"Three hundred and forty silver taels?!"
One-Eyed Jack lay flat on his belly in the red sand, his single eye bulging so wide it looked ready to pop out of its socket. "Are you out of your mind, kid?! Those three wooden sticks by your gate were so rotten that termites wouldn't even eat them! You could buy a whole wagonload of pine logs in Salt-Pool Town for two silver taels! And why the hell do I have to pay thirty silver taels for the iron needles you shot into my own butt?!"
"Because my cactuses don't work for free," Pei Xuan said seriously, tapping the wooden abacus against his palm. "Every needle was hand-forged with Spirit Water. Plus, look at how deep they went in—my men are going to have to pull them out with wooden pliers one by one. Isn't that a medical fee?"
"You—!" One-Eyed Jack choked on his own spit, his face turning purple.
Behind him, Rat-Whiskers and the other thirty bandits were groaning as the village men walked down the row with leather sacks, stripping every curved saber, leather water-skin, and coin pouch off their belts.
Within five minutes, Stone and Hong Ling came jogging back to Pei Xuan and dumped a pile of tarnished silver pieces and copper coins onto a clean cloth spread on the ground.
Hong Ling dropped to her knees beside the cloth, her eyes sparkling like two little stars as her fingers flew across the coins and her abacus at lightning speed.
Clack-clack-clack-clack!
"Report to the Young Master!" Hong Ling announced crisply. "From One-Eyed Jack's belt pouch we found twenty-six silver taels! From the other thirty bandits we found fourteen silver taels and eighty-two copper coins! Plus thirty iron sabers, one forty-pound iron wolf-tooth club, and thirty-one healthy desert warhorses!"
"Hey! That twenty-six silver was my life savings!" One-Eyed Jack yelled, squirming in the dirt.
"Not anymore," Hong Ling hummed happily, sweeping all forty silver taels into a heavy cloth bag and tying it to her belt right beside her kitchen cleavers. "Now it belongs to the Dry-Well Village Treasury! After subtracting your forty silver taels from the three-hundred-and-forty-tael repair bill, you thirty-one bandits still owe our village three hundred silver taels!"
Pei Xuan nodded and pulled a sheet of rough yellow hemp paper out of his sleeve. Using a piece of charcoal from the breakfast fire, he wrote several neat lines at the top, walked over to One-Eyed Jack, grabbed the bandit boss's big right thumb, rubbed it in the wet red mud on One-Eyed Jack's own cheek, and pressed it firmly onto the bottom of the paper.
"There," Pei Xuan blew on the paper and held it up. "Official Dry-Well Village Property Damage & Labor Contract. Starting today, each of you thirty-one debtors will work for Dry-Well Village to pay off your three-hundred-silver-tael fine. Every full day of honest digging and hauling deducts one-tenth of a silver tael from your debt. Once the three hundred silver taels are paid in full, you're free to go."
One-Eyed Jack did the math in his head and nearly fainted. "Thirty-one of us earning three silver taels a day total... we have to dig dirt for you for a hundred days?!"
"Only if you work hard," Pei Xuan smiled. "If anyone slacks off or breaks a shovel, another ten days get added to the bill."
Old Wei stepped close to Pei Xuan and lowered his voice. "Young Master, keeping thirty-one bandits as laborers will save our villagers a mountain of heavy work. However, the numbing sap from the cactuses only lasts half an hour. Once their legs recover, One-Eyed Jack is a Rank 1 Peak Martial fighter and five of his men are Rank 1 Early Martial. How can we untie their hands to let them dig with shovels without them rebelling or running away?"
"Don't worry, Old Wei. I have just the uniform for them," Pei Xuan said.
He turned to Stone and Old Man Liu. "Elder Liu, do we have any old yellow grain sacks and hemp rope in the shed? And do you have any dried scorpion tails?"
"We do, my Lord!" Old Man Liu nodded quickly. "We have two bundles of old yellow hemp sacks from years ago, and the children always catch small numb-scorpions under the rocks and dry their stingers in a clay jar to rub on toothaches!"
"Bring the yellow hemp sacks, a coil of rope, and the jar of numb-scorpion stingers to the back courtyard," Pei Xuan ordered.
