Chapter 202: This Meat Is Greatly Tonic!
Boarded the boat and tied up General Huang’s half severed corpse with hemp rope.
This guy was also quite fat; just this half body alone made the sampan sink deeply into the water, rocking unsteadily.
Chen Shun’an took out the dagger and rummaged through the half severed torso but did not find anything like a fish dan or pearl, so he regretfully stopped.
“First take it to claim military merit, then sell it to Golden Needle Li! This thing is after all a loach demon; even if not cooked and eaten, it should be usable as medicine, right?”
This remaining value must be squeezed dry.
This trip had brought rich gains. Chen Shun’an gazed at the jade disc in the sky, determined the direction, then returned fully loaded, poling the boat toward Three Forked Road Dock.
The sampan glided across the water surface, leaving a deep ripple behind.
Moonlight like water bathed the surface, shimmering with waves.
Silver Scholar, Golden Scaled Perch, Catfish Spirit, White Flower Snake and other water demons floated on the surface, gazing from afar at Chen Shun’an’s figure, as if respectfully seeing off the high god.
White Flower Snake’s snow-white body gleamed with shimmering silver waves. At this moment, it slightly coiled its snake body and flicked its tongue; its deep eyes reflected Chen Shun’an’s back.
Revealing complex emotions such as awe, affection, awe, longing, timidity…
Silver Scholar saw this and suddenly felt a faint sense of crisis.
It vaguely remembered that this White Flower Snake was a female snake!
“Marketplace tales often circulate stories of ‘White Snake repaying kindness by serving in body’; I must guard against this White Flower Snake developing improper thoughts!”
Silver Prime Minister absolutely would not allow workplace romance to happen!
Then, he glanced at Golden Scaled Perch, who had not been promoted or given any official position by the high god.
A sense of smug pride welled up.
It has to be me!
……
The night river was bitterly cold, with residual snow piled on the riverside stone beach.
Wind like knives scraped through, kicking up fine ice shards that clinked against the soldiers’ armor.
Several soldiers on night watch held torches and had knives at their waists, patrolling near the dock.
Not long ago, an old man night fishing ignored warnings and resolutely rowed his boat into the river heart.
After such a long time without returning, these soldiers all felt this man was likely doomed.
So they secretly increased patrol intensity, strictly forbidding any fishermen from going night fishing again.
“Eee-yah—”
The sound of the sweep oar came from the mist, slow and heavy.
A soldier on the shore was first stunned, then looked toward the sound and saw a black sampan breaking through the river mist, slowly approaching shore.
On the deck lay a dark mass, obscured by mist, still not clearly visible.
Then a figure in straw cloak and bamboo hat jumped down from the boat, pulled the rope, and tied the sampan to the shore.
“Brothers, lend a hand! Didn’t catch silver fish, but hooked another big one!”
A somewhat familiar voice came.
Several soldiers crowded close for a look and saw Chen Shun’an, somewhat surprised.
“You old man, didn’t die?”
Then, their gazes fell on that mass on the deck.
Dark red blood, mucus frozen into ice shells.
A loach remnant nearly as long as the boat, with a fishy smell mixed with cold air wafting over, stinging the nostrils.
A triangular head tilted to one side; even dead, it still exuded ferocity.
“This, this, this isn’t that loach demon?!”
“It’s it, I recognize it; that knife scar on its head was chopped by Brother Fang!”
“Quick, quick, go report; this fiend is finally brought to justice!”
The group of soldiers were stunned, staring at the demon corpse on the deck, mouths agape enough to fit a fist, forgetting to shiver with their frozen purple lips.
Fortunately, a veteran reacted immediately, pushed over a tiger-head cart for transporting wooden beams, and together they lifted the demon corpse onto it.
Then, these soldiers looked at Chen Shun’an with eyes full of shock and doubt.
This old man has an ordinary appearance; so fierce?
This loach demon was comparable to a True Intent Master, especially in water where it was even more ferocious; even same-realm martial artists were far from its match and would just become food.
The commotion here soon attracted many people, who gathered around, looking at the loach demon whose ferocious aura had not yet dissipated, all astonished beyond words.
Especially since this loach demon’s teeth were not grown in the front of the mouth but in the throat, known as pharyngeal teeth.
But at this moment, with its mouth gaping open, revealing a ring of fine, rasp-like sharp teeth, it sent chills through the body.
If bitten by this thing even once, wouldn’t it leave bruises everywhere?
Warehouse Keeper Fang had been sleeping soundly in his room when a martial artist hurriedly knocked on the door. After he dressed and came out, upon learning that the loach demon, wanted and unpunished for many days, was finally dead, he let out a long breath of relief.
“Which righteous person did this?”
Warehouse Keeper Fang asked as he walked.
“An old man; seems someone recognized him as Shopkeeper Chen Shun’an from Crouching Tiger Well.”
“What? Shopkeeper Chen?!”
Warehouse Keeper Fang was stunned.
Shopkeeper Chen actually had such divine prowess; wasn’t he only Second-rate Realm?
Was Three Refinements Martial Body really so profound, able to kill enemies across realms?
By the time he hurried with quick steps to the dock.
He saw a bonfire lit by the dockside.
A crowd gathered in front of the bonfire.
The aroma of roasting meat wafted over, sizzling with oil.
Chen Shun’an was actually using the dagger to cut strips of loach meat and grilling them on stone slabs over the bonfire!
