The boy cried with utmost sorrow.
They were right, if it hadn't been for him, his mother wouldn't have died so early.
...
At this moment, it was the darkest hour in Lin Zhao's life. However, sent to this time by the Nine-Tailed Fox's time-rewind technique, his memories remained only from the age of seven.
Not long after, he cried until he was tired. He got up, not knowing where he was. In the night wind, he seemed to hear intermittent, mournful sobs. He immediately frowned, got up, and walked towards the sound. Under a large tree, a girl wearing a Taoist nun's attire and carrying a bamboo basket was crying, surrounded by a pack of wolves.
"..."
Lin Zhao instinctively reached for his waist, drew a wood-cutting knife, and then charged forward, letting out a great roar. Wielding the knife, he startled the pack of wolves, scattering them in all directions.
"You are?"
Lin Zhao looked at the girl, feeling a tremor deep within his soul. Although he didn't recognize her, a subtle feeling told him he had to save her, even at the cost of his own life.
"Ah?"
Wei Huayao looked up at the boy before her, also feeling a sense of familiarity. She frowned, "You... you... aren't you afraid of those wolves?"
"I am."
Lin Zhao frowned. "But the more you fear them, the fiercer they become."
Saying this, the boy scratched his head and said, "The elders in my hometown used to say that humans fear wolves by three parts, and wolves fear humans by seven parts. As long as you are not afraid, the wolves will be afraid of you."
"Mhm."
Wei Huayao looked at Lin Zhao, pursed her lips, and said, "My name is... my name is Wei Huayao, my nickname is... Wei Cun'er... you can call me Cun'er."
"Oh..."
Lin Zhao said, "My name is Lin Zhao. You can just call me Lin Zhao."
"Mhm."
At this moment, the wolf pack regrouped. They were indeed too hungry, their eyes fixed on the pair. Lin Zhao frowned. When he was young and went up the mountain to chop firewood with Uncle Long Zaitian, he had also been chased by wolves. He knew their habits well. Thus, he protected Wei Huayao behind him, held up his wood-cutting knife, and said, "Our campfire is too small. If we make it bigger, they won't dare to come closer. But we've already been targeted by the wolves, so we don't have a chance to gather more firewood."
"I..."
Wei Huayao softly nodded. She had already been so terrified by the wolves that she was beside herself. At this moment, she saw the boy before her as an angel descended from heaven. Although this boy was thin, he gave Wei Huayao a sense of immense stability.
Lin Zhao looked up above the old tree behind him and said, "Cun'er, can you climb trees? Wolves can't climb trees. If you can climb, you can spend the night up there. By dawn, when someone comes up the mountain, these wolves should leave."
"I..."
Wei Huayao gritted her teeth. After all, she was a young lady from a scholarly family and truly didn't know how to climb trees.
Lin Zhao frowned. "Let me climb up and chop some branches to start a fire, then I'll figure out how to get you up the tree?"
"Okay!"
Wei Huayao nodded vigorously.
Although the boy's stomach was rumbling with hunger, he was agile. He tucked the wood-cutting knife into his waist and scrambled up the tree in a few movements. He left a few thicker branches and then continuously chopped off thinner branches to serve as firewood for the campfire. After a while, he came down from the tree, cut off all the leaves from a pile of branches, placed them beside the campfire to dry, and after a while, began to add wood, making the campfire larger.
After finishing all this, he looked up at the tree, estimated the height, and then squatted at the base of the tree. He patted his shoulder and said, "Cun'er, step on my shoulder, and I'll lift you up to the tree. Hold onto that branch on the left, and then climb onto the thick branch next to it. That thick branch has a fork, so you can sit very steadily."
"Oh..."
Wei Huayao was cautious, repeatedly wiping the mud from the soles of her feet.
Lin Zhao couldn't help but chuckle. "It's alright, this shirt of mine is already very dirty. Hurry up and get up. Staying on the ground is always a bit unsafe."
"Mhm."
Wei Huayao nodded, then stepped on Lin Zhao's shoulders. Lin Zhao struggled to stand up. In fact, the boy's physique was quite sturdy, and Wei Huayao was not heavy, so it shouldn't have been a big deal. However, Lin Zhao had been starving for several days and had no strength left. He had also cut down many branches earlier, further depleting his energy, so he appeared quite strained.
"Lin Zhao, I'm sorry..."
Wei Huayao finally sat steadily on a branch and reached out, "You come up too?"
"Okay."
Lin Zhao sprang up. He didn't need her help. Just then, both of their stomachs rumbled loudly. Wei Huayao's pretty face flushed, and Lin Zhao also blushed.
"I..."
Wei Huayao said softly, "I brought food with me, but there weren't many households along the way, and I've eaten all of it. My bamboo basket still has some loose silver. If someone comes up the mountain tomorrow, you can buy some food from them."
"Oh..."
Lin Zhao frowned and leaned against the tree trunk, pursing his lips. His mind was a bit hazy. Where was he? Was he still in Tianchi Town on Xueyu Tianchi? It didn't seem like it. The surrounding mountains were completely different from those in his hometown. If so, how could he get home? His mother was waiting for him in bed, on the verge of death. He had to go back.
However, the hunger was unbearable. That was the most important thing at the moment.
Lin Zhao looked up. By the firelight, he seemed to see a cluster of indistinct shapes – a bird's nest.
