Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest

Start of Winter.

For three consecutive days, the sky, obscured by gloom, had let down bits of frost and snow.

Snowflakes the size of rice grains fell onto the rooftops, clattering non-stop against the tiles, making one truly feel the arrival of the bitter winter.

By this time, the weather had become extremely cold, and the surface of the river at the east end of Datian Village was covered with a thin layer of ice.

The north wind howled across the desolate fields, and the distant mountaintops were already covered in white snow.

However, on these days when all was silent, the Empire Land Temple in Datian Village was exceptionally lively, bustling with noisy crowds.

Inside the temple the incense burned strongly, while outside, nine astonishingly large pots had been set up.

Fierce flames licked the black bottoms of the pots, and steaming hot, the diced pork meat boiled and tumbled in the water, mixing thoroughly with various seasonings.

The air was filled with a mouth-watering aroma.

Every year at the start of winter marks the feast day for the offering to Empire Land Empress.

The villagers gathered together to offer incense and tributes to the Empire Land Empress who protects the children of the earth, praying for a bountiful harvest and stability in the coming year.

Of course, while offering sacrifices to the gods, one could not let oneself go hungry, and the meat soup simmering in those nine large pots was a feast shared by all.

It was called the Offering Soup.

One large pot could serve up to two hundred bowls of Offering Soup.

This year was slightly different from previous ones, as the soup contained an unusually large amount of meat.

And it was Monster Beast meat of the first tier!

Normally, Temple Priest Xu would preside over the offering, but after she was taken away, the position of Temple Priest remained vacant.

Therefore, this year the ceremony was presided over by three of the village elders.

After the completion of the ritual, an elder scooped up a large bowl of Offering Soup from the pot and, with both hands, presented it to Wang Chen with deep respect, "My lord, please eat."

"My lord, please eat!"

The thousands of villagers inside and outside the Empire Land Temple all bowed deeply and paid their respects to Wang Chen in unison.

This was the highest form of etiquette on the feast day of offering, signifying everyone's complete respect and reverence for Wang Chen as the village chief.

Wang Chen took the Offering Soup and raised it high, "I offer this to the heavens!"

Then he lowered it, "And my thanks to the earth!"

After that, he drank the Offering Soup in one breath, not minding the heat, finding it quite agreeable.

Following Wang Chen's consumption of the soup, a grand feast began.

Hundreds of villagers lined up in front of the nine large pots, enthusiastically sharing the steaming meat soup.

In addition to a generous bowl of Offering Soup, each household also received thirty jin of wild boar meat.

In the half month that had just passed, Wang Chen led the Guard Squad of Datian Village into the mountains to hunt, capturing a large number of Monster Beasts.

This Long-tusked Wild Boar, weighing seven or eight hundred jin, yielded more than three hundred jin of lean meat and over a hundred jin of fat; the Guard Squad had caught more than a hundred of them.

If divided among the village, each household could get more than a hundred jin!

After the autumn harvest was stored, the public granary of Datian Village was fuller than ever before.

As the founder of the Guard Squad and the creator of various systems, Wang Chen's prestige in the village greatly increased.

Now he truly deserved his name!

Afterward, the entire village entered into wintering mode.

A few days later, a heavy snowfall blanketed the entire village, and people began to stay indoors.

Only the young men of the Guard Squad trudged through the thick snow back and forth on patrol every day.

They had also become the most unique presence in Datian Village.

"Village Chief!"

Wang Chen was at home enjoying a hot pot of Beast Meat when someone suddenly knocked on the door of the Village Head Residence.

It was Xiao Hong, the captain of the Guard Squad, with a tense and grave expression. After bowing, he said urgently to Wang Chen, "My lord, there's trouble!"

The incident occurred in the household of a family with the surname Huang in the village.

Wang Chen followed Xiao Hong into the household and upon entering, saw two bodies lying in the courtyard.

The deceased were an elderly couple; they lay on their backs in the snow, their faces frozen in expressions of fear from their final moments.

Wang Chen noticed black finger marks around their necks.

It seemed as if they had been strangled to death.

Moving into the inner room, there were two more bodies—on the bed and on the floor; one a child around five or six years old, and the other a young woman.

The manner of death of these two was almost identical to that of the elderly couple.

"This is Chen Laowu, their neighbor."

Xiao Hong brought in a middle-aged man and introduced him, "He was the one who discovered something had happened to this family."

The middle-aged man was extremely anxious and could not lift his head in front of Wang Chen.

Wang Chen asked, "Is the entire family dead?"

Chen Laowu hurriedly shook his head, "Huang Ze isn't here."

This family of five, the grandparents, daughter-in-law, and grandson, were dead; Huang Ze, who was the backbone of the household, was missing.

Xiao Hong said, "I have already sent people to search for him, I suspect..."

He trailed off, hesitant. Discover hidden tales at empire

Wang Chen sent Chen Laowu out first, then asked Xiao Hong, "Do you suspect that this family was harmed by an evil wraith?"

Xiao Hong nodded, "Yes."

"Your suspicion is correct," Wang Chen sighed, "This family was indeed harmed by an evil wraith. Huang Ze was most likely possessed by the evil wraith and then killed his own parents, wife, and child with his own hands."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

This was truly a human tragedy!

The most hateful thing about evil wraiths is that they usually have no emotions or humanity.

People whose Divine Souls are overpowered and possessed by evil wraiths are capable of doing anything!

Xiao Hong felt a chill in his heart, "Then I should tell my brothers to be more careful."

Evil wraiths are not like wild pigs that can be easily killed with a demon-hunting bow; they are extremely tricky and difficult to deal with. Moreover, their methods of harming people are varied and often hard to guard against.

Wang Chen reached into his Storage Bag and pulled out a large stack of Talismans, "These are Evil-Dissipating Talismans I have crafted. Stick them on oneself and activate with one's own essence blood. You distribute them all."

Xiao Hong did not expect that Wang Chen had the ability to craft Talismans and quickly accepted them, "Thank you, my lord."

Wang Chen waved his hand, "It's nothing. Tell everyone to stay alert and be on guard against another attack by the evil wraith. Oh, by the way..."

He then inquired of Xiao Hong, "What is the relation between Huang Ze and Huang Deqi?"

The answer lay in their kinship and complicated relations within the large family surname, interwoven with countless connections.

After some thought, Xiao Hong replied, "I don't think there's a direct blood relation between them. I remember Huang Ze once worked for Huang Deqi, but he left afterwards."

Wang Chen nodded.

This could very well be the source of the disaster.

Wang Chen had not expected that, after such a long time since Huang Deqi was taken away, there were still matters in Datian Village related to Master Huang.

Wang Chen instructed Xiao Hong to place all four bodies in the courtyard.

"Dust to dust, earth to earth, may the lost souls return to the thick earth..."

He took out Rebirth Talismans and Evil-Repelling Talismans and began performing rites for these poor souls.

So that their spirits might return to the earth and no longer be exploited by the evil wraith, committing unforgivable mistakes.

What was done could not be undone; the damage was irreversible!

In such circumstances, Wang Chen decided to personally handle the matter.

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The second update is sent.