Journey to Gutter Cave

"Oh? If it isn't Old Zhang. Business must be good—only got back yesterday afternoon, and you're already heading out to make another fortune today?"

The County soldier guarding the gate immediately teased Old Zhang when he saw him.

Then he let the group leave the city.

Clearly, Old Zhang was a familiar face in Blackwater County; even the County soldiers knew him.

"Ah, it just happened to come up," Old Zhang sighed helplessly.

He wanted to rest for a while too, but making money mattered more. There was still a gold-devouring beast waiting at home.

His wife had died early, leaving behind an only son whom he had spoiled rotten. That was what had led to this outcome.

He did not dare hit or scold him, always granting his only son whatever he asked for.

Otherwise, with the money he had earned before and his own frugal living, he would have long had enough to retire comfortably—or even open a shop, marry a young second wife, and lie flat into retirement.

"Watch your safety. Things haven't been peaceful lately. Demons, monsters, strange horrors, bandits, and rebels have all been appearing," the County soldier reminded him.

"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Dong. This old man understands!"

After leaving through the East Gate, Old Zhang took the lead, while the others spread out slightly.

Clearly, the three men were wary of one another and did not dare stand too close.

Out here, one had to guard not only against dangers that might appear at any moment, but also against the people at one's side.

Zhao Han shrugged and fell to the rear.

After following the Official road on the East Side for an entire morning, they reached a three-way fork around noon.

"Take this smallest path. Before long, we'll have to enter a forest trail."

Led by Old Zhang, the group proceeded slowly and soon entered the forest trail.

There were footprints left by people along the path, clearly showing that quite a few people came through here.

Before long, they reached another fork. Old Zhang did not pause at all and simply took one of the paths.

After several twists and turns, they no longer knew the way they had come. Zhao Han was no exception.

In this kind of environment, only Old Zhang could find the way. Anyone else would be unable to get out.

Their pace slowed considerably, their nerves taut and their vigilance greatly heightened, afraid they might encounter wild beasts.

Old Zhang, however, strolled along as if taking a leisurely walk, reassuring them, "No need to be so nervous, everyone. We're still far from Gutter Cave. There are usually plenty of Hunters around here, so there won't be too many wild beasts."

Only then did everyone gradually relax.

Zhao Han did not particularly care. The strength of the Muscle Refining Realm had made his senses and reactions sharper.

Ordinary wild beasts—even a ferocious tiger—might not necessarily pose a threat to Zhao Han.

Tigers were overlords of the forest, second only to "demons" and "strange horrors," and were quite rare in number.

There truly was no need to be overly nervous.

After walking through the entire afternoon, the five of them arrived at a small Lake around dusk.

"Go around the Lake and through that patch of woods. There's a sunken valley, and on the left is a hidden cave. That's Gutter Cave." Old Zhang pointed at the woods across the Lake and explained to the four of them.

Yang Li, one of the Skin Refining Warriors, said, "Old Zhang, we won't go in tonight. We'll set up Camp here for the night and head in tomorrow morning."

Old Zhang nodded noncommittally.

Entering Gutter Cave at night would be asking to die.

"I'll take you to the Camp."

Under Old Zhang's lead, they soon arrived at an Open Ground beside the Lake that had clearly been cleared by human hands.

There were still traces of old fires here. Evidently, this was the campsite Old Zhang usually brought people to when coming to Gutter Cave.

They began unpacking their bundles and setting up tents.

Naturally, these so-called tents were nowhere near as refined or convenient as modern ones.

They were merely several pieces of canvas sewn together. In modern times they would be secured with tent stakes, but here they were held down with stones, while gathered branches propped up the canvas to form a tent.

Zhao Han's was the same. With his back to the others, he took it out from his space and set it up.

Once the tents were erected, the others were somewhat surprised. Zhao Han's bundle did not look large, yet it could hold a tent. That was rather peculiar.

Afterward, they chopped firewood, scooped up water, and lit a fire to cook.

The Hunter went around the surrounding area to scatter Realgar Powder, set traps, and hang bells, lest wild beasts attack during the night.

Once the bonfire was lit, they sat in a circle, took out their own food to warm up, and began eating and drinking.

Yet everyone ate only their own food. No one dared touch another person's food, nor did anyone share.

Old Zhang did not care much about that. Whenever he saw something tasty, he shamelessly went over and asked for a little.

He knew full well that without him in these woods, these people would be like headless flies, unable to find their way out.

Anyone could die, but he absolutely could not be the first.

After eating, Zhao Han entered his tent. Before going in, he placed Yin Wood outside.

As long as it came within a one-meter radius, the Yin Wood would react.

After entering the tent, Zhao Han continued his extra meal, taking out dried meat from his spatial storage and wolfing it down.

Late at night, everyone was half-awake and half-asleep. Darkness enveloped the surroundings, and only the fires at the centers of several tents still burned.

Unbeknownst to them, an invisible, pale-white figure suddenly emerged from the forest.

Though illuminated by the firelight, the figure cast no shadow. It was clearly a ghost!

Not only that, it floated above the ground as it approached.

Realgar Powder, traps, bells—none of them were of any use against it.

Arriving outside one of the tents, the pale figure sniffed at the tent entrance, then passed straight through the tent and entered.

Then, nothing happened. With no one adding firewood, the flames gradually weakened before slowly going out, leaving behind embers and black smoke.

It was not until five in the morning, when the sky had begun to brighten faintly and dew dripped onto the tents with a damp chill, that several people got up and began packing the tents away.

Hunter emerged with a yawn, constantly pounding his back and legs. He said listlessly, "Oh, I didn't sleep well last night. My shoulders feel heavy, my throat feels tight, and my whole body feels out of sorts."

He had clearly not slept well, and even packing his luggage was much slower than usual.

Zhao Han had not actually slept well either, but with the strength of the Muscle Refining Realm, he could simply ignore it.

After glancing at him, Zhao Han quickly packed up his tent and tucked the Yin Wood into his clothes.

When he drew close to the others, the Yin Wood visibly heated up. There were too many people here, causing the Yin Wood and the Yin Wood Jade Pendant to react.

They then started a fire, preparing to eat a hot breakfast.

After all, once they reached Gutter Cave, it would be time to do serious business.

The serious business of making money.

How could they manage without eating their fill?

Just then, Hunter walked over, and Zhao Han distinctly felt the Yin Wood Jade Pendant change.

The burning sensation suddenly weakened considerably. It was still hot, but nowhere near as intense as before.

Previously, it had been like water heated to seventy or eighty degrees. Now, it was only warm water at a little over fifty degrees.

Zhao Han found it strange. What's going on?

"I'm going to take a piss!"

To test it, Zhao Han stood up and walked away.

He walked slowly, watching for the slightest changes in the Yin Wood Jade Pendant, and soon noticed something was wrong.

Once he moved farther away from Hunter, the Yin Wood's heat clearly rose again, returning to the same scorching sensation as before.

Zhao Han shot Hunter a sudden sideways glance and found him dazed and unfocused, his eyes bleary and his back weighed down.

He doesn't seem to be dead. Could he have been possessed by a ghost? Zhao Han turned away, silently speculating.

After relieving himself, he returned to camp. Sure enough, the Yin Wood Jade Pendant underwent another drastic change.

Zhao Han remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was already weighing whether to continue on to Gutter Cave—or run.