Chapter 55

Recently, the warriors of the Second Squad have been complaining in private that their patrol area has nearly doubled compared to a month ago. The patrol area now not only covers the entire forest but also includes the nearby mountainous regions.

Baron Sidney even clearly marked a large circle on the map with a red line.

Thanks to Suldak's active efforts, the Second Squad has been assigned more patrol missions.

Suldak took advantage of the patrol opportunities to lead the Second Squad back to the Yan Sai Lake in the river valley to catch the Tim fish there.

This time, the Second Squad was well-prepared. They carried fishhooks custom-made by the blacksmith, which resembled large iron anchors, and they also caught a dozen or so live short-tailed salamanders from the mountain streams. The warriors carried these salamanders to the riverbank, tied the large iron anchors to their round bodies, and let them struggle in the shallow water.

The Tim fish in the river noticed the prey and quickly gathered, creating clear ripples on the water surface and splashing waves.

The salamanders, sensing the lurking danger in the river, desperately tried to crawl to the riverbank. Unfortunately, the large iron anchors dragged them down, and no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't escape. They only managed to emit sharp, piercing cries in the shallow water, watching helplessly as several Tim fish pounced and the strongest one swallowed them whole.

The warriors of the Second Squad seized the opportunity and pulled the Tim fish onto the shore simultaneously. Once out of the water, the Tim fish could only weakly shoot a few water jets from their mouths before the warriors split their heads open with axes. They first searched for the magic cores in the skulls and then dragged the fish into the forest, waiting for Suldak to skin them.

The Second Squad members were extremely proficient in this entire process. They took turns dragging the fish to the shore, drying some of the Tim fish meat into jerky. Although the jerky wasn't very tasty, eating magical beast meat could improve their physical condition, so the warriors of the Second Squad didn't waste the fish meat.

The hunting time was only half a day. If they stayed too long, Baron Sidney might discover that the squad was doing private work during patrols, and the lightest punishment would be a whipping.

Suldak and the Second Squad, with their spoils on their backs, prepared to return to the camp that night. They even prepared some red-eyed hyena skins and had an excuse ready for their late return, claiming they had encountered a pack of red-eyed hyenas in the forest.

Baron Sidney harbored deep hatred for the hyena packs in the Gadael Mountains. As long as the warriors were hunting red-eyed hyenas in the mountains, they usually wouldn't be held accountable even if they returned to the camp a bit late.

He Boqiang, looking at the fish skeletons left on the riverbank, suddenly remembered the invitation from the great shaman of the Inoyatira tribe.

The great shaman had invited him to visit the native tribe if he had the time. Since his body was now fully recovered, it was reasonable to visit the native village to thank the great shaman. Since he was already in the river valley, he might as well take this opportunity to visit the native village and have the natives carry the fish skeletons back.

The natives wouldn't mind these delicious Tim fish skeletons.

The warriors of the Second Squad had to return to the camp within a set time and couldn't go to the native village with He Boqiang.

He Boqiang convinced Suldak and parted ways at the river. The Second Squad warriors hurried back to the camp, while He Boqiang went to the native tribe alone.

...

A light morning mist spread through the forest, and the sun had not yet risen over the mountain ridge. The grass on the forest floor was covered with dew, and even with long leather boots, his trouser legs couldn't avoid getting wet.

A drop of water the size of a pea fell from the sky, hitting He Boqiang's nose. He looked up, and the branches shook violently. Several flower-tailed pandas quickly darted into the dense canopy, and the dew on the leaves fell like a sudden rain, drenching He Boqiang.

On previous occasions, he had traveled through the dense forest with the Second Squad and rarely saw so many small forest animals. This time, traveling alone, the small animals had no fear, and the journey was filled with various curiosities and troubles.

He Boqiang, with a wry smile, wiped the water from his hair, thinking he wouldn't have to walk too far to reach the native village.

He Boqiang had stayed in the native village for half a month and was very familiar with the valley. From a distance, he saw the two lookout trees, about fifty to sixty meters tall, at the village entrance. He found a large protruding rock and waved vigorously at the lookout trees.

A loud whistle followed, clearly a greeting from the native on the lookout tree.

When He Boqiang, carrying half a Tim fish, reached the village entrance, the native girl Molly ran out like a happy fawn, her braids bouncing, and she threw herself into He Boqiang's arms, giving him a big hug. Her green eyes were as clear and pure as mountain spring water.

Molly, without any reserve, saw the linen bag on He Boqiang's back and immediately took it, carrying it on her own back and pulling him into the village.

To support He Boqiang's visit to the native village, Suldak had gathered all the rations the Second Squad warriors carried and made a half-bag of dry rations for He Boqiang. He also privately gave He Boqiang an alloy bow as a gift for visiting the great shaman Inoyatira.

On the way to the village, He Boqiang noticed that Molly was still wet, wearing a simple tubular animal skin skirt, and her hair was dripping with water, as if she had just taken a bath.

Molly led him to the thatched wooden hut where he had stayed and told him in the native language that the great shaman Inoyatira was currently worshiping the gods and would only be able to see him after the ceremony.

Fortunately, He Boqiang had a basic understanding of the native language and managed to understand what the girl was saying.

He then picked up a piece of charcoal from the fire pit in the middle of the hut and slowly drew the river valley, the forest, and the native village on the ground. He added a few simple fish drawings near the river valley and used a series of gestures to tell the native girl to have the native women collect the Tim fish bones from the river.

Fortunately, the native girl was quite intelligent and, after a while, finally understood that He Boqiang wanted them to bring back food. She couldn't resist giving He Boqiang another big hug and then pulled him out of the hut without hesitation.

He Boqiang, thinking Molly was taking him to see the great shaman Inoyatira, didn't refuse and followed her up the hill.

However, halfway through, Molly suddenly turned onto a side path in the village. After a short walk, they heard the sound of a stream gurgling. Turning around a wooden hut, a scene almost made He Boqiang's nose bleed. He saw a group of native women bathing in the stream, and not far away, native children were swimming, while some native hunters were sitting on the grass by the stream, whittling wooden arrows.

Molly ran to the stream without any hesitation and quickly spoke a series of native words to the women.

Before He Boqiang could react, a dozen or so young and strong native women hurriedly wrapped grass skirts around themselves and ran to the village entrance, disappearing in a flash.

He Boqiang felt like he was invisible, as no one paid any attention to him.

When Molly finally remembered to take him to see the great shaman Inoyatira, He Boqiang was already dozing off in the hut.