"Is it Tianyuan Martial Arts Academy?"
Walking out of the tent, Chen Sansi recalled the conversation he just had.
Since it was Tianyuan Martial Arts Academy playing tricks, it must be Qin Feng's doing.
He could actually get the Young Master of Tianyuan to help him out, which shows they are not ordinary acquaintances, could it be that he has received the true transmission?
Additionally, the hundred-household asked if he had any grudges with the Liang family, was he preparing to help him?
The speed of Wang Zhi's attitude change took him by surprise, but upon further thought, it made sense.
Most likely, he was of value to them.
However, Chen Sansi remained calm about this and didn't feel it was hypocritical.
The so-called human relationships are nothing more than a mutual back-scratching affair.
Without kinship or friendship, where does genuine emotion come from?
For this reason, Chen Sansi didn't fully count on Wang Zhi to solve this problem for him, he still needed to focus on training and improving his own strength.
He returned to the Martial Arts Arena.
After the previous ruckus, everyone now looked at him in disbelief.
"Shi Tou, how did you manage it?"
Full of admiration, Zhu Tong said, "I just saw Song Yan's second uncle turn green with rage when he heard about it!"
"..."
Chen Sansi was speechless.
This was yet another offense.
But it didn't matter, he couldn't shrink back just because he was afraid of offending people.
"I'm going to head home for a bit."
Chen Sansi didn't waste time chit-chatting and started to pack up his things to leave the camp.
It was not cost-effective to always eat at the restaurant; it was best to buy meat and cook for himself.
After he left, within a few hours, the feat of mastering spear techniques overnight without any Breathing Skill spread throughout the entire Left Army Thousand Households of Po Yang.
Many of the new recruits who had the intention to compete for the "Selected Point" position psychologically collapsed and gave up, shifting their goals to becoming military soldiers.
It wasn't until two days later that people began to practice spear techniques, one after another.
The fastest among them was naturally Song Yan.
On the third day, he finally learned the spear techniques with the aid of the Breathing Skill, but still felt defeated.
"Second uncle, I can't compare to Chen Sansi."
In a double-courtyard house, Song Yan said with his head down, his tone dejected.
"You have to compete even if you can't compare!"
Luo Dongquan said with annoyance, "You still have a chance as long as you haven't cultivated Qi-Blood yet."
Two servants carried trays into the courtyard.
On the trays were steaming hot boiled meat and offal, with the most conspicuous item being a dark yellow, elongated organ slightly twisted in shape.
"This is a leopard's gallbladder."
Luo Dongquan stated, "Bear heart and leopard gallbladder count as great nourishing medicine. Starting today, you will eat one every day. It will not only nourish your body but will also help you accelerate the cultivation of Qi-Blood. One leopard gallbladder costs ten taels of silver, and that kid with the Chen surname can't afford it."
"Second uncle, he is a hunter," Song Yan stated. "And I heard he's a very skilled hunter."
Upon hearing this, Luo Dongquan couldn't help but laugh.
"A hunter? Do you think those hunters outside Po Yang County can't even afford to pay their taxes?
"The really valuable things on Tiger Head Mountain are all beyond the Second Layer Mountain in the deep forests. Those game animals hardly ever come out, and the hunters also dare not venture in."
"Why not?"
"Why not? Because they're poor!"
Luo Dongquan said gravely, "Poor people just need to barely stay alive, that's all. It's not their turn to make money, it's that simple.
"That's why I'm trying my utmost to send you climbing upwards. Only if you climb high enough, can you bully others, instead of being bullied!"
"Second uncle, why do we have to bully others?"
Song Yan didn't understand.
"You fool!" Luo Dongquan erupted. "Just eat your leopard gallbladder! As for that fat man, squandering and extremely greedy for money, he definitely won't take out real gold and silver to support that Chen kid."
...
"Whew—"
After completing a set of spear techniques in combination with the Breathing Skill, Chen Sansi was covered in sweat and doused himself with a bucket of cold water.
