Chapter 26

The next few days.

Qin Shuo was preparing to enter Wolf Mountain.

Wolf Mountain was more than three hundred li away from Black Water City, so it was impossible to go back and forth in one day.

He had to prepare more dry rations and field supplies for emergencies.

During this period, the county yamen's inspectors came to his door and asked him about his specific whereabouts on the night Qian Biao and the other two died.

Regarding this, Qin Shuo had long been prepared and answered fluently.

Because the vast majority of people in the yamen thought the murderer was the Flying Bear Gang Elder Wu Kai,

the entire questioning process was very perfunctory, and the two inspectors had no suspicion about what Qin Shuo said.

After seeing the inspectors off.

Qin Shuo went to the side courtyard to ask Song Yan to help take care of Qin Lan for these few days.

Then he went to find Zhang Xiong and asked him to help pick up Qin Lan from the martial arts hall every night to prevent any accidents.

Although the security in the Inner City was much better than in the Outer City,

Qin Lan was a girl after all, and with no relatives or friends in the Inner City, Qin Shuo was still somewhat worried about letting her go home alone.

Regarding this, Zhang Xiong did not shirk and agreed immediately.

Everything was prepared.

Qin Shuo took his dry rations and weapons and headed north of Black Water City.

Now it was the transition from summer to autumn, and the sky was high and the air was crisp.

Following Zhang Xiong's guidance, Qin Shuo headed north along the official road and even stayed overnight in a village along the way.

It wasn't until the evening of the next day that Qin Shuo arrived at Qingyang Zhen at the foot of Wolf Mountain.

The town was not large, but it had everything one would expect.

Markets, inns, taverns, everything was available, and there were even brothels.

Although it was not as prosperous as Black Water City, it was bustling with people and very lively.

Walking on the street, Qin Shuo discovered several groups of hunters and martial artists like himself, carrying sabers and bows, who should all have come for Wolf Mountain.

Qin Shuo found a tea house to stay at, preparing to first inquire about the situation at Wolf Mountain.

Just after sitting down, he heard two hunters nearby complaining in low voices:

"The Sky Wolf Gang is too overbearing. Wolf Mountain isn't their family property, so why do we have to pay money to enter the mountain?"

"Sigh! The situation is stronger than the people; who told them to have an expert at Inner Strength Great Perfection sitting in charge?"

The other hunter shook his head, his tone full of helplessness.

"However, this might not necessarily be a bad thing. I heard that those who pay will be issued a signal arrow by the Sky Wolf Gang after entering the mountain. If they encounter the Unique Horned Kui Ox, they can ask the Sky Wolf Gang for help, which can be considered a kind of guarantee."

"Pfft! That sounds nice. They came for the Unique Horned Kui Ox in the first place, and since they lack manpower, they want us to be their free labor, and they even want to charge a security fee; it's simply too much."

One of them was very angry and very dissatisfied with the Sky Wolf Gang's requirement that hunters must pay money to enter Wolf Mountain.

"It is a bit too much, but I heard that the harvest of the previous batch who entered the mountain was quite good, and someone even hunted a Chijiao Jinji."

"What? Chijiao Jinji? That is a superior exotic beast."

"Yes, it is said that it was bought by someone as soon as it came out of the mountain, and it sold for more than a hundred taels of silver."

Hearing this, Qin Shuo's heart also warmed up.

There were actually superior exotic beasts in this Wolf Mountain; it really was a treasure land.

Over the past few days, he had also learned a lot of information about exotic beasts from Zhang Xiong.

All exotic beasts in the world can be divided into three grades: ordinary exotic beasts, superior exotic beasts, and spirit beasts.

The red-haired squirrel and five-colored deer that Qin Shuo had hunted before were both ordinary exotic beasts, which were the type most circulated in the market.

The price was about one tael of silver per catty of meat.

Superior exotic beasts were very rare, and only truly large cities like the prefecture city and the state city would have them for sale.

The price was also ten times that of ordinary exotic beasts, or even higher.

And their nourishing effect on martial artists was also immense.

It is said that one only needs to eat ten catties of superior exotic beast meat, and no matter how poor the aptitude of an ordinary person is, they can achieve Inner Strength.

There might be some exaggeration in this, but it also shows the preciousness of these superior exotic beasts.

As for spirit beasts, they were ten times more precious than superior exotic beasts.

Zhang Xiong guessed that the Unique Horned Kui Ox in Wolf Mountain was very likely a spirit beast.

That was why it attracted the Sky Wolf Gang to make such a big fuss and travel a hundred li to hunt it.

However, although spirit beasts are known as walking flesh and blood treasures that can drive countless martial artists crazy, they are extremely difficult to capture and kill.

According to what the two people nearby said, the Sky Wolf Gang people had already entered Wolf Mountain for more than ten days, but they hadn't even seen a shadow of the Unique Horned Kui Ox.

Some people even guessed whether the Unique Horned Kui Ox had already escaped from Wolf Mountain and was no longer in the mountain; otherwise, how could there be no trace at all?

But this was a good thing for the martial artists and hunters who had rushed over from all over.

If the Unique Horned Kui Ox was not in Wolf Mountain, they wouldn't have to worry about being suddenly attacked by the silver wolf while hunting.

