Hedonist Prodigy

Chapter 95: The Tianchi Lake Monster

Jiang Feng looked up and saw an old man and a young man entering from outside the cave. Both were dressed in worn-out gray cotton-padded coats and leather hats, completely covered except for their faces.

The young man carried a medicine basket containing ginseng, as well as a rabbit and a pheasant he had hunted.

The old man and the young man also looked at Jiang Feng. The young man’s eyes were wary; he bent over, his eyes fixed on Jiang Feng, ready to pounce and tackle him to the ground at the slightest movement.

The old man smiled slightly, patted the young man’s shoulder to relax, and stepped forward to Jiang Feng, saying, “Young brother, you’re finally awake.”

“Did you save me?” Jiang Feng asked.

The old man smiled and nodded, saying, “We were chasing a rabbit the day before yesterday and accidentally entered this valley. We found you by the waterfall.”

The day before yesterday? Jiang Feng was startled. Did that mean two days had passed, and he had been unconscious for that long? A sudden chill ran through him. He realized that if they hadn’t saved him, he would probably be dead by now, having been unconscious in the freezing snow for so long.

Moreover, judging from their words and the medicine basket in the young man’s hand, Jiang Feng knew they were the real ginseng gatherers. No wonder his injuries had eased slightly; they must have fed him ginseng. Otherwise, even with his body’s self-healing abilities, such an effect wouldn’t have been possible.

Thinking this, he couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly. He had only killed a few imposters, and yet he was saved by the real ones. It seemed fate truly had its own design.

“Thank you,” Jiang Feng said gratefully.

“No need to thank me, it’s nothing. I’m just glad you’re alright,” the old man waved his hand, then added, “Young man, forgive my impertinence, but why are you here alone?”

“I came here for tourism, and I accidentally got lost.” After thinking for a moment, Jiang Feng decided it was best not to tell the truth. According to Pei Yuanshan, ancient martial arts were a taboo subject in this world; ordinary people didn’t have that concept. He didn’t want them to know too much.

Moreover, he didn’t know if the girl in purple was looking for him. If she was, it could potentially implicate the father and son, and he didn’t want to drag them down with him. The old man listened to him, a thoughtful smile appearing on his face. He said to the boy, “Hu Ya, get something to eat; everyone’s hungry.”

The boy remained wary. He put down his medicine basket, glanced at Jiang Feng a few times, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a sharp knife. He picked up a rabbit by its ears, slit its throat, quickly drained the blood, and then deftly skinned and gutted it.

Jiang Feng watched Hu Ya’s series of movements and secretly admired him. He could tell that the father and son were just ordinary people, but the boy named Hu Ya displayed a masterful skill in killing and skinning the rabbit, a skill that was aesthetically pleasing.

While practice makes perfect, for a boy of his age to possess such skill was quite remarkable.

About twenty minutes later, the rabbit meat sizzled and emitted a delicious aroma over the fire. The old man took a small packet from his pocket, carefully untied it, and sprinkled some evenly over the rabbit meat. Instantly, the aroma filled the air, making Jiang Feng swallow hard.

The old man smiled slightly at Jiang Feng, cut off a rabbit leg, and handed it to him, saying, “Young man, have a taste.”

He had originally planned to make a pot of soup for Jiang Feng, but since Jiang Feng was awake and could eat on his own, this was much more convenient. He then invited him to try it.

Jiang Feng, without any hesitation, took the rabbit leg, took a large bite, and said, “Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, it melts in your mouth. Those spices you sprinkled earlier must be quite something.”

The old man chuckled, and the young man’s face also brightened slightly. He said, “Those aren’t spices, but a kind of herb. After being dried and ground into powder, it’s not sweet but spicy, but when mixed with oil, it emits a unique aroma.”

“Oh, there’s such a herb? May I see it?” Jiang Feng asked curiously.

The young man, hearing Jiang Feng’s casual conversation, lowered his guard a little. He reached into his herb basket and grabbed a handful, saying, “This herb is usually hard to find. I was lucky this time; I picked some. Take a look.”

