I died young at the start, but I'm reincarnated with unlimited skill points!

The world is filthy, but Su Yu is powerless to change it.

After all, he's only a five-year-old child; he hasn't matured yet, so it's difficult for him to do anything right.

Moreover, in this Black City, any demon possesses the strength of the late-stage Qi Refining realm.

Therefore, Su Yu's plan was very simple.

Gou.

I'll just stay put for now, focus on my training, and not provoke anyone.

Once you have enough cultivation, then you can think about those earth-shattering things.

But things didn't go as planned.

Sometimes, trouble doesn't need you to look for it; it will come to you on its own.

……

Outer city, northern district.

The government office in charge of affairs.

Inside a low stone house, village head Wang Wu was worrying about the quota for blood tribute.

The so-called "baozhang" was the lowest-level manager in the Dali Dynasty.

Each village head governs about a hundred households of ordinary people, and is responsible for registering households, collecting taxes, and the most important task of the year: collecting the blood tribute.

However, this year's blood donation quota is short by one boy aged five to eight.

Wang Wu had been worrying about this for several days.

He had already ransacked every household in the North District that could be used to make up the numbers.

Those with some financial resources would slip money in advance at the beginning of the year to remove their children from the shortlist.

Those without family wealth either didn't have any eligible boys at home, or their children were so sick they couldn't pass the inspection at the Blood Refining Workshop.

Sending up useless materials not only doesn't count, but will also earn you a bad review from the higher-ups.

Too many bad reviews, and you'll lose more than just your job, you'll lose your life!

Wang Wu knew very well that if he couldn't hand over the last virgin boy by the end of the month, the district officials wouldn't listen to his explanation.

The village head who fails to meet his quota will be used as expendable material to fill the blood tribute convoy.

This rule has remained unchanged since the founding of the Great Li Dynasty.

In previous years, there have been precedents of village chiefs being tied to iron prison carts because they couldn't gather enough people.

Wang Wu didn't want to follow in the footsteps of those unlucky people.

He flipped through the household registration book, his gaze lingering on a line of text.

"Old Dog, male, 63 years old. Household members: 1. One succulent seedling being raised on behalf of others, named Gouwazi, male, 5 years old."

Wang Wu's gaze swept back and forth across that line of text twice.

Old dog.

Of course he knew Old Dog.

A few years ago, he was the most inconspicuous old beggar in the slum, barely surviving on the subsidies from the livestock pen.

But in the last two years, he somehow got lucky and suddenly learned to identify herbs, and made some money selling herbal decoctions in the slums.

They moved out of the slum and into a small courtyard with blue bricks on the edge of the northern district.

They even spent money to get the adopted child a civilian household registration.

Wang Wu had no impression of the old dog.

An old beggar, half-buried in the ground, had neither money to offer as tribute nor any other value to the family.

But he only glanced at the boy named Gouwazi casually.

Su Yu's image became exceptionally clear in his mind.

Five years old, boy, his complexion is fair.

Once it's delivered to the Blood Refining Workshop, there shouldn't be any problems with the inspection.

Wang Wu put down the booklet and tapped the table unconsciously with his fingers.

He knew everything about Lao Gou's family situation.

An old man and a young boy, with no clan, no gang, and no powerful backing.

Although Lao Gou has made a little money in the past two years, he has only gone from a beggar to a street vendor, and he can't even afford to mess with the thugs on the streets of the North District.

Even if such a family is conscripted, they won't be able to cause any trouble.

not to mention.

This morning, Wang Wu received a gift of five taels of silver from Zhang the butcher in the same neighborhood.

Zhang the butcher has a chubby five-year-old son who was originally on the shortlist for this neighborhood.

After receiving the money, Wang Wu promised to cross out Zhang the butcher's son's name.

This vacant spot naturally needs to be filled by an unlucky guy with no connections.

In the world of ordinary people at the bottom of society, the logic of malice is often that simple.

For his own life, for a few taels of silver.

They would not hesitate to push their own kind into the abyss.

……

Two days later, in the evening.

"Bang!"

The old dog's gate was kicked open.

Wang Wu walked in with two constables, his gaze immediately locking onto Su Yu, who was sitting in the corner.

His complexion was rosy, and all four limbs were intact, with no obvious signs of illness.

