Bai Qi could only hide a disappointed smile as he saw how the enslaved people from the village expressions changed as soon as they saw Ma Su behind him.

He did not hold it against them anyway, as none of them were genuine cultivators, just simple people with the innate cultivation that came along the planar limits. Still, Bai Qi felt that the ability to separate rights from wrongs was the measure for one's character, and seemingly, all the villagers lacked it. And what he did hate was how they feigned happiness for his return after showing displeasure.

Bai Qi suppressed the wish to shout at them and nodded in greeting as a response to the fake welcome and thanks coming from the 42 gathered people.

Bai Qi thought with a pleasant surprise, as he found that two didn't glare at him, and in place, arrived near his side as soon as he stopped. And while having two girls pull at his sleeves wasn't something that he enjoyed, he did like that they overcame at least part of their trauma to approach him.

Bai Qi shook his head and then cleared his mind from everything except his current task.

Like it or not, he was the one to kill the slavers, and now the enslaved people were his responsibility.

***

The [Restraining Collars] used by the [Sha Zhu Company] weren't good quality. In truth, they were absolute trash made of non-spiritual copper and a few additions of low-tier Spirit ore. They did work as intended, but actually, breaking them carried neither risk nor danger for both breaker and user. Something that could never be allowed in a [Restraining Collar], in which tracking and counter break measures were always a must.

Thus, he had no problem breaking them. In fact, any of them could have done it before, even with basic tools, if they had not feared their captors so much. The problem that Bai Qi faced was different, the lack of enough low-tier pills to make all the gathered people recuperate. And while he did not care a lot about their cultivation, Bai Qi did consider that making it right was a must.

"I only have a single bottle of qi restoration pills meant for cultivators of the Yellow Realm. Thus, if I break your collars, only 15 of you will be able to restore their cultivations right away." He explained as he met the questioning gaze of a few women whose collars he examined.

"And what will happen to the ones that don't get a pill?" Pang asked while inwardly being grateful for being kept out of this.

"A bet." Bai Qi responded shortly but, seeing the lack of understanding in the surrounding eyes, added, "Either they manage to absorb qi from outside to restart their cultivation, or it remains still. In the latter case, no cultivation at all will be possible."

A few moments later, a dozen shouts entered his ears, but all of them could be resumed in either of two. "Give me a pill!" or "The strongest first!"

Bai Qi almost scowled in response as the thought about why he even bothered with them passed through his mind. Only four people had remained silent and accepted whatever fate would follow. Bai Qi looked at the woman that had tried to bow and at a man that had been the only one, to not show any reaction to Ma Su's presence,

{Most of our targets were of the Yellow Realm, maybe they have qi restoring pills in their storage and holding treasures?} Slightly unsure, and after waiting for a few moments, Ye Su still asked Bai Qi.

{I am sure they have, and I planned to search. Still, I wanted to confirm their reaction, to decide what to do next.} Bai Qi responded via transmission as well, but included Fan Jia into the talk as well, worried that she may try to act without him wanting it yet.

Surprisingly, it wasn't Fan Jia the one to question him, but Ye Su, {What to do next? You mean as in taking responsibility for their safety?}

{Mmm, I thought of that if they were worth it indeed. The closest, safe location is over a day of travel at full speed, and none of the present people are peak Sages.} Bai Qi's words were correct, and Ye Su understood them perfectly. Indeed, for a group of people in the Yellow Realm, with no escort, crossing either the desert or the plains and reaching a settlement or city that would accept them was nearly impossible.

{And now?} Fan Jia asked, and these had been the first words Bai Qi heard, even if they were transmitted and not spoken, from her in the day.

{I only feel responsible for these two children, and maybe the two that are not shouting. Before you ask, yes, you may accompany them if you feel like it, but do know, you will not meet anything but despise from them even after escorting them.} Bai Qi explained truthfully.

While Bai Qi's mindset could be considered extreme, he was probably right about these people, as he already heard a few questioning phrases about what to do next and who would take care of them.

