Marrying Wives and Attaining Immortality in a Chaotic World

Chapter 197: The Sage and the Envoy

The village wasn’t far from the town, and it took a little over two hours to get there.

Of course, this two-hour journey was only for the people of this world. If Xu Lian had to walk it himself, he estimated that it would take him a month. The laws of the Divine Kingdom were simply too harsh for outsiders.

When they arrived at the town market, the villagers unloaded the bamboo baskets, straw mats, and other items from the cart and began to set up their stalls.

Meanwhile, Xu Lian wandered around the town looking for glowing items.

From one end of the street to the other, he actually found something – a small stone mill used for grinding wheat and beans.

He couldn’t move it himself, and it was placed in someone’s courtyard, clearly in regular use. There was no way that the owner would just give it to him.

What to do… Xu Lian was at a loss. The spirit stones and gold he had brought from the outside world had lost their value under the suppression of the Divine Kingdom’s laws. The spirit stones had become ordinary rocks, and the gold resembled lumps of clay. They were useless here.

Now that he was penniless and physically weak, Xu Lian had no way to buy the stone mill or take it by force.

“Should I borrow money from the villagers after they sell the bamboo baskets and straw mats to buy this stone mill?”

This was the only solution he could think of.

Given that he had created the Yuan Shuo Plow, the villagers might be willing to lend him some money. However, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. These people had worked so hard to weave the baskets and mats, finally earning a little extra income for their families. Taking that money from them felt wrong.

Moreover, the goodwill the villagers had for him had its limits. If he kept borrowing money or making demands, they would eventually grow resentful, seeing him as greedy.

“Forget it. There’s no good solution for now. I’ll leave the stone mill here and find a way to take it later. After all, aside from me, it’s unlikely that there are any other outsiders in this town.”

Xu Lian memorized the location.

He walked from one end of the street to the other, carefully searching for other glowing objects.

Unfortunately, he found nothing.

When he returned to where the villagers were selling their goods, he saw that most of the bamboo baskets and straw mats had been sold. The villagers were overjoyed.

Did they sell so well? When he asked, Xu Lian learned that each item was sold for just a few coins – practically given away. He was speechless.

By the time everything was sold, it was almost noon. The villagers, unwilling to spend money on food, ate the dry rations they had brought from home and prepared to push the cart back to the village.

“Little Xu, you’re amazing. The plow you made allowed us to finish plowing the fields so quickly. Now we have time to weave these things and sell them for money”.

“Next time we’ll weave more and use the money to buy some cloth to make clothes for our women and children…”

The villagers chatted and laughed as they pushed the cart home, full of hope for the future.

Xu Lian pondered.

For now, this was the only town he could reach. Going to another town to look for glowing items was out of the question.

Since he had nothing better to do, he decided to help the village prosper and further increase his influence. At the same time, he could earn some money in this world and eventually convince the villagers to escort him to a distant city.

How could he make the village wealthy?

Aside from farming, the only options were to rely on the mountains and rivers.

The village didn’t have any major rivers, just a few small streams, so relying on water wasn’t feasible…

That left the mountains. Surrounded by mountains, the area was rich in resources.

As an outsider, Xu Lian had a broader perspective. He quickly formulated a plan.

Back in the village, the villagers divided the money they had earned from selling the baskets and mats. Each household received only a few coins, but they were happy because it was extra income.

Xu Lian approached the village chief and shared his plan for increasing the village’s wealth. “Aside from weaving bamboo baskets and straw mats, we can also dig for medicinal herbs and sell them to the town’s clinics. In addition, the village can form a hunting team to catch wild game. We can eat some and sell the rest.”

The chief said, “Only the village doctor knows how to dig for herbs. How would the rest of us recognize them? As for hunting, we’ve only ever caught small animals like rats, rabbits, and pheasants. Larger beasts are too dangerous. They can hurt people.”

Xu Lian replied, “Solutions come from thinking. Just like when we started weaving baskets and mats, the villagers didn’t know how at first, but they learned. The doctor knows about herbs. When the villagers start digging for herbs, they can follow the doctor and gradually learn to identify them.

As for hunting larger beasts, that’s not a problem either. There must be one or two people in the village who know how to shoot arrows. The villagers can learn from them, and once they form a professional hunting team, they won’t have to fear larger animals either”.

The chief stared at him in astonishment.

Xu Lian asked, “What is it?”

The chief said admiringly, “You are more qualified to be the village chief than I am. Why don’t you take over? I’m sure you can lead us to prosperity.”

Xu Lian had actually considered becoming a “village official” after graduating… but unfortunately, they didn’t accept middle school graduates. Haha.

Xu Lian declined, “I’m not from this village, so it’s better if I don’t.”

The chief didn’t push any further.

Immediately, he gathered the villagers and explained Xu Lian’s plan to them.

It was clear that the chief was a man of action.

Hearing so many ways to get rich, the villagers were excited and eager to try.

But the village doctor wasn’t happy. If everyone learned to identify herbs, who would come to him for treatment?

The hunter also objected. He enjoyed hunting wild game for himself. If everyone learned to hunt, the game would be wiped out, and what would he do?

