Pine Ridge Village

Seven days later.

"There isn't a large town for thousands of miles; we'll probably have to camp out tonight."

Lu Feng unfolded the map and looked at it, then glanced at the darkening sky and said to Lu Shuang beside him.

"It's alright. I've spent plenty of nights in the wild before, this is nothing. Let's go." Lu Shuang clearly didn't mind.

Just then, a shout suddenly came from not far away.

"Someone's there!"

This place is a mountain forest, and there are no monsters within dozens of miles.

The two exchanged a glance, then flew off in the direction from which the sound came.

Upon arriving at the scene, they found a burly man surrounded by more than a dozen wolves.

The burly man held a bow in his left hand, nocked an arrow in his right, and carried several more arrows on his back.

His left leg was injured for some reason, and blood was still seeping out, but at this moment his eyes were fixed on the largest wolf king in front of him.

The burly man stared at the pack of wolves, a chill running through him. "One wolf king, seven wild wolves... only five arrows left, and my leg is injured. I'm afraid I'm going to die here today."

Then, he shook his head violently.

"No! I can't die here! What will happen to my mother if I die? I haven't even gotten married yet!"

Having said that, he drew his bow and shot an arrow!

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Five arrows were fired in quick succession, and three wolves fell to the ground, while two others howled in pain, wounded.

With a howl from the wolf king, the remaining wolves pounced on the burly man.

"Let's give it our all!"

The burly man dropped his longbow, drew his scimitar with a backhand, closed his eyes, and wildly swung it in front of him with all his might.

Just then, the burly man heard a few soft "hissing" sounds beside him, and then there was silence around him.

He slowly opened his eyes!

The wolf king and several wolves lay sprawled on the ground, dead.

"Huh? When did I become so amazing?!"

The burly man examined himself in disbelief—there wasn't a single scratch on his body!

Just then, he saw two figures gracefully land, and only then did he realize that they had saved him.

"My name is Tie Niu! Thank you both for saving my life!"

"Please take these wolves, both of you. Consider it my way of repaying your kindness!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Feng and his companion guessed that the man before them had mistaken them for someone trying to steal their prey.

Among the many wild animals, wolf meat is tough and smelly, so few people are willing to eat it; only the wolf pelt is worth some money.

"You've misunderstood. We were just passing by and came over when we heard the commotion. These wolves are no use to us."

Lu Shuang spoke coldly, then took out a small bottle from her bosom and handed it to the burly man.

"I see you're injured. This is a hemostatic powder; apply it and you'll be fully healed in a few days."

"What?! Hemostatic powder?!"

When Tie Niu heard that the small bottle in front of him contained hemostatic powder, his face was filled with disbelief.

You should know that in their town, a bottle of hemostatic powder costs a full ten taels of silver!

Ordinary people can earn at most five taels of silver a year.

He earned a slightly higher income than ordinary people by frequently going into the mountains to hunt, but even at most, he only earned about ten taels a year.

This small bottle of hemostatic powder in front of him would be enough for him to save up for a whole year without eating or drinking.

"My lords, this is far too precious! I absolutely cannot accept it! My injury is nothing; I'll recover in a few months!"

Only now did Tie Niu truly believe that these two people had really come to save him.

Someone who throws out a bottle of hemostatic powder right off the bat would never be interested in these few wild wolves.

"A grown man, stop dawdling! Lu Feng, go help him!"

Upon hearing Lu Shuang's words, a hint of fear flashed in the burly man's eyes, and he dared not utter a sound for a moment.

Lu Feng took the hemostatic powder, poured some out, and sprinkled it on his wound.

As soon as the powder touched the wound, Tie Niu gritted his teeth, large beads of sweat streaming down his face, but he didn't dare to utter a sound.

More than the pain, he feared being looked down upon by Lu Shuang!

Where do you live? We'll take you home.

Seeing that his bleeding had stopped, Lu Shuang asked coldly again.

This place is deserted; although there are no monsters, there are plenty of wild animals.

If the two of them were to leave now, this person would still be unlikely to survive if he encountered any wolves or tigers again.