After all, that was an existence that could even bite to death a martial artist with Great Success in Inner Strength; it was simply not something that ordinary hunters like them could deal with.

Leaving the tea house.

Qin Shuo found an inn to stay at, preparing to enter the mountain early the next morning.

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Qin Shuo carried his bow and arrows and entered the mountain.

There were quite a few people heading to Wolf Mountain.

Just in Qin Shuo's group, there were more than a dozen people, in groups of two or three, chatting and laughing.

There were also those like Qin Shuo who were alone; they did not communicate with each other, just buried their heads and hurried on their way.

After leaving the town, they hadn't walked more than a few li when Qin Shuo and the others were blocked by several strong men holding sabers.

The ones blocking the road were none other than the disciples of the Sky Wolf Gang.

"To enter Wolf Mountain to hunt, it's three taels of silver per person. Have the silver ready before coming over; don't waste everyone's time."

The one giving the lecture was a man in black; his voice was loud and full of energy, and there was a special momentum in his every move.

"He is an Inner Strength martial artist."

Qin Shuo's heart tightened.

Since learning martial arts, he had come into contact with many Inner Strength martial artists and was very familiar with the energy revealed when Inner Strength was circulated.

The man in black before him had clearly used Inner Strength to enhance his momentum when speaking just now.

Judging from his revealed energy, he was at least at Inner Strength Minor Success, or even Inner Strength Great Success.

He was much stronger than Zhang Xiong, who was at Inner Strength Minor Success.

Hearing the words of the man in black, the other hunters showed expressions of indignation one after another.

But then it turned into helplessness, and they obediently paid the money to enter the mountain.

Qin Shuo did not want to be the first to stand out, so like the others, he paid the three taels of silver as required.

At this time, the man in black who was in charge softened his expression and said: "After entering Wolf Mountain, if you encounter the Unique Horned Kui Ox, notify us in time using the signal arrow."

"If the news is accurate, you will not only be able to get back this three taels of silver security fee, but you will also receive an additional reward of thirty taels of silver."

"Remember, do not approach within a hundred meters of the Unique Horned Kui Ox."

"With the speed of the Unique Horned Kui Ox, unless it is a martial artist with Great Success in Inner Strength, a hundred meters distance will be covered in an instant, and you won't be able to run away at all."

As he spoke, he let other Sky Wolf Gang disciples distribute signal arrows to the hunters.

Qin Shuo also received a signal arrow.

He discovered that this so-called signal arrow was just a firework tube tied to the arrowhead.

Before firing, one needed to use a fire starter to light it before it could be shot into the high sky to send a message.

After receiving the arrow, the Sky Wolf Gang disciples no longer blocked them and let everyone enter the mountain.

Qin Shuo deliberately walked at the end of the crowd.

After everyone else had chosen a direction and disappeared into the dense forest, he found a direction with no one around and began hunting.

After the Old Ginseng Mountain incident.

Qin Shuo's vigilance toward hunters could be said to have been raised to the extreme.

Carrying sharp weapons, the desire to kill arises on its own.

These hunters who walk the mountains and forests are all holding bows and arrows, and they have killed countless lives; some have even become numb to it.

It would be fine if there was no big harvest.

If they encountered something valuable like the White Jade Ginseng King and had sharp weapons in hand, even Qin Shuo himself could not guarantee that he could maintain his original heart.

Therefore, for these hunters before him, he chose to keep them at a respectful distance.

Do not approach, do not offend, and let everyone be well.

If a conflict truly occurred, he would not show mercy.

Wolf Mountain's trees were dense.

Because the Unique Horned Kui Ox had occupied Wolf Mountain for years, hunters at the foot of the mountain rarely dared to enter Wolf Mountain to hunt.

The number of prey here far exceeded the Daqi Shan area of Black Water City.

Not long after entering the mountain, Qin Shuo discovered a roe deer; it was quite large and looked silly.

If it were in the past, Qin Shuo would have rewarded it with an arrow.

But this time he entered the mountain to hunt exotic beasts, so this kind of ordinary wild animal could not catch his eye.

For an entire morning, Qin Shuo wandered around the periphery of Wolf Mountain.

He encountered wild boars, roe deer, and moose, but he just didn't encounter a single exotic beast.

"It seems I have to go deeper," Qin Shuo sighed.

He had lingering fears about the Unique Horned Kui Ox in the depths of Wolf Mountain.

If not necessary, he did not want to go in and take risks.

But the exotic beasts of this Wolf Mountain were clearly also very shrewd; they all huddled in the depths of Wolf Mountain, using the silver wolf's fierce reputation to deter hunters.

Unless the silver wolf was hunting and the exotic beasts were startled, they rarely ran to the periphery.

He walked about four or five li deeper into Wolf Mountain.

Finally, Qin Shuo encountered the first exotic beast since entering the mountain.

It was a yellow sheep, its whole body was red like fire, and the two sheep horns on its head were shining with golden light, as if golden clouds were flowing within them.

"Fire Yellow Sheep, a superior exotic beast!"

Qin Shuo's pupils shrank, then his breathing became rapid, and his heart was filled with wild joy.