In the global desert, I have a spring of spiritual water.

At this moment, Hu Changhe was standing respectfully next to Chen Chuan. When he saw that this member of the demon-suppressing team had actually knelt at his feet, his face immediately darkened. With the manor lord present, yet reporting to him, wasn't this just trying to make him look bad?

However, after seeing the face of the demon-suppressing team member clearly, he understood what was going on.

Before Chen Chuan took office, he dispatched three teams to seek assistance from Daxingzhuang, Miyun Town, and Tongzhou County respectively.

The group that went to Daxingzhuang returned the fastest, but they didn't bring back a single drop of water and lost two people. The group that went to Miyun Town returned yesterday evening, also without bringing back water, but without any losses.

Tongzhou County is 500 li away from Taipingzhuang, and it would take several days to travel there and back. The changes in the village in the past two days have been too great, and Hu Changhe has forgotten about the team that went to Tongzhou County to ask for help.

The person who came to deliver the message was one of the people he had sent to Tongzhou County to seek help; his name was Li Heng.

"This is the newly appointed Master Chen. Report anything to him."

"Master, his name is Li Heng. He is a member of the fourth squad of the Demon Suppression Team. A few days ago, I sent him and a dozen others to Tongzhou County to ask for help."

Hu Changhe quickly explained the situation.

Li Heng was slightly taken aback. He was unaware of the changes in the manor. He asked the gatekeeper Hu Changhe where he was and then ran over to report the news.

Seeing Hu Changhe's respectful attitude towards the new manor lord, he was puzzled but dared not be negligent. He quickly moved his body and bowed to Chen Chuan: "Manor lord, our team consists of eighteen people. On the way back, we encountered river bandits. Those bandits were extremely fierce and captured all eighteen of us. They released me to deliver a message. They want the manor to exchange water for people."

As he spoke, Li Heng took out a letter from his pocket, with a red feather stuck to the seal.

"Red Feather Water Bandits!"

Upon seeing the letter, Hu Changhe exclaimed in surprise, his eyes widening in astonishment.

"What's so special about these river pirates?"

Chen Chuan looked at Hu Changhe with a puzzled expression. His inherited memories of Taipingzhuang were of a remote place where sand monsters and water bandits roamed.

Last night he witnessed the sand demons attacking the city, and today the water bandits have come again. Judging from Hu Changhe's reaction, these Red Feather water bandits seem to be no ordinary people.

"Master, you may not know this, but there are several bandit groups active in the Taiping Village, Daxing Village, and Miyun Town area. Among them, the Red Feather Bandits are the strongest. I heard that their leader has reached the second level of cultivation. There is nothing they can't get if they want to steal it."

"However, because our Taipingzhuang is relatively poor, they rarely come here. I never expected that they would rob our people this time."

Hu Changhe gave a brief explanation of the Red Feather Water Bandits.

"The bandit leader actually has a second-tier cultivation level!"

Chen Chuan was greatly shocked, after all, Taiping Village currently did not have a single second-level cultivator.

He opened the letter with the red feather attached. The contents were simple: water for lives, seventeen lives for 1000 jars of water.

The transaction was conducted cautiously. Tomorrow at noon, the people of Taipingzhuang were to park the camel cart containing 1000 jars of water at the designated location.

At 1-3 PM, they released the people.

After reading the letter, Chen Chuan handed it to Hu Changhe and then asked Li Heng, "Do you know where those river bandits are hiding?"

"have no idea."

Li Heng shook his head: "We stayed overnight at Daxingzhuang Post Station the night before and left Daxingzhuang this morning. About 70 li outside the village, we were ambushed and captured. After that, they gave me a letter and released me on the spot. I don't know where the remaining seventeen people were taken."

At this moment, Hu Changhe finished reading the letter and angrily cursed, "1000 jars of water! That's outrageous!"

Chen Chuan didn't think 1000 jars of water was a lot. After all, he had a cheat code, and theoretically, he had an endless supply of water.

Exchanging 1000 jars of water for 17 members of the demon-suppressing team seems like a very profitable deal.

I just don't know if those bandits will keep their word.

"What is the reputation of these Red Feather pirates?"

