Immortal Travel of Longevity

After hearing this, Tang Yuerong reached out to quite a few people to ask about Uncle Chen's whereabouts.

"Uncle Chen is unconscious..."

Like Ruyi, Tang Yuerong had a bad premonition.

The most concerning part was the Immortal Sword left behind in the temple.

It made it truly difficult to think optimistically.

Filled with worry, Tang Yuerong decided to seek out the people of White Night. Truth be told, she had not dealt with them in many years.

The people of White Night received her with great courtesy; this was an order passed down from above.

When Tang Yuerong asked about Uncle Chen's whereabouts...

The people of White Night said they would look into it.

"Are you certain you saw this person, Noble Lady?"

"I didn't see him with my own eyes," Tang Yuerong said, "but I can be certain he appeared near Qiuyue Fang recently."

The man from White Night replied, "White Night does not have any news at the moment. However, please rest assured, Noble Lady. As long as this person isn't hiding deep in some remote mountain forest without ever coming out, White Night will definitely be able to find him."

Tang Yuerong nodded and said, "Thank you for the trouble."

"You are too polite, Noble Lady."

The man from White Night hurried away. Soon after, through White Night's communication network, many people across the realm received orders to keep an eye out for a man wearing a green shirt. Portraits were also prepared.

White Night's efficiency was always unimaginably high.

In the blink of an eye, just three days later, the portrait had spread from Yan County on the borders of the Southern Parts all the way to Shangjing City.

Nearly every member of White Night across the realm knew of this matter.

Yet even so, no news came back.

By this time, Ruyi was burning with anxiety. Her intuition told her that Uncle Chen had definitely run into a difficult situation this time.

But right now, she couldn't even find him.

How could she find any peace of mind?

...

North of Yan County, near the Tongtian River.

By the riverbanks lay a Market Town.

This place was called Qingtian Ward, and it was famous for its rice. It was said that the water here was excellent, making the cultivated rice exceptionally sweet and delicious. Every year, many merchants came to buy grain at premium prices. Over these past two years of peace, the grain trade had steadily improved the lives of the commoners in Qingtian Ward.

Rice was one thing, but with the festivals approaching, people always wanted to eat some meat.

They would slaughter chickens and ducks, and those without poultry would often go up the mountain to hunt wild game.

The people here lived off the mountain and the water, relying on whatever the land provided.

"Big Brother, can we catch anything?"

"You still don't feel at ease following me? Tell me, when has your big brother ever gone back empty-handed?"

"Haven't you gone back empty-handed before?"

"Brat."

The two youths were the children of Hunter Qin in Qingtian Ward. The older brother was named Qin Chuan, and the younger was Qin Shan. Having grown up immersed in the trade, they had inherited their father's skills. Qin Chuan had mastered a fine hand at archery, successfully securing a catch nine out of ten times he went up the mountain.

The younger brother was a bit lacking, mainly because he was still too young. Just over ten years old, his muscles and bones were still weak, and he couldn't even draw a bow.

Accompanying them up the mountain was a hunting dog.

In the mountains, a dog was sometimes far more capable than a person. If they encountered a fierce beast like a wild boar, it could protect its masters.

The hunting dog's name was Awu. According to Hunter Qin, this dog possessed wolf blood; a friend had brought it back from the north for him years ago. When it barked, it sometimes howled like a wolf, and other times it acted just like an ordinary dog with its head drooping. But once in the woods, it was an excellent helper.

"Big Brother!"

Qin Shan gasped and pointed in a direction.

Qin Chuan hurriedly covered his mouth.

"Shh!"

"Get down."

The two siblings crouched down, and Qin Chuan pressed a hand against Awu beneath him.

"Good heavens," Qin Chuan muttered under his breath. "It's a wild boar, and it's not small either..."

Qin Shan's arms trembled slightly. He was rather frightened.

He had tagged along up the mountain before, but he had never seen a wild boar. Whenever they went up in the past, their father would always tell him to stay close and not get lost. If he did get lost and ran into a wild boar or a mountain lord, he was to climb a tree immediately. As far as Qin Shan was concerned, these creatures were deadly threats.

Awu panted with its tongue out, refraining from making any rash moves.

Qin Chuan pulled out an arrow and nocked it onto his bow.

His gaze locked forward as he drew the bowstring back.

The wild boar paced back and forth in the woods ahead, seemingly looking at something.

"Snort..."

The wild boar grunted.

Qin Chuan held his breath in deep concentration and let go of the string.

Swish!

The arrow flew from the bow.

The moment the arrow left his hand, Qin Chuan knew the wild boar wouldn't be able to escape.

"Awu!"

Awu instantly dashed forward.

And that arrow slammed right into the wild boar's throat.

