Tiger Hunt

The next day, Cui Hao entered Second Mountain with his bow.

He intended to revisit the spot where he'd found Dragon Saliva Grass before, hoping for more finds.

Midway, by a small puddle, he stumbled upon a few Qingming Grass plants. He carefully dug them up and took them with him.

There was no Qingming Grass on the edges of Second Mountain; it had long been depleted. Only deeper in the woods could some still be found.

Just as Cui Hao was about to leave, he suddenly stopped and returned to the puddle, crouching beside a green plant.

"This is…"

Cui Hao took out the Compendium of Materia Medica from his chest and compared it carefully.

Ginseng!?

With the compendium tucked away, he scanned his surroundings. Seeing no immediate danger, Cui Hao took out a small shovel and began digging from the outside.

Strength wasn't an advantage here; meticulousness was key. He slowly dug, revealing the root hairs first.

It took an hour to unearth a perfect ginseng.

Judging by its appearance, it was about ten years old.

This was good. Ginseng was one of the four ingredients for Qi and Blood Powder. Five, ten, or twenty years old would all work, just with varying efficacy.

Analyzing from the side, the Qi and Blood Powder supplied by Xuanhu Hall and Jiren Hall was potent, with nearly identical effects per packet. This suggested artificial, large-scale cultivation of ginseng?

He carefully wrapped the ginseng and placed it in the backpack at his chest.

The panel updated.

[Gathering: Novice 274/300]
[Effects: Affinity with Plants +5, Danger Sense +5]

Cui Hao hesitated here.

If he went to the place where he found Dragon Saliva Grass again, he might be late returning. If some accident occurred, he might be forced to spend the night in the mountains.

Considering his growing strength and the stacking of various effects, he figured it wouldn't be a major issue. He started off at a brisk pace.

The journey was smooth.

Near the end of noon, Cui Hao arrived for the second time at the location where he'd harvested Dragon Saliva Grass.

Before him lay a gentle rocky slope, covered with mud and vegetation. In the middle was a gully carved out by a hot spring over time.

The gully was less than a meter wide. The two Dragon Saliva Grass plants had been found right beside it.

He took a drink of water and ate some dry rations, then waded upstream, searching carefully again. Finding nothing, he reached the top of the slope.

At first glance, Cui Hao's attention was drawn to several Blood Essence Grass plants growing on the surface of a dead tree trunk.

Blood Essence Grass had dark red leaves with golden veins, shaped like palms.

It preferred sunlight and typically grew in open, sunny areas on mountain slopes.

Its effect was to replenish qi and blood, making it the core ingredient for refining Qi and Blood Powder.

The corners of his mouth turned up. Bringing these few Blood Essence Grass plants back would make today perfect.

He scanned his surroundings, confirming safety, and quickly approached the dead tree trunk. With swift movements, he harvested seven or eight Blood Essence Grass plants. His gathering skill leveled up.

[Gathering: Apprentice 1/600]
[Effects: Affinity with Plants +10, Danger Sense +10, Resource Sense +5]

The moment his skill leveled up, Cui Hao suddenly felt a strange connection to the surrounding vegetation.

The 'Resource Sense' effect enhanced his perception of rare herbs within a small range. When high-quality resources were nearby, he would receive vague directional guidance.

This sense was still weak, but it filled him with surprise.

He left a few Blood Essence Grass seedlings untouched, planning to harvest them next time.

Turning around, just as Cui Hao was about to leave, a sudden unease rose in his heart. He instinctively drew his bow and nocked an arrow.

Following him, a Striped Tiger appeared below the slope, its steps leisurely.

Their eyes met. It was the same tiger from last time. A voice in Cui Hao's heart told him that a direct confrontation would be a fifty-fifty fight.

Run? Unwise. He had the advantage of terrain now; the tiger couldn't leverage its pouncing ability.

"Roar!" A soul-shattering roar echoed. The fierce tiger sprang forward on all fours, preparing to devour the human.

Whoosh!

In an instant, he made his decision. Cui Hao raised his bow and let loose an arrow, shooting purely by feel without aiming.

The first arrow was dodged by the tiger tilting its head.

The second arrow followed in quick succession, piercing deeply into its right eye with a thwack.

At the same time, the tiger lunged. Cui Hao decisively swung his iron-cast bow.

Crack!

He struck the tiger's forehead with the bow, momentarily slowing its charge. This brief pause allowed Cui Hao to draw a short blade from beneath his clothes at his waist.

A short blade, about a foot long, was fiercely thrust into the skull near the tiger's ear.

"Silence!"

Everything began and ended in the flash of lightning.

