Night falls.
The tumultuous drafting action has come to an end.
Cries of mourning in some households, funeral laments in others.
Gray-haired parents sending off their black-haired children, loving couples facing life-and-death separations...
The Little Ink Workshop fell completely silent.
Yan Yu extinguished the candles early, nervously keeping watch at the back door, glancing outside from time to time, both worried and hopeful.
Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, not as an act, but because the atmosphere of the entire Little Ink Workshop was like this—who living there wasn't heartbroken?
At midnight, a ghostly shadow suddenly appeared at the back door, and with a raised hand, knocked lightly and heavily in the rhythm "lightly, heavily, lightly, heavily" six times.
Yan Yu leaned closer, and a voice came from outside.
"It's me."
That familiar voice thrilled Yan Yu; she hurriedly opened the door, pulling the man outside quickly in, and then eagerly embraced him, her hands restlessly seeking.
After a long while...
The room quieted down.
Li Yuan said, "Don't you mind the smell?"
"I don't smell anything bad," Lady Yan answered softly, though her hands held onto her man tightly, afraid that letting go would mean losing him.
After a light sigh, seeming to have had enough, she released him and said, "I'll boil some water so you can bathe."
"No need, smoke might make others suspicious." Li Yuan said, "Besides... I already bathed in the mountain spring, but I'll need to take some soap and clothes."
"Mountain spring?"
Lady Yan's eyes widened, showing disbelief on her face.
"In this weather?"
"Aren't you freezing to death?"
Li Yuan said, "Your man is tougher than an ox, won't freeze."
Lady Yan gave him a glance, pinched his flesh, and teasingly said, "No wonder you can plow so well."
After saying this, she sighed again, leaned on Li Yuan's chest, and softly said, "Many men from the workshop have left: Uncle Wang, Qian Er, Brother Xiong, and even that Xiaohu who called you Brother Yuan, all the able-bodied men whose names we can call out have mostly left.
Brother Yuan, do you think... after going to kill the Red Lotus Thieves, will they be able to come back alive?"
Li Yuan remained silent for a while.
Before crossing worlds, although he didn't study history books much, he at least followed historical dramas.
So he knew: peasant revolts often heralded the opening act of chaotic times.
Like Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, or "Heaven is Yellow ought to be upon," or the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom...
When chaotic times fully begin, order will collapse, and lives will be as insignificant as grass.
Now, affairs like starving people to death or selling people in this workshop can only be considered child's play...
By then,
the human world, will no longer be the human world
but... Hell.
...
"Brother Yuan, do you really think they won't come back?" Lady Yan spoke softly, "Qian Er and the others might be what they are, but there are still many good people in the workshop... Are they just going to die like this?"
Li Yuan felt a bit heavy-hearted.
He considered: once things calm down, to save some silver and live near Silver Creek, wondering if it would be better.
Or perhaps, escape into the deep mountains? Hide in the mountains and then establish a 'Peach Blossom Spring' to avoid the chaotic times?
Li Yuan held his wife tightly, comforting her, "Life or death, it's not for us to decide, it's all up to fate."
Lady Yan started to sob, crying, "Thank goodness you didn't go, thank goodness you didn't go... You must take good care in the mountains, if you can't make it back at night, don't force yourself."
Li Yuan said, "Sister Yan, I know what you said.
Keep our grains hidden, take out a little at a time, don't let others realize we have so much.
Also, if you see a family unable to get by, don't act on your generosity and give them much grain. It will bring trouble."
Lady Yan closed her eyes,
her cheek pressed against him,
murmuring a sentence: "Your wife, not foolish."
...
...
In the early morning, before dawn.
Li Yuan climbed out of bed, carrying his packed bundle, discreetly pushed open the back door, and vanished into the pre-dawn mist like a phantom.
Unable to stay at home and having to hide in the mountains made him feel somewhat depressed, but it was unavoidable.
Back on the mountain, he quickly entered the Erchong Mountain, found a cave near a mountain spring, and settled down.
Before long, daylight broke.
Golden sunlight illuminated the mountain terrain.
He took old clothes and soap, went to the spring to wash clothes, and seeing several "0~1" emerge from the depths of the spring, he immediately speared down with an arrow, pulling up a fish just like that.
After washing the clothes, he draped them flat on the rock outside the cave.
Placed neatly, a day of sunbathing like this should be enough to dry them.
Then, using the firewood picked up along the way, he lit a bonfire at the cave entrance and started roasting the fish over the fire.
After finishing the fish, he leaned against the mountain wall, staring blankly into the distance.
