Chapter 85 - 81: Way-Blockers in the Woods
Qin Ziwen waited for a good while longer, but no new customers arrived.
He picked up the book satchel from the floor. It was woven from bamboo. While the weave wasn’t particularly fine and the edges were a little rough, it was very sturdy.
Inside were several sutras bound in hemp paper, a small pouch holding a writing brush, and another small animal-hide pouch containing an ink stick and an inkstone.
Besides that, there was a change of clothes. At the bottom of the satchel were a few pieces of silver, some loose copper coins, and a new pair of hemp shoes.
’Without his clothes or his money, where could that scholar have gone after running off?’
He thought for a moment, then picked up the book satchel and put it on the living room floor.
In the morning, after breakfast, the sound of Li Tieshan’s hammering rang out from the Blacksmith Shop again.
"Just a moment, sir. I only need to give it a final polish, and then it will be finished."
The Spearhead, attached to its shaft, scraped against the whetstone. The blade glinted coldly, and with a splash of cold spring water, the deadly weapon was complete.
Qin Ziwen took the Long Spear. This Long Spear was even longer and thicker than the one he was currently holding.
It was slightly heavier, and because the shaft was thicker, it felt a little awkward to wield.
"Brother..." Qin Ziwu stared eagerly at the Zhe Wood Long Spear in his older brother’s hands.
"Here." Qin Ziwen tossed it over horizontally, and Qin Ziwu caught it. "Haha, I have my own weapon now!"
"Let’s head out."
Li Tieshan wiped his hands and hurriedly said, "Sir, let me go with you."
Qin Ziwen didn’t agree. Instead, he instructed him, "You’ve been smithing for days and didn’t get much rest last night. Just stay here and wait for us. Guard the place, and don’t let anyone else inside."
Receiving his orders, Li Tieshan stood up straight. "Yes, sir!"
The four of them assembled at the Gated Community’s east gate, each fully armed. The two Long Spears in the hands of Qin Ziwen and Qin Ziwu were particularly eye-catching.
On Qin Ziwu’s back was a black case.
Retractable shoulder straps extended from the sides of the case, fitting perfectly over his shoulders.
Qin Ziwen carried a cloth bag in his left hand. It was heavy, and the sound of metal objects clanking together could be heard as he walked.
"Our main objective for going up the mountain today is to find that cave and get the Card inside. We’ll try to make a successful round trip within the day. We should avoid spending the night outside if at all possible."
The other three nodded in agreement.
Qin Ziwen took a map from inside his jacket. He had drawn it himself after analyzing the video the Beaked Eagle recorded along the route when they went to retrieve the Earth Cages.
"Mr. Qin, I went to Renhe Hall and bought these four mosquito-repellent Sachets." Zhao Pu took four Sachets from his bag and handed them out to the other three.
Qin Ziwen took the Sachet. It was called a Sachet, but in reality, it looked more like a small cloth pouch sewn from what looked like a bedsheet, emitting a faint, clean scent of herbs. "Thoughtful of you."
Zhao Pu laughed. "We’re a team, after all."
Just then, another group passed by. The group stopped as they came alongside, and Lu Hongtao sized up the Long Spear in Qin Ziwen’s hand. "Brother, did you make that spear yourself?"
"Yeah."
"Selling it? Name your price."
"Not for sale right now." Qin Ziwen waved his hand dismissively. ’I don’t even have enough for myself, how could I possibly sell them?’
"Alright then." Lu Hongtao seemed a bit disappointed, his eyes lingering on the imposing Iron Spear for a few more moments.
COUGH, COUGH, COUGH~
Someone in Lu Hongtao’s group covered their mouth and coughed.
"Zhou Hu, if you’re not feeling well, just go back. You’ve been coughing all day, and it’s starting to freak me out."
"I fucking told you I’m fine! COUGH, COUGH, COUGH. I went to the doctor; he said it’s just a common cold." Zhou Hu snapped, irritated. "Goddammit, what the hell are you so scared of?"
