A Group of Two Taels of Silver

Two ape cries echoed through the sky above the mountains and rivers.

So the clear ape cries heard earlier were actually made by these fierce and detestable creatures?

Lin Jue didn't have time to ponder this, because the tallest and strongest ape had already charged towards him. The apes behind it quickly dropped their book baskets and followed suit.

What do these things want?

Lin Jue's eyes widened, but he didn't retreat. Instead, he gripped his dagger and took a deep breath.

"Hiss..."

Even though it was midsummer, the scorching air turned cool as he inhaled, and upon reaching his stomach, it stirred the latent fire within him, making it burn fiercely.

His mouth puffed out, and he exhaled with a "whoosh!"

"Boom..."

A ball of flame spread out and shot forward!

"Ah!"

The apes shrieked in fright, their cries piercingly sharp.

At the same time, not only did all the apes stop in their tracks, but they also retreated a distance, watching Lin Jue warily.

The two sides were in a temporary standoff, sizing each other up.

Lin Jue knew that these apes were no ordinary ones. Their height was comparable to his own, and it was highly likely they were stronger than ordinary people.

Lin Jue could only use fire to temporarily drive them back, hoping they would fear flames like common wild beasts.

It seemed his idea was correct.

These apes indeed dared not advance further.

Some even chose to retreat and continue searching through the contents of Lin Jue's book basket.

However, Lin Jue soon discovered that although these apes feared fire, they were also very intelligent—

They would throw stones at people!

"Crackling..."

Fortunately, there was a distance between them, and with Lin Jue's full attention, he managed to avoid being hit by dodging and using his agility.

Only after being forced back a considerable distance, far from his book basket, did the apes stop driving Lin Jue away. They still watched him intently.

Lin Jue gritted his teeth in anger, unable to think of a solution for the moment. He could only watch as the apes ate his rations, rummaged through his book basket, and glared at him menacingly, maintaining their standoff.

His grip on the small knife tightened.

Just then, the sound of horse hooves suddenly came from behind him.

The apes in front also raised their heads, their gazes passing over Lin Jue to look behind him.

"Thump thump thump..."

The sound of hooves approached rapidly.

Just as Lin Jue was contemplating whether to turn his head, and if turning would provoke a sudden attack from the apes, he heard a faint whistling sound.

"Whoosh!"

Followed by a "thud."

An ape in front was immediately hit by an arrow and fell backward.

The monkey troop was thrown into a panic, a wave of chaos erupting.

"Whoosh!"

Another arrow flew, but missed.

At the same time, the sound of hooves reached Lin Jue's back and stopped abruptly.

Lin Jue no longer worried about the apes ambushing him when he turned. He quickly looked back and saw a man in simple clothing, appearing quite young, riding a tall horse. The horse carried a long spear with a cloth-wrapped tip, a saber at his waist, and a bow and arrow in his hand.

One looked up, the other looked down.

"Well, a scholar, daring to travel this road alone? And even confronting these strange apes!"

"What kind of monkeys are these? Why are they so big?"

"You don't know?"

"No..."

"No wonder you're so bold!" the man said. "Didn't you see that everyone else stopped in the village behind and formed groups to travel together?"

"I didn't see..."

"You really don't know!"

The man on the horse looked surprised and then said to him, "These strange apes used to live in the mountains. Last year, they started coming near the mountain path, committing all sorts of evil deeds. Solitary travelers who encounter them are bitten and beaten, then have their rations and livestock stolen. If there are women in the group, they are taken to be played with and tormented. Only skilled martial artists and men traveling in groups dare to pass here."

As he spoke, the strange apes, like humans, gathered into groups. They not only checked on their injured companions but also seemed enraged, roaring incessantly.

However, they were also clever and didn't approach further. Instead, they continued to peer behind the two men.

There were often sounds of roaring, as if they were communicating.

Lin Jue couldn't help but turn his head to look again.

A group of people were walking up behind him, about twenty to thirty of them, all men, leading mules, horses, and donkeys. They looked like merchants and travelers.

These strange apes were wary of them.

"You're lucky today, you happened to run into me," said the man on horseback. "Wait until the people behind you arrive, then leave with them."

