Chapter 110: The Way of Wilderness Survival
Chapter 110: Chapter 110: The Way of Wilderness Survival
THUD, THUD!
The ground trembled. Tang Wen’s feet exploded with power as he shot forward like a blur.
In just a few bounds, he had reached the hill where the Sand Wolves were.
"AWOO!"
"AWOOOO~"
The howls of the pack rose and fell one after another.
Tang Wen looked down from the hill. Below him was a valley, overgrown with thorns and green grass. A few small pools of water lay in the shadows near the stone cliffs.
Sand Wolves closed in from all sides.
Looking at the herds of cattle, sheep, donkeys, and deer below, Tang Wen thought that his household’s meat supply could use a little replenishing.
"AWOO!"
A cry with immense penetration power rang out.
A chill ran through him. Tang Wen looked toward the mountain peak on the other side of the valley.
A giant, light-gray wolf.
It was even larger than a typical Silver Wolf.
The giant wolf let out a long howl.
Tang Wen didn’t detect any malice in the sound, but he frowned.
’If I’m not mistaken, is it offering to give me some food?’
Tang Wen’s face was a mask of confusion.
’My Beast Taming Skill must be lacking. That Sand Wolf across the way is, at the very least, one of the finest among High-level Exotic Beasts.’
’Even as a First-class Martial Artist, I can’t guarantee victory while surrounded by a pack of wolves.’
Just then, after the giant wolf finished its howl, the Sand Wolves blocking his retreat path backed away, and the encirclement immediately broke.
Two Sand Wolves appeared in the valley, herding a half-grown bull and two mountain goats out of the canyon.
The look of astonishment on Tang Wen’s face was frozen in place.
He murmured to himself in the gentle breeze:
"No way... It can’t really be a gift for me... can it?"
A dozen or so minutes later, two Sand Wolves emerged from the west.
Running ahead of them were the bull and the goats.
This completely baffled Tang Wen. "Why do I suddenly feel a sense of guilt? I feel like I’ve become the bad guy from a cartoon who bullies little animals."
Another giant wolf appeared on the opposite side of the valley.
It was slightly smaller in stature; it seemed to be a she-wolf.
But Tang Wen sensed a hint of danger from it.
CLIP-CLOP, CLIP-CLOP.
The hooves of the bull and goats trod upon the ground.
The Sand Wolves that had brought them over let out a roar, and the three herbivores trembled in place.
The Sand Wolves’ performance was even more professional than that of a well-trained sheepdog.
Tang Wen walked over, took a rope from his waist, and tied it around the necks of the three animals.
Turning back, he looked at the two giant wolves, feeling like he should say something.
’Thanks for the hospitality? Thank you for having me?’
’Ugh, that makes it sound like I was a guest.’
’So, should I just say goodbye?’
’Hmm, that would sound like I’ll be back for more after I’m done eating.’
A sense of absurdity washed over Tang Wen.
He had never imagined that he would one day worry about how to greet and thank a pack of wolves.
"Ahem... In the future, if your clan doesn’t attack the people of our camp first, I believe we can coexist peacefully!" After speaking, Tang Wen pointed in the direction of the camp. "In any case, thank you for your gift!"
The giant wolf answered with a low growl. Tang Wen waved at them and walked away, leading the bull and goats with complex feelings in his heart.
’How did I, a magnificent First-class Martial Artist, end up looking like a beggar?’
’And the one I’m begging from isn’t even human...’
「Hundreds of miles away, to the west of the wilderness.」
A forest of black mountains stood with rugged terrain, easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Black Mountain Camp was hidden among the black mountains.
"How is my son?" Black Old Ghost asked in a deep voice.
"Commander Black Blade... he... he... he needs to recuperate slowly."
"How long until he recovers?"
"Th-th-this... Master..."
BANG!
Black Old Ghost struck out with his palm, and the lead physician died on the spot.
"You! Speak!" he said, pointing to another physician.
"Two years! Two years! Commander Black Blade will definitely make a full recovery!"
"Two years? I can’t wait two years!"
Black Old Ghost shot to his feet in a rage. A moment later, there wasn’t a single living person left in the room.
Only Black Blade remained, comatose and half-dead on the bed.
"Flame Camp!"
"Tang Wen!"
Black Old Ghost leaped onto the roof and gazed into the distance. Within his deep-set eye sockets, a black mist, darker than the deepest night, swirled.
