From a slave to the Great Qian Martial Saint

In the evening, Gu Tingliang and Hua Jieyu led Chen Shi and the other three out of the city and went straight to a forest.

"This mountain forest is part of the government's property. It not only produces a large amount of timber, but also grows many fruit trees."

Hua Jieyu smiled, then her expression turned serious.

"That token is hidden somewhere among them. Whoever has it at sunrise will be the winner of this round!"

"This place is so big, how are we supposed to find it? Miss, you have to give us some hints."

Looking at the dark, dense forest in front of him, Jia Xingzhou asked with a smile.

Hua Jieyu did not answer directly, but pondered for a moment and then recited a poem.

"The mountain winds and turns a thousand times, the journey stretches for over a hundred miles. Sounds reverberate on white stones, and colors stain the corners of green pines."

"Alright, you guys go ahead and look for it. I'm going back to sleep and I'll check back on the results tomorrow morning."

Before Chen Shi and the others could savor the meaning of the poem about flowers, Gu Tingliang waved his hand impatiently.

At this moment, the red sun sank behind the western mountains, and night gradually enveloped the earth.

Chen Shi's expression hardened, and he leaped off his horse, becoming the first to gallop into the forest.

He has the weakest cultivation level, so he is likely to be taken advantage of by others and eliminated in advance to reduce unpredictability.

Therefore, he must stay away from other people.

Sure enough, as soon as they entered the forest, they spotted a figure chasing after them—it was Wang Qinghe!

Chen Shi's expression was serious. He used his full power to leap and dart through the mountains. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Wang Qinghe could no longer be seen behind him.

It seems they've managed to shake them off.

Although Wang Qinghe's cultivation level was higher than his, unless he happened to have a divine body in terms of speed, it wouldn't be so easy for him to catch up with Ling Kong Du Xu in these mountains and forests.

After taking a slight breather, Chen Shi walked for another ten miles or so before stopping.

It was just after the New Year, and the weather had not yet warmed up. The trees were bare, with no branches or leaves to cover their forms. Chen Shi sat down against the trunk of a large tree.

He looked at the completely dark forest with a serious expression.

"Where is it...?"

Although this is a martial arts competition, you don't have to defeat everyone. You can win as long as you find the token and keep holding it until sunrise.

If Chen Shi can find them first and hide until dawn, he can avoid fighting Wang Qing and the others and win this round.

This forest is neither too big nor too small, and there should be quite a few hiding places.

The key question is where that thing is hidden, and whether he can find it first.

"The mountain winds its way a thousand times, a journey of over a hundred miles..."

The clue was the poem that Hua Jieyu had recited earlier.

After pondering for a moment, a slight smile appeared on Chen Shi's lips.

"The stream!"

The thing this poem describes is a stream!

The writing about water doesn't actually depict water. It must be said that, as the head steward by the old lady's side, Hua Jieyu is not only capable in her work, but also excellent in character, appearance, and talent.

In other words, that thing is hidden in the stream!

To be more specific, its exact location within the stream is currently unknown.

In short, let's find the stream first.

Thinking of this, Chen Shi leaped up and, using the energy threads, jumped directly to the top of the tree.

From this vantage point, one can look down upon the entire mountain forest.

Water flows downhill, so the low-lying areas are where streams are located.

But after looking around, Chen Shi couldn't help but frown.

The night was already dark, and the mountains and forests became even more pitch black, with only their outlines vaguely discernible.

Based on these outlines alone, it is difficult to determine the specific terrain.

Furthermore, the mountains and forests are undulating and varied, so how can one know how the stream meanders?

After frowning for a while, Chen Shi made a hand seal and cast a spell to project his Qi.

My pupils seemed to be veiled in mist, and at the same time, the different auras of various things were revealed.

The color and appearance of the stream are naturally different from those of the mountains and forests.

Unfortunately, Chen Shi's cultivation time was still short, and he had only just touched the threshold of a sorcerer. He could only observe up close, not from afar.

The distant aura was already a jumble of colors, mixed together, making it impossible to discern the exact location of the stream.

"Can we only search little by little?"

Chen Shi held his breath and listened carefully for a moment, but he did not hear the sound of water. He couldn't help but sigh softly.

If you want to win without fighting, finding the token first is key.

If you search bit by bit, it's like trying your luck, and the probability of finding the token first is much smaller.

roar~

Just as Chen Shi was in a dilemma, a deep roar of a beast suddenly came from under the tree.

Looking down, I saw a dark shadow, more than a meter long and resembling a dog, lingering under the tree.

Wolf.

A slight smile appeared on Chen Shi's lips. This beast must have smelled his scent.

With Chen Xian's current strength, no matter how many wolves there are, they wouldn't be enough for him to kill. This beast actually wants to eat him; it's simply courting death.

"...Oh, right!"

Originally intending to ignore it and continue searching for a stream, Chen Shi suddenly had an idea.

Then he looked at the wolf again, a slight smile appearing on his lips. This beast had arrived just in time.

With a whoosh, he jumped straight down from the tree.

The wolf, which had only been observing, was startled.

But the next moment, before the wolf could react, Chen Shi's dagger slashed across, cutting a large gash in its ribs.

In an instant, blood gushed out, almost staining half of the wolf's body red.

Woohoo!

Pain and terror combined, the wolf let out a low growl, tucked its tail between its legs, and fled.

Although he was injured, his leg was not hurt, so he ran quite fast.

Chen Shi smiled slightly but did not give chase. After standing still for a moment, he followed the trail of blood on the ground.

After chasing for two or three miles, they came to a thicket of bushes where a large patch of blood was found. It seemed that the wolf had fled here and, seeing that Chen Shi was not pursuing it, had stopped to rest.

However, the wolf soon left again.

Upon examining the bloodstains, which pointed straight in one direction, Chen Shi did not hesitate and immediately gave chase.

A few moments later, the wounded wolf could be seen in the forest. It was unsteady on its feet due to blood loss.

Chen Shi slowed down and simply followed behind without disturbing it.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, following the wild wolf over a hill, the sound of flowing water suddenly came from the silent forest ahead.

"Found it!"

Chen Shi's face lit up with joy, and he hurried over.

Sure enough, a stream more than ten meters wide was seen, flowing from south to north, meandering along the terrain.

The wounded wolf was lying by the stream, drinking water in large gulps.

In these mountains and forests, if anyone knows the location of the stream, it must be one of the animals here.

Most animals, especially some large land mammals, will become thirsty and immediately seek out water when they lose too much blood!

When Chen Shi first entered Yongqiu Mountain, as a member of the search team, he had specifically learned about hunting and mountain herding, which is why he knew this.

Unexpectedly, this helped him a lot.

"Where is it...?"

Immediately afterwards, Chen Shi looked around the stream, wondering where the token was hidden.