“Bro, please stop hitting me, I know I was wrong, waaah…” 

“Team Leader Shi, I was wrong… Ouch!”

“Help! Brother Cen, help me!”

“Captain Shi… Mom Shi! Mom Shi, stop hitting me! It hurts!”

Chaos reigned in the room. Shi Long—perhaps because he’d been bottling it up for three years—started by beating Shi Jie, but soon began whipping the squad members as well: “How did I teach you? No one is allowed to go against the original purpose of this squad! Why do you just stand by when it’s me? Why do you let me get away with all this?”

Wang Lie couldn’t hold back any longer and reminded him, “Captain Shi, that person wasn’t you—it was just someone who borrowed your body…”

“That’s what I’m saying!” Shi Long swung his broom at them—fast, accurate, and brutal.

The ability users, who had been so formidable outside, were now crawling all over the floor, huddled together and shivering. What a familiar feeling—this was exactly what it was like!

Back in the day, that’s exactly how Captain Shi used to punish us for our mistakes! Sometimes Captain Liao would come over to plead for mercy, and then he’d get whipped right along with them… Shi Long doled out the punishment equally, whipping every last one of them before straightening his clothes and walking over to Cen An.

Cen An immediately understood the difference between the real Shi Long and the fake one. The fake Shi Long usually wore a smile and seemed approachable, but his eyes were full of scheming and smugness.

As for the real Shi Long, his brow was furrowed, and his face bore a hint of irritation—the kind that says, “These brats are such a pain,” “There’s so much to do,” or “This is such a hassle, I might as well just beat them up…” He just looked so much more likable than the fake.

Cen An cleared his throat. “Team Leader Shi?”

Shi Long bowed deeply to him. “Thank you, Boss Cen.”

Cen An nearly jumped out of his skin and hurried to help him up. “Captain Shi, what are you doing? I didn’t do anything—it was actually Sister Qu and the others who took care of me more…”

Shi Long shook his head. “I’m not thanking you for protecting the ability-users squad—that would be an insult to our friendship. I’m thanking you for preventing those people’s scheme from succeeding, for stopping them from using my body to do something irreversible.”

He pressed his hand to his chest, where a pain unbearable to most was radiating—yet he had grown accustomed to it.

No one knew how Shi Long had survived these past three years. When Wang Yuxiang discovered that his spiritual form hadn’t vanished, he used every method imaginable to torture him, even attempting to grind him down bit by bit.

Clinging to a faint glimmer of hope and determined to take one of them down with him even in death, he endured the agony of his soul being torn apart, refusing to give up.

The price he paid was watching helplessly as Wang Yuxiang used his body to torment his teammates.

Just as he was on the verge of despair, that hope, as frail as a candle flame, transformed in someone’s hands into the light of the sun and moon, illuminating the entire world…

Shi Long looked at Cen An and bowed slightly once more. “Thank you.”

“Thank you for saving me, and thank you for showing me the power of ordinary people, and for making me realize how narrow-minded I used to be.”

All is well.

Watching Cen An’s retreating figure, Shi Long pressed his hand to his chest and said, “Where’s Boss Cen’s dish? Let me take a look.” 

Wang Lie rubbed his aching shoulders. “Team Leader Shi, what are you doing? Are you doubting Brother Cen’s cooking?”

Shi Long raised his hand as if to grab a broom, and Wang Lie immediately backed away. “I’m sorry! I have some right here in my bag—I’ll give it to you right now!” He whipped out a half-eaten white radish and, striking a “spare me, hero” pose, presented it to him with both hands. The fake Shi Long had gone to great lengths but couldn’t get a single piece of vegetable, yet it had fallen into his hands so easily.

He glanced at the bite mark with distaste, then turned the radish around and took a bite from the other side.

Even after sitting for a few days, the radish was still crisp and juicy. When his teeth sank in, the juice that flowed out was sweet, followed by a faint hint of spiciness.

Shi Long closed his eyes to savor the moment; sure enough, he felt the slightly restless supernatural power within him begin to settle. “Soothing the supernatural power”—the reputation was well-deserved.

He opened his eyes and sighed, “Mr. Cen is a decent man.”

Wang Lie chuckled, “You bet! Team Leader Shi, you wouldn’t believe it—at first, Brother Cen was selling each vegetable for just one crystal core! It took us a lot of persuasion to get him to raise the price! Now he’s worried the price is too high and he won’t be able to sell them!”

The rest of the squad nodded in agreement.

