Eating Meat

The moment Chu Qiguang returned home, his mother hurried over to ask, "Gouzi, where were you last night?" Chu Qiguang smiled, lifting the fresh meat and rabbit pelt in his right hand. "I was starving last night, so I went to the back mountain to catch rabbits." His mother's eyes lit up at the sight of the rabbit meat. "When did you learn to catch rabbits?" Chu Qiguang had prepared his excuse well in advance. "Didn't Dad teach me in the past? I've been secretly practicing these days, wanting to tell you once I actually caught something." "My son is truly capable! I'll go trade for some cooking oil and fry up rabbit meat for you both today. This pelt is a bit small, but I can make you a pair of insoles for the winter." Ergou's mother trusted her son implicitly, harboring no suspicion whatsoever. Chu Qiguang did not even need to offer any of the other excuses he had prepared as she happily took the meat to dress it. "I smell meat!" "Who brought meat?" His younger sister dashed out from inside the house, running circles around their mother. Her eyes went wide as she stared at the rabbit meat in her mother's hands, as joyful as if it were the New Year. Their mother shooed her away. "Don't crowd me. Go play with your brother." Driven outside, Ergou's sister still lingered reluctantly, watching her mother bustle about with an expectant look on her face. Chu Qiguang squatted down and petted Qiao Zhi, who had returned with him. This stray cat often played with Ergou, so his mother and sister found nothing amiss. Two other cats had accompanied Qiao Zhi—the very same feral cats that had guided Chu Qiguang up the mountain and played with Ergou's sister. One was male and the other female. According to Qiao Zhi, the calico tomcat was named Yudan, and the white molly was named Jinxiu. They were considered the brighter ones among Qiao Zhi's subordinates. Qiao Zhi jutted his chin at the two cats, and they vanished outside the room. "Rest assured, Yudan and Jinxiu will keep watch while you are away. If the Wang family tries anything, they will inform us immediately." Chu Qiguang asked inwardly, 'How is the aptitude of my sister and mother?' He reasoned that since his own aptitude was so exceptional, perhaps his mother and sister were geniuses as well. If they could achieve something in cultivation, they might be able to help out later. Qiao Zhi said flatly, "Aside from you, your entire family is utter trash at Daoist and martial arts. Without training for eight to ten years, they wouldn't even step through the threshold." "That can't be." Chu Qiguang drew upon Ergou's memories, musing aloud, "Even in the dead of winter, my mother only wears a short jacket, and she works barefoot with her body blazing hot. At a glance, that's no ordinary constitution. Could she be a martial arts prodigy? A Nine Yang Body or an Extreme Yang Physique?" Qiao Zhi twitched his whiskers disdainfully. "It's just that the past eighteen generations of your family were all poor peasants who often couldn't afford clothes or shoes. Passed down generation after generation, you've naturally grown more resistant to the cold, prone to sweaty feet and a warm body. That hardly counts as martial talent." 'Genetics? I really have...' Chu Qiguang thought to himself. 'Ever since coming to this world, I've been treating ordinary phenomena as supernatural.' After thinking for a moment, Chu Qiguang asked again, "What about my sister? She has all sorts of whimsical ideas every day, running wild and unconstrained. Shouldn't she make prime material for cultivating the Dao?" At the mention of Ergou's sister, Qiao Zhi immediately sat bolt upright. "Heaven forbid! Absolutely not! With your sister's personality and temper, she would succumb to qi deviation in no time! Who knows how many cats and people she would torment? Whatever you do, do not let her cultivate the Dao, or there's no telling how many messes you'll have to clean up for her." Chu Qiguang nodded at the response. Though Qiao Zhi sounded a bit peculiar, the cat was indeed the most authoritative cultivator he knew. He decided to heed Qiao Zhi's advice, abandoning the idea of having his mother and sister cultivate. Besides, it was not the right time to reveal such matters to them anyway; it could wait for later. Qiao Zhi changed the subject. "When do we move against the Wang family?" Chu Qiguang replied, "For the next few days, have the animals under your command—birds, cats, dogs—keep watch over the Wang family's movements. We will plan before taking action." Thus, over the following days, Chu Qiguang trained in martial arts and Daoist arts daily under Qiao Zhi's guidance. Entering tranquility for four hours every day not only completely replaced sleep, but also invigorated his spirit, slightly sharpening his comprehension day by day. With his physical body grounded by the Heavenly Demon Foundation Establishment Method, combined with daily nourishing meals, his form was maintained constantly under Qiao Zhi's watch