"Careful now. That beast has tasted human flesh."
As Lian Youming focused his senses in vigilance, the King of Scraps' voice drifted faintly into his ears.
The old man remained completely unperturbed. Sitting atop a charred log, he casually dug up a Solomon's seal root and began chewing on it raw.
"Look at its eyes. Streaked with blood, savage and cruel. Aside from hatred and fury, there's a hunger in them to devour you. It has definitely eaten human flesh before."
As for the cub, the moment it slipped from the shanxiao's grasp, it scurried toward the mother bear with excited yelps.
The mother bear, previously wild with rage, called out twice in reply upon seeing her cub. Gathering the little one onto her belly, she rolled back and forth on the ground like a fleshy ball, overcome with joy.
Meanwhile, Lian Youming wiped his hands in sheer disgust. Pacing in circles, he said in a low voice, "This creature is tricky to handle. Its body is practically like an iron-body expert's."
The King of Scraps nodded. "These beasts are usually only half a man's height. This one must have feasted on fresh blood and dug up plenty of rare mountain herbs, boosting its vital energy so much that its frame grew long and tall—it's nearly one point three or four meters now. Vicious nature, too. During famine years, these things would come down the mountains to snatch children, mostly gouging open their skulls to eat the raw brains. Cruel and wicked enough to grapple with tigers and wolves."
Though the shanxiao was enraged, its eyes darted rapidly. Glancing at the mother bear and then back at Lian Youming, it actually possessed the cunning to seek safety and flee danger. With a strange screech, it wheeled around and bolted, darting into the vast mountain forest.
Only then did the King of Scraps add leisurely, "Forgot to mention, these things hold a terrible grudge. It can stalk you all the way back, following you right to your doorstep at night."
"You couldn't have said that sooner?"
Drawing a breath, Lian Youming gave chase in great, swift strides.
Watching the youth dart into the mountains like a swallow plunging into the forest, the King of Scraps chewed on the crisp Solomon's seal, a gentle smile appearing on his face.
What was he smiling about?
Naturally, at Lian Youming leaving him here all alone.
This meant the boy had long since sensed there was something extraordinary about him, believing him to be an expert in hiding.
Yet why hadn't he pierced that veil?
Because Lian Youming cared about him.
And even more so, because Lian Youming feared the uncertainty of his identity. If that paper window were punctured, and he turned out to be some remnant of the old regime, or tied to restless forces harmful to the country, how would the boy face it?
Even though such a possibility was slim, Lian Youming had forgone speaking plainly. Instead, he used this subtle approach to convey his stance, while also offering a veiled warning.
A tacit understanding, left unspoken.
You are who you are now, and I am who I am now.
"Not bad. Playful in small matters, but clear-headed when it counts." The King of Scraps snapped off another piece of Solomon's seal, wiped it on his clothes, and tossed it to the mother bear nearby, muttering to himself, "It's good not to pierce it. Once some things are spoken aloud, they just might turn sour."
Yet after muttering a couple of lines, the smile on his face gradually faded. "Wait a minute. Doesn't that mean I'm getting swindled? This kid can just naturally coax all my skills out of me from now on, without even having to call me Master or Old Master... No wonder he didn't want that generational character yesterday. So this was what he had waiting for me all along, trying to get something for nothing."
By the end, the old man laughed again, thoroughly amused.
"Damned clever brat."
***
In the boundless mountain woods, watching the shanxiao swing and kick off the branches, Lian Youming initially considered using his slingshot to pepper it with a few more shots. But seeing the monkey-like silhouette somersaulting and leaping so deftly, his eyes flickered. Crouching low, contracting his abdomen and lifting his waist, he gripped and scaled the trunk with both hands, ascending high into the canopy.
The shanxiao led ahead while the human figure pursued behind, leaping left and flipping right. The two shifted and maneuvered through the forest in a relentless chase, bouncing and bounding as if two apes were competing in speed.
At first, Lian Youming felt he could barely keep up with the beast's movements. But as he exerted his strength and observed continuously, he not only mimicked the variations in its agility, but even began imitating its expressions—his face taking on a ferocious mien, chilling and ruthless.
"Jiji... gaga..."
As if provoked by that menacing aura, the shanxiao bared its protruding fangs, its black fur standing on end. Its screeches turned piercing and harsh, which, paired with that grotesque visage, would send shivers down anyone's spine.
Yet the more it acted this way, the more Lian Youming's interest grew. As if deliberately taunting it, he made strange chattering noises, shaking his head and chuckling with a grin, though killing intent glinted deep within his eyes.
The beast clearly possessed a degree of intelligence. Though it screeched relentlessly, it kept glancing back from time to time, as if intentionally luring him forward and checking whether he was keeping pace.
Yet no matter how clever it was, it could hardly outsmart a human.
With a subtle thought, Lian Youming let his foot slip, feigning a flaw in his footing. Pressing against the aged tree behind him, his body slid down a stretch of the trunk.
Sure enough.
"Awoo!"
A savage glint erupted in the shanxiao's eyes. Like a sparrowhawk turning over in midair, it kicked off with both legs and pounced backward. Its curved talons hooked like blades as its long ape-like arms extended to strike from afar—one claw aimed to gouge the heart and lungs, the other to scoop out the eyes and pierce the brain.
Such lethal maneuvers were on par with those of seasoned experts in martial circles.
Fierce, vicious, and remarkably opportunistic.
Clamping the tree with both legs, Lian Youming halted his downward slide abruptly. Clenching his fists, his arms—previously rigid and direct—now took on an uncanny suppleness.
