Chapter 100 – Hunting

Zhan Changfeng wanted to go hunting and needed some tools, so after leaving the Community School, she went directly to the blacksmith’s shop and explained her purpose to the dark-skinned man.

Blacksmith Zhao Laixi swung his hammer forging blanks, not turning his head as he said, “Hey, no big deal, just say what you want, and I’ll see if I have anything ready-made.”

“Alright.” Zhan Changfeng didn’t decline and casually handed the fish she was carrying to the blacksmith’s little daughter. “I need a hand crossbow, a dagger, and a few animal traps. That’s all for now.”

Zhao Laixi wiped the sweat from his head, hands on his hips as he sized up Zhan Changfeng. “A student from the Community School, huh? The mountains are full of wild beasts; don’t go risking it alone.”

“I’ll be careful.”

“Oh.” Zhao Laixi didn’t pry further and put down his hammer. “Let me pick some out for you.”

“You have to be cautious going into the mountains. It’s best you go with the village hunters from the neighborhood; don’t go alone.” Zhao Laixi brought out a pile of items. “These tools are all top quality; pick whichever catches your eye.”

Zhan Changfeng picked up a bow, weighed it in her hand, and casually asked, “Uncle, are there any rules for entering the mountains? I’m afraid of breaking any taboos.”

“You’ve asked the right person. All the hunting ironware in our village comes from me, and I’ve heard the most rumors, true or false.” Zhao Laixi recalled, “The village is located in the southern section of the Limo Mountain Range, with three mountains nearby. Besides Qingbai Mountain, which we rely on, the other mountains hide fierce beasts. It’s fine if you hunt in the periphery, but if you go deeper, there are many stories.”

“What stories?”

“People who go into the mountains encounter all sorts of strange things. I’ll just mention a few; take them as tales.”

Zhao Laixi said, “First, Bijia Mountain. Many say they’ve seen fairies there, but if you hear a fairy calling your name, never turn around. Those who turned around never came out. Then there’s Medicine Mountain, which has the most medicinal herbs. But before entering, you must find a flower with white leaves and red veins to carry with you. Legend says this flower is a token from the mountain god, ensuring safe passage. Also, hunters must first make offerings to the mountain—give before you take, as they say. Buy some chicken, duck, fish, meat, incense, candles, and paper money, set them at the mountain road entrance, and greet the mountain god.”

“Does that really work?”

“Of course it does.” Zhao Laixi said mysteriously, “I’ve heard that several times after setting out offerings, people looked back and the items were gone.”

Zhan Changfeng found this quite interesting, but unfortunately, she currently had no money to buy offerings.

The next day, returning home from the Community School, she efficiently packed her hunting gear and entered Bijia Mountain.

Bijia Mountain has two peaks. Zhan Changfeng went to the southern peak. On her first day hunting, she didn’t expect much success; her main goal was to scout the terrain, explore the habitats of mountain birds and wild rabbits, and familiarize herself with areas where tigers and leopards often appeared.

Summer nights come particularly late. By the time Zhan Changfeng had run across half the mountain, it was just getting dark. Perhaps she had perfectly avoided all habitats; aside from a few returning birds, she hadn’t even seen common pheasants.

As the sky deepened, Zhan Changfeng walked further inward along the mountain road covered with rotten leaves and dry branches. Gradually, frog croaks came from behind the trees. Up close, it was a shallow, clear stream with transparent water reflecting the brown-yellow rocks at the bottom, like flowing amber.

Zhan Changfeng observed the fish in the water, rolling up her sleeves to try wading in. Suddenly, a strong wind surged behind her, rustling the forest leaves. Turning around, she saw a white-browed tiger emerge from behind several ancient trees, now staring at her, poised to strike!

The hungry tiger leaped half a person’s height, fiercely pouncing. Zhan Changfeng raised her hand and shot the crossbow, the arrow hitting its right eye. Instantly, blood sprayed out. The white-browed tiger howled in agony, fell, and half-rolled on the ground, its claws digging deep marks as it frantically tried to escape. Zhan Changfeng took a few steps, mounted its back, and rained punches like a storm on its head. After dozens of punches, the turmoil beneath her gradually ceased.

Zhan Changfeng now understood the strength of her physical body. Without transforming her Pure Yin Bones and with her true qi not flowing smoothly, she couldn’t even exert the power of Postnatal realm perfection.

While pondering how to cultivate her physical body, she flipped the tiger corpse over, planning to drag it back to sell. Suddenly, a swift gust of wind rushed past her side, leaping into the forest in the blink of an eye. Simultaneously, dog barks approached from the distance, loud and imposing.

Zhan Changfeng looked back toward the sound and saw over a dozen yellow dogs galloping toward her, with the flickering light of torches further in the distance.

The dozen or so yellow dogs, perhaps smelling the blood, growled lowly as they surrounded her, barks rising and falling. The people in the distance seemed to receive some signal, and in an instant, several arrows shot forth consecutively, aiming directly at her face.

The hunters behind the mountain forest were very excited.

“Quick, the hunting dogs have caught up with the prey!”

“Shoot arrows, shoot arrows! Don’t let it escape again!”

They were a few youths around sixteen or seventeen, dressed in martial attire. Hearing the prey’s movement, their blood boiled with excitement as they continuously drew and shot arrows.

