The cold wind was like a knife, sweeping across the rolling mountains and forests, carrying away the last stubborn withered leaf.
The sky grew increasingly gloomy, as if shrouded by a huge leaden gray curtain, and the sunlight became thin and weak.
Lin Feng stood in front of the cabin, his breath quickly dissipating into the cold air.
He tightened his thick winter coat made of animal hides and looked at the distant, layered mountains, which were already tinged with a faint white by the first snow.
"It seems that the real winter is not far away."
He muttered to himself, but there was no trace of anxiety in his eyes.
Wangcai wagged its tail excitedly at his feet; this wolf, adapted to the wilderness, had a natural immunity to the cold.
As always, Phantom was curled up on Lin Feng's shoulder, its small body almost completely buried in the fur of his collar, with only a pair of crimson eyes showing, warily scanning its surroundings.
Inside the cabin, the fireplace roared with fire, warming the entire space like springtime.
In the stable not far away, White Moonlight and White Emerald leisurely chewed on the mixed hay that Lin Feng had carefully prepared. Their new stable also had a small stone stove to ensure the comfort of these two divine steeds in the cold winter.
Lin Feng knew that relying solely on the warehouse's reserves to get through the long winter was comfortable, but not foolproof.
Consistent hunting not only provides fresh meat and keeps him sharp in combat, but also allows him to have a thorough understanding of the changes in this land.
Moreover, both white moonlight and white jade need a moderate amount of activity to maintain their peak condition.
"Moonlight, Emerald, let's go see a place a little further away today."
Lin Feng walked into the stable and gently patted the necks of the two magnificent steeds.
White Moonlight let out a joyful hiss and nuzzled him affectionately. White Emerald, on the other hand, seemed more reserved, but her emerald eyes also shone with anticipation.
He prepared the saddle for Bai Yueguang, then mounted himself. Bai Feicui was used to carry some necessary equipment and animal skin bags for loading the game.
He checked the sharp steel arrowheads in his quiver and the iron knife at his waist, then whistled, "Wangcai, let's go!"
One man, two horses, and a dog, braving the biting cold wind, stepped into the silent forest.
The ground covered in fresh snow crunched and groaned as the iron hooves of White Moonlight and White Emerald trod upon it, leaving clear and powerful imprints.
They are extremely fast yet remarkably stable. Their wings open slightly while running to aid in balance, and they can even easily glide over small ditches.
Just as he was enjoying the pristine and magnificent snowscape, a lake covered with a thin layer of ice in the mountain hollow ahead, and several familiar yet disheveled figures on the lakeshore, unexpectedly came into his view.
The lake was quite large, and most of the surface was covered with a thin layer of ice. Only in some areas near the shore was the ice not completely frozen, revealing the dark lake water.
The six women, Qian Xiaoxiao, Su Wanqing, and Qin Lan, were currently gathered around the lake, busily working with focused yet somewhat anxious expressions.
They looked even worse than when Lin Feng had seen them last time.
Their clothes, already worn and tattered, were now covered in mud and icy water, clinging tightly to their bodies, making them shiver in the cold wind.
Everyone's cheeks and noses were red from the cold, their lips were purple, and their eyes were filled with exhaustion and a longing for food.
Several people work together to cast the net into the water, then wait shivering. After a while, they work together to pull the net up. The net is usually empty, but occasionally they catch one or two small fish the size of a finger, which makes them cheer with excitement.
Lin Feng rode on the White Moonlight, with White Emerald carrying the prey beside him, while Wangcai curiously observed the women by the lake.
He did not try to hide his whereabouts, so when he appeared at the edge of the valley, the women by the lake spotted him almost immediately.
In an instant, all movement froze.
The six women stared wide-eyed at Lin Feng, and beside him... a new mount that was equally magnificent, pure white, with a single horn on its forehead, wings on its back, and a faint emerald luster in its fur.
“Another…another one…” Ruan Mengtian’s lips trembled, and she could barely utter a complete sentence.
If the white moonlight was already a miracle, then this equally extraordinary "white jade" before them completely overturned their understanding.
Who exactly is this Lin Feng? How does he always manage to possess these incredible things?
Qian Xiaoxiao's eyes turned red with jealousy. She stared intently at Bai Feicui, then glanced at Lin Feng's thick, warm fur coat and the bulging animal skin bag on Bai Feicui's back, which was clearly filled with a bountiful catch.
Comparing this to the miserable state of his group struggling in the cold wind for a few small fish, a strong sense of humiliation and resentment welled up in his heart.
Su Wanqing and Qin Lan's expressions were even more complicated.
Their shock was no less than that of the others, but they realized even more clearly that the gap between Lin Feng and them had become so vast that it was despairing.
