Noon.

Ning Zheng was still browsing through various detailed intelligence on the forum, thinking about how to exploit that group of prisoners.

Su Yuniang and Ning Jiaojiao came back in a hurry, cooking and making dishes.

"Brother, don't touch that cart of Spirit Rice in the yard, it's brought back by Sister Su Yuniang from the mountain." Ning Jiaojiao shouted.

Ning Zheng peered out and saw a big cart at the courtyard gate, loaded with grains.

It seemed to be ready to transport to the prison storage.

During this time, the blacksmiths up at the manor have been hoarding quite a bit of Shadow Rice Wine Spirit Rice, just in time to send it to the prison as food for the inmates.

"Got it." Ning Zheng sat down to eat.

"In the future, the daily consumption of the manor is expected to increase! The Spirit Rice produced on the mountain has to be supplied to the prison."

While eating, Su Yuniang discussed with Ning Jiaojiao.

Ning Jiaojiao, as a little prison ward, analyzed:

"I explained to them, working here won't let them go hungry, they'll eat and drink to their fill... Our village is a harmonious and loving big family."

"Exactly, exactly."

Su Yuniang said:

"They are prison guards, not prisoners, members of our village, recently settled, just like Aunt Li, Aunt Wang, Uncle Li next door, as well as Axe Brother, who came during Red Sun festivities, they are all neighbors, our own people."

Ning Zheng listened quietly while eating, hearing them talk about the prison.

Indeed, can't starve them.

All energy doesn't come from nowhere.

If you don't feed them well, weak as they are, even if they have mental poison, they can't produce much of anything.

So, every day must eat and drink well to prevent enemy invasions.

Besides.

Ghosts, these things, when well-fed, certain potential individuals will slowly grow, becoming more fierce, stronger, turning into fierce ghosts, even becoming Ghost Kings.

This has cultivation value!

Since choosing to take root and raise them, then raise them well.

Live well like other ghost villagers in the manor today.

Don't let them starve and use all sorts of odd miscellanies to fill the body of the soul bubble.

However, the village downhill has grown by another two thousand people.

The manor's daily expenses are also getting larger and larger.

Once finding the meat fields of the Four Viscera Realm, let the Five-Body Realm Crow King meat field be used by the prison side.

Not just rice, some meat is ultimately good.

Improve the prison meals!

Even, have to think of ways to fight a few Five-Body Realm Great Perfection, Four Viscera Realm Great Perfection Demon Beasts, make them into meat fields.

Otherwise, can't keep up with meals!

Now, it's not three people using one meat field, it's two thousand people using it.

Must open up a "Terraced Field Area," plant dozens of meat fields to sustain consumption like a family's farming strategy.

Best to use a few Demon Beasts' souls, make scarecrows to guard meat fields, so those heavenly crows and bird Demon Beasts don't come down to steal food.

Just like on Earth, without scarecrows to drive away, those birds could ruin your paddy fields into a mess.

"A bit troublesome."

"Well, creating a force is like this."

Ning Zheng sighed, knowing it's the pioneering stage; once these people's meal issues are settled, there won't be much to worry about later.

He decides next time when Shi Youyou merchants come, let the blacksmiths hint at:

How to kill Demon Beasts, make meat fields.

The location has also been planned, on the mountainside, open a "Terraced Field Area."

Cannot open within the manor, let those simple-minded blacksmiths near, or who knows what they might do to the meat fields.

After eating, Su Yuniang laughed:

"We're going out, Brother, do you want to come with us to the prison, it's boring to be cultivating inside all day?"

"Just right, we're very busy, an extra person's an extra helper, the prison lacks staff now."

She blinked, hinting: "There are lots and lots of beauties... a kind of Cao's fun, you might not understand, let me introduce what is Weiwu's Legacy..."

Ning Zheng's forehead darkened with lines.

This person is as sleazy as Jiucai Rong...

Resolutely not accepting the seduction, I'm a person of pure love.

"Indeed." Ning Jiaojiao, however, is much more serious, "There are many new neighbors in our village, and two thousand more in the manor, it's good to get to know them."

Ning Zheng still shook his head and refused, watching them leave.

They greeted villagers along the way, very familiar, gradually departing.

And not long after they left, Ning Zheng disguised himself as the old steward, heading to the prison.

The villagers downstairs now number only a few tens of thousands, still surrounding the whole mountain, sparsely distributed across various villages.

Now, suddenly having over two thousand more, making the largest settlement.

Ning Zheng knows that as development continues, the population of surrounding villages will become larger.

Even those believers will gradually become compliant, able to wander around near the villages.

Next year's New Year Market, with these two thousand joining in, setting up stalls and markets, will surely be livelier.

And put on the black-stocking attire Su Yuniang is researching recently, saying it's dressed to match their manor aesthetics.

Black stockings, high heels, long legs, prison guard uniform (air hostess version).

These two thousand maids will become one of the manor's permanent residents, making next year's New Year Market a very pleasing "air hostess" scenery.

The whole manor area will welcome a new "minority ethnic style" beyond the Wine Rice Miao Race.

Ning Zheng doesn't mind this.

Because in this land, various minority groups, exotic costumes, even some sects have unique decorations.

Some ancient Holy Lands have directly formed an independent tribal culture with a history of tens of thousands of years, possessing their own customs and culture.

Ning Zheng feels his tribal customs are okay; compared to Earth's two-thousand-year ethnic customs and costumes, they are not much against those of tens of thousands of years.

Ning Zheng felt appreciative in his heart, feeling very pleasant.

"I, as the manor lord, have more and more subjects under me, life is getting better day by day."

...

...

Half an hour later.

Ning Zheng walked around and finally arrived at the prison, seeing the giant high surrounding walls from afar, very imposing.

With a high sign hanging.

