17: Chapter 10 The Invisible Zone (2) 17: Chapter 10 The Invisible Zone (2) Editor: Henyee Translations The atmosphere at the table had grown heavy.
There were changes in the mountains.
Perhaps a full-scale clearing operation was approaching.
No one knew what would happen next.
Feng Yian downed his cup of liquor in one gulp and said, “Brother Xu, I’ll have to trouble you to plant the dicinal seeds.” He carefully pulled out a wooden box from his robes.
Inside were four black seeds, each about the size of a lima bean.
Xu Yueping was startled.
“You’re planting them in winter?”
Feng Yian’s expression was grim.
“Put them into a fire spring now, and by early spring, they’ll flourish.
When the next battle cos, the patrol team will be on the front lines.
For so of our brothers, their lives may already be on a countdown.
Even if they survive, they could be half-crippled.
We don’t know if they’ll last until the ‘Black Moon’ blooms.
These are lifesaving herbs for many people.
Old Xu, you must take this seriously!”
The Black Moon plant, when rooted in a fire spring, grew leaves like orchids.
Once the plump buds blood, each petal resembled a crescent of black moonlight, radiating dark luminescence, shrouded in white mist.
Feng Yian wiped the liquor from his thick beard, stood up, and took his leave.
“Thanks for the hospitality, Brother Xu.
If I survive the mountain sweep, let’s drink again.”
“Brother Feng, with your skill, you’ll surely turn misfortune into fortune,” Xu Yueping replied.
Everyone saw Feng Yian off at the village entrance, watching him disappear into the night.
“The tis are bad, but the patrol team has shown restraint; they only brought four seeds.
That’s about all the spiritual energy a fire spring can handle,” soone remarked.
The patrollers didn’t just monitor the mountain’s dangers, they protected it.
Across the region, villages were willing to plant dicinal herbs for them without objection.
By agreent, each village had to provide four to eight Black Moon plants per year.
Just planting four wouldn’t affect the farmland too severely.
The crowd slowly dispersed.
Old Liu hadn’t left.
He stared at the four black seeds and said, “So they managed to cultivate them…”
As Qin Ming was leaving, he noticed Xu Yueping looked deeply troubled.
…
The streets were more crowded than usual.
Many people carried bows and spears, preparing to enter the mountains.
They had asked Qin Ming detailed questions about the mountain conditions the day before, and now they were acting on it.
Mainly, food supplies were running low across households.
Hunger lood.
“Big haul!
We got two blade-antler deer!”
A group returned joyfully with news of a bountiful hunt.
“For now, the outer regions of the forest have cald down.
As long as we don’t go too deep, it’s safe to hunt with caution.”
The next day, more groups entered the mountains and brought back plenty of ga.
Children cheered in the streets, unfazed by the cold, their breath forming clouds as they ran around excitedly.
The village felt lively, almost festive.
“Uncle!
Co try sothing new, we’re having venison today!” Wenrui happily called out to Qin Ming.
After enjoying the wild ga and stepping out of Lu Ze’s house, Qin Ming saw Xu Yueping returning from the village entrance, brows furrowed.
“Uncle Xu, did you go see soone off?”
“Mm.
The patrol group ca and pressed to plant the Black Moon seeds,” Xu Yueping replied.
Qin Ming thought to himself that being a patroller truly wasn’t easy.
They faced danger constantly, never knowing when they might be maid or killed.
Seeing Xu Yueping’s deeply furrowed brow, he chose not to press further.
That very day, after the last hunting group returned, panic erupted.
Most had been injured, bloodied, and all their prey was lost.
“That was close.
We ran into a mutated snow ape.
Old Chen almost had his arm ripped off!” The returning villagers were shaken.
“Thankfully, we scared it off with arrows.
Otherwise, we might not have made it.” They said they’d gone too deep this ti; next ti, they wouldn’t take such risks.
The thick night mist dispersed, and a new day arrived.
Though so had been injured, it didn’t deter others, because this ti, a newly reborn youth was accompanying them.
However, it wasn’t long before another group ca stumbling back, many of them wounded.
The rebirther was in the worst shape.
His left shoulder blade was shattered.
One leg was bent unnaturally.
His chest had caved in slightly, his mouth foaming with blood.
No one knew if he’d make it.
“What happened?!”
“It was a blood bear!” soone answered, lips trembling.
