Standoff

Qin Lai's face was ashen, and he paced anxiously like an ant on a hot pan. Song Zhong and the others, who usually handled things efficiently, had gone out and never returned.

"They still aren't back?" He abruptly stopped and looked at his trusted enforcer, Black Bear.

"Reporting to Master Lai, no. The people keeping watch said there was the smell of meat coming from Qin Meng's house, along with laughter and chatter. He must've come back, but they didn't see Monkey and the others."

Qin Lai's eye twitched. Song Zhong was his most loyal subordinate, and he'd taken several hired hands into the mountains on an errand. None of them had returned.

"Was Qin Meng injured?"

"From a distance, he seemed to be moving normally. Didn't look like anything was wrong."

Bang! Qin Lai slammed his fist on the table. The teacups bounced and clattered.

"Damn it." He was furious and alarmed, and couldn't believe it.

Who didn't know Qin Meng was a good-for-nothing? How could Song Zhong have fallen at his hands?

"The people keeping watch said Qin Meng didn't go to the market town to sell his game today." Black Bear was a burly man. After hesitating for a moment, he continued,

"Master Lai, maybe Monkey and the others came up empty, then got lucky and escaped. Monkey hasn't come down from the mountain, so perhaps he's waiting for a chance to act tomorrow."

Qin Lai felt somewhat reassured. "Right, right. That's more likely."

"Tomorrow, bring some men with you. We'll go and sound him out."

"Yes, sir."

Dawn broke.

Qin Meng woke feeling refreshed. His vitality had surged after his Physique Enhancement.

Shen Qiuyue had already made breakfast. Her face was rosy, adding a touch of allure.

Qin Meng wolfed down his meal, slung his bow over his shoulder, fastened his knife at his waist, and headed into the mountains to hunt again.

"I'm heading up the mountain."

"Mm. Be careful."

Qin Meng said goodbye to Shen Qiuyue and stepped through the door.

The instant the door shut behind him, the warmth vanished from his face. He headed straight out of the alley, plotting how to get rid of Qin Lai, the scoundrel. But a sudden commotion of footsteps ahead interrupted his thoughts.

His way forward was suddenly blocked.

Five or six burly men armed with blades and spears stood there like a wall.

The man at their head stood with his hands behind his back, his face a mass of fat. It was Qin Lai. His eyes were as sinister as nails steeped in poison, scraping back and forth across Qin Meng's face.

"Qin Meng," Qin Lai began, his voice squeezed through clenched teeth.

"Where are Song Zhong and the others?"

Qin Meng stopped. He arranged his face into just the right expression of confusion. "Qin Lai, that's a strange question. How would I know where they went?"

"Don't play dumb with me!" Qin Lai suddenly stepped forward, nearly bumping his nose against Qin Meng's. "Yesterday, Song Zhong and his men followed you into Luming Mountain. Now all five of them are gone."

"Speak! What did you do to them?"

Several nearby courtyard gates had quietly cracked open, and a few pairs of eyes peered out.

Qin Meng didn't back down. Instead, he raised his voice even louder, each word clear as day so the onlookers could hear him.

"Qin Lai, you can't just make accusations like that! I went into the mountains yesterday, yes, but I went alone. I never saw Song Zhong and the others!

"The forests of Luming Mountain are dense, with ravines running every which way. People have gotten lost, fallen and been injured, or even run into wolf packs there before. How can you insist I had something to do with it? Couldn't they have met with some other accident?"

His expression was sincere, his eyes full of innocence, with even a hint of indignation at being falsely accused.

Qin Lai stared hard into his eyes, trying to find a trace of panic or a flicker of doubt. But Qin Meng's gaze was so open and frank that Qin Lai's heart sank.

Could it really not have been him?

Had Song Zhong and the others run into some other misfortune?

But for all five men to vanish while on an errand together was just too much of a coincidence!

Qin Lai suppressed his doubts. His voice was icy, carrying a clear threat. "Qin Meng, don't be stubborn. Song Zhong and the others went out with you, and now they're missing. If I find out you had anything to do with it..."

He glanced at the neighbors slowly gathering around, then raised his voice sharply. "I'll report you to the authorities and have you charged with murdering your fellow villagers!"

"Report me?" Qin Meng raised his voice even more, anger ringing through it. "Go ahead. I'd like to clear my name. But your men are missing, and instead of hurrying to find them, you're rushing to pin the blame on me. What exactly are you up to?"

People tended to resent the rich, and many instinctively took Qin Meng's side. The onlookers pointed and murmured, sneering at Qin Lai. They said he was abusing his power, framing Qin Meng on purpose, and all sorts of other things.

Qin Lai heard them clearly, and his face darkened.

With everyone watching, he couldn't resort to force. He could only lean close to Qin Meng's ear and mutter through gritted teeth, "Fine. Just you wait. This isn't over."

