Chaotic World of Martial Arts: I Have a Spirit Pearl of Desire

[Desire: Hoping Chen You will return safely. Completion rewards: 30 Desire Points.]

Chen You felt a warmth in her heart.

It was morning, and fine snowflakes were falling from the sky; a cold wind was blowing.

It was the dead of winter, and Chen You estimated that the carcass of the sika deer that had run into the ground would still be well preserved in the low temperature. However, he had to hurry so that other hunters who had entered the mountains would not get there first.

Therefore, when he went out, in addition to carrying a fishing rod, he also specially tucked a sharp machete into his waistband and stuffed two large sacks into his waistband.

A machete can not only be used for self-defense, but if you find a deer, you can also use it to quickly dismember the carcass and easily bag it up to take away.

Along the way, Chen You saw many people like him venturing out in the cold winter.

Some hurried along, carrying bows and arrows, ready to try their luck in the mountains, while others carried wooden buckets, preparing to go to the river to break the ice and fish.

Everyone's faces were etched with the marks of hardship and fatigue, and their eyes were filled with numbness.

In this era, if you don't go out and find a way to make a living, you can only wait to die at home.

The vast empire where Chen You lived was called the Great Yuan Dynasty.

The Yuan Dynasty is now a mere shell of its former self, its court corrupt and incompetent, and the country has been in chaos for decades.

The imperial decrees could no longer leave the capital.

Nowadays, almost every place in the world is in a state of autonomy, divided and occupied by various warlords, gangs and local strongmen.

The town of Qingshi, where Chen You is located, is nominally under the jurisdiction of Qinghe County, but in reality, the power of life and death here is in the hands of a few powerful forces.

The most powerful of them all was the Black Tiger Gang, which controlled the nearby docks, grain shops, and some casinos.

Lin Hu was just a low-level loan shark under the Black Tiger Gang.

Secondly, there's Baicaotang, which monopolizes the medicinal herb business within a radius of hundreds of miles. Everyone who wants to buy goods must get them from Baicaotang!

In addition, there were several powerful families in the city who enclosed land, built fortresses, and raised private armies, acting like local emperors.

In this chaotic world where human life is as cheap as grass, ordinary people have to struggle desperately like weeds to survive.

Chen You took a deep breath of the cold air, tightened his tattered cotton-padded coat, lowered his head and quickened his pace, walking briskly towards Xiaozhoushan.

Chen You chose a route that followed a river, the surface of which was covered with thick ice.

Fishing is not allowed in this river. Each section is controlled by gangs. You have to give 30% of the fish you catch to the gang. Even if you don't catch anything, you still have to pay 10 coins. It's like they're taking a feather from every passing goose.

I remember that during the breeding season of the giant bream, Dr. Wu would take him fishing every year. However, he was not very good at fishing and only caught small fish and shrimp, which were not worth much money.

Unbeknownst to him, he walked along a path and headed towards a mountain.

Not far away is Xiaozhoushan.

Guided by the rosary beads, he could see a point of light about ten miles away, which was where the four-horned deer had fallen and died.

The body was still warm!

However, as they ventured deeper into Xiaozhoushan, Chen You couldn't help but furrow his brow.

It snowed last night.

He saw many messy footprints on the snow along the way.

Clearly, other hunters had gotten there before him.

Sure enough, after walking for a short while, they heard noises coming from the bushes ahead.

Chen You instantly gripped the machete at his waist with heightened alertness. He glanced over and saw a rough-skinned middle-aged man pushing aside the branches to emerge.

The man held a worn-out wooden bow in his hand, and the arrows in his quiver were simply sharpened arrowheads from a thick wooden branch, making it look very rudimentary.

The moment the other person saw Chen You, their eyes filled with wariness.

Chen You frowned. In this chaotic world where human life was as worthless as grass, order had long since collapsed.

He was worried that the other party would snatch his cotton-padded coat, as well as his machete and fishing rod!

The other person was equally on edge, worried that Chen You would snatch his wooden bow, his cloth shoes, and the underwear his wife had mended for him yesterday.

Hidden inside his underwear were more than a dozen copper coins! This was a huge sum of money for his family.

When they met on a narrow path, the air was thick with the tension of gunpowder.

"Brother, we're on the same side." Chen You spoke first: "I'm Wu Langzhong's apprentice. I attended your family's banquet when your father passed away the year before last."

The other person was taken aback, then realized, "Wu Langzhong's apprentice! No wonder he looks familiar."

