Martial Arts: I Have a Wilderness World-Chapter 40: Ruins and Rubble, Heavy
That night, Cheng Zongyang didn’t go home. After leaving Shuikou Village, he headed straight north.
Countless villages depended on Tianduan Mountain for their survival. Under the jurisdiction of Jade Peak County alone, there were no fewer than fifty.
Along the way, Cheng Zongyang passed through Dongtou Village, Lin Family Village, Beidang Village, Ping’an Village, and Xu Family Village, which was closest to the County Town.
With every village he passed, Cheng Zongyang would quietly slip inside to take a look. He wanted to see the situation for himself.
Though it was dark, his heart grew heavier with each place he passed!
Destruction!
Wanton destruction!
The scene could only be described as one of utter devastation.
Even in the dead of night, he could see that every village had suffered varying degrees of destruction!
He could even see the smoldering ruins of buildings that had been set ablaze.
Some wept softly inside their homes, made even more dilapidated after being looted. Others wailed over corpses inside their equally ruined houses. Still others sat dazed before the smoldering remains of their homes, their faces etched with despair...
It was much the same in every village!
Nine out of ten homes stood empty, their occupants having fled to parts unknown. As for those who remained, they, too, had nowhere to go. Some were even unwilling to leave.
Leaving one’s home behind was not a decision anyone could make lightly.
With a heavy heart, Cheng Zongyang emerged from the last village, Xu Family Village.
Xu Family Village had been hit the hardest.
He wasn’t sure if the people still in the village were the original residents or refugees, but he suspected they were refugees who had taken over the empty homes. The locals had probably long since been driven away or had fled for their lives.
Along the way, Cheng Zongyang had also run into plenty of people looking for trouble.
When faced with a small group, Cheng Zongyang showed no courtesy. He fought back with his knife, wounding or killing them outright! This intimidated others who might have been thinking of starting something.
These nest-stealing refugees destroyed other people’s property and trampled on life with impunity. He felt not a shred of guilt for cutting them down.
If there were too many, he would just run to avoid being surrounded.
Cheng Zongyang continued walking north for several more miles.
On the road, he saw others, dragging their exhausted bodies as they hurried along. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖
’They must be traveling at night when it’s cool to avoid the daytime sun,’ he thought. ’Or perhaps they feel hope is just ahead and are eager to arrive.’
Soon, in the darkness, Cheng Zongyang could vaguely make out the silhouette of the County Town. He couldn’t see the situation outside its walls clearly, however.
But as he drew closer to the area outside the County Town, the sight left him almost speechless.
Even in the darkness, he could make out the shifting silhouettes of a massive crowd!
Throngs of refugees had gathered near the West City Gate, sitting or sleeping on the ground with their backs against the city wall.
They paid no mind to the problems caused by so many people crammed into such a small area.
Cheng Zongyang even saw some crudely constructed shacks.
With the sweltering heat of the day, the constant sweat, and nowhere to bathe, the pungent, sour stench of unwashed bodies and the reek of excrement permeated the area.
Holding his breath as much as possible, Cheng Zongyang picked his way through the crowd of refugees, his movements waking some of the sleepers.
When they saw by the faint, candle-like moonlight that it was a child holding a knife, they were startled but made no move. They all figured he was just another one of the refugees, and the knife was only for self-defense.
Cheng Zongyang walked along the side of the dirt road from the West City Gate to the South Gate, growing more and more alarmed by what he saw.
Too many!
There were too many people!
So many that the County Town had to be on high alert, posting several times the usual number of City Guards on the watchtowers for the night.
He even heard that the County Town was distributing congee at all four gates to appease the refugees—a crowd like a powder keg, ready to explode at the slightest spark!
’I wonder if I’ll be able to get in.’ Cheng Zongyang paused for a moment at the South Gate, then turned and entered a small grove of trees.
He didn’t come back out. Instead, from a hidden spot, he entered the Wilderness World.
