Chapter 3 The Stunning Guest (Part 3)
With fewer monsters on the mountain, Chu You's hunting efficiency decreased, and he only managed to hunt five in half a day.
We're going to change hunting locations next month.
Thinking about having to spend extra time exploring the mountain, she sighed, found a flat rock, and sat down to eat her flatbread.
Wrapped tightly in oil paper, it was still warm when opened. The outer skin was crispy and crumbly, while the inside was filled with meat filling mixed with chopped dried mushrooms.
Xuan Li knew her appetite very well, so he put out five pancakes.
As she ate, she teased the little yellow butterflies that fluttered around her fingertips.
When I was eating the fifth one, a beast's roar suddenly came from nearby, which shook the half-eaten flatbread to the ground, where it rolled down covered in fallen leaves.
"..."
She gripped her machete and looked in the direction of the sound. There, a small demon beast, resembling both a yellow dog and a leopard, was baring its teeth and intimidating two towering black bear demons.
The little demon beast had a laceration on its abdomen and even more wounds on its back. They didn't look like they were from a fight with another demon beast; they looked more like they were left behind by a magical artifact.
The black bear demons were forced back several steps by the roar. After hesitating, their greed took over, and they stretched out their fan-sized paws to slap the yellow dog.
It dodged the first blow, but was slapped away by another bear paw and crashed into a tree, letting out a mournful cry.
The third palm strike, carrying a fishy, foul odor, pressed down.
"Pfft—"
The bear paw, with its hard, iron-like outer skin, was severed at the root and fell in front of the yellow dog.
"Roar!" The black bear demon went berserk in pain, opening its blood-red maw to tear at the target.
Before it could close its jaws, a woodcutter's knife pierced its abdomen with pinpoint accuracy. With a twist of the wrist, blood splattered everywhere, and a perfectly round demon core, still steaming hot, fell to the ground.
Its mountain-like body crashed to the ground, causing the ground to shake three times.
The other one, terrified by its companion's death, turned to flee. Chu You didn't give it a chance, and swiftly dealt with it.
The demon core and the bear demon's corpse were both put into the bracelet. Chu You turned around and saw the yellow dog under the tree staring at her with its dark eyes, revealing a somewhat dull and dazed look.
Chu You approached, bent down to pick up the bear paw, and said to it, "You can go now..."
Before he could finish speaking, the yellow dog, which had been stunned, suddenly sprang up and rammed into Chu You.
The man and the dog fell heavily to the ground and rolled several times.
"Boom!" Behind him, mud, rocks, and dead leaves flew everywhere, and the spot where Chu You had just been was blown into a deep crater.
A charred little yellow butterfly lay inside.
"How could he be a mere mortal? Just now, I clearly sensed the aura of a black bear demon."
"There's also a little monster here, it looks really strange."
Chu You brushed the fallen leaves from her head without a word, stood up protecting the yellow dog behind her, and looked at the two men walking towards her with a wood-chopping knife in her hand.
They wore wide robes and sashes, with family jade pendants hanging from their waists. One had a square face and the other a narrow face. When they spoke, they habitually raised their chins and looked down at people.
Grandma Lai said that there are cultivators on the mountain recently.
I never expected to be so unlucky; I've run into this now.
The square-faced man glanced at the neatly cut bear paw on the ground and frowned: "You mortal over there, did you kill the two black bear demons here?"
Chu You calmly replied, "Yes, I am a hunter from the mountains."
"A second-tier demonic beast, capable of killing ten mortals with a single blow." He sized it up with a half-smile. "A hunter? Probably a demonic cultivator in disguise! Junior brother, use soul-searching!"
Without saying a word, the two raised the purple light in their hands and pressed it towards Chu You.
At the same time, crisscrossing magic circles lit up the ground. The trapped yellow dog growled incessantly in desperation.
A gust of wind hits your face, stirring up pale green ribbons.
Chu You's dark almond-shaped eyes reflected the approaching two people. She quickly grabbed their wrists, and the purple light that had been gathering at their fingertips vanished instantly.
She twisted it in the opposite direction.
"Aaaaaah—!! My hand!" the round-faced man screamed. "This person is strange, quickly notify the sect!"
They both reached for the jade pendant at their waists, but before they could touch it, the machete swung past.
The jade pendant's strap broke, and the two pieces fell to the ground one after the other. A cloth shoe stepped out from under the light green dress and ran over them.
The jade plaque, which belonged to the category of ritual implements, was crushed underfoot, just like the most ordinary jade artifact.