Only Qu Yue and Zhao Wu exchanged glances, then quietly took a step back. They knew Captain Shi a little better and felt that if they didn’t get out of there fast, they’d be in for a beating…

Sure enough, Shi Long glanced at Wang Lie, then raised his hand in a flash and smacked him on the forehead with a thud. “You’re buying rare treasures at rock-bottom prices, and you’re actually gloating about it, are you?”

Wang Lie’s scream was just… He hadn’t even screamed that loudly when fighting off the beast horde a few days ago. He felt so wronged. “I didn’t! Mrs. Shi, don’t accuse me of something I didn’t do! I told you, we raised the price!”

Shi Long banged on him three more times before finally venting his frustration: “When I said Boss Cen is a decent guy, I didn’t mean his prices are low—I meant he’s actually doing business with you guys!”

Wang Lie, Xiao Ji, and the others exchanged bewildered glances, looking completely clueless: “Then what else could it be?”

Shi Long’s hand started to itch again, but he managed to hold back. “Do you know how far this single white radish can go? He could sell it only to a select few, letting you all compete against each other. Once you’ve split into rival factions, he’ll play one off against the other—or strike a balance—and by then, the whole of Yongning Village will be his one-man show! Not like now, where he still has to clean up after you lot!”

A group of underlings instinctively rubbed their backsides.

Wang Lie cautiously suggested, “Maybe Brother Cen just didn’t think of that?”

Shi Long was exasperated: “He could tell at a glance that I was being controlled. He could guess Lin Dao’s hiding place just from a whiff of flowers. How could he not have thought of this? You really do get dumber as you get older!”

“I’m not saying this for any other reason—just so you always remember the favors you’ve received!”

The others understood exactly what he meant and replied heartily, “We’ll remember it all—we won’t forget for a single moment.”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Cen An had no idea that some people were pinning high hopes on his mastery of the Art of Manipulation… To be honest, he hadn’t even considered Shi Long’s theory; uncovering the truth was entirely due to his knowledge of the game and a bit of deduction.

When he got home, he flopped onto his bed, and the world went black as he fell asleep. When he woke up, it was already light outside—though he had no idea what day it was.

Su Rui and Yin Xiang were both gone. There were soft footsteps outside—probably Xiao Yi going about his chores. Cen An shifted restlessly under the covers.

Now that the weather had turned warm, the fur-lined down comforter had been put away, and he and Xiao Yi were now using a thin quilt. Woven from spider silk and filled with a thin layer of soft cotton, it was light, airy, and breathable.

Cen An rolled over in the silky, warm bed, feeling as though he hadn’t slept this soundly in a long time.

The air was filled with the fresh scent of wood, and the wooden beams overhead were brand-new and gleaming. Cen An stared at them for a moment, then sat up lazily, only then realizing that since the house had been upgraded, he hadn’t really taken the time to look around his own home.

He casually opened the system.

【House Level: Small Log Cabin Description: Just average. Next Level: Comfortable Wooden House

Upgrade Materials: Crystal Cores x5000, Wood x5000, Stones x1000, Bricks x1000, Cloth x800, Animal Hides x500, Metal Ores x300, Plant Seeds x300……】

Another long list of upgrade materials popped up on the screen. Cen An skillfully skipped through them and closed the page.

After the upgrade, the small wooden house had grown significantly in size. What had once been just two rooms—an inner and an outer one—had now become four: Upon entering was the living room, furnished with a wooden tea table and a row of wooden benches, with a row of wooden cabinets across from them. No matter how Cen An looked at it, it seemed familiar. Then it occurred to him: if a TV could be placed here, it would be exactly the same as his living room in his previous life.

To the right was the bedroom. Two bamboo beds stood side by side on either side of the room, with a large and a small wardrobe—both made of wood—now standing in the middle…standing side by side.

Turning right from the living room leads to the kitchen. The trusty hearth has been retired, replaced by a large wood-burning stove topped with a blackened iron pot. Behind it stands a row of wooden cupboards, already crammed with all sorts of ingredients. The small square table and four chairs Cen An had made earlier have also been moved here.

There’s a small door on the side of the kitchen that leads into a storage room. All sorts of medicinal herbs and supplies are piled up here, along with that spatial storage box. Although there’s a lot of stuff, once it’s all organized, it actually only takes up a third of the storage room’s space—leaving two-thirds still empty.

…An instant urge to fill it all up surged through Cen An. His farming-sim player instincts were stirring.

“Brother, are you awake?” Light footsteps sounded from behind as Xiao Yi ran in, a look of concern on his face. “You’ve been sleeping for so long. Are you feeling okay?”

“No, I’m fine.” Cen An tapped his forehead. “Have you eaten yet? You came running over in such a hurry—is something wrong?”

