Chapter 33: Combat In The Mountains
Dian Jing did not linger. After saying these words, he left Yun Qian Village directly and prepared to enter the mountains.
He was originally planning to enter the mountains to hunt those feral beasts with other hunters.
Coming to tell Su Yan this news was indeed meant as compensation.
Seeing Dian Jing leave, Su Yan pondered for a moment, then took two pieces of cured meat from his room and went to the village entrance to find the Village Head.
Although Yun Qian Village was not a hunter’s village, there were many mountain hunters. If the yamen had any news, the Village Head should know about it.
When he found Old Man Zheng, the elder was holding his dry pipe and preparing to go out.
“Village Head Grandpa, are you going out?”
Village Head Zheng Daqing saw Su Yan arrive, a smile appeared on his old face, and he nodded kindly, “I’m going to walk around the village, and I happen to have something to tell you.”
Su Yan’s eyes flickered, and he thought to himself, ‘Could it be one thing?’
He took out the dried cured meat. “Village Head Grandpa, I made dried meat from the gray rabbits I hunted a few days ago. They are ready today, so I brought them for you and Uncle Gang to try.”
Zheng Daqing was stunned for a moment, his eyebrows curved. “No, no, how can I take your things?”
“Uncle Gang helped my second uncle go to the marketplace for treatment. He traveled such a long way, so why can’t I take them?”
Su Yan stuffed the cured meat into the Village Head’s hand, told him to hold it steady, and then casually said, “Grandpa, a friend of mine said the mountains have been restless lately?”
The Village Head looked at Su Yan in surprise and nodded. “As expected of Yan Ge’er, you’re well-informed. The lord from the city just sent news this morning that beasts are causing trouble in the mountains, so all mountain hunters should be careful and avoid entering the inner mountain area unless necessary.”
The news the Village Head received was not much more than Dian Jing’s, but it served to confirm it.
Hearing his words, Su Yan had a plan in mind.
‘What Dian Jing said is true, this is indeed an opportunity.’
A sharpness flashed in his eyes. He exchanged pleasantries with the Village Head and then took his leave.
Returning home, he changed into suitable attire for mountain hunting, carrying his dao and club, with his longbow on his back, and strode into the mountains.
He bypassed the outer mountains entirely. In the shrubbery, he released the Yin Water Centipede and the Velvet Fire Scorpion Insect, then headed straight for the inner mountains.
The dense forest canopy was like an umbrella, covered with vines. Amidst the shrubs and weeds, it seemed like there was a path, but it was actually a muddy, rotten mountain path covered in decaying leaves.
Su Yan had achieved minor accomplishment in his stance training, and his steps were steady, making the mountain path feel like level ground.
He traveled for an hour, crossing two or three mountain peaks, and arrived at a peak in the inner mountains.
“This should be about right. It’s time to let the Yin Water Centipede and the Velvet Fire Scorpion Insect search for Treasure Plants and wild beasts.”
Su Yan found a relatively open old tree and took his hardwood bow. He commanded the Yin Water Centipede and the Velvet Fire Scorpion Insect to the left and right, and both disappeared into the shrubbery.
Although the two insects were small, they were quite intimidating in the forest.
They burrowed into the weeds, shrubs, and the gnarled roots of old trees.
Before long, wild rabbits, muntjac deer, wild pheasants, and other small beasts were seen scurrying among the weeds and shrubs.
Su Yan’s gaze was like an eagle’s. He drew his bow and shot. The dense trees and shrubs could not block his vision.
After achieving great accomplishment in basic archery, his perception and technique in the forest became exceptionally sensitive, making drawing and shooting an arrow as natural as raising a hand.
In a short time, Su Yan had hunted several wild pheasants and wild rabbits.
Suddenly, the shrubs began to shake, and roars could be heard.
On the side of the Yin Water Centipede, it seemed a fierce beast was confronting it.
Su Yan’s eyes lit up, and a fighting spirit ignited within him. He strode towards the sound.
“Roar!”
The roar was immense, like muffled thunder. From the shrubbery, a large, dark figure stood up straight.
‘What a black bear.’
The large black bear bared its fangs, and its huge paws revealed hook-like claws, making a display of bared teeth and claws.
In front of it, the Yin Water Centipede raised its body and swayed slightly, releasing its ranked aura.
The large black bear clearly recognized that the poisonous Yin Water Centipede was not simple. Therefore, even though the size difference was huge, it did not dare to risk combat, but instinctively used its massive body to threaten.