He was like the darling of the world, while they were the abandoned orphans.
Lin Feng was in a good mood today. Seeing the six women in such a sorry state, he felt neither schadenfreude nor much sympathy.
He rode his horse slowly to the lakeside, without dismounting, and looked down at them from his vantage point.
"It seems your fishing skills aren't very good." Lin Feng's tone was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.
The women were somewhat taken aback by his sudden remark.
Having gone through so much, they were very clear about Lin Feng's "heart of stone".
He wouldn't offer them help without a reason; every encounter was accompanied by yet another crushing of their dignity.
Qin Lan took a deep breath; she was the calmest and most unassuming person among them.
She knew that in the face of an absolute difference in strength, any pride or reserve was laughable.
What they lack most right now, besides food, is something else that is absolutely essential—salt.
Without salt, even if you catch a lot of fish, it's difficult to preserve them for long. More importantly, a long-term lack of salt will ruin a person's health.
She stepped forward, trying to make her tone calm and earnest: "Mr. Lin Feng, we...we want to make some salted fish to get through the winter. But we can't find salt. Could you...could you tell us where we can find salt?"
Her voice trembled slightly, and her eyes were filled with hope.
She knew this request was somewhat abrupt, even shameless, since they had no real relationship with Lin Feng.
Lin Feng raised an eyebrow slightly upon hearing this. Salt?
The secret location he had named "Fairy Salt Mine," which produced high-quality crystal salt, flashed through his mind in an instant.
He would never tell anyone about that place. It was one of his most important strategic resources.
However, in this vast region, there is more than just one ordinary salt mine.
In his previous explorations, he had also discovered several small, low-quality saline-alkali lands where some coarse salt could be scraped out. Although the taste and purity were far inferior to the crystal salt of the Fairy Salt Mine, it was sufficient for ordinary survival needs.
He pondered for a moment. He told them it was an ordinary salt source, and that it wouldn't cause him any loss.
Moreover, he was in a good mood today. The white jade brought back by his beloved gave him even greater confidence in his future explorations.
These two divine steeds are his greatest source of confidence.
"Head west, cross the twin peaks, and in the shady corner of the valley, there is a patch of red saline-alkali land."
You can scrape some salty soil from the cracks in the rocks there.
Lin Feng said calmly, pointing in a general direction.
He didn't go into too much detail; whether they could find anything, and how much they could find, depended on their own abilities.
Upon hearing Lin Feng's words, Qin Lan's eyes lit up instantly, and her face revealed an uncontrollable excitement and joy.
She never expected that Lin Feng would actually tell them!
"Thank you! Thank you so much, Mr. Lin Feng!" Qin Lan's voice was choked with emotion. She even wanted to bow to Lin Feng, but was stopped by a detached look from him.
The other women were also filled with surprise and disbelief. They had thought Lin Feng would coldly refuse them as before, or simply ignore them.
Unexpectedly, he was so "easy to talk to" today.
Seeing their overjoyed expressions, Lin Feng didn't feel much sense of accomplishment. To him, it was just a small favor, not even that; it was just a matter of a few words.
Perhaps it was the arrival of Bai Feicui that put him in a good mood, or perhaps it was seeing these once glamorous women now in such a state that stirred up a strange sense of melancholy in him.
Instead of turning around and leaving as usual, he became more interested in talking to them.
"It seems you're not having a good time." Lin Feng's gaze swept over their disheveled figures and the weak Tang Bao beside them.
Seeing that Lin Feng had lost his usual aloofness and even took the initiative to talk to them, the women became bolder, and a faint hope ignited in their hearts.
They hadn't had normal conversations with anyone other than each other for too long, especially someone like Lin Feng who clearly possessed strong survival skills.
“Yes…yes, Mr. Lin,” Ruan Mengtian stammered, trying to force a smile, but her frozen cheeks made her smile look worse than a grimace: “This weather is so cold, we…we can’t catch anything to eat.”
Shen Jiaqi chimed in softly, "We live in constant fear, afraid of encountering wild animals, and afraid of starving or freezing to death..."
At this moment, Qian Xiaoxiao couldn't care less about jealousy and resentment. She looked at Lin Feng with longing in her eyes.
She no longer possessed the imperious and arrogant air she once had; instead, she displayed an almost humble pleading.
She leaned forward, her voice low, with a deliberate huskiness and a seductive undertone:
"Lin Feng... I don't understand, why... why can't you let us follow you? We... we may not have any great skills, but... but at least we can..."
She paused, bit her lip, as if making a decision: "At least, on such a cold and lonely night, we...we can warm you too..."
As she spoke, she tried to straighten her body, which had long since lost its former plumpness due to hunger and cold, and even threw what she thought was a seductive look at Lin Feng.
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