Hunger

"Nothing really," Wu Youren curled his lip. "You didn't come as the Life-and-Death Knot—did they change their tactics?" The falcon tamer was gone, and by all rights, someone else should have stepped in to continue the wearing-down process. But the dignified Court of State Ceremonial of Liang couldn't possibly possess only a single trick. They must have realized he was becoming a bit troublesome, which meant high-handed pressure alone would no longer cut it. Changing the Life-and-Death Knot to the "Protocol Office" brought different phrasing and a different flavor. And yet, he had changed too! Talisi was stunned for a good while before offering a faint smile. "Sharp as expected. I've heard clever people don't do foolish things." "There are things one must not do, and things one must do..." Wu Youren replied calmly. "I think you're quite clever as well!" "I didn't come here to trade witty remarks with you," Talisi said gravely. "I belong to the Life-and-Death Knot as well. My methods may differ from Salim's, but the nature of our work... will not change!" Mm, the carrot and the stick! Wu Youren nodded. "That's a bit dangerous. The barbarians are acting quite arrogant these days." "Hm?" Talisi raised an eyebrow, then narrowed her eyes. "That doesn't sound like kind words." "An instructor from the Martial Academy said it," Wu Youren answered calmly. "If you have nothing else, I'll be on my way." "Wait a moment." Her working attitude truly differed from Salim's. She stated very seriously, "I'm responsible for liaising with you. We need to ensure timely communication whenever something comes up." "I'm just a nobody." The youth looked at her with clear eyes. "There's nothing I need to communicate." "Tsk." Talisi felt rather helpless. "You don't seem to understand the nature of the Protocol Office." "I understand perfectly." Wu Youren turned and walked away. "Isn't it just tormenting people day in and day out?" Watching him step into the greenhouse, Talisi sighed. "Back then, your value wasn't very high. You know how pragmatic this society is." The youth shut the door without an expression. The three exchanged glances and had no choice but to leave. The male martial artist couldn't resist grumbling, "The kid is way too arrogant!" "Salim was just too stupid," Talisi said with a dark expression, not sparing her missing colleague's reputation in the slightest. She couldn't help cursing him. There was nothing wrong with being blunt and heavy-handed on the job, but at the very least, you had to understand how much potential the other party possessed! The youth had already gathered momentum; suppressing him outright was no longer an option. The problem was, trying to win him over now... was simply too difficult! Wu Youren continued wandering through the greenhouse, though his heart was nowhere near as calm as he made it appear. After mulling it over carefully for a long time, he felt that while his reaction was a bit risky, it hadn't crossed the line. And the benefits of his overnight raid on Salim were now fully evident. It wasn't merely venting his spleen. The Life-and-Death Knot had switched liaisons, the manner in which they interacted had changed, and even the seals restricting his room to grow had begun to loosen! Over the next few days, he stayed mostly inside the greenhouse. Others thought he was engrossed in growing vegetables, but using the earthen ridges and small seedlings for cover, he was quietly cultivating. At the same time, he wanted to see whether this new arrival from the Life-and-Death Knot would approach him frequently. As expected, Talisi never showed up again. She had obtained his smartwatch number and even used it to send him a hint: your smartwatch isn't standard issue for the Martial Academy; you'd better replace it. That was pure nonsense. His smartwatch was Hong Da's spare—how could it not be standard issue? It simply wasn't the kind specifically assigned to hostages. He knew it, she knew it, and she knew that he knew it. In any case, he wouldn't change it. He wanted to see if she dared call it out openly. However, news came from Liu Jingming that the Court of State Ceremonial was busy coordinating with the barbarians recently and genuinely didn't have time to spare for the Jin hostages. Thinking about it, that made sense. In all of Red Pine, there were only five hostages, and their liaisons weren't even the same. With so many barbarians around and tensions running high, given the size of the night execution squad, how many people could they possibly spare to bother with them? That night, Wu Youren slipped away from Red Pine and headed straight for the Rust Belt. He truly couldn't suppress it any longer. The throbbing at his temples from his knight breakthrough was manageable, but his Daoist aura was on the verge of erupting. He couldn't go in the direction of Suotu, so his only option was the Rust Belt. There was Guizu aura here too, but unlike the endless miasma toward Suotu, at least it spawned at a slower rate. Some military squads were clearing things out here, but most of those present were barbarians. Still, the density of people was far lower than toward Suotu. With few Guizu to kill and few people to plunder, a place without yield could never attract many people. Wu Youren chose an extremely remote residential house—not a factory building, just an empty, dilapidated house. Fortunately, four or five square meters of the roof didn't leak, and two and a half walls blocked the wind. There were houses in better condition, but he didn't pick them because people might wander into those places. Even in such a ruined house, there were still spiders, little lizards, and the like. While clearing them away, he couldn't help thinking of Chen Quanxu again—these were all things that could be possessed! But he had no intention of contacting him, as his cultivation system was far too different. Up to now, he had only cooperated with Chen Quanxu once. Although their