The youth walked along a beaten path. Trees of different kinds loomed overhead. The cries of birds and animals could be heard. Yet the atmosphere was anything but peaceful. The sunlight was blocked by the thick leaves making the area look dark and gloomy. This was not to mention the ever-present threat of Deviant Beasts.

“I know that it’s a place forbidden to ordinary people but now I understand why,” the youth remarked. Any sort of threat will not be truly felt until you experience it yourself. Even being a Qi Refinement Cultivator, he didn’t feel safe here. His hand was on the pouches at his waist. He also brought a large bag and quiver with him while his bow was in his other hand.

He walked with all the vigilance he could muster. The path he was walking on wasn’t visible from the outside and only when one traversed a bit inside would it reveal itself. It was also close to the Li Clan Estate. So, it was a good escape route for him.

He kept on walking. The dry leaves and twigs snapped under his feet. Insects chirped.

All of a sudden, it felt as though all sounds had stopped. Silence had descended abruptly. His heartbeat rose abruptly. The youth stopped in his tracks and looked behind.

There was nothing. Soon enough, the ground started vibrating and it kept increasing. Cries of hundreds of birds got louder and louder until they were visible as tiny moving dots in his vision. The dots were getting bigger. But there were even larger dots behind them.

He cursed inwardly and started running again. He continued on his intended path. A horde of Long-Tongued Baboons! A book he read on Deviant Beasts popped up in his mind.

“Long-Tongued Baboon: A variant of apes. They have grey fur and a long tail. They have blue skin underneath which is exposed on their face and hips. As indicated by their name, they have a long tongue that extends up to 3-4 feet. Their primary method of attacking is choking their prey with their long tongue. If their enemy gets too close for comfort, they will resort to punching and using their sharp claws. Their lowest realm is the Qi Refinement Realm. They prey on all manner of birds weaker than them. They fear Three-Tailed Shock Hounds. If they can’t defeat stronger enemies than them, they will proceed to overwhelm their enemy with numbers.”

“Well, I don’t have a Three-Tailed Shock Hound with me now, do I?” the youth cursed and grabbed a pouch from his waist. He then turned around and aimed before throwing the pouch towards the Long-Tongued Baboons. The pouch flew through the air. As it was flying, the youth took out his bow and aimed an arrow.

The pouch was flying through the flock of birds as it passed by them all and was overhead the Long-Tongued Baboons. At that moment, he released the arrow which had a serrated tip. The arrow flew through the air and created whistling sounds as it tore apart the air. The arrow accurately hit the pouch and tore it apart with its jagged teeth.

A purplish powder exploded in the air and fell on the horde of Long-Tongued Baboons. The horde stopped in its tracks as each of the baboons sniffed at the air. They inhaled the powder through both their nostrils and mouth. It took a second or so, but the baboons started quivering and shaking erratically. Their hootings and chatterings became louder as they started attacking one another. Some clawed others, some choked others with their tongues, some cannibalized and others pushed the opposite gender down.

The youth laughed and went on his way. The birds finally scattered without looking back. He patted the pouches on his back and sighed in relief. ‘White Eyes[1]’ worked as intended.

‘White Eyes’ was a concoction of herbs he created after research. It was a poison oriented towards animals and Deviant Beasts. White Eyes would increase adrenaline, hunger, blood flow, and lust, though which effect would be applied is mainly dependent on the constitution of the target.

He thought about having different poisons which would stimulate these effects separately but stronger. But after animal experimenting, he learned that not all animals get quickly influenced by certain effects.

For example, some animals would be quicker to be influenced by lust than hunger and so on. This concoction doesn’t work on humans to the same degree as it was made to influence the easily swayed primal instincts of Deviant Beasts. White Eyes is a crowd-control poison.

The youth kept his eyes peeled just so nothing unexpected came again. The congregation of trees was getting thinner and thinner. Soon, a clearing appeared in front of him. As soon as he saw what lay on the other side, his face darkened and turned moody.

He sighed deeply, “This can’t be anything but a last resort.”

The youth entered the shop with a large bag and looked at the counter. There were two people in front of him selling their things to the shopkeeper. That’s right! He had entered a merchant’s shop.

Merchant shops worked in various ways. You could equate them to both Supermarkets and Pawnshops. But some of them were also black market. However, very few knew about the black markets and even fewer had access to them. These black markets only catered to the insiders of the Jianghu[2].

