Chapter 84

Not knowing how long it had been, Long Chen opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was light, which made him sigh in relief. Good, he was still alive.

Then he realized he was lying on a simple bed. Although it was made of rough wood, it was padded very carefully and had a slight fragrance.

Looking around, he saw that he was in a wooden house. On the wooden walls hung some animal skins, bows, arrows, and spears. Not far from the ground, there was a small stove, and a pot in the middle was steaming, with the aroma of food wafting out.

As Long Chen was observing the wooden house, the door creaked open, and a girl in a coarse skirt walked in.

The girl looked to be about sixteen or seventeen, with a slender figure. Her arms and thighs were exposed, and her skin had a hint of wheat color, giving off a very healthy aura.

Her hair was tied into a medium-length ponytail, and her face, though not particularly beautiful, had a pair of lively eyes that made her very approachable.

After entering the room, the girl first put her backpack on the ground and hurriedly ran to the stove, lifting the pot lid.

"Oh, that was close, it almost burned," the girl said to herself, sighing in relief.

However, she suddenly felt something was off and slowly turned her head to see Long Chen looking at her with a puzzled expression.

"Ah, you're awake, that's great!"

Seeing Long Chen sit up, the girl was overjoyed, running to his side and hugging him excitedly.

"Cough, cough... Miss, isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

Held in the girl's embrace, Long Chen's face touched her chest, and he could smell the healthy and vibrant scent from her. However, being hugged by a stranger made him very uncomfortable. If he pushed her away, it would seem inconsiderate, so he said awkwardly.

"What's inappropriate? You were picked up by me, so you're my man now. That's the rule in our village. Who dares to say otherwise?" The girl still held Long Chen, her face showing no shyness, but rather a matter-of-fact tone.

"You... picked me up?" Long Chen was taken aback. His last memory was of the rock leopard, and he had never seen this girl before.

Seeing Long Chen's puzzled expression, the girl let go of him and explained, "That day, you were fighting a monster. At the critical moment, I shot an arrow and killed the monster. In short, I saved your life, so you're my man now. Your job from now on is to hunt and have children with me."

Looking at the girl's serious face, Long Chen's expression became strange. Hunt? And have children?

Seeing Long Chen's confusion, the girl explained what had happened that day.

It turned out that the girl was a hunter from a village where everyone lived by hunting. They would go to distant mountains to buy some essential iron tools, but otherwise, they were self-sufficient.

The village had over a hundred people, and almost everyone was a skilled hunter, even the children often set traps outside the village to catch small wild animals.

There were no true powerhouses in the village; most were at the Qi Gathering stage. According to the girl, their ancestors had fled to this place to avoid war and had gradually adapted to life here, which had been going on for several hundred years.

The main food in the village was meat, and they lived by hunting and gathering, but their targets were mostly wild animals.

They had to be extremely cautious when dealing with large monsters. To deal with a powerful monster, the entire village had to mobilize.

When they discovered a new rock leopard in the area, after some discussion and the village chief's approval, they decided to deal with it.

Although dealing with a monster was risky, the rewards were also great. A first-stage monster's crystal core could provide enough resources for the entire village to live for half a year.

To deal with the rock leopard, they prepared for over a month, refining enough poison to coat their weapons and setting up several traps in the area, laying multiple ambushes.

Just as they were about to act and lure the rock leopard out, they were stunned to see a young man walk into the leopard's territory.

The girl, hiding in the shadows, was anxious but dared not alert Long Chen, as it might ruin their plan.

The consequences of failure were severe, as it would mean someone would have to pay with their life. So, they could only watch as Long Chen was ambushed.

They felt guilty about this and hoped to avenge him by luring the rock leopard into their traps.

However, what happened next shocked everyone. Long Chen's sword almost killed the ferocious rock leopard.

Later, they discovered that Long Chen was already injured. Even after losing his sword, he still managed to punch the rock leopard several times, leaving them in awe.

Finally, when Long Chen could no longer hold on, the girl couldn't resist and shot an arrow, killing the rock leopard.

However, when the girl said she shot the rock leopard, her big eyes kept looking at the ceiling, and her face was a bit unnatural.

It turned out that the girl's archery skills were not that great, and in a hurry, she missed her target. But by chance, the arrow that was supposed to hit the leopard's mouth ended up in its forehead.