"Cun'er, wait a moment, maybe there's something to eat."
He tucked the wood-cutting knife into his waist and climbed up more than ten meters again. Indeed, in the bird's nest were neatly arranged bird eggs, about the size of chicken eggs. There were six of them. Lin Zhao was ecstatic. He took out the bird eggs to put in his embrace, storing four eggs. Then he felt it was wrong. How sad would the mother bird be when she returned and found all her eggs gone? So, the boy took out one bird egg and put it back in the nest, taking only half.
He slid down the tree with extreme agility and said, "Cun'er, wait a moment, I'll roast the eggs for you."
"Oh..."
Wei Huayao nodded with a smile.
Lin Zhao returned to the ground and placed the bird eggs beside the campfire to roast slowly. After a while, when he confirmed they were cooked, he immediately put the hot bird eggs back into his embrace. He sprang back up the tree, took out three piping hot bird eggs, gave two to Wei Huayao, and kept one for himself. He cracked it open, and the inside was scalding.
"Lin Zhao..."
Wei Huayao returned one bird egg and said, "Eat more, one is enough for me."
"That won't do."
Lin Zhao frowned. "Cun'er, you're taller than me and older than me, so your appetite must be bigger than mine. You eat two, and I'll eat one. We'll figure out something tomorrow during the day."
"Mhm..."
...
After eating the bird eggs, their hunger was slightly alleviated. Lin Zhao and Wei Huayao leaned against the tree trunk together. Tired and hungry, they slowly fell asleep.
After an unknown period, Lin Zhao suddenly heard the sound of rustling wood. When he looked down, he was startled. The campfire had gone out at some point, and the wolf pack had gathered again. It was already dawn, and several wolves were leaping at the base of the tree, trying to bite Lin Zhao and Wei Huayao's dangling legs.
"Cun'er!"
He hurriedly woke Wei Huayao and said, "Be careful, pull your legs up!"
Wei Huayao was shocked and quickly pulled her legs up. Lin Zhao's gaze swept over and saw an adult wolf land on a gnarled, winding section of the ancient tree. With a leap, it lunged straight towards Lin Zhao and Wei Huayao.
"Ah?!"
Lin Zhao saw it clearly. He quickly drew his wood-cutting knife and struck. The next moment, the knife landed below the wolf's neck, while the wolf bit Lin Zhao's calf and dangled from the tree.
Enduring the intense pain, Lin Zhao struck the wolf's head with his knife, splashing blood everywhere. The wolf immediately tumbled to the ground, tucked its tail, and yelped as it fled. As for the wolf pack, once one wolf was injured, the others would also run. Moreover, it was already dawn, and the entire wolf pack fled in unison.
"Lin Zhao!"
Wei Huayao looked at Lin Zhao's bloody calf and was so frightened that tears welled up.
"It's fine, it's fine."
Lin Zhao shook his head, endured the pain, and grinned, "I'm fine, it doesn't hurt."
Unfortunately, Lin Zhao had been hungry for too long and lacked strength. Otherwise, the second blow would have killed that wolf. If he could have killed a wolf, it would have provided food for the future.
...
After dawn, Lin Zhao was the first to descend the tree, then he helped Wei Huayao to flat ground. However, no one had come up the mountain. Lin Zhao tore off a strip of cloth from his trousers and simply bandaged the wound. Fortunately, the injury was not deep, otherwise, it would have been troublesome. Then, he picked some wild fruits and shared some with Wei Huayao.
"Cun'er, where are you going next?" he asked.
"Up the mountain..."
Wei Huayao looked towards the mountain path and said, "I want to go up the mountain to find a master, seek the Tao, and cultivate immortality..."
"Good."
Lin Zhao made a walking stick out of a branch and limped along with a smile, "I'll accompany you up the mountain. After you find a master and learn your skills, I'll go down the mountain and go home. Mother is still waiting for me at home."
"Mhm!"
Wei Huayao smiled and nodded.
The two walked up the mountain side by side, their stomachs rumbling with hunger.
...
Deep in the East Sea.
A beam of sword light descended, transforming into Long Zheng's figure. In a flash, she rushed into the depths of the East Sea. Behind her, the Dharma image of a green dragon appeared. She turned and smiled, "Su Qingjiu, you truly dare! To kill me, Long Zheng, you'd abandon your own Great Dao? This forbidden land of the East Sea, is it a place that you, Su Qingjiu of Changming Mountain, should be?"
Su Qingjiu's brows furrowed slightly. Looking down, she saw that on the deep blue sea surface, heads were emerging from the water. Each head represented a Flood Dragon from the depths of the East Sea. She gritted her teeth and said calmly, "As expected. The Flood Dragon clan of the East Sea has ultimately sided with the Ancestral Mountain of the Demon Clan."
"Hmph!"
Long Zheng smiled slightly. "Otherwise? The Flood Dragon clan and the Demon Clan are inherently connected by blood. Would they still pledge allegiance to the human realm? Since you've come to the depths of the East Sea this time, don't think about returning. This deep sea is the perfect burial ground for you, Su Qingjiu."
ps: I've been struggling to update three chapters daily and have reached nearly 3 million words, but I can't keep it up anymore. I'll slow down the update frequency, changing from eight chapters to four. I hope for your understanding.