"How about them? Two young women, and both are quite good-looking."
"Those who dare to come out like this now are probably not to be trifled with, right?"
"It's not like we're going, so... won't they come?"
"It's probably still early, the previous two women shouldn't have... yet!" Kuaishuge
"It's just... they aren't from our village, after all!"
"Who cares! As long as it's a girl, it's fine! It doesn't have to be from our village..."
"As long as it's not mine, I don't care whose it is!"
The four demons were busy gathering information, keeping their eyes and ears open, when suddenly the door of the house behind them opened. "Little girls, come in quickly, it's not safe outside so late!" an old woman said to them with concern.
Seeing this, the four demons smiled, thanked her, and entered.
Before entering, they faintly heard those people saying, "Old Mrs. Zhang is meddling again!"
Candles were lit inside, and in the dim candlelight, it could be seen that the family's financial situation was not good. However, the house appeared to be well-organized. Judging by the furniture and layout, there should be more than one person in this household, but strangely, only Old Mrs. Zhang was at home now.
"You can rest here tonight, and leave first thing in the morning!" Old Mrs. Zhang brought them some food. "We don't have much else to eat. These two flatbreads and some water will have to do!"
"Thank you, Grandma!" They took the food and thanked her, but they all tacitly avoided touching her flatbreads.
After all, the family's condition was clearly not good. Since they were demons, they could probably endure a couple more days of hunger without wasting Old Mrs. Zhang's food.
"Grandma, why does it feel a bit strange here, and why have all the houses closed their doors so early?" Tao Yaoyao asked while drinking water.
"They close early because Ah Si and Ah Liu often wander around after dark. If they set their sights on you, you'll be in trouble," Old Mrs. Zhang replied, weaving a fishing net.
"Ah Si? Ah Liu? Who are they? Are they very bad?" Tao Yaoyao asked again.
"Alas~ this is a long story..." Old Mrs. Zhang stopped her work, sat down beside them, and began to tell them the untold stories of "Baling Bay."
"Baling Bay" was by the sea, and the land was not fertile, so most of the people here made a living by catching aquatic products. They fished here, then sold them in other villages, exchanging them for necessities. They had lived like this for generations.
However, about two years ago, for some unknown reason, the fishermen here could no longer catch any living things from the water.
When the villagers of "Baling Bay" were at a loss and starving, a great immortal named "Turtle Immortal" suddenly appeared. The great immortal cast a spell on the waters, and the villagers could fish again. However, the spell only lasted for three days, and on the fourth day, everything returned to its original state of being unable to catch anything.
The villagers of "Baling Bay" went to seek the "Turtle Immortal" again, hoping he would help them once more. But the "Turtle Immortal" said his powers were insufficient and he needed the villagers' help.
The help required was to send two young women to the "Turtle Immortal's" place every six months to help him cultivate, and in return, he would ensure that the fishermen could successfully catch fish, shrimp, crabs, and other aquatic products for the next six months.
He never said how the women would help the "Turtle Immortal" cultivate, and the villagers dared not ask. They all knew in their hearts that none of the women sent over during this time had ever returned.
Since no one who was sent had ever returned, the villagers naturally were unwilling to send their own daughters. So the village chief stepped forward and said that any family who voluntarily sent their eligible daughters to help the "Turtle Immortal" cultivate would have the remaining family members' food and other necessities taken care of by the entire village, ensuring a lifetime of sustenance.
With this measure, there were indeed families who sacrificed their children for the sake of their remaining children's survival. However, such families were few, and most villagers were still unwilling.
Old Mrs. Zhang wiped away tears as she spoke, "We thought this couldn't go on, that we were just waiting to die! So my old man took our son Ah Wang to venture out, hoping to find a way for us to survive elsewhere. They left us their remaining dry food, asking me and our daughter Yan Yan to wait at home for their good news. Who would have thought that less than a month after they left, it was time to send the young women? The villagers, seeing that we had no men at home, threatened and cajoled their way into taking Yan Yan... My poor Yan Yan..."
The demons looked at Old Mrs. Zhang, who was weeping with her face buried in her hands, and felt sad for her.
"Ah San and Ah Liu, mentioned earlier, are the Turtle Immortal's two subordinates. They sometimes wander into our village after sunset. If they see a girl with some looks still outside at this hour, they will report it to the Turtle Immortal. Then the Turtle Immortal will specifically name the women he has scouted, and they will be taken away whether they are willing or not," Old Mrs. Zhang continued, sniffing.
"What immortal? I think he's fake! Immortals are supposed to be ethereal and benevolent, with compassion. How could they do such a thing?" Tao Yaoyao said indignantly, "This is simply tarnishing the reputation of immortals, it's too detestable. Brother Jiao, we must help the villagers catch this villain."
"My lady, you mustn't!" Old Mrs. Zhang quickly stopped her. "Although the Turtle Immortal is terrible, the villagers of Baling Bay rely on his spells to fish for survival!"
"Don't worry, Grandma. We can go to the water area first to understand the situation and see what's causing it, then think of a way to restore the normal fishing environment for everyone," Bai Qiushui (Xiao Wenqiang) said comfortingly.
"Alas... you should leave tomorrow morning as soon as possible! Perhaps Ah San and Ah Liu have already seen you outside while you were there tonight. Five days from now is the time to send young women to the Turtle Immortal. If he specifically asks for the two of you girls, it will be troublesome," Old Mrs. Zhang still disagreed, looking at these four who were not very old, fearing they might not be able to leave here alive.
"You don't need to worry about us, Grandma, we're not so easily bullied. We'll go to the water's edge tomorrow to take a look, is that okay?" Although Tao Yaoyao was asking for an opinion, she had already made up her mind.
As expected, Jiao Long agreed again, "Okay, Yaoyao, we'll listen to you."
Bai Qiushui (Xiao Wenqiang) secretly rolled her eyes in her heart, scolding the other party as a "simp." However, this time she also agreed. After all, Old Mrs. Zhang was a good person, and they should help if they could.
As for Yan Qinghuai, no one cared about his opinion at all.
The next morning, the four demons arrived at the water's edge. During the day, there were still villagers fishing. They checked several times but found nothing unusual.