The carefree life of Yang Shuisheng, the village miracle doctor

He no longer deliberately searched for medicinal herbs, focusing all his attention on moving forward and being vigilant about his surroundings.

The further you go, the deeper you go into the heart of the Liangshan Mountains.

The scenery here is completely different from the surrounding area.

The canopy of the towering ancient trees almost completely blocked out the sky, with only extremely weak light filtering through the gaps in the layers of branches and leaves. The air was so damp and cold that it seemed as if you could wring water out of it, mixed with a strong smell of decaying leaves, soil, and some kind of old mold.

The thick vines, like twisted giant pythons, hang down from high places or meander around the stones on the ground, covered with slippery moss.

Various strangely shaped and eerily colored fungi and lichens grow rampantly on tree roots, rocks, and fallen logs.

The surroundings were extremely quiet, but this quiet was not peaceful; rather, it was a chilling, deathly stillness.

Occasionally, a few shrill and strange bird calls would drift from the depths of the forest, sending chills down one's spine.

This is already close to the edge of the core area of ​​the Liangshan Mountains.

Ordinary people, even the most experienced old hunters, would never dare to set foot here lightly.

Aside from venomous snakes and ferocious beasts, the complex terrain and the presence of miasma could all be deadly.

The warmth of the Soul Jade fragment in Yang Shuisheng's arms continued, and it seemed to be slowly and steadily increasing as he headed northwest.

This means that another fragment seems to be further ahead, possibly even beyond the core area of ​​the Liangshan Mountains, on the other side of the mountain.

This judgment made Yang Shuisheng stop in his tracks.

He looked up at the sky, which was almost completely obscured by the tree canopy, making it difficult to discern his location.

The sun was already quite far west, and the light in the forest was even dimmer. If he returned the way he came now, given his speed, he might be able to reach the outskirts of Peach Blossom Valley before it got completely dark.

But that would mean giving up the pursuit of the Soul Jade fragment within the sensing range.

However, if he continues to move forward and pursue the fragments of the Soul Jade, he may still be stuck in this dangerous deep forest late at night, and may even need to cross the core area of ​​the Daliang Mountains to reach the other side.

That would be too risky!

The forests at night are a paradise for predators, and the difficulty in finding one's way makes it easier to get lost or encounter misfortune.

Yang Shuisheng frowned, quickly weighing the options in his mind.

The Soul Jade Fragment is of great importance; it's not just a promise, but also a matter of who knows when we'll be able to sense it again if we miss this opportunity.

However, staying in the deep mountains late at night is extremely dangerous...

After a moment of hesitation, a resolute look flashed in Yang Shuisheng's eyes.

Fortune favors the bold!

"Let's do it!"

The path of cultivation is inherently defying the heavens, fighting against the heavens, the earth, and humanity!

How can we be so timid and hesitant just because of a little danger?

He possesses cultivation, is supported by two streams of energy, has enhanced five senses, and can use throwing darts for self-defense. Unless he encounters an insurmountable behemoth, he should be able to protect himself more than enough.

Moreover, the Soul Jade fragments might be just ahead, and it would be too much to give up.

"Keep going!"

Without further hesitation, he tightened the basket on his back and started walking again, following the increasingly clear and warm guidance of the Soul Jade fragments, heading northwest into the deeper and darker forest.

He no longer deliberately pursued speed, but became more careful, trying to make each step as light as possible, his machete ready to be swung at any moment, his eyes and ears capturing any unusual movement around him.

After walking for another half hour or so, it got even darker, and it felt like dusk had fallen early in the forest.

Just as Yang Shuisheng was passing by a rocky area covered with slippery moss, he suddenly caught a glimpse of an unusual dark red spot on the edge of a grayish-brown rock.

He immediately stopped, squatted down, and examined it carefully.

"Blood?"

It was blood!

It has hardened and darkened somewhat, but the color is still very fresh, so it must have been left not long ago.

There wasn't much blood, just a few drops splashed on the stone, and next to it was a blurry trail, like something had dragged it, pointing deeper into the stone.

Is someone injured? Or an animal?

Yang Shuisheng felt a chill run down his spine.

The chances of finding animals are higher in these deep mountains.

He immediately looked around warily, but found nothing else unusual.

There was a dilemma: should they continue tracking the Soul Jade fragments, or follow the bloodstains?

If a hunter or herb gatherer who has gone into the mountains is injured and trapped, it would be unreasonable to leave them to die without offering assistance.

"Oh well, never mind."

After a moment's hesitation, Yang Shuisheng decided to follow the trail of blood to investigate.

If it were a fight between wild beasts, he would simply stay away.

If they are human, we should help if we can.

He changed direction, no longer relying entirely on the senses from the Soul Jade fragments, but began to pay attention to the intermittent and increasingly difficult-to-discern bloodstains and drag marks on the ground, searching in a slightly steeper downhill direction that deviated from the northwest.

The bloodstains were intermittent, and the drag marks were becoming increasingly messy, indicating that the thing was having more and more difficulty moving.

Following the trail, Yang Shuisheng walked through the dim forest for about half an hour until he arrived at a place with relatively sparse vegetation and more scattered rocks.

Ahead was a not-too-high, but very steep, earthen and rocky cliff. Bloodstains and drag marks seemed to extend into a dense thicket below the cliff.

A faint, almost imperceptible smell of blood wafted through the air.

very close!

Yang Shuisheng gripped his machete tightly, tiptoed, and silently approached the thicket.

He parted the tangled, thorny branches and cautiously peered inside.

At the bottom of the cliff, in a damp, shady corner, a figure was curled up motionless.

Using the faint light filtering down from above the cliff, Yang Shuisheng was able to make out the man's appearance.

That's a woman.

A very young and very beautiful woman.

He looked to be in his early twenties, with a sickly pale complexion that seemed to have never seen the sun.

She was wearing a dark blue outfit made of good material, but now it was tattered and covered in mud and blood. It looked a bit like a mountaineering outfit worn by city people, but with a more streamlined style. Her sturdy mountaineering boots were also scratched.

Her hair was long and jet black, now scattered messily across her pale cheeks and shoulders, some of it stuck together with dried blood.

Her eyes were closed, there were several small scratches on her face, and her lips had lost their color.

The most shocking thing was that a large piece of her clothes was torn off her left shoulder, revealing her snow-white skin and a deep wound that exposed the bone and turned the flesh outward. Although she had hastily bandaged it herself with strips of torn cloth, blood continued to seep out, staining the cloth and the surrounding clothes red.

Her left calf was in an awkward position, and her trouser leg was torn, suggesting a possible fracture.

She curled up quietly at the foot of the cold cliff, with damp soil and fallen leaves beneath her, and a few pebbles scattered around her that had rolled down from the cliff.

He looked fragile, disheveled, and on the verge of death.

Who is she?

Yang Shuisheng frowned deeply as he looked at the unconscious and seriously injured stranger.

How could she be alone in such a dangerous place as the Daliang Mountains?

And he was injured so badly?

Was it an accidental fall off the cliff?

Or did we encounter something else?