"ACHOO!"
"No more putting ice on your head, or you’ll get a spanking!"
Cui Lian said with a stern face, scolding Little Taotao.
The little girl wasn’t scared at all. She hid behind Tangtang, tugging on the hem of her dress and making a face at her mother.
"You!"
"The little one is just being playful."
In the courtyard, the women were each doing their chores, and Tangtang had made some meat sandwiches for everyone to eat.
They didn’t take the meat sandwiches out to sell anymore.
It wasn’t just Tangtang; apart from the merchants designated by the camp to sell grain and food,
no other vendors were setting up stalls outside either.
That summer, the camp’s farmland in the mountains had yielded basically nothing.
Relying only on the fields of Peach Blossom Spring and the newly reclaimed land by the lake, they couldn’t harvest much grain.
As the number of refugees grew, the camp had no choice but to take in more and more Martial Disciples and Martial Artists, and the pressure on the food supply increased daily.
「General’s Mansion, Council Hall.」
The Queen was still in seclusion, so General Zhou and General Zhao were presiding over all camp matters.
Tang Wen sat in a corner. He had come to return the Snake Skin Armor and happened to walk in on the meeting, so he just sat in the corner to listen.
’I spend all my days focused on my Martial Arts Training. I’m too out of touch with the news. It’s good to get an update on the current situation.’
The first to speak was Qian Sanduo, who had just returned from a tour of all the nearby territories. "No one is willing to sell grain unless we trade them full sets of Refined Steel Armor and throw in a batch of our blacksmiths."
The Commanders all shook their heads. That was an outrageous demand.
Flame Camp’s current standing was largely due to the fact that they had a low-grade iron mine and could forge Fine Steel Armor.
For Martial Disciples, Martial Artists, and even Third-class Martial Artists,
wearing Fine Steel Armor in battle versus not wearing it made a huge difference—it could even determine life and death.
Everyone broke into discussion, but no feasible suggestions were raised.
Tang Wen sat at the back, lost in thought, his lips pressed together, not saying a word.
"No one can say for sure when this drought will end," General Zhou said, and the room fell silent. "Finding new sources of food remains our most important task right now!"
The camp had plenty of grain reserves, but they still had to plan for a rainy day.
Everyone was at a loss.
General Zhao suddenly called on him. "Tang Wen, you’re a clever brat with a lot of tricks up your sleeve. What do you think?"
Tang Wen did, in fact, have an idea. He recounted his encounter with the Sand Wolves from the day before and then said:
"Wild Exotic Beast Clans have a habit of raising prey. Since we can cooperate with the Silver Wolves, we can also cooperate with the Sand Wolves. The Sand Wolves are weaker than the Silver Wolves. The strongest in their pack won’t be beyond the General Level. They survive in the southern wilderness, so they must have competitors. We can work with them to eliminate their rivals. We get the prey, and we leave the territory to them."
"Not bad!"
"The young ones really do have the sharpest minds!"
"I think Commander Tang should speak up more often in the future."
"Exactly! He can’t just bury his head in Martial Arts Training."
Hearing this, Tang Wen offered a few humble words and repeatedly tried to decline the praise.
’What a joke. Reaching the Extraordinary Realm as soon as possible is what really matters. What time do I have to go negotiate with a pack of wolves?’
In the end, General Zhao decided to handle it personally.
Food was the top priority, so it was only natural for a General to take action.
Of course, with the camp deploying an Extraordinary, it also meant the Sand Wolf Pack had no choice in the matter.
They could only agree. They had to cooperate.
Otherwise... the prey they had raised was quite a large amount, after all.
That night, in a corner of the Royal Palace, rumbling vibrations continuously emanated from a courtyard.
A passing Guard shook his head and said:
"Does it seem to you like Commander Tang Wen’s secluded training is making a lot more noise than before?"
"Who knows! Maybe he’s experimenting with some new move?"
The Guards guessed at all sorts of possibilities, but no one mentioned the most direct and obvious one!
When your Realm breaks through, the process of tempering yourself naturally makes more noise.
The thought had crossed each of their minds, but they immediately dismissed it themselves.
’Commander Tang Wen has become a First-class Martial Artist?’
’There’s no way it could be that fast!’
’Even a genius would need a year or two to break through, right?’