Two minutes later, inside the quiet back courtyard where nobody from the gate could see, Pei Xuan placed a pile of thirty-one torn yellow hemp sacks, a coil of hemp rope, and a clay jar containing forty dried scorpion stingers onto the ground.
He opened the glowing interface of the [Supreme Fusion Cube].
==================================================================== [ SUPREME FUSION CUBE — PRISON MANAGEMENT RECIPE ] -------------------------------------------------------------------- [Slot 1]: 31 Torn Yellow Hemp Sacks & Hemp Rope [Slot 2]: 40 Dried Numb-Scorpion Stingers (Mild Bio-Static Venom) [Slot 3]: (Empty) -------------------------------------------------------------------- >> Batch Fusion Cost: 20 LP (Remaining Balance: 80 LP) >> Result: Removes lethal poison flaw and brittle hemp weakness! Merges scorpion bio-electricity with tough hemp fiber to create 31 [Lv.1 Yellow Debtor Vests & Shock-Collars]! >> [CONFIRM FUSION? YES / NO] ====================================================================
Confirm!
ZAP—FLASH!
Twenty Loyalty Points vanished from his balance. A bright yellow light wrapped around the torn hemp sacks and scorpion stingers. When the light faded three seconds later, thirty-one neat, sleeveless bright-yellow vests with attached black-iron neck collars sat stacked on the table!
Printed across the back of every bright-yellow vest in big, bold black letters were four words:
[DEBTOR LABORER — WORK HARD]
Pei Xuan checked the item stats floating over the stack:
==================================================================== [ EQUIPMENT: YELLOW DEBTOR VEST & SHOCK-COLLAR (Lv. 1) ] ==================================================================== * Quantity: 31 Sets (Bound to Territory Lord Pei Xuan) * Function 1 — [Martial Lock]: While worn, suppresses 80% of the prisoner's combat Qi and martial strength if they attempt to attack any friendly citizen, while keeping 100% of their physical stamina for digging, lifting, and building! * Function 2 — [The Ten-Second Slack Zapper]: During work hours set by the Lord, if a prisoner stops moving their tools for more than 10 seconds without permission, or harbors a hostile attack intent, the collar delivers a non-lethal 3-second Numb-Static Shock that forces their muscles to shovel twice as fast! ====================================================================
Suppresses 80% of their fighting power against villagers, keeps 100% of their strength for digging dirt, and zaps them if they slack off for ten seconds! Pei Xuan grinned. This is every town mayor's dream tool!
He carried the stack of thirty-one yellow vests and collars out to the west gate, where Stone and four burly farmers had just finished using wooden tongs to pull the black-iron needles out of the bandits' backsides.
Plink! Plink! Plink!
"Ow! Easy with those tongs, farmer! That's my left butt cheek, not a turnip!" One-Eyed Jack howled as Stone yanked the last three-inch needle out of his rear end and tossed it into a bucket of clean water.
"Quit whining! Little Sister Hong Ling said if I bend the tip of a single needle, she'll dock my lunch!" Stone snapped back, before slapping one of the bright-yellow vests and black neck collars onto One-Eyed Jack.
Click!
The moment the black collar snapped shut around One-Eyed Jack's thick neck, it shrank slightly to fit snugly without choking him, and the seams vanished completely!
Within three minutes, all thirty-one bandits were dressed in matching bright-yellow sleeveless vests with [DEBTOR LABORER] across their backs. Then Stone untied the ropes on their hands and tossed a wooden shovel or an iron pickaxe at each bandit's feet.
One-Eyed Jack stood up and rubbed his sore backside. The cactus numbness had finally worn off!
He flexed his thick arms, feeling his Rank 1 Peak Martial muscles ripple under the yellow vest. He looked down at the heavy wooden shovel in his hands, then glanced sideways at Pei Xuan, who was standing only five steps away with his back half-turned!
Above One-Eyed Jack's head, the status bar turned bright red:
[Prisoner: One-Eyed Jack | Loyalty: 4 / 100 (Rebellious)][Current Thought: "Hahaha! This stupid kid actually untied my hands and gave me a heavy wooden shovel! That black ring on my neck is just thin iron! On the count of three, I'll smash the back of his head with this shovel, grab a horse, and—"]
One... two...
