Return to Camp for a Feast, Invited to Join

Li Bufan maintained his aiming posture, breathing hard atop the high branch for a moment. Only after confirming there was no movement below did he cautiously slide down the tree.

With his saber in hand, he slowly approached on guard. A thick stench of blood rushed at him. He first prodded the Snow Wolf with his blade, but it gave no response. He then checked the Snow Deer—it had indeed breathed its last.

Overwhelming joy and accomplishment instantly crushed his tension, and he nearly shouted in celebration! But he forcibly suppressed his excitement and quickly calmed down.

An adult Snow Wolf and a prime Snow Deer! This haul far exceeded anything he had imagined! By the rules, thirty percent would be his! What an enormous amount of resources that would be!

But he immediately faced a practical problem: how was he supposed to handle them? Together, the two beasts weighed over a thousand jin. There was no way he could carry all of it alone. Moreover, the blood stench here was extremely strong and would soon draw other predators. He had to deal with it quickly.

After a brief thought, he made his decision. The most valuable parts of the Snow Deer were its antlers, Deer Heart Blood, and some of its finest meat. As for the Snow Wolf, its pelt, Wolf Tooth, Wolf Heart, and similar parts were worth more.

He drew his saber and began the laborious work of butchering them. It took enormous effort and time, but fortunately, his saber was sharp, and he possessed the strength of Minor Success in Skin Refining. First, he carefully removed the Snow Deer's massive pair of antlers, still warm to the touch, and wrapped them in oiled paper. Then he cut open its chest and removed a fist-sized deer heart that still twitched faintly. Deer Heart Blood was precious, so he did his best to collect it in a leather pouch. He also cut off the four plumpest deer legs and the finest meat from its hindquarters.

By the time he finished, sweat drenched his whole body, and he had expended a great deal of blood and vitality. Looking at the enormous skeleton and chunks of meat left on the ground, he felt regret, but there was nothing he could do. He packed the precious materials into two large, heavy bundles.

At that moment, several long wolf howls faintly drifted over from the distance, seemingly drawn by the scent of blood.

Li Bufan's expression changed. He did not dare linger any longer. Hoisting the two heavy bundles onto his back, he fixed on the direction from which he had come, pushed his blood and vitality to the limit, and broke into a run, fleeing this land of trouble as fast as he could.

He ran all the way until he was far from that area and could no longer hear any strange sounds. Only then did he slow down, lean against a tree, and gasp for breath.

The intense hunting, running, and butchering had unexpectedly increased his proficiency once more.

After resting briefly, he got his bearings and began heading back toward the meeting point. Though his gains were astonishing, he remained vigilant. In the mountains and forests, one could never afford to let down one's guard.

When Li Bufan appeared at the edge of the gathering clearing with two enormous, bloodstained bundles on his back, he immediately drew the attention of some personal guards who had already returned.

There was still some time before sunset. Seven or eight groups had already gathered in the clearing, each with more or less something to show for the day. Most had caught pheasants or hares. Someone had even hunted a Wild Boar weighing over a hundred jin, drawing a chorus of envious remarks.

But when they saw Li Bufan return alone, with bundles on his back that were clearly extremely heavy and still dripping blood, every voice of discussion abruptly fell silent.

Countless gazes instantly focused on him, filled with shock, disbelief, and intense jealousy!

That Wild Boar was already considered a fine haul, yet the dense bloody aura wafting from Li Bufan's bundles, along with the faintly exposed shape of deer antlers and the edge of a Wolf Pelt, all proclaimed just how astonishing his catch was!

He had actually hunted large prey alone?! And two different kinds at that?!

The expressions of several groups that had originally rejected Li Bufan became exceptionally ugly. Sun Yi's gang of fair-weather friends looked even more sinister, their eyes nearly spitting fire.

Nanny Wu appeared before Li Bufan like a ghost. Her gaze swept over the bundles behind him, and even a trace of obvious emotion surfaced on her ancient-well-still face. She crouched down and personally opened the bundles to inspect them.

When she saw the intact pair of deer antlers, the fresh deer heart and Wolf Heart, the complete Wolf Pelt, and the massive deer legs, even she could not help drawing in a deep breath.

"Snow Deer, prime adult buck. Snow Wolf, adult." Nanny Wu rose to her feet. Her voice remained calm, yet every person nearby could hear it clearly. "Good boy... you really did it."

She gave Li Bufan a deep look. "According to the rules, thirty percent of these are yours. After returning to the residence, you may collect the corresponding reward from the storehouse yourself, or exchange it for cultivation resources."

"Thank you, Nanny Wu!" Li Bufan bowed, a great weight lifting from his heart.

The surroundings were deathly silent; one could have heard a needle drop. Those jealous and disdainful gazes had mostly turned into deep shock and a hint of awe. In the mountains and forests, strength reigned supreme. Li Bufan had won this respect with solid, undeniable gains.

Li Bufan silently walked to the edge of the clearing, set down his bundles, and sat to rest, recovering his spent strength and blood and vitality. He could feel a cool gaze fall upon him from the carriage that had remained silent all along, lingering on him for a moment.

He knew that after today, his standing within the Lin Family Guard Camp would be completely different.

As the sun set, dyeing the clouds on the horizon a magnificent orange-red, Lin Zhiyan's carriage returned to the gathering clearing surrounded by the personal guards. Unlike the desolate departure, four of the broadest and strongest guards at the rear of the group were struggling to carry a makeshift stretcher made of rough wood. Upon it lay a Black Bear of terrifying size! Two other guards jointly carried a striped Tiger, its Tiger Tail dragging across the ground and still dripping blood.