The square-faced man's eyes flashed with malice. He ruthlessly severed his own hand, which was being held by Chu You, and then shoved his junior brother hard, retreating rapidly as if walking on flowing clouds.
"Junior brother, you hold them off first, I'll go back to our sect for help right away!"
The round-faced man exclaimed in horror, "You're despicable—"
Chu You remained expressionless throughout. She gripped his shoulder, stabbed him in the lower abdomen with the wood-chopping knife, and then twisted her wrist, making a cracking sound.
The round-faced man's gaze spun and fell. As he collapsed to the ground, he saw the blood-stained woodcutter's knife being thrown, passing through his senior brother's lower back and shattering his spiritual sea as well.
The two corpses fell to the ground one after the other, their eyes still open until death, staring at each other with horror and resentment from a distance.
The magic array on the ground dimmed, and a flock of sparrows took flight from above the mountains and forests.
Chu You stepped forward, pulled out her wood-chopping knife, casually flicked off the blood, and only after confirming that both of them were dead did she look at the yellow dog.
It was half-dead, lying there motionless.
After confirming that it wouldn't die anytime soon, Chu You dragged the two corpses by their feet, one in each hand, to the other side of the mountain.
There is a small ravine about ten meters deep, with lush green vines growing at the bottom and many bright red flowers blooming, their fragrance enticing.
Many bones are buried beneath the vines.
She had inadvertently witnessed injured monsters being lured down by the fragrance of flowers and eaten until only bones remained.
Chu You held her breath, loosened her grip, and the two corpses rolled down the hillside.
She didn't take anything from them.
Although I don't cultivate myself, I've read plenty of cultivation novels. Just like ancient silver coins had official seals, cultivators' magical artifacts also have markings.
Taking it and selling it will only cause trouble.
The vibrant flowers swayed gently, and the vines instantly coiled around them, tearing apart clothes and greedily sucking blood and flesh, until only bones remained.
As dusk enveloped the small valley, the fragrance of flowers mingled with a faint smell of blood.
Chu You turned back and found the yellow dog still lying there, barely alive. Then, carrying the dog, which weighed thirty or forty pounds, she quickened her pace down the mountain.
It's already past the usual time to go down the mountain. I wonder if Xuanli will be worried.
By the time we reached the foot of the mountain, it was almost completely dark, and the only sounds in the quiet mountains were the chirping of insects.
In the distance, a dim, yellowish light appeared.
The flowing light outlined a hand carrying a lantern, slender and jade-like, its blue robes fluttering as it walked.
Chu You slowed her pace, staring blankly at the approaching person, her mind filled with many of Pu Songling's supernatural tales.
In the story, a beautiful female ghost in the deep mountains and forests will lure passersby.
Those people weren't unaware of the strangeness, but they willingly bowed down to it.
Chu You: "Are you coming to pick me up?"
"Hmm." Xuan Li approached with a lantern, and his gaze paused when he saw the dog in her arms. "The demon beast you hunted?"
The man and the dog stared at each other, and the dog sheepishly looked away.
Chu You patted the dog's ears. "It helped me. I plan to take it home and raise it."
She carried the dog and walked side by side with Xuan Li towards the village, recounting her encounter with the black bear demon and the yellow dog.
"...Those two black bear demons were a bit troublesome, so I came down the mountain late. By the way, did you take your medicine? How are you feeling?" She didn't mention a word about encountering and killing the cultivators.
A night breeze carried a faint, almost imperceptible stench of blood to Xuan Li's nose.
He carried a lantern and stepped across the courtyard gate. "Your injuries have improved somewhat. Do you want to keep this thing?"
“Yes, we need a guard dog at home, and I think this one is perfect. Xuanli, why don’t you name it?”
"It? A watchdog?" His expression turned strange for a moment, then his smile became subtle. "A stray dog, you can just name it whatever you want."
The yellow dog whimpered anxiously.
Chu You carried it into the main room, took out herbs and strips of cloth from her bracelet, and quickly wrapped it up like a newly unearthed mummy.
"Hmm... let's call him Dahuang then, it's an easy name to raise him."
The yellow dog was so tightly bound that only its head and muzzle were sticking out. It looked up at Xuan Li and barked even more anxiously.
"A good name." He nodded in approval, then went in and out of the kitchen to bring the warm food into the main room.
Chu You went to the yard, fetched a bucket of water, and soaked her hands in the cool well water, carefully washing them.
The water reflected the shimmering moonlight.