cooperation had been pleasant and their general allegiance was essentially aligned, still... it was best not to test human nature. In only half a day, everything was prepared, with mechanisms and defenses in place. Sitting inside a burrow dug out beneath the house, he looked at Xiao Ha on his shoulder and pointed to the strips of meat laid out in front of him. "Eat when you're hungry. I really don't know how long this breakthrough will take." As for shifting any potential danger onto the snow harrier? He hoped so, but he had only a rough concept that was extremely unrefined! Yet there was truly no way around it. The experience points had surged in so violently that he couldn't hold it back at all, leaving him no time to research further... When Wu Youren awoke from deep cultivation, his first sensation was extreme hunger wracking his body. That hunger was beyond words—not only was his vision swimming and his head spinning, but he was nearly driven to gnaw on his own arm. Fortunately, he had considered this in advance and kept food and fresh water within arm's reach. Who had time for water right now? He threw two large chunks of sugar into his stomach first, followed by several lumps of fat. Then came chunks of dried meat and pickled vegetables... He barely chewed before swallowing them whole. The taste seemed a bit off, but he had no time to ponder it; they were all non-perishables anyway and shouldn't have spoiled. After wolfing things down for several minutes, he finally grabbed the waterskin and drank greedily, only to notice something odd: where was Xiao Ha? The food he had prepared for the snow harrier was completely gone, and the remaining rock-hard jerky wasn't something a fledgling could digest. After gorging himself for another while, feeling less ravenous at last, he checked what kind of transformation he had undergone. Four words: light as a swallow! He felt as though he could fly. Even though he knew it was psychological, why... could he not resist wanting to try? Wait, why was he wearing a suit of armor? As expected, a thick layer of grime had formed on the outside of his body. But even harder to endure was a twisting, sharp cramp in his belly. Sensing the surroundings and finding no danger, he bolted right out of the burrow. Huh, Xiao Ha? He had no time to worry about that. Scurrying outside, he unleashed a furious, explosive barrage. It didn't take long, but how did it feel like he had expelled several tons? Then, he was starving again; next, the twisting abdominal cramps returned... This cycle repeated three full times before Wu Youren collapsed on his backside, utterly exhausted! It felt as though his internal organs were about to be evacuated right out of him. Even the toughest man can't withstand three bouts of the runs; luckily, he still had food to replenish himself... Only after devouring six full meals did he realize something: it reeked! He didn't just stink normally, but it wasn't quite a foul stench either... Never mind, skip the detailed description. In short, Xiao Ha had likely left his shoulder simply because the fledgling couldn't endure the smell! But what surprised Wu Youren most was this sudden binge-eating and his extraordinary digestive capacity. Was his body making up for a severe deficit, or would it always be like this from now on? He wasn't sure. Forget it, stop thinking about it—time to go relieve himself again... Only after finishing his business for the sixth time did he start considering another question: how many days did this secluded retreat take? Never mind. The smartwatch was powered off and wasn't on hand anyway, so he should wash off the grime first. Fortunately, it was currently night, and everything nearby was normal. By the time he finished his ninth meal, he felt somewhat back to normal, no longer panicking from hunger. The grime had been washed clean, and he had changed into fresh clothes. Xiao Ha could hardly wait to hop back onto his shoulder. Wu Youren quietly left the house and, two kilometers away, dug up the buried smartwatch. Turning it on, he exhaled a long breath of relief: fortunately, only three days and three nights had passed. Then he powered it off again and returned to the house where he had secluded himself. Before even entering the house, he wrinkled his nose: Holy crap, did it smell this bad? No wonder even Xiao Ha couldn't stand it! Before, he hadn't noticed his own stench, but having gone outside, he truly couldn't bear it now. No wonder the food had tasted strange at first! He almost admired himself for how he had managed to wolf it down! Immediately afterward, his heart sank again: Dammit, hungry again! Fortunately, before entering seclusion, he had selected a backup house stocked with food and other supplies. This cycle continued until dawn began to break. Wu Youren was still ravenously hungry, but... everything edible had been finished! He decided to hold out until nightfall, sneak back to Red Pine, and gorge himself then. Did I... awaken some foodie system? By near midday, he truly couldn't hold on anymore, feeling that if he didn't eat something, he might faint. He turned his head to glance at Xiao Ha on his shoulder: This... plucked clean, probably isn't even enough for one meal, is it? The snow harrier chick looked back at him, opening its tender yellow beak. Though no sound emerged, its meaning was crystal clear: I'm hungry! "Then robbery is my only choice," Wu Youren sighed. "Forcing the virtuous into vice—damn this rotten Liang." At first, he had planned to rob the barbarians, since scattered barbarians still appeared in the area. But thanks to Murphy's Law, what you saw everywhere on normal days was nowhere to be found when you actually wanted it! He searched all the way near the main road and still couldn't find anyone—this Rust Belt was truly beyond desolate. He sighed inwardly: If there's really no other way, I'll just have to become a highwayman! Alas, I've always been an upright, honest person!