An exquisite Silver Arrow was lodged in the Black Bear's chest, buried to the fletching. It had clearly been killed in a single shot. The Tiger, meanwhile, bore a horrifying sword wound across its neck that had nearly severed half of it. The sheer ferocity of that strike sent chills through everyone.

The young lady had actually hunted a bear and a tiger by herself!

The clearing rang with sharp intakes of breath. Every personal guard, including the veteran soldiers who had once been somewhat proud, showed sincere awe in their eyes. This young lady's strength was far more unfathomable than they had imagined.

Lin Zhiyan stepped gracefully from the carriage. Her fiery red fox-fur cloak looked like burning flames beneath the setting sun. Her cool gaze swept over the scene, naturally noticing the two huge, conspicuous bundles beside Li Bufan, as well as the exposed antlers and Wolf Pelt.

Her steps paused slightly. She walked before Li Bufan, let her gaze rest for an instant on his haul, and said indifferently, "On your first trip into the mountains, you managed to hunt a Snow Deer and Snow Wolf alone. Your luck is not bad, and you have some courage as well."

Her tone was calm and flat, without much discernible praise, as if she were merely stating a fact. Yet even so, a casual remark from the Lin Family's young lady was enough to make the people around them look at Li Bufan differently once again.

"Thank you for your praise, Young Lady. It was only luck," Li Bufan replied, rising and bowing neither humbly nor arrogantly.

Lin Zhiyan said no more and walked straight toward the seat of honor prepared for her. Nanny Wu immediately stepped forward, directing the servants to deal with the massive bear and tiger carcasses while arranging the night's camp matters.

Before long, an escort and carts arrived from the supply camp at the mountain pass. Everyone loaded up all of the day's gains and returned in grand procession to the brightly lit temporary camp at the entrance to the valley.

At the center of the camp, a huge bonfire blazed, its dancing flames driving away the mountain chill and darkness. Servants busily processed the day's prey, especially the Black Bear and Tiger hunted by the young lady. They were handled first, and the finest cuts of meat were skewered and roasted over the bonfire. Grease dripped into the flames with sizzling crackles, and the rich, tempting scent of roasted meat spread through the camp.

By custom, a simple feast was held at night during the Winter Hunt. It both rewarded the guards for a hard day's work and brought people together. The various guard squads sat on the ground around separate bonfires, loudly talking and laughing about what they had seen and gained that day. The atmosphere was lively.

Li Bufan chose a relatively remote bonfire and sat down, silently gnawing on his portion of roasted venison—the meat of the Snow Deer he had hunted today. After being prepared by the camp cooks, it was charred on the outside and tender within. Each bite was rich with pure blood and vitality, greatly benefiting a martial artist like him. He could feel his blood and vitality become a little more active after eating the venison.

As he quietly enjoyed his food and replenished the enormous expenditure from the day, a voice sounded beside him. "Brother Li, eating alone is no fun. Why not come over to our side? We can exchange some hunting experience too."

Li Bufan looked up and saw a man from the personal guard named Wang Zheng. He looked rather forthright and bold. Two other men sat beside the bonfire behind him, both smiling at Li Bufan. Yet how much sincerity lay behind those smiles was hard to say.

No one had cared about him during the day, but now that they saw his rich haul and heard the young lady offer him a word of "praise," people had come to make friends with him. Such was the warmth and coldness of the world.

Li Bufan understood perfectly. He set down the meat in his hand, wiped his mouth, and revealed a polite but slightly distant smile. "Thank you for the kindness, Brother Wang. But I hunted alone today and am somewhat tired. I would like to rest quietly, so I will not disturb you gentlemen's enjoyment."

The smile on Wang Zheng's face stiffened slightly. He seemed not to have expected Li Bufan to refuse so directly. He gave an awkward laugh. "All right, all right. Brother Li has indeed worked hard today, so get some proper rest." With that, he turned and left somewhat listlessly.

A few murmurs and strained laughs faintly drifted over from that bonfire.

Li Bufan acted as though he had heard nothing and continued eating with his head lowered. He knew that such last-minute attempts at friendship were meaningless and might even drag him into unnecessary trouble and disputes. In the Lin Family Guard Camp, his foundation was shallow. Only by keeping his distance and continuously increasing his own strength could he establish a foothold. Besides, he possessed the Heaven Rewards Diligence talent. What he needed even more was solitary time to cultivate, not pointless socializing.

Soon, two more people came to invite him, but Li Bufan politely declined them for similar reasons. After several attempts, no one else came to make a fool of themselves. Many people looked at him with a hint of mocking disdain, as though he did not know how to appreciate favors.

Li Bufan was happy for the peace and quiet. After quickly finishing his food, he rose and left the noisy bonfire, heading toward the area assigned for the personal guards to rest. His tent had been arranged in a corner, some distance from the others.

He did not immediately enter the tent to rest. Instead, while the bonfires throughout the camp burned brightly and the crowds made enough noise that no one paid attention to his side, he slowly assumed a stance in the shadows behind his tent.

He did not perform the Mighty Ox Fist, which whistled through the air. Instead, he once again practiced that soundless Nameless Fist Technique, which better tempered his control over blood and vitality.

The scenes of fighting for his life, sprinting through the hunt, and butchering fierce beasts all flashed through his mind one by one. In particular, the resolve and peril of killing the Snow Wolf with his final three arrows gave him a deeper understanding of strength, timing, and courage. As he practiced now, his mind was calm, and his blood and vitality moved with his thoughts. His fist technique unexpectedly gained a little more smoothness and insight than usual.

After finishing one set of the fist technique, his blood and vitality throughout his body stirred briskly, leaving him comfortably warm. The remaining fatigue from the day vanished without a trace.

[Nameless Fist Technique] Minor Mastery (287/2000)

Sure enough, actual combat was the best form of cultivation.