65: Chapter 64 Deer Sled Galloping 2 65: Chapter 64 Deer Sled Galloping 2 On the second day’s early morning, waking up during morning classes, chaos had already descended on top of the hill.
Meals, harnessing the deer, securing…
bowstrings drawn, spears on shoulders, the border folks wore calm expressions, for them, this was just part of daily life.
The chaos was among the old, the weak, women, and children of the convoy; they needed to determine what to take with them and what to leave behind, a painful choice, for these belongings were now all they had, the very guarantee of survival Anhe Country had relied upon in the past.
In the midst of tears and sobs, with their not-so-large bundles, they each took their seats on the deer sleds, tightly bound with ropes by the border folks and then covered with a large piece of hide, to keep the human scent from leaking out as much as possible, at least preventing forest creatures from finding their target immediately.
This was the blood-bought experience of the border folks, accumulated over thousands of years, something Hou Niao hadn’t thought of in the moment, and those twenty Spirit Stones were well spent!
Once everything was ready, the deer sled convoy began its journey, each sled pulled by two sturdy male Lin Lu, creatures that were native to the forest and adept at navigating its environment.
Now, on hard ground, dragging several people still proved somewhat strenuous, yet once they entered the forest, it would become much easier.
Six sleds, in a serpent formation, with the last one empty, ready to pick up any stragglers.
Hou Niao and the young man rode side-by-side; they didn’t need to switch horses, as running their Cultivation Technique was enough to lighten the load for the horses, and besides, there were no extra Lin Lu to switch to, these creatures were temperamental and not just anyone could manage them.
The young man’s expression was normal, for a Hunter who spent years living in the wilderness and contending with demons, this was no different from any other expedition.
But he did have concerns, “I can only lead from the front because you don’t know the way; yet, in my experience, when the deer sleds speed up and creatures from outside intrude, converging upon us, it’s actually the front that faces the least pressure.
The pressure is at the back…”
Hou Niao smiled faintly, “You do what you have to do, I’ll do what I have to do, don’t worry about others, that’s all there is to it.”
The young man still pressed, “And if one of us makes a mistake?”
Hou Niao matter-of-factly, “Then it’s their bad luck!”
The young man laughed, this was what he loved to hear, out in the wild, dealing with monsters, what he feared most was those who pretended to be Saints, full of benevolence and righteousness, which would drag everyone down to their deaths!
Nobody could guarantee survival without loss, seasoned Hunters were well aware that today might be their last, this was an understanding that had to be had; they had it, and the old and weak must have it too!
Natural selection, survival of the fittest, was the only rule for staying alive!
If this unfamiliar Cultivator at the back didn’t dawdle, they really might be able to lead most people out.
Hou Niao looked amusedly at him, this young man really suited his temperament, “What’s your name?”
The young man looked back with pride, “At the border, only friends get to know each other’s names, if we make it out, if you’re still alive, I’ll tell you!”
Hou Niao laughed loudly, cracking his whip on the young man’s horse’s behind, “Time for you to lead the way.”
Amidst the young man’s annoyed glare, Hou Niao steered his horse between the fifth and sixth deer sleds, that was his spot, convenient for tossing anyone who fell off into the last sled.
Finally, the sky stopped raining, though it remained gloomy and oppressive; the sun they had hoped for did not appear, but the sled team began to gradually pick up speed, there was no turning back.
The young man, leading the charge on horseback, plunged into the Poplar Forest, starting to navigate at a gallop; unlike paths measured by human feet, the deer sleds required a certain kind of path, and such a winding advance often turned nearly forty miles into sixty with no surprise.
Six deer sleds entered the Poplar Forest in succession, expertly driven with compact spacing that allowed them to follow the sled ahead without losing sight of it while maintaining enough distance to prevent accidental collisions, causing Hou Niao to marvel once again at the value of the Spirit Stone.
Six large torches soaked in grease blazed fiercely, acting as a deterrent to creatures sensitive to flames.
Everything that could have been done had been done to the utmost, and the sleds could barely reach half the full speed of a galloping horse; this might sound ordinary, but considering they were in the dense Poplar Forest and towing six or seven people, the speed was already astonishing.
The journey started off very smoothly, without even a sighting of an abnormal creature in the first ten miles.
Instead, as they passed by, creatures hidden in treetops, tree holes, and decaying leaves abandoned their homes in droves, resembling a long dragon engulfed in flames.
Hou Niao had no idea what the youth at the front encountered, but he himself met nothing, with the occasional lone creature crushed under the sled’s onslaught.
This made Hou Niao realize that their greatest advantage here was speed!
Before the creatures could react.
If they could travel in a straight line, they really might have charged through the forty miles of forest; but humans can travel straight lines, deer sleds cannot!
The nearly ten feet wide sleds often couldn’t squeeze between the poplar trees, so they had to take detours, not only wasting time but also giving the forest’s creatures time to respond.
Hou Niao, in haste, urged his steed forward several steps and cleaved a Spiked Fox in two with his sword.
The creature had been trying to gnaw a hole in the hide covering, evidently having caught the scent of humans.
In the second ten miles, creatures from the forest began to launch attacks, emerging suddenly from the treetops and fallen leaves, taking them by surprise.
At this time, the two borderfolk on each deer sled displayed their good quality and extensive experience.
The drivers maneuvered nimbly to avoid colliding with some of the larger creatures; the hunters, wielding longbows and close-quarters spears, lacked formal martial arts training, but their movements with the iron prongs were honed by real practice, unadorned and ruthless.
Any particularly troublesome creature was dealt with by Hou Niao.
Despite the continuous troubles on this stretch, they carried on without serious incident.
But the trend was changing!
The most threatening creatures in the forest were concentrated in its depths; by this logic, if they could hold on for another twenty miles, the situation would likely improve, albeit only in theory.
The deer sleds entered the third ten miles, nearly halfway, and although the number of unusual creatures was still increasing, the rate of increase was limited, which gave Hou Niao a glimmer of hope.
Up to now, his expenditure of energy was not significant, he had preserved most of his combat strength, and the Spiritual Power stored in his meridians was still abundant.
However, his good mood was interrupted by a tiger’s roar!
He was certain it was a tiger’s roar because it was so distinctive, but he could not understand what it signified.
What finally made him realize the impending trouble was not with the unusual creatures, but with the borderfolk’s reaction; those who had been calm now showed fear on their faces, as if their end was near!
“What’s happened?” Hou Niao roared.
A borderfolk replied, “It’s the Tiger God of the forest, we can’t escape; a roar from the Tiger God, and the Forest Beasts respond.
It’s the signal that the Tiger God is going to surround and hunt us!”
Hou Niao cursed back without courtesy, “Listen up, all of you!
In this world, no one dares to claim to be a god, and if there is one, it must be a human!
Charge forward, don’t be distracted, and even if it is a god, I shall pluck a few Divine hairs from it!”
They could not afford to show any weakness—it could cost them their lives!
… Nine twists and turns on a sheep’s gut path, a thousand layers of sword and halberd hills.
Through hooks and vines and thorns they go, seated with the print of tiger stripes aglow.
Trees lose their leaves to three autumns’ woe, clouds return to ten thousand ravines in tow.
Accompanied by sleds beneath the grove, fatigued yet unaware of the time to go home.