chsdbacks Chapter 18: A Horrifying Experience in the Wild
Chapter 18: A Horrifying Experience in the Wild
Zhang Ping changed his clothes and rushed to the training ground.
Over a hundred men had already assembled, all fully armed. Zhang Ping arrived relatively late. Chongxin glanced at him, nodded slightly, and gestured for him to stand at the back of the line. Zhang Ping returned the greeting with a fist salute, suppressed his doubts, and quickly walked to the end of the escort team, while discreetly observing the group.
What a formidable lineup! Everyone is full of vigor and vitality, with cultivation levels at least at the mid-stage of the Skin Tempering realm. They are all seasoned veterans who have been escorting goods for years, making them undoubtedly the top escort team in Lingchuan City.
Once everyone was assembled, Chongxin didn't say much, but immediately set off after organizing his men. The journey seemed unusually rushed, and even Fu Huiying, who had hurriedly followed, only had time to catch a glimpse of Zhang Ping from afar.
The horse swayed and bounced, and Zhang Ping's body rose and fell with it. He had never ridden a horse before, and he only managed to keep up with the pace of the group by relying on the control of a martial artist.
"Brother, why did you set off earlier this time?" Before the group left the city, Zhang Ping spurred his horse closer to a burly man traveling with him and asked in a low voice.
The burly man was imposing, with a long face covered in a thick beard, and large, expressive eyes. He explained, "The scheduled autumn escort mission is still half a month away. But yesterday, the Lu family's caravan sent a distress message from the direction of Lishan Town, which was urgently delivered to the martial arts school."
"The Lu family are our regular customers, and Master accepted the order without hesitation. So we need to set off ahead of schedule to rescue people in Lishan Town first." After saying that, he raised his thick eyebrows and looked at Zhang Ping with some curiosity: "Brother Zhang, what brings you to escort goods?"
Zhang Ping suddenly realized, then smiled wryly and said, "The master is calling roll."
After exchanging a few words, Zhang Ping learned that the big man's name was Qin Hu, one of the earliest disciples of the martial arts school, with a cultivation level of Flesh Refining Realm, and ranked seventh under Chong Xin.
The martial arts school wasn't far from the city gate, and the escort team quickly left the city. Zhang Ping, mounted on his horse, looked back at the Lingchuan city walls gradually disappearing behind him, a strange excitement welling up inside him.
"Wilderness, demons, here I come!"
……
The team consisted entirely of elite soldiers, and with no cargo to weigh them down, they moved at an extremely fast pace. Initially, Zhang Ping was filled with anticipation and excitement for the legendary wilderness overrun by demons, but the monotonous journey gradually eroded that sense of wonder.
After trekking for most of the day, the caravan had already left Lingchuan, and the surrounding area was desolate and deserted.
Occasionally, enormous birds of prey would soar across the sky, casting chilling shadows and accompanied by piercing cries. Whenever this happened, Chongxin would quickly remove the large, conspicuous red bow from his back and warily aim it at the sky.
Qin Hu told Zhang Ping that it was a strange beast called the Azure Feather Vulture, with a wingspan exceeding twenty meters and strength comparable to a late-stage Body Refinement martial artist. As birds of prey, they were extremely difficult to deal with, and sometimes they would attack human caravans and prey on martial artists.
As night fell, the team set up camp to rest in a dense forest.
Zhang Ping was puzzled and asked Qin Hu in a low voice, "Brother Qin, why didn't you choose an open area? Wouldn't the view be better?"
Qin Hu smiled and shook his head: "The open space seems safe, making it easy to guard against strange beasts and demons. But with so many of us gathered together, our blood and energy are as vigorous as torches, which could actually attract real, powerful demons. This forest is dense, which can conceal our presence to some extent."
Crackling sound—
A campfire burned, sparks flying from the firewood. Zhang Ping, Qin Hu, and two other men and a woman sat around the fire.
"Brother Zhang, your roasting skills are amazing! Even better than the chefs in the city restaurants!" Qin Hu tore into the roasted wild boar leg in his hand, the fat dripping down his chin.
The rich aroma of meat filled the camp, attracting frequent glances from those at other campfires, making their own dry rations taste bland.
"It was just a quick roast, Brother Qin, you flatter me." Zhang Ping smiled modestly, took the whole goat that was sizzling and smelling delicious from the fire, and presented it to Chongxin, who was not far away.
"Master, please try this."
Chongxin glanced at the roasted lamb and nodded, saying, "Thank you for your thoughtfulness."