However, Su Yan’s arrival broke the balance.
The large black bear roared furiously and prepared to attack.
“Just in time!”
Su Yan was eager to hone his skills and further advance his stance training, fist techniques, and skin refining minor accomplishment. How could he fear combat?
The Yin Water Centipede retreated two or three meters, clearing a space. Su Yan strode forward.
The black bear lunged, like a large piece of black cloth, a black mass, with a foul wind rushing towards him.
Su Yan’s stance training generated power in his steps. He stepped into the ground by three inches, his strength originating from the earth. His waist was like a firm pine tree, and all his strength converged into a lift, precisely using the Old Ape Lifts the Mountain stance to block the fierce bear’s paws.
The large black bear was startled and became fearful. Even a fierce tiger in this forest would find it difficult to wrestle with it, how could there be an extra two-legged beast that was usually its prey?
Su Yan paid no mind to the clumsy bear’s reaction. He exerted force with his hands, moved his body, and smashed the black bear to the ground.
With a dull thud, countless shrubs were broken.
The large black bear, in pain, flipped over and charged forward like a heavy truck.
Its thick fat and fur trembled and swayed, revealing the ferocity of its charge and the weight of its body.
“It’s more resilient than a tiger.”
Su Yan rushed forward. The bear bared its mouth to bite, and its forepaws clawed at him.
His arms were like whips, striking down, transforming into Golden Ape Strikes the Summit, heavily bombarding the black bear’s head.
With such a blow, it was stunned and its body faltered.
Su Yan’s feet erupted with great strength, and he thrust up with one knee, like Kui Xing Kicks the Stars. With a crack, he shattered the black bear’s jaw, forcing its head to lift.
Before the black bear could roar in anger, he used White Ape Offers Peach, striking upwards.
His hands, lifting with a force of one to two thousand catties, shattered its jaw and neck vertebrae, killing it.
Its massive body crashed to the ground. Su Yan then exhaled and finished his technique.
‘It’s still not integrated enough. Otherwise, with a body lift and a leap, Golden Ape Strikes the Summit would have landed on the back of its neck, and I could have killed it long ago. Again…’
Su Yan was enjoying the fight and, for the moment, ignored the black bear’s corpse, continuing to let the Yin Water Centipede and Velvet Fire Scorpion Insect search.
After about ten minutes, a wild boar, as large as a young bull with bared tusks, charged through the shrubbery.
Su Yan abandoned his longbow and strode forward, forcefully embracing and throwing it down, smashing its skull with two punches.
An hour passed. It was unclear whether the Yin Water Centipede had startled a black panther or if the black panther had spotted Su Yan first.
The panther suddenly attacked from the old branches of the tall trees.
Su Yan sensed it and fought with it.
The panther was agile and its movements were sharp, like lightning in the forest.
Su Yan was calm, turning and twisting, like a fierce ape in the mountains, responding with ease.
After fighting for more than ten rounds, he captured the panther from the tree and broke its spine.
As night gradually fell, Su Yan stopped to rest but had no intention of descending the mountain.
He placed the rabbits on the fire. The Yin Water Centipede and Velvet Fire Scorpion Insect devoured the prey they had fought today with large mouths.
Su Yan practiced his stance training amidst the old forest shrubs. The mountain wind blew in with a chill, and the branches of old trees, weeds, and shrubs rustled, creating a tranquil scene.
‘Martial skills are inherently killing techniques. Martial arts, too, are about fighting with people, with heaven, and with oneself. It’s not just about standing still; one must also be able to fight and dare to fight.’
He gained insight and practiced his stance training with increasing ease. His face was calm as water, but the Qi and Blood within his body surged like flames, continuously tempering the skin of his entire body.
A layer of Qi and Blood continuously circulated, and beneath the skin membrane, it gradually formed a second layer of defense.
The combat today allowed his gradually slowing progress towards a breakthrough to increase again, even though it was only combat with one bear, one panther, one boar, and various other prey.
However, this feeling was completely different from only practicing punches.
“Awooo!”
Suddenly, under the moon, the wind picked up, and frightened wolf howls could be heard.
Su Yan’s eyes snapped open, a sharp glint flashing through them.
The wolf howls echoed in the mountain stream, but they were not sounds of a pack; they sounded more like sounds of alarm and escape.
“What dares to hunt wolf packs?”
