Dragon Canon

That night, Wei Yuan felt drowsy, drifting in and out of sleep.

Suddenly, the door opened again. The woman had returned.

She was carrying a few pieces of firewood between her arms and had two potato-like objects in her pocket. Her hands and face were frozen blue. As soon as she entered the room, she warmed herself by the fire. It took quite a while before she stopped shivering.

After tucking two pieces of firewood into the embers, she climbed into bed, burrowing into the straw and furs, and snuggled up close to Wei Yuan.

Despite the added fire, the room felt even colder than before. Night must have fallen outside. On such a bitterly cold winter night, the two of them had to huddle tightly together just to find a little more warmth.

Feeling an inexplicable sense of reassurance, Wei Yuan finally fell into a deep sleep.

It felt like only a short while had passed when the woman got out of bed. She drew a bucket of water, mixed it with mud, added chopped straw to the mixture, and then used it to seal the cracks in the wall.

After sleeping for a day, Wei Yuan’s spirits had recovered somewhat. However, his body had actually grown weaker. He knew that his injuries weren’t going to heal at this rate. He had to eat something.

But all day long, the woman had given him only a bowl of soup. She hadn’t eaten much herself either. It seemed food was extremely scarce in this place.

Wei Yuan asked, “Can you take me out for a walk?”

The woman didn’t ask any questions. She simply helped him out of the bed, wrapped him in the only old animal hide on the bed, and led him out the door.

As soon as they stepped outside, a cold wind hit them in the face, nearly freezing Wei Yuan stiff. He struggled to project his perception only to discover that this place seemed to heavily suppress it. The range of his perception was severely limited to just a few zhang around him, and the images were all blurry. He could only vaguely sense some outlines and the properties of the objects.

Wei Yuan reached out to feel his way around while secretly projecting his perception to scan the surroundings.

It was a small hut built halfway up a mountainside, with stone walls and a small courtyard surrounding it. The walls were built of mountain rocks and in a state of disrepair, offering little protection against wild beasts. Within the courtyard and within the range of his perception, there was only an old tree. No other inhabitants were present.

Thick snow had accumulated on the courtyard walls, though some of it had been cleared away inside. The mountainside outside was mostly rocky, covered in snow everywhere at this time of year. There were little vegetation.

“Are there any wild beasts nearby, or things like pine cones or wild potatoes?”

“There are wild beasts in the mountains and forests, but there are wolves. If you’re lucky, you might find wild potatoes in the woods, but you can only go in to dig them up at noon. Except for those two hours at noon, no one is allowed to go near the forest. Otherwise, a monster might snatch them up.”

“A monster?” Wei Yuan asked.

“They’re terrifying. The village elders said they’ve actually been dead for thousands of years. But the longer they’ve been dead, the more terrifying they are. Fortunately, they never come near the village, and they don’t run very fast. If you happen to encounter one, just run a little faster. You’ll be safe once you’re back in the village.”

I knew this place is more than it seems, Wei Yuan thought to himself.

A place where undead monsters appeared likely harbored a cavern of extreme yin. Since these monsters have survived for thousands of years, the crypt’s yin energy must be extremely potent; perhaps even on par with the entrance of an earthly vein. The fact that the undead monsters dared not enter the village despite this suggested that it likely harbored a supreme treasure that was the bane of their existence.

According to Wei Yuan’s knowledge, a century-old undead monster was terrifying enough. A millenia-old monster was outright horrifying, not to mention there were several of them. Then again, considering how remote and isolated the mountain village was, it was also quite possible that the people were exaggerating.

“What kind of wild beasts are there in the woods?”

“Mostly wolves. I’ve heard there are snow leopards too; a village child was carried off by one a few years ago. Other than that, there are deers, wild boars, and the like.” 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

“Are there any hunters in the village?”

“Two of the village elders used to be hunters, but they’re both sick and haven’t been into the mountains for half a month.”

