Iron Beast Village
"What a letdown."
After failing with the mid-grade crystal, Zhou Kai kept it in his storage ring together with the 100 low-grade wood crystals.
'This will be sold by uncle Chen. The profit would be the village's overall budget, I will have to raise my income as chief. Afterall, I and Uncle Chen are the ones who work hard for this.'
Zhou Kai thought.
He was still in the lotus position so he entered his mental dimension but unfortunately for him, there were no changes that he could spot.
With that, he chose to just try comprehending the 2 manuals in his head as he waits for Wu Chen's report regarding the Census.
With the pitiful population of the Iron Beast village, the census will take no time at all. The hard part would be tracking and ceasing the ownership of the abandoned properties. Luckily, his 2 uncles reigned over everyone else here in terms of strength, especially his Uncle Wu Chun that is in the 3rd level of the True Qi Realm.
Sure enough, after about 2 more hours, Wu Chen came knocking on Zhou Kai's house.
Zhou Kai let him in of course. As they went to the guest area, Zhou Kai inquired about the results of the mission he gave to his dear uncle. "Uncle how was it?"
They sat on the floor as Wu Chen narrated his findings.
"Chief. The census' results are as follows. Including the Chief, your servant and his brother Wu Chun, there are only 11 males. 7 of which are castrated. The remaining 4 are you and 3 other youngsters at the age of 10-12." Wu Chen started with an almost monotonous voice. He only paused to take a breath and look at Zhou Kai's reaction. Seeing that there was no problem, he continued his report.
"Next. There are 41 females at the ages of 3-80. All in all, the population is 52 individuals. In the village, only 4 commoner families remain and the Chief's family counts as the 5th. That is all for the population report." Wu Chen stopped reading and then looked at Zhou Kai.
Zhou Kai however, stared at the ceiling and contemplated what he just heard. 'Only 11 males and 41 females. Obviously, Uncle Chen and Uncle Chun are the only cultivators to surpass the mortal realm. Enough of this. I have more pressing matters.' Zhou Kai thought as he bit his lips in frustration.
Wu Chen saw this but did not say anything. He just waited for Zhou Kai's next actions.
"Can you Identify these families?" Zhou Kai politely asked.
"Certainly. The first is the family of Old An. He and his family focused on agriculture until the tragedy 2 years ago. Right now, he and his family members resort to gathering fruits and berries for survival. He also has the 3 young boys as members of his family. Including Old An, and his 3 grandson's his family would number…18 individuals making them the largest family in the village."
"Good. Please continue with the rest."
"The next is a small former merchant's family remnants led by Old Shu. She and her family members would be 15 individuals. The next is a family of 6 members led by Old Huang and Old Zhong. Last is the 8 individuals that bonded together during this 2 years of decline. As for the last family which is the Chief's, there is the respected Chief Zhou Kai and his 2 uncles."
"Hmm. 2 individuals have no familial bonds?" Zhou Kai was curious.
"Ah. Yes Chief." Wu Chen looked at the census results to find information about the last 2 unaffiliated villagers."Ah there it is. They are 80- year old Mei and 18-year old Ning. Both are solo runners."
"Mmm. Any notable talents among the villagers?" Zhou Kai was quite pleased so far. Pleased that there are still villagers willing to live here.
"Of course. As I've said, Old An's family are quite experienced in agriculture and gathering. Old Shu was once a capable small-time merchant. Old Huang and Old Zhong are both hunters but they mainly focus on fishing nowadays. The 8 members of the new family are all similar in age and had past experiences in the forge. Old Mei is at the peak of the Mortal realm with the rare ice affinity. As for Ning, I don't know much." Wu Chen said apologetically.
"That's quite alright Uncle. You've done more than enough already." Zhou Kai replied with a smile.
"You praise me too much."
"Ha! Nonsense. Yours and Uncle Chun's contributions cannot be rewarded by mere praises."
"AH! T-That's." Wu Chen wanted to refute Kai's claim but he was cut off.
"Enough of this. Go rest for the rest of the day." Zhou Kai looked at the sun that was about to go down in the horizon.
"Tomorrow, I want you to gather all the villagers in front of the Village Hall. I want to know them personally." Zhou Kai ordered.
"As you wish!"
"Now, go rest uncle. You must have had a hard time."
"Not really but, I'll follow your instructions."
"Thank you for your efforts Uncle."
Zhou Kai did not give the wood crystals to his uncle just yet. He truly wanted his Uncle Chen to rest. 'The days to come will be draining.'
As the Chief, he had to think of the big picture, not just his personal strength. He has to make every single villager stay here. Any more deserters will spell trouble for his and the village's well being. In Zhou Kai's perspective, every head counts.
***At night in Kai's room***
Zhou Kai was currently looking at a piece of paper spread neatly on his wooden table.
It was Iron Beast Village's map.
It was not as detailed as the expensive maps. It was just a simple and old map made by his late father's retainers. This is one of the remaining treasures left by the catastrophic event that befell on his village.
Zhou Kai already studied this map countless times but he had nothing to do so he once again thought of analyzing the topography of his village.
Looking at the map, you can see that it is a wide plateau that splits the Great Maple River in two. This makes the Village's east and west side to be surrounded by the river.
The northern part of the village faces directly into the direction of the Fox Maple Dukedom and Earth snake town. Just follow the river upstream and you will reach the Earth SnakeTown.
The Southern side of the village is a wide plain suitable for agriculture and beyond the plain is a gentle slope that declined into a bountiful forest rich in both resources and dangers. This forest is named Trial forest.
This location alone made the Iron Beast Village prosperous. This was also the catalyst for the fast growth of the villagers and also Zhou Kai's family. Being prosperous means more cultivation resources. Cultivation resources is one of the factors involved why his siblings all had left the village.
Unfortunately, Banshees came raiding and made the villagers seek safer places like the inner parts of the dukedom.
The Village's residential area is small at about 2 square kilometers only but the whole territory covers the whole plateau that is approximately 10,000 square kilometers.
This was obviously before the decline.
Now that the village is in ruins, the safe area was reduced and the plain for agriculture is now uncultivated. More than three quarters of the original territory is now unutilized.
"Sigh. A pity."
Zhou Kai was conflicted. This was partly his fault for being so weak. Luckily for him, he now has the chance to strengthen himself and save the village. All he needs is those expensive spirit herbs that he will buy using the profits.
"52 heads is not enough but we have to make do. 2 months till winter." Zhou Kai was in deep thought.
"This means, no agriculture and land reclamation for now. The winter will wither the crops and only certain spirit herbs flourish in the cold winter nights. It would be a waste to invest in agriculture right now." Like anywhere else, winter is the time to just remain inside shelters and let the cold night pass.
"Maybe I just focus on trade of the crystals and fishing and hunting for support in sustenance. Water is of no concern." Zhou Kai wrote down his priority and goals for the months to come. He had separate sheets for his cultivation and for Iron Beast Village.
'Only four commoner families remain.Majority is in the Mortal realm.'
"SIGH." Every thought made him sigh deeply. Who could blame him though? Although Banshees were in play, this situation was also on him. His shoulders were too weak for the burden and in his world, staying weak is a sin. For Zhou Kai to stay at the 1st level of the Mortal realm for too many years, It eventually led to the destruction of Iron Beast Village.
This was Kai's line of thought when he suddenly thought of something. "AH! Let's do that then."
Just like that, the sun went down and rose again.