In winter, Small Mountain Village lay quiet, its fields cold and still, its houses scattered here and there. Dogs barked and chickens crowed, while smoke curled from the village, bringing a touch of warmth to the little hamlet.
"The feast is ready! The feast is ready!"
The children ran from one end of the village to the other, spreading the news that the feast was beginning. In an instant, the whole village sprang to life.
"Brother Dade and Brother Yuqing brought back a huge gray wild boar! The feast can start!"
"They're slaughtering the pig! They're slaughtering it!"
The villagers sprang into action. Pots and bowls, firewood and clean water—all the households made their way to the open space in the village.
Li Fan finally arrived with a group of disciples. The first thing they saw was a gigantic, shaggy gray boar, as big as a little mountain, laid out in the village square.
They all froze at the sight of it. That wild boar... was way too big, wasn't it?
As expected of the cultivation world—even its wild boars were extraordinary!
One beast like that would feed the whole village for several days.
By then, Uncle Zhang and Ming Tianbei had already dug out an earthen stove. A pit formed its base, with bricks supporting it on either side. A huge iron pot rested on bricks along all four sides, and firewood burned in the pit, flames bringing the water to a boil and sending lotus blossoms rippling across its surface.
The giant wild boar was laid on a rack. Uncle Zhang took up the slaughtering knife himself and plunged it into the gray boar's throat, draining its blood. Then they hoisted it over the huge pot and ladled boiling water over its body. Everyone pitched in, scraping