Mountains and giant beasts, cabins in the woods

The big fox sat by the side of the carriage, its fluffy tail swaying gently.

Liu Xingmo reached into his robes: "Thank you for your help, instructor. The towing fee should be 50 yuan, but how about I give you 200!"

"You think I care about your filthy money? Don't play dumb with me." The fox's lips curled into a sinister smile, revealing white teeth. "I want an old worm of the same quality as this scorpion. Of course, I'll offer the normal price. Can you do that?"

"It's not that simple. Isn't this kind of thing all about luck?" Liu Xingmo frowned, looking troubled.

"Hehe. I've done my research. I know exactly where you've been and who you've met in the last ten days."

The big fox stood up and, with its four nimble legs, circled the clumsy old turtle. Its fiery red tail bobbed up and down like a smooth, bright red ribbon.

She brought her pointed nose close to the young man on the tortoise shell: "Your route is completely haphazard. With your inexperienced hands running in the mountains, you can't possibly catch anything good, unless...

"Unless what?" Liu Xingmo asked in return.

"Nothing much." The effeminate, high-pitched female voice rose in pitch. "Anyway, use your little tricks to catch me another little bug. I'm sure that won't be too difficult, right?"

Liu Xingmo remained silent for a while.

Unexpectedly, it was exposed. In the old man's eyes, even the slightest clue contained a lot of information.

However, the fortune-telling was too bizarre, and the fox probably thought it had the ability to find insects.

You can refuse her request, but it's good to build up a connection, and you can also make money selling old bugs.

Liu Xingmo replied, "I do have a way to find the old insects in the mountain valleys, but whether it will work depends on fate. How about this, next year when I have the chance to go out into the mountains, if I find any good ones, I'll sell them to you first, is that alright?"

"You're quite sensible, that's good." The big fox sat cross-legged on its hind legs, supported itself on its front legs, and raised its head high. "I am Hu Shulu from the city guard team. I'm waiting for your good news."

After saying that, she turned and left, her big, fluffy tail swaying from side to side.

"What a troublesome woman." Liu Xingmo shook his head and sighed. "Sigh! I don't know what's wrong with my luck; she's been causing me nothing but trouble these past few days."

"My dear husband, you seem a little smug?" Su Mali's fair face appeared cold and indifferent in the moonlight.

"Really? How could that be!"

……

It's getting late, time to get some rest.

Not long after I slept, the campsite became noisy.

Liu Xingmo rubbed his eyes and got up, then had Bao Hei pull the cart and run at full speed back to town.

Today is a workday, so I need to get to the newspaper office quickly.

It takes a whole day to get back to West Town, and several hours to get from West Town to Central City.

It's all the fault of the attack; it caused too much delay and disrupted the original plan.

Looks like I'll be working overtime all night again.

Liu Xingmo sat in the driver's seat, feeling helpless and depressed.

He thought for a moment, then simply pulled out a package containing the arrows and hidden weapons that the attackers had released the day before.

He went to the car and shook his wife awake from bed: "Mary, use your alchemical knowledge to appraise it."

Sumali blinked sleepily.

She opened her palm, and a flame ignited in it. She placed the dart into the fire, and the silvery-white metal gradually turned crimson.

She yawned and said, "These weapons weren't made by ordinary blacksmiths; they were made by someone like me. You should say a weapon refiner, who mass-produced special alloys and forged them."

"You mentioned mass production, so what's the skill level of the weapon refiners?"

"Hmm~ The technique is very skillful, probably around level two."

"Okay, that's exactly what I wanted to hear!"

Liu Xingmo pulled out a signal flare from the package; it was a red firecracker that looked like a rocket.

He placed the fuse into the flame in Sumari's palm, and soon sparks began to fly out.

He quickly went outside the car and released a signal flare.

The little red rocket emitted a trail of sparks and blue smoke as it wobbled and soared into the sky.

With a loud "Bang!", beautiful fireworks burst in the dawn sky.

Liu Xingmo, carrying a bag of concealed weapons, said to his wife, "I'm going to work first. I'll leave everything at home to you."

"Hmm." Sumali took the reins.

A moment later, a large white bird descended from the sky and landed beside the bustling road. It was Instructor Bai Ting.

Liu Xingmo jumped out of the car and went to greet him: "Instructor, I have made a major discovery concerning yesterday's attackers. I want to rush to Central City to report."

"I understand." Instructor Bai Ting spread her wings, stirred up a strong wind, and took off gracefully.

The egret circled briefly in the sky, then swooped down, its slender claws grabbing the young man on the ground before turning and flying eastward.

The sky was beginning to lighten with the first hint of dawn.

The graceful bird folded its wings and then gently unfolded them again, flying towards the brightest halo.

Suddenly, a golden edge leaped out from the mountain valley, followed by half, then the whole, bright golden disc.

The sun broke free from the embrace of the mountains, and its magnificent rays spread across the sky.

Golden-red light streamed down the mountain ridge, gilding the towering trees and painting a warm glow on the gray-brown rocks.

The mist rises from the forest, dyed by the crimson sunset into a flowing brocade, and even the wings of the egrets are adorned with tiny golden glitters.

Liu Xingmo squinted, admiring the beautiful scenery unique to birds.

So beautiful...

It would be even more beautiful if you could change the pose...

Liu Xingmo was held horizontally by two bird claws. He crossed his arms over his chest, wrapped his clothes tightly around himself, and used them to ward off the strong winds from high above.

The dense forest flashed by, with chestnut trees providing food and larch trees providing fuel...

The leisurely town of Xizhen passed by in a flash, and the various fruit trees put on their winter coats, accumulating nutrients and waiting to bloom and bear fruit next year.

After crossing several more towering hills, a city built of ancient wood spreads across the land, bathed in the morning sun.

We've arrived in Midtown.

Instructor Bai Ting placed Liu Xingmo in a secluded mansion in the east of the city.

Several dignified middle-aged men and several enormous beasts were having a meeting. They were the so-called "family."

Liu Xingmo reported on what happened yesterday, showed off the arrows and hidden weapons, and stated Su Mali's judgment.

The elders and stewards listened carefully, their expressions growing increasingly solemn.

Because the Yin Kingdom in the southwest is a powerful and influential force, primarily focused on swordsmanship and martial arts, with weapon crafting and alchemy as secondary pursuits.

The current situation is deteriorating.

Liu Xingmo delivered the intelligence and wisely left.

Instructor Bai Ting escorted him to the gate of the mansion: "Young man, you're quite something. You remained calm in the face of danger yesterday, and you're neither humble nor arrogant today. You have both skill and knowledge; even staying in the village, you can keep track of world events."

"You're joking, I was just doing my best." Liu Xingmo then inquired about the situation, "Did you find the thieves' hideout yesterday?"

"We searched for ten whole days and found three thieves' dens. Inside, there was only food and dried meat, no secret manuals." Bai Lu shook his head as he said this. "Unfortunately, we didn't capture a single person alive. As for the spies in the city, they actually know nothing."

Liu Xingmo sighed, "Alas! It looks like this cat-and-mouse game will continue for another winter."