Welcome to Ability Store-Chapter 110 - 109: Homecoming

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Although bringing two more children was somewhat overloading, luckily Feng County was right next to Chang’an City, and Lin Qing managed to steadily bring everyone close to the Zhang Family.

After disembarking from the helicopter, Uncle Tu’s legs were trembling, and his gaze towards Chen Xuan had changed... from initial respect to fear.

Jiu and Hua were also extremely shocked, but after all, they were children and accepted new things quickly. Now they were already referring to this contraption as an Immortal Boat.

It was just past four in the afternoon, and the sun was sinking into the Qinling, casting a massive shadow from the distant mountains and dense forests ahead. This area was considered the edge of Feng County, distinctly different from a typical "town", with only a few scattered houses visible at the foot of the mountains. According to Jiu, it would take half a day on foot to reach the county town from here.

The Zhang Family was located on a high ground on a hillside.

The group spent another thirty minutes walking from the helicopter landing point to the gate of the Zhang Family estate—this was also to avoid alerting the locals to the helicopter’s presence.

Chen Xuan noticed that while this yard was quite secluded, its size was considerable. The courtyard walls stretched out for over a hundred meters, and there was a proper gate at the entrance.

Ordinary villagers absolutely couldn’t own such a residence.

And weren’t they afraid of being targeted by bandits or thieves? The public security of Feng County surely couldn’t reach here, and such a large estate must mean its owner was quite wealthy.

Uncle Tu stepped forward and knocked, and the door quickly opened.

"Quick, quickly inform the master," he urged, "the Wei Family’s children have been found, and they have even apprenticed under a True Immortal Master!"

Then Uncle Tu turned to Chen Xuan and the others, saying, "Please follow me, I’ll take you to the reception hall."

The so-called reception hall was a spacious wooden house with red tiles on top, with a sign hanging at the entrance: Assembly Hall. If he didn’t know this was the Zhang Family, Chen Xuan would have thought he had entered a bandit camp.

The interior was much more modest, with no bricks on the ground, just bare earth. About ten chairs, an Eight Immortals table, and two weapon racks constituted all the furniture.

They didn’t wait long before hearing the sound of footsteps outside.

It was evidently more than one person coming.

Indeed, eight members of the Zhang Family walked in, of varied sizes, both men and women, and the first thing they did was to carefully examine Xuan and Hua.

"Hahaha... It’s great, I’m so glad you’re safe!" The leading man was about twenty, burly, and rugged-looking. Even now, as winter approached, he still wore a sleeveless vest, his muscular arms looking like marble statues.

"Brother Tiegong?" Jiu recognized him, and not only that, the siblings gradually named the others, "Uncle Dahai... Sister Yao... Grandpa Zhang?"

As they spoke, Jiu suddenly choked up and then burst into tears, "Brother Tiegong... My parents are gone!"

As he cried, Hua also sobbed uncontrollably.

The crowd hurried to comfort them again.

It seemed Uncle Tu was not lying, Chen Xuan thought, the Zhang family truly cared about the Wei Family’s safety.

After about ten minutes, the siblings barely managed to control their emotions.

"My name is Zhang Shouyan. Are these three the True Immortals who rescued the Wei Family children?" The elderly man referred to as Grandpa Zhang bowed deeply to Chen Xuan and the others, "Immortal Masters are truly benevolent... Thanks to you, the Wei Family won’t end up extinct."

"Jiu, tell us what happened that night?" Zhang Tiegong asked eagerly.

"It was cultivators... don’t know where they came from... who killed our family..." Jiu, while sobbing, tried to recount the events of that night as detailed as possible, "My master often said that Feng County is under sect cultivators’ control, and confronting them is extremely dangerous, so I took my sister and fled to Chang’an City..."

Hearing that cultivators were involved, everyone fell silent for a moment.

Even Zhang Shouyan turned his head and sighed deeply, "Ah, I said before, taking in that Loose Cultivator wasn’t a good thing... Wei Qingheng was too soft-hearted."

"Indeed!" A similarly sturdy woman sighed, "To cultivators, we’re probably like cattle and sheep by the roadside. They can ignore us as long as we don’t interfere, but if caught in their conflicts, we wouldn’t even know how to write the word ’death’!"