Xiao Yi nodded, then shook his head. “I’ll wait for you to eat with me. Someone’s out there delivering supplies again.” 

“Delivering supplies? Uh…” Cen An immediately understood and rushed outside.

What he saw left him speechless: a mountain of supplies had been piled up in a circle around the little cabin!

At a glance, he spotted common supplies like lumber, stones, and hay, as well as rarities like herbs, unidentified ores, furs, and odd-looking root-like things.

There was even a pile of Sparrow Tongue Buds nearly as tall as a person—enough to fill a whole bath, for heaven’s sake!

Just as he was looking, he heard a rustle in the corner. He turned his head and saw two villagers sneakily tossing a partridge into the pile of supplies. The two sensed his gaze and froze in their tracks.

“Wait, I don’t want this. Take it back…” As soon as Cen An spoke, the two villagers’ frozen movements instantly became fluid. They covered their faces in perfect unison, muttering under their breath, “I can’t see, I can’t see, I can’t see…”

Then they just ran off. 

Cen An: …

He rubbed the side of his forehead. “Xiao Yi, did you get a good look at those two? Can you take it back to them?”

Xiao Yi paused for a moment, then said earnestly, “Brother, I think even if we send them back, they’ll just sneak back here again when you’re not looking.”

That made perfect sense… Cen An’s headache grew worse.

It took another half-day to pack up the supplies. By the time everything was packed, the storage room was indeed full… even with some of the supplies piled directly in the courtyard.

Surely his newly upgraded living space couldn’t already be too small…

Cen An continued to rub his temples. He’d better make more things. He could replace the bamboo cot with a wooden bed, make more storage chests, and also install a fence that needs to be set up, and the farmland needs to be expanded…

As he went over these plans, he stroked the Green Shade Mouse that had jumped up for a pat and asked with a smile, “What would you like to eat, Xiao Yi? I’ll make it for you.” 

“I like everything Big Brother makes.”

“Such a good boy.” Cen An thought for a moment. “Then let’s have some chicken wonton soup.”

The chicken broth was the stock Xiao Yi had simmered yesterday. During the recent beast tide, the little one had practically taken over the family’s meals for several days. He couldn’t make complicated dishes, but braised meat and noodles were no problem, and he’d learned to make chicken broth long ago.

With the chicken broth ready, it wouldn’t take long to make the wontons.

Xiao Yi eagerly set to work kneading the dough, while Cen An chopped the meat filling. They used chicken again, sticking to the principle of using the broth to cook the filling.

Wonton wrappers are thinner than dumpling wrappers, but they don’t take much time to prepare.

Before long, wonton after wonton—with ruffled edges and plump bellies—lay on the cutting board. The chicken broth had come to a boil, and the wontons lined up, carefully scooped into the simmering broth. Cen An smiled as he used a slotted spoon to separate them. “They’ll be done once their bellies puff up. Don’t rush them.”

“Mm-hmm,” Xiao Yi replied softly, his gaze fixed on that smiling face.

I’m not in a hurry, the little boy thought. Even if we spent a very, very long time like this—longer than the time it takes for winter to turn to spring—he wouldn’t be in a hurry.

Cen An placed some scallions and cilantro at the bottom of the bowl, then added a tiny bit of chili jam to his own bowl. He poured a full spoonful of wonton soup over it—the red chili and green scallions floated to the surface.

Now it was time for the wontons to make their entrance. One by one, the thin-skinned, generously stuffed wontons were invited into the bowl, filling it to the brim.

“Be careful, it’s hot,” Cen An said gently. Seeing Xiao Yi lean over and take a cautious sip of the soup, he finally let a faint smile show and used his spoon to scoop up a wonton, popping it into his mouth.

Blow on it gently, then take a bite—the thin wonton wrapper bursts open instantly, and the savory broth inside rushes into your mouth, awakening your taste buds and rousing your appetite, leaving you feeling even hungrier than before.

Cen An, who hadn’t had a proper meal in days, couldn’t help but squint his eyes—it smelled so good.

He took another sip of the chicken soup. Sure enough, it was incredibly savory, and the slight hint of spice was the perfect finishing touch.

Actually, the chicken soup’s natural umami was already delightful, but since he’d slept for so long, his stomach hadn’t fully woken up yet—a bit of spice helped perk him up. He finished the soup in just a few gulps, and sweat began to break out on his body.

With his appetite back today, Cen An had another bowl of wonton soup before boiling some water and taking a long, satisfying shower. Before he knew it, it was afternoon, and he heard someone calling from outside, “Brother Cen! Brother Cen!”