Xu Lian had a solution. He asked the chief to promise the doctor and the hunter certain privileges, and they reluctantly agreed.

So the village began to prosper, with every household working hard.

The women followed the doctor into the mountains to dig for herbs, learning how to identify them.

The men learned archery from the hunter and formed a hunting team.

With nothing else to do, Xu Lian took on the role of teacher, setting up a school in the village to teach the children to read and write. Fortunately, the written language of this world was the same as that of the outside world, so he could manage.

Meanwhile, Ye Beining, Shui Yingyue, and Xiang Chengxing continued to dig in the fields. After their relentless efforts, they were almost done with one acre, and it wouldn’t affect the planting season.

“Xu Lian, what are you trying to achieve?”

Shui Yingyue was confused. She didn’t see the point of helping the villagers get rich.

Xu Lian explained his plan, “We’re penniless and physically weak. We can’t go anywhere. By helping the villagers earn money and increasing my influence, I can convince them to escort us to a distant city to search for glowing items.”

Ye Beining frowned, “That’s too slow. It will take at least a few months, maybe even half a year. By then, half the time in the secret realm will have passed.”

Xu Lian said calmly, “Do you have a better idea? If so, I’m willing to listen.”

Ye Beining thought for a moment and sighed. With no money and a weak body, even a genius like him couldn’t come up with a solution to get out of this predicament.

Shui Yingyue said, “In that case, we’ll have to take it slow and steady.”

And so, after completing their punishment of digging an acre of land, the three geniuses joined Xu Lian’s plan. They took on the task of teaching martial arts to the villagers.

Of course, it was impossible to turn the villagers into cultivators. In fact, it wasn’t even clear if cultivators existed in this world. According to the records left by the predecessors of the Ye, Shui, and Xiang families, there was no mention of cultivators in this world.

While turning the villagers into cultivators was out of the question, teaching them some basic martial arts was feasible. At the very least, it would improve their hunting and combat skills…

At first, the villagers were reluctant. The three geniuses were physically weak, unable to defeat even a child. How could they teach martial arts? It seemed like a joke.

However, Xu Lian’s reputation in the village was now quite strong. He insisted that the villagers give it a try, and if it didn’t work out, they could stop.

After some hesitation, the villagers agreed and began to learn from the three geniuses.

After a few days, they noticed real improvements, and the villagers began to take the training seriously.

A little over a month later, Xu Lian’s plan for prosperity began to show results.

Weaving bamboo baskets, straw mats, and other household items, digging for medicinal herbs, and hunting wild animals-these multiple sources of income greatly improved the villagers’ lives.

At the very least, the villagers now had some extra money and could afford to eat meat every few days, something they had never experienced before.

“Don’t spend the money on new clothes yet. Use it to buy ducklings, chicks, and piglets to raise.”

Xu Lian further implemented his plan for prosperity.

The villagers, who now held him in high regard, immediately followed his advice, using their earnings to buy young livestock.

Over time, news of Jiyu Village’s newfound prosperity spread to neighboring villages.

Young women from nearby villages were eager to marry into Jiyu Village. After all, who wouldn’t want a better life?

A few attractive young women in Jiyu Village even took a liking to Xu Lian, but he kept his distance. It wasn’t that he was pretending to be virtuous-his frail body simply couldn’t handle it…

The people of this world had a natural glowing aura, and even a gentle touch could hurt him. How could he dare to marry a woman from this world?

Besides, if an outsider married someone from this world, he might be punished by the laws of the Divine Kingdom.

Additionally, it was impossible to raise the affection level to 90 and earn progression points in such a short time, so there was no need for it.

However, Xu Lian began to develop some interest in Shui Yingyue. Being stuck here for so long, he wasn’t used to living without a woman for extended periods of time.

Shui Yingyue also seemed to have some feelings for him.

One night, Xu Lian quietly snuck into Shui Yingyue’s room.

Shui Yingyue was startled at first, but upon realizing that it was him, she reluctantly gave in.

[Name: Xu Lian]

[Rank: Great Grandmaster, Sixth Stage]

[Skills: Four Symbols Battle Tactics (requires four people to perform), Great Desolate Dragon Grasping Technique, Sacred Spirit Record (complete immortal technique), Breaking Wind Sword Technique (Volumes 1-3), Seven Styles of Primal Gang (complete), Short Strike – Shadow Chase…]

[Items: Sword of Destruction (not equipped)]

[Note 1: Shui Yingyue’s affection for you is 60/100].

[Note 2: Currently, you have two unused progression points.]

An affection level of 60 wasn’t high, but it wasn’t low either. Xu Lian thought that it was acceptable.

He decided to take it slow. After all, he had plenty of free time here, and he could gradually build up his relationship with Shui Yingyue.

The prosperity of Jiyu Village made the surrounding villages envious. People from nearby villages often came to Jiyu Village to “learn the secrets”. Xu Lian didn’t hide anything and earnestly shared his ideas for prosperity.

As a result, neighboring villages began to follow Jiyu Village’s example.

In this way, Xu Lian’s influence gradually spread throughout the region. Some called him a “sage”, while others believed he was a “messenger sent by heaven”.

After discussing with the three geniuses, Xu Lian felt the time was ripe for action.