Practice starts with skill points.

Chapter 8 Refugees
He reached out and picked up a stone from the ground. Unlike before, this time he could easily feel the weight, hardness, moisture of the stone by touching it, and even how much force to make it fly the farthest, and at what angle it would cause the most damage.

Aim at a turtledove on a tree twenty meters away and adjust the angle.

call out!
The stone flew over the turtledove's head, and the sound of the stone breaking through the air scared it so much that it staggered and quickly flapped its wings and disappeared into the jungle.

Zhong Lin's face darkened: "I knew it."

He picked up another stone and this time aimed at a bluestone about fifteen meters away.

call out!
The stone hit the target exactly, and it was the left corner that Zhong Lin was aiming at.

"Experience is experience. From what I recall, Zhong Lin has practiced the Flying Locust Stone for decades, so his arms are extremely strong. Naturally, he can hit whatever he points at. I am just a weakling, and my arms are as thin as a bamboo pole. Whether it's speed, strength, or accuracy, I can't compare to him. However, I can still easily hit the target at a distance of about ten meters." Zhong Lin thought to himself.

He opened his mouth and yawned, and then he felt so sleepy that he couldn't open his eyes.

After waking up the sleeping little Shitou and telling him not to run around, Zhong Lin lay down and fell asleep.

More than three hours later, Zhong Lin woke up from his sleep. Although he was still very sleepy, he felt much better than before.

They cooked a meal of wild vegetables and smoked meat. After eating and drinking their fill, the two of them set off again.

I yawned all the way and climbed over the second hill. Fortunately, the journey was safe and uneventful.

After going down the mountain and walking for another fifty or sixty miles, a village finally appeared on the road ahead.

"Second brother, second brother, look."

Xiao Shitou pointed at the village houses in the distance and shouted loudly. Zhong Lin also smiled. He hadn't seen a single person along the way. He had been worried for a long time, afraid that he had taken the wrong road. After all, he had never been to Heishan County before, and he had heard the route from others.

There is not even a map or navigation system in this world. If you really take the wrong path, you don’t know where you will end up.

"This should be Funiu Village. Let's go in and take a look." Zhong Lin said with a smile.

Xiao Shitou also jumped off the wheelbarrow and followed Zhong Lin, hopping and skipping towards Funiu Village.

"Wow! What a big cow!"

Little Stone pointed at a huge bluestone at the entrance of the village and shouted.

Zhong Lin also smiled. This bluestone is a natural stone that looks like a crouching blue ox, which is also the origin of the name of Funiu Village.

Seeing the bluestone bell, Lin was sure that he had not taken the wrong path.

Little Shitou first ran to the Funiu Stone and circled around it, crying loudly, until Zhong Lin urged him to do so, and then he reluctantly walked towards Funiu Village.

"Stop."

Zhong Lin suddenly stopped and shouted to Xiao Shitou not to go any further.

"What's wrong, second brother?"

"Something's wrong."

Zhong Lin reached out and took the bow from behind him. An arrow was also on the string, ready to be shot at any time.

After crossing the mountain and walking such a long way, it was already evening. According to normal living habits, they should have made a fire and cooked, but there was no sound in the entire Funiu Village, and Zhong Lin did not hear any human voice. There was only a group of crows circling in the sky, making harsh cries.

Zhong Lin's face was solemn. As the sun set, the entire Funiu Village was dyed red, but for some reason, this red gave people a bloody feeling.

"Come on, get in the car and get out of here."

Zhong Lin felt a sense of urgency in his heart. He grabbed the small stone and threw it on the wheelbarrow, then turned and left.

A gentleman does not stand on a dangerous wall. This world is not the China of my previous life, where the rule of law was sound. In my previous life, stories of bandits killing people and strong men looting were common.

Although he had the system's help and his archery skills were at the maximum level, he was so thin that he ran out of strength after shooting a few arrows. In this situation where he didn't know whether it was dangerous or not, the best option was to run away.

Although Little Stone is young, he is a sensible child. He doesn't ask any questions and just follows.

The two set out again, moving away from Funiu Village, and did not stop until the sun had completely set and the road was no longer visible.

Zhong Lin breathed a sigh of relief as he looked at the Funiu Village which was no longer visible.

"Looks like we're going to camp again tonight. Stone, go pick up some dry firewood nearby. Remember not to stray too far."

"Ah."

Xiao Shitou walked with his short legs to collect firewood, while Zhong Lin found some dead leaves to start a fire.

There wasn't enough water in the water bag, and there was no pot to cook, so I just ate the dried meat given by Uncle Taro to fill my stomach.

Zhong Lin continued to stay awake all night, and was even more cautious than last night. He even stopped practicing the Locust Stone for fear that something unexpected would happen.

Nothing happened that night, and nothing happened either.

"It seems I was worrying too much."

Zhong Lin breathed a sigh of relief, yawned, woke up Xiao Shitou, and then lay down to sleep. He didn't get up until the sun rose high in the sky, his face full of sleepiness.

"Let's go! Let's try to get there today."

"Ok!"

After stuffing some dried meat with cold water and barely stuffing it into their stomachs, the two of them started on their journey again.

As they went forward, Zhong Lin found that the road was getting wider and wider, and there were even tire tracks on the road. When they climbed over another hill, a wide avenue appeared in their sight, which was wide enough for horse-drawn carriages.

"Second brother, second brother, look, there's someone."

After not seeing anyone for three consecutive days, even the little boy Xiao Shitou was exhausted. But when he suddenly saw a figure, he was very excited and pointed in the distance and shouted loudly.

"I see, let's follow."

Zhong Lin nodded, lifted the small stone onto the wheelbarrow, turned a corner and stepped onto the main road.

When he got closer, Zhong Lin saw clearly that these pedestrians were frowning.

The first two people were a family of four, a man and a woman with two children. The man was walking in front, carrying a shoulder pole, and the woman was behind, holding a child in each hand.

All four of them had disheveled hair, pale faces, thin bodies, and sunken eye sockets.

Zhong Lin looked up at the distance again. The pedestrians in front of him were dressed in basically the same way. Some of them didn't even have any luggage. They were barefoot and holding a wooden stick that they had broken from somewhere. They were all pale and thin.

"refugee?"

Zhong Lin sighed inwardly and immediately understood the situation of these people. At the same time, he had a deeper understanding of this drought.

There had been no rain in Xiahe Village for three months, the land had dried up, and the crops had failed. But after all, there was a river flowing through, and it was close to a branch of the Black Mountain, so people could go into the mountains to hunt.

But it's hard to say about other places. The Black Mountain Range is very large, with many mountain strongholds, villages, and towns. However, not every mountain stronghold has a river like Xiahe Village. It seems that Xiahe Village is not the worst one. No wonder Uncle Yutou did not recommend them to leave. It seems that the outside world is worse than home.

(End of this chapter)