His Golden Bell Shield had already reached the fourth stage, with his Lung, Kidney, and Heart Meridians trained to absolute clarity.
The Heart Meridian ran through both hands; with qi unhindered and the heart unobstructed, the muscles and sinews of his arms could retract tightly or relax freely. Retracted, they were as rigid as steel whips, power penetrating joint by joint; relaxed, hardness turned to softness, allowing him to slip joint locks to a certain degree and throw punches from unexpected angles.
Yet softness did not mean weakness.
Seeing the talons right before his face, Lian Youming neither blocked nor parried. His right arm snapped like a supple whip, weaving like a monstrous serpent to thrust his fist forward. Dodging the sharp edge at an uncanny angle, it coiled around the shanxiao's long arm and struck hard against its elbow joint.
Yet when the force of the blow landed, it felt like striking metal and stone. A move that should have snapped bone and dislocated the elbow had no effect whatsoever.
Not only that, but the shanxiao reeked of blood and possessed untamed brutality. A pair of venomous, chilling gleams flashed from its eyes, and the curved claws on its feet were wickedly sharp.
"What a monster."
Lian Youming's eyes widened. Releasing his grip with his legs, he plummeted straight down from the trunk seventeen or eighteen meters up, snapping numerous branches along the way. In midair, he twisted his body, flipping head over heels to narrowly evade the vicious pounce, though his newly bought clothes were still torn open with several slashes.
With two harsh screeches, the shanxiao kicked off and bounded across nearby trees, pursuing in hot haste with claws aimed straight for Lian Youming's chest.
"As if I'd let a beast bully me!"
At this, Lian Youming was thoroughly enraged. Having witnessed grand spectacles and dangerous scenes, he never expected to be pressed hard by a beast in this desolate mountain wilderness. His killing intent blazed like fire. Seizing the right moment, he grabbed a withered vine, righted his body, and landed firmly on a tree fork.
Seeing the beast charge aggressively, Lian Youming gave a cold sneer. Glancing at the warm blood on his hands, he flicked his finger, shooting a bead of blood silently straight into the shanxiao's eye.
Blood blinded its vision.
The shanxiao shuddered in shock and shrieked in rage. With both eyes dyed crimson, it charged forward instead of retreating, opening its gaping maw to snap at Lian Youming's throat, exhaling a stench so foul and fishy it made one's stomach churn.
Killing intent flared in Lian Youming's eyes. Upward went the palm heel of his left hand; the moment it braced the shanxiao's chin, it shifted into a locking grip. With a forceful twist, a sharp crack rang out as he dislocated its jaw entirely.
"Awoo!"
Overcome with agony, the shanxiao could no longer close its gaping maw.
Having landed the blow, Lian Youming struck with both hands, catching both of the shanxiao's razor-sharp claws in his palms to seize its wrists. Looking down at his brand-new clothes now shredded into tatters, he raised his right leg like a venomous dragon rearing its head and swept a kick straight into its chin.
Inside the gaping mouth was a pulverized tongue.
"Screech now, why don't you!"
Yet even in such a plight, the shanxiao pressed forward and kicked Lian Youming's chest with both feet, exerting frightening power.
Lian Youming's eyes flared wide. Feeling the intense pain in his chest, he gave a grim smile and exerted force with both hands simultaneously, dislocating its wrist joints.
Man and beast separated the moment they clashed.
"Jiji..."
Amid shrill, agonizing screeches, the shanxiao dragged its injured body and bolted into the woods.
How could Lian Youming let such a vicious beast escape? He gave chase without letting up.
Yet as he pursued at full speed, he suddenly realized the trees on both sides had vanished, and the vista ahead opened abruptly. As his right foot stepped into empty air, Lian Youming froze mid-stride, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably.
Looking slowly downward, Lian Youming swallowed hard. He saw his right foot hanging over open air—beneath him lay a massive rift, the cliffside sheared flat as if carved by a blade, forming a perilous precipice.
A biting astral wind swept upward from below, making his expression change drastically. He quickly stabilized his center of gravity and slowly pulled his right foot back.
Looking for the shanxiao, he saw it using its feet like hands, gripping vines along the cliff edge to descend... and vanished.
Craning his neck, Lian Youming looked in the direction the shanxiao had gone and spotted what looked like a stone cave on the cliff face.
After a brief thought, he gripped three vines in one hand, testing their sturdiness. Then, anchoring one hand against the cliff face, he climbed down with utmost caution.
Sure enough.
After feeling his way roughly twenty meters to the right, a stone cave about a person's height appeared before him.
Noticing the spatters of blood on the ground, Lian Youming drew his military dagger in a reverse grip and stepped inside with caution.
Daylight filtered in, revealing everything within the cavern.
The moment he entered, a figure reeking of blood lunged at him with a roar—it was the shanxiao.
Without even looking, Lian Youming raised his hand and clamped down on the beast's neck.
As he swept his gaze across the cave, he saw numerous animal bones scattered around, along with two human skeletons—judging by their size, they appeared to be two children.
And at the far end of the cave lay two more sets of skeletal remains.
"Hm?"
A closer look sent a prickle of numbness across Lian Youming's scalp.
One of the two wore a Republican-era changshan, while the other was dressed in traditional Manchu attire—identical to the clothing on the skeleton he had seen back in the hidden chamber at the forest farm.
Looking upon the scene within the cave, Lian Youming's expression grew solemn. Then his left hand released its grip. As the shanxiao hit the ground, his left foot stomped down ruthlessly, and a red-and-white mist burst beneath his boot with a wet pop.
Chapter 69