Dongting Immortal Clan

Chen Changhe walked home with a heavy heart.

Old Zhang was standing under the eaves with his pipe in hand. Seeing his uneasy expression, he offered some words of comfort:

"Looks like I guessed wrong."

Chen Changhe nodded, sat down beside the stone mill, and whispered:

"In the afternoon, I went out with him and deliberately took a long detour, passing by the outside of Zhoujia Village."

"Shen Congyun's expression remained normal, showing no abnormality."

"and……"

Chen Changhe paused, his brow furrowed in confusion:

"During the day, I secretly released my spiritual sense to sense it, and the evil spirit seemed to have completely disappeared, showing no trace of it."

"But when I went to observe the qi a few nights ago, I could clearly see it all..."

Old Zhang pondered for a moment, then shook his head, his expression complex, and said:

"The Zhou family has been farming and fishing for generations, and we have never heard of anyone from the village practicing spiritual cultivation."

"There's something fishy about this matter; we'll probably need to consider it carefully."

"I know."

Chen Changhe let out a long breath, temporarily suppressing his turbulent thoughts.

With no clues at the moment, there's no point in thinking about it further; we can only wait and see.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The morning light is slightly dew.

Chen Dajiang has already packed up.

He was dressed in deerskin armor, carrying a hunting bow on his back and a short knife at his waist. He led seven or eight hunters and gathered in front of the local temple at the foot of the mountain.

He started this hunting team after the beginning of spring this year.

The villages surrounding Baiyukou are mostly inhabited by fishermen who make a living from Dongting Lake, but very few dare to go into the mountains to hunt.

On the southwest side of Dongting Lake, there is a mountain range that stretches for thousands of miles.

It is said to be the site of the Taoist temple of the "Ancient Fire God" and also a spur of the Nanling Mountains.

The foothills where Chen Dajiang usually hunts are called "Linglu Mountain". The mountain is not very steep, but there are many jackals, wolves, tigers and leopards. It is easy for ordinary people to go in, but difficult to come out.

Chen Dajiang dared to take the lead because he was highly skilled and daring. With more than three years of martial arts and archery skills, ordinary wild beasts could not get close to him.

Secondly, with the Chen family as their backing, there's no worry about selling the prey they hunt.

His shop in Qingxi Town can buy them, and the price is even fairer than selling to the butchers in town.

The hunting team now consists of seven people, all of whom are related by blood or marriage.

Besides him, there was also his brother-in-law Wang Xiaoman and Li Shitou from the Li family, a farmer in the east of the village.

The brothers Zhou Tieniu and Zhou Tiema came to Zhoujia Village.

Further away in Tianjia'ao, there lived two cousins ​​surnamed Tian, ​​named Tian Shangao and Tian Shuzhi.

They all came from poor backgrounds, were physically strong, and had plenty of courage.

Before heading into the mountains, Chen Dajiang set rules for everyone.

If you want to go into the mountains with him, you must obey his orders, not act alone, and you must not go more than 20 miles into Linglu Mountain.

If you encounter a large beast, don't hesitate to fight it head-on. If you can shoot, shoot; if you can't, run.

As dawn broke, the seven people met in front of the local temple at the foot of Linglu Mountain.

Chen Dajiang carried his hunting bow on his back, with twenty-four arrows in his quiver, and a short knife at his waist.

Forged from high-quality steel and double-edged, it allowed him to chop bones as easily as chopping wood, thanks to his strength.

Li Shitou carried a red-tasseled spear, the tip of which was polished to a gleaming shine.

Wang Xiaoman was carrying a wood-chopping knife; the back of the blade was thick and looked heavy.

The Zhou brothers each carried a bundle of hemp rope and several animal nets.

The two members of the Tian family were carrying iron clamps and iron forks.

"Let's take a walk to the west today."

Chen Dajiang stood on the stone steps in front of the land temple, pointing to the lush forests to the southwest of Linglu Mountain.

"I saw muntjac hoof prints and wild boar rooting up fresh mud over there last time."

"Be careful, everyone. As the weather gets warmer, watch your step on the leaves and don't step on any insects."

The group followed the path at the foot of the mountain into the mountains.

……

In late spring and early summer, Linglu Mountain is a time when all things flourish.

The trees are lush, wildflowers are everywhere, streams are babbling, and birds are singing.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the tree canopy, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

The air was filled with the smell of soil and decaying leaves, mixed with the fragrance of wildflowers; every breath made me feel refreshed.

Chen Dajiang walked at the front, his pace neither fast nor slow, his eyes like an eagle's, scanning the surroundings and observing every movement.

In the mountains and forests.

