Chapter 211: Chapter 126: Hometown
His Master looked at him, but didn’t say much in the end. He just nodded and said, "It’s fine. This strange power seems to have a healing effect. Though a bit violent, its results are good. He’ll be fine."
"You little rascal! Are you trying to worry me to death?!"
Tears streamed down the Master’s wife’s face as she patted Zhou Xing’s hand, half-scolding, half-crying.
...Zhou Xing was a disciple raised like a son, and the Master’s wife had practically raised him as her own since childhood. How could she not be heartbroken seeing him in this state?
Zhou Xing hung his head and mumbled, "I’m sorry, Master’s wife..."
The Master’s wife just cried, unable to say anything else.
"That’s enough. He’s not dead, so what are you crying for? We can’t linger here. Let’s get moving."
The Master’s low rebuke silenced his wife. Only then did he turn to look at Qin Fang.
Qin Fang nodded, then led the way, winding along the mountain path.
They hadn’t gotten far...
...when a burst of barking rang out.
While the group was still wondering what was happening, they saw Xile come bounding down the mountain path.
Upon seeing Qin Fang, it immediately began to pant and wag its tail happily.
...Qin Fang had just been thinking about how to find the dog, never expecting it would find them first.
Just as Qin Fang was thinking this, Monkey, who was beside him, froze for a second. His eyes widened. "Xile? You’ve gotten this big?"
The Xile of today was much larger than before. It was over one-and-a-half meters tall at the shoulder, and on its hind legs, it was nearly as tall as Qin Fang.
...Not many mongrels could grow to such a size.
And Monkey had seen Xile before.
The Master raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
Monkey’s sister, however, was a little afraid. ’It’s so big! ... It won’t bite, will it?’
Sensing his sister’s fear, Monkey smiled. "Don’t worry, Xile doesn’t bite... Xile, Xile, you still remember me?"
Hearing its name, Xile looked over, its gaze seeming to hold a spiritual understanding. Seeing it was Monkey, the dog tilted its head but didn’t move closer...
"Let’s go."
Qin Fang said.
The group nodded and immediately set off toward Old Ox Back once more.
As they left, they glanced back from the mountain path toward the city gate. The crowd gathered there stood as still and lifeless as deadwood...
Their party was large, the night was dark, and with two women unaccustomed to such hardship—the Master’s wife and Monkey’s sister—their pace was naturally slow.
By dawn, they had only managed to cross a single mountain, still a great distance from Old Ox Back.
Along the way, the ears of both the Master and Qin Fang twitched. Almost simultaneously, they both looked in the same direction.
"Wait a moment."
The Master spoke, and the entire group halted.
After a night of travel, his senior brother’s injuries had improved considerably. ’So that mysterious liquid has healing properties, too,’ Qin Fang mused, surprised. ’I never would have guessed.’
He had, after all, gone head-to-head with two monsters in close combat, taking the brunt of several direct clashes that had shattered many of his bones.
But after being suffused with that mysterious energy, while not completely healed, he was already much better.
His face, however, was still pale.
The wound on his shoulder had already been treated. With a master physician from Huichun Hall like his Master present, finding a few medicinal herbs in the wilderness to treat an injury was a simple matter.
Meanwhile, the Master and Qin Fang had already strode to a mountain pass and were peering down below.
The Master’s gaze suddenly sharpened as he looked down.
After a moment of silence, he asked, "This is what you called... blood-fodder?"
Qin Fang nodded grimly.
The master and disciple’s conversation drew everyone’s attention. The Master’s wife, Monkey, and the others gathered around to peer into the distance as well.
Their eyesight was naturally no match for the master and his disciple, but the incident was unfolding not far away—only a little over three hundred meters—so they could still get a general sense of the scene...
The moment she saw it, Monkey’s sister clamped a hand over her mouth, her eyes filled with terror.
...Three hundred meters away, a small mountain village had been wiped out.
Bodies lay strewn about the village.
But the focal point was a clearing where the ground was soaked crimson with blood.
A massive monster was there, devouring something in great, greedy mouthfuls.
A number of black-robed figures stood encircling it, as if they were observing a spectacle.
And this monster, while it had the same appearance as the others, was clearly much, much larger!
...By visual estimate, it had to be over two meters tall!
The creature looked like a walking tumor, its entire body covered in a network of blood vessels. Irregular bumps of all sizes bulged from its blackish-red skin...
It had a maw full of sharp teeth and a long, blood-red tongue.
With a single flick, its tongue would curl around a heap of mangled flesh and blood on the ground...
And this time, Qin Fang saw clearly.
That mangled mess... was made of smaller, fleshy tumors.
They looked almost identical to the monster itself.
They were just... inanimate.
This grotesque scene made the Master’s wife, Monkey, and his sister turn deathly pale.
Zhou Xing also came over to look. His entire body was trembling, his eyes locked on the black-robed figures...
...’This is the first time I’ve truly seen members of the Mysterious Power!’
"The monsters are growing,"
Qin Fang said gravely.
The one he had seen yesterday was only about one-and-a-half meters tall.
But the one before them was already two meters tall.
’He didn’t know what the growth limit for these monsters was.’
’But one thing was clear: it wasn’t a good thing.’
The Master was silent for a long moment before finally letting out a soft sigh. "Let’s go."
Zhou Xing stared, gritting his teeth, but ultimately, he too gave a slight nod. ’We’re on the run,’ he thought, ’and we have the Master’s wife and Monkey’s sister with us—two women unsuited for this. We can’t afford to act rashly. Besides, I’m still injured. And in any case, the village below is clearly already lost. Going down now wouldn’t accomplish anything. It’s best to find a safe place first and figure things out later.’
The group set off once more. After walking for nearly another full day, Old Ox Back finally appeared in the distance.
As they made their way toward Old Ox Back, both the Master and Qin Fang suddenly looked in the same direction at the same time.
The two of them were positioned at the front and rear of the group. Qin Fang, who was leading the way, suddenly threw up a hand, and everyone instinctively came to a halt.
After a moment of stunned silence, their faces grew tense.
...Qin Fang had obviously spotted something.
After exchanging a glance with his Master, Qin Fang narrowed his eyes and crept forward, his movements completely silent.
The Master, meanwhile, stood guard with a grave expression, warily scanning their surroundings.
