Mountain Village

The wind and snow intensified once more. Lu Bai followed the path the woman had indicated, walking for a long time before he finally spotted a mountain village at the foot of the slope.

This village had certain ties to the stronghold; some of the people in the stronghold had originally come from this very place.

Adhering to the principle that a rabbit does not eat the grass around its own burrow, the Black Tiger Stronghold generally did not plunder the locals here.

According to the woman, she had come to this village as a refugee and was abducted before she could even integrate into the community.

Her parents were still in this village, though she had no idea what the situation was like there since the day she was taken.

Beyond that, she did not say much else; as for her parents, she had not yet figured out how to face them.

The village consisted of about a dozen households, most of which were huddled inside their homes at this moment.

After all, once the heavy snow fell, the world turned stark white, and one could easily freeze to death if not careful.

Ancient times were not like the modern era, with down jackets, air conditioning, and various other means of keeping warm.

These people at the bottom of the social ladder had few ways to stay warm in winter, essentially having to rely on their own bodies to endure it.

Every year, many people died in the process.

Of course, there were also those who had to brave the cold to labor even in heavy snow.

Because if they did not work, the whole family might starve to death.

Therefore, when Lu Bai walked into the village, he was immediately discovered.

Lu Bai's unusual appearance immediately put these people on alert, and one by one, they looked at him vigilantly, clutching kitchen knives or pitchforks.

Lu Bai did not resort to violence because of this.

Although he had been decisive in killing up to this point, Lu Bai still had some basic criteria for whether or not to kill someone.

For instance, whether the other party was involved in the Martial Forest, or if their primary livelihood revolved around such things.

Of course, this was not absolute; Lu Bai possessed a very flexible bottom line.

To Lu Bai, the Martial Forest was a hunting ground; when you were inside the hunting ground and dared to bare your fangs at him, he could treat you as prey.

These villagers were not "hunters" within the Martial Forest. Although they had some connections to the stronghold on the mountain, for the time being, they were essentially people who scratched a living from the soil.

"Just passing through. I wanted to ask where the nearest town is," Lu Bai explained briefly. "And see if I can buy some dry rations from you."

Lu Bai had quite a large appetite; after all, he practiced martial arts, and combined with his physical talents, he was naturally a heavy eater.

Although he had eaten a meal at the stronghold earlier, he had not taken all the food from there.

He was the type to have a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder; he was used to finishing what he started. Since he had decided to spare that woman's life, he would not go out of his way to put her to death.

It was better to leave some food for her since she was alone in the mountains.

Thus, by the time he reached the village, Lu Bai had finished everything he carried and was feeling hungry again.

"Please leave. We don't welcome outsiders here," a middle-aged to elderly man walked out draped in animal skins, speaking in a menacing tone just as the villagers were feeling at a loss.

The man was about fifty years old, which could already be considered old in ancient times.

However, despite this, the old man's spirit was quite good; if he cleaned himself up a bit, he could still pass for a member of the "uncle" demographic.

"Are you deaf, old man, or do you just not understand human speech?" Lu Bai had no habit of respecting the elderly; if you didn't act with the dignity of your age, he wouldn't indulge you.

Besides, counting the seventy-seven years he had spent asleep, he might even be several generations older than this half-old man.

"I asked where the nearest town is, and whether I can trade for some food." Lu Bai reached into his pocket and pulled out some gold and jewelry.

Wealth should not be flaunted—that was for those who were weak and held gold; for Lu Bai, this was fishing.

The old man's tone had annoyed him. If they were to attack him for the sake of this gold and jewelry, then his flexible moral bottom line would shift downward accordingly.

What surprised Lu Bai, however, was that although the people around him stared with wide eyes and their hands tightened involuntarily on their weapons, their gazes immediately turned toward the old man, as if waiting for his command.

In other words, their greed for wealth did not outweigh the old man's authority.

"You can get out by going that way. Leave quickly, outsider." The old man glanced at the treasure; though he was slightly surprised, no greed appeared in his eyes. Instead, he pointed to the side, urging Lu Bai to leave immediately.

"Alright then." Lu Bai nodded, put the treasure away, and walked past the villagers' blades and forks without the slightest panic, heading toward the exit.

Just as he reached the halfway point, Lu Bai suddenly turned back to look at the village head, focusing primarily on the old man's face.

"Have we met somewhere before, or perhaps have I seen your children somewhere?" Lu Bai felt the old man looked familiar.

He was certain this was his first time seeing this old man, but according to genetics, children inherited certain facial features from their fathers.

Lu Bai's memory was not bad; the number of people he had met since arriving in this world was limited, and not many had left a deep impression on him.

This old man's features gave him a sense of familiarity, yet he couldn't quite place it, which was interesting.

Upon hearing Lu Bai's words, the old man's expression immediately turned gloomy.

"Drive him out!"

As the old man's expression shifted, it dawned on Lu Bai.

"So it was you, Flower Face." Lu Bai looked at the old man.

He had a very deep impression of Flower Face, but Flower Face's face was covered in scars, which caused anyone who saw him to focus on the scars first; they would never pay attention to his true features.

Lu Bai felt the same; his primary impression of Flower Face was simply that scarred visage of his.

However, the old man and Flower Face looked remarkably similar. If one were to remove the scars from Flower Face's face and add a few years of age, he would look exactly like the old man.

"If that's the case, then you all seem to be deeply entrenched in this Martial Forest." Lu Bai's deductive abilities were not lacking.

Flower Face was a high-ranking member of the Hundred Flower Grave, and his father—or perhaps an elder—resided in this mountain village, which itself shared some connection with the Black Tiger Stronghold.

At the same time, the Black Tiger Stronghold had been recognized by the Hundred Flower Grave some time ago, changing its banner to become the Black Tiger Sect.

Coupled with the old man's supreme status in this village, there was undoubtedly a series of shady dealings going on behind the scenes.

He had originally assumed the relationship between the mountain village and the Black Tiger Stronghold was, at most, a case of "a rabbit not eating the grass by its own burrow," where some personnel were recruited from the village, providing little more than tip-offs and cover.

Now, it appeared their relationship ran much deeper.

"I am quite interested in you all now." Lu Bai swept his gaze across the area; as the conflict intensified, most of the villagers had emerged.

Rubbing his fists together, Lu Bai flashed a smile.

"And I believe that very soon, you will be willing to have a chat as well."