Chapter 305: The Snow-Covered Forest — The Standoff, the Harvest, and Knight Lanisha's Night Thoughts

After Zhao Ji let his thoughts wander for a while, that Magic Beast slowly crawled out from the nearby Forest. Its body was once again covered in a thin layer of white Mist, making this massive Magic Beast appear extremely mysterious and terrifying.

For those without the ability to fight a Magic Beast, this creature was indeed a difficult enemy to deal with; in this regard, the bloodstains dripping everywhere in the Bandit Camp and the small pieces of human remains were very persuasive.

But Zhao Ji knew that once one saw through the creature's abilities, it was not impossible to deal with this Magic Beast.

The Magic Beast acted as if Zhao Ji was not nearby; it crawled slowly to the side of the corpse of the fleeing Bandit it had previously skewered, and just like before, after stripping the human corpse as bare as possible, it swallowed it into its hidden giant maw.

Not long after, the giant maw opened, spitting many small trinkets from the human body out onto the ground.

This made Zhao Ji feel a wave of nausea; he remembered that just a moment ago, he had kept some of the leftover trinkets from a few Bandits on his person.

After eating all the corpses in the vicinity, the Magic Beast approached the Bandit corpse Zhao Ji had left in the open area of the Yingdi with an even slower crawling speed.

Zhao Ji stared intensely at the front of the Magic Beast's body hidden within the Mist; he knew that was where the Magic Beast's eyes were located. At this moment, one could guess from the Magic Beast's actions that it was also nervously observing his every move.

Swallowing the stripped Bandit in two or three gulps, the Magic Beast then ceased its movements.

It remained motionless, while Zhao Ji gradually quickened his lung breathing, pumping more air into his body, and his entire body rapidly entered a state of potential combat.

Two red eyes within his eye sockets slowly scanned the Magic Beast not far ahead.

After pacing its legs in place, the Magic Beast slowly moved forward by one meter.

Zhao Ji spread his feet apart, and his hands reached slightly downward from the end of the axe handle at his abdomen, then gripped it.

The Magic Beast tentatively moved forward another meter.

Zhao Ji lifted the axe in his hands, then he also stepped out with his right foot, walking half a step forward.

But he only walked half a step.

You are testing whether I still have the ability to fight, aren't you?

Then come over and try; the two of us can cross hands once more, but this time, having seen through your ability, I won't make the same mistake as last time—being careless and getting lifted into the air only to have my leg broken from the fall.

This silent standoff only lasted for a moment; as the Magic Beast gradually probed and Zhao Ji, this Human, acted without fear, the two of them closed the distance to a relatively near position.

Zhao Ji was not afraid that closing the distance would have an adverse effect on his fighting; on the contrary, with his short stature, when facing this massive Magic Beast, the closer the distance, the more advantageous it actually was.

Because this Magic Beast did not have a pair of arms as dexterous as a Human's; its long mouth was fairly dexterous and powerful, but not sturdy enough. If Zhao Ji found the right opportunity, he could chop off a large section of the Magic Beast's mouth with a few swings of his axe.

After all, his axe was both tough and sharp.

Just as Zhao Ji was prepared to pounce forward at any moment, the Magic Beast on the opposite side actually chickened out.

The Magic Beast let out two loud, dissatisfied squeaks, and just as Zhao Ji thought the opponent was about to launch an attack, it moved its legs and, without changing the direction of its body, retreated backward.

In a very short time, it retreated from the other side of the Yingdi into the Forest.

Zhao Ji did not act rashly; he waited until the sound of the Magic Beast colliding with dry branches in the Shulin faded away before he finally relaxed.

Being able to avoid a fight without full certainty was a good thing. Of course, he himself was never afraid of fighting; after all, when a fight was unavoidable, adopting a stance of facing the battle head-on was often the first step to winning from the fight.

If you fear fighting and fear the results of losing a fight, then before you have even started the real battle, you have already lost a small portion.

Fights that could be won become draws, original draws become small losses, and small losses turn into crushing defeats.

And in a fight of real blades and guns, a crushing defeat meant death.

