Chapter 79 He had a very outrageous idea.
After yesterday's heavy rain, the weather has improved today.
Sunlight streamed down from above the mountain stream, gilding the cliffs on both sides with a golden glow.
As the temperature rose and the thick fog gradually dissipated, Ning Jinli was finally able to see the surroundings further and higher.
The river at the bottom of Zhuiying Ravine is about 20 to 30 meters wide. The banks of the river are covered with shrubs and steep slopes with craggy rocks. Further away are dense forests, behind which cliffs rise abruptly, estimated to be at least 200 to 300 meters high. A stone bridge can be vaguely seen spanning the top.
That's where they fell down.
Looking down from below, the already narrow stone bridge appears almost as thin as a hair.
Clearly, it's absolutely impossible to climb out of Falling Eagle Gorge from here.
Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi arrived at the riverbank. As she looked around, she said, "Little brother, you told me that the experts who captured us were wearing ropes and grappling hooks, right?"
Xiao Qidi nodded, then immediately realized that this was what Ning Jinli was looking for.
Ning Jinli said, "When I first woke up that day, I was completely dazed. I clearly grabbed a rope and pulled you ashore, but I forgot about it later. If I remember correctly, the thing wrapped around you was a rope grappling hook."
Xiao Qidi also looked ashamed, "That weapon is indeed a very useful thing, but unfortunately I didn't think of it, otherwise I could have found it a couple of days ago."
"It's alright, it's alright," Ning Jinli comforted her, "It's not too late to look for it now."
After saying that, the two began searching along the riverbank.
Ning Jinli originally planned to visit the place where she first picked wild fruit, where she had encountered a dying expert from the Tian Shu Sect.
However, when they found the area nearby, they discovered that it had already collapsed.
The landslide was probably caused by yesterday's heavy rain, and it's impossible to get close now.
Fortunately, perseverance pays off.
Xiao Qidi found a rope grappling hook in a clump of water plants on the shore.
If it hadn't been entangled in the water plants, it probably would have been swept away by the river to who knows where.
The hook is made of cast iron and has three curved hooks with very sharp tips. The rope connected to the hook is several tens of meters long. Although the rope is very thin, it is very strong and lightweight.
With this, it will be much easier to skin and butcher that big wild boar.
Afterwards, Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi together pulled the wild boar out of the pit, tied it with a rope, and dragged it all the way to the outside of the cave.
It was already noon.
Sunlight streamed directly down from above the mountain stream, and with the thick fog gone, the temperature rose further, finally bringing a hint of summer warmth.
The bottom of the hunting trap pit set by Ning Jinli was filled with the blood of the wild boar.
As the temperature rose, a strong smell of blood wafted through the bushes.
Soon after, several wolves came running, drawn by the scent.
He looked around the pit, then cautiously stepped inside and licked the bloodstains.
Suddenly, a scraping sound came from the side.
Although the wolves noticed, they were reluctant to give up the food in their mouths. They lowered their bodies, remaining alert so they could escape at any moment, while speeding up their licking of the blood.
Just then, a dark figure darted over like lightning.
Even though the wolves were prepared to flee, they still couldn't escape.
Before they could even utter a sound, they were swallowed up by the enormous black shadow...
This side of the cave.
Taking advantage of the good weather and plenty of sunshine, Xiao Qidi hurriedly dealt with the wild boar.
Although he wasn't a butcher, he had a grappling hook to use as a knife, so he handled the situation quite well and quickly skinned the wild boar.
"Huh? That's strange..." Ning Jinli stared at the wild boar, puzzled. "It didn't seem to have any wounds, so why was it already bleeding so much and dead when I found it?"
She was so excited about catching the wild boar that she didn't think much of it.
Only now do I realize that something seems a little off.
Xiao Qidi naturally knew the reason, but he didn't want to tell her the truth, lest it dampen her enthusiasm.
But if Ning Jinli isn't given a reasonable explanation, she might become suspicious.
After a moment's thought, he pried open the pig's snout and said to Ning Jinli, "The wound is inside the mouth."
Ning Jinli glanced at it and roughly saw a bloody hole inside. Before she could get closer, Xiao Qidi closed the pig's snout and said indifferently, "Don't look too closely, lest it affect your appetite."
“What’s so special about that?” Ning Jinli said casually. “I’ve even seen dismembered corpses.”
"Oh, and also, thanks to you, I even moved four of your decapitated corpses in the middle of the night. I'm immune to gore now." A hint of resentment appeared on her face as she spoke of this.
However, now is not the time to bring up old grievances.
What she was more concerned about was why the wild boar died from a mouth injury.
According to her plan, when the wild boar is lured by the bait towards the trap, and the material covering the trap cannot support the weight of the wild boar, it will fall in.
Then you'll get poked by the sharp branches she sticks in the hole.
