Chapter 768: Chapter 507: Fate (2)

“Two more who can’t pay the cultivation tax…”

“Judging by that little girl’s appearance, she might not last long. Spiritual energy through the body is like a bone-scraping knife…”

“Alas, two orphaned children, stranded here in Dingyuan City with no one to rely on. Surviving until now is already a miracle…”

“They seem to have been stuck in the city for nearly three months. Their elders went out of the city and then disappeared mysteriously, probably with little hope of survival.”

“These Jade Puppets are devoid of humanity. With unpaid taxes, they’re naturally bound to perform labor, rules are rules…”

Piecing these bits of information together, Chu Zheng understood the situation.

A pair of siblings from another Great Realm, seeking opportunities in the Near Immortal Realm with their parents, met with disaster. Their parents lost, with little hope of survival, their Spirit Stones exhausted, unable to pay the daily cultivation tax required to survive within the Zhang Family’s territory.

Over time, the amount, while insignificant to high-level cultivators, had become astronomical for two children without support.

The Jade Puppet operated under Zhang Family’s regulations, intending to take them to the Forced Labor Camp to work off their debt.

Going to the Forced Labor Camp, the young boy might still survive, but as for the little girl, she absolutely wouldn’t make it.

“I beg you, Seniors, Immortals! Save my sister!”

The boy dropped to his knees suddenly, his forehead banging heavily against the cold lapis lazuli slab with a dull thud.

He raised his head, eyes red with desperation: “If any benefactor is willing to offer a helping hand and save my sister today, I vow to serve as a slave, to repay with my life! For this life, this world, I shall never forget!”

He repeatedly kowtowed, each strike powerful, quickly causing blood to seep from his forehead, looking especially wretched.

He gazed around, his eyes filled with despair.

Among the onlookers were several cultivators with powerful auras.

After a brief silence, a middle-aged cultivator in red embroidered robes, with a scholarly air, stepped forward; his aura profound like an abyss, unequivocally an Eighth-Order Cultivator.

He walked to the boy, raised a hand to stop his kowtowing with a gentle force.

“Rise and speak.”

The middle-aged cultivator’s voice was gentle and composed as he reached out two fingers to Shen Lingkong’s wrist, injecting a thread of pure spiritual power into his body.

Moments later, he slightly frowned, withdrew his fingers, and shook his head regretfully: “Your Root Bone is of lower-grade talent, meridians stagnant, Spirit Apertures unopened. The path of cultivation is rough, afraid… entering the Seventh Realm is difficult.”

He scanned the anxious face of the boy and asked, “What is your surname?”

“Shen! Junior’s surname is Shen!”

The boy, grasping at a lifeline, pleaded eagerly: “Senior! Please help us! Just save my sister, and I’ll take an oath to serve you lifelong, toiling without any resentment!”

“Surname Shen…”

The middle-aged cultivator slightly shook his head; currently, in the Great Universe, there are no significant clans with the surname Shen, so it’s unlikely he possesses any yet-to-awaken Spiritual Body.

He turned his gaze to the feeble little girl and lightly placed a finger on her slender wrist.

The next instant, his expression suddenly changed, eyes flickering with surprise and doubt.

The spiritual power he sent in disappeared like a stone in the sea, instantly absorbed by an unusual suction within the girl’s body, then passed through, returning to the world outside.

At the same time, he clearly felt the surrounding nature’s spiritual energy being continuously absorbed into the girl’s body.

These energies did not nurture her; instead, like countless tiny scrapers, they were continuously scraping away her Life Origin.

Her body was like an unsealable funnel, through which spiritual energy passed, taking with it her vital life force—it was no common case of energy deficiency.

“This constitution…”

The middle-aged cultivator muttered to himself, brows knit: “Born incomplete or perhaps abandoned by the spiritual energy of the heavens? Left unchecked, even with spiritual pills, it would be hard for her to live past twenty…”

He withdrew his hand, looked at the boy’s hopeful eyes, and let out a sigh, rising slowly:

“Child, your sister has a unique constitution, marked by celestial envy. Even if you miraculously pay the Spirit Stones this time and escape labor, she… doesn’t have much time left. The debt you owe in Spirit Stones is small, serve your term, and once free, find a stable place to live.”