"Them? What about you?"

"Me? Haha!"

The man burst into laughter, with a bit of a rogue's air: "The magistrate of Danxun County has posted a bounty for the heads of these strange apes, two taels of silver per head. I happened to be short on travel funds along the way... Although these strange apes are fierce and hold grudges, and are vengeful, they are also cunning and cautious. With so many of you, they will only run. After you leave, they will bring the ape heads to me."

"You alone?"

Lin Jue stared at him, stunned.

These strange apes, as tall as humans, were not something one person could handle, even with bows, arrows, sabers, or spears. However, when Lin Jue was in Shu Village, he often heard village elders in the pavilion by the bridge tell stories of chivalry and heroism outside of ghost tales. There were often martial artists with strong spirits and courage, possessing great skills, who could even cleave ghosts and gods with their swords and slay demons with their blades.

Could the man he saw today be one of them?

"Go pick up your belongings!"

The man didn't answer, but spurred his horse forward.

At this moment, the twenty-odd merchants and travelers from behind also walked over. Among them were people holding sabers and clubs. Upon seeing the strange apes, they looked somewhat fearful and started discussing amongst themselves, but they still followed the man's horse forward.

With a large group, even unintentionally, they exuded an imposing presence.

So, as the crowd walked a certain distance, the ape troop retreated a certain distance, until they left the main road and stared at them from the distant trees.

Lin Jue, meanwhile, quickly went to his book basket.

He hurriedly picked up his things and checked for damage.

He could hear the voices of the merchants and travelers nearby:

"Hero, these strange apes are not easy for one person to deal with! Besides being tall, I heard their leader can spew clouds and mist, scaring horses away! The county yamen came several times but couldn't do anything about them. You shouldn't risk yourself for this small bounty. Next time, perhaps you should bring a few friends!"

"How can strange apes know magic? Can clouds and mist block sabers and spears?" The man on horseback didn't listen, even boasting, "Haven't you all heard the story of the general from the previous dynasty who slew a Yaksha in the night?"

That was a story from before the general from the previous dynasty went to war.

Legend had it that his concubine had died, and her body was placed in the mourning hall. In the middle of the night, a Yaksha came to devour her. The general, not yet famous throughout the land, felt a bit of fear, but unable to bear seeing his beloved concubine's body eaten, he bravely drew his treasured sword. His mere presence was enough to scare the Yaksha away. One Yaksha, running slower, was even struck by his sword.

The crowd didn't dare to say more and simply left together.

Lin Jue, however, was still counting his belongings.

Besides the rations being completely eaten, the canopy on top of his book basket had also been torn apart, his water container had been trampled, and a few pages of one of his books had been damaged from being thrown around by these strange apes.

The rations were nothing; he could buy more later, or just go hungry for the journey. But the other items were different.

The book basket was a gift from Old Master Wang of Heng Village. Regardless of how much acquaintance he had with Old Master Wang, it was a gift from someone else, representing friendship. It was certainly more precious than buying a new one on the street. Although he had brought the other books mainly to conceal the ancient book, none of them were bought by Lin Jue himself. They were all given to him by people in the village when he borrowed books, who saw his plight and were moved by his studiousness.

This water container was personally made by his Uncle, who had cut bamboo on the mountain.

These items! They were truly detestable!

Lin Jue was furious, almost gritting his teeth.

How could he easily endure such anger?

A person who could scare away monsters when facing them, a person who could calmly converse with a soldier ghost, would he be afraid of a group of stronger wild beasts? If he left today facing these beasts, how would he cope with demons and monsters he might encounter on his path to immortality, and how would he maintain his composure?

Lin Jue calmly put away his book basket, raised his head, and glanced around. Some of the merchants had already moved forward, but some saw him still packing his things and stopped to wait for him.

However, what caught his eye was something in the hands of a burly man.

"Young sir! May I borrow a saber!"

"Hmm?"

"I too shall emulate the general of the previous dynasty!"

"You..."

A saber was thrown over, landing at his feet.

"How will you return it?"

"In Danxun City, at the tea stall by the north city gate."

"Thank you, brother!"

