Tusk Mountain Boar

"Strengthen one's bone structure!?" Hearing what Zhang Ding said, Lin Sheng clicked their tongue inwardly.

This already counted as enhancing a person's innate aptitude to a certain extent. The stronger one's bone structure, the better; the greater the effect and power of cultivating martial arts.

Even Lin Sheng could not help feeling tempted.

Although Lin Sheng had the Mountain Sea Scroll, this body's bone structure could truly only be considered below average.

If Lin Sheng could raise their innate bone structure, then combine it with the Mountain Sea Scroll's enhancement effect upon entering the body, the two together would undoubtedly produce better cultivation results.

"Old Zhang, I'd say you should forget it. A single Blood Cultivating Pill costs at least two hundred taels of silver. And even if you have the money, you might not be able to buy one. Instead of wasting your thoughts on that, you'd be better off cultivating diligently every day and spending less energy on women..."

An old hunter mercilessly teased him.

"You old bastard Deng, who says I, Zhang, have no chance of getting a Blood Cultivating Pill? This beast tide might just be my chance to take a gamble..."

Hearing the mockery in the other man's words, Zhang Ding immediately retorted irritably.

Afterward, the group chatted for a while longer. As they ventured deeper and deeper into Yangping Mountain, their attention gradually shifted to their surroundings, and they no longer had the mood to continue talking.

This time, they had gone quite deep into Yangping Mountain. All sorts of wild beasts occasionally darted past nearby. Fortunately, most of the Ninth Squad were veteran hunters with ample experience dealing with beasts.

They avoided the more troublesome beasts in advance, or used prepared beast meat to lure them away.

As for beasts that posed little danger, they had no intention of attacking them and simply hurried past.

If they encountered a situation that could not be avoided, Wang Sanyang would strike like thunder and swiftly kill the beast.

As for the carcasses of the beasts they killed, they only took the valuable parts and left the rest where they lay.

Since this mission took them deep into the mountains, they had all traveled light.

It was not until a full day later that they finally reached the area where the Tusk Mountain Boar was said to be active.

Wang Sanyang immediately had the experienced old hunters spread out and search for traces of the Tusk Mountain Boar's activities.

The Tusk Mountain Boar was enormous, so its trail was not difficult to find.

In less than half a day, a hunter had identified a site where the Tusk Mountain Boar had recently been active.

"Damn, that reeks. Looks like that big bastard left not long ago."

Zhang Ding crouched on the ground and lightly sniffed. Before him stood several large trees with most of their leaves gnawed away, leaving them bare and bald.

Among the surrounding shrubs and vegetation were piles of dung several times larger than a human head. Judging by the amount, each pile had to weigh dozens of jin.

From the sheer scale of the droppings alone, the Tusk Mountain Boar was likely two sizes larger than an elephant.

Lin Sheng also noticed that after entering this area, the number of various beasts that had previously appeared every so often had noticeably dwindled.

Clearly, this area was the Tusk Mountain Boar's territory.

"Alright, set the traps here and wait for that big bastard to return."

By then, Wang Sanyang had already surveyed the surrounding terrain and began directing everyone to set up traps.

Everyone divided the work among themselves and got busy. Their hands and feet moved swiftly; the Tusk Mountain Boar could return at any moment, so they had to make thorough preparations in advance. Otherwise, taking down that big bastard would not be easy.

While Lin Sheng was working with Zhang Ding and the others, Ma Qiang at the rear of the group occasionally looked over. His gaze fell inconspicuously upon Lin Sheng, and a trace of resentment appeared on his face.

"What is it, Ah Qiang? Can't wait any longer?"

A tall, lean, ordinary-looking man beside Ma Qiang noticed his gaze and asked quietly.

"If you can't wait, leave it to me when the Tusk Mountain Boar comes. I'll take care of him amid the chaos."

The tall, lean man was named Liu Jie. He was Ma Long's trusted subordinate, placed in the Ninth Squad to protect Ma Qiang. He had entered the Body Tempering realm years ago, and his strength was considered quite good among Body Tempering martial artists—two notches stronger than Zhang Ding.

"Do it here!?"

A flicker of hesitation appeared on Ma Qiang's face at those words, but he quickly nodded.

"I'll listen to you, Brother Liu. We'll deal with that brat here. Once this mission is complete, I'll leave the Ninth Squad and go to my brother's side."

"Good. He's just a brat who only recently entered the trade. Watch closely—I'll cripple him for you soon enough. Then we'll let him die at the Tusk Mountain Boar's hands, and no one will be able to blame us."

A cold smile hung on Liu Jie's face, his expression saying, Leave it to me. Everything is under control.

After setting the traps, everyone found places to hide and quietly waited for the day's true target to arrive.

Lin Sheng also chose a spot atop an ancient tree near the traps.

The ancient tree's branches and leaves were dense, making it ideal for concealing oneself.

Lin Sheng swept a glance around, but their gaze paused slightly on a large tree not far from the ancient tree they occupied.

Ma Qiang and another man were hiding in that tree. Through the dense foliage, their gazes occasionally fell upon Lin Sheng.

After noticing Lin Sheng's gaze, they quickly looked away again.

"These two..."

Lin Sheng narrowed their eyes slightly, then soon shook their head and looked away.

Lin Sheng was somewhat surprised to see the two here. However, besides ancient trees, the only nearby hiding places were rotting leaves on the ground. There was nothing strange about them hiding in a tree like Lin Sheng, though they did seem a little too close.

The thought flashed through Lin Sheng's mind, but Lin Sheng did not pay much attention to it. Instead, they carefully checked the equipment, rations, and water they had brought.

Since this expedition had taken them deep into Yangping Mountain, Lin Sheng had prepared quite thoroughly.

Besides the standard iron staff issued upon joining the Beast Hunter Hall, Lin Sheng had specially asked someone at a blacksmith shop in Yangping Town to forge a short dagger. It was an extra layer of protection. Though the iron staff was weighty, its true piercing power was far inferior to that of a dagger. Especially against thick-skinned, tough-fleshed mutated beasts, a dagger could undoubtedly inflict far more impressive wounds, and it was even more effective in close-quarters combat.

After confirming that nothing was amiss, Lin Sheng held their breath, focused their mind, and quietly waited for the Tusk Mountain Boar to arrive.

Lin Sheng had already decided that after dealing with the Tusk Mountain Boar, they would find a way to absorb it into their body.

Time slowly passed, and several hours soon went by.

The beast hunters were all remarkably patient, lying in silent ambush without making any unnecessary movement. Still, each of them felt at least somewhat tense inside.

If that big bastard did not arrive until nightfall, things would become troublesome.

At night, everyone's vision would be affected. Taking action would carry several more uncertainties than it did during the day.

Fortunately, the situation did not develop in a bad direction.

After another incense stick's worth of time passed, a deep roar came from the distance, rich and resonant.

"It's here!"

Someone murmured softly. At once, everyone's nerves tightened, and they each gripped their weapons tightly.

Lin Sheng did the same. Focusing their vision, Lin Sheng clenched the iron staff and dagger in hand, staring fixedly in the direction from which the roar had come.

There, the vague outline of a colossal figure could be seen slowly approaching.