Chapter 17: Chapter 17: A Thief at Home!

The sun sets in the west, leaving a long shadow on the bluestone with the master and two young apprentices.

Qing Jun hops around, shattering the sunset reflected in puddles with a carefree spirit.

Zhiwei fixes his gaze on his master’s back, silently stepping on the shadow of his master’s head.

The two apprentices are carefree, but Chen Ye is burdened.

Grimacing and sucking in air, he feels the veins in his neck bulging and sweat soaking through his collar.

"So naïve, so naïve!"

He wishes he could slap his former self,

As he had been full of anticipation while shopping.

Determined to furnish the dilapidated little home decently, he wanted to fill the empty kitchen with food.

Immersed in fantasies, he accidentally ignores the fact that he no longer possesses the same strength as his former life.

Thinking of the long journey home, Chen Ye almost despairs.

Noticing his master’s pace becoming slower.

Qing Jun suddenly slows her bouncing steps, constantly fixing her gaze on her master’s mountain-like shadow.

After hesitating for a while, she tiptoes over to adjust the tilted bamboo basket, her voice as soft as a mosquito:

"Master, take a, take a break..."

Before the little girl finishes her words, a steady sound of footsteps suddenly comes from behind.

"Brother Chen!"

The Dark Old Man’s bronze-colored back shines with a greasy sheen under the sun. Without a word, he removes the sack of rice from Chen Ye’s shoulder, weighing it in his rough hands and laughs:

"Brother Chen, with those thin arms and legs, be careful not to sprain your back!"

Saying that, he single-handedly lifts two sacks of Spirit Rice onto his shoulder, his bulging biceps stretching the rough cloth tightly.

The Dark Old Man’s honest voice sounds exceptionally friendly to Chen Ye’s ears.

Chen Ye is moved to tears, feeling light all over:

"Dark Old... cough, cough, finally a savior has come. Gen, you just returned from the Market?"

He glimpses the animal hide bundle on the Dark Old Man’s shoulder, with fresh blood stains on the bundle’s skin, faintly revealing some silver shiny fur.

The Dark Old Man grins:

"I must thank Brother Chen for that. That Cyan Luo Grass allowed me to successfully break through to the Fourth-Layer of Qi Cultivation. Now, I come to the Market to see if there’s any demon hunting work."

Demon Beasts are precious all over.

You can sell their meat, skin them, extract their blood, manufacture tools...

For low-level cultivators, hunting Demon Beasts offers high rewards, yet it’s equally high-risk.

And cultivators, only when reaching the Qi Cultivation Middle Stage, have enough Spiritual Power to use lethal Magic.

Therefore, typically only those in the Qi Cultivation Middle Stage consider hunting Demon Beasts.

But Yunxi District is resource-rich and relatively peaceful, most cultivators are unwilling to do such bloody work.

Not because they don’t dare to fight, but due to the real danger.

For instance, among the Demon Hunting cultivators in Yunxi District now, most are under thirty years old.

It’s a youthful profession.

As for why there are no older ones... it’s because they haven’t lived long enough before dying in a Demon Beast’s mouth.

No matter how experienced a cultivator is, everyone can have a misstep.

This time, the Dark Old Man had a harvest, but who knows about next time.

"Gen, you are a Body Cultivator of the Qi Cultivation Fourth-Layer, you have great potential in the Market! Why endure such bloody business?"

Chen Ye has a positive view of the Dark Old Man, he rubs his sore shoulder and tries to persuade.

The Dark Old Man wipes the sweat on his forehead, claw marks in the tiger mouth still seep blood, smearing a face of blood.

He remains indifferent, expression calm:

"Brother Chen, did you know? The city wall of Yunxi District, my father contributed his sweat and blood for its construction, he died for building Yunxi District. Yet my mother and I, still live in the shantytown. No matter how well-positioned a shantytown is, it’s still a shantytown."

"Since childhood, I understood, for someone like me being a low-level cultivator, staying complacent means being forever trapped at the bottom."

Though the Dark Old Man appears honest, he’s not someone who settles for ordinary in his bones.

Chen Ye couldn’t help but mock himself.

Even with his golden finger, ultimately he still has the strong imprint of his past life.

Merely desires to live honestly and happily with his family.

In this world now, his family is just his two apprentices.

Of course, this doesn’t mean he has gained feelings for apprentices known just for days.

But living alone in an unfamiliar world is really too lonely...

Raising two little ones also dispels loneliness.

Moreover, these two little ones in the future are big shots,

If not hugging their thighs now, it would be too late later!

"Hmm, but remember to be extra careful, you still have an old mother at home."

Chen Ye thinks of Granny Li’s past care for his apprentices, then remarks,

"You are determined, I won’t block your path, but in the future... if there’s a chance, I’ll help take care of Granny."

The Dark Old Man is startled, seemingly surprised.

He pauses, deeply bowing to Chen Ye: "Before, I misunderstood Brother Chen."