Cen An poked his head out. “Xiao Ji, have you eaten yet? We still have wonton soup at home.”

Xiao Ji swallowed hard. “No, Brother Cen, my grandma called me home for dinner tonight! Team Leader Shi sent me to ask if you want the mutant beast carcasses they brought in from outside?”

“Mutant beast carcasses?” Cen An was taken aback. “They’ve all been brought in? How many are there?”

“We only collected the ones with intact hides. The mangled ones were all gathered up and burned,” Xiao Ji explained. “The hides will be stripped off, and the villagers will all get a share. The crystal cores, too. Captain Shi mainly wanted to ask if you want the mutant beast meat.”

Mutant beast meat is inedible and is usually discarded under normal circumstances.

But the ability-users squad all knew that their Brother Cen wanted the mutant beast meat. Although they didn’t know what he intended to do with it, over time, the squad members got used to bringing any intact pieces of mutant beast meat to Cen An.

By now, he had accumulated over a hundred portions of mutant beast meat in his backpack.

“I’ll take it,” Cen An said. “I’ll take as much as you have. I don’t need the hides or crystal cores—just the mutant beast meat.”

The beast tide had passed, and the village’s rot had been rooted out; things would be quiet for a while. It was time to put another matter on the agenda.

Cen An wanted to activate the Ranch System.

The Ranch System has its own unique features: no matter what breed of animal is kept in the barn, they can all be fed with feed made from mutant beast meat, and they grow at an extremely fast rate.

Previously, Cen An had lacked both materials and crystal cores, but now that he had plenty of both, he naturally wanted to set up the ranch as soon as possible. Although his family had no shortage of meat, he still craved eggs and milk.

He had been deep in thought, but only a few seconds had passed. Xiao Ji had only heard him say he didn’t want crystal cores or furs and replied matter-of-factly, “That’s out of the question! Even if I agreed, Team Leader Shi wouldn’t agree! And even if Team Leader Shi agreed, the villagers wouldn’t agree either!”

Xiao Ji chuckled, “Believe it or not, the moment word gets out that you don’t want crystal cores, the little cabin will be flooded with them.” At this reminder, Cen An immediately recalled the mountain of supplies from that morning and began to worry again.

When the two arrived at the ability-users squad’s base, they indeed saw villagers lined up, collecting furs and crystal cores. Beside them, Liao Wanwan was cross-checking each claim against a list.

One villager asked, “After we get the furs and crystal cores, can we still claim Boss Cen’s items?”

Liao Wanwan smiled and replied, “Yes, everyone gets a share of the furs and crystal cores. The items are distributed based on points—you’ll only receive them if you have enough points.”

“No, no, no, that’s not what I meant,” the villager waved his hands vigorously. “I meant that if we’ve already received the furs and crystal cores, we shouldn’t take the items too. There are so many people in our village! Boss Xiao Cen is still so young—how many items could he possibly have saved up? He’s given them all to us—what’s left for him to use?”

Liao Wanwan was at a loss for words, “That won’t do. We’ve already made a deal with the villagers. Brother Cen wouldn’t go back on his word…”

The villager wasn’t having it. “Look at you, girl. Just slip a word to Young Master Cen. Tell him we don’t want their items—we’re passing on them!”

Someone nearby actually chimed in, “That makes sense. I think that’s a good idea.” 

Then someone else said, “I’m afraid that won’t work.”

The villager grew angry. “Who says it won’t work! We joined the Beast Tide for the village’s sake in the first place—and now we want their props? Do we have any dignity left? Do we…” He fell silent.

Behind him, Cen An was at a loss for words. “Young Boss Cen has already heard you. I’m afraid your plan has fallen through.”

He simply stepped over to stand next to Liao Wanwan. “Why wait for a better day? Let’s start redeeming points today. Did you bring the points record sheet?”

He was addressing Liao Wanwan, who quickly handed him another notebook.

Cen An glanced at the sheet and smiled. “Your name is Zhao Yougen, is it?” The villager approached, looking a bit awkward.

Cen An smiled. “You’ve accumulated quite a lot of points. What would you like to redeem?”

Old Zhao was still hesitant. “Young Boss Cen, we’ve taken all the gear. What are you guys going to use?”

Cen An reassured him, “We have even better gear. Did you see the equipment the ability-users squad is wearing? It offers better defense and greater mobility than what we’re giving you. As for me, my gear is even better than theirs.”

“That’s great, that’s great!” Zhao Yougen didn’t feel it was unfair at all; on the contrary, he beamed with joy. “It’s all thanks to you guys. We’ll only feel at ease knowing you’re using such high-quality gear!”