"My home is in Pine Ridge Village, which is about 20 li (10 kilometers) from here. No need to trouble you two, I can go back by myself!"

"Going back alone? So you're abandoning all these wolves?"

Upon hearing Lu Shuang's words, Tie Niu froze on the spot, unsure of what to say.

There were eight wolves in total, each weighing over 100 pounds.

When he wasn't injured, he could carry away two or three at most, but now that he's injured a leg, he probably won't be able to carry away any at all.

Lu Shuang took out a map, glanced at it, located Pine Ridge Village, and then with a wave of her hand, all eight wolves were put into her storage bag.

"Take him with you, and let's go!"

After saying that, Lu Shuang leaped into the air and flew towards Pine Ridge Village.

"Fairy... Fairy!"

Tie Niu watched helplessly as the other party waved his hand and made the several-hundred-pound wolf disappear, then flew away with a "whoosh".

Isn't this the fairy the village storyteller always talks about?!

Just then, a voice rang in his ear. "Close your eyes!"

"Ah!"

Lu Feng grabbed him by the back of his collar, leaped up, and chased after Lu Shuang.

Tie Niu was so frightened that he quickly closed his eyes, his heart pounding wildly.

Not long after, he felt his feet were no longer dangling in the air, as if he had stepped onto solid ground, and only then did he cautiously open his eyes.

"This... this is Pine Ridge Village?! This... we've arrived?!"

Tie Niu was terrified. How much time had passed?

You know, even if he walked back by himself, it would take him at least half a day, but now, he probably wouldn't even have the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Is this the place?

Upon hearing Lu Shuang's voice, Tie Niu finally snapped out of his daze and said with a look of awe:

"My home is right here. It's getting late, so if you two immortals don't mind, why don't you stay the night at my place and continue your journey early tomorrow morning!"

Lu Feng and Lu Shuang exchanged a glance and nodded.

"In that case, we have troubled you greatly. However, we are not immortals, so please do not call us that again."

Hearing Lu Shuang's words, Tie Niu verbally agreed, but in his heart he already regarded the two of them as gods.

"My lords, please follow me!"

Then, Tie Niu led the way.

Pine Ridge Village is small, with fewer than a hundred households in total.

However, unlike the Bluestone Village I visited before, this village has men, women, and children, and it's quite lively.

"Tie Niu's back! How was the day's harvest? And who are these two?"

I hadn't walked more than a few steps when I came across several old men sitting around at the village entrance, chatting about something.

"We hunted a few wolves today, thanks to the help of these two gentlemen! I'll take one to the village chief's house later, and you can go there to divide the meat!"

Upon hearing Tie Niu's words, the old men immediately beamed with smiles, praising Tie Niu for being sensible and even arranging a marriage for him.

After the three people walked away,

"Hurry! Go home and get a bowl! If you're late, you'll only get the offal!"

Before he finished speaking, the old men had already scattered.

Seeing this, Lu Feng and the other man looked at each other speechlessly and followed Tie Niu to his house.

It was an adobe house, not small, but it looked particularly dilapidated compared to the other houses in the village.

An old woman sat on the steps by the door, leaning on a cane.

Lu Feng and his companion immediately recognized that the old woman was blind.

"Mom! I'm home! Did you sit outside all night again?"

Tie Niu called out to the old woman, and her face instantly lit up with joy.

"Tie Niu is back? There seems to be someone behind you?"

"Yes! I ran into a pack of wolves today. If it weren't for these two gentlemen, I wouldn't be where I am today!"

Upon hearing this, the old woman's expression changed. She hurriedly stood up, leaning on her cane, and stretched out a hand to feel her way forward.

Upon seeing this, Tie Niu quickly stepped forward to help him up.

"Tie Niu, are you alright?"

"No, no, I'm perfectly fine!"

Only after confirming that her son was alright did the old woman feel relieved. She then spoke towards Lu Feng and his companion:

"Thank you both so much for saving my Tie Niu! Please come in!"

"Thank you, ma'am," Lu Feng and his companion replied.

"Oh? There's a young lady here? How old are you? Are you married?"

Lu Shuang never expected the old man to ask such a question, and for a moment she didn't know how to answer.