Rich fat was forced out, dripping onto the charcoal with enticing sounds.
A group of patrolling soldiers and sentry martial artists lined up orderly, receiving grilled loach.
Ignoring the heat, they bared teeth and blew air, carefully taking bites.
Among them, several young men full of valiant aura said indistinctly while eating,
“Demons can eat people, people can eat demons too. Though this beast didn’t die by our hands, the townsfolk have avenged their great grudge!”
“We brothers searched reed clumps for loach holes for so long; this bastard was hiding in deep water?”
“Good thing Master Chen stepped in. Could Master Chen be the reincarnation of a water god? His water skill is so good. But strange, how come this beast only has half a body left.”
These young men had taken the task to capture General Huang during the day, stayed up all night with bloodshot eyes, yet hadn’t even seen General Huang’s shadow.
Then hearing the news of this beast’s demise, especially that the one who slew it was that Old Man Chen they had brushed past at the public office during the day, they were even more shocked.
Ginger is still the hottest!
This Master Chen quietly went down the river and caught the loach without fanfare!
Thinking of their own showy manner during the day, the young men’s faces burned with shame.
However…
Even if unable to personally slay this demon, at least fill the belly!
Eat!
These young men viciously took a big bite.
And Warehouse Keeper Fang walked into the scene.
Warehouse Keeper Fang rubbed his bleary eyes, as if still in a dream.
It’s even being grilled?!
After confirming the corpse was indeed the loach demon, he finally completely relaxed.
Warehouse Keeper Fang clapped his hands and laughed, saying,
“I wondered which expert could go into the water to capture a demon; turns out it really is Shopkeeper Chen!”
“Thanks, Brother Chen, for slaying this fiend.”
Warehouse Keeper Fang then solemnly bowed to Chen Shun’an.
Chen Shun’an smiled, skewered a strip of loach meat with the knife tip, and offered it to Warehouse Keeper Fang, saying,
“Want some?”
Warehouse Keeper Fang shook his head like a rattle drum and firmly refused,
“This loach demon eats anything raw or cold, sleeps in water, walks on river bottoms; who knows what it’s eaten. I dare not eat its meat.”
Not far away, a young soldier muttered softly,
“This meat really nourishes yin and supplements yang, invigorates kidney water. I feel my kidneys warming up; later I’ll go to the alleys to vent some fire…”
Warehouse Keeper Fang’s ears perked up instantly, but his expression unchanged, he continued,
“But since Brother Chen offers it, Fang naturally dare not refuse!”
“One piece, one piece is enough.”
“Mmm… Fang didn’t taste much before it was gone. One more piece, one more.”
“Ah~~~”
Warehouse Keeper Fang’s old face immediately relaxed.
Though it seemed many had come to ‘mooch food and drink’, it actually didn’t consume much loach meat.
Loaches are known as ‘ginseng in water’, and this General Huang was even more tonic.
A Second-rate Warrior eating just a small piece couldn’t handle it, feeling a violent heat surging wildly inside, forced to stand meditation and practice martial arts, circulating internal breath to digest it.
True Intent Masters fared a bit better but could probably only take three or four pieces at a time before having to stop, lest excess lead to harm.
So General Huang’s remnant torso had only lost an unnoticeable lump of meat until now.
Chen Shun’an was always generous; with rich gains tonight, he didn’t mind distributing loach meat widely to build goodwill!
And not far away, several figures stood behind the abatis, looking this way without approaching.
“This Shopkeeper Chen also took the translate monster language errand. Seems he has some skills…”
“So what? I admit his strength is greater than mine; at most one punch to hammer me dead. But we’re competing in monster language ability!”
These people varied in height, build, and fatness, mostly dressed as martial world wanderers, heavy with greenwood bandit aura.
“Brother Xiao, what do you think?”
Several looked toward a man with slightly high cheekbones and a natural stern hawk nose.
Xiao Changping smiled faintly and said,
“It’s just each showing their own skills like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea. Xiao has traveled south and north for years, seen five-clawed golden dragons return to North Sea, encountered thousand-year old turtles back to beaches, to forge today’s ability to understand the languages of a hundred beasts; not afraid of anyone!”
With that, Xiao Changping strode toward Chen Shun’an,
“Time to get acquainted with this renowned Shopkeeper Chen!”
The others looked at Xiao Changping’s back with wariness in their eyes.
Thinking it over, they followed.
Right, each by their own means.
The urgent matter… also mooch some loach meat; absolutely not for nourishing yin and supplementing yang, but to make connections and probe Chen Shun’an’s situation.
“Eh? A Tai, not coming?”
Facing his companion’s invitation, Mo Long A Tai’s hand hanging by his thigh subconsciously scratched it, then he smiled naturally,
“I won’t go; too late. I’ll go fish a bit, then head home.”
Mo Long A Tai glanced guiltily at Chen Shun’an.
Turned and headed toward Banye Ferry Crossing.
Mo Long A Tai used to be a water carrier, had a nodding acquaintance with Chen Shun’an, considered colleagues.
But after making it big, he quit the water carrier errand and specialized in fishing precious fish to sell in various fish markets.
So instinctively unwilling to face Chen Shun’an, afraid of being mocked for forgetting roots.
Thus he went alone, plunging into the pitch-black mountain path where he couldn’t see his own hand, completely swallowed by darkness.