She stared at it, and the reflection on the water gradually turned red.
Her fair hands were constantly scrubbing in the water, and her skin gradually turned red.
"Splash—" Another hand plunged into the water and pulled Chu You out. The large hand encircled the two reddened hands and shook off the remaining water droplets.
"Dinner's ready." Xuan Li wiped her hands with a handkerchief. "They're already washed."
The cotton cloth was carefully wiped across my wrists, palms, and between each finger.
The wooden bucket by the well was left unattended and lost its balance, falling back into the well with a "thud".
Chu You looked down at her hands; her skin was fair with a rosy tint, and it was indeed as clean as could be.
So she looked up at him and smiled, her almond-shaped eyes crinkling: "I was just spacing out."
*
With a new dog in the house, life is much more lively than before.
Chu You believes she has a great talent for medicine. Before her, there was Xuan Li, and after her, there was Da Huang. Those she saved all went from being on the verge of death to being full of vitality.
Dahuang looked badly injured, but after she changed its dressings a few times, it was able to get down on the ground, roll around, and act cute.
But troubles followed.
It eats too much, and it won't eat regular dog food; it eats monster meat.
The end of the month is approaching, and we need to hand over spirit stones to Feng the Cripple. With another mouth to feed in the family, Chu You goes up the mountain early in the morning and returns late at night every day, and he has hunted more monsters than before.
After being fed a few times, Dahuang became her lackey, sticking to her wherever she went and always wanting to go out with her.
Most of the fatal wounds had healed, and new fur was growing in the injured areas, making the dog look a mess.
"You can only go up the mountain when you're fully recovered, okay? Be a good boy and stay home to protect Xuanli." Chu You squatted at the door, rubbing the big yellow dog's head.
"Eek~" Her dark eyes watched Chu Youyuan leave.
It turned its head and quietly glanced at the young man lounging casually in the rocking chair.
Xuan Li half-opened his eyelids, flicked out a beam of spiritual light, and mocked, "Useless."
A spiritual light enveloped Big Yellow, and it dared not utter a sound. Its wounds slowly began to heal a little more. It knew that its master could heal it completely, but healing it little by little each day was probably to deceive its mistress.
It didn't understand why its master stayed in this small mountain village, nor did it understand why he didn't contact his subjects.
Big Yellow lay quietly in the corner, asking no questions.
After all, it's a dog now and shouldn't be worrying about human affairs.
*
Chu You hunted fifteen demonic beasts and returned to the village as dusk fell.
Just as she entered the village path, she encountered Feng Er, who was drunk. He was walking unsteadily and his triangular eyes lit up when he saw her.
Alcohol emboldens cowards, and Feng Er has completely forgotten the loss he suffered last time.
"Young Lady Chu~" He loosened his collar and swayed as he walked over, "You must be tired from hunting, coming back so late."
Chu You ignored him and continued walking around him.
"Hey, why aren't you answering me?" Feng Er leered and strode closer. "Tomorrow's the end of the month. If you were with me, why would you have to work so hard... Aren't I much better than that sickly pretty boy? Does that skinny guy make you happy?"
As he spoke, he reached out to touch Chu You's hand.
Suddenly, dark almond-shaped eyes looked over, making Feng Er's heart skip a beat. His hand moved too slowly and landed on the light green sleeves.
"Bang, bang, bang—!"
The sounds of fists landing were mixed with Feng Er's screams and pleas for mercy.
"I was wrong, I was wrong! Miss Chu...Grandma, I was drunk, please forgive me..."
Chu You kicked him into the stinking ditch and sneered, "If you provoke me again, I'll break your third leg!"
She got home later than usual today, and as soon as she entered the door, she was greeted by a warm sniff from Big Yellow.
It kept circling around Chu You and smelling it.
"Okay, stop smelling it. I just ran into an annoying guy." She rubbed the dog's head and looked up to see Xuan Li standing silently in front of her, looking at her quietly.
"Who did Miss Chu encounter?"
"Feng the Cripple, he was drunk and talking nonsense, so I beat him up and kicked him in the stinky ditch. What are we eating tonight? I'm starving." Chu You released Da Huang and walked towards the main house.
As she passed Xuanli, a hand suddenly grabbed her wrist.
Long, cool fingers pressed against the skin, caressing the wrist and fingers inch by inch.
Xuan Li stared at the tear in her sleeve, his expression indifferent.
"He touched you?"
Author's Note:
Red envelopes are dropping in the comments section! [kissing emoji]
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