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Feeling that it was time to cut the yelling, Bai Qi used a bit of qi. and his voice boomed over all of theirs, "My two companions have not gathered any spoils, and so, we do not know if the storage treasures of the [Sha Zhu Company] contain any pills. If they do, then there will be no issue. They may also have stored something in their housings, so" I would ask everyone to look for them."

{You are testing them again, huh?} Fan Jia's transmission entered Bai Qi's mind, and he could only wryly smile in response. Indeed, this was a test. And one that if someone failed, they would be doomed to remain with the collar. Thus, he answered, {You think it's harsh? Then correct me. And if you don't, silently observe as you usually do.}

"Oh, you two can remain here, don't worry." Bai Q found himself gently smiling at the two girls that had been holding his sleeves for all this time. And then, recalling he had yet a person that he had not given any instructions to, he turned towards Ma Su, "You said that there is some lockbox? Show her the way." He said as he nodded at Ye Su.

"Yes." Ma Su immediately nodded, and Bai Qi could not help but shake his head in response to a few thoughts that crossed his mind,

Pang's description of Ma Su was that of a demon woman, but Bai Qi hadn't been sure if the demon part referred to character or beauty. But as he looked at her, she was undoubtedly a beauty. Maybe not as the ones that Bai Qi himself fancied, but she was. Long and slender extremities, ample bosom, a fox-like face, elaborate hairstyle, swan-like neck, and a vixen-like self.

Slightly over thirty years old and a Warrior King already. Her talent wasn't low at all. Thus only adding to her overall image. And while her current appearance was ragged, teary, and even slightly bloody, she still managed to look attractive.

Bai Qi found his thought slightly surprising, but in the end, he agreed that it was so indeed.

***

Half an hour later, the 40 people, plus Pang, gathered back.

Ye Su had already returned after she was led to a rune box, that while she could open, she had brought back to Bai Qi unopened. The contents were nothing special for Bai Qi, but the several dozens of medium-spirit stones were still a welcome addition to his dwindling funds.

Having restored his cultivation, low as it was, Pang was the only one able to operate the holding pouches, storage rings, and even the single [Void Ring] found by the others, but he did not even try to. If his savior, the young man that introduced himself as Chen Guang, asked to gather them, then it was the only thing to do.

A [Void Ring], six [Storage Rings], and eighteen [Holding Pouches]. In addition, ten low-tier Spirit weapons and even a couple of rune ones. Every possession from the [Sha Zhu Company] was gathered and placed before Bai Qi. Or was this all?

"You, you, and you. Hiding storage items that can contain pills, huh? Scram! I will not even think of releasing you." With no way to conceal the qi fluctuation that surrounded any such item, three of the still collared people had hidden a few things below their old and ragged robes. And while Bai Qi did not care about it at all, he despised people capable of hiding something that could help others, and actually, even them. After all, the three that had done so, two men and a woman found in the warehouse, were only at different stages of the Soul realm.

"No, no, we are sorry! We just did not have the time to show them!" And while the three wailed in response, as soon as they understood that Bai Qi truly meant what he said, they fell to the ground.

"If I get engrossed in the process and forget about them, remind me." Bai Qi nodded to Fan Jia and Ye Su before singling out 35 pills from the pile of bottles he summoned after searching through the storage items.

Then he added, "Form a line and approach one by one. After the collar is off, consume the pill, and start slowly circulating your qi. The process may be painful, but Pang did it, and he can assure that it will help."

***

By first destroying the formation meant to inflict pain, Bai Qi eliminated even the slightest chance of anything happening and broke the collars one after one, using a wisp of 'Ghostflame' to make sure they would be rent impossible to repair. And as he did not need to control the process so much, now that he had tested it on Pang, it only took him a few breaths for each person.

With the three people he had decided to forget about out, there were 39 collars to remove, but he only removed 35 in one go, leaving the two girls and the man and woman he had singled out before for later. Bai Qi did explain it to them, and while the girls did not react to anything, the other two accepted it without a word as well...