From the family treasure tree to build an eternal family

Chapter 176 Human Traffickers
"Row."

Xu Xiaoniu nodded in agreement: "This Liu Hongzhan has the cultivation of the ninth level of Qi Refining, and who knows how many lives he has taken. I will hand him over to the Demon Subduing Division of the County Government and hand over his demonic cultivation techniques. I can get at least a hundred spirit stones as a reward."

"The other technique, 'Crimson Gold Sword Qi Technique,' will remain in our family as a reserve of cultivation methods."

Xu Fugui thought to himself that, without realizing it, his family had already collected all five elements of Qi Refining cultivation techniques.

The Xu family's strength has also increased to this level without anyone realizing it.

Back then, a mere eighth-level Qi Refining demonic cultivator left them helpless and caused the death of Xu Xiaogou.

Liu Hongzhan, who was now at the ninth level of Qi Refining, was killed by Xu Xiaohou in just a few moves after arriving at Baihe Mountain.

In fact, Xu Fugui was quite strong. He was at the seventh level of Qi Refining and the third level of Flying Sword Technique, possessing a low-grade magic weapon flying sword called "Sleeve Flying Sword." If he had been present earlier, it would have been much easier to defeat Liu Hongzhan with his assistance.

"You must be extremely careful and cautious when dealing with demonic cultivators and treacherous cultivators outside. Except for Da Niu and Zhong Yao, the rest of you should not display your Qi Refining cultivation level in front of outsiders..."

He repeated his instructions.

After everyone had dispersed, Xu Xiaoniu called over Xu Xiaohou and Zhongyao: "Before I rushed back, the county magistrate sent someone to report to me that there were human traffickers in Tonggu County again, and most of the traffickers were girls around ten years old."

Upon hearing the word "human traffickers," Xu Xiaohou's eyes turned cold; he hated human traffickers the most!

Xiaoxi was abducted by human traffickers fifteen years ago.

According to Zhao Shuai, the human traffickers worked for a group of demonic cultivators. That group of demonic cultivators was organized and disciplined, their whereabouts were secretive, and they captured a considerable number of people.

"Where?"

Xu Xiaohou couldn't wait to ask.

Over the years, thanks to intelligence from the Demon Subduing Division, he has killed many human traffickers, but none of them were human traffickers working for that group of demonic cultivators.

As for the identities and origins of that group of demonic cultivators, and why they captured the girl, these remain unknown.

"Don't worry, I've already sent people to search, and we'll find out all the members of the human trafficking gang soon. Come with me to the Demon Subduing Division first, and I'll assign you tasks. Don't act rashly; keep a close eye on the traffickers."

These human traffickers aren't important; what matters is who they work for.

Xu Xiaoniu knew that this group of demonic cultivators was very cunning and that it would not be easy to find them.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

A few days later, in a remote village.

He Kai stood in front of a dilapidated courtyard, weighing a bag of silver in his hand: "Eighty taels of silver, this is the going price, take it or leave it."

In front of him, a poor peasant couple dressed in coarse linen clothes were discussing whether or not to sell one of their daughters.

"Master of Human Proprietorship, now that you've taken in people, where are you going to sell them?"

The couple tentatively inquired.

"Of course we'll sell her to be a maid. What else? Your girl is so skinny, she's like a bean sprout. No one would want her even if you sold her to a brothel."

He Kai's rhetoric was taught to him by someone.

Seeing the couple still hesitating and dawdling, he became impatient: "Don't waste my time, I'm very busy. Decide quickly, or I'm leaving."

As he spoke, he turned to urge the carriage behind him to leave.

"Wait, let's sell, sell!"

When the couple stopped He Kai, they had already made up their minds. This moment of inner turmoil was just a matter of convincing themselves.

One hand hands over the money, the other hand hands over the person.

The transaction was completed by both parties.

He Kai let the ten-year-old girl get into the carriage.

There were also three girls in the carriage, all around ten years old, from the same village.

This village was already poor, and this year the river next to it flooded, inundating many fields. They simply couldn't survive, which is why many families were thinking of selling their children to get through the crisis.

"Haha, this trip was a huge success."

He Kai was secretly pleased with himself as he drove the carriage forward.

He bought a girl around ten years old for 80 taels of silver and sold her for 300 taels. He made a net profit of over 200 taels of silver in one transaction.

Unfortunately, he only recently came into contact with this "business." If he had known earlier, he probably would have amassed a fortune long ago.

He heard privately that his boss was earning more than him.

Of course, this line of work is not without risks.

Many people make money this way, so he has to be wary of his competitors' sneak attacks, assassinations, and kidnappings.

Fortunately, he had practiced martial arts when he was young, and he earned money from this line of work to buy a few Qi and Blood Pills. Now his strength has reached the advanced level of martial artist.

He drove the horse-drawn carriage out of Tonggu County and arrived at a desolate mountain outside the county town.

This place is extremely remote, located at the border of Tonggu County and the neighboring Puye County. Due to the rugged terrain, there are no roads in the surrounding area.

it's dark.

The terrain ahead was no longer suitable for the carriage to travel, so he got out of the carriage with the four girls: "Quick, let's go that way!"

The girls trembled with fear in the darkness and hesitated to move forward.

"Get out of here, or I'll get rough."

He Kai pulled a short knife from his pocket. The knife was drawn from its sheath, the blade gleaming coldly.

Under his threats, the girls had no choice but to venture deeper into the desolate mountains.

Finally, we arrived at a secluded valley.

Not far away, a person shrouded in black robes waited quietly, seemingly waiting for them.

He Kai stepped forward respectfully, bowing deeply: "Sir, I brought four this time."

He didn't know who this person was, nor had he ever seen what he looked like.

This is the rule; he cannot know the identity of his supplier.

The man in black robes was named Liu Kan, a rogue cultivator with a Qi Refining level of seven. He remained silent, took out a few silver notes, and casually tossed them away.

"It doesn't have a tail, does it?"

The silver note spun in the air and landed at He Kai's feet.

He bent down to pick up the silver note and said obsequiously, "Don't worry, sir, I'm very careful. I have no tails following me."

"Yeah, be careful not to get targeted."

Liu Kan gave the instructions and then told He Kai to leave.

After He Kai left, Liu Kan led the four girls into the valley.

A dozen or so girls were hiding in a secluded cave.

Four more girls arrived, making the place even more crowded.

Liu Kan knew those people wanted to live, so he wouldn't kill them, but it was normal for him to teach these disobedient girls a lesson.

He had to intimidate a dozen or twenty people by himself with ruthless methods.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Xu Xiaohou secretly kept an eye on Liu Kan, hiding in the wilderness to observe his movements.

"He is not that demonic cultivator."

Xu Xiaohou soon discovered that Liu Kan's identity was similar to Zhao Shuai's back then, and he was the "handover person" between the group of demonic cultivators and human traffickers.

This desolate mountain is located outside Tonggu County and is very secluded. Liu Kan also acted very cautiously, flying around the mountain every few hours to check if any strangers were watching the area.

Xu Xiaohou was worried that too many people nearby would attract Liu Kan's attention and alert the demonic cultivators, so he ordered Xu Zhongyao and the people from the Demon Subduing Division to evacuate.

With his abilities, he could better hide himself from being discovered.

Within a radius of twenty miles, only Xu Xiaohou was following Liu Kan.

As for Xu Xiaoniu, Xu Zhongyao, and the men of the Demon Subduing Division, they all withdrew to hide twenty miles away, ready to provide support at any time.

A few days later, Xu Xiaohou discovered that not only people from Tonggu County, but also people from the neighboring Puye County had come.

(End of this chapter)