Killing Dao Fruit
Chapter 141 - 138: Scattering Dharma Food, Encounter with Hongying

Chapter 141: Chapter 138: Scattering Dharma Food, Encounter with Hongying

Rustling...

The Luoshui river churned with endless muddy torrents, occasionally revealing broken vegetation, tattered mats, and even the bloated bodies of humans and animals.

Amidst these unstable waves, a small boat with a canopy rode down the river, carried along by the frothy currents.

It was well known that traveling alone on waterways for a long distance was a dangerous affair in this world.

In these times, the hearts of most people were wicked; if one were alone without companions and their wealth was exposed, then boatmen might be tempted by greed and could easily commit robbery and murder on board.

And then, amidst the vast water, there would be no escape.

After the murder, disposing of the corpse in the water, no one would be able to cry for justice for the poor soul.

Because the cost of crime was so low, and the profits so high, many were drawn to take their chances.

"Cars, boats, inns, foot travelers, and even dentists might kill without guilt" was not just an exaggeration in those days.

The government office prohibited those yacht and White Water Lang from going ashore primarily for this reason.

Farmers were firmly bound to the land, while yacht travelers were elusive and unmanageable.

Therefore, it was easier to simply forbid them from landing, to prevent them from becoming water bandits who swarmed in and out, moving from place to place to commit crimes.

However, this small boat was clearly different.

At the bow stood a young officer as straight and lofty as a towering pine, his black official robe flapping loudly in the wind that swept across the river.

Especially the Qiu Tiger on his garment, which harbored the authority of wind and thunder, seemed as if it were alive.

It was none other than Wang Yuan, also known as Wang Qianshan, on his way to his official post.

His uniform, a colonel’s robe emblazoned with protective charms, and the gold-adorned Tiger Head Saber on his waist, added a heroic and mighty aura to the already spirited young man.

Other boats that saw him kept a wide berth.

Obviously,

With the deterrence of his official status, it wouldn’t just be the greedy boatmen who would think twice, but even run-of-the-mill demons and ghosts would first think about how to save their own lives.

Of course, as the Yin Mountain Taoist Master on a journey, Wang Yuan would not entertain the idea of employing mere mortal boatmen.

Instead, he directly summoned a few water ghosts to row under the boat, propelling the small boat forward at high speed – a skill far surpassing any mortal boatman.

Just then, a crisp and pleasant voice rang out from behind:

"We’ve just left the range of Luoyang, and it’s about to rain again. It’s no wonder the water level in the river hasn’t dropped much."

Wang Yuan turned around to see Huang Wu and Lady Peach Fairy kneeling on soft cushions inside the boat’s canopy, with a small clay stove between them, preparing tea.

One wore a Phoenix Flower Headdress and golden red skirt, her bare feet like lotus flowers, strikingly beautiful; the other wore green and white garments, her visage serene and elegant, her earrings glowing like the nightscape, soft and radiant.

He couldn’t help but sigh in his heart.

Merely beholding these two peerless beauties, even if they did nothing but gaze back every day, could bring such pleasure that it could add years to a man’s life.

To Huang Wu he explained:

"There’s nothing to be done about it.

The ’Dragon Qi Prohibition’ only covers this much territory, aside from a few central key strongholds. The other areas are still as they were.

No, perhaps they are even worse off than before.

And this time, it’s not just floods, droughts, and locust infestations we have to deal with...

After the ’Dragon Qi Prohibition’ recedes, even the lowest level wandering ghosts will be able to brazenly traverse the countryside, not to mention the weird phenomena.

Many heretics have probably not yet realized this.

That’s why the Imperial Dragon Guard must step up to fill the gap, to prevent the situation from becoming uncontrollable.

Otherwise, the orders from the Duwei Mansion wouldn’t be so urgent, limiting us to reach our station within ten days."

Even though he didn’t hold a central position, Wang Yuan, relying on his family’s "Earthly Que Golden Book", and his keen sensitivity to the "Dragon Qi Technique," could easily make a fairly accurate judgment.

"Five Grains Harvest" was at least partially successful, concentrating only in the most fertile parts of the Dynasty, entirely neglecting vast stretches of impoverished hinterlands.

Those travelers on long journeys felt this change most acutely.

Ever since Wang Yuan and his party left the Prefecture City of Luoyang, the power of rain and cloudy weather had gradually started to reveal its true force again.

Perhaps only upon reaching the next upper county, would the situation improve somewhat.

Huang Wu, still maintaining the innocence of a girl, felt indignant for the abandoned populace after hearing Wang Yuan’s analysis of the current situation:

"How can the Court do this? It’s not just negotiating with natural disasters and evil beings by ceding territories, but also driving the commoners living there to desperate straits!"

Wang Yuan sat beside her and gently patted her slender shoulders.

"Have you forgotten? We once discussed a similar issue.

Why the Central Dynasty has never been keen on expanding its territories?

Because, for the rulers of an agricultural empire, only those lands that can support a population and still have surplus are the foundation of the nation; everything else is ’barren land’!

And now, those places have become another kind of barren land."