Liu Shuyue frowned tightly upon hearing this, "Outrageous! Are the lives of ordinary people not worth anything? Do they just go unchecked for such wanton killing?"

Everyone looked at Liu Shuyue, not daring to respond for a moment.

It was Jiu who broke the awkward silence, "The Immortal Master Lord is different from those sect cultivators... She won’t trouble you."

Zhang Tiegong responded, "Regarding the Immortal Master Lord, the Immortal Alliance would manage this, but the management intensity depends on the distance from Chang’an City. For us, living in these remote mountains, if we suddenly disappeared one day, the Immortal Alliance wouldn’t even care."

"The Immortal Master Lord may not know, but the people can only truly live in peace once they enter Chang’an City," Zhang Shouyan followed up, "Originally, there were hundreds of families in this mountain area, but now only four or five are left. They’ve either moved to Chang’an or to Feng County City. The scenes outside Chang’an City, which the Immortal Master Lord has seen, consist of people gathered from all over, hoping that when Chang’an expands next, they too can be included."

Is it true that entering Chang’an ensures peace and prosperity? Chen Xuan couldn’t help but think of that street separating human traffic into separate streams and the opposite districts for cultivators and ordinary people.

"Then why don’t you move to Chang’an?" Lin Qing asked curiously.

Zhang Shouyan shook his head, "The entire Zhang family only knows hunting as a way of life; leaving these mountains would cut off our own path... While Chang’an City may be good, it’s not a place for us to settle."

"But from what I see, you aren’t just ordinary hunters." Chen Xuan had long wanted to bring this up; These people’s demeanor was very disciplined, markedly unlike true wild villagers, "Can you tell me about the Zhang family’s origins?"

Exchanging glances, the group finally had the elder Zhang Shouyan speak, "Since the Immortal Master Lord asks, we naturally dare not conceal it. In fact, it’s not a secret, many nearby know... The Zhang family’s ancestors were originally a unit of the Feather Forest Army guarding Chang’an, who fiercely fought the power-seizing cultivators, but were eventually defeated and fled here."

"You’re descendants of soldiers?" Chen Xuan was surprised.

The defeated garrison of Chang’an, which meant their ancestors witnessed the historical turning point of secular imperial power being replaced by the Immortal Alliance, making them a historical symbol themselves.

No wonder even servants like Uncle Tu had calloused hands, indicating these so-called servants were likely the descendants of those soldiers.

And since the fall of the Tang Dynasty was over four hundred years ago, at least ten generations had passed for the Zhang family. Yet they still preserved their ancestral traditions, practicing archery and swordsmanship, never abandoning their skills.

"Precisely," Zhang Shouyan replied, "Actually, when cultivators expanded their influence here, they didn’t view the defeated troops as threats. At that time, the officials in Chang’an quickly adapted to the new government office, serving various sects, leaving the military’s existence meaningless, and thus the Zhang family settled here."

His answer didn’t carry much bitterness, as if he had long accepted this fact.

"And how did you come to know the Wei Family?"

"In response to the Immortal Master... Hunting in the mountains inevitably leads to injuries. Sixty years ago, my grandfather fell and almost died in the mountains, but was saved by the Wei Family, who were collecting herbs. From then on, my grandfather asked us to repay this life-saving debt, eventually forging a friendship."

"I see," Chen Xuan looked at Jiu, "No wonder you sought him out."

Since it was repaying an ancestral favor, the relationship naturally faded over generations. But even so, the descendants of the Zhang and Wei families continued this mutual watchful friendship.

"The Wei Family, after all, did us a favor. Knowing their children didn’t die on the spot, we had to at least search for them to honor our ancestors’ instructions."

Jiu and Hua immediately knelt down, bowing three times to the Zhang Family.

"Please don’t!" Zhang Shouyan signaled Zhang Tiegong, who quickly helped the siblings up, "You are now disciples of the True Immortal Sect, and I cannot accept such grand gestures. Knowing you’re alive is satisfaction enough for us." 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Grandpa Zhang, Brother Tiegong, please tell me where my family is buried, I want to visit them..." Jiu said tearfully.

"Alas... They’re on the mountainside. Follow me." Zhang Tiegong sighed.