The next morning, a thick fog shrouded the land.

Qingxi Village was enveloped in a shroud of gray-white, and the air carried a strange, rotting smell.

Su Yu, carrying a parcel full of rice, grain, oil, and salt, pushed open the creaking gate of the Su Family’s Old Mansion.

In the courtyard, a somewhat frail figure was moving through the morning mist.

Su Can was bare-chested, sweat trickling down his spine. His remaining left hand was clenched into a fist, and as he threw a straight punch, it produced a faint whistle.

However, as he turned, the empty sleeve on his right shoulder flapped powerlessly in the cold wind, a rather desolate sight.

"Third Brother," Su Yu called out softly.

Su Can froze. He whipped his head around, a flash of panic in his eyes that quickly turned into delighted surprise. "Second Brother! What are you doing back?"

Su Yu walked over and squeezed his intact left arm. The muscle was firm; his Qi and Blood hadn’t decayed too much.

"Good work," Su Yu nodded. "Is your Qi and Blood still growing? Do you think you’ll have a chance to become a Martial Artist again?"

Su Can gave a bitter smile and looked down at his severed arm. "What hope is there? I just... I don’t want to become completely useless. By practicing my forms, I can at least hold on to some of the Qi and Blood from my Three Times of Knocking. It’s better than being a total cripple."

His tone was laced with a bleak sense of resignation.

Su Yu couldn’t tell if his third brother had truly given up, so he didn’t press the matter.

Instead, he took a delicate, red porcelain vial from his robes and pressed it into Su Can’s hand.

"Take it."

"This is..." Su Can uncorked the vial, and a rich, sanguine aroma wafted out. "A medicinal pill!"

This was far superior to the Herbal Decoctions he had used in the past!

"Second Brother, this is too valuable! I’m just a cripple..." Su Can’s hand trembled, and he tried to refuse.

Su Yu held his hand steady, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Take it. This is a Blood Amber Pill. Take one-third of it each time, dissolved in water. As long as your Qi and Blood don’t dissipate, you won’t be useless."

Clasping the still-warm porcelain vial, Su Can’s eyes instantly reddened. A lump formed in his throat as he nodded heavily.

CREAK!

The door to the main house swung open.

"Second Brother!"

"Brother Su!"

Yaya emerged, pushing Su Hong in his wheelchair. Though he looked weathered, Su Hong’s spirits were good. His face broke into a delighted smile upon seeing Su Yu.

Yaya was like a cheerful fawn. She took the parcel of rice and grain from Su Yu but couldn’t bear to leave, waiting quietly to the side.

Su Yu patted her head, noticing the little girl had grown quite a bit taller.

A moment later, his third uncle and aunt also came out, drawn by the commotion. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Yu! You’re finally back!"

The moment his aunt saw Su Yu, tears started streaming down her face. She quickly brought over a stool, wiping it again and again with her sleeve. "Quick, sit! Sit down! Are you hungry? I’ll go make you something to eat!"

His third uncle, Su Da Wen, remained as taciturn as ever, simply giving Su Yu’s shoulder a heavy pat.

The family gathered in the courtyard, and a long-absent cheerfulness filled the air of the Su Family’s Old Mansion.

"Second Brother," Su Hong spoke first, his eyes filled with hope. "I heard the city just held the Martial Examination. It was a huge event. Did you... did you participate?"

Su Yu didn’t hide it. "I did," he said directly. "I placed in the top five. That’s what I came back to tell you all."

"What!"

"Top five!" Su Hong shot upright, his hands gripping the arms of his wheelchair so tightly his voice trembled.

But the one who had the strongest reaction was Su Can.

His eyes went wide, and for a moment, he was completely stunned.

He had once dreamed of breaking through to the Martial Artist realm and participating in the Martial Examination himself. Back then, his fantasy was merely to place in the top one hundred.

Even the top one hundred would have been enough to bring immense glory to their ancestors!

’And Second Brother placed in the top five?’

He snapped out of his daze, his voice raspy. "Second Brother... what’s your cultivation level now?"

"First Acupoint."

’First Acupoint!’

Su Can felt completely numb. How long had it been since his second brother broke through to the Martial Artist realm? And he was already at the First Acupoint...

’It’s laughable. I used to be called the hope of the family, but Second Brother is the real genius!’

Although the others didn’t know what "First Acupoint" meant, they saw the "top five" result from the Martial Examination and Su Can’s reaction, and could guess it was something incredible.

"The heavens have eyes! The ancestors are smiling down on us, to produce a true Mars like our Yu! If the old master were still here..." Realizing her slip of the tongue, his aunt quickly fell silent.

Su Yu didn’t mind. When a person dies, their light goes out. He had long since stopped caring about the past.

"I came back this time to bring you all into the city."

Su Yu dropped his second bombshell. "I was awarded a large, two-courtyard residence in Anping Square in the Outer City. Everyone, pack your things. We’re all moving."

"That’s wonderful!" Hearing this, his aunt burst into tears of joy. "Yu, you have no idea. People are dying everywhere outside the city now. More than half of Qingxi Village is empty... We can’t survive here anymore..."

His third uncle, however, looked troubled. He hesitated, "Yu, is... is that appropriate? Security is tight for entering the city now. I heard that out of the dozens of villages nearby, only the Xu Family from Xu Family Village managed to move their family in, and that was because they married their daughter off as a concubine to a Martial Artist lord."

"There are so many of us. Will we cause trouble for you? Why don’t... you just take them? I can stay here and watch the house..."

"That’s right, Yu. Don’t let us ruin your future," his aunt chimed in, quickly wiping her tears and refusing. "Your third uncle and I can stay here. Just take Hong’Er and Can’Er with you. They might even be able to help you."