Everyone only has one life; he did not want to die, so he had to win every fight he faced.

At the very least, he could not lose, could he?

The entire Bandit Camp had been a bustling place just a few moments ago, but after the Magic Beast came, only broken ruins that didn't even count as crumbling walls remained.

Only the roaring campfire was still burning brightly, relying on the firewood the Bandits had added earlier.

Zhao Ji put away his weapons and quickly gathered all the metal weapons and utensils found in the Yingdi. Additionally, he loaded other valuable, convenient food and a large amount of money onto a Sled Board he had bundled together using the remaining Tent fabric and sturdy wooden sticks from the Yingdi.

This ultra-simple Sled Board was not very sturdy, and the parts touching the snowy ground were not smooth at all. It could only barely be used in a place with such thick snow; in other places, it would fall apart or have to be abandoned before being pulled very far.

He dismantled the metal parts from a large number of Bandit weapons, put them into a bag, and tossed it onto the Sled Board. He also put the money carried by each Bandit and other items that looked valuable into another bag.

Regarding whether to stay in place to rest, Zhao Ji considered it for a while, but unable to overcome the exhaustion of his body, he decided to find a place nearby to rest, though not in this Yingdi where dozens of people had died.

He dug a simple pit under a large tree at the edge of the Yingdi and hid inside.

This place was mainly to avoid the Magic Beast making a return raid and sneaking up to stab him while he slept outside. Hiding underground was much safer; if the Magic Beast wanted to stab him, it would be blocked by the ground, and if it wanted to crush him with its huge body, it would be obstructed by this not-so-small tree.

The Sled Board loaded with spoils was placed on the snow nearby. The Bandit weapons inside were not very good, mostly weapons made from crudely processed iron; it was only because they used more material that they didn't seem so bad.

Among them, a spiked mace made of steel was the best of the weapons used by these Bandits; Zhao Ji did not remove its handle or other parts and placed it intact into the spoils bag.

Among the other valuables, there was a large amount of money. Basically, every Bandit had more or less money on them. The most money was a small bag of valuable coins he had rummaged out from under the ruins of the smashed wooden house; inside, there were not only a large number of Silver Coins but also quite a few Gold Coins. There were even two small boxes: one was made of dark wood and contained a fiery red Gem, and the other was a bone box made from animal bones, containing a whole set of strangely styled jewelry.

The bone needles were wrapped in silver on the outer layer and inlaid with scattered Gems at the tips; the earrings were made of gold, but the pendants were mysterious Gems polished into the shape of eyes. As for the necklace in the set, it was made of many long, circular rings polished from bone, with a small human skull model made of gold added in the very center.

Interestingly, this small gold skull model was intricately designed to be movable. Zhao Ji fiddled with this item for a while, then, finding it ominous, put the whole set of jewelry back into the bone box that held it.

After eating and drinking his fill of the food and water found in the Bandit Camp, Zhao Ji curled up in the newly dug pit, calmed his mind, and fell asleep.

"Sir Knight, ahead is a large slope; it seems to extend all the way into the distance. However, where are those flickering lights coming from? I never knew that in this place, this deep into the mountains, there were actually Humans living here," the old Hunter said, pointing to the flickering lights in the distance.

The group they were in was standing on high ground, so at this moment, with no snow falling, the visibility was very good. Although the snow clouds in the sky had not dissipated, the lights far away were still seen by them.

At this time, this group of theirs had already passed through the ruthless zone behind them where the strong winds and heavy snow raged. Thanks to the power of Knight Lanisha, they had passed through the dangerous area behind them without losing a single Hunter.

To be honest, in the windy and snowy weather where visibility was already poor, coupled with the low or non-existent lighting after dusk and into the night, half of the reason they were able to cross safely was that Knight Lanisha could keenly find the correct direction, and the other half relied on the Sun God Amulet that each of them possessed.

This thing really helped a lot. If they didn't have this, the Knight herself could certainly have traveled through the place just now, but the rest of them would not have been able to make it over.

Even with the Knight pulling them with a rope.

