I built a safe house in the eerie night.

Jiang Ning led a group of people across a low valley and quickly headed west.

The area where they were currently located, on the southern slope of the Changyin Mountains, was largely under the jurisdiction of Danhua City, and was being jointly explored and developed by the Jiang, Liu, and Yao families within the city.

As for the other directions of the mountain range, they are dominated by their respective cities, such as the Mizusawa City in the east and the village set up in the Arahoku City in the west.

Due to the vast distance between them and the numerous dangerous places in between, they had almost no contact with each other.

Even villages located on the southern slopes of the mountain range, such as Baiye Village of the Jiang family, Qingniu Village of the Liu family, Yao'an Village of the Yao family, and several other outpost villages, usually keep to themselves and do not interfere with each other.

The black fungus resources in the mountains may seem scattered, but in fact, the total amount is quite large. Each family harvests it entirely based on their own skills and luck in exploration. There has never been a clear division of territories, so conflicts are naturally rare.

Ultimately, while sending refugees into the mountains to establish outposts and collect resources was one aspect, the amount they could hand over each month was always limited.

On a deeper level, they planted their seed in this eerily entrenched mountain range, laying the foundation for the family's future actions, and periodically sending people into the mountains to gather information.

In such a situation, conflicts between villages benefit neither family nor the other.

Now that Qingniu Village is taking the initiative to bully and oppress, Jiang Ning has to think deeply about their motives.

This is probably not just a simple village dispute; there may be other hidden reasons, and it may even be... directed at Jiang Ning himself.

"Hopefully, the attack we suffered in the mountains wasn't related to your Qingniu Village or the Liu family."

Jiang Ning muttered to himself, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

Soon, they arrived at the western mountain valley that Wang Fu had mentioned.

The place was littered with boulders, and withered yellow weeds clung sparsely to the jagged cracks between the rocks, creating a desolate scene. It was several miles away from Baiye Village.

From afar, they could see Xiong Mengzheng leading the group of collectors who had set off that morning, confronting three people.

The leader of the group was a middle-aged man dressed in black. He was arrogant and showed no attempt to hide his contempt for the villagers, including Xiong Meng, who were originally refugees.

It wasn't until he saw Jiang Ning leading his entourage and noticed the composed demeanor that Jiang Ning exuded, so different from his surroundings yet so natural, that his expression changed slightly. He immediately put on a warm smile and quickly went to greet him.

"I suppose you are... Young Master Jiang Liu. I have long admired your name since Danhua City."

The middle-aged man cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, speaking in a tentative tone.

Jiang Ning was the sixth son in the Jiang family's direct line, and that was how most people in the city addressed him.

Jiang Ning ignored him directly, merely glancing at him indifferently before his gaze fell upon the two attendants behind him.

The two men were tall, with sharp eyes and a steady aura; they were clearly not ordinary refugees, but rather cultivators stationed there from elsewhere.

Jiang Ning ignored the middle-aged man at the head of the group and looked directly at Xiong Meng: "Are you alright?"

When Xiong Meng saw Jiang Ning personally leading his men to arrive, his tense nerves relaxed, and he nodded vigorously:

"Young Master, we're alright!"

Immediately, he and the villagers who had been standing by retreated behind Jiang Ning and joined up with Yu Niu, Er Hu, and other men who had come to support him, wielding knives and axes and looking menacing.

More than thirty pairs of eyes, filled with hostility, stared at the three people opposite them.

Upon seeing this, the middle-aged man's smile visibly froze for a moment, and a hint of displeasure flashed across his face at Jiang Ning's disregard. However, he quickly forced out an even more deliberate smile and was about to say something.

Jiang Ning's calm voice rang out, "What's your name?"

At the same time, for the first time, their gazes officially fell on his face.

The middle-aged man quickly cupped his hands again: "I am Liu Guan, the steward of the outer hall of the Liu family. Young Master Jiang, you may not have heard of me..."

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Ning interrupted again, his tone still calm, yet carrying the natural air of a superior:

"Is this the territory designated by your Liu family?"

Liu Guan's smile froze, his lips twitched, and his eyes flickered.

"Young Master Jiang, I was unaware that you personally ordered the mining; I thought..."

He feigned hesitation, glancing at Wang Fu, "I thought it was this old servant surnamed Wang giving false orders, after all, I heard you were unwell and had suffered a serious injury, almost collapsing..."

Hearing the disdain in the other person's words, Yu Niu's fiery temper flared up instantly. He abruptly raised his gleaming machete and logging axe, his copper-bell-like eyes glaring intently at Liu Guan.

"If you dare curse Young Master Jiang again, I'll chop you up!"

Erhu and the others also stepped forward, glaring angrily.

Xiong Meng reacted quickly, grabbing the impulsive Yu Niu and scolding him in a low voice, "A Niu! Listen to the young master's orders!"

Wang Fu also spoke at the opportune moment, his voice aged yet powerful:

"Manager Liu, I made it clear this morning that my young master personally ordered the mining here. How can you claim it was a false order? What is the meaning of your repeated obstruction?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Guan slapped his forehead, feigning sudden realization: "Oh dear, what a terrible memory I have! Young Master Jiang, please forgive me; Lord Wang, please forgive me!"

He still wore that obsequious yet hypocritical smile, turned to Jiang Ning, and bowed slightly.

"Although I don't know why you still want to harvest the Tai Sui under the current circumstances, since it was personally ordered by you, Young Master Jiang, my future son-in-law of the Liu family, I naturally dare not stop you. I'll leave now, I'll leave now. I hope you will forgive my offense."

As he spoke, he gestured for the two people behind him to leave.

