The voices outside grew louder.
Lin Tian stepped out of his room and walked down the wooden stairs of the guest house. Inside, Old Master Zhang had also heard the disturbance and was standing near the doorway, looking outside with concern.
"What's happening?" Lin Tian asked calmly.
Zhang Wei frowned slightly as he watched the commotion near the village entrance.
"Probably tax collectors," the old man muttered quietly. "They come every few months."
Lin Tian said nothing but followed the old man outside.
The morning calm of the village had disappeared.
Several villagers stood nervously near the well while the armored riders had gathered in the center of the road. There were five of them in total. Their horses were large and well-fed, clearly belonging to a powerful group.
The man leading them looked to be around forty years old.
A short scar ran across his cheek, and his sharp eyes carried a cold expression as he examined the villagers.
He stepped forward and spoke loudly.
"Listen carefully," he said. "We are here on behalf of the **Iron Ridge City authorities. The annual grain tax must be paid today."
The villagers exchanged uneasy glances.
One of the older farmers slowly stepped forward.
"Sir," the farmer said respectfully, bowing slightly. "We already paid the tax two months ago. The collector from Iron Ridge City took the grain himself."
The scar-faced man's expression did not change.
"That collector was replaced," he replied coldly. "The new administration requires all villages in this region to pay again."
Murmurs spread through the crowd.
The villagers clearly understood what was happening.
This was not an official order.
It was extortion.
But no one dared to say it aloud.
The farmer lowered his head.
"Sir… our harvest was not good this year. If we give more grain now, our families will not survive the winter."
The scarred man laughed harshly.
"That is not my concern."
He stepped closer to the farmer and grabbed the man's collar.
"If the tax is not paid, we will take whatever valuables we find."
The villagers became even more anxious.
Some of the younger men clenched their fists, but they did not dare move. The armored riders clearly had weapons and combat training.
Against ordinary farmers, they held complete power.
Lin Tian stood quietly near the edge of the crowd.
His expression remained calm as he observed the situation.
From a purely analytical perspective, the outcome was obvious.
The villagers were weak.
The riders had weapons and authority.
In most civilizations, such imbalances led to exploitation.
Still, Lin Tian continued watching.
At that moment, something else caught his attention.
One of the riders standing slightly behind the leader released a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy.
Lin Tian's perception immediately focused on him.
"A cultivator," he thought.
The energy was extremely weak compared to what Lin Tian had encountered in cosmic structures.
But within this village, it was significant.
The man was likely at the very beginning stage of cultivation.
Still, that alone made him far stronger than ordinary humans.
Which explained the riders' confidence.
The scar-faced leader turned toward the villagers again.
"I will give you one hour," he announced. "Gather the grain or valuables. If you refuse…"
He rested his hand on the sword at his waist.
"…we will collect it ourselves."
Fear spread through the crowd.
Several villagers whispered to each other desperately.
Old Master Zhang sighed beside Lin Tian.
"This happens too often," the old man said quietly. "Powerful cities squeeze the small villages. We cannot fight them."
Lin Tian remained silent for a moment.
Then he spoke calmly.
"How far is Iron Ridge City from here?"
Zhang Wei looked surprised by the question.
"About three days by horse," he replied.
Lin Tian nodded slightly.
So this group likely operated far from their main authority.
Meaning they had little oversight.
Which meant their behavior could be more… flexible.
Meanwhile, the armored riders had dismounted and were waiting near the well, clearly expecting the villagers to obey.
One of the younger villagers suddenly stepped forward angrily.
"We can't keep giving them everything!" he shouted.
Before anyone could stop him, he rushed toward the riders.
The cultivator among them moved instantly.
He barely lifted a hand.
A small burst of spiritual energy struck the young villager in the chest.
The young man was thrown backward and crashed into the dirt road.
Gasps spread through the crowd.
The cultivator sneered.
"Pathetic," he said. "You insects should learn your place."
The injured villager groaned in pain.
At that moment, Lin Tian finally moved.
He stepped forward slowly.
His footsteps were calm and steady.
The riders noticed him immediately.
The scar-faced leader narrowed his eyes.
"And who are you?" he demanded.
Lin Tian stopped a few meters away.
"I'm simply a traveler," he replied calmly.
The leader looked him up and down.
"Well, traveler," the man said with a mocking grin, "this matter doesn't concern you. Walk away if you want to keep your life."
Lin Tian glanced briefly at the injured villager on the ground.
Then he looked back at the riders.
His expression remained completely neutral.
"You should leave this village," he said.
The words were spoken softly.
But the entire crowd heard them.
For a moment, silence filled the road.
Then the riders burst into laughter.
The cultivator stepped forward, his eyes cold.
"You're either very brave," he said, "or very stupid."
He released another wave of spiritual energy.
To the villagers, the pressure felt overwhelming.
But Lin Tian simply stood there.
The energy reached him—
And disappeared as if it had never existed.
The cultivator's expression froze.
"What…?"
Lin Tian took one more step forward.
For the first time, the riders felt something strange.
The air around them seemed unnaturally calm.
Lin Tian looked at them quietly.
"I will repeat myself," he said.
"You should leave."
This time, there was no mockery in the silence that followed.
Something about the traveler had suddenly become… terrifying.
And none of them understood why.