Chen Chuan turned to Hu Changhe and asked.

"The Red Feather Water Bandits have a huge reputation, but I've heard they're fairly trustworthy. They'll probably release the hostage if they get the ransom. But 1000 jars of water is a bit too much!"

Hu Changhe certainly wanted to exchange water for his brother, but he didn't know what Chen Chuan was thinking. He could only repeatedly emphasize that 1000 jars of water was too much, hoping to see Chen Chuan's reaction.

"1000 jars of water for seventeen lives, that's a good deal."

"Go and get ready!"

Chen Chuan could easily guess what Hu Changhe was thinking. This guy was born and raised in Taipingzhuang. The members of the Demon Suppression Team were either people he had watched grow up or people he had grown up with. They were all brothers, so how could he just stand by and watch them die?

"Yes, I'll go prepare it right away!"

Seeing Chen Chuan agree so readily, Hu Changhe was overjoyed. He grinned widely and dragged Li Heng down the city wall.

"Director Hu, does the village have 1000 jars of water?"

Li Heng was unaware of the changes in Taipingzhuang. When he left, the last well was almost dry, and the 1000 jars of water were enough for the entire town to drink for two or three days. With these 1000 jars of water, many people would have been spared from dying of thirst.

"Let alone 1000 jars of water, the village can produce 10,000 jars of water right now."

"Let me tell you, our new manor lord is a Life Source Master!"

Hu Changhe replied with considerable pride.

"What?!"

"A Life Source Master???"

Li Heng's mouth gaped open. Just moments ago, he had been silently complaining to himself about how Taipingzhuang had been handed over to a "pretty boy."

To everyone's surprise, the elegantly dressed, handsome "pretty boy" turned out to be a powerful Life Source Master.

the other side.

Having regained his strength, Chen Chuan walked down from the city wall and traded 1000 jars of water for 17 members of the demon-suppressing team. In his opinion, this deal was definitely a good one.

Most importantly, it can also win people's hearts. After all, the other demon-suppressing team members are watching. If they don't redeem the person, who will be willing to go on missions in the future?

Even if they are forced to go, they will probably just go through the motions without putting in any real effort.

As for settling accounts with that gang of river pirates, we'll settle that later; there's plenty of time.

Furthermore, if what Hu Changhe said is true, then the bandit leader has a second-tier cultivation level, so it would be worth trying to recruit him. Currently, Taiping Village does not have a second-tier expert in charge.

The development of Taipingzhuang depends entirely on Chen Chuan himself. He has no power to rely on, and Shanghe County will not provide any support. Therefore, before he becomes powerful, he must unite all forces that can be united.

Whether someone is a bandit or not is unimportant; what matters is that they can be used for one's own purposes!

As Chen Chuan walked, he silently pondered his next move, and before he knew it, he had arrived at the entrance of Taiping Tavern.

The tavern was packed with people, both inside and outside, numbering at least three or four hundred.

Everyone stared intently at the center of the tavern, where a long table was set up with a pot of red leaf tea and a teacup on it. Master Mo was sitting behind the table, telling a story with great enthusiasm.

"The second-tier Saliva-Faced Ghost Spider let out a piercing roar, and a green, sticky thread shot straight towards Manor Lord Chen. This green, sticky thread was the Saliva-Faced Ghost Spider's life-giving silk source, extremely powerful. If it touched Manor Lord Chen, it could instantly suck him dry into a dried corpse. In that split second, Manor Lord Chen set up a three-layered Golden Bell Formation..."

Mr. Mo's voice was extremely penetrating, as if it carried some kind of energy, and could be heard clearly even if you stood dozens of meters away from the tavern.

Chen Chuan stopped in his tracks, slightly startled. This Mr. Mo should not have been present when he killed the second-tier Saliva-Faced Ghost Spider yesterday. How did he know so much?

Not only that, even Chen Chuan didn't know that the green sticky thread was called "Life Source Silk," but this Mr. Mo actually knew.

Could the other party be a reclusive master?

Chen Chuan remembered that there were always similar settings in the fantasy novels he had read in his previous life, and maybe he would actually encounter it this time.