This Dao Ancestor is too young.

"My lord, you are a good person, a good person like the Great Dao Ancestor in the divine oracle. You have done enough. We should not trouble you any further."

The old man spoke slowly, his expression reverent:

"Outside the mountains, there is a severe drought and countless people are starving. Staying in these mountains will allow us to live a few more days."

"To put it another way, even if there is no disaster outside the mountains, we are nothing more than ants in the eyes of cultivators, at their mercy, and we don't know when we will die."

Zhang Yuanzhu remained silent.

With a flick of his sleeve, a small pile of grain appeared before him, along with several swords.

"This food should sustain you for a while longer, and your swords will be better equipped to deal with the threat of beasts."

"My lord...this..."

The old man was at a loss, staring blankly at the boy.

How could there be such a practitioner?

Zhang Yuanzhu did not respond, but turned around and looked down the mountain.

He seemed to see figures struggling to survive.

This world is more cruel than we imagine.

He strode out and headed down the mountain, raising his hand and waving it.

"You all will see, the world will eventually get better."

The voice was calm, yet carried an unspoken conviction.

As his words drifted away, his slender figure disappeared into the jungle.

For a time, only the old man, along with many disaster victims and villagers, remained in the same spot.

"This practitioner is a good person!"

A disaster victim stepped forward, stood beside the old man, looked in the direction the boy had left, his eyes filled with emotion, and repeated the words the old man had once spoken.

"How could we not know? He sat in front of the village gate all night, confronting the wild beasts, and just now he gave us food."

"Hey~, we're so insignificant, let's not drag others down with us."

After a few words, the crowd in front of the mountain stronghold gradually fell silent.

After an unknown amount of time, a soft, regretful whisper drifted through the air:

"Do you think we can survive the prosperous era under the Dao Ancestor's rule?"

......

In the mountains of Little Snake, Zhang Yuanzhu devoured large mouthfuls of roasted meat.

"It tastes good."

The boy swallowed the last bite of grilled meat and nodded in satisfaction.

He felt at peace with himself, having done so much for the people of the village, and had no regrets.

From now on, the road ahead will have to be walked by the other person.

At the same moment, Zhang Yuanzhu took out the "White Bone Refining Technique" from his storage and began to read it.

The young man was multitasking, traveling while observing the weapon-forging method.

About an hour and a half later, he emerged from the jungle.

What came into view was a desolate landscape even more lifeless than the mountains themselves.

The earth was cracked, the trees were withered and yellow, and the leaves were falling. In the distance, figures lay motionless on the ground.

Zhang Yuanzhu put away the ancient book and walked forward step by step.

There were ragged beggars, sallow-faced women, and emaciated children... their chests no longer rising and falling; they had frozen to death in the cold winter night.

A few wolves were gnawing on the remains on the ground, occasionally howling.

This is hell on earth.

He was in a daze, as if he understood what the Dao Ancestor did when he passed through the chaotic land in his future memories.

kill!

He killed bandits, demonic cultivators, and families of cultivators until a powerful enemy arrived, forcing him to conceal his identity before ending the carnage.

At that time, the Dao Ancestor seemed to have only reached the seventh level of Qi Refining.

stab~

With a slash of his longsword, a wolf's head flew through the air.

With a few steps forward, the longsword slashed down one after another, and the beasts that were gnawing on the corpses fell.

He remained expressionless, collected the wolf carcasses, and continued forward.

If they encountered any living people along the way, they would throw down some wolf meat and grain before leaving.

If they encounter robbers or wild animals, they will kill them.

Zhang Yuanzhu rescued people and killed bandits along the way, eventually arriving at a city.

The city is majestic, with walls made of gray rocks that stretch for miles, like a long snake lying on the ground. Dense crowds gather in front of the city gates.

"arrive!"

The boy stood on a mound, holding a sword in one hand, blood dripping from the tip of the sword, his blood-stained cotton clothes fluttering in the wind.

He stared intently at the city.

Then, scanning the ragged refugees on the ground, looking at the soup kitchens and the soldiers distributing food, a hint of surprise appeared in his eyes.

Jiao Yuancheng surprisingly opened its granaries and distributed grain, giving the disaster victims a glimmer of hope.

His eyes gleamed as he walked down the mound, past the disaster victims, and arrived at the soup kitchen.

Several soldiers were maintaining order, and the rice was bubbling in the pot. The eyes of the disaster victims looking at the soup kitchen were not filled with longing, but rather with numbness.

Disagreements and questions arose from time to time.

"Why isn't this rice porridge filling?"

"Me too, I just ate this morning and I'm already hungry."

......

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuanzhu's eyes narrowed slightly, and he lowered his gaze to carefully observe the disaster victims before looking at the stale rice in the pot.

Everything is normal, there is nothing unusual.

"Kid, if you want porridge, go to the back of the line."

A burly man clad in black armor roared at the boy in front of the soup kitchen.

Zhang Yuanzhu glanced at the armored soldier, said nothing, and strode towards the city gate.

He followed the flow of people, moving closer and closer to the city gate.

The further they went, the more doubts they had. Disaster victims, beggars, and villagers were allowed into the city without any hindrance.

This is extremely abnormal.

"The Lord of Jiaoyuan City." 』

Zhang Yuanzhu murmured to himself, lightly gripping the sword hilt with his five fingers, and slowly stepped into the city.

Passing through the city gate, the view suddenly opened up.

The streets are paved with bluestone, lined with stalls and shops on both sides, bustling with people, and filled with the sounds of vendors calling out their wares and laughter.

The scene was one of bustling prosperity, as if the disaster victims and soup kitchens outside the city did not exist.

Extremely disjointed!

The boy stood behind the city gate for a long time before taking another step and joining the crowd.

He walked slowly towards the depths of the city.

Tower~

Zhang Yuanzhu stopped in front of a pavilion, where the two characters "Ya Hang" (牙行, meaning brokerage firm) were clearly visible on the plaque above the door.

A child wearing a tattered cotton coat stood at the door. Upon seeing the boy, his eyes lit up, and he quickly ran over.

"Is the customer looking to buy or rent a property?"

Zhang Yuanzhu smiled; he was a very clever child.

He did indeed plan to stay in Jiaoyuan City for a while to search for Qi Refining Realm cultivation techniques and complete the Hundred Days of Qi Accumulation.

"Rent a place!"

"What are the guest's requirements for renting a room?"

"It has a secluded location, a beautiful environment, and a large courtyard."

After a few words, the child's smile widened, and he pointed towards the east of the city:

"There is a suitable courtyard in the eastern part of the city, near the inner city, which is only for rent and not for sale."

"Guest, please follow me."

The child led the way, with Zhang Yuanzhu following closely behind, while inquiring about the forces in the city.

"The inner city is even more prosperous than the outer city, but it has always been controlled by the three major families of Shang, Tao, and Qian, followed by the Qingyun Chamber of Commerce."

"These three families all have cultivators among them, making them exceptionally powerful. As for the Qingyun Chamber of Commerce..."

"That's a powerful force that appeared in what appears to be a future memory."

The child had a strange look in his eyes, but no further details were provided.

Zhang Yuanzhu's lips curled into a smile.

Of course he knew what the Qingyun Chamber of Commerce was all about. In his future memories, this force had chosen to be enemies with the Dao Ancestor in his youth, relentlessly pursuing and intercepting him from all sides, ultimately resulting in their complete annihilation.