Locust

The darkness outside the window was about to recede, and the strange noises in the mountains and forests gradually died down.

Xu Yuan was extremely wary of everything in the village.

Under "Fate Gazing," the villagers' "Fates" were bizarre and unlike human "Fates"!

The old Mountain Runner's skill level was also unclear, indicating that the other party's skill level was far higher than Xu Yuan's, to the point of being invisible.

The villagers might not be human, but they weren't Malevolent Spirits either.

At least they were "humans" different from those outside the mountains—not to mention anything else, Xu Yuan had never seen any of the villagers in town, as if they could never leave Ghost Witch Mountain in their lives.

Ironware, salt, and other supplies could only be brought in from outside the mountains.

Xu Yuan had originally intended to use Wangxiang Village to escape from Wu Haishan and the others, but he had lingered in the village for another day, delaying his plans. This was not good!

Whether it was Master Qiao or Saint Aunt, this one day was enough for them to catch up.

Xu Yuan shook his head secretly. After daybreak, he needed to plan carefully how to escape.

"What a shame," Xu Yuan thought regretfully, "I had too little preparation time and no good merchandise, otherwise I could have hired the old Mountain Runner to escort me."

There were no chickens in the village. After the sky completely brightened, all the villagers went out to busy themselves with their "farm work."

Xu Yuan bid farewell to Uncle Jiao Er, shouldered a large bag of yesterday's harvest, and left the village.

Among the mountain goods collected yesterday, there were still many that were not suitable for bait. Xu Yuan took them all with him.

He had to at least carry them out of the village, otherwise the cleaver hanging invisibly over his head would fall.

The young people went to the fields, and Xu Yuan left the village. It was already late morning when the idle old men and women in the village slowly gathered under the huge dead tree.

A daily ritual: meet under the tree.

Exchanging gossip and information.

In this regard, villages in the mountains and outside the mountains were the same.

Zhang San's dad got a good spot today: half a broken millstone.

He squatted on it, constantly filling and emptying his tobacco pouch, as if he could never get it right.

Only when everyone had arrived did he strike a match Xu Yuan had given him with a "ci" sound, take a contented puff of his pipe, and exhale smoke rings, saying, "These are really useful."

Everyone looked on with envy, but inwardly they were gossiping: What's there to show off about!

Yet they were also truly covetous. Matches were not cheap to transport into the mountains, and ordinary families would be reluctant to exchange for a box.

Xu Yuan, carrying half a sack of mountain goods, walked about five li out of the village and dug a hole by the roadside to bury the sack.

There was a large tree by this road, and a Hanged Ghost was hanging from it, staring at Xu Yuan with its eyes wide open and tongue sticking out.

This place was easy to remember and recognize.

After burying it, Xu Yuan moved a large stone to press on top of it.

The sack contained mountain goods that Xu Yuan currently couldn't "bait" with.

He didn't recognize more than half of the items inside.

But Xu Yuan guessed that there must be many good things in there!

I can't take them with me this time because I need to travel light, but I can't waste them. I'll leave them here and come back for them later.

Those merchants who entered the mountains for business made exorbitant profits, relying on these items that ordinary people couldn't recognize.

After burying it, Xu Yuan carefully looked around again, strengthening his memory of the terrain features, and then left.

On that large tree, the old Mountain Runner, at some unknown time, was squatting on a branch from which the Hanged Ghost was hanging.

He was still wearing the same cloak adorned with feathers, and the feathers that had been cut off yesterday had regrown.

The Hanged Ghost said, "He's a child who knows how to cherish things."

The old Mountain Runner nodded. "Remember to notify me when he comes to retrieve his things."

"Are you planning to..."

The old Mountain Runner interrupted him. "I need to observe further."

People in the mountains couldn't stand waste. If Xu Yuan had casually thrown away these mountain goods, he would already be a dead man.

The mountain path wound and twisted, following the foot of the slope around two peaks and through a mountain pass.

As Xu Yuan emerged from the pass, a strange rock shaped like a bear's head protruded from the mountainside on his left.

Xu Yuan had been very vigilant; these rocks in the mountains could also "transform."

Fortunately, the rock was quiet. Xu Yuan quickly slipped past it. He glanced back; the rock was still motionless, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Turning around, he continued forward. To bypass Qihetan Town and get back to the main road, and then hurry back to the county town, he still had to travel fifty to sixty li of mountain roads.

And he didn't know what kind of strange phenomena he might encounter along the way.

Xu Yuan took a deep breath and strode forward... Suddenly, he heard the sound of sawing wood from the grass on one side.

Xu Yuan's expression immediately turned serious. Ignoring everything, he kept his eyes forward and walked quickly past.

In Ghost Witch Mountain, one must never "be curious" and investigate—that's actively stepping onto the path to the underworld!

The sound of sawing wood wasn't loud, and the wild grass by the roadside was extremely lush. This kind of grass couldn't be seen outside the mountains. It was taller than a person, with long, wide leaves that curled slightly, possessing dark red serrations along their edges.

Let alone wild rabbits, even wild boars or tigers could completely hide within it.

Although Xu Yuan wasn't curious, he took two steps forward and saw it despite himself.

A gap half a zhang wide had opened in the grass. The wild grass had been cut into pieces the size of copper coins by something, scattering them on the ground.

A corpse lay face-up on the cut grass.

Several Locusts, over three feet long, were perched on the corpse, using their strong hind legs to saw off chunks of flesh and blood from it!

The Locusts' hind legs were equipped with sharp serrations, a natural dismemberment saw!

The sound Xu Yuan heard of sawing wood was the sound of their hind legs sawing through bone.

The severed pieces of flesh were fed into their mouths. The Locusts were covered in blood and minced meat, and finding it sticky and uncomfortable, they would occasionally spread their wings and shake, flinging blood and minced meat everywhere.

Not far from the corpse, a basket lay tilted and scattered, its various goods spilled out.

It was another merchant, but unfortunately, he met his end before reaching the village.

The corpse had no obvious fatal wounds. These strange creatures, fond of fresh, lively food, had chased this poor merchant, continuously sawing off pieces of flesh and blood from him until he bled to death here...

Xu Yuan's entire body tensed. Without looking aside, he tiptoed past.

However, the slight airflow he created still alerted the Locusts. They stopped abruptly, their massive heads raising two whip-like antennae in Xu Yuan's direction, their huge, hard compound eyes fixing coldly on him!

Xu Yuan turned and ran.

Flap flap—

The giant Locusts spread their wings and took flight, chasing after Xu Yuan.

The fastest one was above Xu Yuan in the blink of an eye, swooping down. Its sharp, short legs were like iron claws, reaching for Xu Yuan's head. If it caught him, it would surely sever his head from his neck.

Xu Yuan suddenly looked up, whoosh—

His Inner Fire erupted fiercely, and the Locust immediately turned into a massive fireball, emitting a strange shriek as it crashed into the roadside grass.

The other Locusts continued to pursue. Xu Yuan retracted his Inner Fire and, with a thought, spat out a Pill.

The Pill was only the size of a thumb's pad, but it was what Xu Yuan had condensed from the various ores the villagers had traded the previous night.

It was heavier and more condensed than the one he had refined after consuming gold and silver before.

Whoosh—

The Pill moved like lightning, piercing through the head of a Locust.