From what he heard, Wei Yuan concluded that the mountains and forests were likely home only to ordinary wild animals.

Wei Yuan requested, “Help me walk around the courtyard a couple times. I have a keen sense of smell; I can sniff out if any wild animals are lurking nearby.”

“You can do that?” The woman seemed highly skeptical, but she still supported Wei Yuan as they slowly walked around the courtyard twice.

The small courtyard wasn’t large, but the ground was even. Wei Yuan still had no feeling in his left leg, so he had to drag it along and shuffle step by step. Half of his body weight was resting on the woman.

Although the mountain woman was slender, she was surprisingly strong and managed to support him. After walking around the courtyard twice, Wei Yuan had gained a rough idea of the situation. He then casually gave the woman’s waist a pinch.

The woman didn’t take offense. Instead, she asked, “What, you can’t wait any longer?”

“No, I was just checking your physical constitution.” After the pinch, Wei Yuan learned that there was not a single trace of Body-tempering in her body whatsoever. Her muscles and bones were of ordinary human strength. Based on this, he deduced that the creatures roaming the mountains and forests must be ordinary wild beasts.

Back in the courtyard, Wei Yuan was exhausted. He sat down to rest for a moment before asking, “Do you have any tools? I’ll make some hunting gear and traps. By nighttime, we can go hunting in the mountains.”

“I have a firewood knife, but I’ll have to borrow an axe. However, we can only hunt during noon. The undead monsters roam the area at all other times.”

“Tomorrow at noon, then. I’ll need that axe.”

“Wait here; I’ll go borrow it.” The woman hurried away.

Wei Yuan lost track of the woman after she had walked a few zhang. By the time she returned, Wei Yuan had picked up a few stones and was striking them one by one. Drawing on his control over his body and his understanding of the material properties, he quickly fashioned two stone spearheads.

It was at that moment the woman returned with the axe she had borrowed. Wei Yuan took it, rummaged through the woodpile in the courtyard for a moment, and pulled out two long pieces of firewood. He whittled off the excess branches with the axe, and then tied the stone spearhead to them.

That night, the two slept huddled together again. They had only eaten one meal that day.

At noon the next day, Wei Yuan and the woman reached the edge of the woods on the hillside, where Wei Yuan caught a faint whiff of a wild beast’s scent. It wasn’t long before a lone wolf emerged from the woods and pounced on them.

Wei Yuan raised his left arm defensively, and the wolf bit down on it. Wei Yuan immediately raised his spear with his right hand and, with a gentle thrust, killed the wolf. Though the wolf bit and tore at him frantically, it failed to break even the skin on his left arm.

Wei Yuan then located a small tree that was about as thick as a bowl’s rim. Channeling the tiny bit of Dao energy he had regained, he made a light slash, fell the tree, and dragged it back with him.

That afternoon, the two ate a large pot of meat broth and fashioned a half-tanned wolf pelt. They also added a few extra pieces of firewood for the charcoal fire that night. Sleeping huddled together, they didn’t feel quite as cold as before.

Wei Yuan slept deeply and with great peace of mind.

Having replenished his strength with the wolf meat, Wei Yuan’s previously numb limbs began to regain some sensation. He was also able to draw upon a bit more Dao energy. He took the small tree he had cut down the day before and hollowed out the center to create a straight, four-chi-long wooden staff. Carrying it, he led the woman up the mountains once more.

This time, the two ventured a little deeper, walking several dozen zhang into the forest before crouching down.

Deep within the woods, a pack of wolves appeared. As the wolves charged toward them, Wei Yuan forcefully pushed the woman face-down into the snow, then raised his hand to attach a sharp knife glinting with a cold light to the wooden staff.

Wei Yuan had manifested it using his slightly restored Dao energy. There was nothing supernatural about it. He had simply transformed its material properties into steel.

Though the wolf pack was large, they were merely ordinary beasts. Their bites couldn’t even pierce Wei Yuan’s skin. After fitting the knife to his staff, Wei Yuan relied on his instincts to take down one wolf per strike, killing a dozen or so in the blink of an eye.

