I just wanted to control the situation. Whether those villagers would curse me later or hate me was beyond my consideration.

After I left Yu Lou Village, I wouldn't have any more interaction with them. But Old Liu Tou was different; they still had that local connection. If Old Liu Tou was a bit more cunning and came out to cooperate with me to finish the act, the rest would be much easier to handle.

However, Old Liu Tou's kneeling like that made it difficult for me.

I hadn't completely intimidated these people yet, and Old Liu Tou's plea gave me an excuse to back down. When the big battle started, these villagers would see Old Liu Tou as a medium to negotiate with me, and it would be even harder for me to mobilize manpower.

I said coldly, "Old Liu, some things you can ask for help with, some things you can't. Whoever breaks the rules has to pay the price."

Just as Old Liu Tou was trembling his lips to speak, Zhao Zhuang suddenly stood up, picked up a wooden stick from the ground, and started hitting the villagers over the head until the stick broke before he stopped. "Mr. Li, don't worry. From now on, we'll all listen to you. If anyone dares to show their teeth again, you don't even have to lift a finger. I'll skin them alive."

I said faintly, "Can you guarantee that?"

Zhao Zhuang had just said "I can" when my voice suddenly turned stern: "What will you use to guarantee it?"

Zhao Zhuang gritted his teeth and walked towards Old Qu, grabbing the other man's collar and lifting him up. "Brother, I'm sorry, but I'm selfish. I just want to save my son. Go ahead!"

Zhao Zhuang grabbed the pointed knife that had fallen on the ground and was about to stab Old Qu in the stomach. Old Liu Tou went up and grabbed the other man's wrist, shouting hoarsely, "Mr. Li, please have mercy! No one else can die in the village! Otherwise, the village will really be finished!"

"Stop!" I stepped forward and said, "I can spare his life, but you're wrong about one thing. Not only will more people die in Yu Lou Village, but many people will die."

I said in a deep voice, "I'm going to attack the underground palace. The people of Yu Lou Village must participate in the battle. There's no room for negotiation."

"I'm not some benevolent hero, and I have no obligation to save your families. If you want to save people, you have to do a life-or-death job with me."

"I won't care about the life or death of those who don't want to go."

I glanced coldly at the villagers on the ground, "Those who are willing to risk their lives, come with me to find a boat!"

After I finished speaking, I turned and walked towards the village's ancestral hall. The villagers also supported each other and followed me.

I always thought there was no such thing as an ancestral hall in the village. When I got to the place, I realized that the so-called ancestral hall was a warship half-buried in the ground.

The people of Yu Lou Village had also put a layer of loess on the outside of the ship building, turning it into the appearance of an ancestral hall.

No wonder the ghosts of Yu Lou Village were all hiding in the mountains instead of using the ancestral hall to defend against the enemy.

I looked at the entrance of the ancestral hall for a long time before saying to Zhao Zhuang, "Get the ship out. Try not to damage the things inside. I want to see what kind of mystery this ship hides."

While Zhao Zhuang was silently leading people to dismantle the ancestral hall, Old Liu Tou tentatively said, "Mr. Li, I want to talk to you. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean anything else... I just..."

I said in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, "You just think the villagers are pitiful, right?"

"Old Liu! You know the saying 'the son repays the father's debts,' right? Have you heard the saying 'ancestors plant the fields, descendants reap the harvest'?"

"You think the villagers are right, but I think the ghosts in the underground palace are also right! If the Shuiying (Water Camp) hadn't touched the underground palace back then, would there be today's calamity in Yu Lou Village?"

"This...this..." Old Liu Tou didn't know what to say.

I said again, "I'm not reasoning with you. The Jianghu (Martial World) was never a place for reason. If I reasoned everywhere, I wouldn't be a Shushi (Taoist priest)."

"So, no one should feel sorry for anyone, and no one should think anyone is right. Winning is the most important principle."

Old Liu Tou didn't come back to his senses for a long time, but I smiled and said, "A little unacceptable, isn't it?"

"Few people in this world will reason with you when they are in a position of advantage, especially ghosts, they won't reason with you."

"In the world of Shushi (Taoist priests), there is only winning, living, and no reason."

While I was speaking, there was a sudden loud noise in the direction of the ancestral hall.

Zhao Zhuang and the others didn't know what mechanism they had accidentally touched. The earthen walls around the ancestral hall collapsed to the ground as if they had been pushed down at the same time.

Before the dust in the air had dissipated, I felt a violent tremor under my feet. The ground, which had been fairly solid, began to sink underground as if it were collapsing, and a ditch several meters wide extended from the bow of the ship to the distance.

I watched as the ditch spread outward for several meters before suddenly turning and rushing towards the place where Old Liu Tou and I were standing.

"The ground is collapsing, Mr. Li, run!" Old Liu Tou wanted to come over and push me, but I grabbed his arm and lifted him up.

With a person in my hand, I leaped up and flew towards the warship with several consecutive jumps.

Although my speed was fast, the cracked ground could not bear the weight of two people. Under my continuous impacts, the place where I landed suddenly cracked, and Old Liu Tou and I fell into the ditch together.