The spot had been cut by Long Chen, splitting the leopard's skull. The arrow went through the crack and killed the leopard instantly.

When everyone saw the arrow, they drew a sharp breath. If it weren't for luck, they would have faced a furious monster, and the outcome could have been disastrous.

An injured monster is the most terrifying, as it can go into a frenzy and attack recklessly.

"Thank you."

Only then did Long Chen understand what had happened, and he bowed respectfully to the girl.

"You're my man now, no need to be so formal," the girl giggled, hugging Long Chen's arm affectionately.

"I used to pray to the Forest God every day, asking him to give me a strong man to hunt and have children with. He finally heard my prayers and gave me you. It's wonderful."

The girl looked at Long Chen's handsome face, her eyes filled with excitement and satisfaction.

"Cough, cough, Miss..."

"Call me Xiaohua."

"Um... Xiaohua, about this 'man' thing, can we discuss it later? Can you tell me how my injuries healed?" Long Chen asked.

Long Chen noticed that his body had miraculously healed. According to Xiaohua, it had been three days since he was saved.

In just three days, without taking any medicinal pills, not only had his injuries healed, but even the cracked meridians in his body had been restored, which surprised him greatly.

"The Forest God healed you," Xiaohua replied.

"The Forest God?" Long Chen was shocked. Was there really a god in this world?

"Alright, alright, no more questions. It's time to eat."

Seeing that Long Chen was about to ask more, Xiaohua interrupted him, taking the pot from the stove and moving it outside.

Long Chen, feeling awkward about sitting there, hurriedly helped. He noticed that the pot was full of porridge.

When they carried the porridge out of the wooden house, Long Chen realized that they were in a small village built on a hillside.

The village was surrounded by a thick fence made of thorny plants, about ten feet high. These thorny plants were highly toxic, and most wild animals would stay away from them.

Inside the fence, there were several dozen simple wooden houses. At Xiaohua's call, everyone came out of their houses, including a dozen children and five or six elders.

However, most were strong adults. Long Chen knew that in a hunting-based life, physical strength was crucial, and any lapse could be fatal.

Therefore, most of the village's inhabitants were young and strong, a natural selection process, and life was harsh.

An energetic old man walked up to Long Chen, nodded, and said, "Well done, you fought a monster alone."

Long Chen sensed that the old man was a Blood Condensation stage expert, but only at the initial level.

If Long Chen's guess was correct, the old man had entered the Blood Condensation stage late in life, and his blood and qi were already declining. Even at the Blood Condensation stage, his combat power would not increase significantly.

"Thank you, sir," Long Chen bowed slightly.

"You're too modest. Even in my prime, I couldn't compare to you," the old man looked at Long Chen with admiration.

"Grandpa, stop being so polite, let's eat the porridge."

Xiaohua had already divided the porridge, giving each person a bowl. She brought two bowls over, handing one to Long Chen and one to the old man.

"Let me introduce you. This is my grandfather, and he's also the village chief. Oh, right, I don't even know your name," Xiaohua suddenly asked.

"Thank you, I'm Long Chen," Long Chen smiled and took the bowl.

At this moment, all the villagers, young and old, came over to greet Long Chen. He quickly put down his bowl and returned their greetings.

After all, they had saved his life, and he needed to remember their kindness. These people were very simple and didn't care about formalities, but the warmth in their eyes spoke volumes.

Long Chen calculated that among the over a hundred villagers, there were only about thirty women, and Xiaohua was the only girl. The rest were young children.

"Big brother, I heard you're very strong, that you can punch a leopard as big as a cow and send it flying. Is that true?"

A child, barely reaching Long Chen's knee, hugged his leg and looked up at him with admiration.

"Of course it's true. My father said this big brother is a true hero. He and Xiaohua will make the strongest warriors in our village," a seven or eight-year-old boy chimed in before Long Chen could answer.

However, the boy then looked at Long Chen eagerly and asked, "Big brother, when will you make the strongest warriors in our village?"

Long Chen's face froze, and everyone, including Xiaohua, burst into laughter, leaving him very embarrassed.

Hastily, he took a few sips of porridge and changed the subject, "Didn't you kill that monster? Why aren't you eating its meat?"

As soon as Long Chen said this, he noticed a strange atmosphere. He looked at the old man, who was about to speak.

"Let me explain," Xiaohua interjected.