He glared fiercely at Qin Meng, then turned and led his men away.

Qin Meng stood where he was, watching the group disappear at the end of the alley. The excitement slowly drained from his face, and a glint of cold intent flashed in his eyes.

He'd concealed it well. Turning around, he continued toward the back mountain and disappeared into the woods.

At the corner of the alley, Qin Lai glanced back in the direction Qin Meng had vanished, his face dark. He didn't believe Qin Meng had done it either. He was more convinced the other men had narrowly escaped and that Song Zhong and the others had failed, then gone to ground in the forest to wait for another chance.

"Have men watch his house closely. Then find a few sharp ones to go into the mountains and look for Monkey..." he quietly ordered his subordinates, a vicious glint in his eyes.

"I want to see if you can make it through today!"

"Even if you scrape your way out alive, will you be able to come up with the money by tomorrow's deadline?"

As for Qin Meng, he knew Qin Lai wouldn't let this go.

And he had a plan of his own!

The best way to solve a problem was to solve the person who created it.

He'd made up his mind: after acquiring one or two more talents and increasing his strength, he'd make his move and eliminate Qin Lai, that scourge.

For now, hunting in the mountains would both earn him money and hone his abilities.

As soon as he entered the woods, that strange feeling grew stronger. He couldn't quite put it into words, but there were clearly more traces of beasts in the forest than usual.

As he watched, his talent, "Environmental Integration," activated on its own. It was far less effective while he was moving, but still an excellent aid for hunting and scouting.

When Qin Meng deliberately slowed his steps and quieted his breathing, his heartbeat slowed as well. He seemed to become a silent shadow among the trees. His feet made no sound as he trod on fallen branches, and he slipped through the forest almost undetected.

He hadn't gone far when the nearby bushes rustled wildly and a muntjac sprang out.

Qin Meng's gaze sharpened. His hand rose and an arrow flew, hitting it squarely and bringing it down.

[Life Source +1.1%]

For the next half hour or so, he wandered through the mountains like a ghost.

He spotted a hare and drew his bow; he glimpsed a pheasant and nocked an arrow.

The sound of arrows slicing through the air rang out now and then, and the game in his back basket gradually piled up. His Chain Arrow Martial Skill was steadily growing more proficient, too.

By the time the sun neared its zenith, his basket was already full of wild game.

[Chain Arrow—Proficient (475/500)]

Qin Meng leaned against an old pine and ate a flatbread, taking a short rest. His Life Source had dwindled sharply after strengthening his body, but he'd still accumulated a sizable amount.

This warm energy constantly nourished his body.

His shoulders, chest, and arms had grown more solid with muscle. Drawing his bow and firing arrows repeatedly left him barely tired, and his eyesight had grown sharper.

He tried drawing his bow to its full extent. His gaze swept over a wormhole in a tree dozens of paces away, and he could even make out the grain of the splinters along its edge.

"There's a lot more game in the mountains." Qin Meng looked at his nearly full basket, his eyes gleaming. But his targets went beyond pheasants and hares.

Martial arts training took a tremendous toll. He needed larger game, like deer and wild boars. The essence contained in their flesh could nourish his body and help advance his training.

He raised his head and looked into the depths of the forest.

The distant mountain shaped like an eagle's beak marked a boundary. Beyond it lay the true danger zone.

He was still in the outer reaches of Luming Mountain.

"I'll search around here a little longer." Qin Meng didn't rush ahead. Using Eagle Beak Peak as a landmark, he searched for signs of prey in the nearby dense forest.

He kept his steps light and his breathing slow and even, listening in every direction and watching all around him.

After searching for about half an hour, he spotted something unusual at the edge of a sheltered mountain hollow:

A patch of bushes had been extensively grazed, and enormous black droppings were scattered on the ground, along with numerous hoofprints from large deer.

"Are there a whole herd of deer around here?"

Qin Meng's spirits lifted, and he immediately followed the tracks.

The closer he got to Eagle Beak Peak, the fresher the grazing marks became, leading down into the hollow.

He grew more cautious, using the terrain and trees for cover as he silently made his way toward a rise with a good view.

Crouching behind a rock, he looked down.

Qin Meng's heart pounded, and a smile spread across his face.

A great herd of Spotted Deer had gathered in the meadow below—at least a hundred of them!

Most were adult deer, but many had conspicuous claw marks and old wounds. They seemed restless as they grazed on the bushes.

Around the herd, more than twenty powerful stags stood guard like sentries.

The stag at their head was especially remarkable. It stood as tall at the shoulder as a young calf, with an astonishingly sturdy build. Its branching antlers looked like icy halberds cast from iron, and its coat shimmered with a lustrous sheen, making it stand out brilliantly among the herd.

Its eyes blazed like torches, with light glinting deep within them. One look made it clear this was no ordinary beast!