But that was unimportant now. The youth joined the line as he waited and watched the people in front of him. There was only one other who had a large bag like him while the other two had Space Rings. Well, the others looked rich as well but that had nothing to do with him.

The person at the front had just finished his trade and the line shortened by one. The next person took out some metals and furs from his Space Ring which seemed to get the pawnbroker excited and take the person to a private room. Another pawnbroker came and manned the counter. The line was shortened again until a person came in through the door and stood behind him.

The person in front quickly finished his trade and left. It was now his turn. The pawnbroker looked at him briefly and his expression changed into a more amiable one.

“How may I help you today, Sir?” the pawnbroker had recognized the youth since the latter had traded here before.

“I’d like to sell some fur,” the youth put his large bag on the counter.

“And from what Deviant Beast may I ask?”

“Long-Tongued Baboons,” the youth said as he opened the bag.

“Well, we pay 15 Silver Taels for undamaged pieces and 10 Silver Taels for slightly damaged ones,” the pawnbroker didn’t dare to slight the youth. He very well knew that the latter was someone who knew the trade from a previous exchange.

“That’s good!” The youth nodded and took out the baboon furs. He took them out one by one and said, “Here are 15 furs in pristine condition and 20 slightly damaged ones.”

The pawnbroker cleared his throat and wore a thick monocle on his left eye which also served as a magnifying glass. He took the folded fur and looked at them with precision. After inspecting all 35 furs, he nodded and put them back on the table.

“Very well,” the pawnbroker took out an abacus and started calculating. “You will get-”

“425 Silver Taels,” the youth finished it for him. The pawnbroker silently looked at him and used the abacus once again, reaching the same answer after a while.

“…that’s right!” the pawnbroker looked half-impressed and half-defeated.

“Just give me 4 Gold Taels and 25 Silver Taels.”

“As you wish!” the pawnbroker opened the drawer and gave him his money after counting.

The youth took the money and left. The pawnbroker yelled from behind, “Thank you for your patronage!”

The youth left the shop and started heading down the street. He headed towards a more barren street. Few people had walked the streets. In one corner of this street, there was a shop. A very ordinary shop. People would often overlook it. The youth headed inside the shop without hesitation.

The wooden door looked brittle from the years of abuse from termites. Its hinges were rusty and creaky. He carefully opened the door and headed inside. The inside of the shop was also made of wood which was now brittle. He took a step in and floorboards creaked.

There was an old man behind the counter. Time had taken its toll on him. He could no longer stand straight and had a hunched back. His long hair and beard were as white as snow. His skin had wrinkles and moles. He was old and was one step into the grave but his eyes had a sparkling radiance to them.

“Well, if it isn’t you!” the old man greeted him with a smile. His smile revealed wooden teeth. “What would you like today?” Behind the old man were shelves and shelves of herbs and other materials.

“Just these,” the youth handed the old man a parchment. The old man took the parchment with shaky hands and read it. The more he read, the more he frowned. He finally finished reading and looked up at the youth, “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely,” the youth smiled. The old man’s expression changed and he nodded before turning around and putting everything the youth requested together. As the youth waited, the old man made small talk, “Have your headaches reduced?”

“Huh?” the youth was startled. But he soon realized that he had not suffered from them in the recent days, “They seemed to have stopped or rather, I couldn’t even spare time for my headaches!”

“I see…” the old man’s voice trailed off and silence descended once again. After a while, the old man put a large package on the counter.

“2 Gold and 56 Silver Taels,” the old man quoted the price.

The youth frowned, “It should cost me much more than that!”

“Consider it a discount,” the old man smiled.

The youth smiled and didn’t argue. He took the money from his pouch and gave it to the old man. He took the package from the counter and left.

As he opened the door, he heard the old man behind him, “Goodbye.”

The youth froze in his spot. After a second, he closed the door behind him and continued on his way. There was no ‘see you later’ only ‘goodbye’.

He walked back towards the Li Clan Estate. From the isolated street, he had now come to a more thriving part of town. Large, colorful buildings, the sound of people gossiping, children’s melodious laughter, the appetizing aroma from roadside stalls, and the beautiful paper lanterns that hung overhead.

Amidst the beautiful Huangye streets, a lonely youth walked; humming a tune of melancholy.