After zoning out for a while, he started to feel bored.
Disguise and go have some fun in the county? Forget it... once discovered, it's all over.
But I have to find something to do, right?
How about continuing deeper into the mountains to take a look?
If a good place could truly be found in these mountains, bringing Sister Yan here to build a hidden refuge wouldn't be bad; perhaps enduring long enough might just see us through this chaotic world.
The residents of the Peach Blossom Spring said, "Our ancestors fled to this remote realm to escape the chaos of the Qin era," and they managed to avoid the entire turmoil.
Why couldn't I do the same?
Cultivation Skills are indeed invaluable, but if they require risking one's life or taking big risks to obtain, then maybe it's not worth it. As long as I live long enough, opportunities will always come.
Moreover, if I can survive in the mountains long enough, my Points will surely accumulate, and by the time I venture out, learning any Skills or Cultivation Skills would instantly upgrade to Max Level. Isn't that better than living in constant fear outside?
At that moment, Li Yuan's heart started beating rapidly.
"Alright, alright, alright!"
He sprang up from the ground full of energy, clenched his fists, his eyes gleaming, and said, "Today, I will venture deeper into Xiao Mo Mountain."
Thus, Li Yuan packed his Bow, grabbed his Firewood Blade, and continued northward.
He was familiar with this area.
However, his familiar territory only extended up to a mountain pass ahead.
Today, he decided to go through that pass to see what lies beyond the "Second Layer Mountain" and the "Third Layer Mountain".
In the afternoon,
He staggered northward, quickly passing through the mountain pass.
Beyond the pass was a vast, wild forest, tinged with a grayish-yellow hue. Come spring or summer, it would surely look different.
"This godforsaken place doesn't even have a path. No one ever comes here."
Li Yuan swung his Firewood Blade left and right, cutting down some mysteriously hanging dead vines and wildly growing branches.
He glanced forward, where everything seemed to stretch endlessly, all looking the same.
He looked around, occasionally seeing values of "0~1" or "1~2" flashing by.
The frequency of these values appearing was much higher than in the Erchong Mountain.
"Good, in that case, I don't have to worry about meat.
And if I plant some vegetables later, it will be even better.
However, this place is still too close to the outside. I need to explore further into the distance."
Soon, it was evening.
After a day of exploration, Li Yuan decided to return.
He spent the entire afternoon walking continuously.
Thanks to his Grandmaster Level Tracking skills and ability to see values, as long as he didn't provoke any aggressive Fierce Beasts, they wouldn't come after him.
At sunset, the dusk was as red as blood.
The mountain wind was strangely chilly.
It was like a bone-cutting knife.
Li Yuan ran at a brisk pace as he returned.
Night had fallen, but the full moon shone brightly, illuminating the land.
Li Yuan returned to the cave, lit a bonfire, and then hurried to the nearby mountain spring, wincing as he took a cold shower, catching a few fish along the way.
A moment later, he changed into the clothes he'd dried during the day, squatted on a large stone block, grilling fish while reviewing the day's terrain survey in the Third Layer Mountain.
"So far, I haven't found a suitable place yet.
Perhaps I can set out earlier tomorrow and pick up the pace to reach further."
As he was contemplating, Li Yuan suddenly felt a gust of foul wind approaching from afar.
He quickly flipped his left hand, grabbing the Earth Bow, let go of the grilled fish with his right hand, and pulled out an arrow.
He bent the Bow,
notched the arrow,
the Bowstring was taut,
and the arrowhead gleaming coldly aimed at the edge of the bonfire's light.
Li Yuan's eyes quietly fixed on the distance with vigilance.
At that moment, a "5~8" value appeared from afar, and the outline of a white-striped tiger emerged in the darkness.
The tiger was running swiftly but suddenly halted near the bonfire, then slowly retreated a few steps before lying down and staying still.
Initially, Li Yuan wanted to shoot the arrow, but somehow he held back, kicked the grilled fish up with the tip of his boot, then with a flick of his foot, sent the grilled fish flying out.
The grilled fish flew and landed outside the bonfire's perimeter.
But the tiger lying on the ground didn't move.
Li Yuan slightly lowered his Bow and arrow, calming his presence.
The tiger suddenly stood up, walked forward a few steps, grabbed the grilled fish in its mouth, and quickly turned around to run away.
...
...
Note: I've tried a different schedule these past few days. Usually, I can get the second update posted by 8 PM. Unless something unexpected happens, the first update will be at 5 PM, and the second update at 8 PM. Just letting everyone know.