Upon returning, the woman took several wolves to the village to distribute among the other villagers. While she was away, Wei Yuan manifested a sharp dagger and dispatched the remaining eight wolves in one go.

That night, Wei Yuan ate two wolves, while the woman ate two wolf legs for dinner.

When it was time for bed again, and the two slept nestled close together, the campfire blazed hot enough for a light sheen of sweat to appear on the woman’s forehead.

At dawn, Wei Yuan awoke. He felt better after last night’s hearty meal. His left leg could now barely support his weight, and he had regained sensation in his left hand. No longer having to limp, he was able to move much more quickly.

Around noon, Wei Yuan and the woman ventured back into the woods. This time, Wei Yuan carried a wooden staff in his right hand and held the woman’s hand with his left, letting her lead the way.

As they went deeper into the forest, they encountered two more lone wolves. Unfortunately for the wolves, they lost their chance to survive the moment they entered Wei Yuan’s range of perception.

They were lucky on this expedition into the forest, too—they had found a field of sweet potatoes. Wei Yuan stood nearby on guard while the woman dug through the earth. Just then, they suddenly heard the sound of rustling branches. A ferocious beast was darting through the treetops, circling the two of them.

Its position was just outside Wei Yuan’s range of perception, so he asked, “Which way is it?”

“Upper right, no, right—now it’s left!” The woman shouted a flurry of directions, but Wei Yuan couldn’t make sense of them at all. Just then, the beast suddenly pounced—aiming for the woman—and pinned her to the ground in an instant!

Wei Yuan immediately threw himself on top of the beast, a sharp dagger now in his hand, which he plunged viciously into its body!

While the beast writhed in pain, Wei Yuan seized the opportunity to roll to the side and drag it off the woman. Several sharp tearing sounds echoed through the air—it was the beast’s claws ripping through the woman’s clothes.

The beast weighed several hundred catties and possessed immense strength. Even Wei Yuan was straining a little to hold it down. Suddenly, it thrashed violently, rolled over, and sank its teeth into Wei Yuan’s throat!

Four sharp canine teeth pierced Wei Yuan’s skin, forcing their way through his muscles with great difficulty before coming to a dead stop on his windpipe. When the beast bit down with all its might, several cracks instantly appeared on the tips of its teeth and caused it to let out a pained whimper.

A short iron pipe appeared in Wei Yuan’s hand, and he pressed it against the beast’s body. There was a loud bang, and a large hole appeared in its chest.

On the way back, Wei Yuan dragged the snow leopard with one hand and cradled the woman in the other, moving step by step until he finally made it back to the courtyard.

The woman’s back bore four blood gashes from the snow leopard’s sharp claws. Fortunately, treating this level of external injury was nothing to Wei Yuan. He had the woman lie face-down on the bed, ground up some of the herbs she had gathered herself, and sprinkled them on the wounds.

The herbs looked useless. In fact, they were completely ineffective. Wei Yuan really sealed the wounds with his Dao energy, then drew a tiny bit of life force from the treasure tree on the jade hill and sprinkled it onto the wounds.

Although the amount of life force Wei Yuan had drawn was utterly negligible, on an ordinary mortal like the woman, it had an effect equivalent to bringing the dead back to life or regenerating flesh from pure bones.

While applying the medicine with one hand, Wei Yuan casually ran the other hand across the woman’s back. As expected, the body of a mountain woman was naturally robust. The curve of her spine was just right; each bend and spring capable of unleashing tremendous strength.

The woman suddenly said, “Stop!”

Wei Yuan didn’t stop.

The woman immediately grabbed the softest part of Wei Yuan’s waist and gave it a vicious twist. It hurt so much that Wei Yuan sucked in a sharp breath of pain!

No matter how much he had tempered his body, he couldn’t possibly withstand such a profound technique—a small-area lift followed by a 180-degree twist.