This prevents the injured wild boar from jumping out of the pit.
Ning Jinli expressed her doubts to Xiao Qidi.
While cutting the wild boar meat with his grappling hook, Xiao Qidi casually explained, "Isn't that simple? It must have fallen off the trap just as it was about to eat the bait. It was still mouth open when it crashed headfirst into the tree branch you placed there. The branch pierced its weak throat, damaging its brain, so it bled a lot and died."
"Really? What a coincidence!" Ning Jinli asked, still somewhat skeptical.
Xiao Qidi said calmly, "The world is full of wonders, and this is hardly a coincidence. Otherwise, the branches you placed wouldn't have been enough to pierce its fur, and you wouldn't have been able to catch it."
This explanation is reasonable and plausible.
Ning Jinli stopped dwelling on the matter, since there were many more important things to think about and do.
She took the pieces of wild boar skin she had peeled off to the riverbank and carefully processed them. She scraped off the inner layer of subcutaneous tissue with stones, washed away the thick outer bristles, and then hung them on a tree branch to dry.
By the time she finished processing it, Xiao Qidi had already almost completely gutted the wild boar meat.
There was a pile of meat chunks, a pile of offal, and a skeleton in the middle.
"You've worked hard, take a rest." Ning Jinli wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I'll get some meat and grill it to eat, so we can fill our stomachs."
"You've worked hard too." Xiao Qidi's eyes were filled with tenderness as he reached out to wipe the sweat from her face.
Their eyes met, and in that instant, their heartbeats seemed to skip a beat.
"Ahem..." Xiao Qidi coughed lightly, "Then I'll go and rest."
Ning Jinli also hurriedly looked away, "Um... go ahead, go ahead."
After Xiao Qidi entered the cave, Ning Jinli rubbed her obviously burning face and muttered to herself, "What time is it now? It's a matter of life and death. Survival is the priority. Calm down... stay calm, don't think too much..."
To get rid of the inexplicable and confusing thoughts that suddenly popped into her mind, Ning Jinli quickly got herself back to work.
She selected two pieces of fatty wild boar meat, skewered them with a branch, and placed them diagonally next to the fire, just like she had done with grilled fish before. She asked Xiao Qidi to keep an eye on them, and then took her grappling hook to cut a bamboo stalk nearby.
Then, after a lot of effort, they made several more bamboo tubes.
She filled bamboo tubes with water from the river and put them in the fire. She then cut some wild boar meat and wild fruits and put them into two of the bamboo tubes.
"Alright! Mission accomplished!" Ning Jinli plopped down, her face full of fighting spirit. "Now we can have barbecue, stew, and hot water!"
"Although the conditions are tough, it's a significant improvement compared to the past two days. We'll definitely be able to leave here!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Qidi fell silent.
Ning Jinli gently nudged his arm with her shoulder. "What's wrong, little brother? Don't you believe me?"
Xiao Qidi shook his head, "It's not that I don't believe you, I just..."
"Just what?" Ning Jinli looked at him.
A complex expression flashed in Xiao Qidi's eyes.
In the past few days, he has uncontrollably had the idea of spending his life with Ning Jinli in this secluded place where no one will bother him.
He knew this idea was outrageous.
It was so outrageous that it startled even himself.
After all, he had once aspired to unify the world in the future, and hiding away from the world was definitely not in line with his beliefs.
Furthermore, influenced by his mother's actions, he used to avoid women at all costs and believed that he would never fall in love in his life.
But now, he...
He couldn't understand how he had suddenly become like this.
"Just what?" Ning Jinli asked again when he said only half of what he meant.
Xiao Qidi snapped out of his reverie, "I just suddenly thought of something."
"What is it?" Ning Jinli asked curiously.
Xiao Qidi pursed his lips, "It's... none of your business."
Ning Jinli wrinkled her nose. "Fine, don't tell me then, hmph."
The water in the bamboo tube boiled, bubbling and steaming.
Ning Jinli quickly used a twig to remove the bamboo tube used for boiling water and set it aside to cool.
The other two bamboo tubes containing wild boar meat were to continue cooking, and the air was already filled with the aroma of stewed meat, carrying a hint of the gamey smell of wild animals.
The meat skewers grilling by the fire began to sizzle and release oil, and the aroma of the grilled meat spread far and wide.
Xiao Qidi couldn't help but swallow, his Adam's apple bobbing.
Ning Jinli gently fanned the food with her hand, smelled it, and her mouth kept watering. If it were in the past, she would not have been able to eat this kind of food; the smell would make her nauseous.
Wild boar meat is not considered a delicacy.
Especially adult wild boars.
The meat was not only coarse, but also had a strong fishy and musty smell.
Unless you use a series of methods to remove the fishy smell and add seasonings to enhance the aroma, it will be very difficult to eat.