Blood bears were powerful, mutated beasts.
Their fur was blood-red, and they were brutal and savage.
Even a reborn youth might not survive an encounter.
“Where’s Brother Lu?” Qin Ming rushed to the next courtyard.
“He went into the mountains,” Liang Wanqing answered, now visibly panicked.
“I’m going after him!” Qin Ming turned and left imdiately.
When Xu Yueping heard that another group hadn’t returned, he grew anxious and called on all the reborn youths to go into the mountains.
Qin Ming led the charge.
As he ran, snow surged on either side of him like waves, stunning Xu Yueping.
Others were already far behind, unable to keep up.
Nearing the forest, Qin Ming stopped because a group was staggering out of the trees.
He spotted Lu Ze at once.
He was being carried.
“Brother Lu!” He dashed over.
Lu Ze’s face was pale as paper, his eyes closed, his clothes torn and stained with blood.
His chest and abdon were severely injured, and at least three ribs were broken.
Beside him, soone was crying.
Two of the seriously injured had already died.
“Is it the blood bear?” Qin Ming asked.
Soone nodded, still shaken by the incident.
“Yes.
If the patrollers hadn’t shown up, more of us would’ve died.”
Qin Ming stared into the shadowy forest, then drew his bright short blade.
Xu Yueping arrived just in ti to stop him.
“Don’t take any chances.
Go back!”
Liang Wanqing saw Lu Ze being carried in and turned deathly pale.
She ran over, stumbling in fear.
The two children burst into tears.
“Sis Liang, Brother Lu just passed out,” Qin Ming reassured her.
After a careful check, he confird that the broken ribs hadn’t punctured any organs.
He reset them and treated the wounds.
It wasn’t life-threatening.
Still, many were injured.
From the street, the crying of children and elders could be heard.
The village was filled with a heavy, oppressive mood.
Xu Yueping gave the order that no one was allowed into the mountains from now on.
Qin Ming entered Xu Yueping’s courtyard and saw Old Liu and Yang Yongqing were also present.
“You want to go kill the blood bear?” Xu Yueping asked inside the room.
Qin Ming spoke quietly, “Brother Lu’s wounds may look like claw marks, but so of his broken ribs feel more like they were crushed by a fist.”
“You noticed that too?
Then it’s likely not the blood bear’s doing.” Xu Yueping shot to his feet, eyes blazing.
“So people… have gone too far!”
Qin Ming had already suspected sothing.
Ever since Xu Yueping received those four seeds, he’d seed deeply troubled.
“Why?” Qin Ming asked.
He had guessed, but it still hurt to hear it confird.
Xu Yueping’s voice was low.
“The patrol group demanded I plant the Black Moon seeds imdiately.
I refused.
I didn’t think… they’d retaliate like this.”
Old Liu said, “There’s sothing wrong with those seeds.
They’re mutated.
They’ll absorb huge amounts of energy from the fire spring and ruin the farmland.
There could be famine next year.”
Qin Ming felt uneasy.
Feng Yian seed so bold and forthright, even sharing tragic stories about patrollers that stirred sympathy.
And yet, this is what they were doing behind closed doors?
Yang Yongqing added, “What Feng Yian said was true, but it had nothing to do with the main mbers of the current team.”
Qin Ming recalled sothing Yang Yongqing had once said: So patrollers are responsible.
Back then, he had sensed that Yang was hinting that so are not.
Old Liu lowered his voice.
“This team has hunted blood bears before.
I seriously suspect soone’s now wearing that bear’s skin… and committing cris.”
Upon hearing that, a surge of rage burned through Qin Ming’s chest.
Patrollers were supposed to guard the mountain, protect the people, and earn their respect.
But now?
On the surface, they were bold and responsible, but behind the scenes, they were committing evil, staining their hands with villagers’ blood.
What happened to their conscience?
“Is Brother Xu ho?” Feng Yian entered the courtyard with four patrollers behind him.
“It was our fault,” he said with a look of guilt.
“We failed to protect the villagers.
We’ll head out now to track and kill the blood bear.”
Inside his sleeve, Xu Yueping’s fingers were clenched white with pressure, but he couldn’t explode; he had to maintain composure and act politely.
His heart was filled with bitterness.
They had murdered people, then showed up to apologize, like they were towering above him, mocking him with a smile.
Qin Ming sat quietly, suppressing the urge to draw his blade.
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