’The four gates are sealed tight now; there’s no getting in in the middle of the night. I just hope I can get into the city tomorrow,’ he thought.
「In the Wilderness World, inside the market hut.」
Cheng Zongyang looked at the five hundred-some taels of silver he had left and decided to buy more grain, even at the risk of being targeted.
He didn’t sleep that night. Instead, he made the most of his time and started building the guardrail.
After all, building the guardrail wasn’t difficult.
A little over an hour later, it was dawn.
Cheng Zongyang looked at the mostly completed guardrail. With no time to rest, he went into the hut to drink some salt water. Then, he found a suitable log in the clearing outside, and after some chopping, fashioned it into a wooden tamper, thin at the top and thick at the bottom.
Next, he used this wooden tamper to pack the earth around the base of the guardrail, thus reinforcing it.
By the time he finished this flurry of activity, it was the Hour of the Rabbit (5–7 AM).
At sunrise, Cheng Zongyang looked at the guardrail, which was now sturdy and barely shook, feeling quite satisfied.
’Now I just have to find time to build a storehouse later,’ he thought.
Looking at the sun, Cheng Zongyang knew the County Town’s gates should be open by now.
He immediately washed himself, put on his clothes, shouldered an empty basket, and took his Bow and Arrow, Firewood Knife, and the most important item of all, his Travel Permit, before leaving the Wilderness World.
Appearing from behind a clump of bushes, Cheng Zongyang looked around. Seeing no one, he quickly departed the forest.
When he emerged back onto the main road, Cheng Zongyang’s expression changed at the sight not far ahead!
It had been pitch black at night, so he hadn’t been able to see clearly or in detail.
But seeing it in the daylight made his scalp prickle with dread.
The difference between not seeing clearly and seeing clearly was a shock of a different magnitude!
Outside Jade Peak County Town, amidst a sky full of dust, a tide of people surged. Countless refugees, clad in rags, with haggard faces and messy, knotted hair, wandered about outside the County Town like beggars.
On the city walls, numerous Soldiers stood guard, weapons in hand, staring down at the situation below.
The scene looked as if a horde of rioters was about to storm the city!
’This is bad. I need to hurry. I still don’t know how things are at home,’ he thought.
Wasting no time, Cheng Zongyang broke into a run, hoping the besieging refugees wouldn’t riot and that he could get into the city.
Cheng Zongyang’s appearance didn’t attract any attention; no one would pay any mind to a child.
Countless children cried by the roadside, looking for their families, but no one paid them any mind.
Using his small size to his advantage, Cheng Zongyang continuously squeezed his way inward. For those who tried to hit him, Cheng Zongyang ruthlessly punched and kicked back! Then he continued to hold his breath and push forward.
The stench from the crowd was truly overpowering!
As he pushed his way inward, the crowd suddenly thinned, and he abruptly found himself at the very front.
The city gate was open, but three congee distribution stalls were set up, causing the refugees to block the way!
At the same time, two rows totaling twenty Soldiers stood guard at the city gate, weapons in hand.
Their gazes were murderous and their blades glinted coldly as they stared at the people passing through the gate.
On both sides of the city gate were three large piles of rice sacks. Some people were carrying the sacks over to continue cooking the congee.
Not far from the rice sacks lay a pile of dozens of corpses, their eyes wide open in death!
Seeing this, Cheng Zongyang understood!
Kill the chicken to scare the monkey!
No wonder the refugees weren’t storming the County Town. The ones who had tried were lying right over there.
The carrot and the stick—a display of both benevolence and power—had successfully intimidated this volatile crowd of refugees, who were ready to explode at the slightest provocation!
"All they want is to eat," Cheng Zongyang murmured.
If they had food, who would really want to cause trouble?
Cheng Zongyang fell in line behind others who had also squeezed through.
When he saw the City Gate Soldiers checking Travel Permits, Cheng Zongyang breathed a sigh of relief.
