Don't force me to use my right fist.

In the early morning, just as the first rays of sunlight were rising on the horizon, Sawa got up and climbed out of the tree. After quickly washing himself with water, he went to the village chief's house, which he had visited the day before.

The old man woke up surprisingly early. Or rather, after experimenting with the bone powder submitted by Shibata Ai yesterday, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep anymore.

He had initially thought it might have an effect similar to the fertilizers used by people in the city, but after seeing the crops irrigated with water mixed with bone meal, he was completely stunned by the visible growth rate.

Just one night later, the rice that had been watered was growing much better and healthier than the rice that hadn't been watered.

If this trend continues, then this year's grain production could at least double.

That was a yield that even in years of great harvests wouldn't dare to dream of, and to achieve it so easily was bound to make the old man so excited that he couldn't sleep.

Upon seeing that the person knocking on the door was Sawa, his big spender, he immediately understood his meaning. If the person had come to find him so early, it could only mean that he was in a hurry to leave.

That makes sense; their run-down village didn't have anything particularly appealing to a martial artist like him, so he wouldn't have stayed long either.

"Is the samurai departing so early, sir? Won't you linger a little longer?"

After leading Zuoyou into the room, the old man handed him a cup of boiled water and asked him a question.

"Yeah, there's nothing to do here, I want to get back to town as soon as possible."

Sōyu nodded; he truly had no reason to stay in this village any longer.

Furthermore, he still carries a fragment of the Shikon Jewel on him. If he accidentally attracts a demon, these innocent villagers will suffer as well.

"Alright then, I'll contact someone who knows the way to the town to guide you, Lord Wu Shang."

The old man, who had stood up to make arrangements for Saya, was stopped by a glance from Saya. He looked at him with some confusion before asking the question that had been bothering him.

"Is there anything else you need to instruct me on, Lord Martial Arts?"

Saya pondered for a moment, then pretended to fumble in his pocket and pulled out two gold beans, placing them in front of him. "Could you please take care of her a little, Village Chief?" Saya made no attempt to hide his bribery-like gesture, pushing the two gold beans forward; his meaning couldn't be clearer.

It's always good to be wary of others. Although Saya felt he was leaving, he could still leave Shibata Ai some kind of support. At least with the village chief helping her, the villagers probably wouldn't bully her so openly.

What she fears most is when everyone in the village starts to turn a blind eye to the bullying she suffers; that would put her in a very dangerous situation.

"Of course I understand what you mean, Lord Samurai, and I certainly wouldn't mistreat her."

"One is enough. Any more than that would be too much for this old man to bear, and there is no need for it."

As for Sōyū, he watched the old man's departing figure, tapping his fingers lightly on the table a few times, his eyes becoming misty as he did so.

He never expected that this old man, who was born and raised in the village, could suppress his greed and only accept one gold bean as payment.

"As expected, even farmers from a thousand years ago can be shrewd. But that's good, the more he knows how to assess the situation, the better that guy's future will be."

After saying a few words of reflection, Zuoyou put the remaining gold bean away again, stood up, and followed the old man out.

Soon, the old man arrived in front of Sawa, accompanied by a burly man leading an oxcart.

"Sir Samurai, he happens to be going into town to make purchases today. Would it be alright if he took you there?"

The old man, who was asking Saya respectfully, as if afraid that he might have something to say that displeased him, made the honest-looking man beside him bow down and said to Saya with utmost respect.

"Yes, of course, no problem. Thank you for your help, village chief."

Sōyu nodded. Having someone lead the way was certainly a better thing. Given his terrible sense of direction, even if someone pointed out the way, he might still get lost along the way.

"Then let's set off. Village Chief, you must remember what you promised me. If I ever come back and pass by here again and find that you haven't kept your word, I'll be very unhappy. You should understand that, right?" He guessed to himself.

"Understood, understood. I haven't forgotten what I promised."

The village chief nodded vigorously, almost as if he were swearing an oath to the heavens.

"Then I'll have to trouble you."

After waving to the old man, Saya nodded to the man driving the oxcart, indicating that they could set off.

The two men and the ox set off for the town at dawn, but before they even reached the village entrance, Zuoyou saw the figure that seemed to have been waiting there for half a day.

The girl who also saw Saya rushed up and stopped in front of him, but she just opened her mouth, not knowing what to say.

"Let's go, no need to see me off." Saya smiled at the girl named Shibata Ai, patted her head one last time, then turned around and beckoned to the man waiting for him to continue walking out of the village.

"I'll wait for you to come back, we promised!"

Just as they were about to disappear into the depths of the forest path, Sōyū heard the girl's voice, which sounded as if she had used all her strength to shout.

After chuckling softly, he stretched out his hand and waved it behind him.

"I understand. I'm not the kind of person who goes back on their word."

Chapter 396 Robbery!

Nothing particularly noteworthy happened on the way to town.

The man who led the way was honest, after all, he was just a farmer. As a result, Zuo You spent the whole journey sitting on the oxcart, not knowing what to do.

If he weren't so bad at directions, he might have just rushed off by himself, and wouldn't be in this situation now, even sitting on the oxcart, he feels more like he's in prison.

The worst part is that no one talks to him, which is what makes him feel the most uncomfortable.

As a chatterbox, Saya is the kind of person who can't stay quiet for a moment.

"Hey buddy, didn't we just pass a fork in the road? The other road was clearly much wider and easier to walk on. Why did you insist on taking this bumpy, gravel road?"

Unable to sit any longer, Sawa, with a weed he'd found somewhere dangling from his mouth, asked the man in front of him who was always grinning and herding cattle, with a helpless expression.

If it weren't for the desire to avoid being too sensational, Sawa wouldn't have simply been unable to fit into the carriage; he could have even carried an ox on his back.

