be able to hold on for more than a few days, and he might even have to shamelessly ask General Gu for funding.

These powerful and wealthy families wouldn't actually let the servants they bought starve to death, would they?

Even the Demonic Sect wouldn't go to such lengths.

Thinking of his experience of being well-fed and clothed despite the hardships he endured in the Demonic Sect, Cang Linzu felt somewhat at ease. He took one last look at the riders, then turned and left in silence.

He had more important things to do; he needed to maintain order throughout the entire refugee camp.

Immediately afterwards, he heard the riders behind him shout again, calling for people to come and select. However, perhaps because Cang Linzu was present, their tone was much gentler this time, not as domineering as before.

Many refugees who had regained some strength chose to go and participate in the screening after a brief hesitation.

Because the granary had not gone far, the refugees who did not meet the requirements were not beaten or scolded. They were simply waved away impatiently by the riders and pushed out like garbage.

It must be said that among these refugees, there are quite a few children who are naturally gifted.

Soon, dozens of handsome young men and children with bright eyes were selected. They were led aside by members of the aristocratic families, and immediately someone took out water pouches and pills to feed them. Cang Linzu glanced at them from afar and found that they were fasting pills and fine nectar, which seemed quite legitimate and not some inferior medicine.

"His mouth is foul, but the goods are genuine."

Feeling somewhat relieved, he stopped paying attention to the group and turned to continue using his supernatural powers to travel between the towns and refugee camps on the outskirts of the capital, using all his savings to transport supplies.

As night deepened and a cold fog rose, the caravan of refugees lit up their lanterns in the darkness, preparing to depart.

At that moment, Canglinzu was busy distributing a batch of wheat cakes that had just arrived. He had his own things to do and didn't pay much attention to the departing convoy.

But for some reason, a strange feeling lingered in his mind, a persistent sense of unease.

"Playing games and doing odd jobs..."

After pondering the rider's words, Cang Linzu stopped what he was doing and muttered to himself in puzzlement, "Speaking of which, is Shenjing really short of people? I always felt that these great families with thousands of years of history, with their deep foundations and numerous servants, shouldn't need to come to the refugee camp to take advantage of this situation, right?"

Within the capital, powerful families abound, each with thousands or even tens of thousands of servants. If there is a genuine shortage of people, countless collateral branches and small families that depend on them will vie to send people in. Why bother coming to this chaotic refugee camp, fraught with the risk of disease, to personally select people?
"When the Demonic Sect took us in, their goal was clear: to train us to become martial artists and the backbone of the sect's future. But this aristocratic family doesn't seem like that at all."

This is clearly not the way to select potential martial artists. Martial artists are ultimately unruly, and to truly win their loyalty, what is needed is a strategy to win their hearts, or a shared will and ideals.

Cang Linzu had to admit that if he hadn't met his senior brother An Jing back then, he might have naturally entered the Demonic Sect's system, and under its influence, eventually accepted that system and became a member who believed in the Way of Heaven's Will.

However, judging from this family's actions, there was absolutely no element of loyalty whatsoever. From beginning to end, they showed no kindness, only charity. Even though those who were taken away were fed, they received no respect. This kind of suppression and contempt is of no benefit whatsoever in cultivating a loyal martial artist.

So, what exactly is their purpose?
Cang Lin hesitated for a moment, watching the outline of the caravan about to disappear into the shadows in the distance. He felt conflicted – he still had to manage the order of the entire refugee camp, distribute supplies, and appease the people. He was simply too busy to do both.

Moreover, this was ultimately just a baseless doubt in his mind, not enough to make him abandon his work to do so.

But it was at this moment that...

A vague feeling, vast, gentle, and incredibly familiar, as if it had crossed endless time and space, clearly transmitted from beyond the distant heavens and earth.

"Eldest brother?"

Cang Linzu was startled, and then immediately understood the origin of this feeling—it was clearly An Jing who, in some incredible situation, sensed his distress and dilemma for some unknown reason, and thus transmitted this 'supernatural power'!
In an instant, a mysterious talisman, black in color but with dark red fire patterns swirling around it, appeared in front of him.

The light and shadow flowed, condensed, and then transformed into a point of dim light, which flowed into Canglinzu's mind and became the four large characters "Shadow Clone".

With just a slight sense of it, Canglinzu was greatly shocked: "Has Senior Brother mastered his divine skill? He can even bestow this level of supernatural power from a distance?!"

Indeed, Canglinzu realized in an instant that this was not the method Anjing usually used in the past—the way of transmitting cultivation manuals and insights to them by relying on the causal connection between companion stars.

This time, An Jing directly transmitted a complete and fully formed supernatural talisman! An Jing not only transmitted the essential secrets of the entire supernatural power, but also a large amount of 'power' needed to activate this supernatural power!

Simply put, An Jing directly transferred a portion of his power across the world to him, sharing it with him!
The power of this sharing is the 'Shadow Clone', which can use its own spiritual energy to mix with dust and shadows to condense a powerful clone that can carry the coordinates of the void.

This clone not only possesses a certain level of combat power, allowing the main body to teleport there at any time via coordinates, but more importantly, it has extremely strong concealment capabilities. Compared to a real person using concealment techniques, it is essentially a cloud of lifeless dust and shadow, making it almost impossible to detect.

With this supernatural power, the dilemma of having enough food in the granaries is no longer a problem.

Because he possesses the talismans and power bestowed upon him by An Jing, he doesn't even need to cultivate himself; he only needs to think about it to refine and unleash its power.

As the shadows shifted, a cloud of dust silently rose from his shadow. The dust gradually darkened and condensed in the night, eventually transforming into a shadowy humanoid figure, similar in size to him, entirely black, with indistinct features.

This humanoid form originates from the power of Granary's Abundance, and all senses are completely shared with him.

Upon seeing this, Cang Linzu was overjoyed. Without further hesitation, he immediately sent his shadow clone to follow the departing carriage.

(End of this chapter)