72: Robbery and rebellion

Yongning border.

In a valley filled with Spiritual Qi, there was a small patch of spiritual fields with a small courtyard beside it.

"Brother! We can't go on living like this. Tell me what we should do!"

The man speaking in the room was named Chen Shijie, and sitting opposite him was his older brother, Chen Shiqiang.

The two brothers were tenants of a one-mu plot of Low Grade spiritual fields in the valley, vassals to the Qian Family, which was at the Late Qi Refining Stage.

"The Golden Spiritual Rice in the fields will be ripe in three months. How about..."

Chen Shiqiang looked at his younger brother with reluctance. "How about we wait until we harvest the Golden Spiritual Rice before deciding?"

"Wait for what, damn it!"

Chen Shijie slapped the table and stood up. "Are we waiting for others to come and rob us?"

"Robber Cultivators are rampant. They go wherever there is ripe spiritual fields to rob. Just a few days ago, the spiritual rice grown by the Wei Family siblings was snatched away the moment it ripened."

"Now the two siblings are nowhere to be found. Do you want to end up like them?"

The logic was sound; Chen Shiqiang understood it, but he was still reluctant to part with the spiritual rice in the fields.

This spiritual field yielded about one thousand catties annually. Although it was the most common Golden Spiritual Rice, it could still sell for thirty Spirit Stones.

Previously, when the Sect tax was thirty percent, they only needed to hand over half to the Qian Family, and the brothers could still have fifteen Spirit Stones, which was barely enough to maintain their Cultivate.

Now that the Sect tax had increased to fifty percent, the Qian Family had raised the amount to be handed over to seventy percent. After a year of hard work, they were left with only nine Spirit Stones; split between them, that was less than five each per year.

That would be one thing! They could endure five stones a year and just tough it out for five years.

But even these five stones were being targeted. There were more and more Robber Cultivators at the border, and they would directly come to rob whoever had ripe spiritual fields. These bottom-tier spiritual farmers had no way to deal with it.

It wasn't that they hadn't reported it to the Qian Family, but the Qian Family could barely protect themselves, let alone send people to protect them during the harvest.

"Then... then what do you say we do?"

Although Chen Shiqiang was the older brother, his personality was rather timid; he only wanted to live a peaceful life.

His younger brother, Chen Shijie, looked fierce, his palms clenched into fists. "Since the world gives us no path to survive, we will forge a Heaven-Defying Dao of our own!"

"You... do you mean..."

Chen Shiqiang actually knew what his younger brother meant, but he was afraid and didn't dare to think about it.

There were more and more Robber Cultivators at the border. Where did these people come from? Most of them were Cultivators like them who couldn't survive.

"Brother! Stop playing dumb."

Chen Shijie looked at his brother, his words earnest. "When the world is a bit chaotic, the first to suffer are those of us at the bottom. Instead of waiting to be robbed by Robber Cultivators, why don't we become Robber Cultivators ourselves!"

"Sigh!"

Chen Shiqiang sighed. After a moment of silence, he nodded. He could see that his younger brother's mind was made up; he couldn't just let his brother take the risk alone.

The two brothers discussed it for a while and immediately started packing their things, taking everything of value, including the unripe Golden Spiritual Rice in the spiritual fields.

They pulled up the rice seedlings and transported them away by carriage; they could still sell them for some money in town.

Half a month later.

Tianma Town.

The two brothers successfully joined a group of Robber Cultivators. The reason Chen Shijie was so determined to join the Robber Cultivators in the first place was that he had already made contact with a connection beforehand.

"Brother! I finally see it clearly. This Cultivate! It's just going against the heavens. For bottom-tier Cultivators like us, the only way out is to fight with our lives!"

In a private room at a restaurant, Chen Shijie drank a pot of wine, his whole being glowing with spirit.

The brothers had participated in two small-scale robberies, and the harvest was worth two years of hard labor.

Chen Shiqiang's originally hesitant heart slowly wavered. Once one gets used to a life of getting something for nothing, there is no going back!

Chen Shijie leaned closer to his brother and whispered, "I received news that a big shot is organizing us to pull off a major operation a few days from now. If we pull this off, it should be enough for me to Cultivate to the Middle Stage of Qi Refining!"

"What major operation?" Chen Shiqiang asked.

"We'll know when the time comes. I only know the general idea for now!" Chen Shijie said.

The next day.

The two brothers received a secret message and finally knew what the main group was going to do—they were actually going to rob the entire Tianma Town!

Tianma Town had officials dispatched by the Sect, shops opened by nearby immortal Cultivation Families, and Cultivators passing through and staying there; the permanent population was nearly ten thousand.

Although the border Robber Cultivators were rampant, this was the first time they had taken action against the official Sect forces since the Sect's law enforcement army swept through last time.

The two brothers felt fear, but then a strong sense of excitement welled up in Chen Shijie's heart. If they succeeded this time, it would definitely be enough for him to Cultivate to the Middle Stage of Qi Refining!

That night, fires suddenly broke out all over Tianma Town, and colorful Spell lights flashed one after another.

The Tianma Town constables were assassinated one after another, and only a small portion retreated to the Town Mayor's mansion to make a desperate stand.

Robber Cultivators dressed in black emerged from various places, killing everyone they saw, and the scene instantly became chaotic.

There were hundreds of Robber Cultivators, and they were clearly organized and planned; the official forces of Tianma Town quickly fell into a disadvantage.

At the Town Mayor's mansion.

Zhou You was the Town Mayor appointed by the Red Pine Sect, with seventh-level Qi Refining cultivation. He held a blood-red Magical Artifact long saber and slashed to death several black-clad Robber Cultivators in succession.

"Everyone, listen to my command."

"Form the Formation!"

He shouted, and the remaining constable Cultivators gathered around him. The most basic 'Gathering Spell Formation' was formed, and the Qi of dozens of constable Cultivators was partially added to him.

Zhou You's aura surged, instantly reaching the Perfection of Qi Refining, and the blood-colored long saber in his hand emitted several meters of blade light.

Just as the situation was about to reverse, one hundred elites in the Robber Cultivator team also formed a Formation, and a black-clad figure with an aura even stronger than Zhou You's flew into mid-air.

The black-clad leader held a cyan Magical Artifact sword. He raised his hand to form a sword seal, and the Magical Artifact sword flew before him, then split into three, turning into three streaks of cyan sword light.

"Hum!"

The sword light illuminated the night sky and headed straight for Zhou You, like a meteor.

"Not good!"

Zhou You knew he was no match, but it was too late to dodge, so he could only swing his saber to counterattack.

He instantly slashed out three blood-colored blade lights, then took out a Talisman and slapped it on his body; an earthy-yellow light shield appeared, blocking in front of him.

"Boom~"

"Crack~"

"Puff~"

Of the three slashes, only the first one blocked the cyan sword light; the two following blade lights were directly shattered by the sword light.

The Low Grade Earth Shield Talisman only neutralized one sword light, and the remaining sword light dimmed slightly before hitting Zhou You in the chest.

A charred hole was torn in his Dharma robe, and he immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, his aura withering.

"Mantid trying to stop a chariot, die!"

The black-clad leader's indifferent voice came. The cyan Magical Artifact sword returned. He raised his hand and waved, and three more cyan sword lights condensed.

With Zhou You's current state, once this sword was released, he would be dead or severely injured; the outcome was set!

"Hum hum~"

Suddenly!

A faint light lit up above Tianma Town. The light spot gradually grew larger, turning into the shape of a giant ship.

A terrifying pressure enveloped everyone's hearts, and an indifferent female voice echoed through the night sky:

"Finish it quickly, try to capture them alive!"