The Legend of Fangren

"How strange."

He Qisheng said this early in the morning after returning to the post station from investigating the local conditions.

"Young Master, what's wrong?"

He Lin had just woken up when he saw how diligent the young master was, and he secretly sighed that he and the old city lord were really the same kind of people.

After getting out of bed, he poured himself a cup of tea, which He Qisheng took and sat down, saying, "This morning I intended to go out of the city to check on the situation. In recent days, many disaster victims have come into the city to work and settle down, and there are far fewer disaster victims outside the city. I was thinking of distributing some food to help them, but when I got outside the city, I saw that they did not seem to be extremely hungry. It was as if they had eaten yesterday. When I asked the guards, I heard that a passing cultivator had distributed some food to them last night."

"Isn't this perfect? ​​That passing cultivator was kind-hearted and saved us a lot of trouble." He Lin couldn't understand why his young master was frowning so much.

He Qisheng continued, "But that cultivator may not have really been passing by. Some of the disaster victims still have food from last night hidden in their hands. I took a look, and it's not ordinary meat or fruit."

"So, according to what you think, young master... could it be that someone used some tricks?" He Lin also became more sober and pondered the origin of the matter, feeling as if he had seen it before.

Pretending to be kind, but actually harboring ulterior motives.

"Could it be the Feng family?"

"Hmm." He Qisheng didn't say much, but that was the gist of it.

"That's not right. With frequent beast attacks, the entire city's troops have been mobilized, and all the major families in the city have contributed food and manpower. All the food supplies have been prioritized for the front lines, and any food harvested and brought in or out of the city gates must be recorded and controlled. Where would they find surplus food to store in their granaries? ...Could it be that the Feng family is hoarding food privately? That's a serious crime."

"If so, it would naturally be a serious crime."

He Qisheng took a sip of tea and said, "But this matter needs to be settled after the autumn harvest. If the Feng family has surplus grain, the grain shop must have discrepancies, which is not difficult to investigate."

Putting that matter aside for now, He Qisheng continued, "Compared to the Feng family's petty schemes, there is another major matter at hand. The day before yesterday, my father sent someone to Qumu City to purchase grain and fodder. The grain convoy is expected to enter our city today. This batch of grain and fodder is extremely important; it is a lifesaver for both the troops and the disaster victims, and it cannot be lost."

"Young Master, so today the disciples are to escort the supply convoy?"

"Yes." He Qisheng nodded. "The reinforcements from the sect have gone to the front lines, so only we can go to the rear."

This matter has been explained to the Grand Elder. After the two came downstairs, the other disciples were also there.

As a cultivator's cultivation level increases, the fullness of their inner energy circulation will significantly reduce the amount of sleep they need.

But when the Grand Elder called roll, he found that two people were missing.

"Where's Luohe?" Qu Mei looked around, when suddenly she heard a door open above her head, and someone dragging a heavy object down.

Luohe came down, and on her back was Fang Shi, who was still fast asleep.

Everyone: "..."

"You two last night..." Qu Mei opened her mouth wide, about to start a fight, but was immediately met with a glare from Luo He.

Then she turned to the elder and said, "Fangzi probably ate too much last night..."

The elder glanced at him and said, "I've heard that this kid has been in a state of dormancy for a long time. He reached the peak of the Body Cultivation Realm with the help of good fortune. His cultivation level is not fully known. But now he's probably only at the initial stage of the Nourishing Breath Realm. Naturally, he'll need more time to digest his spiritual flesh."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding disciples confirmed their initial guess.

This junior brother's strength indeed came to an abrupt end at the Nourishing Breath Realm. If it were them, they would have been able to digest their spiritual flesh after practicing the two methods of cultivating body and mind after dinner yesterday, and they would not have needed any extra sleep.

"Um?"

Are you thinking about me?

Amidst the surrounding chatter, Fang Shi, whose head had been bumped five or six times on the stairs, finally woke up.

"Fangzi, you're awake." Luohe immediately put him down, and his head bumped against hers again.

"Not bad..." Fang Shi rubbed the back of his head as he got up and yawned.

"Are we about to head out to work?"

"Oh yeah, you didn't eat breakfast." Luo He wanted to check if there was any leftover porridge from the morning.

The city is running low on food supplies, and the post station can only provide this much food.

But to everyone's surprise, the elder suddenly said, "If you're still not fully awake, go back and rest some more."

"Huh?" The other disciples were taken aback, not understanding why the usually strict elder had suddenly become so understanding.

"Your profound energy has no power. Even if you reach the Nourishing Breath Realm, you can only use your fists and feet. Today's escort of the grain convoy is extremely important, and the danger is different from yesterday. Since you are still tired, it would be best if you stayed."

Oh, I see. To put it bluntly, it means he shouldn't hold us back.

Don't be fooled by how easily Feng Zhonghua killed the Stone-Toothed Boar of the same level yesterday. Firstly, the boar was alone and didn't pose much of a threat. Secondly, the damage was multiplied several times because of the incompatibility of their zodiac signs.

Normally, a second-tier cultivator would never be able to compete with a second-tier mystic beast in strength; even a slight brush against its fangs would result in injury.

"Oh well."

To everyone's surprise, Fang Shi readily agreed.

"Fangzi, aren't you going?"

"I'm not going. I want to go back and get some sleep." He patted his mouth and yawned.

"Keep it up!"

"Mm." Luo He nodded.

The group set off immediately. As He Qisheng and his attendant passed by him, they seemed to suddenly remember something and glanced at him together.

"Uh, what is it, Senior Brother He?" (Feeling guilty)

"It's nothing, it's nothing." He Qisheng smiled politely and quickly walked away.

Thank goodness, I thought my good deed from last night had been discovered.

Fang Shi wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and ran to the backyard of the post station.

This place is called the backyard, but it is actually just an open space between the inn and the city wall, neither too big nor too small.

How did he get out of the city last night?

It's very simple. Just use the power of dissolving to dig the soil, go around the city wall from underground, and then fill it back up with soil.

After all, they're blocky characters; they can't possibly be incapable of digging holes.

Once outside the city, Fang Shi headed east, towards the front lines.

When he took off running, Fang Shi's speed was no slower than that of a horse.

"Wait……"

I almost forgot to change into my travel clothes.

He went there to purchase goods, and it would be inappropriate for him to do so in his current capacity.

He sprinted across the hills at a speed comparable to that of a charging stone-tusked boar, seeing hoofprints and animal carcasses along the way, with more appearing as he got closer to the front lines.

He had no intention of making contact with the troops of Qingye City; he only intended to collect the corpses of the Xuan Beasts.

"The young clerk who collects rotting corpses—carrying a large corpse basket on his back—"

They hummed a song while swinging an axe, creating a warm and harmonious scene.

During the collection process, you can also find the restorative methods to compare and learn from the actual objects.

"Wolf Fang Horse, first tier in its prime... Wooden Python, first tier in its prime... Terror Scale Sparrow, third tier in its prime..."

The corpses of beasts were surrounded by bloodstains, especially the third-tier Terrorscale Sparrow, which was covered in filthy blood.

Among the soldiers at the front were also cultivators. Most of the flesh and medicine of the Xuan Beasts were cut off, and like the elders, they burned the Xuan Beasts.

Simply scorch the surface, turning it into charred soil, and you can deposit the mystic energy, preventing it from spreading and attracting other mystic beasts.

Therefore, when Fang Shi arrived, in addition to obtaining many bones, he also received some meat chops [items], and in considerable quantities.

The only pity is that the beast's internal organs have rotted, which means it has lost much of its deliciousness.