Chen Ye also doesn’t expect his casual promise to provoke such a strong reaction from the Dark Old Man.

He merely thinks that good deeds deserve good returns.

Since I have the capability, it’s quite reasonable to help tie up this loose end for my disciple.

"No, no, no, Da Gen, you’re strong and robust, where would there be any chance for me to help?"

Chen Ye hurriedly tried to help up the Dark Old Man, but the grain behind him wobbled precariously, almost falling over.

The Dark Old Man quickly took the basket off Chen Ye’s back and slung it on his own:

"Haha, I saw Brother Chen struggling earlier, so I thought I’d help you bring it back on the way. Carrying two bags of rice isn’t much, so I might as well take it all!"

The Dark Old Man, being a Body Cultivator, carried these grains with ease and grace.

Chen Ye hastily took out ten pieces of Spiritual Sand: "I can’t allow this, I can’t allow it! How could I freely call on you like this? To be honest, I was initially planning on finding a laborer to help, and these ten pieces of Spiritual Sand would be used as compensation."

In the market, when a laborer already needs to go out of the city, ten pieces of Spiritual Sand is indeed a fair price.

The Dark Old Man’s bull-like eyes widened to their limits:

"Brother Chen, are you trying to embarrass me? This is just neighbors helping each other."

Even as he said this, his calloused hands held the Spiritual Sand tightly.

Chen Ye saw this and consoled him:

"How could I let you expend your energy for nothing? In this world, every bit of energy, every bit of Spiritual Power, is crucial for survival."

"Alright then! Brother Chen, I’ve got quick legs, and need to hurry home to serve my elderly mother, so I’ll head off first."

The Dark Old Man no longer declined, waving goodbye to Chen Ye and his group.

He moved with incredible speed, striding through the mud and water, disappearing from Chen Ye’s sight in no time.

Once outside the city.

The Dark Old Man suspiciously pulled out the Spiritual Sand from his pocket, examining it repeatedly, and after confirming it was real, couldn’t help but mutter:

"That fool, could he really have changed? I thought he was just out to make me work for nothing."

Suddenly, he remembered what Chen Ye had said earlier.

He hesitated, then selected the Spiritual Sand from his coin bag and placed it in a separate pocket.

...

By the time the sun slanted westward, he finally reached the shantytown area.

Upon returning, Chen Ye didn’t see any sign of Taoist Zhang. That asshole was off enjoying himself somewhere again.

As soon as he entered, Chen Ye collapsed onto the door panel, groaning, while his two young disciples lay curled up on the musty straw mats like lifeless puppets.

The two disciples were even weaker than Chen Ye,

though they hadn’t carried anything, they had never walked so long outside before.

Just walking was exhausting for them.

"So tired..."

Chen Ye’s hands were sore, and his feet were numb. As he pulled open his sweat-soaked collar, his calves twitched incessantly. He kept rubbing them to ease the discomfort.

Too weak, truly too weak!

The Dark Old Man had arrived before Chen Ye, leaving everything he had brought in the house, and had vanished without a trace.

That Body Cultivator sure had nimble legs.

Chen Ye sighed with satisfaction as he gazed at the pile of assorted supplies, a sense of fulfillment growing in his heart.

That was just how he was; if he didn’t have enough grain stored at home, he always felt uneasy.

But quickly, Chen Ye’s heart sank.

His home had been robbed!

Before leaving, he had deliberately left some marks in his house. If anyone moved things around, it would disrupt those marks!

Could it be the Dark Old Man?

The Dark Old Man had arrived at his house earlier, with the opportunity to commit the crime.

Chen Ye quickly dismissed this thought.

In the previous storyline, when the Dark Old Man found his predecessor’s body at night, he only scoured resources from the corpse.

He didn’t rummage through the house, but deliberately left something for the girls, giving them a chance to survive.

It showed that the Dark Old Man’s character was reliably sound.

Chen Ye, without bothering to explain to his disciples, dragged his weary body to hurriedly search the hidden compartment under the bed.

His expression changed.

The Spirit Medicine Ointment left by his predecessor was gone!

The only valuable thing in the house was the Spirit Medicine Ointment.

Though much had been used, the remaining ointment was still valuable, worth three Spirit Stones!

"Master?" Zhiwei seemed to notice something and softly asked.

Chen Ye forced a smile: "It’s nothing, Master is just looking for something."

These two girls were too easily frightened, and Chen Ye didn’t want them to worry yet.

He quickly strode to the storeroom, its door already ajar.

Inside the storeroom, the signs of rummaging were even more evident.

Thankfully, nothing had been stolen, though there wasn’t much of value here anyway...

The only thing worth any money, the Iron Sword, was still there, but the rag wrapped around its handle had been flipped over.

Whoever it was either didn’t think it was worthwhile or found it too conspicuous and didn’t steal it.

"Damn it, damn it all!"

Chen Ye’s face twisted with anger; he had only gone out this once in these recent days.

And yet, as soon as he was out, his house got robbed!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com