whether he was walking, standing, sitting, or lying down. His stamina and control improved by leaps and bounds, drawing steadily closer to the standard of the first stage of martial arts. In just a few short days, both his mind and body underwent what could only be called a rebirth. *** On a flat terrace on the mountain's rear slope, three mice and two sparrows stood neatly lined up before Qiao Zhi. They chattered and chirped in bursts, much like soldiers reporting their mission to a general. These were the minor demons Qiao Zhi had dispatched to spy on the Wang family, each personally trained by him. Though lacking extraordinary powers, these minor demons had developed a measure of spiritual intelligence. They could hold simple communications with Qiao Zhi, making them practically undetectable when surveilling humans. Qiao Zhi flicked his tail, listening to their reports before relaying them one by one to Chu Qiguang. Finally, he asked, "Well? Are we going through with it today?" Chu Qiguang nodded. "Today it is." Qiao Zhi said, "Have you decided between the civil examinations and the martial examinations?" Over the past several days, Chu Qiguang and Qiao Zhi had not only practiced cultivation, but also studied the script, culture, and widespread intelligence of this world. Aided by the comprehension granted by the second stage of Daoist arts and his own intellect, Chu Qiguang learned with astonishing speed. He absorbed the knowledge Qiao Zhi taught him like a sponge, growing increasingly familiar with the world's situation. Chu Qiguang replied, "I've decided on the martial examinations." In this feudal world, the most effective way to enter the imperial court and rapidly change one's fate was, naturally, the imperial examinations. However, if he took the civil examinations, Chu Qiguang would have to learn the cultural scholarship of this world from scratch, while also building up reputation and connections—a grueling and time-consuming process. In contrast, the martial examinations were straightforward: the strong were strong, and the weak were weak, plain for all to see. Chu Qiguang only needed to rely on his aptitude to test his way upward. Qiao Zhi remarked, "The martial examinations have far more rules than the civil ones. Even the first hurdle, the county examination, requires a local person of high standing and virtue to serve as guarantor. Without their endorsement, you won't even have a chance to sit for the martial examinations." Chu Qiguang looked in the direction of the Wang family compound and said calmly, "Which is why I will use the Wang family as a stepping stone to connect with the true prominent clans of Qingyang County." *** That night, inside the bedroom of the young master of the Wang family. The young master naturally bore the surname Wang, with the given name Cailiang. Seventeen years old this year, he was the sole male heir of the Wang family's current generation. He had practiced both martial and civil arts from an early age, and Old Master Wang had always earnestly hoped his son would pass the examinations to bring honor to their ancestors. Tonight, Wang Cailiang lay in bed, gently touching a wound on the back of his hand. He had no idea where the vicious cur that had blocked his path on the way home a few days earlier had come from. He had meant to kick the brute aside, yet after taking a vicious kick, the dog had managed to snap at his right palm before tucking its tail and fleeing, never to be found again. At this moment, the wound on Wang Cailiang's right palm itched, leaving him tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. In the dead silence of the night, he suddenly heard a roar of wind outside the window, followed by a violent rattling of the door. Just as Wang Cailiang wondered if a maidservant had failed to shut it properly, he heard the rush of wind draw near, and the bedroom door blew wide open. Then came heavy, metallic footfalls, drawing ever closer to the bed. Fear gripped Wang Cailiang's heart. He lifted his gaze toward the bedside. A tall, dark silhouette loomed beside the head of his bed, pitch-black and indistinct. Its head seemed almost to brush against the roof beam, while two points of green light, like ghostly fires, gazed down upon him eerily. A shrill, piping human voice rang out, "You wicked, pampered brat! That day, your kick ruptured my guts and caused my untimely death. Today, I have come for my revenge!" "Are you that cur?" Terrified, Wang Cailiang rolled over, intending to scramble toward the door. But his vision went black as something covered his head. In the next instant, a sharp pain struck the back of his skull, and he blacked out. The following morning, a maid carrying hot water and a face towel arrived to attend to the young master's morning wash, only to find Wang Cailiang sprawled on the floor, bare-chested. Across his back sprouted coarse black hairs. Horrified, the maid dropped the basin and fled, screaming, instantly alerting the entire household.