[Wind and Moon Points +1]
[Wind and Moon Points +1]
The moonlight was like water, the night was desolate, and from the mountains behind Dahe Village came the faint sound of tiger roars that seemed to pierce through clouds and shatter stones.
Zhou Chen held Qin Hongyu's warm, soft body, the two of them tightly pressed together, but his entire mind was focused on the thing outside.
Qin Hongyu bit her red lips tightly, not daring to make a sound, though her breathing subtly quickened, while Elder Qin's voice outside gradually faded.
After quite a while, there was still no movement outside. Unable to hold back, Qin Hongyu whispered, "Has it... has it left?"
Zhou Chen shook his head, his highly developed Tracking Technique spared his senses sharp, he could still sense that the cold, dark presence outside hadn't left.
Qin Hongyu's body trembled, her delicate body tensed, fear deepening in her eyes, yet she dared not make a sound.
Time trickled by.
Suddenly, Zhou Chen's brow furrowed; he sensed that the cold presence outside was gradually moving away, but he didn't hear any footsteps.
"It's gone!"
Zhou Chen concluded, but he didn't plan to go outside.
You only live once.
There's no harm in being cautious.
Cautious survival leads to longevity.
Of course.
Being cautious doesn't mean being cowardly, nor is it weak; it's not about being cautious for caution's sake.
When circumstances allow, one should still strike decisively.
For instance, he used to be timid, and after Old Man Cao died, others bullied him, using Cao's funeral as an excuse to eat away all his stored food.
Elder Qin even tried to avoid paying up.
At that moment, one cannot be too timid, or others will only bully you more.
Even if you catch a scrawny wild chicken in the mountains, others would snatch it away from you.
Because you're easy to bully.
Bullying the weak and fearing the strong is the nature of creatures.
Of course.
If an opponent is someone you can't handle, then you must hold back, and later come back stronger to eliminate them thoroughly.
The night passed quietly.
A fiery sun rose slowly from the edge of the sky, tearing through the dark curtain, sweeping away evil spirits, and clearing the universe.
Having endured an entire night, Qin Hongyu's eyes were slightly red, her eyelids still marked with drying tears, her lips slightly swollen.
Feeling the warm sunlight streaming through the window, she felt slightly reassured, tremulously asking,
"Brother Chen, has that thing gone?"
"Definitely gone!"
Zhou Chen smiled, his easy confidence calming Qin Hongyu's uneasy heart.
"Brother Chen, why do you think that thing pretended to be my father? Could something have happened to my father?"
Qin Hongyu was somewhat worried.
Although Elder Qin wasn't great to her, he was still her father.
"We'll know once we check on your father later!"
Zhou Chen, also curious, wanted to find out what exactly that thing was.
Besides, it probably wasn't just at his house.
Other villagers might have encountered it too.
"Hmm."
Qin Hongyu nodded vigorously, struggling to get up, her legs trembling from a night with no rest, but she got up to help Zhou Chen dress and wash.
Qin Hongyu went to cook in the kitchen, while Zhou Chen looked at the Little Fox, picked it up and stroked it.
[Wind and Moon Points +1]
Zhou Chen looked at his personal panel.
[Wind and Moon Treasure Mirror]
[Owner: Zhou Chen]
[Cultivation Technique: None]
[Realm: None]
[Divine Techniques: Thunder Light Ruyi Hand]
[Skills: Archery (Minor Achievement 0/80), Tracking (Major Achievement 15/180), Trapping (Proficient 2/20), Throwing (Proficient 18/20), Fishing (Beginner 6/10)…]
[Wind and Moon Points: 25]
"Currently, archery doesn't add much to me; Minor Achievement level is enough. Adding to Tracking is more beneficial, helping better detect danger..."
Zhou Chen allocated twenty-five Wind and Moon Points to Tracking, enhancing it a bit, though not significantly.
"Tracking Technique just needs another 140 Wind and Moon Points to reach perfection, about five days..."
Gathering his thoughts, Zhou Chen set the Little Fox down, carefully going outside to check.
With his Tracking Technique, he didn't find any traces of strangers; an arrow was stuck in the big tree at the entrance, the one he shot last night.
