themonasnovels Chapter 43 Meeting someone
Chapter 43 Meeting someone
Further along from the valley entrance, there is a slightly downward-sloping ridge.
The ground was covered with towering ancient trees that blocked out the sky, and old vines as thick as beams. The forest floor was covered with a thick layer of rotten leaves, which were soft and silent underfoot, making a slight rustling sound.
Cai Xuan, Xi'er, and Yun'er proceeded cautiously, but the forest was quiet, with few traces of birds and beasts, and no signs of ferocious beasts lurking or lying in wait.
Xi'er led the way, wielding a long axe to clear a path. The axe swung with tremendous force, snapping through any bushes and thorns in her way. Even when faced with boulders, she didn't detour, but instead punched them away. The rocks instantly shattered, creating a path strewn with pebbles.
Cai Xuan originally wanted to give her the wood-chopping knife, but she refused, saying that the knife was too light and not easy to handle.
Seeing her punching the stone, Cai Xuan told her to take a detour to save her energy. But she wouldn't listen, saying she had plenty of strength and wasn't afraid to waste it.
For a moment, Cai Xuan didn't know what to say.
Seeing his expression, Yun'er secretly giggled.
Although Cai Xuan felt that Xi'er was wasting her energy, he had to admit that the little guy was incredibly fast at clearing the way, and in no time he had cleared a wide and flat mountain path.
Yun'er followed closely behind, her eyes always on the surrounding movements. Whenever she noticed any disturbance, she would stare intently until she was sure it was just the rustling of grass or the traces of an ordinary small animal fleeing before slowly withdrawing her gaze.
Cai Xuan grabbed the wood-chopping knife and walked at the back.
He originally wanted to lead the way, but Xi'er got hooked on leading the way last time and kept clamoring to lead the way herself, so he had no choice but to let her do it. Of course, he wasn't idle either. While Xi'er led the way, he carefully observed the surrounding scenery from behind. When he encountered edible wild vegetables and fruits, he would note their locations so he could pick them later when he had time.
"Waaah...waaah..."
"Brother, look at that! It's so ugly!"
After walking through thorns and brambles for nearly an hour, a peach orchard suddenly appeared before them, with some beasts that looked like monkeys climbing in the orchard.
This beast is recorded in the "Xuanhuang Materia Medica". It is called Shan Niu (pronounced Chou here). It has a round white face, like the face of a sad person, a red bottom, and black fur. It is somewhat similar to the white-faced monk-like monkey that Cai Xuan had seen online before, but it is larger and uglier.
It's hard to imagine that there's a monkey uglier than the white-faced monk monkey.
Just one glance at it and I felt it affected my aesthetic sense.
"They are indeed a bit ugly." Cai Xuan nodded in agreement and said, "Let's go! Let's ignore them."
"oh."
Xi'er glanced at it again, then continued clearing the way with her axe. Yun'er only glanced at it once, then looked away, seemingly also disgusted by its ugliness.
Beyond the peach grove lay a bamboo forest. The bamboo was as green as jade, incredibly hard; even a woodcutter's axe chipped it, demonstrating its remarkable resilience. Cai Xuan felt he could do something about it and secretly made a note of it.
Continuing onward, we came upon an incredibly tall forest.
The giant trees in the forest are strange, their trunks covered with sharp, nail-like bark, and hanging from them are things that look like hanged ghosts or huge, black fruits.
"嘙"
Suddenly, the giant, jet-black fruit fell from above and burst open, spewing out a cloud of white stuff. A gust of wind blew, and it flew everywhere.
Upon closer inspection, he realized it was something like cotton. He touched it and found it soft and bouncy, perfect for making quilts and pillows. Cai Xuan looked at it and decided to take some back with him on his way back.
We still need to clear the road, so we don't have the time or energy to take it. We'll just leave it for now.
After walking for a while longer, the wind in the forest suddenly became humid, and a faint fishy smell wafted in the air. The sound of rushing water could be faintly heard.
Feeling they were almost at the riverbank, Xi'er immediately sped up the pace.