"Squeal!!!"

The wild boar let out a piercing shriek and immediately started thrashing and jumping wildly.

Its gaze darted over, spotting Qin Chuan and Qin Shan hiding behind the tree.

But what followed was a vicious snarl.

Taking advantage of the wild boar's momentary distraction, Awu had already charged in from the side and clamped its jaws onto the boar's hindquarters.

"Squeal!!"

The wild boar cried out miserably and immediately scrambled to flee.

Awu pursued relentlessly right on its heels. With its neck pierced, the wild boar gradually lost its breath. Before long, it collapsed to the ground, where Awu firmly locked its jaws around its throat.

Only then did Qin Chuan run over. He observed it carefully, waiting until he was certain the wild boar was no longer breathing before finally walking right up to it.

"Good boy, Awu."

Qin Chuan smiled and patted Awu's head.

Qin Shan stood to the side, not daring to get closer. He was still a bit afraid of the wild boar.

Qin Chuan looked at him and said, "Shan, don't be afraid. It's already dead. It's not breathing."

"Wow, it's so huge. We won't be able to haul it all the way back."

Qin Chuan pressed the arrow further in until it pierced through the other side. He wiped it clean with some grass and leaves before putting it back into his quiver.

He then began to worry about how they were going to haul this wild boar, which weighed over a hundred jin, down the mountain.

Just as he was thinking...

He heard Qin Shan say, "Brother, there... there's a person lying over there."

Qin Chuan followed Qin Shan's gaze.

He froze for a moment, then quickly stepped forward and parted the tall grass.

He gasped and said, "It really is a person!"

Qin Chuan felt a sudden jolt in his heart, accompanied by a bad premonition.

Could this be a dead body?!

Frowning, he quickly turned back to Qin Shan and said, "Shan, don't come over. Stand back!"

Qin Shan agreed and backed away.

Qin Chuan stepped forward and rolled the person over.

"A bit heavy..."

Qin Chuan's premonition grew even worse.

Because dead bodies were usually very heavy...

Qin Chuan swallowed hard. He was bold, but stumbling upon a 'dead body' out here in the mountains still frightened him a bit.

He reached out and checked for breath under the person's nose.

His tense nerves immediately relaxed as he breathed a sigh of relief.

"He's breathing!"

Yet at that moment, Qin Chuan felt somewhat hesitant.

It was mostly because of the sword resting off to the side.

This person's background was unknown, and so was his character. He didn't dare save him so carelessly.

Qin Chuan hesitated.

He looked around. The wild boar had been standing right in front of this person, completely blocking him from view.

Because of this, the boar's attention had been drawn to the stranger.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to hunt the beast so easily.

Qin Chuan thought for a moment and made a decision.

"Forget it, I'll help you out," he muttered. "But since I don't know your character, I'll just report this to the Local Government later. Consider it my thanks for drawing the boar's attention."

Qin Chuan walked over and instructed Qin Shan, "Shan, head down the mountain and find Dad. Tell him to bring someone else up here so we can drag this boar back."

Qin Shan nodded. He glanced at the unconscious man nearby and asked, "Brother, what... what about that guy? Are we going to save him?"

Qin Chuan rubbed his head. "You can't just save people carelessly. Ask Dad later; he'll explain it to you."

Though Qin Shan didn't quite understand, he nodded and made his way down the mountain.

Once his brother left, Qin Chuan stayed behind with Awu to guard the wild boar.

He also sprinkled some medicinal powder around the area.

He always carried this powder when heading up the mountain to mask scents, fearing that the smell of blood would attract other predators.

These were all practical tricks, experience passed down from the older generation.

It wasn't long before Hunter Qin led someone up the mountain.

He immediately raised his hand, smacked Qin Chuan over the head, and snatched the bow away from him.

"You brat, think you're a big shot now?!" he scolded. "It's one thing to come up the mountain alone without fearing death, but you actually brought Shan along? Do you think you've lived too long? Is ruining yourself not enough, you have to drag your younger brother down too?"

"Dad, stop hitting me! Stop, I know I was wrong!"

Still boiling with anger, Hunter Qin kicked Qin Chuan twice more before turning his gaze to the wild boar. "You stumbled into some dumb luck to take down a boar this size. Otherwise, who knows where you and Shan would have been gored to death."

Qin Chuan didn't dare talk back. Instead, Qin Shan spoke up from the side, "Dad, don't scold Big Brother anymore. I was the one who kept pestering him to bring me up the mountain."

Hunter Qin let out a long sigh. "Neither of you ever gives me a moment of peace."

Qin Chuan chuckled and stepped forward. "Dad, you can trust me to handle things. I'd never take a risk if I wasn't confident."