Lin Jue picked up the saber, then turned around and said through gritted teeth to the martial artist beside him, "I shall lend you a hand. I'll help you chop off ape heads, and the reward money will be yours!"

"Well said, scholar!"

The man readily agreed, his eyes shining:

"My name is Luo Seng!"

"Lin Jue."

"This place isn't good, let's change locations."

"Suit yourself!"

After saying a few words, he walked away into the distance.

Those strange apes were still in the trees, watching them with eyes full of anger and hatred. Seeing them leave, they all followed one after another.

Luo Seng chose a corner formed by the river and a stream and walked into it. The monkey troop chased after them and trapped them in the corner. Both sides occasionally turned their heads to glance at the merchant travelers who were gradually moving away.

Finally, the strange apes ahead became restless.

A series of grunts and growls.

These strange apes could no longer hold back.

The martial artist surnamed Luo was unhurried, drawing his bow and nocking an arrow.

"Swoosh!"

An arrow shot out, piercing into the monkey troop.

"Thud!"

A dull sound was heard as it hit the tree trunk behind them.

This action completely enraged the monkey troop.

"Hoo hoo! Ah!"

The strongest leader among the strange apes glanced at the arrow in the tree trunk, immediately stood up, spread his arms in a threatening gesture, and shook the branches beside him as if rallying his troops, which immediately elicited a chorus of responses.

Roars echoed by the river, carrying far.

Then, the trees and bushes rustled.

This group of strange apes charged forward.

Lin Jue had never experienced such a fight before. He had already hunched over, fully focused, staring intently at the strange apes in front of him, and tightly gripping the wooden handle of the saber in his hand.

The Jianghu person surnamed Luo beside him was calm and composed. He lowered his hand and first gripped the long spear on his horse. After a moment's thought, he let go and instead drew his saber. Unhurriedly, he dismounted, flipped off his horse, and walked towards the monkey troop.

One party scrambled and charged, the other advanced with steady steps.

The two met in an instant.

Lin Jue could hear the sound of blades whistling. The sun was high, and its intense rays were often reflected by the long blades, casting shadows that fell into the dim forest or flickered past his eyes. But he never looked, nor did he even blink. His eyes were solely on the two strange apes charging at him.

The two strange apes were as tall as humans, with long arms. They came one after another, their auras fierce.

Lin Jue dared not relax at all.

This was because although the saber was longer than a long sword and could be considered a polearm, its effective attack range was very limited. To put it bluntly, it was just a cleaver attached to a long stick. He had to maintain his distance.

Otherwise, the saber would become a club.

Despite the tension, his thoughts were clear.

In an instant, the ape in front reached him, but it slowed down slightly, warily watching the saber in his hand while cautiously approaching and waving its arms.

The ape behind it, however, was even more aggressive.

Lin Jue's mind raced, and he swung the saber with both hands.

He felt the cleaver at the end of the saber was very heavy, with the head being heavy and the handle light. When swung, its momentum naturally increased, and its force was also considerable.

"Woo!!"

The cleaver sliced through the air, leaving a streak of light.

The ape in front, as expected, was prepared and quickly rolled to dodge. The ape behind it seized the opportunity to accelerate, baring its sharp teeth, and roared as it charged at Lin Jue, clutching a sharp stone in its hand.

The saber was long and its head was heavy. While it was powerful when swung, if it missed its target, the effort and distance required to bring it back were even greater. Perhaps from fighting humans frequently, these creatures were smarter than Lin Jue thought and understood humans better.

However, they didn't know that Lin Jue was also prepared.

Even though the saber had been swung, Lin Jue's face still faced that direction. He had already filled his lungs with air, causing his cheeks to puff out.

"Poof-boom..."

A puff of fire erupted, and a spray of flames burst forth, just like a trick at a temple fair. It instantly halted the strange apes' assault.

At the same time, the flames obscured the vision of both sides.

Lin Jue ignored everything else. All he felt was a surge of anger. Gripping the saber tightly, he swung it with all his might.

"Woo!!"

The pole whistled, the blade flashed with cold light, and the cleaver swept horizontally through the flames, even the blade's edge trailing flames.

"Splat!"

Blood spurted, and a monkey's head fell askew.