One-Eyed Jack tightened his grip on the wooden shovel and shifted his foot half an inch toward Pei Xuan!
BZZZZZZZT—CRACKLE!
Before One-Eyed Jack could even lift the shovel toward Pei Xuan, the black collar around his neck detected his [Hostile Attack Intent] and flashed with a ring of bright purple bio-electric sparks!
"Yulululululu—!"
A jolt of tingly, bone-numbing scorpion static shot from the collar straight down One-Eyed Jack's spine!
All the hair on his chest and eyebrows stood straight up like needles. His single eye rolled back, his mouth made a funny bubbling sound as his tongue vibrated, and his legs began to tap-dance in the sand at lightning speed!
Even worse, the collar channeled all of that wild static energy straight into his arms. Before One-Eyed Jack could stop himself, his hands blurred like a windmill, plunging the wooden shovel into the dirt beside the road—scoop, toss, scoop, toss, scoop, toss!
In three seconds flat, while still jittering from the zap, One-Eyed Jack had dug a neat three-foot hole in the hard clay!
When the three-second shock ended, One-Eyed Jack stood frozen in the hole he had just dug, smoke curling off his single eyebrow as he stared down at his own hands in sheer horror.
"W-What kind of demon collar is this?!" One-Eyed Jack's voice cracked an octave higher like a frightened rooster. "I just thought about swinging the shovel at you, and my hands dug a hole by themselves!"
Down the line, Rat-Whiskers gulped in terror, dropped his shovel, and leaned against the mud wall. "Screw this, Boss, I'm not touching that cursed shovel! Let them beat me, I'm going to take a nap—"
[Debtor #14 (Rat-Whiskers) has been idle for 8 seconds... 9 seconds... 10 seconds!]
BZZZZZT!
"AIEEEEEE! I'M DIGGING! I'M DIGGING!"
Rat-Whiskers leaped three feet straight into the air as purple sparks crackled around his collar! Before his boots even touched the ground, he snatched up his shovel and began digging the roadside drainage ditch so fast that red dirt flew behind him like a dog kicking up sand!
The other twenty-nine bandits didn't even need a demonstration. Every single one of them grabbed their shovels with both hands and stood at attention like terrified recruits waiting for orders!
Behind them, the hundred villagers of Dry-Well Village laughed until their sides hurt.
"Look at One-Eyed Jack!" Stone slapped his knee, roaring with laughter. "Last month he rode in here on a tall horse acting like an emperor! Now he's wearing a little yellow vest and digging dirt faster than a gopher!"
"Even if I die tomorrow, seeing these wicked Sand-Jackal bandits digging ditches for our village makes my whole life worth it!" Grandma Zhang wiped away tears of joy.
Pei Xuan clapped his hands twice to get everyone's attention.
"Alright, work time!" Pei Xuan opened his RTS Territory Grid in his mind and pointed across the village. "First, Dry-Well Village is going to be a clean, civilized town! One-Eyed Jack, take ten bandits to the leeward gully behind the south wall. You will dig four deep, stone-lined Public Flushing Latrines with a water trench connected to the well's overflow puddle so the waste washes into the deep compost pit!"
"Dig... dig toilets?!" One-Eyed Jack's face twitched violently. "I am the Third Boss of the Sand-Jackal Gang! A Rank 1 Peak Martial expert! You want me to dig village toilets?!"
Crackle...
The black collar around his neck gave a tiny warning hum.
"I LOVE DIGGING TOILETS!" One-Eyed Jack shouted instantly, saluting with his wooden shovel as he sprinted toward the south gully at top speed. "Brothers, follow me! Whoever digs the crookedest toilet pit answers to me!"
"Second," Pei Xuan pointed to the flat stretch of red sand and clay east of the Spirit Well. "Rat-Whiskers, take the other twenty bandits! Dig an irrigation channel from the Sweet-Spring Well out to the east slope, clear away all the rocks, and level two full acres of wet farmland before sunset! Stone, take ten village men with buckets to water the soil as they turn it over!"