Birds chirping, insects buzzing, the rustling of leaves in the wind, and the gurgling of a stream in the distance.

Every sound and movement was projected into his mind.

Since he began practicing spiritual cultivation, his five senses have become more acute than those of ordinary people.

Although his cultivation progress was not as good as Chen Changhe's, he had also cultivated fifteen strands of magical power within his body and had also practiced several practical techniques such as the Lightness Technique and the Golden Light Technique.

In these deep mountains and dense forests, they also have some ability to protect themselves.

……

After walking for about an hour, the mountain became increasingly steep.

The road grew narrower and narrower, with bushes growing on both sides, their branches brushing against our clothes and making a rustling sound.

Chen Dajiang suddenly stopped, squatted down, and brushed away the fallen leaves with his hand to reveal a clear hoof print.

"Deer."

He lowered his voice and said:

"It looks fresh; it was probably stepped on last night or this morning."

Upon hearing the sound, the group perked up.

A deer can be sold for several taels of silver at the market. Its meat can be eaten, its skin can be tanned into leather, and its blood can be used in medicine.

The group followed the hoofprints deeper into the forest, passing through a bamboo grove, and soon entered a more lush and secluded woodland.

The light in the woods quickly dimmed, the tree canopy overhead completely blocking out the daylight.

The ground was covered with a thick layer of decaying leaves, which felt soft and fluffy underfoot, like cotton.

Suddenly, Chen Dajiang raised his hand abruptly.

Everyone immediately stopped.

He heard a sound.

Unlike muntjacs, muntjacs have light and quick footsteps.

The sound was noticeably deeper, like a large creature wriggling in the bushes, occasionally interspersed with heavy breathing.

"It's a wild boar!"

Chen Dajiang lowered his body and spoke very quickly.

The expressions on their faces immediately tightened.

Muntjacs are timid and run away when they see people, but wild boars are not like muntjacs; they are more violent and can kill people when they go berserk.

In particular, the villages around the lake still have legends about the "wild boar spirit".

It is said that many spirits and monsters live in the deep mountains of Nanling. In Linglu Mountain, there is a wild boar that has become a spirit. It is usually restrained by the mountain king and does not come down the mountain. However, if anyone enters its territory, they will be gored to death by its tusks.

Chen Dajiang was already on guard, drawing his bow and arrow, locking onto the direction from which the sound was coming.

The bushes swayed more and more violently, and the panting grew closer.

He held his breath, his fingers hooked into the fletching of the arrow.

……

"ah--!"

A scream came from ahead; it wasn't the sound of a wild boar, but the sound of a human.

Chen Dajiang abruptly stopped the arrow and rushed towards the sound.

Li Shitou and Wang Xiaoman followed closely behind, each holding a red-tasseled spear and a wood-chopping knife.

The group pushed aside the bushes, and the sight before them made them gasp in shock.

A hunter in his forties collapsed to the ground, his right leg clamped down by a huge wild boar. Two tusks were deeply embedded in his thigh, and blood gushed out, soaking his trousers and staining a large patch of fallen leaves red.

The hunter was still clutching a hunting fork, desperately stabbing it into the wild boar's face.

But the wild boar had thick skin and flesh, so the hunting spear didn't penetrate very deeply, which instead provoked the beast into a frenzy.

This wild boar was frighteningly large, weighing at least 300 pounds, with black bristles standing on end like steel needles, and its tusks stained with blood and flesh.

Its eyes were bloodshot, it was panting heavily, and it was shaking its head from side to side, as if it wanted to smash the hunter to death!

"Help!"

Chen Dajiang gave a low shout, and the arrow shot out.

"laugh!"

The arrow struck the wild boar squarely on the side of its neck, but only penetrated half an inch into the flesh.

The wild boar, in pain, released the hunter's leg, turned around abruptly, and stared intently at Chen Dajiang with its bloodshot eyes.

It exhaled two puffs of white breath from its nostrils, and its forehooves frantically pawed at the ground, sending dirt and fallen leaves flying everywhere.

Chen Dajiang remained unfazed, and the second arrow was already nocked.

This time, he aimed not at its neck, but at its eyes.

The wild boar charged forward with a roar; its over 300-pound body lurched forward, shaking the ground.

Chen Dajiang stood still, his bow drawn wide like a full moon, his gaze locked onto the beast's scarlet eyes.

Loose the string.

The arrow struck the boar's left eye like lightning, piercing through the eyeball and penetrating straight into its brain.

"Aww!!!"

The wild boar let out a mournful howl, its momentum undiminished. It ran another seven or eight steps before collapsing with a thud, rolling twice on the ground, breaking a small tree before finally coming to a complete stop.