This man was actually Xie Laosan.
Enemies really were bound to cross paths.
Lian Youming narrowed his eyes, his mind churning with thoughts. According to what Qin Yuhu had said, the old ghost had unmistakably fled to the Russian side back then—there was no chance that was false. Yet right now, he was concealing his tracks in this deep wilderness, having clearly slipped back over.
Strange.
Could it be that he couldn't make a living over there anymore?
Or had he hatched some wicked scheme again?
Lian Youming held his breath with great care, but he suddenly noticed that Xie Laosan's gait was abnormal; he was limping along, his right leg actually lame.
Without a second thought, given Xie Laosan's martial skill, such an injury could only have been caused by gunshot wounds sustained while crossing the border. Most of the border guards these days were battle-hardened veterans with rich combat experience; if even three of them banded together, unless Xie Laosan grew a pair of wings, he would certainly be in for a rough time.
Judging by the attire of the three men, however, they had clearly been hiding out in this deep old forest for some time.
Could they have slipped in after the onset of winter?
Lian Youming clicked his tongue in silent amazement; who would have thought the old rascal would pull off a trick like hiding right under everyone's noses? Everyone had assumed he had fled far across the border, yet here he was, skulking right under their eyes.
His gaze shifted quietly toward the other two men.
One was short and the other tall; the shorter one was Chinese, while the taller one was the Russian.
The shorter man walked with a light, agile step. He was slender, yet he looked far from frail; a pair of ape-like arms stretched out naturally, long enough to reach almost past his knees. Beneath the matted, filthy bangs on his forehead, a pair of eyes could faintly be seen darting about with piercing brilliance.
Lian Youming hadn't been idling during this period; he had learned a great deal from Yan Lingyun. Merely observing the man's agile footwork—leaping like a monkey and gliding like flight—it was evident that he had mastered a style of pictographic boxing, having grasped its true essence.
As for the disheveled Russian with wild hair, he was just as extraordinary.
This man was tall and burly with a broad frame. His collar was wide open, exposing a chest covered in a patch of coarse, yellowish-brown hair. Both of his temples bulged noticeably high—most likely a formidable practitioner of external martial arts.
For martial artists who trained in external martial arts, tempering their bones and muscles and bolstering their vital qi and blood was the core principle. Although every gesture wielded formidable strength and overbearing physical power, their qi and blood surged all the more violently. Once their kung fu reached a high degree of mastery, their tendons and veins would swell throughout their bodies, and their blood vessels would naturally engorge and expand outward. Moreover, since the temples were vital points on the human body, the changes there were the most conspicuous.
Neither of them was an ordinary man.
Lian Youming pressed his lips together and turned his head, seeing Yan Lingyun's eyes full of worry. He immediately gave her a reassuring look, gesturing for her to retreat slowly.
The two sides were separated by roughly thirty to forty meters, and concealed within the woods beneath foliage and muffled by birdsong, they were safe enough for now.
The two shifted their limbs inch by inch, stepping backward.
"I found this seven-prong old wild ginseng back when I was driving beasts and following a blind bear. In a few more days, once it finishes blooming, it ought to reach eight prongs..."
Xie Laosan's voice drifted over from a distance.
So it turned out that old bastard had also come for that wild ginseng.
Lian Youming recalled how Yan Lingyun had found the wild ginseng in the first place, and everything suddenly connected.
Just then, the Russian spoke up, uttering surprisingly fluent Chinese: "Heh heh, Old Ghost Xie, the two of us brothers went through hell and back to accompany you here not for this ginseng club. You said you had on you... the Kwantung Army's hidden treasure... show it to us..."
His voice drifted faintly, intermittent and low, yet Lian Youming still managed to catch several words.
The Kwantung Army's hidden treasure?
What was that?
Treasure what?
A treasure map?
*A Kwantung Army treasure map?! Holy crap!*
Lian Youming's mind shook violently. As he sorted through his thoughts, everything seemed to click into place.
This old wretch had been willing to sacrifice a leg just to return—he truly had an enormous prize in mind.
The two retreated farther and farther. Only when Xie Laosan and the others were completely out of sight did Lian Youming scoop up Yan Lingyun, turn on his heels, and sprint away.
"I'll take you down the mountain, and you go find Uncle Qin... Don't worry, I'll definitely bring that wild ginseng back for you."
