"P-permit me to greet you, Young Hero..."
"Thank you, great hero, for saving our lives..."
When they heard Chen Guan's greeting, the nine traveling merchants promptly and respectfully answered one after another.
They could probably have escaped the pack of wolves themselves, but there was no harm in speaking kindly to people and thanking this "fierce man" a few times.
The moment they saw Chen Guan, their hearts had been all aflutter.
"Is... is he even human...?"
"That appearance..."
"This young... young hero drove off an entire pack of wolves..."
Staring at Chen Guan, spattered with blood, the group could only guess at what they were seeing. They didn't dare make any sudden moves, for fear he might misunderstand.
For one thing, Chen Guan's unusual appearance had startled them. For another, they figured that if this fierce man could drive off a pack of wolves, he could just as easily kill them.
"Meeting is fate."
Chen Guan strode right over to the fire in front of them, perfectly at ease.
"Driving off the wolves was only a small favor."
As he spoke, Chen Guan pulled a small bundle from behind his back.
Only then did everyone notice that he was carrying something.
When he opened the bundle, they saw two plump mountain chickens, already dead.
They watched him curiously, unsure what he intended to do. It didn't even occur to them that he might want to "borrow their fire to roast the chickens."
After all, anyone traveling the jianghu would most likely carry a fire striker and flint, or know how to make fire by drilling wood.
Those were essential supplies—or essential skills—for any traveler.
Otherwise, if they lost their fire striker while wandering through the mountains, they'd have to risk eating wild fruit and raw food.
But in the next moment,
Chen Guan looked at the mountain chickens, then at the few people who didn't dare speak.
"Which of you knows how to clean out the entrails?"
Aside from making fire by drilling wood, Chen Guan wasn't very skilled at slaughtering chickens, removing their organs, or plucking their feathers.
When he'd been a bear, he'd eaten everything whole. What was there to fuss over?
Meanwhile,
when the group heard that the fierce young hero had a request,
they saw a chance to ease the tension. Besides, the young hero was so formidable—he looked capable of protecting them.
Caught between self-interest and fear,
they glanced at one another, then hurried to speak up:
"Young Hero! I'll do it!"
"Let me, let me. I'm the one who slaughters the chickens and ducks back home..."
"Great hero, just wait a moment. I'll fetch the firewood and set up a roasting spit..."
An hour later,
Chen Guan felt about seven-tenths full and was eating a string of sour fruits that looked like grapes.
"He can really put it away..."
"So this is what martial artists are like?"
The group had watched Chen Guan polish off an entire plump mountain chicken, then eat a pound of fruit.
They split the other chicken among themselves.
That small gift of a roasted mountain chicken had changed how they saw Chen Guan. He might look frightening, but he was a decent person.
Their fear had given way to respect and envy for the young hero.
Hoo...
After eating the last of the fruit, Chen Guan quietly let out a breath. He felt so full, so comfortable.
Then he noticed their gazes drifting toward him from time to time.
He thought for a few seconds, then asked them outright:
"Do any of you know of a mountain with a dilapidated temple?"
"A dilapidated temple?"
"There are... quite a few temples..."
"Young Hero, which one do you mean?"
At Chen Guan's question, their sidelong glances turned into serious, searching looks.
"It's on a small hillside, with a river five li to the east..."
Drawing on a hazy memory from several years ago, Chen Guan described the area around the temple as best he could.
He figured out east, west, south, and north by watching the sun.
In this world, too, the sun rose in the east and set in the west.
Especially since he intended to find the "treasure from his previous life" in the "future,"
Chen Guan had memorized the general direction and the rough landmarks.
He went over them in his mind from time to time, so he wouldn't forget.
The same went for the secret manuals.
"You mean the Mountain God's shrine on the back mountain?"
Hearing Chen Guan's description,
the merchant leader, Boss Wang, had traveled far and taken plenty of shortcuts, so he knew the place.
"Seven or eight years ago, I heard there were lots of wild beasts around there. Nobody's taken that route since.
They all go around it, even from a distance."
"Then I've found the place."
When Chen Guan heard him mention wild beasts, he knew it was almost certainly the right spot.
Before his younger sister had met him, she'd liked to make clattering noises in the middle of the night, luring wild beasts over and driving away strangers.
Other than that, his younger sister hadn't pretended the place was "haunted."
If word spread through merchants, travelers sleeping rough, and the like, it might attract righteous warriors who sought to exorcise evil.
Xiao Qing was a little clever, at least.
At the very least, she knew she was a "ghost."
"That girl... I wonder how she's doing..."
Chen Guan lay on the ground, gazing up at the stars, and suddenly missed his younger sister.
But it was late, and not a good time to travel.
Besides, he needed to retrieve the Yin-Yang Eyes treasure first.
The next morning,
the merchants set off again.
As luck would have it,
Boss Wang and the others were heading southeast, so they could help Chen Guan check the distance. The two groups could help each other along the way.
After all, it was easy to get lost in the forest.
Chen Guan could also ensure they had at least some protection along the way.
Then, as they traveled,
three days and four nights passed.
They also taught Chen Guan a "mountain ballad" they'd made up and liked to sing on the road.
Something like "Follow Boss Wang along the mountain road, hey~" It was so awkward that Chen Guan felt embarrassed just hearing it.
It sounded so rustic that he wanted to dig a hole with his toes and crawl right inside.
But aside from that awkward ballad,
everyone chatted happily, talking about anything and everything under the sun.
And as they talked,
they were even more astonished to learn that Chen Guan was only seven years old.
"Seven? He can drive off a pack of wolves at seven?"
On the fourth night,
when they learned his age, they couldn't quite believe it.
But looking at Chen Guan's childlike figure and unusual appearance,
they were seasoned travelers who had seen strange tales of prodigies before.
"A young knight-errant?"
First they were astonished; then they exchanged smiles.
Now that they knew Chen Guan's age, they'd have another story to tell on their future merchant trips.
The fifth day.
Thirty li from the dilapidated temple,
they reached a spot beneath a mountain cliff.
The distant waterfall roared.
"Farewell, Young Hero Chen!"
"Take care, Young Hero!"
"Take care, everyone!"
They stopped there and said their goodbyes one after another.
With that,
Boss Wang and the others shouldered their carrying poles.
"Follow Boss Wang along the mountain road, hey~"
Laughing, they sang their travel ballad as they continued on, gradually disappearing into the distance.
Chen Guan watched their backs and couldn't quite say how he felt.
He couldn't exactly call them friends.
At most, they were acquaintances who nodded to one another.
But then again, he had saved their lives.
And they respected him greatly.
They'd all had a wonderful time together over the past few days.
Now that they were parting, he felt a little sad.
In that moment, Chen Guan suddenly understood what it meant to meet by chance in the jianghu.
No words left behind, no addresses exchanged.
Just a single "until we meet again."
As if they'd meet only once in this life.
If their paths crossed again, it would be left to fate.
"Come on, come on..." Chen Guan thought for a few breaths, then smiled and headed toward the treasure site.
"Follow Boss Wang along the mountain road, hey~"
It was rustic.
But while traveling through these unpeopled green mountains and waters, there was something rather fun about bellowing out a few lines.
Far away, in the forest,
Boss Wang and the others also looked back toward where they'd parted from time to time.
"We met a young Strange Hero these past few days."
"A swordsman who can kill a pack of wolves at seven. Impressive, impressive..."
"Exactly, exactly..."
Tap, tap—
As they stepped on branches, their voices drifted farther and farther away.
Before you continue