Zhao Pu gave Qin Ziwen a meaningful look, and Qin Ziwen led his team away.
After they had gotten some distance away, Zhao Pu said, "When I was out yesterday, I noticed quite a few people in the Gated Community are coughing."
Qin Ziwen heard the implication in his words. "Is it some kind of infectious disease?"
Zhao Pu shook his head. "I don’t know. The symptoms look like a common cold for now, but this isn’t Earth anymore. It wouldn’t be strange for some new virus we’ve never heard of to pop up. Plus, the flood just happened. I think we should be careful."
"Mm."
After the flood, there were two straight days of bright, sunny weather.
Much of the mud on the ground had dried up, making the roads a bit easier to walk on.
They entered the woods, climbing steadily up the slope in a northeasterly direction.
The Sachets must have been really effective; there were far fewer insects and mosquitoes along the way than usual.
They say going up a mountain is easier than coming down, but the path up was no walk in the park either.
After walking for more than three hours, the trees around them began to thin out, and the crisp chirping of birds echoed overhead.
"There’s a leopard over there, be careful!" Zhao Pu spotted a leopard’s head poking out on the slope to their front right.
Following the direction Zhao Pu indicated, they saw a leopard peeking out from behind a tree with half its head, staring at them.
The leopard let out a soft yowl.
The sound wasn’t fierce at all; it was almost kittenish.
Seeing that the group of humans didn’t react, the leopard watched them for a little while longer before running off in another direction.
Watching the way it walked, Qin Ziwen recognized it. It seemed to be the same leopard they had encountered the night they were carrying the wild boar back.
"Let’s go. Keep heading up the mountain."
The four of them helped each other as they continued up the mountain. By noon, the surrounding temperature had dropped quietly, and they could feel a distinct chill in the air.
"Beaked Eagle, fly up and see how far we are from the cave." Qin Ziwen turned on his phone’s video recorder and placed it on the eagle’s chest.
CAW! CAW!
Frequent bird calls came from overhead.
The Beaked Eagle flew down toward them, pursued by two black shadows.
"Get ready!" Qin Ziwen raised his Long Spear, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with his younger brother.
The Beaked Eagle spread its wings and circled around behind them.
The two black shadows followed close behind. Without a moment’s hesitation, Qin Ziwen thrust his spear forward.
But the two birds were incredibly fast. They flapped their wings and reversed direction with extreme speed, dodging the Long Spear. They finally came to rest on a nearby branch, looking down on the group from their high perch.
"The way it flies looks a bit like a falcon, but normal falcons aren’t this big."
These two falcons had ink-black feathers. Backlit by the sun, it was impossible to make out any specific patterns.
But they were not small; either one was about the same size as the Beaked Eagle.
"CAW! CAW! CAW! CAW!" The two falcons let out a series of high-pitched, rapid shrieks.
Other than the warning calls, the two falcons did not launch any further attacks.
"I think they’re trying to drive us away," Qin Ziwu said, looking back at the Beaked Eagle.
"No, I think they’re calling for backup. We can’t let them keep at it." Qin Ziwen frowned, hearing a responding call from the dense woods not far away.
The Beaked Eagle, which had been hiding behind them, was no longer as nervous. It raised its feathered crest, spread its wings, and postured aggressively at the two falcons overhead.
Qin Ziwen handed his Long Spear to Deng Guang for safekeeping, then took the phone from the Beaked Eagle’s chest to watch the video playback.
After watching it, he let out a long breath. "The cave is just a short distance above us. Once we drive them off, we’re there."
Qin Ziwen turned to his brother. "Xiaowu, take that thing off your back."
"You got it!"
Qin Ziwu took off the Bow and Arrow Equipment Box he was carrying on his back.
Qin Ziwen opened the lid and took out the Compound Bow.
He drew the Bow and nocked an Arrow.
The falcon had never seen such a strange contraption and stared at it from the tree without blinking.
Not until the Arrow flew—
CAW!
One Black Falcon flapped its wings and flew away in alarm.
The other one tumbled to the ground.
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