He gave an awkward laugh and took a half-step back to indicate that he meant no harm.

Chen You breathed a sigh of relief.

Although the opponent's wooden bow looked extremely worn.

Theoretically speaking, it would be difficult to inflict a fatal wound on him, whether in terms of accuracy or lethality.

But better safe than sorry!

In his previous life on Earth, he had read many novels in which the protagonists made their fortunes through archery in chaotic times.

From the very first day he transmigrated, he warned himself: In the wild, if you encounter someone with a bow and arrow, no matter how down-and-out they look, you must be extremely careful!

The two then deliberately kept a safe distance from each other.

They only breathed a sigh of relief after they had each walked about thirty meters away.

"Giggle giggle!!!"

Not long after, a pheasant's scream suddenly came from the direction the middle-aged man had left.

Listening to the commotion, Chen You thought to himself that the man was really lucky to have caught a pheasant so quickly.

He didn't meddle in other people's business and continued to search in the direction where the four-horned deer had fallen to its death, as indicated in the intelligence report.

We probably reached a mountain stream.

The area is filled with jagged rocks and dense forests overhead, so it rarely sees sunlight.

In addition, the mountain roads are rugged and difficult to traverse, so few hunters usually set foot here.

Chen You gripped the machete in his hand, hacking away at the thorns and weeds blocking his path, trudging forward with uneven steps.

As the point of light representing opportunity drew closer, he parted the last layer of thick, withered branches and looked down into the ravine, his face immediately lighting up with joy!

Sure enough, in that sheltered spot amidst the piled-up rocks, lay a four-horned sika deer lying quietly in a pool of blood.

It has four forked horns on its head and plum blossom-like spots on its body.

This is a species unique to this world.

Although it is not a legendary beast that can nourish blood and qi, it is at most an ordinary wild animal similar to pigs, cattle, and sheep.

But for ordinary people like Chen You, this is also a fortune.

This deer is so big, if you eat it sparingly, it will keep you full for a long time!

If you take it to the restaurant in town to sell, you can at least get three taels of silver.

Chen You wasted no time and immediately picked up his wood-chopping knife, deftly cutting up the sika deer.

This deer is so big, the three of them definitely can't finish it. He plans to keep half for his family to eat and sell the other half for money.

Anyway, in this freezing winter, the weather is like a natural icebox, so there's no fear that the meat will spoil.

A moment later, Chen You stuffed the butchered venison into two large sacks, tied them tightly with straw ropes, hoisted them onto his shoulders, and began to walk quickly down the mountain.

Because we got back early, the journey was smooth and we didn't encounter many people.

As soon as I reached the village entrance, I saw a boy carrying a bag walking out.

This man was Chen You's childhood friend, named Sun Chang.

Sun Changyi glanced up and saw Chen You, then waved and greeted him, "Little Chen!"

"Little grandson, where are you going with that bundle on your back?"

Sun Chang's family were pig butchers, and their family was considered well-off in the village.

Chen You and he had been close since childhood, and they often spoke to each other without any formality, frequently jokingly calling each other by their childhood nicknames.

"Chen You, you can't call me 'little grandson' anymore. I'm going to practice martial arts!" Sun Chang said proudly, his head held high.

Chen You was just teasing him, but upon hearing this, she exclaimed in surprise, "Practicing martial arts? You joined a martial arts school?"

In this chaotic world, the only way for ordinary families to learn martial arts was to save up money and send their children to martial arts schools to learn from masters.

But the tuition at that martial arts school was shockingly expensive, far beyond what an average family could afford.

"Not bad, I've entered Zhen Dong Martial Arts School, hehe..."

"How much silver did you pay?"

Chen You felt a pang of envy.

Because he had thought it through, once he got his hands on the information resources, money wouldn't be a problem for him!

"Ten taels of silver a month, and you have to pay at least three months' rent upfront..."

"So many..."

Even though he knew the price wasn't cheap, he was still taken aback.

"Chen You, your master just left. I heard that Lin Hu caused trouble for your master's wife?" Sun Chang's expression turned serious as he asked about the important matter.

"Sigh, I'm trying to figure out a solution for my master's wife. I just went hunting..."

"Listen to my advice, you can't handle this matter with your master's wife. This is money your master owes, so you should separate from her as soon as possible. Otherwise, you'll offend that bastard Lin Hu, and you won't even know how you died!"

Sun Chang offered kind words of advice, then glanced at the bag on Chen You's back: "Hey, you actually managed to find something?"