Flying Locust Stone

Early the next morning, Zhong Lin and the other ate until they were stuffed, loaded their belongings onto the wheelbarrow, strapped hunting knives at their waists, slung bows and arrows over their backs, and strode out of Summer River Village toward the rising sun.

They did not have much luggage, really—an iron pot, a few tattered clothes, and some smoked meat. That was practically all they owned.

Having transmigrated here, Zhong Lin felt no attachment to Summer River Village beyond the memories left behind by the previous owner of his body.

Little Shi was only a child. He was swept up in the excitement of going on a long journey and had no idea they might never return.

Beneath the great locust tree at the village entrance, Taro Uncle watched the two Zhong brothers depart and let out a sigh.

The weather was clear, with blue skies, white clouds, and rosy light stretching for miles.

Little Shi trotted along on his short legs, sometimes running to the roadside to pick a flower, sometimes burrowing into the grass to catch bugs, brimming with excitement.

As Zhong Lin pushed the wheelbarrow southward, he pondered their future.

"Black Mountain County lies directly south of Summer River Village, eighty li away, with four hills in between. Of course, eighty li is only the straight-line distance. Measured by foot, it could be two or three hundred li. What a godforsaken backwater!" Zhong Lin sighed inwardly.

This world differed from his previous one. This was an era where going out depended entirely on walking and communication depended entirely on shouting. A distance of two or three hundred li might take several days to cover.

One grown man, one child, and a wheelbarrow gradually disappeared into the distance, while Summer River Village slowly vanished beyond the horizon behind them.

They followed the riverbed without resting. Whenever Little Shi grew tired, Zhong Lin let him sit in the wheelbarrow and kept pushing onward. By the end of the morning, they had covered a full forty li.

At noon, they stopped to make a fire and cook. They drew water from the river, chopped firewood from dead trees, gathered some wild vegetables, and added a little smoked meat. It did not taste particularly good, but it was enough to fill their bellies.

After resting for an hour, they set off again.

They walked another two hours that afternoon before a small hill appeared ahead. It was not very high, only a little over two hundred meters.

"Shi Tou, stop sleeping. Watch the surroundings carefully. Tell me immediately if anything happens," Zhong Lin instructed.

The mountains were home to many fierce beasts. The hill before them was not high, but who knew whether they might encounter danger? It never hurt to be cautious.

Shi Tou nodded gravely like a little adult, straightened his back, and swept his eyes over the surroundings like a radar.

Zhong Lin also set the bow from his back onto the wheelbarrow, where he could grab it at any time, remaining on guard.

Up the hill, then down.

Nothing happened.

Zhong Lin let out a breath of relief. No trouble was the best outcome.

After coming down the hill, they reached a fork in the road shaped like a Y, with one path veering left and the other right.

"Second Brother, which way do we go?"

Zhong Shi bit his fingernail and turned to look at Zhong Lin.

"This way."

Zhong Lin tilted the wheelbarrow slightly and headed straight down the right-hand fork.

The previous owner of his body had never been to Black Mountain County either, but he had learned the route from his father and elder brother. They should not go wrong.

Without stopping, the two continued along the mountain path as the sun gradually sank westward.

They had not found a place to spend the night, but they were not too worried. This road was frequently traveled, unlike other places where fierce beasts prowled at night. As long as they stayed alert, there should be no major problems.

Of course, sleeping out at night was something people did only when they had no other choice. Leaving aside the nocturnal predators, wind, rain, dew, and frost alone were enough to make one suffer. There were no miracle medicines in this era; sometimes, even a cold could claim a person's life.

Fortunately, the moon was bright and the stars sparse tonight, so there was no need to worry about extreme weather.

After finding a pile of dry firewood and lighting a campfire, the two brothers rested close together.

Little Shi soon fell asleep, but Zhong Lin did not dare sleep. This was the wilderness; even if he had twice the courage, he would not dare let them both fall asleep.

He had not intended to sleep that night. He only planned to catch a little shut-eye after dawn.

After covering Little Shi with an old garment, Zhong Lin got up, gathered a pile of small stones at his feet, and threw them at the eucalyptus tree over ten meters away.

At first, because of his angle and strength, he did not hit it once. But after constant adjustments, he could hit it three or four times out of ten.

As he threw stones, Zhong Lin occasionally glanced at the System Panel.

At present, the System Panel's skill column still contained only the solitary skill "Archery." Since he had no way to learn other new skills, Zhong Lin could only try other methods and see whether he could develop a new one.

For instance, the "stone throwing" he was currently practicing.

"There was a hero in Liangshan Marsh known as Featherless Arrow, and all he used was thrown stones. With a single flying-stone technique, he beat so many Liangshan heroes until they had no temper left. With the System Panel helping me, as long as I get started and form a skill, I can use Skill Points to raise it to the max. I wonder if this will work."

Whether it worked or not, without any other means of learning skills, he could only resort to this clumsy method.

Whoosh!

Whoosh, whoosh!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Zhong Lin kept throwing stones. When he ran out, he went to collect them, then continued throwing. When his right hand grew tired, he used his left.

A night passed. Zhong Lin's eyes were bloodshot, and his dark circles were nearly as bad as a panda's, but the smile on his face could not be concealed.

"System."

Host: Zhong Lin

Skills: Archery (Max Level), Flying Locust Stone (Beginner)

Skill Points: ∞

A night of effort had indeed formed a skill.

Flying stone would have been fine. Why call it Flying Locust Stone? Does it sound more impressive that way? Zhong Lin grumbled inwardly.

Grumbling aside, Zhong Lin knew it was called Flying Locust Stone because the stones flew through the air like locusts.

Flying Locust Stone was a concealed weapon technique, and it could be said to be one of the most convenient and economical. Stones could be found everywhere; they required neither money to buy nor time to prepare. They were inexhaustible and endless in supply, picked up at will and thrown at will—extremely convenient.

With a thought, the ∞ symbol beside Skill Points blurred, and the word "Beginner" after Flying Locust Stone instantly changed to "Max Level."

Before Zhong Lin could react, a hazy stream of memories flooded into his mind. In those memories, he picked up all kinds of stones every day and threw them.

First, he threw them at a tree trunk from three meters away, then four meters, five meters... ten meters...

After he could still easily hit the trunk from dozens of meters away, the Zhong Lin in those memories switched to even smaller targets.

Day after day for decades, until finally, the Zhong Lin in his memories could casually pick up a stone from the ground and use a Flying Locust Stone to strike down a bird in flight dozens of meters away.

Zhong Lin slowly opened his eyes, his expression overflowing with amazement. "As expected of the System. I now feel as though I've practiced Flying Locust Stone for decades. I can hit whatever I point at without the slightest effort."