Su Yu glanced at his third uncle’s increasingly stooped back and his aunt’s messy, white hair. "Third Uncle, Aunt, you’re overthinking it," he said reassuringly. "I have an official position now. This is no trouble at all. Everyone is coming."

"Really? That’s wonderful!" His aunt was once again overcome with tears of joy, muttering, "Our Yu has really made it... he’s really made it..."

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

Just then, a knocking sound came from the gate.

Yaya trotted over to open it.

The moment the gate swung open, a wave of clamor washed over them like a heatwave. Outside, a dense crowd of people had gathered, their faces etched with anxiety and anticipation.

The village chief, Wang Yuechi, stood at the very front, holding back the crowd behind him.

"Don’t push! Don’t disturb the lord!"

Su Yu walked out slowly.

The noisy crowd instantly fell dead silent. Then, someone led the way, and dozens of villagers dropped to their knees in a sudden wave.

"Lord Su! You’ve returned!"

"Lord Su, I beg you, please save Qingxi Village! Two more families in the next village were wiped out last night. We have no way to survive!"

"We kowtow to Lord Su!"

The THUD THUD of kowtows echoed one after another.

Su Yu’s brow furrowed slightly. He looked at Wang Yuechi. "Uncle Wang, what is this?"

Wang Yuechi gave a bitter smile and cupped his hands. "Lord Su, times are hard. When news of you passing the Martial Examination and being appointed as a Captain reached the village, everyone felt like they were grasping at their last straw..."

Su Yu fell silent.

He looked at these once-familiar neighbors. Though he felt pity, he was also clear-headed.

He was no savior, nor did he have the ability to bring several hundred people into the city. He could only help as much as his power allowed.

"Everyone, please rise."

Su Yu infused his voice with a trace of Qi and Blood Power. It wasn’t loud, but it carried clearly to everyone’s ears. "I know it’s difficult to survive outside the city these days. But my strength is limited. I alone cannot protect all of Qingxi Village."

The light in the villagers’ eyes instantly dimmed, and some even began to sob in despair.

"However!"

But Su Yu’s tone shifted, his gaze firm.

"I have reliable news from the city. The Black Stone City Law Enforcement Team has been assembled. The three great families and the Black Stone Army have joined forces. Within the next few days, the Law Enforcement Team will move out to sweep the bandits and strange phenomena outside the city!"

"When that happens, peace will return to the Black Water Riverbank! You only need to hold on for a few more days, and you will have a way to survive!"

His words were like a shot of adrenaline, instantly breathing life back into the deathly still crowd.

"Really? The Martial Artist lords from the city are coming?"

"That’s wonderful! We’re saved!"

Wang Yuechi’s spirits also lifted. He knew Su Yu had a steady character and would never make empty promises.

He immediately turned and shouted enthusiastically to the villagers, "Did you all hear Lord Su? The lords in the city haven’t abandoned us! We all still have a chance to live! Now go home, and don’t disturb Lord Su any longer!"

Although the villagers were still worried, the good news had at least given them a glimmer of hope for survival, and they began to disperse.

...

After the crowd dispersed, Su Yu invited Wang Yuechi into the courtyard.

Yaya obediently served hot tea.

"Uncle Wang, please sit."

Wang Yuechi took a nervous sip of tea and asked, "Lord Su, for what purpose have you returned this time?"

Seeing his formality, Su Yu gave a helpless smile. "Uncle Wang, there are no outsiders here. There’s no need to be so distant. You can still call me nephew; it sounds more natural."

"I couldn’t! I absolutely couldn’t!"

Wang Yuechi waved his hands repeatedly, his expression grave. "Lord Su, you have passed the Martial Examination and are now a Ninth Grade Jing’an Captain. You are a great personage with an official position. If I were to still act familiar, I would be showing a lack of sense."

"However..." His tone shifted, and a glimmer of hope appeared in his eyes. "If you have any orders, my old bones are the same as ever. Wang Yuechi will not hesitate!"

Seeing his firm attitude, Su Yu didn’t insist.

’It’s amazing,’ he sighed internally. ’My status really has leaped across several classes.’

"Uncle Wang, to be honest, I’ve come back to take the Su Family into the city."

Upon hearing this, an unconcealable flash of envy crossed Wang Yuechi’s eyes.

’Into the city...’

That was something countless people dreamed of doing now. In this day and age, a single city gate was the line between life and death.

’Lord Su can even bring people into the city. It seems he really has become a great figure.’

At this thought, he remembered his five-year-old son, and a sharp pain twisted in his heart.

’If only I had been shameless enough to have my little son acknowledge Su Yu as his godfather back then, perhaps now...’

"The Su Family is truly fortunate. With a great figure like you, their future is secure." Wang Yuechi forced a smile and offered his congratulations with cupped hands.

Su Yu looked at Wang Yuechi, seemingly aware of his thoughts, and said, "Uncle Wang, my new mansion has just been established, and I’m in need of people."

He set down his teacup, his tone sincere. "Help me pick two loyal, hardworking young men from the village, people we know well, to join my household as guards and servants."

He paused, looking directly at Wang Yuechi. "Additionally, I’ve noticed your young son, Wang Qu, has a great deal of Spiritual Qi. If you’re willing to part with him, Uncle Wang, let him come along as well. He can be my Scholar’s Attendant and learn a few things in his spare time."

As soon as he said this, Wang Yuechi, a man of iron will, began to tremble with excitement, his eyes turning red.

’This isn’t about finding servants or a Scholar’s Attendant. This is life-saving grace! This is patronage!’

Once they entered the Su Mansion, not only would their lives be saved, but by following a young noble like Su Yu, their futures would be as bright as brocade!

He shot to his feet and, as if toppling a mountain of gold and a pillar of jade, dropped heavily to his knees. "Thank you for your immense grace, Lord Su!!!"