There were no bloodstains on the arrow.
After a thorough search, Zhou Chen found no valuable clues.
Zhou Chen was not surprised.
The opponent isn't an ordinary being.
This increased Zhou Chen's longing for martial and immortal techniques.
"Staying at home can quickly accumulate Wind and Moon Points, but it doesn't make money. Without money, nothing can be done, let alone practicing martial arts and cultivation!"
Zhou Chen decided to go hunting today.
It was currently his only way to earn money.
With his Tracking and Archery skills, and his ultimate technique, Thunder Light Ruyi Hand, he was confident in hunting wild boars or black bears.
"Brother Chen, it's mealtime!"
"Coming!"
Zhou Chen set the Little Fox down; he gained another Wind and Moon Point during this time.
After the meal, he fed the Little Fox.
Zhou Chen and Qin Hongyu went to Elder Qin's house.
They found no one home; it seemed Elder Qin hadn't stayed there for days.
"Could something have happened to my father?"
Qin Hongyu's eyes were red and tears shimmered with increasing worry.
"Let's go to Widow Chen's house!"
Zhou Chen took Qin Hongyu to Widow Chen's house, discovering it had similarly been vacant for days, with some leftover food gone moldy and stinking.
"Could it be my father ran away with Widow Chen?"
Qin Hongyu's imagination ran wild, self-deceivingly.
Zhou Chen knew ten out of ten Elder Qin and Widow Chen were in trouble.
Widow Chen's family was not affluent; just having enough to eat was difficult; without trouble, leftovers would be impossible.
These leftovers were clearly for Widow Chen to eat the next meal, but she hadn't the chance before the trouble came.
Zhou Chen and Qin Hongyu asked around the village about the two's whereabouts.
Sister Hong said, "I saw Widow Chen and Zhang Dageng sneaking around for a date the night before yesterday; could they be involved?"
Zhou Chen and Qin Hongyu, along with Sister Hong and others, went to Zhang Dageng's house, finding he had also disappeared.
"Could Zhang Dageng and Widow Chen have harmed Elder Qin and fled?"
Sister Hong speculated.
"That's unlikely. Zhang Dageng's house still has rice and food; if fleeing, they definitely would have taken it!"
Food is crucial in these times; even fleeing murder, Zhang Dageng would certainly take the little food he had.
Quickly.
Other villagers discovered not only Elder Qin, Widow Chen, and Zhang Dageng were missing, but several other lone elderly bachelors had also vanished!
Suddenly, the village was in an uproar.
When six or seven people go missing at once, it's significant even in these times.
No one can guarantee they won't be next.
Zhou Chen didn't mention Elder Qin's knock on the door last night, merely probed subtly, but it seemed others hadn't encountered it.
Perhaps those who did encounter it were already victims, leaving only those who hadn't.
Village chief Qin Jianghe took Zhou Chen to the County Government Office to report the case.
Despite Elder Qin being Zhou Chen's father-in-law.
Zhou Chen had no choice; hunting today was out of the question.
Two majestic stone lions stood at the County Government Office entrance, solemn and dignified.
Zhou Chen didn't stand out, appearing as a sidekick behind Qin Jianghe.
They didn't see the County Magistrate; it was the County Magistrate who received them, then the County Captain Zhang Long was assigned the case.
Zhang Long was burly, with eyes like lightning, particularly large hands seeming to contain infinite power.
With Tracking Technique Major Achievement, Zhou Chen felt an extreme, dangerous aura when seeing Zhang Long, like facing a Primordial Fierce Beast.
"Surely he's a martial artist, just what realm is he at?"
Zhou Chen thought to himself.
Among ordinary people, he counted as a top-tier existence, even people with Innate Divine Power couldn't easily give him such a dangerous feeling.
Clearly, Zhang Long wasn't ordinary!
Soon, Zhang Long, accompanied by three strong constables each with long knives, together with Zhou Chen and Qin Jianghe returned to Dahe Village.
On the way.
Zhang Long asked Qin Jianghe, "Have there been any other unusual occurrences in your village recently?"
...