Jiang Feng took it, his brow furrowing slightly. This herb was crimson red; he had never seen or smelled it before, but the smell was somewhat familiar, though he couldn’t recall when he had encountered it before.

Seeing his expression, the old man asked, “Young man, you also know about pharmacology?”

“A little,” Jiang Feng replied with a smile and nodded. The old man asked, “Do you know the name of this herb?”

Jiang Feng replied, “Please enlighten me.”

The old man chuckled and said, “Young man, do you smoke? Does this herb smell somewhat similar to tobacco?”

Jiang Feng suddenly understood. No wonder the smell seemed so familiar. He smiled, and the old man continued, “This is certainly not tobacco. Its name is Xin Kui, a kind of Chinese medicinal herb. It can invigorate blood circulation and remove blood stasis, and it has remarkable effects on treating rheumatism and other dampness-related ailments. In the past, hunters and ginseng gatherers would always keep some on hand to make tea. However, due to over-harvesting, it’s become rare these days. Hu Ya sees it less often, which is why he treats it like a treasure.”

“I see,” Jiang Feng sighed. He had thought that after reading countless ancient Chinese texts, he had a good understanding of this world. Now it seemed that what he knew was only the tip of the iceberg. …

Jiang Feng spent two days with the father and son who were harvesting ginseng before leaving. He wasn’t worried about the purple-clad girl catching up; four or five days had passed, and if she wanted to pursue him, she would have caught up long ago.

Her absence meant she had clearly left long ago.

However, Jiang Feng still had other thoughts. He hadn’t given it much thought when he encountered Shui Qingqian and Xu Zhikuan, but the purple-clad girl, a powerful ancient martial arts practitioner, was a bit strange to him.

Moreover, the purple-clad girl possessed three tokens, which made Jiang Feng think even more. Back in Yanjing, aside from encountering members of the Qihuang Sect and Pei Yuanshan, he had never seen an ancient martial arts practitioner. But this time, in just a few days, he had encountered several.

When did there become so many ancient martial arts practitioners? Jiang Feng didn’t think it was just good luck; it was very likely that he had unknowingly become involved in some unknown event.

This situation further heightened Jiang Feng’s sense of crisis.

Although he had wasted several days, Jiang Feng still decided to go and check out Tianchi Lake. The ginseng-collecting father and son usually left early and returned late, so Jiang Feng didn’t say goodbye to them. He left some things behind and headed straight for Tianchi Lake.

After spending about three hours, Jiang Feng arrived at the edge of Tianchi Lake.

Changbai Mountain Tianchi Lake has been developed as a natural forest scenic area for many years, leaving many traces of human activity. Despite the heavy snow closing the mountain, there were still many tourists coming and going.

Jiang Feng walked a small circle around Tianchi Lake but found nothing. He was somewhat disappointed, but decided to look again. If he still found nothing, he would leave.

Suddenly, a girl taking photos by the Tianchi Lake let out a piercing scream. Pointing to the calm water, she stammered, “Look! Look! There’s something in the water!”

The girl was visibly startled; her voice was extremely loud. Everyone around turned to look at the water. Jiang Feng also turned around in astonishment and saw a hideous water monster, its fur black and resembling a brown bear, lying behind a jagged rock by the Tianchi Lake, its eyes burning as it peered intently at the crowd nearby.

As soon as Jiang Feng looked over, the monster seemed to sense his presence. It let out an angry growl, suddenly leaped up, and with a splash, plunged into the water. A V-shaped ripple appeared on the calm surface of the Tianchi Lake, and the monster vanished without a trace in an instant.

Seeing the legendary Tianchi Lake monster in broad daylight filled the tourists with a mixture of excitement and fear, as they eagerly took out their cameras to capture the disappearing ripples.

Jiang Feng, however, frowned, sensing something was amiss. When he’d made eye contact with the monster, it seemed to sense something about him, giving him a feeling that it was about to pounce.