Here, Zhan Changfeng didn’t even have a chance to speak. Drawing the sword from her back, the clanging sound of arrowheads and blades colliding echoed. She was slightly surprised; the force of these arrows was beyond imagination, almost every one capable of piercing mountains and shattering rocks, shaking her to the point of splitting pain in her tiger’s mouth.

“There’s someone here!” Zhan Changfeng shouted loudly, but several more arrows shot toward her. At the same time, over a dozen yellow dogs, with the ferocity and excitement of tearing into prey, swarmed forward in unison.

These weren’t ordinary dogs but spirit dogs, each with decades of cultivation, every one at the strength of Postnatal realm great completion.

Zhan Changfeng was busy dealing with the arrows and the yellow dogs enough to overwhelm her. Suddenly, she was bitten on the wrist. A cold, fierce bloodlust flashed in her eyes as she flipped her palm, the dagger whirling, blood lines spraying out with howls of agony.

A tall youth drew his bow but didn’t shoot, hesitating slightly. “Did someone just speak?”

“We might have misheard.” The other youth in black felt uneasy; if they had truly killed someone by mistake, it would be disastrous.

However,

His gaze flickered. If it really was a person, they should already be dead.

The high and low, urgent barks of the yellow dogs came, indicating they were surrounding their prey. The hunters put away their bows, gripped their knives, and quickly moved in that direction.

The closer they got, the clearer the yellow dogs’ howls of pain became. Everyone exchanged glances, their expressions grave, staring through the trees at the figure ahead.

The sight of over a dozen yellow dogs leaping and pouncing, and the shadow of a slender figure gripping a sword, against the vast, dark backdrop, resembled a silent painting of slaughter.

The tall youth shouted in shock and anger, “Stop, stop it right now!”

It was unclear whether he was trying to stop the yellow dogs or Zhan Changfeng.

The group quickly approached. The light from their torches illuminated the ground full of whimpering yellow dogs and the person standing alone in the center, facing away from them.

The figure of a youth, standing straight as a pine, the tip of the sword dripping with blood.

The youth in black felt a sinking feeling in his heart. He guessed the cause of the misunderstanding but, fearing punishment from the Teachers, decided to take the initiative. He questioned accusingly, “Who are you! Why did you kill our hunting dogs!”

The tall youth affectionately stroked the only two remaining hunting dogs trembling behind him, anger in his eyes.

The others were also heartbroken. These hunting dogs had been painstakingly raised, and now so many were dead. How would they explain this to the Teachers? So they all glared at the culprit.

The culprit turned her head slightly. On her jade-like, handsome profile were a few splashes of crimson blood, her eyes deep as an abyss. The tall youth’s pupils contracted, a chill rising from the depths of his heart, feeling this person was cold and sinister.

“What use are disobedient beasts?” Zhan Changfeng turned around, her gaze sweeping over their faces and clothing. “Community School?”

“Who are you?”

Zhan Changfeng sneered, pointing at the white-browed tiger on the ground, shot full of arrows like a porcupine. “You set dogs to attack, shot arrows from the shadows to kill, ruined a perfectly good tiger pelt, refuse to admit your mistake, and even attempt to falsely accuse the victim.”

With a clang, she sheathed her sword. She said, “I am very interested in having a talk with your Teachers.”

“But before that, leave the compensation.”

The youth in black was indignant. “You killed our hunting dogs and still want compensation?!”

“The victim beats up the assailant, and you expect the victim to apologize? Or perhaps you’re disappointed that I’m not dead?”

“You!”

“Xiao Shaobai!” The tall youth reached out and pushed the youth in black back. He felt both guilty about the earlier mistake and resentful of Zhan Changfeng’s ruthless actions, but he also deeply understood that if this confrontation continued, neither side would come out well.

“I am Cheng Zhigao from the Plum Gazing Lodge. It was truly a misunderstanding caused by the dark night and high winds. Seeing your age, you must also be from the Community School. How about we each take a step back so we can meet again in the future?” Cheng Zhigao’s sharp eyes noticed the blood seeping from her Wrist. “I have a bottle of excellent wound medicine here to give you. Additionally, I will buy this tiger. How about it?”

“That is as it should be,” Zhan Changfeng said.

Cheng Zhigao looked at the tiger on the Ground. Although shot by several arrows and looking rather pitiful, it couldn’t hide the fact that it was a robust adult tiger. It would cost at least seventy or eighty spirit stones, which put him in a difficult position. Where could he get that many spirit stones?

He looked back at his companions. Some were looking at the sky, others studying their noses, with no intention of sharing the cost.

“We don’t even know who killed this tiger yet, why are you so eager!” Xiao Shaobai sneered.

Someone, seeing that all the arrows Above were identical, also whispered in agreement, “Maybe we shot it.”

His unfinished words stopped as Zhan Changfeng kicked the white-browed tiger right in front of them with her foot. The tiger’s head faced them, a crossbow bolt lodged in one eye socket, blood flowing from all seven orifices.

Cheng Zhigao felt embarrassed for his own people. Gritting his teeth hard, he said with a pained heart, “How about seventy spirit stones? I only have five on me, I’ll give you the rest tomorrow.”

“Then it’s settled.” Zhan Changfeng paid them no more mind and went to the stream by herself to clean her wound.

Went back to catch some more bugs~

(End of Chapter)