Chapter 57: Hunting The Pig 2
“Haven’t found that Pig Demon yet?”
“No, after that Pig Demon entered the Wasteland, it lost its trail. We’ve interrogated many people these past few days, caught plenty of rebels, but they know nothing about the Wild Boar Spirit’s whereabouts.”
Zhang Min looked at her subordinates who were filled with anger but dared not speak, and said with a gloomy face: “Think about what you’ll get if we catch that Pig Demon and interrogate out the Dragon Spirit. I think you won’t feel tired anymore.”
The Secret Agent spread his hands and said: “We’re seriously short on manpower, and Sheyang City’s soldiers care more about annihilating the rebels; they’re not too interested in catching the Wild Boar Spirit. We can’t tell them this Pig Demon is related to the Dragon Spirit.
Envoy, this subordinate suggests dispatching soldiers from Panxing Tower in Chuyun Prefecture, bringing the Sky Eye. Even if more people know, and the merit gets diluted, it’s still better than having nothing like now.”
“Still no news from the Sheyang River side?”
“None. The Pig Demon didn’t take the water route. At the same time, the Pig Demon’s companions also disappeared. We’ve searched almost every inch within fifty li around, with no news at all.”
Zhang Min pondered for a moment and said: “I’ll give you three more days. If you still can’t find it, inform Panxing Tower in Chuyun Prefecture and release the Sky Eye.”
E Ji let out a joyful cry and jumped into a pool below the waterfall. She swam freely in the pool like a fish with her naked body, sometimes deliberately standing on a stone and calling out to attract Yun Ce’s attention. After that, she would jump into the water, each time earning Yun Ce’s eyeroll. For this, she was endlessly delighted.
Yun Ce stood in the stream downstream of the pool, washing the muddy water and sweat stains off the Red Date Horse. The Red Date Horse sometimes took a sip of water and sprayed it on Yun Ce.
1 This was a paradise-like hidden haven.
1 Distant mountains were deep blue-green, the Grassland vividly green, shrubs growing in layers. Though wild, Yun Ce always felt like someone had tended to it.
1 If Doggy hadn’t told him there were truly no outsiders here, he would definitely have searched it personally.
1 Some purple Fruit grew on the shrubs. Now, they should be ripe; most Fruit were dark-colored, almost turning deep purple.
1 Each Fruit was about the size of a finger egg, sour and sweet in the mouth. He gathered some, but most Fruit fell to the Ground or satisfied the little birds’ hunger.
1 E Ji swam naked from an opening in the pool to Yun Ce. The Red Date Horse lowered its head wanting to bite this white Thing, but was pushed away from its long face by E Ji’s scream.
1 Yun Ce grunted, fished the naked E Ji out of the water, threw her beside the Blanket, placed her on it, and rolled her up in the Blanket.
1 His original Plan wasn’t like this. For their safety, he wanted to quietly blend E Ji into the fleeing group too. Unfortunately, E Ji refused no matter what, wrapping her hands and feet around Yun Ce, making it impossible for him to pry her off.
1 A group was naturally very conspicuous, but breaking up a group and having its members blend into other groups made them less noticeable—especially under Feng An and Liang Kun’s careful selection: An Ji became a daughter of a household, the other girls gradually became someone else’s daughters or Maidservants. In a larger environment of three thousand people, who would care if a family suddenly had an extra daughter or male servant?
1 A drop of water is safest only when blended into the Sea.
2 Not to mention Yun Ce spotted Miss Hong and Pei Chuan in this group of three thousand, disguised as a couple. Being from poor backgrounds originally, pretending to be a pitiful pair of low-class free folk pushing a cart was most fitting.
2 Feng An promised Yun Ce that if necessary, he would push those two out as shields to create some Chaos and make a safer environment for their group.
2 Such a Stratagem wasn’t brilliant, but Yun Ce only hoped it would be useful.
2 “You shouldn’t have followed.” Yun Ce annoyedly smacked E Ji on the Head.
2 E Ji aggrievedly clutched her Head and said: “What if you run away?”
2 “I won’t run!”
2 “You will run. I’ve smelled the stench of other women left on you, and I heard what you said to Feng An and the others. You still want to grab that stinky woman Zhang Min and do that to death her. You’re not allowed to do that to her; if you want to do that, it should be with me.”
2 Yun Ce disgustedly eyed E Ji’s slightly changed Body and smacked her Head again.
2 “Catching Zhang Min is to get in and out of Yun Prefecture’s Prefectural City. I always feel this woman is very sinister, like she’s very powerful. Maybe she has a way to help us deal with these troubles.”
2 “Since it’s trouble, we can live in the Wasteland too… just the two of us.”
3 “Dream on. I still want to travel this World and see it all. If I just came to keep you company, wouldn’t I have come for nothing.”
3 “You just won’t speak nicely to me. An Ji said a good man should speak sweet words of affection to a woman to win her heart.”
3 Yun Ce looked at E Ji in surprise and said: “What do I need your heart for? Keep that Thing nicely in your Chest, give it to no one. Without that Thing, you’d die, and I really hate a heartless, dead you.”
