On the Road

Xiao Tianqi seemed to be a man of few words.

The three of them flew for several hours, and he barely uttered a single word.

Occasionally, Su Ying would ask him a question, and he would reply with a word or two, which was considered giving her face.

Su Ying seemed to have gotten used to his personality and didn't mind. She chatted with Lu Feng quite a bit along the way.

As they flew over each territory, she would explain it to Lu Feng as if it were a familiar place.

Where is there a mountain? What kind of monster roams in it? Which city at the foot of the mountain is famous for which restaurant and which dish?

Lu Feng listened all the way and gradually began to understand. This Captain Su didn't care much about cultivation or power, but he was very enthusiastic about demonic beasts and food.

What others saw as a dangerous place, she described as "a nice place, I'll bring you here to eat sometime."

The two talked and listened, and before they knew it, it was getting dark.

The three of them flew right over a dense forest.

"It's getting late. Let's rest here tonight and continue our journey early tomorrow morning."

Xiao Tianqi chose a relatively open clearing in the woods and slowly landed.

After saying this, he said no more, walked straight to a big tree, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes.

Lu Feng and Su Ying also landed.

After flying all day, even though the two were highly skilled, they were inevitably somewhat tired.

Lu Feng took the initiative to gather some dry branches from the surrounding area and started a campfire in the center of the open space.

The firelight dispelled the deepening darkness in the forest.

"Are you two hungry? I'll go hunt some game." Lu Feng stirred the fire to make it burn brighter.

Visibility is poor at night, don't go too far.

Xiao Tianqi didn't even open his eyes, only giving one instruction.

Lu Feng responded and turned to disappear into the forest.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he returned carrying a dark gray wild rabbit.

The rabbit was of moderate build, with sturdy hind legs, clearly a creature that spent most of its time running through the forest.

"It's a hare!"

Su Ying leaned closer for a look, then curled her lip.

"Lu Feng, let me tell you, this wild rabbit isn't tasty. The meat is dry and tough, it's not good."

"Please wait a moment, sir. You can draw your conclusion after I've finished making it." Lu Feng smiled and carried the rabbit towards the stream.

They peeled, cleaned, and washed the animals quickly and efficiently.

A short while later, a cleaned rabbit was skewered on a wooden stick and placed above the fire.

The campfire was neither too big nor too small, and the rabbit meat sizzled.

Before long, an enticing aroma of meat filled the forest.

"Huh? Why does it smell so good?"

Su Ying, who was originally sitting far away, was drawn by the aroma and unconsciously moved closer to the fire.

She craned her neck, her eyes fixed on the rabbit's leg, her throat involuntarily bobbing.

Xiao Tianqi also slightly raised his eyelids, his gaze lingered on the rabbit meat for a moment, and then closed them again.

"Okay. You can eat now."

Lu Feng tore off a rabbit leg and handed it to Xiao Tianqi first.

Xiao Tianqi did not refuse and took a bite.

After a moment, he slowly nodded, which was considered a very high evaluation.

"Mine! Mine! I want one too!" Su Ying couldn't wait any longer.

She leaned forward, following Lu Feng's movements, her eyes fixed on the last whole rabbit.

Lu Feng tore off another rabbit leg and handed it over.

Su Ying took it, brought it to her nose and smelled it, then couldn't resist any longer and took a bite.

Then her eyes widened instantly.

Before he had even finished swallowing a mouthful of meat, he began to mumble incoherently:

"Delicious! So delicious!"

She looked down at the rabbit leg in her hand, then looked up at Lu Feng, her face full of disbelief.

"Lu Feng, why is your roasted rabbit not dry at all? It's completely different from any I've had before!"

"The handling methods are different."

Lu Feng tore off a piece for himself and explained as he ate.

"Besides killing them, what else can we do?" Su Ying asked, puzzled.

"This rabbit wasn't killed with a knife."

"Without a knife?"

Su Ying paused in her chewing, and even Xiao Tianqi opened one eye.

"They were drowned. First they drowned, then they were bled out."

What's the difference between drowning and being killed by knife?

"Knife-cutting and bleeding is quick; if the blood is drained too completely, the flesh won't retain moisture."

"Rabbit meat itself doesn't have much fat, and if you drain all the blood, what's left is all firm meat; it's no wonder it's dry."

"Flooding is different. When water is poured in through the mouth and nose, the rabbit struggles violently, but the blood doesn't drain out all at once; instead, it flows back into the flesh along with the blood."

"Once it stops moving, the blood has evenly seeped into the meat. When grilling, the blood and moisture are locked inside the meat fibers, so it won't dry out."

After Lu Feng finished speaking, he lowered his head and took another bite of the rabbit leg.

"You can do that?"

Su Ying's eyes lit up as she listened, and her hands didn't slow down at all.

She moved a few steps to Lu Feng's side and casually tore off the last rabbit leg.

"Lu Feng, how did you come up with this?"

"A hunter taught me this back in my hometown. People in the mountains are particular about their food; they know the tricks of the trade for different kinds of prey. I've tried it a few times myself, and water-soaked prey is definitely more tender than bled prey."

Before they knew it, the three of them had eaten the entire rabbit clean.

Xiao Tianqi only ate one leg; the remaining two and a half legs ended up in Su Ying and Lu Feng's stomachs.

Su Ying stared at the bare wooden stick on the fire, licking her lips with lingering satisfaction.

"No. I want to try it myself."

She stood up, turned around, and disappeared into the woods.

Not long after, she returned carrying a plump wild rabbit, excitedly waving it at Lu Feng:

"Quick, teach me!"

The two squatted by the stream, one talking and the other doing, and Su Ying picked it up surprisingly quickly.

Not long after, a second roasted rabbit was placed on the fire.

Su Ying watched the whole process, turning the food occasionally, and when it was done, she couldn't wait to tear off a piece and stuff it into her mouth.

"Wow! Delicious!" Su Ying's eyes curved into crescent moons.

"I never imagined that the wild rabbit I roasted myself would taste so good!"

After finishing the second rabbit, both of their bellies were noticeably bulging.

Su Ying leaned against the tree trunk, looking completely satisfied.

Lu Feng extinguished the fire, and the three of them jumped onto tree branches and leaned against a thick branch.

In the following days, every evening when they set up camp, Su Ying would disappear for a while, then return with two wild rabbits, tossing one to Lu Feng and keeping the other for herself to practice.

She discovered that, using the same method, her baked goods were always slightly inferior to Lu Feng's.

As for whether it was the timing or something else, she couldn't say for sure. In the end, she simply left both of them to Lu Feng and took charge of the hunting herself.

The three of them headed south, and the more they traveled, the more desolate the place became.

The official roads gradually disappeared, replaced by vast stretches of desolate, uninhabited mountains and wilderness.

On the tenth day, a majestic mountain range appeared ahead, stretching for countless miles, with steep slopes that pierced the clouds.

Xiao Tianqi stopped and looked at the mountain range before finally speaking.

"Once we cross this mountain, we'll reach the Central Province Plains."

Lu Feng looked up.

The mountain range, hundreds of feet high, rose into the twilight. At the speed of the three of them, they could cross it in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.