Even in his twilight years, he swept through the chaotic army of ten thousand warriors!

Bang bang bang!

The loud banging on the door struck my chest like a muffled thunderclap, finally bringing a glimmer of life to my senses.

Ji Yan suddenly opened his eyes, and what he saw was desolation and ruin.

The low-ceilinged house had been in disrepair for years, and the hot, humid wind blowing back into our throats made a whooshing sound like a broken bellows.

"Heh...cough cough!"

Before he could even catch his breath, a rough voice boomed from outside the door.

"Old Ji, if you're still breathing, get over here and open the door!"

"If you dawdle any longer, I'll chop off your legs!"

Bang!

The person outside kicked the door, startling the dust from the low house into falling down.

Ji Yan hurriedly tried to get up, but her body was like a rusted door hinge; after struggling a few times, she rolled off the bed.

Forcing his cloudy eyes open, he finally saw himself clearly—

His white hair, as dry as straw, was disheveled and scattered, and his skin, wrinkled like tree bark, hung loosely on his frame.

His knuckles were jagged like chicken claws, and bluish-purple veins meandered beneath his almost transparent skin...

He looked like he was about to be buried!

"I...this is..."

The two memories intertwined, and the excruciating pain of being torn apart in his mind caused him to unconsciously curl up into a ball, clutching his head.

But the urging from outside never stopped, and he didn't have time to sort things out...

After all, those bastards outside the door were really capable of chopping off his leg!

Bang bang bang!

The kicking at the door grew increasingly impatient, and the old wooden door groaned incessantly.

Ji Yan shook his head and struggled to sit up, swaying forward.

As he got older, his eyesight became blurry and his hearing became poor. Only when Ji Yan got close enough could he vaguely hear words like "taxes" outside the door...

Another one?

It felt as if a block of ice had suddenly fallen into his heart.

In his youth, he was also a hardworking and diligent farmer.

Although life was hard back then, as long as we sweated, the fields would always produce enough grain to sustain us.

But I don't know when it started...

The emperor's wedding led to a 10% increase in taxes, and the war in the north led to another 10% increase.

Even when the county magistrate was repairing his government office, he still wanted to squeeze some more money out of them...

All year round, the back bends and straightens, straightens and bends again, and in the end, the hands are empty.

In good years, people can barely make ends meet; in famine years, they can only watch helplessly as their loved ones succumb to hunger and illness, collapsing one by one.

Only he, like the hardest stone on the edge of the field, endured the hardships of his wife and son, and now, on this meager plot of land, he breathes alone.

This year is even more difficult. The heavens refused to send rain, and locusts came in swarms, leaving the fields with almost no harvest.

He thought he had finally made it through.

But then, the new emperor ascended the throne, and the edict of tax reduction was like a drop of life-saving water falling on his parched heart.

But didn't we just pay the taxes last month?

Ji Yan clenched his fists, but the people waiting outside the door were already getting impatient.

With a bang, the door, which could no longer bear the weight, was kicked open.

Four men with knives at their waists stormed into the house.

Ji Yan, who was nearly knocked over, barely managed to stand up, but when he saw the leading official, he couldn't help but tremble.

Chai Ming was the county magistrate's younger brother.

He abused his connections and committed all sorts of evil deeds. He killed at least eighty or a hundred people, so he was also known as Chai Wuchang (meaning "Chai the Impermanent").

And yet they dared to keep Chai Ming waiting for so long...

"You old codger!"

Chai Ming stepped forward and kicked him.

"Are you waiting for me to tear down your shabby house and then accuse you of resisting grain rations if you don't open the door?!"

A kick landed squarely on Ji Yan's chest, sending him crashing heavily against a pillar. Tears mingled with the blood he coughed up and streamed down his face.

But she still managed to force a smile.

"Sir, the taxes have already been paid, and besides..."

"And the new emperor reduced taxes, so why... why are they collecting them again..."

Before he could even finish speaking, Chai Ming frowned.