[Cultivation Technique: Basic Spear Technique for Military Soldiers (Not Entry-Level)]
[Progress: (38/100)]
[Utility: None]
"Cultivating Qi-Blood really isn't as simple as Zhu Tong said."
He sat on a rock, catching his breath for quite some time.
Chen Sansi had been training day and night for the past two days but only made progress to this extent, still some distance from truly being entry-level.
"Brother Shi, it's time to eat," Gu Xinlan called out.
"Coming."
Chen Sansi sat at the table and grabbed an entire beef shank to nibble on.
Gu Xinlan said sympathetically, "You must be exhausted recently."
"It's okay."
Chen Sansi inquired, "Is our home running low on money?"
"We still have one tael and three coins of silver," Gu Xinlan had every detail of the household memorized. "We can hold on for a few more days."
"Martial arts training is really burning through money..."
Chen Sansi commented with some irony.
Within just a few days, he had consumed all the stored silver in the house.
Yet even so, his body still showed signs of a Qi-Blood deficiency.
It seems that the meat from ordinary livestock has limited effects; he must consume game to make a real difference.
Chen Sansi declared, "I'm going up the mountain this afternoon."
"Are you going with Uncle Zhao and the others to hunt Black Bears?" Gu Xinlan asked anxiously. "Be careful."
"Mhm, don't worry."
Chen Sansi put down his chopsticks, and at the same time, someone knocked on the door.
It was Zhao Qiao and the others.
Zhao Qiao carried a basket full of fish, Wu Da held a jar of honey, and another honest-looking young hunter led a dark grey slender dog.
After introductions, he learned the man's name was Zhuang Yi.
The four of them, familiar with the path, headed towards Second Layer Mountain.
"There's plenty to hunt south of Second Layer Mountain, but not much is valuable."
Zhao Qiao said, "Including that black bear, it actually also comes from the north, under normal circumstances, it wouldn't be our turn to take action. But that beast developed a taste for human flesh, and it's cunning too.
"It doesn't dare mess with those who practice martial arts, so every year around this time, it quietly runs to the south of the Second Layer Mountain or the First Layer Mountain to attack hunters who go up the mountain."
"Even beasts bully the common folk!" Zhuang Yi said indignantly.
"We're here."
Wu Da pointed ahead: "Three Donkeys and a few other hunters, it all happened around this area."
They stopped in a relatively open and flat grassland, placed the bait they brought with them on the ground, and then hid in the distant woods, planning to rely on the autumn wind to spread the scent and attract the black bear.
But after a long wait, they did not see any movement.
"Let me do it."
Chen Sansi had not wanted to show them up before, but since this method wasn't working, it was better not to waste any more time.
[Tracking Expertise (Mastery)]
[Progress: 350/500]
[Utility: Insight Shocking, Light as a Feather]
It had been quite some time since he last went hunting in the mountains, and this was an excellent opportunity to improve his skills.
With his piercing gaze, he soon found a piece of rotten fruit peel in the grass nearby and then cylindrical feces wrapped with insects under a bush.
For Chen Sansi, as long as he could lock down a general area, there were no traces he couldn't find.
After he found the signs, the hunting dog followed over and discovered them too, barking excitedly as if it were in awe.
To be admired by a dog; wasn't that a bit odd?
"Hey, Brother Chen, you're really amazing!"
Zhuang Yi spoke honestly: "You're even better than a dog!"
"Do you even know how to talk?"
Wu Da slapped him on the back of the head: "Brother Shi has real talent, learn something!"
Chen Sansi gestured for silence and continued moving forward.
After about four miles, they arrived at a valley with a small creek in the middle...
Even from a distance, Chen Sansi could see many traces left by medium and large animals in the forest across the creek.
"Across there is North Mountain!"
Wu Da said with emotion: "Not only are there many large animals there, there's also a chance to encounter exotic beasts; one catch can make you rich.
