The man's last sentence was spoken impolitely, with a hint of anger.
He was a grade 4 earth ability user and was on par with Gu Cheng. In fact, if he wanted to be the Village Chief, that was possible as well.
But he was lazy and disliked overseeing such things, so he did not quarrel with Gu Cheng on that position.
The strong were respected in the apocalypse, and even though Gu Cheng was much older than him, many villagers revered the man as well.
Gu Cheng knew he had gotten angry and had a bitter look on his face, so he consoled the man, "Ye Zi, it's not that I don't want to go back, but we don't have any more crystal cores in the village. Prices have increased recently, and we don't have a choice.