As citizens of Yan Han, many harbor a stereotype that the Central Dynasty is too weak, seeing the nation’s history as a series of invasions.

However,

We must remember that at the start, it was nothing more than a small tribe in the turbid river basin.

Yet, after being "beaten" for thousands of years, the area of this nation has only grown larger with each beating.

Beginning from the highlands in the west, to the great deserts in the north, reaching the vast seas to the east, and stretching down to Qiongzhou in the south, hasn’t this territory expanded by a thousandfold?

In fact, ever since the Yan Han people started forming a civilization, they have always been expanding their borders.

However, they were quite picky, only desiring land that was suitable for agriculture and could generate value to be included in their territory.

If the output wasn’t bountiful, it would only result in the Central Dynasty bleeding resources into the local regions, and unless there was significant military value, the loss entirely outweighed the gain.

Indeed, up to this day,

the Central Dynasty has almost completely occupied all of Red County Shenzhou’s arable farmlands, the most fertile grounds, and the cities most suitable for living.

Beyond the territories of the Heavenly Dynasty lie disease-prone tropical rainforests, bitter cold deserts and towering mountains, or the vast sea, and insurmountable highlands.

The costs of conquering such regions are far too great, with very limited benefits to be gained.

This gradually diminished the rulers’ ambitions for further territorial expansion.

By this point, it had already reached the peak of an agricultural empire.

Perhaps only with the arrival of the industrial era would those lands, seemingly worthless on the surface, become highly sought after once again.

Modern people, judging the decisions of their agrarian-aged ancestors from an industrial civilization standpoint, fail to realize that at that time, it was indeed the most beneficial choice for the survival of the nation.

As for now, the rulers have clearly begun another round of "picking and choosing."

The dragon energy issue, the Weird issue, the evil spirits problem... When summarized, they essentially boil down to an economic problem, at least definitely so at the level of the dynasty.

"But such a way of ruling, treating people as mere numbers and approaching everything from a purely utilitarian perspective, is too ruthless.

Monsters and spirits devour mortals, and the rulers don’t regard the common people as humans either.

’The Dragon Qi Prohibition’ is rooted in human willpower, and it’s obvious that the Emperor and those nobles have always been the ones protected!

Is there really no way to solve this conundrum?"

Huang Wu, who grew up under the ideological influence of Wang Yuan, resonated most with his thinking and her insight in some aspects even surpassed those so-called Elders at the core.

She understood the logic behind Wang Yuan’s words, but emotionally, she found it somewhat hard to accept at the moment.

At heart, she was still a child.

The Peach Fairy, hearing this "fatty and lean" theory for the first time, had a continuous flash of colors in her eyes.

With a profound understanding of the human heart and never having heard of a theory that disregards Divine Skills and discusses facts solely from the perspective of interests and losses,

she felt that after stripping all pretenses, the essence of matters could very likely be just like that!

It deeply shook her.

Besides worshipping him as her master and her god, the Peach Fairy, at her core, remained the same demoness, with schemes, methods, and ambitions in abundance.

She could not help but secretly think,

"With the Heavenly Department Dao Skill in hand, and armed with this vision and knowledge, perhaps the Taoist Master really could establish an unparalleled legacy amidst the chaos!"

Woof woof woof...

Just then, Old Black, who was lying at the stern, suddenly began barking furiously at the murky water.

When the three turned to look, they saw that the river in the distance was dotted with a large number of male corpses.

Furthermore, by looking at their tattered armor, Wang Yuan immediately recognized their identities.

"These are the White Tiger Elite Soldiers who left Li City yesterday?! How did they all end up dead here?"

Wang Yuan immediately took out three sticks of incense and a bowl of raw rice from the Wanxiang Bag.

After lighting the incense and planting it at the stern, he visualized a table of feasts in his mind, gathered a breath of clarity from his chest, and blew fiercely onto the raw rice.

Whoosh—!

The smoke filled the air, and where the clear breath passed, the bowl of raw rice miraculously transformed into a large table of feasts, complete with fish, meat, chicken, and wine, at least seventeen or eighteen dishes and bowls.

It was the basic skill of Yin Mountain Taoism—Dharma Water Refinement, Dharma Food Supply.

Ghostly entities, who hadn’t reached the stage of "Refining Form," couldn’t consume mortal food and could only partake in these specially prepared Dharma Foods.

Amidst mournful cries,

a group of dazed Wandering Ghosts flooded towards the stern, silently grabbing the delicacies and feasting to their heart’s content.

"Taoist Master, their souls have clearly suffered heavy damage. Although they haven’t scattered immediately, it won’t be long now.

From these ghosts, we likely won’t be able to learn much."

"Then let it be, consider it treating these brothers to a hearty meal."

Wang Yuan wasn’t too disappointed and planned to send these Wandering Ghosts to the Yin Department Lower Soil after they had finished their meal.

However,

upon noticing the sole female among the group of ghosts, he was suddenly startled and stood up abruptly.

"Is this... Colonel Nie Renxiong’s sister, General Nie Hongying?

A Dao General has also died?

No, that can’t be right, there’s only one soul! All her three souls and seven spirits have already scattered?"