The village chief seemed to notice Zhang Wei's unease and said, "Don't worry, we won't report you. You defeated those fighters and really gave us a morale boost."
"Do you have a bad relationship with these fighters?" Zhang Wei didn't lower his guard.
The village chief then explained that this area originally belonged to Dionysus, with a system of one harvest per year and a tax of one-fifteenth of the produce.
However, for some unknown reason, this territory and many surrounding villages became Athena's domain. It was said that many territories of other gods were also ceded to Athena.
Since the change in the presiding deity, the land tax had increased year by year. Over fifty years, the tax had risen from one-fifteenth to five-fifteenths.
A full half of the harvest became tribute.
But that wasn't the worst of it. The officials responsible for tax collection, namely these Bronze Saints, would compete with each other to please the goddess based on the ingredients they collected.
They unilaterally changed the tax system from a proportional draw to a fixed amount. To meet this figure, villages could only submit their stored grain, and sometimes even had to sell their property to complete the task.
Cultivation work was also something they dared not slacken in the slightest.
The fixed amount increased year by year, leading to no rest periods for the land, depleting its fertility, and reducing yields.
Finally, no matter how diligently they worked, they couldn't prevent the decline in production.
Thus, the destruction of the village was only a matter of time.
Zhang Wei clicked his tongue. Wasn't this just a variation of exorbitant taxes and levies? He hadn't expected that even in the Olympian divine realm, ordinary people faced such difficult lives, just like in the mortal world.
The village chief said, "You should leave quickly. If you can leave the Olympian divine realm, perhaps there's a chance of survival."
"If staying here means certain death, I can take you all with me."
The village chief gave a wry smile, "If we could leave, who would want to stay here and be oppressed? But if you have the capability, take a few children with you. They are innocent."
"Perhaps, I can take all of you."
"What!"
...
Half a day later, another Saint arrived at Phoenicia Village.
He frowned, seeing the smoke rising into the sky.
"This is Kaklo's territory, isn't it? What is that guy doing?"
With a wave of his hand, the vast wildfire was extinguished.
However, there seemed to be no human remains.
"Desertion... Heh heh, how foolish!"
"Pyxis!"
Indeed, this was also a Bronze Saint of Pyxis.
According to the classification, there was only one Gold Saint for each constellation of the Twelve Houses of the Zodiac.
The 29 constellations of the northern sky belonged to the Silver rank, with the power of each constellation shared by ten individuals, meaning there were a total of 290 Silver Saints.
The 47 constellations of the southern sky were similar, with 4700 Bronze Saints.
And Pyxis was one of the 47 constellations of the southern sky.
But!
The Bronze Saint of Pyxis was then stunned. The tens of thousands of villagers here had left no trace. The compass indicated that everyone seemed to have disappeared from the center of the square!
Weird!
"This matter must be reported!"
Meanwhile, on the other side, Zhang Wei had already traveled about ten thousand kilometers, seeking a place to hide.
Entering the left side hall!
As soon as he entered, tens of thousands of Phoenician villagers lay sprawled on the ground, as if dead.
Zhang Wei lit a spirit-awakening incense on the side, which finally allowed them to recover and wake up.
Zhang Wei said, "From today on, you will be working in a different place. I can't guarantee anything else here, but at least your food will be sufficient!"
These Olympian commoners possessed relatively good bloodlines, and integrating them as laborers was a profitable endeavor.
Afterward, Zhang Wei also managed to extract intelligence from them and soon arrived at Dionysus's Wine Island!
Leaving a marker at Nuangang, Zhang Wei went ahead and arrived at a place somewhat inferior to the mortal world, the former Wine Chaos Island!
As soon as he landed, the rich aroma of wine wafted towards him.
The produce here was hard to find in the mortal world, but Zhang Wei's newly trained Gourmet Hunters were quite capable. With an average combat power of level 70, they could easily reach this island without facing any threats.
"Principal!"
As soon as he flew over, he heard someone below calling him.
Soon, three to five people emerged from the woods. Their clothing indicated they were Gourmet Hunters who had recently graduated.
Zhang Wei mused, "Jia Quan?"
Jia Quan was excited, "You still remember my name!"
"Of course, your outstanding performance during training is something I've always remembered. I hope you will be as impressive in actual combat as you were back then."
Jia Quan was a favored disciple of the whale-man Gang Tu. He not only learned Gang Tu's skill in crafting various items but also possessed cellular talent far exceeding Gang Tu's. Moreover, his imaginative ideas were even praised by Gang Tu.
Zhang Wei had once considered having Jia Quan and Gang Tu establish a research department, but Jia Quan had said that truly useful technology was always summarized bit by bit from practical combat. Without capturing ingredients on the front lines, one wouldn't know what the Gourmet Hunters on the front lines needed, nor could one create the most suitable equipment.
"Why are you here? Collecting ingredients?"
Jia Quan replied, "Yes, Wine Chaos Island is a famous ingredient production area with excellent quality. We didn't dare to come before due to our insufficient strength. After our special training, we rushed here."
"Hmm, you've traveled quite far."
"Then Principal, why are you here on Wine Chaos Island?"
After all, with Zhang Wei's status, he could simply give an order, so why would he come in person?
There must be something very valuable hidden here.
Zhang Wei pondered for a moment, "Indeed, it's quite interesting. If I obtain it, I'll give you a portion. It should be very beneficial for exploring Wine Chaos Island."
Jia Quan was excited, "Then Principal, can you take us with you? Don't worry, we definitely won't hold you back."
For these trainees, Zhang Wei was their idol. To search for ingredients alongside him would be a great honor as a Gourmet Hunter!
An extremely high honor.
Jia Quan's subordinates were also excited. If they could accompany Zhang Wei, it would be something worth bragging about when drinking with their peers.
"Alright."