Hunter Qin's expression softened slightly as he looked at the boar on the ground. "Your shot was accurate, at least. Pierced right through the windpipe. If it had been off by even a little bit, this thing would have turned around and claimed both your lives."

"You know how good my archery is, Dad," Qin Chuan said.

"Don't get cocky!"

Hunter Qin frowned and asked, "Where is the person Shan mentioned?"

Qin Chuan pointed in a certain direction.

Hunter Qin followed his gaze and spotted the man.

He took a close look but didn't notice anything unusual.

"Dad, we should probably hand him over to the Local Government," Qin Chuan suggested.

Hunter Qin nodded. "We should. But this guy is pretty strange. Dressed like this, yet carrying such a fine Sword. He doesn't have any calluses on his hands either; he doesn't seem like someone from the jianghu..."

"Is it a Treasure Sword?" Qin Chuan asked.

Hunter Qin shot him a glance. "Don't even think about it. Even if this guy doesn't know much martial arts, anyone holding a Sword like that is someone we absolutely cannot afford to offend."

Qin Chuan nodded, realizing he was right.

Hunter Qin checked their surroundings. "It's getting dark. Let's carry him down the mountain before a tiger eats him."

"Dad, do we carry the boar first, or the man?"

"Nonsense, the man first, of course! It's not like we're so poor we can't afford to eat!"

"Right, right."

When night fell, the two Qin brothers followed their father back home.

As punishment, Hunter Qin temporarily confiscated Qin Chuan's bow and arrows. This left him feeling incredibly frustrated, and he had nothing to do that night but shoot at a wooden stump with a slingshot to relieve his boredom.

Hunters naturally needed good eyesight. Their family never lacked meat year-round, meaning they could see much clearer at night than ordinary people. Under the moonlight, the slingshot snapped continuously, knocking down leaf after leaf.

Qin Shan sat off to the side and said, "Brother, I won't pester you to take me up the mountain anymore."

Upon hearing this, Qin Chuan replied, "What are you talking about? It wasn't your fault. Your big brother just didn't plan it out well enough. Dad was right to teach us a lesson."

"But you're still way too timid."

Qin Chuan thought for a moment before continuing, "Actually, I still want you to go back to the academy and study. You're meant for writing and composing essays."

"My classmates at the academy all say that since I'm a hunter's son, I reek of violence," Qin Shan said. "The meaner ones even say I've tainted the school and don't deserve to study."

Qin Chuan was stunned. After a brief silence, he said, "The ones who say things like that are the ones who don't deserve to study."

With that, he fired another pebble.

In the distance, another leaf fell from the tree.

"I think so too," Qin Shan agreed.

They dropped the subject.

Qin Shan then asked, "Brother, why do you think that guy from today was deep in the mountains?"

Qin Chuan shook his head. "I don't know. But judging from what Dad said, he's someone we can't afford to cross."

"So he's a really powerful person?"

"Something like that."

"Then why didn't we just save him ourselves? Why hand him over to the Local Government?"

"Dad didn't tell you?"

"Dad was too busy rushing up the mountain to beat you up. He didn't listen to me."

Qin Chuan gave a helpless smile. "Alright, then I'll explain it to you."

"A few years back, when the world was in chaos..."

Qin Chuan recounted a few horrifying stories about people saving a life, only to bring a terrible Tribulation upon themselves. Such incidents were far too common, and they were the very tales their father had told him when he first brought him up the mountain.

"People like that actually exist?!" Qin Shan was shocked. "Scum like that deserve to die!"

"Exactly. That's why you can't just casually bring someone home to save them."

"Mm."

"Hey, Big Brother. If that guy turns out to be a good person, do you think he'll come back and repay us once he knows we saved him?"

"Maybe," Qin Chuan said. "It would be nice to get some sort of reward. At least then Dad and I wouldn't have carried him down the mountain for nothing."

It was a nice thought, but reality proved to be completely unexpected.

A few days later.

A Madman appeared in Qingtian Ward. With disheveled hair, he wandered aimlessly through the streets, muttering things that no one else could understand.

At first, Qin Chuan only heard about this new Madman from the gossip of the locals.

He hadn't paid much attention to it at the time.

But later, when he ran into him on the street...

He recognized him at a single glance.

Wasn't this the very same man he and his father had carried down from the mountain?

How had he ended up like this in just a few short days?!

Looking at him now, he was even more wretched than a beggar.

"Hey, you..."

Qin Chuan tried to speak to him.

But the man completely ignored him. He just kept mumbling to himself, completely deaf to the outside world.

'He really is a Madman...'

Qin Chuan opened his mouth to speak again but only felt a sense of pity.

Didn't they just save him for nothing?

Sigh.

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