He paused, seeing the boy’s instantly desolate face, and added:

“I was searching for a candidate to pass on my teachings, but unfortunately… you lack the qualifications. It seems fate has not brought us together.”

His demeanor carried a hint of regret, and he did not linger, turning and departing gracefully through the crowd.

The words of the middle-aged cultivator seemed to set the tone for the surrounding onlookers, who began murmuring in low sighs and discussions.

“Even Senior Wang said…”

“Indeed, that little girl doesn’t look like she has long to live; saving her would be in vain.”

“This boy has ordinary qualifications. Helping him out means spending Spirit Stones with little return.”

“Besides, what is a servant of such low-grade talent worth?”

The crowd began to disperse, indifferent silhouettes merging into the flow of the long street, as though the preceding scene was a trivial interlude.

The cold reality utterly froze the boy’s last hope. The red eyes of the two Jade Puppets flashed and emitted a low hum, stepping forward to seize him.

Bowing his head, he looked at his sister’s pale face, anger and reluctance surged within him. He kneeled again, repeatedly banging his head, blood streaming, shouting hoarsely:

“No! While my life may be lowly, my sister’s is not! She’s no waste! Someone high above has read her fortune! They said… they said that with proper opportunities, she has a chance to enter the Ancestral Realm in the future! The Ancestral Realm! Honorables, believe me! Believe me!”

“Entering the Ancestral Realm?!”

“Has this boy lost his mind?!”

“Fortune telling? Someone dared say it, and you dare believe it? Do you know what kind of existence the Ancestral Realm is?!”

“This little girl, who’ll topple with a breeze? Ancestral Realm? She’d be lucky to survive until tomorrow!”

Harsh laughter and ridicule rained down like hail, crushing the boy’s remaining dignity and hope completely.

He trembled all over, looking at his sister, his eyes filled with pain, guilt, and an utter sense of despair and powerlessness.

Chu Zheng’s foot, initially raised to leave, suddenly paused.

He stood at the edge of the crowd in shadows, his deep gaze penetrating the commotion, locked firmly on the kneeling boy and the little girl struggling to stand by his side.

Destiny…

This concept he once disbelieved, but after coming to Ancient Times, he seemed to believe it a little more.

His eyes briefly narrowed. Without chanting or gestures, his Yang God emptied his Sea of Consciousness to sense the invisible lines of cause and effect within the world.

In an instant, Chu Zheng opened his eyes, a flicker of understanding flashing in them.

He had happened upon this pair of siblings at their moment of peril today.

This, perhaps, was no coincidence.

With clarity in his heart, Chu Zheng did not hesitate, pushed through the crowd, and calmly said:

“I’ll pay their tax.”

Several surprised gazes gathered, falling on the figure in green walking slowly out from the shadows.

Chu Zheng ignored all stares, went straight to the Jade Stair Puppet. With a casual wave, a small heap of brilliant Top Quality Spiritual Stones accurately landed on the Jade Platform.

Due to overdue payments, it required three times the fine, which was a considerable sum even for ordinary cultivators.

The red eyes of the two Jade Puppets flickered a few times, confirming the targets’ debt cleared, then retreated slowly, blending into the shadowy street corner like statues bereft of purpose.

The long street stirred little excitement. Onlookers dispersed quickly.

Such occurrences were common in Dingyuan City, seen several times daily, and with rare compassionate acts from some cultivators, it was truly unexceptional.

The kneeling boy was utterly dumbfounded for a moment, stunned in place, blood drying on his forehead, staring blankly at Chu Zheng as he approached, mind blank.

The overwhelming joy of near death overwhelmed him, rendering him speechless for a moment.

Until Chu Zheng arrived in front, he finally reacted, bowing repeatedly, crying tears of joy:

“Thank you for your immense kindness today, Senior! I’ll serve you loyally until death!”

Chu Zheng slightly bent down but did not help the boy up, his voice still calm:

“Perhaps the fortune told… is accurate.”

“It’s just… your sister’s opportunity hasn’t arrived yet.”

Chu Zheng straightened up, his green robe billowing, turned towards the depths of the long street, the area of spirit-infused caves:

“Get up, follow me.”