"Unfortunately, we have to 'avoid the brocade-clothed' and don't dare to go over lightly; if we provoke disciples of the martial arts halls, we'll be in big trouble!"
Chen Sansi had long heard about this: "What exactly does provoking mean?"
"There's no standard."
Zhuang Yi took over: "It's just bad luck if they don't like the look of someone."
"But it's different for you, Brother Shi."
Wu Da said: "If you could become a military officer in the future, you won't have to fear them!"
One step behind, forever behind.
If he couldn't become a flag officer, he wouldn't even have the right to hunt, let alone,
Not wasting any time, Chen Sansi continued towards the west, leading several people into a dense forest.
After entering the area, traces of the black bear's life became noticeably clearer.
There were claw marks on the tree trunks, footprints on the ground, and stones that had been turned over.
Chen Sansi, on alert, kept his distance while searching for the black bear's figure.
"There's a tree hollow."
Wu Da pointed to the hollow of an ancient tree ahead: "But it seems to be empty."
As he said this, he was about to approach for a closer look.
"Watch out!"
Chen Sansi acutely sensed something was amiss and hastily stopped him: "Behind you!"
Almost simultaneously, a massive figure emerged from the bushes and lunged at Wu Da's back with a scarred face.
The beast had been waiting for a long time!
After stepping into the dense forest, he hadn't heard any noise at all, so he dared not get too close.
Wu Da and the others saw that the tree hollow was empty and thought the black bear had gone out to forage, relaxing their vigilance. They never imagined that the black bear, used to hunting humans, would now actively hunt them!
No wonder the bait had been useless!
"Thud—"
This black bear was larger than its common kind, approximately two and a half meters in length, weighing at least seven to eight hundred pounds. A touch could hurt, making contact would mean death!
Wu Da didn't even have time to grab an arrow; his bow was smacked into two pieces, and he was about to be struck in the face by a thick bear paw.
In the blink of an eye, a Wolf Teeth Arrow accurately pierced the black bear's left eye.
"Roar—"
A sharp roar echoed.
Zhao Qiao and Zhuang Yi finally reacted, hastily shooting their arrows.
However, because of their panic, the arrows from their Four-Force Bows didn't fully draw back and merely penetrated the skin, embedding in the fat of the black bear. They did not cause substantial damage, but it was enough to drive the black bear completely mad, causing it to furiously pounce towards them.
Being too close, Zhao Qiao and Zhuang Yi didn't have time to fire a second arrow and had to turn and run.
The hunting dog barked wildly at the side, unable to even get close.
"Beast, come chase me!"
Chen Sansi shouted as he released another arrow.
Since the black bear had its back towards him, preventing a lethal hit, he could only shoot it in the tough back.
Nonetheless, because the arrow was heavy, it still half buried itself into the bear.
"ROAR!!!!"
The enraged black bear swiftly changed its target, charging at the person whose attack caused it the most pain at incredible speed.
It might look bulky, but it was astonishingly quick when it ran.
The sight horrified Wu Da and the others: "Run!"
But soon, they could let go of their worries.
Because Chen Sansi was even faster, his agility was like that of a monkey. Using the dense forest to dodge and weave, the black bear missed its attacks repeatedly.
The blade of the Wolf Teeth Arrow continued to cut into its flesh and bone, with dark red blood soaking its fur; the bear's speed gradually slowed.
After gaining some distance, Chen Sansi drew his bow and prepared another arrow.
"Whiz, whiz, whiz—"
One arrow followed another in rapid succession, hardly pausing.
The explosive power required to continuously draw a heavy bow—what an outbreak of strength!
Zhao Qiao and the others watched in amazement, but they didn't stay idle and assisted with their light bows from the side.
Before long, the black bear was hit by numerous arrows, its movements growing sluggish.
Once Chen Sansi confirmed he could finish off the beast without injury, he deliberately avoided hitting vital spots, leading it out of the dense forest. Taking advantage of its weakness, he picked up his plum blossom spear and charged forward.
Such a perfect live target, how could he not make good use of it?