At that moment, countless thoughts churned through Chen Chuan's mind, and his body trembled. Though he had long since killed without batting an eye, now that death stood before him, fear still spread uncontrollably.
"Hero, as long as you spare me, my younger brother can give you anything! And there's plenty of silver coins in my Mountain Stronghold—I'll go get them for you right away!"
Seeing Chen Xuan remain silent, Chen Chuan hurriedly continued.
Yet just as his words fell—
Squelch!
A crisp sound rang out. Chen Chuan's eyes flew wide as an arrow pierced through his brow, shooting straight through his skull.
His body collapsed limply onto the ground.
Yet even in death, his eyes remained bulging wide.
Clearly, even until the moment he died, he had not understood why Chen Xuan had attacked before he could finish speaking.
Chen Xuan glanced at the corpse on the ground and paid it no mind. He pulled the arrows from Chen Chuan and the others one by one, then stepped into the room.
The instant he entered, his brow twitched.
Three female corpses lay scattered haphazardly across the room. Their eyes were wide open, and their lower bodies had been utterly mangled. What had happened needed no explanation.
"These beasts!"
Even Chen Xuan could not help cursing under his breath.
He hesitated slightly, but in the end, he carried the three women outside and buried them.
Only then did he begin searching the entire Mountain Stronghold.
Half an hour later, he slowly emerged from the Mountain Stronghold. There was now a sizable bundle on his back, filled with the silver coins he had found inside.
Behind him, a raging blaze had already risen.
Accompanied by the inferno, Chen Xuan vanished down the mountain road.
On the mountain road in the distance—
"Chun Hua, is something burning over there?"
Chen Er Shan looked into the distance in confusion and instinctively asked Zhang Chunhua.
"Something's burning?"
Zhang Chunhua froze for a moment, then looked over as well.
Just in time to see thick smoke rising from that direction.
"What's going on? There shouldn't be a fire in this weather!"
"Er Gou didn't go over there, did he? Why hasn't he come back yet?"
Chen Er Shan muttered to himself, worry creeping into his voice.
His words immediately made Zhang Chunhua worry as well.
Fortunately, amid their concern, Chen Xuan emerged from the distant forest carrying two Mountain Chickens.
"Second Uncle, Mother, there wasn't much game in the mountains. I only caught two Mountain Chickens."
Chen Xuan spoke somewhat sheepishly.
"It's fine. It looks like there's a fire over there. Good thing you came back, or your mother and I would have been worried."
Chen Er Shan said with a smile.
Zhang Chunhua, however, could not help glancing at Chen Xuan's bundle in confusion. As she recalled, her son had only brought his bow and arrow, so why did he have another bundle now? Still, she ultimately said nothing.
"Probably a wildfire. Second Uncle, Mother, let's hurry and make something to eat, or we won't reach Green Mountain City by tomorrow evening."
Chen Xuan glanced behind him and spoke casually, though his words urged them onward.
"Alright!"
"Wait here. I'll get it ready right away!"
Zhang Chunhua nodded, took the Mountain Chickens from Chen Xuan, and began preparing them.
Chen Xuan went over to where his flatbed cart was and tossed his bundle onto it, placing it together with the bundle he had brought earlier.
As the bundle landed, a crisp clinking sound rang out.
But Chen Xuan paid no attention to it.
His gaze had gone distant.
Killing.
He had long expected that such a day would come.
But he had never expected it to arrive so soon.
And today alone, he had killed dozens of people.
In Small River Village, he had shot and killed Chen San Ye and seven others. In the Mountain Stronghold this time, he had killed another twenty-five people in succession.
In other words, in a single morning, he had killed more than thirty people.
It was something he could never have imagined in his previous life.
But in this world, it might only be the beginning.
This world was even more dangerous than he had imagined.
It was not merely those strange and uncanny entities. More importantly, it was the human heart.
He and Chen San Ye might have had some dealings, but they had only exchanged goods for payment. There had been no true conflict of interests between them.
Yet simply because he was leaving, Chen San Ye had wanted to rob and kill him.
If he failed to hunt anything, Chen San Ye had even intended to use his family to threaten him. If he managed to hunt a Tiger and Leopard, he would die; if he failed to hunt one, he would still die.
Even the money from their previous transaction had never truly been meant for him.
Such human hearts were things he had almost never encountered in his previous life.
Yet in this world, even in a comparatively simple and honest village, he had already run into them.
He looked into the distance.
At that moment, it was as though he could see Green Mountain City, dozens of kilometers away, through the distance.
If Small River Village was already like this, what kind of place would Green Mountain City be?
Perhaps—no, it would only be more treacherous.
A larger stage, more complicated human hearts, and a more tangled web of powers meant that Green Mountain City was unimaginably more dangerous than Small River Village.
More importantly, in Small River Village, his Skin Refining Realm cultivation, coupled with his masterful archery, could ensure that nothing went wrong. But once he entered Green Mountain City, the Skin Refining Realm would be hardly worth mentioning, and masterful archery would not be as useful as he imagined. His only advantage now was his Conceptual Ability.
The moment he entered Green Mountain City, it would be no different from starting over from scratch.
He looked at his busy mother, then at his cheerfully bouncing younger brother, and suppressed the faint stirrings in his heart.
Having come this far, he could not retreat.
Nor would he be willing to remain in Small River Village forever.
With a broader world before him and more possibilities to pursue, even if his Conceptual Ability allowed him to lie low until the end of time, he still wanted to go and see.
To see this world. To see all of it.
"From here on, I'll be relying on you."
He murmured softly, and his gaze finally settled on the list.
As thoughts intertwined in his mind, the list began to flicker once more.
Target: Resolve the journey to Green Mountain City and complete settlement (pending confirmation)
Configuration complete
"Loading!"
"Loading successful!"
The words flickered as lines of entries appeared.
Meanwhile, Zhang Chunhua quickly finished preparing lunch.
The rich aroma of chicken soup drifted over from afar, making one's mouth water.
"Mountain Chicken, Mountain Chicken!"
"Shitou loves Mountain Chicken the most!"
Xiao Shitou shouted excitedly, hopping about happily.
"Er Gou, come eat quickly, or it'll get cold!"
His mother Zhang Chunhua called out as well.
"Alright, I'm coming!"
Chen Xuan answered with a smile, pushing down his thoughts as he strode over.
The four of them sat around the cooking fire and began enjoying their meal.
Half an hour later, after they had finished eating and packed up, the group set off once more.
A new week, a new story, a new journey. The world setting and cultivation system will gradually unfold as well. I hope everyone will continue to support it—please!
Before you continue