Hearing this, Yan Lingyun clutched his sleeve in panic. "Student Lian, I don't want the wild ginseng anymore... Those men are vicious and desperate fiends. You must not do anything reckless!"
Seeing that the young girl was so frantic she was almost in tears, Lian Youming bared his teeth in a grin. "After all the trouble we went through, how could we not take it? Don't worry. Those men must have a place to rest nearby, and I'll leave markers along the way. Tell Uncle Qin and the others to stay sharp, and bring along some skilled marksmen so they can wipe them out in one fell swoop."
Leaving aside that eight-prong wild ginseng, if the Kwantung Army treasure map was real, it would be a monumental matter.
Whether he kept it for himself or handed it over, it would bring immense benefits.
Besides, while those three might not withstand a coordinated volley of gunfire, if they ducked back into the deep woods and put their minds entirely to fleeing, they might genuinely vanish without a trace. Finding them then would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Therefore, he had to trail them and bide his time; he couldn't let them escape.
Not to mention that Xie Laosan was already his enemy—this was the perfect chance to cut the weeds at the roots and eliminate future troubles.
Seeing his resolve, Yan Lingyun said nothing more. She wrapped her arms tightly around Lian Youming's neck and buried her head against him.
As Lian Youming ran, he simply shed all unnecessary heavy items and hid them in a mountain gully, carrying only his cattle-slaughtering knife as he sprinted flat out with Yan Lingyun on his back.
Judging from Xie Laosan's words, the wild ginseng wouldn't form eight prongs immediately, so there was still time.
On their way in, they had walked at an unhurried pace. Now, Lian Youming poured his strength into his legs, his muscles knotting tight instantly. With each stride, loose stones sprayed underfoot and he moved faster than a galloping horse. Pausing to catch his breath only a few times along the way, he finally made it back to Songziling before dark.
Though they hadn't returned all the way to Tahe, the village commune at the foot of the mountain had a hand-crank telephone.
Earlier that day, the two had hitched a ride on a villager's donkey cart to enter the mountains from here.
Watching Yan Lingyun walk briskly into the village and head toward the commune alongside several female educated youths, Lian Youming turned and reentered the mountains.
Licking his dry lips, he reached out, pulled out a slice of Solomon's seal, and held it in his mouth. Savoring the sweetness sliding down his throat, he followed the trail of markers he had left behind to retrace his path.
By now, dusk was setting in. The sun sank in the west, casting fiery red clouds across the sky. The forest was devoid of chirping birds and had grown exceedingly quiet.
With the cattle-slaughtering knife strapped across his back, Lian Youming slowed his pace, simultaneously stretching his tight muscles and using the opportunity to recover his stamina and steady his breathing.
As time slipped by, moments before the last sliver of daylight vanished, Lian Youming stood once again outside that lush birch grove. His eyes glinted, and reining in his breath, he hunched his back and nimbly slipped inside.
Unlike earlier, the woods now rustled faintly with the darting movements of hares and foxes.
Lian Youming moved quickly toward where the wild ginseng grew. Only when he reached the edge of the woods did he see that Xie Laosan and the others were no longer by the stream.
Yet he didn't dare be careless in the slightest. Circling around toward the other side of the grove, he hadn't gone far when, directly ahead, a ghastly pale, livid head stared blankly right at him, its eyes still oozing blood with faint maggots writhing inside.
In the dead of night amid deep wilderness, catching sight of such a gaze without warning caused Lian Youming's pupils to contract sharply. His scalp prickled with an electric shock of alarm, and he nearly slashed out with his knife.
*Dead?*
Backing away several paces and examining it closely, he saw that the head had been hung on a tree branch; it appeared to belong to a mountain roamer.
Most likely, this person had entered the mountains, discovered the trio's tracks, and been silenced.
Smelling the stench wafting over and seeing how insects and birds had gnawed at the severed head, it had clearly been dead for quite some time.
"Those animals!"
His eyes dark as stagnant water, Lian Youming pressed onward.
Concealing himself in the trees, he constantly monitored the surroundings outside, searching along the flow of the stream.
As the stench of rot gradually faded, the savory, greasy aroma of roasting meat quietly drifted into Lian Youming's nostrils.
In the murky darkness of the night, a cluster of firelight flickered indistinctly not far ahead.
*Found them!*
Chapter 26