Chapter 121: Villagers Have a Taste for Soft Bones

"I have an objection..."

Zhang Zhenye raised his hand weakly, but unfortunately, no one paid him any mind.

With his biological father present, he—who wasn't even a stepfather, but merely in a dating relationship with Chen Biqin—obviously had no say in the matter. The twins stood at the back of the crowd, their faces full of indignation. Yet, when faced with their own father, no matter how unreliable he usually was, they dared not step forward at a time like this. They knew the village chief would surely accuse them of being unfilial and failing to respect their own parent.

It wasn't that the village chief and the others truly held Yu Yongde in high regard, but rather that at a time like this, only by letting Yu Yongde handle the distribution of the spirit beast meat could they achieve the best result. Yu Yongde’s "goody-two-shoes" nature and his reluctance to offend anyone were his most useful traits for ensuring the majority of the villagers left satisfied.

"What is everyone chatting about? It’s so lively here."

Just as the argument reached a stalemate, a cold, indifferent voice rang out.

Lou Yuhui, Yu Wei, Yu Rui, and the siblings Yu Wenjing and Yu Wenmin all beamed with joy. "Sister Yan!" "Big sister!" "Sister!"

The twins' eyes sparkled as they flocked to Yu Yan, eagerly recounting everything that had been said.

In truth, Yu Yan had already heard the gist of it from outside. However, she acted as if hearing it for the first time, waiting until they finished before frowning in surprise. "It seems everyone is very fond of the spirit beasts I brought back? But I'm sorry, I have already made up my mind on how the meat should be divided."

The implication was clear: you have spent the entire night arguing over nothing.

The village chief’s face darkened instantly. "Girl, although you killed the spirit beasts, theoretically, I have no right to speak up—"

"Since the village chief knows I killed them, that's great!" Yu Yan raised an eyebrow with a mocking smile. "I thought no one here had any sense of reality. Yuhui, what is going on with you?"

"Huh?" Lou Yuhui was dumbfounded. How could this be his fault?

Yu Yan continued, unhurriedly, "You barely acknowledged me as your leader, yet you can't even guard your leader’s property? Is this how you act as my subordinate? And you, Xiao Wei, Xiao Rui, Wenjing, and Wenmin."

"I gave you seventh-grade spirit beast meat, enough to turn you into third-grade ability enhancers."

"What’s the matter? When others try to snatch my meat, are you all dead? You listened to them debate how to divide my spoils for an entire night and didn't lift a finger."

"I am very disappointed in you!"

"If I had known, I should have fed that meat to the dogs; it would have been better than feeding it to you lot."

After the scolding, the group hung their heads in shame.

Lou Yuhui, in particular, looked as if he wanted to bury his head in his own lap. But he soon realized, *Wait, this isn't like Sister Yan!* She had already said the eight carcasses were theirs to do with as they pleased. Why would she suddenly jump out to assert ownership?

*Ah, I see.* Sister Yan must have come out to stand up for them because she couldn't bear to see them being bullied!

Realizing this, Lou Yuhui lifted his head. "Sister Yan, I was wrong." He no longer felt the hesitation he had felt when facing the village chief and Yu Yongde. He drew the soft sword from his waist, spun it in a flourish, and struck a combat pose.

"I trust everyone has had enough to eat and drink? It's time to disperse."

"The carcasses belong to my sister. She knows how they should be divided. If anyone has any more complaints, feel free to take it up with the sword in my hand!"

With Lou Yuhui setting the example, the others knew exactly what to do. One by one, they channeled their earth-element energy and lined up behind him.

"...You!" The village chief’s face turned livid, but he dared not be as bossy as before. Lou Yuhui’s sword was no toy; even without the spirit meat, he could easily handle eight or ten men like the chief. The chief shoved Yu Yongde hard. "Are you dead? Watching your eldest daughter bully us like this and not daring to say a word?"

Yu Yongde’s lips trembled, and he nearly burst into tears. *What does this have to do with me?* From start to finish, he was just a bystander hoping for a share of the meat.

No matter how you looked at it, he was Yu Yan’s biological father—surely he deserved a few pieces? He had never intended to make decisions for her; wasn't all of this just the village chief’s own wishful thinking? But he still had to live in this village.

He glanced at the village chief’s ugly expression, then at his daughter, who seemed completely different from before the dungeon worlds had descended. The murderous aura she exuded suggested she had killed many high-level monsters! Even before the world changed, his eldest daughter had always been strong-willed. As a father, his word had never carried much weight.

Yu Yongde’s legs shook, but he gathered his courage and stepped forward. "Well... Yan'er, look, the village chief is the village chief, after all. We should give him some face. Besides, you have eight carcasses; giving them two or three wouldn't hurt, right?"

"Dad, you make a fair point!"

Yu Yongde’s face lit up with hope.

"But even a landlord doesn't have much surplus grain. Look, I just took on one, two, three... five subordinates. Then there’s Xiao Wan and Xiao Lei, my own brother and sister. And you and Mom need to be taken care of. These eight carcasses are just enough to push the nine of you to the Profound Grade."

"If I give away even a few, there won't be enough."

"But since you asked... sigh, I'm in such a dilemma."

Yu Yan mused for a moment. "How about this: I’ll just give your share—the majority of one carcass—to the villagers instead?"

Yu Yongde: "..."

*So, out of the eight carcasses, the majority of one was prepared for him? Enough to push his cultivation to the Profound Grade?* That would mean he could walk around E-rank dungeons with ease! Yu Yongde’s heart raced. But then he realized: if Yu Yan gave his share to all the villagers, how much meat would he actually get? Yu Yongde wasn't happy about that.

But as he looked up, he saw the village chief and his group surrounding him. A dozen pairs of eager eyes were fixed on him... *What was happening? Why were they all coming for him?*

Little did he know, none of the villagers were fools.

Yu Yan and her group were clearly not to be trifled with! Before she arrived, Lou Yuhui and the others had restrained themselves out of respect for Yu Yongde and the ties between Yu Yan and the village. They had tolerated the chief's antics because they feared upsetting her. The chief and his cronies knew this well. They had even used Yu Yongde as a pawn to intimidate Lou Yuhui and the others, who had been on the verge of fighting back.

Who would have thought that Yu Yan, who should have been fighting for her life in an S-rank dungeon, would appear in the ancestral hall and openly take sides? With her there, what more did Lou Yuhui and his friends have to fear?

If the villagers kept badgering them, they might end up with holes in their bodies from Lou Yuhui’s sword. Even if Lou Yuhui held back, the cousins Yu Wei and Yu Rui were known for their short tempers and penchant for brawling. Their earth-spike and earth-arrow abilities were lethal... *Forget it.* They were just soft-skinned villagers, not even first-grade enhancers; they couldn't afford to provoke them! Trying to chew on those hard bones would only lead to trouble.

Yu Yongde, however, was a much softer target...