3 “You want it, I can give it.”
3 “No, bloody and gooey isn’t pretty.”
3 Talking love with a Little Girl is very tiring. They’re often overly enthusiastic, like a fire that not only melts themselves but wants to melt you too.
3 “Shriek—”
3 A shrill bird cry came from the Sky. Yun Ce looked up and saw a Large Bird had appeared overhead at some point—a Giant Bird incredibly huge, flying over Yun Ce’s head like a small airplane, even blocking the Sun.
3 E Ji had long rolled up in the Blanket, hopping away to put on Clothes. The Red Date Horse also came ashore from the Stream, vigorously shaking the water off its body.
3 Yun Ce stood at the Shore, gripping the heavy Meteor Hammer and staring deadly at the Giant Bird flying overhead. When the Giant Bird circled in the Sky and flew over again, Yun Ce extended the Chain Hammer’s chain to its longest, lifted the hammer head, and fiercely smashed it toward the Giant Bird.
4 The Giant Bird’s claw grabbed the hammer head, carried Yun Ce flying in the air for a bit, then dropped the hammer head. Before Yun Ce landed, he swung the chain in a circle in the air and threw the hammer head up again.
4 This time, the Giant Bird swatted the Chain Hammer with its wing, and the hammer head lost power, falling from the Sky.
4 Yun Ce turned and ran, picked up E Ji and threw her onto the horse’s back, leaped onto the horse himself. The Red Date Horse neighed loudly, let out a whinny of “oh oh oh,” and charged madly along the Mountain Road.
4 Yun Ce was certain that bird was raised by humans. The reason was simple: there was a person sitting on the bird’s back, and there were Reins on the bird’s head.
4 The Red Date Horse raced and jumped along the Mountain Road like lightning, not stopping at gullies but letting out a big cry and leaping over with him and E Ji.
4 The Giant Bird followed like a shadow, occasionally swooping down. Yun Ce had to repeatedly throw the hammer head up to smash the bird.
4 Arrows were useless against such a bird. He shot three in succession: two hit the belly and were blocked by the Armor there, the other hit the wing without even losing a single Feather. Only when the hammer smashed did the bird dodge a bit.
4 The Red Date Horse was very smart. While Yun Ce was busy fighting the Large Bird, it carried Yun Ce and E Ji straight into a Grove.
4 The Grove was like a Pine Forest, with tall, straight Trees and only thick fallen leaves under them, no weeds. The horse hooves wandered in the Forest for a moment, then slyly stopped.
4 “Shriek—”
5 The Giant Bird in the Sky lost Yun Ce’s trail and cried out once more. Yun Ce strongly suspected this guy was summoning Partners.
5 Yun Ce looked up at the big Sun in the Sky; it was only just past midday, at least eight hours from dark.
5 Yun Ce pulled a suit of Armor from the Dragon Pearl, haphazardly wrapped it around E Ji, and used armor straps to bind them tightly together. If they left the Forest and faced fierce battle later, if E Ji fell off the horse, she was done for.
5 “Bind me in the back. In front, it’ll affect your fighting. In the back, I can block arrows for you.”
5 “Scram. I’m tough-skinned and don’t need you blocking arrows.”
5 Yun Ce looked down at the Wristband and said: “Doggy, help me kill the Large Bird.”
5 “I can’t fly that high. You lie on the Ground pretending to be dead later. When it lands to eat you, I’ll have my chance.”
5 E Ji couldn’t hear Yun Ce’s exchange with the Wristband and just kept twisting to get behind Yun Ce.
5 Yun Ce ignored Doggy’s bad idea. He quietly listened to the sounds outside the Forest for a while, then urged the Red Date Horse to jump over a Small Mountain Stream and climb up the Mountain in the direction Doggy indicated. The roads here were rugged; large Cavalry couldn’t come up.
5 “Damn it.”
6 Atop the Mountain Peak, Yun Ce couldn’t help cursing. He then realized this was a flat, elongated lone Mountain, like a fan stuck in the Plain’s Ground—not suitable for guerrilla fighting at all.
6 “Pig Demon, you can’t run!”
6 Sure enough, Zhang Min’s voice came from the Large Bird’s back. Yun Ce couldn’t see her figure, but from her tone, this woman was extremely smug right now.
6 “This is the woman you want to do that to?”
6 E Ji whispered stealthily from Yun Ce’s arms.
6 Yun Ce was thinking how to anger this woman into coming down from the Large Bird’s back when he heard Zhang Min say again: “This time, I’ve brought five hundred Armored Soldiers. Pig Demon, I advise you to surrender quickly. For the sake that you didn’t easily become a spirit, I can spare your life.”
6 Hearing Zhang Min say this, Yun Ce relaxed. The more someone boasted about their great Strength, the weaker they usually were. He lightly urged the Red Date Horse, which bounced down the back of the Mountain and charged toward a larger Mountain in the distance.
6 A Crossbow Bolt accurately shot into Yun Ce’s back. The bolt’s force was great. Yun Ce looked back and saw Zhang Min lying on the bird’s back, using her feet to cock the Crossbow.