After all, the temperature on high mountains was already low, not to mention high mountains in winter. Added to the blowing of the strong wind and snow, if it weren't for the fact that everyone felt as if they were being illuminated by real, tangible sunlight after wearing the Amulet, they really wouldn't have been able to make it over.

It is estimated that they would have frozen to death and fallen in the first high mountain wind and snow zone further to the Bei Mian long ago.

"I am also not sure if there are residents settled here, but even if there are people there, they might not necessarily be Humans; who knows, it might be a tribe of Monsters," Knight Lanisha replied. She stood in place and patted her beloved horse for a while, then gave the order: "Ahead is a downward snowy mountain slope; the night is not a good time to go down the mountain. For now, let's find a place nearby to rest, and wait until tomorrow at daybreak to continue the pursuit following the tracks left by the Magic Beast."

The Hunters agreed; they found a crevice in the rocks that could hide people. Calling it a crevice, it was actually a place where all their men and horses could fit without appearing crowded.

Unable to light a fire, everyone relied on the Knight's horse, which had its saddle removed, for warmth. Knight Lanisha herself did not need it; after becoming a Knight, her body was not very sensitive to situations that were not extremely cold. The abundant Life Energy within her body would resist everything she did not like; high-temperature flames, extreme cold—only these things could cause them harm.

Their Knight bodies were tougher than the toughest oxhide; iron hammers weighing less than ten kilograms would not cause them harm even if they struck them.

Many envious people slandered them behind their backs, saying they were no longer Humans.

Heh, these ignorant fellows, this is nothing. Janni-Lanisha, who had studied in a big city, knew that the Mages who mastered mysterious Magic power—those guys were the ones who were not Humans. Whether it was appearance, physique, or lifespan, Knights would not differ too much from ordinary Humans; those Mages, many of them had long since ceased to be Humans.

Legend has it that beneath the gorgeous magic robes of Mages are nothing but mutated limbs and beastly legs or wings.

Thinking of this, Knight Lanisha took off her metal armor gloves and touched her own hands. Sigh, this pair of fair, delicate hands is still better; she could not fathom how anyone would exchange such beautiful things for an animal's hairy hooves or soft tentacles.

Ugh. Just thinking about it made her feel uncomfortable.

However, her hands had also changed too much over these years. Ever since her father, who was a Knight, disappeared and died for no reason, she had taken over the burden of the family. Though it was called a family, there were actually not many people, and the only one with the appropriate age and status was her, who had once aspired to become a scribe in a big city.

After years of Knight Training, the slender hands that once couldn't even snap an ink pen could now punch through a solid rock with bare fists.

The frail body that once only jogged a small circle around the house could now run around the entire Kendall City for a whole morning in one breath while wearing tens of catties of metal armor.

Not to mention anything else, just looking at her subordinates, who had to huddle together for warmth to fall asleep on this high mountain, while she stood outside the rock crevice blowing in the cold wind, feeling not the slightest bit of sensation even until tomorrow morning, not even much sleepiness.

What had she become in order to avenge her father?

Sighing, Knight Lanisha lowered her head, looked at her palms, and gently rubbed her palms together.

They have become rough.

Does this mean she has become a Knight just like her father?

And also.

Where did that girl who used to love holding a book and reading for a whole day go?

Perhaps the moment she made up her mind to replace her father and become a Knight, that girl shyly covered her face with a book and jogged into the cracks of time.

After a while, slowly lifting her head, Knight Lanisha looked at the gloomy sky; her keen super-perception could receive the faint summons coming from the Heavenly Kingdom of the Gods, which possessed grand and great power in the sky.

Although she did not believe in those gods who had been so great since before humans appeared, she, who could see the world more broadly and deeply than ordinary people, had to reluctantly thank those gods. After all, she had previously relied on the Divine Kingdom that these gods had raised in the sky to accurately identify the direction in the terrible situation of wind and snow where one could not distinguish the way.

Thinking of this, Knight Lanisha wondered if her father was the same back then, his perception beyond mortals allowing him to perceive the Heavenly Kingdom of the Gods in the sky at any time.

Then, looking at it from the other side, are those great gods also keeping track of their Knights at all times?