Zhang Ping then returned to his seat and picked up his portion of wild boar foreleg.
He tore off a piece of meat, chewed it, and looked at Qin Hu: "Brother Qin, was the knife technique you used to chop that brown bear this afternoon also taught by the master?" Recalling Qin Hu's powerful and unparalleled knife skills that afternoon, Zhang Ping felt a surge of warmth in his heart.
What he lacks most right now is offensive tactics; besides Taipingquan (a style of Chinese martial arts), he has nothing else. He can manage hand-to-hand combat, but against an armed enemy, he will inevitably be hampered.
"Not only my swordsmanship, but also my senior brother's fist techniques and my fifth senior sister's swordsmanship were all taught by Master," Qin Hu replied, swallowing the meat in his mouth.
These words piqued Zhang Ping's interest, and he couldn't help but glance at Chongxin, who was tearing apart roasted mutton not far away.
"The master of the martial arts school is proficient in so many martial arts?" He thought to himself, realizing that his understanding of the master was indeed limited. Fu Huiying spoke mostly with resentment, while the disciples of the martial arts school seemed to see Chongxin in a completely different light.
"Master's skills are unfathomable!" Qin Hu's eyes gleamed with sincere admiration, and the other three by the fire nodded in agreement.
"People in the city say that the An family has risen the fastest, but our Sitong Martial Arts School is only a few years ahead of them."
Qin Hu's voice lowered, tinged with reminiscence.
"More than 20 years ago, my master came to Lingchuan from Fucheng and opened this martial arts school. At that time, Tianxing Martial Arts School was already deeply rooted in Lingchuan. How could it allow others to have a share of the pie? So it gathered the owners of several other martial arts schools and came to challenge them."
At this point, a hint of disdain flashed across Qin Hu's face, but it was quickly replaced by excitement: "Hey! Those guys miscalculated! Master's divine might is unparalleled; single-handedly, with just his sword, he fought against all the martial arts school masters in Lingchuan! He beat them so badly they were running for their lives, even alarming the Demon Extermination Bureau, who personally came to congratulate him on the opening day of the martial arts school!"
"The master... is he really that powerful?!" Zhang Ping's lips twitched, and a chill ran down his spine for no apparent reason.
He recalled his affair with the owner's wife. He had previously estimated that he could withstand one or two punches from her, but now it seemed that even half a punch would be too much for him.
"Master is no ordinary Refining Realm cultivator." Qin Hu shook his head, his tone full of meaning.
Just as Zhang Ping was about to ask further, he suddenly felt an extremely subtle burning sensation between his eyebrows!
It's an owl-shaped beast pattern! Danger perception triggered!
There's something there!
The thought had barely formed when a strange whooshing sound suddenly rushed into the forest, chilling and making the campfire flicker.
"Everyone! Stand up! Move out immediately!" Chongxin's low roar rang out like thunder. He already had a knife in his hand, and his face was more solemn than ever before.
"Brother Zhang, stick close to me!" Qin Hu grabbed the thick-backed machete that was at his feet and gave a deep, stern warning.
"Understood!" Zhang Ping's heart tightened, and he quickly stood up.
Unexpectedly, on their very first night outside the city, they encountered demons, and they were definitely not benevolent ones!
Amidst the increasingly fierce howling wind, the escort team broke camp and marched swiftly through the night. The burning sensation between Zhang Ping's brows persisted, but it wasn't particularly intense.
He secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "It seems the danger is still under control." He couldn't help but marvel once again at the extraordinary nature of the owl-shaped beast pattern.
Running at full speed, the group quickly moved away from the dense forest. Zhang Ping couldn't help but look back.
In the pale moonlight, the outline of a huge face was vaguely visible above the treetops. The face was blurry and featureless, yet he felt that a pair of invisible eyes were staring intently in the direction they had left.
As dawn broke, the demon ultimately did not pursue them. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, their tense nerves relaxing slightly. Being in the group, Zhang Ping truly experienced the unpredictable dangers of the wilderness.
Escorting goods is indeed a tough job.
Under Chongxin's strict orders, the caravan traveled day and night for the next three days. Occasionally, they encountered small groups of demons blocking their way at night, but the martial arts disciples would swarm in and deal with them without Chongxin having to lift a finger.
To Zhang Ping's regret, the corpses of the slain demons were quickly collected, seemingly for some other purpose. He couldn't find a chance to touch any of the demons' limbs.
On the evening of the third day, following a winding path through the mountains, the low-lying outline of Lishan Town finally appeared at the edge of the group's weary vision.