Chapter 120: The Great Qian, Beset by Internal Strife

[The arrival of the Tax Official takes you by surprise.]

[You never imagined that on the border where the Demon Tide is increasingly rampant, and in the Great Qian which is becoming more and more turbulent, a Tax Official would still arrive to levy taxes on people who have nothing left.]

[You stop your Martial Arts Evolution.]

[You stop your cultivation.]

[As winter approaches, the biting wind whips through the branches, but the moment it touches you, it is deflected and scattered by your invisible Protective Aura.]

[The young girl is filled with rage, appearing much more impulsive than you, claiming she will use her long spear to poke a hundred holes in the Tax Official.]

[You tell the girl to stay behind for now and head to the town entrance alone.]

[You see the Tax Official riding on a Green-Scaled Horse, throwing his weight around and fiercely berating the commoners of Qingniu Town.]

[You notice that the familiar faces are trembling with fear.]

[You knock the Tax Official off his horse, but you know deep down that this alone is not enough.]

[In the eyes of the commoners of Qingniu Town, in the eyes of these impoverished people, the "Tax Official" still looms large, weighing heavily on everyone's heart.]

[The simple folk do not understand high-minded principles; they do not know what it means to be high or low, noble or base.]

[You have no intention of spouting distant, empty talk either.]

[You simply state the cruel reality in a calm tone, telling the people that the Tax Official has come to take away their meager food, and that everyone will starve to death.]

It is normal for people to be afraid.

Fear, cowering, trembling.

Facing things that are "stronger" than themselves, people will always instinctively feel timid, but when hunger strikes, when their shriveled bellies spasm and ache over and over again.

In the face of that encroaching death.

The fear in people's hearts will instead dissipate.

Death is the void of all things; those who are already destined to die will not feel fear for anything else.

To survive.

People only want to survive.

But now, the Tax Official wants to take away their last bit of food, the final rations each household has saved for their children and their loved ones.

Even though their throats might be parched, no one has ever thought of eating it themselves.

Yet, even this last bit of humility.

This last bit of stubbornness.

The Tax Official wants to snatch that away too.

Inexplicably, upon realizing this, A-Niu's throat becomes hoarse and burning, as if an invisible flame is scorching him, making A-Niu tremble uncontrollably.

That honest and simple face reveals a sense of grievance that Xu Xi has never seen before.

As well as an indescribable rage.

Not only that, but a few more people step forward, walking together toward the Tax Official who has fallen to the ground.

"I won't allow it, I won't allow you to do this! That rice paste is what I saved for my mother, it's not for you!"

"It's all your fault, I remember you, it was you who ruined my sister!"

"It was you who stole our food!"

The people who stand out were once farmers treading in the mud, or blacksmiths forging iron all day long.

Among them, there is even a merchant from a wealthy family whose property was confiscated and who was exiled to the border for offending a county magistrate.

And now.

They share a common identity.

Starving refugees, [people] about to starve to death, about to run out of life.

"You, you all, what are you trying to do!" The Tax Official seems frightened; he scrambles to get up from the ground in a panic, but due to his hasty movements, he falls down again.

It is comical yet pathetic, ridiculous yet ironic.

The Tax Official is not an ordinary person.

He is also a Martial Artist, and although he is only in the second stage of Body Forging, he is a genuine Martial Artist nonetheless.

Logically speaking, when a Martial Artist faces a Mortal, the Martial Artist should achieve an overwhelming victory, but when the Tax Official meets the gazes of the people, and faces those pitchforks, hoes, and sickles.

Inexplicably, he feels afraid.

Only at this moment does the once high-and-mighty Tax Official suddenly recall a fact.

He is also a human; he bleeds when slashed by a blade, and dies when his heart is pierced by a sword. He is not an immortal monster, but a person just like these base commoners.

"Wait, wait!"

The Tax Official still tries to say something.

But it is too late.

The despair stirred up by hunger, the rage from having the hope of survival stripped away, surge toward the Tax Official.

Some pin down his arms, some tie his legs, some rain punches on his head, and some kick violently at his third leg.

…

"Sir, is this really okay?"

A familiar voice comes from behind Xu Xi.

The young girl finally cannot resist her curiosity and sneaks out of Xu Xi's home.

However, at this point.

Given the situation in Qingniu Town, there is no need to keep hiding anymore.

Wu Yingxue knits her brows slightly, looking at the figure of the Tax Official surrounded by the crowd, who is beaten up every time he tries to struggle:

"Once the Imperial Court finds out, Qingniu Town will likely…"

The girl stops mid-sentence; she, who had previously clamored about poking holes in the Tax Official, is now worried about the consequences of his death.

The autumn wind is desolate and biting, making the wounds sting even more. The Tax Official's wails become increasingly painful, and gradually, he begins to beg for mercy.

Lowering that head—which had never been noble—to the base commoners he despised.

"Yingxue, that is not important."

Xu Xi understands what Wu Yingxue means.

He withdraws his gaze and looks at the girl: "The commoners of Qingniu Town can no longer survive as it is, and besides, the border army of the Great Qian has never stepped outside the pass."

People who are already about to die.

Do not consider what retaliation they might suffer in the future.

Wu Yingxue's eyes are slightly dim: "The Yangyuan Technique has had no progress; if things continue like this, everyone in Qingniu Town will likely not survive the winter."

Xu Xi replies: "I think I know what to do."

…

[You unveil the truth behind why the commoners of Qingniu Town can never get enough to eat.]

[They wave their fists, weak and powerless, but every punch lands.]

[One punch, then another, and another.]

[The Tax Official is beaten until he is covered in wounds, enduring the rage that has accumulated for countless years, only erupting now that they are on the verge of starvation.]

[You step in to stop the beating.]

[It is not that you sympathize with the Tax Official; his crimes are so numerous that even children are frightened by them.]

[You only want to learn about the current situation in the Great Qian and the latest intelligence on the rebel armies from the Tax Official's mouth.]

[The Tax Official begs for mercy while revealing the information you want.]

[The Great Qian is in chaos.]

[You are surprised; the increasingly dangerous Demon Tide is not just affecting Qingniu Town, but is impacting the entire border line surrounding the Great Qian to varying degrees.]

[This has led many people who cannot survive, and those hunted by demons, to frantically attack the garrisons at various passes.]

[At the same time, within the thirteen provinces of the Great Qian, some counties and prefectures that cannot bear the high taxes have also seen one rebellion after another.]

[Although the Great Qian's armies are suppressing them everywhere.]

[Although the Human Immortals of the Great Qian have the power to move mountains.]

[Yet, that precarious feeling of a storm about to break makes you suddenly realize that it is not only the commoners of Qingniu Town who want to survive.]

[You look at A-Niu, and the people behind A-Niu, their bodies so thin that their bones are visible, and the dirty hoes and sickles in their respective hands.]

[You vaguely understand how the Yangyuan Technique is to be evolved.]