Myriad Immortals

Yunzhou is located in the southern part of Qing Kingdom. It has no snow all year round, and only in the mountains can you see a few specks of white snow.

Click, click...

The sound of dry leaves being crushed by shoes echoed through the mountains and forests.

Zhong Xuan held a hunting fork and moved with light steps.

There's a saying in Xiahe Village: "We'd rather starve than climb the mountain."

It means that even if you starve to death, you should never go into the mountains to hunt.

Hunting is a skill.

Unless they are experienced hunters, ordinary farmers who casually enter the mountains may never have the chance to leave, until one day a hunter who has entered the mountains discovers a pile of bones.

Putting aside wild animals, even a small pit covered by withered leaves could be deadly. In the end, not even bones could be found, and the person would become a wandering ghost.

This is unacceptable to the people of Qing, who value returning to their roots.

Zhong Xuan, however, did not have such concerns.

The effects of the crane bone are fully utilized here. Even in the dense, thorny forests, one can walk as if on flat ground.

Zhong Xuan suddenly bent down, his steps becoming light and slow, barely making a sound even when stepping on the withered leaves.

Whoosh!

The hunting fork in his hand was precisely inserted into the collar of a pheasant.

"The harvest was pretty good."

Zhong Xuan picked up the pheasant carcass, a smile appearing on his lips. He had two pheasants and a rabbit hanging from his waist, enough to feed him for several days.

With his skills as a leather-trained martial artist, hunting is practically a game-changer. If he knew how to track prey, he could even hunt large wild animals like wild boars without any problem.

of course.

Zhong Xuan has no plans to hunt large wild animals yet.

It's not because we can't handle it, but...

"The second young master of the Zhang family once said that there might be monsters hiding in the mountains, so it's best to be careful."

With his current strength, encountering a demonic beast would be a near-certain death.

Fortunately, monsters usually live deep in the mountains, and he has been staying within a 20-mile radius of Xiahe Village these days, so the chances of encountering a monster are extremely low.

Zhong Xuan stayed in the mountains until dusk. Looking up at the darkening sky, he decided to descend the mountain.

The danger level in the mountains rises dramatically after dark, and even Zhong Xuan doesn't want to take the risk.

"Um?"

On the way down the mountain, Zhong Xuan saw a group of people walking up the mountain from afar.

He darted into the bushes, lowered his head, and blended completely into his surroundings.

......

......

"Brother, how much further do we have to go?"

The chill in the mountains is growing stronger.

A lean man shrank his neck and muttered in dissatisfaction.

"Stop talking nonsense. Lei said we should go further away and dig in the mountains so that we don't get discovered."

Ma Lao Da glared fiercely at his younger brother, Ma Lao Er.

"Lei, Lei, we're technically his cousins, so why does he get to boss us around just because he's back?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Lao Er became even more dissatisfied.

He had barely finished speaking.

Suddenly, I felt as if I had bumped into a wall, and I staggered back several steps.

Upon closer inspection, he realized that his older brother had stopped sometime earlier and was staring at him with a sullen face.

"Big...Big Brother..."

Seeing his elder brother's appearance, Ma Lao Er stammered as he spoke.

Boss Ma said, enunciating each word clearly, "Don't say another word of what you just said. I don't want you to end up like Boss San, a wandering ghost."

Ma Lao Er was startled by his elder brother's words.

"Ah Lei...it can't be that bad..."

Boss Ma sighed softly, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes, as the image of Ma Lei's mature-beyond-his-years face appeared in his mind.

Ruthless.

Moreover, Ma Lei also had connections with members of the Sha Gang, and even made a deal with the young leader of the Sha Gang.

His arrival here with his second brother was at the behest of Ma Lei and the young leader of the Sha Gang.

Such shrewdness at such a young age is something they can't afford to mess with.

After scolding Ma Lao Er, Ma Lao Da shouldered his hoe and continued on his way.

About half an hour later.

The two then arrived at the upstream of a ditch in the forest, which was the source of the irrigation canal in Xiaohe Village.

"Brother, if we cut off the canal, how many people in the village will suffer?"

Ma Lao Er picked up the hoe, somewhat hesitant.

Boss Ma remained expressionless.

"If we don't dig, we'll be in trouble."

The thought of his cousin sent a chill down Ma Lao Er's spine.

Just as he was preparing to dig the ditch.

A loud wolf howl echoed through the mountains and forests.

"Big brother, could it be that a monster is coming?"

Ma Lao Er asked somewhat suspiciously.

Old Master Ma recalled what the second young master of the Zhang family had said that day—that the demon beast was indeed a wolf demon. His heart sank, and he didn't answer. He simply lowered his head and dug the ditch even more diligently.

......

A short while later.

The ditch was rerouted.

"Broken the canal...aren't they afraid of divine retribution?"

Zhong Xuan, who was hiding in the shadows, saw this scene and his eyes turned cold.

He came here following Brother Ma.

With his current agility, he could follow for miles without being detected, so he overheard the conversation between the two brothers, Brother Ma and Brother Ma.

"Ma Lei...impressive tactics..."

He knew Ma Lei; in fact, he could say he had watched Ma Lei grow up.

"I heard he became a personal disciple at the Benhu Martial Arts School, so I reckon he must be at least at the late stage of the Skin Refining Realm. He just returned to the village a few days ago... He's aiming for the position of village chief."

Zhong Xuan quickly figured out the whole story.

This irrigation canal is the foundation upon which Xu Mao was supported by the villagers to become the village head. If there is any problem with the irrigation canal, then Xu Mao's foundation will be shaken.

In order to bring down Xu Mao, Ma Lei even went so far as to have his brothers commit the heinous act of cutting off the canal.

Zhong Xuan stopped looking.

Having thoroughly studied local chronicles, he was all too aware of the sordid affairs among the major clans in the village. If the Ma family wanted to step over the Xu family to rise to power, they would have to resort to any means necessary.

Tube?

It's beyond our control.

There's no need to worry about it.

Ma Lei was in the late stage of the Skin Refining Realm. The Ma family also raised several martial artists. He was neither surnamed Xu nor Yang. The Zhong family had almost all died in that flood.

There's no need to get involved in the conflict between the three major clans in Xiahe Village.

Moreover, such incidents have occurred countless times in the villages of Qing Kingdom.

Zhong Xuan had already made up his mind.

After passing the imperial examination and becoming a scholar, he moved to the city to find a job and get away from this troublesome place.

He has lived for several decades.

Zhong Xuan had long understood a principle: if a person wants to live a long life, it boils down to four words.

What's it to me?

......

......

In the blink of an eye.

January has passed.

Perhaps it's because the year is drawing to a close and the weather is getting warmer, but the wild animals in the mountains are particularly lively.

Zhong Xuan always managed to gain something from his trips up the mountain.

"We still need to eat meat."

After Zhong Xuan finished practicing the initial stages of the Eagle Strike Sword Technique, he was covered in sweat.

He took off his shirt and used a cloth to wipe his sweat.

The once-shriveled arms gradually became fuller, and even the muscle curves could be seen clearly.

Besides the support from martial arts training and swordsmanship, the main reason for this is the daily supply of pheasant and rabbit.

Zhong Xuan could feel that his strength had increased at a much faster rate than before in the past month.

"I should have a chance to break through to the mid-stage of Skin Refinement in a few months."