[Demon Suppression Tower]

As Ning Zheng walked through the gate, Embers Su Yuniang was already organizing people to work.

Seeing the figure of the old steward, suddenly came up, delighted:

"Steward sir, what brings you here? Welcome to visit! The first floor hasn't been constructed yet, it's just a huge ring."

Embers Su Yuniang was very elegant, like a salesperson, briefly introduced the building's shape,

"But for now, the first floor is sufficient; when the prisoners increase later we'll start building the second floor, build layer by layer, forming a tall tower."

Walk into the prison.

Li Zhenzhen leads a group of female prisoners in building houses, laying bricks, and moving blocks.

The cells here are made of special materials, extremely sturdy, with the ability to restrain cultivation and isolate mana.

It's more than enough to detain ordinary Five-Body Realm individuals.

The previous prison had always detained people this way without issue, showing its practicality.

Seeing all these free cells, Ning Zheng thought the material cost was truly worth it.

In the future, imprisoning those low-tier ghosts would be a sure thing.

"This is the advantage of having connections."

"Inheriting the Demon Cultivator circle's network, they won't trick you. The maids and materials bought are all genuinely valuable goods."

In the distance.

A mailbox has been put up, ready to communicate with the one on the mountain, and later recruit personnel for mail delivery.

Moreover.

Su Yuniang is having them register information of individuals, and some female ghosts are learning to draw stamp designs.

This place has already become a budding craft workshop.

After all, the previous prison already had a labor area, and these female convicts were used to this kind of work.

Some villagers are also helping build the prison and chatting with the female prisoners, both sides getting along quite well.

Clearly, they all warmly welcome this new batch of villagers.

However, at this time, those female ghosts seemed to hear Ning Jiaojiao speaking from afar and blushed shyly.

"We're all married and have done time, yet they might still be interested in us?"

"Yeah, even if we throw ourselves at them, they wouldn't want us, thinking we have a criminal record..."

"But they are noble blacksmiths with skills, cultivators in the clouds, while we're mortals..."

The female ghosts chattered away.

They didn't realize they were dead, thinking those mountain people had such good conditions, too good to imagine, and could still be interested in them?

They still longed for a beautiful life.

Their desires were simple and modest.

Ning Zheng sighed; every time she saw this kind of scene, she felt an indescribable emotion.

They maintained their obsessions from life, longing for dreams... repeating the logic from their past lives.

They were merely the final messages left by the deceased.

Even though they had killed their own children, in outsiders' eyes, they could be described as cruel, bloody women, even neighbors pointed and mocked.

But how can this world be judged simply in black and white?

More often, it is a refined gray.

Ning Zheng didn't think much of it and took out a faceless statue cast from Magic Coins:

"I have a task for you, have the No-Life Sect followers here worship this statue daily, offering their... beliefs."

Embers Su Yuniang was stunned.

This is a hidden task!

She didn't understand the point of worshiping this thing.

But it didn't stop her from loudly accepting: "Report, I guarantee to complete the task."

Ning Zheng nodded: "Go ahead!"

Jiucai Rong and Su Yuniang both had incredibly strong initiative.

Su Yuniang immediately started organizing people, indicating they should worship the Mother of Non-Life statue.

The followers seemed to be accustomed to worshiping statues for years, making things much simpler for Ning Zheng than expected.

They hesitated for a while and then accepted.

Two thousand No-Life Sect followers, two hundred beast-eared ladies, and a hundred demon beasts stood in the prison square.

They began to pray.

"Please offer your Qi Fortune and life, praise the Mother of Non-Life."

-2

-2

-2

...

Everyone has resistances; if you take away one or two Fortune points, they might not care.

Taking a large amount of Fortune will threaten their life, which instinctively resists.

Thus, large-scale collective extraction can only be -2.

To extract more Qi Fortune from someone, Ning Zheng must conduct targeted individual trades and absorption.

For example, a fifty Magic Coins item which induced the blacksmith's suicide, increasing Embers by taking his Fortune to 0, was such a targeted individual extraction.

It isn't easily popularized.

Ning Zheng never planned on popularizing it.

Since extracting individually through trades isn't much different from previous deceitful exchanges, it wastes time, risks exposure, and has low cost-effectiveness.

Furthermore, leaving 8 Fortune points still keeps them within the range of a normal person, able to work and move, which is a highly cost-effective range.

After all, they came to the manor to have fun; if their Fortune points are too low, shrouded by bad luck, failing at everything, they'd be unable to move at all.

Soon.

The extraction from two thousand people was complete.

[+4000 Qi Fortune Value]

Clearly, only those 2000 No-Life Sect followers truly agreed to the transaction.

The two hundred beast-eared ladies and one hundred demon beasts were just pretending to pray among the crowd, thinking of the No-Life Sect as some wicked cult...

Ning Zheng had long expected this.

The logic of the ghosts' actions was fixed.

Not believing in cults during life, so they wouldn't believe in them in death... these beast-eared ladies and demon beasts had no value for harvesting.

Yet, even so, obtaining from these 2000 No-Life Sect followers...

"I can get 4000 Fortune points every day!" Ning Zheng was momentarily stunned.

It's incredible.

His 1000 blacksmiths only contributed 2000 points a day.

He was nearly overwhelmed with happiness, quickly spending 1000 daily Fortune points for himself to avert disasters.

[Today's Daily Fortune Value: 1850]

Only then he sighed in relief.

Without adding points to suppress it, he couldn't be at ease with this sudden windfall.

If not suppressed, opportunities could turn into disasters!

"From now on, I get a daily Fortune of 1850."

Ning Zheng grinned.

Even with extracting 25% profit for daily consumption, he'd magically have 3000 extra Fortune points in the future.

With a daily Fortune of 4500 points, I'm soaring skyward!

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