Chapter 077: The True Culprit Behind the Beast Tide

Tao Yutian, however, refused to let go of Qingjin, following him wherever he went. Qingjin intended to pay his respects to his master, but Jin Yuanzi repeated the same words: the Dao Lord was in seclusion, cultivating.

“Then who dealt with those fierce beasts last night?” Qingjin asked.

“Tao Yutian, of course,” Jin Yuanzi immediately said, pointing at Tao Yutian.

“Yes, yes, it was me,” Tao Yutian chimed in, cooperating fully.

Qingjin was speechless.

“Qingjin, if you have time, take on more tasks at the Dao Field, and then spend more time in the Book Pavilion to study a few more cultivation methods and secret techniques. As cultivators, we should make the most of our youth and devote ourselves to cultivation,” Jin Yuanzi advised.

Qingjin nodded at once. “Yes, Senior Brother Jin Yuanzi, you are absolutely right.”

“Alright, if you’re busy, you may return. There’s no need to see the Dao Lord—he has no time for visitors,” Jin Yuanzi said again.

Qingjin thought for a moment, then took his leave. For now, he simply had no time to take on tasks at the Dao Field.

Once Qingjin left, Jin Yuanzi turned to Tao Guan and said, “We won’t concern ourselves with others, but this Dao Field is our foothold. Since you intend to serve our master, you must put in more effort.”

“Of course, of course,” Tao Yutian replied quickly. “That Bai Rongrong seems like a sensible one.”

“As for Bai Rongrong, let’s keep observing her. Her background is a bit special; whether she truly wants to pledge herself to our master is still uncertain,” Jin Yuanzi replied. “Also, don’t use earth-escape techniques in the Dao Field. Diyuanzi’s suppression of the earth is especially powerful here. Don’t make trouble for yourself. Even if you desperately wanted to escape, you couldn’t. The earth here would be so hard it’d drive you mad.”

Tao Guan was very grateful for Jin Yuanzi’s reminder. “Senior Brother Diyuanzi is truly formidable. I think our master is also especially skilled in the Dao of Earth.”

“Our master is skilled in everything. For one such as Him, time is meaningless. So whatever He sets his mind to, He comprehends with ease.”

“To be untouched by the erosion of time, now that is true ability,” Tao Guan said with reverence, his face full of admiration.

When Qingjin returned, he told his family that the Dao Lord was still in seclusion.

In the morning, Qinghu feasted on spicy rabbit head and pan-seared venison. For lunch, she ate steamed bear paw, braised beef, and roasted leg of beef. She was in the highest of spirits.

Because she enjoyed her meal so much, Shen Fangxu made sure to reserve plenty of fierce beast meat for his daughter before selling the rest.

As the amount of beast meat sold was so great, the merchant caravans settled accounts with him using purple spirit coins.

Purple spirit coins were even more valuable than red ones. Typically, one purple coin could be exchanged for ten thousand red coins. For large transactions, everyone preferred purple coins.

The clinking of purple coins in his pouch put a constant smile on Shen Fangxu’s face.

But his joy was short-lived. The Shen family soon sent another letter, saying that the head of the Ren family was coming, bringing people to discuss the final ownership of this territory.

Negotiate? With whom? Whose land was Panlong Territory anyway? It belonged neither to the Shen family nor to the Ren family. It was the Dao Lord beneath the waters who held sway. If they had the nerve, let them try talking to Him.

Shen Fangxu summoned Old Zhao, then gathered the rest of the family, passing around the letter from the Shen family for everyone to read.

“I don’t think the Ren family means well. Looks like they want to swoop in and reap the rewards. After all, we’ve built the city here, and it’s thriving,” Old Zhao said, clearly annoyed.

“The Ren family is overestimating themselves,” Qingjin remarked.

“What are they thinking? If they were handed the lordship now, could they really manage?” Qingting said, equally exasperated.

“Maybe they’re here to freeload?” Shen Fangxu’s second brother, Shen Fangzhuo, suggested.

“Freeload?” Shen Fangxu’s eyes grew sharp. “You mean they want a share in our city’s assets for nothing?”

“They don’t have the strength to seize the city, but this land was, after all, earned by their family over generations. I’m afraid the Ren family wants to leverage moral pressure to force us to give them a stake for free,” Shen Fangzhuo explained.

Qingjin replied, “That’s easily solved. If I invite Senior Brother Jin Yuanzi up to negotiate with them, he will make sure they can’t take advantage of us.”

“But then your reputation will suffer,” Old Zhao said. “The Ren family won’t keep you around. They’ll make sure your good name is ruined everywhere. The point is, this territory did originally come from the Ren family.”

“Losing our reputation just to give them a cut for nothing? That hardly seems worthwhile,” Qingting interjected.

“So what should we do?” Lady Feng, the fourth aunt, asked anxiously.

“How about we see how big a share they want? If it’s small, we can just give it,” Old Zhao said.

Shen Fangxu remained silent. It wasn’t that he begrudged a little share; he just worried that if the Ren family got a foothold, they’d become a nuisance that could never be shaken off.

“Father, you could spread the word that the Ren family hired people to use Soul-Loss Incense to incite the beast tide and destroy our new city,” Qinghu suggested. “Then the first to have their reputation dragged through the mud would be the Ren family. When they come to the city, would they dare demand a share? Shouldn’t they first explain themselves? After all, the beast tide nearly wiped us all out.”

Shen Fangxu was momentarily speechless. “Qinghu, to think your father always believed you were just an innocent, sweet girl. See what you’ve come up with? If the Ren family gets saddled with the crime of inciting a beast tide and intentionally harming an entire human city, they’re finished.”

“But this fits our current situation perfectly. Besides, the mastermind behind the beast tide was never revealed, was it?” Old Zhao mused.

“It’s because the explanation is so fitting that I hesitate,” Shen Fangxu admitted. “We don’t have conclusive evidence. If we pin this crime on the Ren family, they’ll become our mortal enemies. After all, inciting a beast tide against your own people is tantamount to treason. Neither the Dao Court nor any other clan or cultivation family would spare them.”

“Who’s to say they aren’t the ones behind it? We never did find out the real culprit,” Qingting said.

Qingjin nodded. “I’m not one to assume the worst of people, but the Ren family does have motive. First, they want revenge for their descendants. Second, seeing the city we’ve built and the bright future ahead for the Shen family, how could they stomach it? Forcing us into the Eastern Wastes was meant to destroy us, but it ended up making us thrive.”

Qingjin’s words finally put Shen Fangxu’s mind at ease.

“The eldest is right.”

“I agree, nephew’s idea is excellent,” Shen Fangzhuo said. “For all we know, the beast tide really was their doing.”