"Okay, done."

Wang Wu nodded in satisfaction, then turned to the clerk and said something.

"Get on."

Old Dog then realized what was happening and hurriedly ran out from behind the stove, grabbing Wang Wu's sleeve.

"Manager Wang, what brings you here?"

"Your child has been selected for this year's quota of children for the Blood Tribute."

Wang Wu shook off the old dog's hand, speaking casually.

"Take your men to the expropriation station in three days. Once they pass inspection, you've completed your mission."

The old dog stood frozen in place, his voice trembling uncontrollably.

"Manager Wang, this...this isn't right, is it?"

"My dog ​​just registered his household last year, and according to the rules, new residents are exempt from taxes for the first year..."

"Exempt from taxation?"

Wang Wu glanced back at the old dog and smiled.

"Old dog, whose connections did you use to register your household?"

The old dog opened its mouth, but couldn't utter a word.

He did indeed ask someone for help and spent money to register Su Yu's household registration.

But they took an unorthodox approach.

The proper household registration process requires two guarantors with local household registration to jointly guarantee the registration, and it also needs to be verified by the district office.

Where can an old dog, a former beggar, find a proper guarantor?

He spent three taels of silver to find a broker who specialized in forging documents to make a fake guarantee letter in order to get his household registration processed.

Wang Wu had obviously already figured this out long ago.

"Your household registration and guarantee letter are fake, so you are not protected by the tax exemption."

"Of course, if you're not satisfied, you can file a complaint with the district office."

He looked at the old dog whose legs were trembling and added slowly.

"However, according to the laws of Dali, those who falsify household registrations will have their entire family, including their children, added to the blood tribute."

"You decide for yourself."

After saying this, Wang Wu turned and left with his men.

The courtyard was deathly silent.

Old Dog was trembling all over, as if his bones had been removed.

After a long while, he suddenly squatted down, hugged Su Yu tightly in his arms, and burst into tears.

Instead of suppressing his voice as usual, he broke down in despair and cried bitterly.

I weep for my life, which is as worthless as mud.

Weep for this cannibalistic world.

He cried even more for the child he cherished so dearly, who never even had the chance to grow up.

"Little Gouwa...it's all Grandpa's fault..."

"Grandpa couldn't protect you..."

The old dog's heart-wrenching cries echoed through the narrow alley.

But he heard no words of comfort from his neighbors.

Those neighbors who once greeted us with smiles because of their affluent lives.

At this moment, everyone tightly closed their doors and windows, afraid of being tainted by any bad luck, and even more afraid that this unfortunate task would fall on their own shoulders.

Su Yu let the old dog hug him.

"It's alright, Grandpa."

Faced with a desperate situation, five-year-old Su Yu remained unusually calm, and instead reached out his little hand to pat the old dog on the back.

The old dog froze.

What an understanding child! How could the heavens be so blind!

After weeping, the old dog wiped the tears and snot from his face, a resolute glint flashing in his cloudy eyes.

"Little Doggy, don't be afraid, Grandpa will never let you be eaten by those monsters."

Old Dog lowered his voice and said urgently.

"The blood tribute teams are not sent directly to the Blood Refining Workshop, but are first gathered at the Grand Transfer Center in the capital of the dynasty."

"Let's go to the capital."

"There are many officials and many rules in the capital."

"Once we get there, I'll spend some money to bribe people and I'll definitely be able to get your name removed from the list."

As the old dog spoke, he began rummaging through drawers and cabinets.

Su Yu stood aside, quietly watching the old dog's busy figure.

With the insight gained from being reborn three times, Su Yu instantly saw through the old dog's clumsy lie.

How could ordinary people possibly buy their way into the blood tribute list established by the dynasty?

In the eyes of those evil spirits and officials who regard mortals as livestock, this amount of money is not even enough to buy a single word from them.

Looking into the old dog's eyes, which were filled with a death wish, Su Yu let out a very complex sigh.

Old Dog had no intention of spending money on bribes.

He took all his money with him, intending to go to the massive transit hub in the dynasty's capital.

He used his own life to take Su Yu's place.

This is the only way the old dog could think of to save his life!

"This old man..."

Su Yu withdrew his gaze, a warm feeling rising in his heart.