Chapter 8: Setting Up Camp

The suona reacted quickly; seeing that Wang Chong truly intended to kill, it scrambled away in a panic.

Now they dared not approach Wang Chong again, yet they did not leave either, simply following at a moderate distance; whenever Wang Chong took two steps toward them, they fled, and once he withdrew, they returned.

Wang Chong was furious.

"Since you are so willing to follow, I shall not proceed forward any longer," Wang Chong said, turning his head and walking deep into the dense forest.

The several goblins trailing behind grew puzzled. "Sona, why is he heading that way? Further ahead lies the Thunder Marsh."

"Indeed, the Thunder Marsh is far too dangerous. Should we still follow him there?"

Sona's eyes darted. "What is there to fear? We shall merely follow from afar; if danger arises, we flee first, and if he is slain by a beast, we can simply take his corpse back."

"Brother, you are indeed clever," the other goblins chorused, heaping praise upon him.

"Naturally; otherwise, how could I be the elder brother?" Sona said triumphantly. "Come, let us catch up quickly."

"This place is fine; here it shall be," Wang Chong said, gazing upon a vast clearing before him, beside which flowed a small river, filling one's heart with ease and joy.

As daylight gradually faded, the world seemed to fall suddenly into silence.

He dug a hole in the ground, curled his entire body within it, and lay there quietly.

Yet from the tension in his bent legs, it was evident he had not relaxed his vigilance and stood ready to leap up at any moment to face a sudden crisis.

He kept himself constantly in a state of half-sleep, daring not to relax even slightly.

In this strange and perilous land, any single moment of negligence could condemn one to eternal ruin.

The next day, as dawn barely broke, Wang Chong was already up, beginning his day's labor.

His figure darted ceaselessly between the forest and the clearing, returning with bundle after bundle of wood.

The great sword Hawk had given him proved useful; splitting wood with it was as easy as slicing melons and chopping vegetables.

"What is he intending to do?" one goblin asked, bewildered.

"What else does chopping wood serve but to make a fire for cooking? You are truly stupid."

"But surely he does not need so much wood for that?"

"Then the prey must be large; he will likely go hunting shortly, and perhaps he will even invite us to share the meal."

"Exactly; otherwise, why would he chop so much wood? He must be preparing to treat us to a feast..."

Several goblins lay prone upon an earthen slope, their eyes tracking Wang Chong's movements back and forth.

Having chopped nearly enough timber, Wang Chong fashioned a spear from branches, speared a plump fish from the river, and enjoyed a delicious lunch of grilled fish.

After the meal, he took no rest but drew a circle on the ground and constructed a simple fence.

For dinner, he ate fish again, then tidied up briefly, laid a bed of thatch, and went to sleep.

"Elder Brother, we are so hungry..." Several goblins, having waited eagerly all day without eating, complained.

"Did you not say he would treat us to a grand feast?" a goblin grumbled.

"That scoundrel! He dares to trick us!" Sona said angrily. "Very well, let us sleep first and deal with this tomorrow."

With faces long as if mourning, the several goblins burrowed into patches of grass to sleep.

The night passed without incident.

With the fence in place, Wang Chong slept soundly, yet he did not oversleep; years of military life had instilled in him excellent habits of rest and activity.

As soon as dawn began to break, he rose, first loosening his muscles and bones, then began practicing the Basic Sword Technique; this foundational art was called Mountain-Crushing Strike, a broad and sweeping martial skill requiring the user to leap upward and smash forcefully onto the ground, simultaneously generating several waves of attack; though merely a basic sword technique, when wielded with Wang Chong's great sword, its power was immense.

Moreover, Mountain-Crushing Strike offered both offense and defense; during an attack, it generated shockwaves around the body, blasting away any enemies who drew near.

Wang Chong practiced with intense focus, repeating the motion of leaping and smashing over and over without tedium, stopping only once he had gained some insight.

He had been pondering this sword technique for the past few days, and now, after practicing it, he handled it with even greater ease; furthermore, this technique suited his disposition perfectly.

Having worked up a sweat from his earlier cultivation, he walked to the riverside intending to wash, only to discover Sona and the other goblins catching fish in the river.

These goblins were utterly clumsy, attempting to catch fish with their bare hands; after much toil, they had not caught a single one.

Wang Chong watched from the side, occasionally breaking into a mocking smile, which enraged the goblins.

"Snap out of it, all of you! Do not let others laugh at us," Sona scolded the other goblins.

"Yes, Elder Brother!"

After a while, suddenly one goblin shouted excitedly, "I caught one! I caught one!"

"Really? Excellent!" Sona rejoiced greatly.

He cast a provocative glance at Wang Chong.

"Oh, what a huge fish!" Wang Chong exclaimed upon seeing the fish, bursting into laughter.

The creature in that goblin's hand was merely a small fish as thick as a finger, truly insufficient to fill even the gaps between teeth.

"Very well, you continue playing; this brother will not keep you company any longer," Wang Chong said, then charged forward, leaping across a narrow section of the small river.

His figure soon vanished from Sona and the others' sight; not long after, a marshland appeared before him.

The place was damp and gloomy everywhere; one careless step could cause one to sink into the mire, so Wang Chong proceeded with extreme caution.

"My luck is not bad," Wang Chong murmured; having traveled but a short distance, he spotted a fire turkey.

Although fire turkeys could fly, their flying ability was weak; so long as one guarded against their fire breath, there would be no great danger.

Moreover, Wang Chong had caught fire turkeys before; with that experience, capturing one now was a matter of great ease for him.

The fire turkey was highly alert; even while pecking at insects, it frequently raised its head to look around.

However, Wang Chong was no longer the Wang Chong of before; after several days of cultivation, he had made significant progress.

"I shall use you to practice first."

Wang Chong quietly circled behind the fire turkey; when he was still a dozen meters away, a cold glint flashed in his hand, and he suddenly darted forward.

At that moment, the great sword moved with extraordinary agility in his grasp; a streak of cold light poured down from above the fire turkey's head.

"Swish!"

The sword light vanished, and the fire turkey's head fell from its neck.

A fire turkey was silently slain by Wang Chong without making a sound.

"Cultivation truly works." A smile appeared on Wang Chong's face.

Although he was still very weak compared to those powerhouses, he believed that as long as he worked hard, one day he would also become a peak powerhouse.

Next, Wang Chong harvested several more prey; though none were large, they were enough to last him a few days.

He strung the prey together with a vine, hoisted them onto his shoulder, and prepared to return.

"Not a bad haul; time to go back." He patted the prey, very satisfied with today's results.

With this prey, he would not need to worry about food for the next few days and could cultivate in peace.