Pinned beneath the fierce tiger, Cui Hao looked up at the sky. The clouds were white, the sky was blue.

Pushing aside the tiger's corpse, he reviewed the recent battle. It had ended in less than two breaths, a storm of lightning and thunder.

He examined the tiger's body. This thing weighed over nine hundred jin. How was he supposed to take it back?

Noticing a Mountain Demon lurking nearby with a sinister gaze, Cui Hao accelerated, lunging forward to grab its ankle and pull it down from the tree it was trying to climb.

Finally, Broken Fist found its use. His fists, the size of sandbags, pummeled the Mountain Demon, and he persuaded it to help.

The first half of the night, nearing the end of the Xu hour.

'Two people' carried something into Willow Tree Village, into Cui Hao's home.

"Ah!" As Su Yun opened the courtyard gate, she was greatly startled by the Mountain Demon's grimace. Her face turned pale, and she retreated, pulling a hidden weapon from her embrace, ready to fire.

"Sister Yun... don't panic," Cui Hao stopped his wife. "Bring that chicken from the house."

"The chicken can lay eggs. Can a rabbit do?"

"That works too."

A moment later, a live grey rabbit was brought out from the kitchen, held upside down by Su Yun. Cui Hao tossed the rabbit to the Mountain Demon. "Scram."

The Mountain Demon dared not refuse the gift. With permission granted, it dropped the rabbit and fled, disappearing from the courtyard in a flash.

"Brother Hao... this..." Su Yun looked back at the Striped Tiger that nearly filled the small courtyard, too stunned to speak. She took half a step back, and only after clearly seeing it was Cui Hao did she ask, her voice trembling, "This... you killed this?"

"How was it?" Cui Hao wiped the sweat from his face, a rare hint of pride in his demeanor. "Your husband, am I still useful?"

Su Yun finally came to her senses, her eyes full of adoration and lingering fear. "Useful! You're more than useful! My great hero, hurry inside and rest. The food's still warm in the pot."

She spoke, but her eyes remained fixed on the giant tiger, a mixture of fear, pride, and happiness.

"Sister Yun, I'll go get the food." Lingdang, after closing the courtyard gate, ran to the kitchen first.

Soon, Cui Hao was eating hot meals. The rice was white, and the dishes were venison and boiled wild vegetables.

At the same time, Su Yun brought warm water for Cui Hao to wash his feet.

"Brother Hao, what about the tiger?"

"I've been feeling quite weak lately..." Cui Hao mused for a moment. "We'll skin the tiger for its hide to sell, and we'll eat the meat and drink the blood ourselves."

Mentioning 'weakness,' Su Yun's face flushed. Where was he weak? If not for the seven days each month, she would have had almost no rest.

Thinking of this, Su Yun looked at Lingdang. "Lingdang, you wash Brother Cui's feet. I'll go boil water."

Dang obediently squatted down to wash Cui Hao's feet, her movements gentle and careful.

Cui Hao tacitly accepted Lingdang washing his feet. If he refused, it would only make Lingdang uneasy.

After a simple dinner and washing his feet, his fatigue relieved, Cui Hao personally began to process the tiger carcass. He vaguely felt that the tiger meat was an extraordinary treasure, greatly beneficial for cultivation.

He dug a pit in the courtyard and erected the log used to carry the tiger. The nearly thousand-jin fierce tiger was hung upside down, suspended above the ground.

He pulled out the Iron Arrow from its eye and the short blade from its ear.

Thick tiger blood gushed out like a spring, pouring into basins with a whoosh. The scent of blood immediately filled the air, carrying the unique, hot, sweet, and bloody aroma of a wild mountain beast.

After collecting forty to fifty jin, the blood flow gradually slowed.

Next was skinning.

Su Yun and Lingdang helped to secure the tiger's body face up.

To obtain a complete tiger hide, Cui Hao's precision and patience were fully engaged. Starting from the center of the jaw, along the neck, chest, and abdomen, he made an incision all the way to the tail.

The opening was entirely on the ventral midline of the body. Then, like taking off a tight-fitting garment, he carefully peeled the hide and fur from the sides of the body towards the back.

During this process, his movements were as gentle as if he were unfastening an extremely precious silk gown.

Where the skin and flesh were tightly adhered, he used the back of the knife or his knuckles to gently push and rub, never pulling forcefully.

When peeling to the limbs, he had to make circular incisions to remove the skin tubes from the legs.

The head was even more delicate work, requiring him to carefully peel the skin around the earlobes, eyelids, and muzzle, ensuring the openings for the facial features remained intact.