As far as Lin Jin knew, for the past few centuries, Liangzhou was still the same as it used to be. Nothing had changed.
There was no doubt that Daoist Lord's arrangements had gone awry. At the very least, Daoist Lord couldn't fix this. Now that Lin Jin was here, he could find out why Liangzhou was still so desolate and dangerous even after the Four Seas Calabash Gourd was left behind.
The location mentioned in the Heavenly Book was only a rough estimate. It was said to be at Mount Five Palms in Liangzhou.
Lin Jin noticed a small village below him. Intrigued, he descended on a cloud.
He planned to ask around.
This area was like a desert with only a few oases. This village was built on one of these oases and it seemed like it had been here for quite some time.
There weren't many houses, at most seven or eight of them. They were small in scale.
After entering, Lin Jin didn't see anyone. The ground was mostly made up of sand and gravel. There was an occasional patch of grass but most of them were withered. Most of the houses were made of wood mixed with mud and hay. They didn't look sturdy and seemed like they would break at the slightest touch.
Just then, an old man came out. At the sight of Lin Jin, his eyes lit up and he strode over.
The old man looked to be in his sixties but he was skinny. His hair was a mess and his clothes hadn't been washed for who knows how long. His hair was unkempt and his face was dirty. As Liangzhou was windy and sandy, the old man's face was covered in a layer of dirt.
Just by looking at this old man, Lin Jin could tell that the people of Liangzhou lived a tough life.
Lin Jin saluted but the old man had already walked over. He took out a knife with practiced ease and placed it against Lin Jin's neck.
"The fat sheep is here!"
The old man spoke with a slight Liangzhou accent. It sounded like he was singing a folk song. In the next moment, more than ten men emerged from the bushes in the dilapidated house. They varied in height and weight, but their clothes were tattered. They looked like beggars.
However, these people clearly weren't beggars. Would beggars come here with knives and axes in their hands?
Besides these people, there were also a few skinny hounds. They looked like local breeds with large heads and mouths full of sharp teeth. They were quite intimidating.
Soon, Lin Jin was surrounded by this group of people.
At this moment, there were at least three sharp knives pressed against his neck. His stomach and the back of his waist were also pressed against by someone with a dagger. A few dogs came over and sniffed non-stop.
Most people would be scared out of their wits if they encountered such a situation.
Lin Jin, on the other hand, fared better. Thanks to his cultivation, he was protected by a layer of invisible Five Elemental Armor. Average swords and blades couldn't possibly hurt him.
Things were getting interesting now. Lin Jin didn't move. Instead, he glanced at the dozen menacing men around him and asked, "Judging by your menacing appearance and attire, if I'm not mistaken, you must be robbers here to rob others?"
At this time, a fierce-looking man with a large beard shouted, "What nonsense are you spouting? Consider yourself unlucky today. You actually barged into our Ox Village. If you know what's good for you, leave all the gold and silver on you, or else …"
Before he could finish, someone beside him said in a daze, "Boss, I don't think this person is carrying any luggage. I'm afraid he doesn't have any money on him!"
"Am I blind?" Annoyed, the boss reprimanded his subordinate before glaring at Lin Jin and saying, "Judging by your extraordinary attire, you must be from a wealthy family. Write a letter and tell your family to bring two hundred … no, five hundred taels of silver. Once you've paid up, we'll let you go. If you don't have any money, I'm sorry, but we'll have to kill you and make you into stew.
It's been a long time since we've had meat. "Having said that, he burst into laughter. The other men followed suit.
"Hahaha!"
Lin Jin laughed too.
And he laughed even louder. At this, the boss and his men were clearly stunned as they held back their laughter.
In the next instant, Lin Jin reached out and grabbed one of the men's axes. With a squeeze of his hand, the axe was instantly shattered.
The old axe-wielding man's eyes widened.
"Brothers, this is a tough one. Release the dogs!" The boss reacted quickly. With a roar, someone whipped out a whistle and blew on it.
The whistle was used to control the hound beasts. Usually, when a dog whistle was blown, the hound beasts would immediately bite the enemy.
But this time, no matter how hard the whistle was blown, the hound beasts seemed to be pressed to the ground by a giant hand. They all lowered their heads and none of them dared to get up.
"I refuse to believe this!" The boss raised the axe in his hand and swung it at the hound beasts.
…
The northwest wind blew, a little chilly.
As the sand flew, the ground was littered with broken axes and blades. Some of them had been twisted beyond recognition.
The boss and his men squatted on the ground, trembling as they held their heads in their hands. This posture was taught to them by the old man so they didn't dare to disobey. Ever since they were defeated so easily just now, the Great Leader and the others were humiliated to realize that they had kicked an iron plate this time.
Fortunately, the man didn't kill them. He only made them squat with their heads in their hands and answer his questions.
For example, where was this place, which part of Liangzhou it belonged to, or whether they had ever heard of Mount Five Palms.
The boss answered whatever was on his mind, not daring to hide anything.
They were truly frightened.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that if it weren't for the fact that they hadn't drunk water for a long time and couldn't pee, they would have wet their pants by now.
The boss and his men were afraid of death too.
It wasn't easy to survive in Liangzhou. Therefore, no one who could survive wanted to die.
Mount Five Palms was a famous place in Liangzhou. It wasn't because of the beautiful scenery, but because it was the base of the Water God Cult. Liangzhou was severely short of water and it just so happened that the Water God Cult controlled the largest water source in Liangzhou. Anyone who wanted water had to go to the Water God Cult. Whether it was a small country in Liangzhou or a group of poor commoners like the boss and his men, it was the same.
When Lin Jin heard the boss and his men referring to them as' poor commoners', he chuckled inwardly.
These people sure were thick-skinned. Earlier, they had been acting so menacing, calling themselves bandits and robbers. Now that they had kicked a steel plate, they called them poor commoners.
But then again, Lin Jin didn't plan on doing anything to them.
These people were just regular people who didn't know any spells or martial arts. Malnourished and lacking water for a long time, they looked no different from refugees.
Even their hounds were the most ordinary of people.
With Lin Jin's current capabilities, there was no need for him to make things difficult for these commoners. Moreover, these people had been living tough lives.
As for Mount Five Palms and the Water God Cult, Lin Jin had a plan in mind.
The Daolord's Divine Scroll didn't mention the Water God Cult. In other words, the Water God Cult only appeared after the Daolord's death. By asking the boss and his men, this speculation was more or less confirmed. In other words, the Water God Cult was born in the past few centuries.
A few centuries wasn't a short period of time. Based on the current situation, at least in Liangzhou, the Water God Cult was undoubtedly the overlord. According to the boss and his men, the Water God Cult controlled the water source. More than half of Liangzhou's population had to rely on them to survive. Based on this, one could tell how powerful the Water God Cult was.
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