"You old bastard, you dare to use the Emperor's favor to pressure me?"

He stepped forward, grabbed Ji Yan's withered white hair, and led him outside, then chuckled.

After going outside, he raised his voice on his own, as if he wanted the neighbors who were watching to hear it, so as not to waste any more breath.

"Yes, yes, His Majesty has reduced your regular taxes..."

"But transporting money and grain from the county to the prefectural city, and from the prefectural city to the capital, involves expenses for carriages, labor, warehouse wear and tear, and the cost of protecting against demons along the way—all of these require money."

"The Emperor's boundless grace is his business, but who will fill this huge hole?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the officers beside him burst into laughter and echoed his words.

"Hurry up and hand over the money, one tael of silver!"

Ji Yan's mind went blank, and his cloudy eyes involuntarily became empty.

"But...but I really can't afford it..."

"This year's harvest was a complete failure... Last month's delivery was the last bit of our stored grain..."

"Can't produce it?" Chai Ming sneered and released his grip, letting him slide to the ground like mud.

He then stepped aside, and a middle-aged man in a silk shirt walked out from behind him.

"Let me introduce you, this is Chen Zhong, the Chen family's butler!"

Without further ado, Chen Zhong squatted down and affectionately took Ji Yan's withered hand.

"Old Ji, don't panic."

"The Chen family has cultivated this land for generations, and of course they have seen the difficulties faced by their fellow villagers..."

"My husband is kind-hearted, so he'll pay the taxes for you first, so you won't have to at your age..."

Chai Ming snorted coldly and issued a threat at the opportune moment.

"Fifty strokes of the cane for resisting grain tax, and the land will be confiscated!"

"How terrifying!" Chen Zhong pretended to be scared for a moment, then grabbed Ji Yan's hand tightly.

"The Chen family is just holding onto your small plot of land in Datianpo for now. It will be yours again once you have the money to pay it back..."

"How is it?"

Chen Yan was stunned and remained silent for a long time.

He then realized that this time they weren't there to collect taxes...

This is to take his life.

He was still in a daze, unaware that Chai Ming had other thoughts after speaking.

What Ji Yan just said was... he couldn't raise the money...

In other words, this old coffin pot still has some money left for its burial?

As he thought this, he looked Ji Yan up and down...

"Hey!"

"Who are you trying to scare with that clenched fist?"

Finally finding fault, Chai Ming kicked Ji Yan in the back of the knee.

"without……"

Ji Yan tried to speak, but Chai Ming ignored him completely and slammed the scabbard down on him.

But Ji Yan's frail body, aged seventy or eighty, couldn't withstand such a beating; he was unable to straighten up after just two blows.

The blows blurred his consciousness, and blood stained his eyes...

Ji Yan's remaining thoughts were enveloped in a misty haze.

Amidst the misty haze, a massive purple-gold seal, imbued with divine might, crashed down!

Ultimately, it all came down to a few lines of large characters in my mind...

[Destiny: Late Bloomer]

[Client: Ji Yan]

【Destiny Type: Mayfly (54%)】

[Evaluation: Eighty-six years buried in the dust, half a lifetime of poverty, a life of humility, like an old tree on the verge of decay, broken by wind and rain, only waiting for the yellow earth to cover his body.]

However, past humiliations were all fires that tempered the heart; half a lifetime of hardship were fertile ground for nourishing the roots.

now--

His destiny was restored, divine power bestowed upon him, his crippled body broke free of its shackles, and his decaying bones were given new life!

[Entry: To be selected]

【skill:--】

With his consciousness already blurred, Ji Yan couldn't even make out the words on it, and simply followed his instincts to click on the option to be selected.

In an instant, I felt a surge of power rushing out of my body.

Like a new spring seeping from a dried-up riverbed, like a new flower blooming among withered branches and fallen leaves...

But the cold glint of the blade reflected in his eyes, and at that moment Ji Yan couldn't think of anything else; he only instinctively wanted to push the blade away...