Passing through a dense, impenetrable forest, the view suddenly opened up, revealing a vast river stretching between heaven and earth. Its emerald green waters, surging with layers of waves, meandered from the distant mountains, rushing towards the endless horizon. The river's surface was expansive, shimmering with sunlight that dappled the water with golden light.
A river breeze blew in, carrying the moisture and freshness of the grass and trees, dispelling the heat brought on by Cai Xuan and his companions' long journey.
The riverbank was covered with weeds taller than a person, which swayed and undulated in the wind, stretching into the distance.
The shallows are covered with smooth pebbles and lush aquatic plants, where schools of fish leap out of the water, splashing countless droplets.
Cai Xuan looked at the wide river and secretly breathed a sigh of relief; he had finally cleared the way. He carefully observed the surrounding terrain, his gaze settling on a natural, inward-sloping river bend not far away. The bend sheltered from the wind and gathered the water, with a gentle current and a bottom full of pebbles and little silt—an excellent spot for fishing.
To his surprise, large patches of edible wild vegetables grew on the slopes along the riverbank.
But that makes sense. In this primitive world, where no one is causing damage, isn't it normal to have so many edible wild vegetables?
"Brother, there's something over there."
Yun'er suddenly took the rattan bow off her back, drew arrows from the quiver and put them in, staring at the depths of the dense forest on the opposite bank of the river.
Cai Xuan followed her gaze and saw birds circling above the jungle on the opposite bank, branches swaying, heavy hoofbeats coming from the forest, and the earth trembling slightly.
Before long, a group of tall, strange beasts slowly emerged from the river and stood on the riverbank.
The beast was enormous, with a powerful aura. It had a single horn like an ox, its body covered in thick, bluish-gray scales, and its limbs were as thick as pillars. The single horn on its head gleamed with a cold, eerie light, and its eyes were crimson, revealing a hint of ferocity.
"Scaled rhinoceros".
This is a ferocious beast with skin thicker and tougher than that of the sword-backed crocodile. Cai Xuan had seen it in the Xuanhuang Medicine Records, but he never expected that such a ferocious beast could be tamed by humans.
Indeed, on the backs of these scaled rhinoceroses sat burly, fierce-looking people. This was the first time Cai Xuan had seen people since arriving in this world—excluding Xi'er and her sisters.
Upon seeing the newcomers, Xi'er and Yun'er immediately stood on either side of Cai Xuan, carrying axes and spears, their faces serious and focused, as if ready to strike at any moment.
People on the other side of the river noticed the figures and stopped to look over.
The two sides faced each other across the river, the river wind howled, the wild grass swayed, and the atmosphere became stagnant and tense.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, a huge splash erupted in the middle of the river, and a loud bang echoed across the surface!
A massive, black shadow, its body undulating like a small mountain and covered in jet-black scales, rose from the water, its large, cold, and merciless vertical pupils sweeping across both banks. A stench of water wafted over, and an oppressive atmosphere enveloped the world like a landslide or a tsunami.
When the giant beast appeared, all living beings on both sides of the strait fell silent.
The scaled rhinoceroses retreated in unison, emitting fearful low growls, their eyes filled with terror as they stared at the massive black shadow on the river's surface. The person sitting atop it looked even more tense.
Cai Xuan's pupils contracted slightly. He never expected that such a terrifying aquatic beast would be hidden in this great river!
Instead of fear, Xi'er's eyes burned with intense fighting spirit. She gripped the axe handle tightly with her little hands, eager to try. Yun'er also drew her vine bow and aimed her arrow at the giant beast on the river.
They're like a newborn calf that's not afraid of a tiger.
Seeing their appearance, Cai Xuan swallowed hard and quickly led them to retreat quietly, fearing that if they lingered even a moment longer, they would become food for the giant beast.
The people on the other side were the same; it was hard to imagine that the enormous body of the scaled rhinoceros could walk with the gentle, silent steps of a small woman.
Retreating into the forest, seeing that the giant beast wasn't pursuing them, Cai Xuan immediately turned and ran with Xi'er and Yun'er. What a lousy place! Never coming back again! No wonder I felt a chill when I looked at Longjiang earlier; with this thing around, how could I not feel uneasy?