Moreover, since it's just boiling in water, forget about removing the fishy smell, and there are no seasonings available. She only had a sudden inspiration to put some wild fruits in, and she doesn't know what it will taste like after it's cooked.
However, when people are hungry to a certain extent, foods that were previously difficult to swallow will become tempting.
Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi sat by the fire, their eyes fixed on the roasted and stewed meat.
The process of waiting for the meat to cook seemed to take an exceptionally long time.
Finally, after much effort, Ning Jinli estimated that the meat should be cooked through. She used a broken bamboo strip as chopsticks, picked up a piece of meat from the bamboo tube, blew on it, and handed it to Xiao Qidi's mouth. "Here... you can try it first."
Xiao Qidi put the piece of meat in his mouth, and as he chewed, his eyes lit up and his face showed surprise. He exclaimed that it was delicious!
"Isn't that a bit much? You've eaten modern food before." Ning Jinli picked up a piece with suspicion and slowly put it into her mouth.
A rich, thick aroma of meat and its heat instantly filled my mouth.
The pungent smell of wild boar, when mixed with the sour and tangy aroma of unknown wild fruits, surprisingly transformed into a unique and delicious flavor.
Apart from the meat being a bit coarse and lacking saltiness, the overall taste was surprisingly good.
This is definitely not a misperception caused by being too hungry.
Ning Jinli's eyes widened, her pupils trembling. "Huh? It's actually really delicious!"
Being able to eat such delicious food in such a miserable environment almost brought her to tears.
"Here, try some roasted wild boar meat." Ning Jinli quickly took the meat skewers off and handed them to Xiao Qidi.
The kebabs were a perfect mix of lean and fatty meat, with a golden-brown, glistening exterior.
Ignoring the heat, Xiao Qidi took a big bite, slurping and chewing.
Ning Jinli swallowed hard and said with a smile, "Slow down...don't burn yourself."
Xiao Qidi chewed a few times, frowned slightly, swallowed hard, and said, "The taste... is a bit strong."
Ning Jinli also tried a bite. Sure enough, the stewed meat became more and more fragrant the more you chewed it, while the roasted meat was not bad at first, but after a few chews, a strong fishy smell came out and went straight to her head.
Ning Jinli swallowed the mouthful with difficulty, thought for a moment, picked up the wild fruit next to her, squeezed out the juice and poured it on the grilled meat skewers.
Stewed wild boar meat becomes delicious because of this wild fruit, so adding it to roasted meat is definitely a good idea.
As expected.
Roasted wild boar meat drizzled with wild fruit juice also creates a wonderfully complex flavor.
The unpalatable taste was completely replaced by deliciousness.
Ning Jinli then ate to her heart's content, mumbling between bites, "Hmm... if I have the chance, I not only want to find a way to start a fishing project here, but also... I also want to develop this wild fruit into a condiment."
"Selling fish will make money, and selling wild fruits and seasonings will also make money..."
"However, transportation is a problem; it's making it difficult for us to get out..."
She had been in charge of the factory for some time now, and gradually began to develop a business mindset without realizing it.
At this point, another idea flashed through her mind, "Little brother, based on past experience, perhaps a time portal can appear in this place! Then my plan can be realized!"
Xiao Qidi said, "But we haven't found it here."
As Ning Jinli thought about it, she said, "It should be that I'm at the warehouse and you're here, and then some necessary condition that we haven't figured out yet is triggered, before the new passage entrance will be opened."
Xiao Qidi nodded, agreeing with the speculation.
"Sigh, what a pity..." Ning Jinli said helplessly, "If I had known, I wouldn't have stayed at your camp a few days ago. Then the Tian Shu Sect would have only caught you, and you would have ended up here, and then..."
As she spoke, she noticed that Xiao Qidi's face tightened, and the gloomy look that she hadn't seen for several days reappeared between his brows.
Ning Jinli said with a grin, "I was just saying it casually, don't be like that."
Xiao Qidi hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
To be honest, if she hadn't moved into his camp, he wouldn't have been so distracted and knocked out by someone who had sneaked into the camp with sleeping gas.
Although those few masters from the Tian Shu Sect were indeed highly skilled in martial arts.
But he had actually sensed something when they approached the camp, and just as he went out to investigate, he ran into Ning Jinli, so...
well……
Xiao Qidi sighed silently in his heart, and his brows relaxed in relief.
It was all due to unforeseen circumstances or coincidences; no one can be blamed.
"I'm full! You eat slowly. I'll go cut that pile of meat into small pieces so it's easier to dry and serve as our reserve rations." Ning Jinli wiped her mouth and left most of the remaining roasted and stewed meat to Xiao Qidi.
Before Xiao Qidi could say anything, she ran quickly toward the cave entrance.
Outside the cave, beside the pile of wild boar entrails, a sinister black shadow slowly emerged...
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