When her father disappeared many years ago, was there any god who knew what happened back then?

Crossing her arms, Knight Lanisha leaned against the rock, thinking deeply.

Waking up the next day, Zhao Ji heated up some food left behind by the bandits by the dying campfire, and after eating and drinking his fill, he pulled the Sled Board and followed along the solid snow path left by the Magic Beast as it crawled.

Not long after walking, he discovered that it was snowing in the sky again. Although it was not as heavy as the previous snow, this constant snowing was not good news.

After all, compared to the huge Magic Beast, the snowfall still posed a considerable obstacle to him, a Human.

The direction the Magic Beast moved was basically straight, presumably heading directly toward the next Bandit Camp. Zhao Ji did not feel there was any problem with that Magic Beast wantonly hunting those bandits ahead of him.

Let's make a comparison using the worst method. Zhao Ji felt that compared to a huge and terrifying spider Magic Beast, those bandits who kept robbing passing citizens and merchants were even more harmful to the people of Kendall.

Because this Magic Beast was only one, after all, while the bandits outside Bingxun Pass were truly too many.

Just looking at what he saw before sliding down from the high mountain yesterday, in this entire Forest, there were at least seven Bandit Camps with campfires burning.

If one calculated based on the strength of the outer Bandit Group increasing as one went inward, plus the Thieves of Luodai Cave who were not here, and some scattered small Bandit Groups of three or five people, the total number of bandits outside Bingxun Pass had to be at least five hundred.

This was already the entire population of an ordinary Cunzi.

And these bandits did not engage in production, only knowing how to rob the property and lives of the weak; year after year, how many innocent people had lost their lives on the trade routes?

And how many families seeking a stable place to live had their entire families killed by these bandits, just for that little bit of property that might not even exist?

Zhao Ji did not know if those big shots in Kendall City knew the number of people who went missing and died outside Bingxun Pass every year, but no matter how one looked at it, it was certainly not a small number.

If the Militia could not properly clear out these cunning bandits, then he might have to let this Magic Beast, which was not picky about its food, eliminate these parasites biting on the necks of the people and sucking their blood all at once.

If the Magic Beast was also no match for these bandits, then he would enter the fray himself.

If he himself was also no match, then he would return directly to Bingxun Pass, lead the Militia clearing the bandits, and kill the bandits entrenched here completely.

Of course, besides these righteous reasons, Zhao Ji also had his own selfish motives; better weapons, armor, living conditions, and property he could use—these things he urgently needed, he had to get them from these bandits.

Not needing to harm good people, not being disliked by the main local forces, and even receiving rewards—was there anything more suitable for him to take action against than these bandits?

At noon, Zhao Ji arrived at a Bandit Camp that he had indicated from afar through the smoke of the campfire rising above the Shulin.

As expected, after he carefully approached this place, what he saw was a dilapidated, messy Bandit Camp full of splattered blood.

There was not a single living person; no, it should be said that there was not even a dead person.

There were only messy items, footprints, broken clothing, and sharp swords and blades dropped on the ground.

There were only scattered hair, Duanjiao, slashed Tents, and full money bags that no one cherished.

This Bandit Camp looked larger than the previous one, with more wooden houses turned into ruins and more Tents on the ground.

However, they were all in a destroyed and dilapidated state.

Zhao Ji walked carefully here; he guessed from the bloodstains on the ground that the bandits here were likely ambushed by the Magic Beast in the second half of last night.

But the people here clearly put up a more intense resistance; a large amount of bloodstains appeared in a small area. But this place was even cleaner; except for the tattered clothing of the dead, all the corpses and severed limbs were eaten clean by the Magic Beast, unlike the surrounding areas where some scraps of meat and limbs that the Magic Beast did not care for after being full were still scattered.

It was daytime now, and although there were thick snow clouds in the sky drifting down snowflakes again, Zhao Ji was still relatively at ease, because no matter what, it was quite bright around, and that full Magic Beast should not be looking for trouble to attack him again.

Thinking of this, Zhao Ji rubbed his hands and began to collect all the things he wanted that were scattered inside and around this Bandit Camp.