He had only taken two steps when he turned back, a fake smile plastered on his face, and feigned concern:

"Oh, by the way, Young Master Jiang, a couple of days ago, this Lord Wang came to our Qingniu Village, saying that the sacred blood at your village's altar is about to be extinguished, and he would like to borrow some..."

"Alas, it's not that we're unwilling to lend, but the village's reserves are so limited that we can't spare any more. We hope you can understand."

His gaze swept over the ragged but wide-eyed villagers behind Jiang Ning, and his tone became increasingly 'sincere':

"If... the situation in your village is truly difficult and it is not easy to defend, our Qingniu Village would welcome Young Master Jiang and everyone from Baiye Village to come and take refuge temporarily."

"After all, if you successfully complete your three-month term as garrison commander and return to Danhua City, according to the wishes of the elders of both families, you will complete the marriage arrangements with the fourth young lady of my Liu family and become the fourth son-in-law of our Liu family."

"When the two families become even closer through marriage, I, as a lowly steward of the outer hall, will also benefit, won't I?"

These words, though seemingly well-intentioned, were actually barbed in every word, full of condescension and even implying a threat.

Yu Niu was so angry that his chest heaved violently. If Xiong Meng hadn't been holding him back so tightly, he would have rushed up and fought to the death.

Even Wang Fu, an old man who was used to the ways of the world, had a slightly somber expression.

Jiang Ning, on the other hand, showed no obvious emotional fluctuations from beginning to end, remaining as calm as a deep pool of water.

Just as Liu Guan and the other two turned to leave the ravine, Jiang Ning finally spoke again, his voice not loud:

"A strange thing happened in the mountains; access is cut off. Do you know why?"

Liu Guan paused, his back seemingly frozen for a moment.

He turned around, the fake smile on his face fading slightly, and his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly before quickly returning to normal. He shook his head and said:

"This... I really don't know. Not only our southern foothills, but also the other entrances and exits of Changyin Mountain, as well as the east and west mountains, are blocked. Perhaps... it's because the 'Strange Moon' is approaching?"

"However, Young Master Jiang need not worry too much. As long as we can get through these few days and avoid those things, the people in the city will surely find a way to come in and rescue us as soon as possible."

After saying this, he didn't linger and, with two attendants, quickly disappeared into the rocky thicket on the other side of the ravine.

"Young Master, are we just going to let that bastard go like that?" Yu Niu finally let out a venting of his anger, his face full of resentment. "He should have tasted our axe!"

Xiong Meng sighed and tugged at him:

"Ah Niu, say less. Didn't you realize that Liu Guan is a cultivator? And the two behind him are no weak either. If it really comes down to a fight, no matter how many of us there are, we'll only suffer a great loss."

Jiang Ning looked up at the sky, exhaled a breath of stale air, and suppressed the turbulent thoughts surging in his heart.

Xiong Meng is right; conflict now will only bring harm and no benefit.

Since the other party hasn't completely broken off relations, I won't act rashly or recklessly. I don't have the resources for that right now, and it would be extremely irrational.

It could seriously affect the overall situation. Right now, the most important thing is to stabilize the village's defenses and withstand the strange attack.

As for other trivial matters and grudges outside the city, those can wait.

Jiang Ning had already memorized the other party's face and attitude!

"It's still early," Jiang Ning's voice returned to its usual calm.

"Uncle Meng, you guys continue mining the Tai Sui in the cave. Cut as much as you can before dark. Ah Niu, Hu Zi, you take the brothers who went into the forest this morning and go back to the village first. Leave two of them in the village to keep watch. The rest of you, go into the outer edge of the dead forest and collect as many corpses as you can."

Although everyone was still indignant about the frustration they had just experienced, they had no objection to Jiang Ning's order and immediately responded, getting busy with their own tasks.

Jiang Ning remained standing in the same spot, gazing in the direction where Liu Guan and the others had disappeared, his eyes growing increasingly serious.

"Young Master," Wang Fu walked to his side, his aged voice filled with deep worry.

"Fate is playing tricks on us. The crisis at the altar is still unresolved, the path out of the mountains is unknown, and now the 'Strange Moon' is fast approaching... Can we pull through?"

Jiang Ning fell silent for a moment.

The Ghost Moon, also known as the Red Moon, occurs once a year.

When that eerie blood moon hangs in the sky, the strange phenomena on earth will descend into extreme rage, and the scale and ferocity of the eerie tides will far exceed those of ordinary days.

Although remote mountain villages are not as densely populated as cities, they are still targets of attack.

With the village's current meager defenses and the altar on the verge of extinction, if sufficient preparations are not made, it will likely be reduced to ruins in an instant under the onslaught of the strange tide.

A more urgent sense of crisis welled up in Jiang Ning's heart.

But daydreaming and anxiety are useless; we can only take it one step at a time.

He sighed softly and said to Wang Fu, "Do your best. You and Uncle Meng keep things going. I'm going back to the village first."

Without saying anything more, Jiang Ning quickly returned to Baiye Village.

They looked at the strange corpses that had fallen onto the mountain of remains that hadn't been dealt with that morning.

There will be more tonight.

It's time to strengthen the village's defenses.

Jiang Ning first took out the two low-grade material lucky bags he had obtained this morning.

The skin was still stained with dried black blood, and it felt slightly heavy in the hand. One could vaguely sense a kind of spiritual energy, but a more complex one, gently surging within it.

Jiang Ning tried to mobilize the meager spiritual power within this body to sense things, but it was as if there was a tough barrier between them, preventing him from exploring further.

"bring it on......"

Jiang Ning muttered to himself, a sharp glint in his eyes. He then brought up the [Heavenly Craftsman] interface, focused his consciousness on one of the material pouches, and issued the command:

"Open - Low-Level Material Lucky Bag!"