"Lord Takeshi, you are unaware of this, but there is a band of mountain bandits roaming around here. For us, who are alone and not a professional team, it is definitely safer to take the back roads." The farmer, who looked like a taciturn pot, scratched his head and turned around to explain to Sōyū in a simple and honest manner.

"Mountain bandits? There are such things?" Zuoyou raised an eyebrow, suddenly remembering that this was not a society governed by the rule of law.

"Sir, you jest. How could such people not exist? I've heard that among the bandits near the town we're heading to, there's even a ghost among them."

Perhaps out of boredom, even the honest and simple man chatted with Sawa a bit more, and while talking, he fumbled for a pot of water on the oxcart and took a drink.

Sōyū initially wanted to complain about what kind of new concept of bandits this was, wondering how terrifying it would be if someone like Azō were mixed in. However, upon further reflection, he realized something.

In Japan, beings like Ah-Zhen are collectively referred to as spirits, while the "ghosts" they speak of are actually human-like creatures with horns on their heads—those are the ones that truly deserve to be called spirits.

Furthermore, although these things in the legend of Jinghong are described as uncivilized barbarians, Sawa actually remembers them as being quite strong.

However, if one is forced to associate with bandits, it seems that even for a ghost, life isn't particularly easy.

Sawa yawned, lamenting that the world could really be this bad. He thought it would be more interesting if bandits actually came.

Otherwise, if he just sat there, Sawa felt he would fall asleep sooner or later.

As if in response to Zuoyou's call, the oxcart, which had been steadily moving forward, stopped. Blocking the way was a group of people dressed in extremely tattered clothes, who did not look like they could be called bandits at all.

Sōyū sat up from the oxcart and scratched his head as he looked at the uneven objects in their hands that he didn't know whether they should be called weapons or not.

The one with the hoe and pitchfork is one thing, at least they're weapons, but what's the one with the pot ladle trying to do? Eat him alive?

"Don't move! This is a robbery!"

Among this group of thin men, who were not much different from the villagers that Saya had seen in that village before, and who could be considered the only one who looked somewhat strong among the bandits, a big-bearded man stood up, brandishing a kitchen knife at Saya and the man on the oxcart, and said something.

"Mountain bandit, sir! I... I'm innocent! I'm just a villager. Even if you kill me, I don't have anything worth stealing."

This scene was somewhat laughable to Sōyū, but for the man driving the oxcart, it was a matter of life and death.

The man, who was practically kneeling before them, stammered as he hid behind Saya.

"Villager? Then you can leave. Our rule is not to harm ordinary villagers. He can stay." To Zuo You's surprise, after the farmer who was driving the cart said these words, the bandits in front of him actually agreed with him. They made way for him and then pointed to Zuo You.

If Sōyū hadn't known that the coachman was very honest on the road, he would have almost thought that this was a trap set specifically to scheme against him.

The man who had received their permission also showed an expression of disbelief, which then turned into ecstatic joy at surviving a disaster. He immediately ran out from behind Saya and quickly ran towards the village.

"stop!"

The man who seemed to wish he had an extra leg stopped abruptly. The bearded man at the head of the group glared at him menacingly.

The bearded man handed the reins of the oxcart to the man who had been called, and then nodded in satisfaction, indicating that he could leave.

Although he didn't know why these people were being so kind, the man, knowing that saving the cow was a good thing, naturally didn't linger any longer and quickly led the cow back the way they came.

As for Lord Sawa, he hadn't even considered his affairs.

He can only hope for the best, since this group of people clearly targeted him. Saya, who was ruthlessly abandoned on the ground, looked up at the group of "bandits" who had surrounded him, scratched his head in confusion, and then placed his hand on the hilt of his Yuzuki Blade.

The sudden burst of sharp sword energy caused the group to involuntarily take a step back, their hands almost dropping their weapons – a truly comical sight.

"So, what's the purpose of leaving me here alone?"

Sōyū was a little confused about what this guy, who was clearly nothing like the bandits he had imagined, was up to. However, one thing he was quite clear about was that the people he had finally found to take him to the town had just been let go.

"Brothers, don't be afraid of him. There are so many of us, and besides, we have our leader backing us up, right?"

The bearded man mustered his courage and called out to his cowardly companion beside him before taking another step forward and pointing the unopened or unopened kitchen knife at Sōyū's nose.

"Keeping you here is tantamount to robbing you!"

Chapter 397 Robbery of Wealth and Beauty

"Is it robbery for money or for sexual assault?"

Zuoyou tilted his head and suddenly realized that this group of people were much more interesting than the man driving the carriage, so he couldn't help but tease them again.

In any case, this group of bandits in front of me seems quite interesting, and it doesn't seem like there's anything wrong with playing around with them.

"Of course it's robbery! Judging from your clothes, you must have a lot of good stuff. Hand it all over and we might spare your life!" w.hl

The bearded man answered Sōyū's question decisively; could there possibly be a different answer?

As it turns out, it might actually be true.

After hearing Saya's words, a thin man holding the spoon that Saya was paying the most attention to tugged at the hem of the bearded man's clothes and leaned close to his ear.

"This kid reminds me. Didn't our boss always say we were all ugly and deformed? Look at this kid, with his fair skin and delicate features. Maybe our boss likes guys like this kind?"

The man, who looked like a cunning strategist, pointed at Saya, and the bearded man nodded as if he had suddenly realized something after listening.

It seems that's indeed the case. The eldest sister works so hard for their livelihood, so it wouldn't be a bad thing to give her some emotional support.

"Well, we're not just robbing you, we're also taking advantage of you. In short, put down your weapons and surrender; you're no match for us!"