"Brother Shanzi, are they... are they going to attack together?" Tie Niu's voice trembled slightly.
Du Jianshan gritted his teeth: "Hold on! The wolf pack won't attack easily without the alpha wolf's command. But if they do attack, we'll have to fight to the death!"
Tie Niu wiped the sweat from his face and gritted his teeth: "Fight if you have to! At worst, we'll all die together!"
The howling of the wolves grew more and more intense, creating an oppressive atmosphere that made it hard to breathe.
Suddenly, the lead wolf raised its head and let out a long howl. The pack of wolves responded in unison, and then, a dark mass of shadows pounced!
"Come on!" Du Jianshan roared, brandishing his sword to meet the attack.
With a flick of his fork, he knocked one wolf to the ground, only to be pounced on by another. He rolled away desperately, narrowly avoiding the wolf's bite.
In an instant, the clash of swords, the spray of blood, the howls of wolves, and the roars of men were all mixed together.
After an unknown amount of time, the wolf pack was finally driven back, and the valley was covered with carcasses and wolf blood. Tie Niu, covered in blood, slumped down beside the bear carcass, panting heavily.
"Brother Shanzi... I'm not going to make it... This time, I'm afraid we're going to die here..."
Du Jianshan's hands were still trembling, and he was panting heavily, but he managed to stand. He glanced at the bear carcass and said with a wry smile:
"We're lucky to be alive; the wolves retreated. But we really can't take this carcass with us."
Tie Niu's eyes were filled with resentment: "Such a fine bear pelt... just like that, gone?"
Du Jianshan's gaze sharpened, and he said in a low voice, "Who said we'd lose it? The wolf pack is badly injured and won't dare come back anytime soon. We need to think of a way to process the bear skin, hide it nearby, and come back to retrieve it another day."
Tie Niu's eyes lit up: "That's right! But... we're even struggling to sharpen our knives now, can we still manage?"
Du Jianshan gritted his teeth: "Alright! We mountain hunters, when have we not walked out of the gates of hell every time? Let's get started!"
The two immediately divided the work: one skinned the bear, the other kept watch, both working up a sweat. The bear hide was heavy and difficult to skin, but they cut it down one slice at a time, their movements quick and ruthless.
"Brother Shanzi!" Tie Niu suddenly called out in a low voice.
Du Jianshan was startled: "What's wrong? The wolves are back again?"
Tie Niu stared intently at the bear carcass's belly, his eyes wide: "It wasn't a wolf...look at this belly!"
The bear carcass's belly was bulging, as if something was hidden inside.
Du Jianshan was stunned for a moment, then suddenly remembered something, and his eyes lit up: "Bear gall! What treasure did this beast swallow in its lifetime!"
Tie Niu swallowed hard: "Could it be... the legendary mountain fruit?"
Tie Niu swallowed hard, then swung his knife and slashed at the bear's belly.
With a "rip," the thick bear skin was cut open, and blood and a pungent smell rushed out, choking him and causing him to back away.
"Ugh—good heavens, this taste!" Tie Niu almost threw up.
Du Jianshan narrowed his eyes and reached inside to grope. Suddenly, his expression changed drastically, and a strange light flashed in his eyes.
"Tie Niu, look!"
As he withdrew his hand, he was holding a fist-sized object in his palm. It was blackish-red in color, with an outer layer that resembled neither stone nor flesh, and its surface was slightly warm.
Tie Niu leaned closer to take a look, and his eyes almost popped out: "What...what is this thing? It looks like a lump of stone, and...and also like a blood clot."
Du Jianshan's breathing quickened and his voice trembled: "It's not a stone! This is—a blood ginseng!"
"Blood ginseng?" Tie Niu was stunned.
"Yes! Legend has it that only ginseng that has been eaten for hundreds or thousands of years can transform into this form after being swallowed by beasts. Bears, tigers, and leopards, the overlords of the mountains, occasionally swallow ginseng to nourish themselves. But ginseng is tenacious and often survives in the stomach, absorbing the beast's power and transforming itself. We've... stumbled upon an incredible opportunity!" Du Jianshan's eyes shone as he spoke, his whole body trembling.
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