"Yes, my Lord!"
For the entire afternoon, Dry-Well Village rang with the lively sounds of shovels clanking, pickaxes thudding, and buckets of clear water splashing onto the dry earth.
Whenever a bandit got tired and slowed down for nine seconds, his collar gave a tiny tick-tick warning sound, and he immediately shouted, "Long live labor!" and dug twice as hard. Even more amazing, because Old Guo brought out two big wooden buckets of cold Sweet-Spring Spirit Water for the prisoners to drink at mid-afternoon, the bandits found that instead of collapsing from exhaustion, the soreness in their backs vanished after every ladle of water!
By the time the blazing sun dipped toward the western horizon, four clean, stone-walled public latrines stood behind the south wall, a neat drainage ditch ran down both sides of the main street, and two full acres of moist, dark-red soil had been turned over and watered east of the well!
Across the village, seeing their homes transformed in a single afternoon pushed the villagers' Loyalty to a brand-new peak:
[Dry-Well Village Citizen Loyalty Update: Average Loyalty 88 -> 91 / 100!][Prisoner Group (31 Bandits) Average Loyalty: 4 -> 18 / 100 ("The collar is scary, but that well water is the sweetest thing we've ever tasted!")]
Back inside the Lord's courtyard at dusk, Pei Xuan sat cross-legged beside a full wooden tub of Sweet-Spring Water while Old Wei stood guard at the door.
In his hand, Pei Xuan held the small cloth pouch containing ten of the silver taels looted from One-Eyed Jack, which had been sitting beside the well soaking up trace Earth Spirit Qi all afternoon.
Pei Xuan drank three big bowls of cold Spirit Water, closed his eyes, and began circulating the hot blood-Qi inside his meridians, punching the air and tensing every muscle in his torso, arms, and legs in rhythm with his breathing.
With his seventeen-year cold poison completely gone, his body was like a dry sponge soaking up nourishment after a long drought. Every gulp of Spirit Water turned into dense, fiery vigor that wove into his muscle fibers.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
His heartbeat grew louder and deeper, sounding like a war drum inside the small room. The muscles on his shoulders, chest, and thighs didn't turn bulky or clumsy—instead, they condensed until they were as tight and springy as twisted steel cables!
CRACK!
Pei Xuan stood up and threw a low sweeping kick followed by a straight palm strike. The air in the room popped like a whip cracking, blowing the oil lamp on the table out from ten feet away!
==================================================================== [ PERSONAL REALM BREAKTHROUGH! ] * Host: Pei Xuan * Realm Upgraded: Rank 1 Early Martial -> RANK 1 MID MARTIAL! * Current Strength: 550 Jin -> 800 Jin! (Skin tough as bull-hide, muscles condensed; can fight 10 normal men barehanded!) * Territory Population: 134 (103 Loyal Citizens + 31 Prisoners) ====================================================================
"Rank 1 Mid Martial in a single day!" Old Wei let out a low whistle of admiration from the doorway. "Young Master, even the First Young Master back at the Marquisate took half a year of soaking in expensive medicinal baths to go from Early to Mid Martial!"
"He only had dead herbs. I have a living Spirit Well," Pei Xuan smiled, pulling on a clean gray tunic.
Just then, quick footsteps pattered across the courtyard, and the door burst open.
Hong Ling ran in holding the empty cloth millet sack upside down and shaking it, while Old Guo followed right behind her scratching the back of his neck with a guilty look on his fat face.
"Young Master! Emergency! Big food emergency!" Hong Ling cried, holding up the flat cloth sack. "Today we had one hundred and three villagers working hard, thirty-one bandit prisoners digging ditches, AND thirty-one warhorses eating fodder! Old Guo boiled a big pot of millet gruel for dinner so the bandits wouldn't faint while digging the farm field, and now look!"
She shook the upside-down sack. Only three tiny yellow grains of millet fell out onto the floor.
"We only have eight catties of millet left in the clay jar for tomorrow morning!" Hong Ling tapped her abacus frantically. "One hundred and thirty-four mouths! Eight catties of millet isn't even enough to make clear soup! If we don't find food by tomorrow noon, the whole village is going to starve!"