Although the monster eventually left, Jiang Feng felt its hostility.

After a moment’s thought, Jiang Feng felt increasingly uneasy, but he remained calm and left. The monster had given him some clues, and he decided to return that night to investigate further; perhaps he could find something more.

*****

When the ginseng-gathering father and son returned to their cave that evening, they were surprised to find Jiang Feng gone. Their time together over the past two days had fostered feelings for Jiang Feng, especially for Hu Ya, who had learned a great deal from him. 

Jiang Feng had even taught him a set of body-strengthening techniques, and although he had only just begun practicing, he already felt much more agile and less afraid of the cold. He greatly admired Jiang Feng and wished he could become his disciple.

“Father, don’t look around anymore. I’ve looked everywhere. He’s gone,” Hu Ya said dejectedly, only then realizing that he didn’t even know Jiang Feng’s name.

The old man gave a bitter smile and said, “It’s good that he’s gone. He was no ordinary person. It was fate that we met him.”

“Father, do you know something?” Hu Ya asked curiously.

The old man smiled and shook his head, saying nothing more, but instead said, “Let’s start a fire first. We’ve been out for over a month now; it’s time to go home.”

Hu Ya nodded and went to start the fire. Once the firelight illuminated the cave, the father and son noticed a pile of things next to the firewood.

Hu Ya curiously picked it up and exclaimed, “Dad, look! This is ginseng! Good heavens, it’s at least two hundred years old, and there’s so much of it! And there’s even some Xin Kui! Dad, what’s going on?”

The old man’s eyes lit up. “He must have left this behind.”

“How is he so amazing? How could he find so much?” Hu Ya asked, puzzled.

The old man’s eyes flickered, then he suddenly said seriously, “Hu Ya, have you memorized the boxing technique he taught you?”

Seeing Hu Ya nod, he said in a deep voice, “Remember, you must practice diligently. Perhaps, it will benefit you for life.”

Although the old man didn’t understand the boxing technique, Jiang Feng’s ability to find so many ginseng roots in such a short time, and even the nearly extinct Xin Kui, further confirmed that Jiang Feng was no ordinary person.

Perhaps, this accidental act of kindness by the father and son would bring them a tremendous opportunity.

*****

Around ten o’clock at night, listening to the howling mountain wind outside, Jiang Feng got out of bed, quickly left the room, and walked outside.

Ten minutes later, Jiang Feng appeared at the place where the water monster had been discovered. The temperature on Changbai Mountain had plummeted at night; the near-surface temperature was now above minus twenty degrees Celsius, far exceeding the limits of human endurance. There was no one else to be seen there.

Jiang Feng walked to the spot where the girl who had seen the water monster had stood, and stared intently at the surface of the water. What he saw made him gasp in horror.

On the jagged rocks beside the Tianchi Lake lay at least ten water monsters. Some lazily sprawled on the rocks, others leisurely soaked in the water, but without exception, they all looked up at the moon, breathing heavily. Between their inhalations and exhalations, wisps of white mist could be faintly seen connecting their exaggeratedly large mouths to the moonlight, creating an extremely eerie sight.

Jiang Feng felt a chill run down his spine. Although he had felt these water monsters were somewhat sentient during the day, he never expected them to be absorbing the essence of moonlight, as if they were cultivating some strange technique.

Although he had seen spirit beasts on the Tianyuan Continent, the sudden appearance of such a strange phenomenon on Earth still gave him a powerful shock.

At this moment, Jiang Feng suddenly understood why so many large water monsters could survive even when fish and shrimp had vanished, aquatic plants had disappeared, and the lakeside meadows offered no food. It was because they didn’t need to eat; they survived solely on the essence of moonlight.

Just then, the water monsters noticed Jiang Feng’s presence. One of them stopped breathing, bared its fangs, and let out a low, angry roar.

Following this roar, the other water monsters responded in kind, all turning to look at Jiang Feng. Their roars merged into a single, chilling resonance under the pale moonlight.