The old man finally settled on the black iron armor he’d used before and happily carried it away.

Cen An smiled. He often… no, he should say that ever since he’d been transported here, he’d been constantly moved by the people of Yongning Village.

Occasionally, he felt fortunate that he had ended up in Yongning Village right after his transmigration, rather than somewhere else. If it weren’t for these lovely villagers, he wouldn’t have been able to integrate into this world so quickly.

“Next up, is Zhang Cuilan here? What would you like to exchange?”

When Shi Long arrived, this was the scene he witnessed: the villagers lined up in two long queues, and no matter which line they were in, everyone looked overjoyed after receiving their items.

He walked to the end of the line and saw Liao Wanwan and Cen An.

Wasn’t Boss Cen supposed to come pick up the supplies? Why has the distribution already started?

“Mr. Cen must be getting impatient, right?” Team Leader Shi hurried over. “I just went to check on Old Liao, and I’m here to distribute the items to you now.”

“No rush,” Cen An greeted him with a smile. “I saw that all the villagers are here today, so I figured I’d go ahead and distribute the items while they’re here, saving them another trip.”

Shi Long nodded in understanding. He hadn’t slept much the previous night, having spent the time catching up on the village’s recent affairs. Naturally, he was aware of the point redemption system, and he thought it was an excellent system that could be implemented long-term.

Just then, a young girl of twelve or thirteen was standing in front of Cen An to collect her item. Upon hearing Shi Long’s voice, she immediately grew wary, instinctively stepping in front of Cen An. She raised the iron axe she’d just received and stared intently at Shi Long.

Three years ago, she had been only ten years old and had forgotten some of the details, but she still remembered that this Captain Shi wasn’t a good person.

Seeing Shi Long take a slight step back, Cen An, fearing he might be upset, quickly reassured the young girl: “Don’t be afraid. Captain Shi is a good person; he was just putting on a show before.”

“Oh, I see,” the little girl said, shaking her head. With her chubby, round face, she lowered the axe.

The villagers waiting in line behind her naturally heard this as well. Some had suffered under the oppressive rule of the fake Shi Long, while others had been bullied by Shi Jie and had their complaints brushed aside when they sought help—none of them had a particularly favorable impression of Shi Long.

Now, just hearing Cen An’s words, they actually believed it. Another villager said, “It really was just an act. I knew it—Captain Shi used to be a good person.”

“Right, right, right. The old Captain Shi hardly ever smiled—he looked like he was constantly annoyed. But later, he started smiling all the time, and he turned into a bad person. If it weren’t an act, how could he have changed so much!”

“Thank goodness Boss Cen spoke up; otherwise, we’d have misunderstood Captain Shi!”

“Come to think of it, just yesterday I saw Captain Shi take Shi Jie to my neighbor’s house to apologize. They even paid compensation, saying Shi Jie had knocked over his stall three years ago. Shi Jie himself had forgotten about it, but Captain Shi still remembered.”

“Now that’s the kind of captain our ability-users squad needs… Captain Shi’s had it rough these past three years. Acting must be exhausting, right?” 

“Um, speaking of which, doesn’t anyone wonder who he’s acting for?”

“Of course it’s for the bad guys. Haven’t you heard that some bad guys snuck into the village before? I heard they’ve been hiding in an empty house for two or three years!” 

“Good heavens, that’s terrifying…”

To avoid causing unnecessary panic among the villagers, the ability-users squad did not disclose anything about mind control or possessed individuals; they simply said that some bad guys had infiltrated the village and had been dealt with.

As for the rest, it was all the villagers’ own imagination. One could only say that the villagers of Yongning Village had vivid imaginations—their guesses were actually pretty close to the truth. As Cen An listened to their stories getting more and more outlandish, he glanced at Captain Shi with a hint of apology.

Shi Long didn’t mind, though he found the whole situation both amusing and exasperating. As the deputy captain of the ability-users squad, he now found himself in a position where a young outsider had to prove whether he was good or bad.

It just goes to show that the villagers of Yongning Village have their own sense of justice; they know full well who’s good to them and who isn’t.

After distributing equipment and tools to the villagers, Cen An collected his own supplies, which Shi Long had personally handed out to him.

This was an extremely generous reward: 20,000 crystal cores, 400 hides, various materials from mutant beasts (such as spider silk), and 14,500 units of mutant beast meat x14,506.

Mr. Cen’s eyes widened instantly. Could this be some kind of under-the-table deal? Had the ability-users squad given him half of their supplies?