Chapter 11 Gathering

In the dark of night, Xu Qing moved like a cat, agile and stealthy. His hand occasionally lifted to cover his mouth, desperately suppressing the urge to cough. In the first few instances, it wasn't much, but as Xu Qing moved, and with each act of restraint, his lungs felt as if they were on fire, causing his complexion to grow increasingly pale. Fortunately, he was not far from his residence, and the camp was not very large, so it wasn't long before Xu Qing saw the small courtyard of the Thunder Team. He did not rush in directly but stood in place, taking a deep breath to calm himself as much as possible before slowing his pace and approaching steadily. Pushing open the bamboo door of the courtyard, Xu Qing scanned his surroundings and stepped into the small room. At the moment he entered the house, he could no longer hold back and let out a mouthful of black blood, which hissed as it hit the ground. With the expulsion of this toxic blood, Xu Qing's complexion improved slightly from its previous pallor; he sat there, panting heavily, and began to meditate. After a while, he finally opened his eyes, his complexion completely restored. "What a fierce poison!" Xu Qing murmured. The last bout of poison mist from Fat Mountain contained immense toxicity. At that moment, if Xu Qing had avoided it, the other party would surely have fled and called for help at the first opportunity, drawing attention. By then, handling the situation would have become complicated. Furthermore, even if he pretended to be injured, it would be difficult to deceive the cunning Fat Mountain. Since the other party detected they were being followed, all their actions were very strategic; the only miscalculation was their incorrect assessment of Xu Qing's strength. Thus, at that crucial moment, Xu Qing chose to trust the recovery power brought by his purple crystal, enduring the invasion of the poison mist to charge forward, seeking a quick resolution, and swiftly ending the opponent's life. In hindsight, his choice was correct. The purple crystal indeed possessed strong resistance against toxins. The tremors and urge to cough in his lungs during this journey were actually the effects of his recovery power. "Scavengers are indeed not simple; it seems that if Ma Si hadn't made a move first, I would have found it hard to deal with him," Xu Qing murmured to himself, beginning to summarize his shortcomings from this encounter. After a long while, Xu Qing took a deep breath and looked down at his pouch, his eyes revealing a strange light. "Fat Mountain acted alone because he was coveting an item from Ma Si, so he intended to hunt me to take that item away from me." Xu Qing opened the pouch and took out all of Ma Si's belongings, including the spirit coins, laying them out before him one by one. His gaze swept over these items, and Xu Qing began to examine them carefully. Until the end, he ruled out other items and focused on a metal block, frowning and feeling somewhat uncertain. In fact, Ma Si's relics were all quite ordinary; this metal block seemed somewhat abrupt and unknown compared to the other items. "Is this the item? But it seems nothing special; could it be a valuable material?" Xu Qing pondered for a moment, carefully storing it away, planning to seek its origins later. Then he took out Fat Mountain's pouch and checked it. Inside, there was no white pill, but plenty of spirit coins and many bottles that seemed toxic; Xu Qing, unfamiliar with poison arts, did not dare to open them easily. Finally, he took out the cracked amber and recalled how Fat Mountain had been holding it before he died. "What is this... it seems that guy wanted to crush it before dying," Xu Qing wondered, feeling he lacked relevant knowledge, and after some thought, he stored it safely. Having done all this, he closed his eyes and continued his cultivation. Over the past few days, Xu Qing found that after reaching the second layer of Qi Condensation, he seemed to need less sleep than before; often, he could restore his energy in about an hour. Therefore, most of the time, he immersed himself in cultivation. Today, since he did not need to go out on watch, he cultivated even longer, and when a whole day had passed and night fell again, Xu Qing seemed to sense something and opened his eyes, looking towards the door of the house. At that moment, he heard the voice of the Thunder Team. "Kid, come to the courtyard." Xu Qing heard this and got up silently, walking out to see the Thunder Team in the courtyard. A large table was set up in the yard, with some meat and drinks on it, along with six chairs and six sets of bowls and chopsticks. The Thunder Team sat among them, waving at Xu Qing. Glancing at the table and the bowls, Xu Qing had some guesses in his heart and walked over lightly, sitting down beside the Thunder Team. "Have you gotten familiar with the camp these past few days?" The Thunder Team looked outside the courtyard casually as he spoke to Xu Qing. "About right," Xu Qing replied, his gaze sweeping over the food on the table. Perhaps due to a whole day's cultivation or the enticing aroma of the food, Xu Qing's stomach soon let out a growl. The Thunder Team heard this and chuckled. "Don't rush, wait for them." "Is it the people from the Thunder Team?" Xu Qing had suspected this before and asked at this moment. The old man nodded, about to speak, but seemed to sense something, looking toward the outside. At the same time, Xu Qing also felt something and glanced over. Outside the courtyard, in the dim street, a figure of a big man appeared. This big man was more robust than the previous 'Remnant Bull,' his entire body like a small mountain, muscular and exuding an oppressive aura, carrying a massive steel shield on his back and holding a wolf fang club that was comparable to Xu Qing's height, striding towards them. With each step, there was a loud thud, growing closer until he reached the bamboo gate. As the bamboo gate was pushed open, the man's astonishing figure stepped into the courtyard. His appearance seemed to make the courtyard feel smaller, and the imposing aura he brought forth spread out, making Xu Qing feel as if he were facing a powerful alien beast in a ruined city, his pupils slightly constricting. "Boss, I'm back," the big man grinned at the Thunder Team, his voice deep and muffled. When his gaze fell on the food on the table, his eyes lit up, and he stepped closer, removing the shield and tossing it aside, then throwing the wolf fang club to the ground with two loud thuds. After doing this, he directly sat down, the chair instantly creaking under the strain as if it could barely support him, and throughout, he did not glance at Xu Qing, as if he did not care. The Thunder Team smiled but said nothing, and the big man stared at the food, waiting silently. As for Xu Qing, he looked at the shield and wolf fang club on the ground. From the sound they made, he could roughly gauge their weight, which probably far exceeded his own. Not long after, in the silence of the courtyard, two figures appeared outside the bamboo gate, a man and a woman. The man was a young man with a long bow on his back, tall and straight, but with a cross-shaped scar on his face, as if forcibly carved by someone, making it eye-catching; his eyes were exceptionally sharp. The woman, appearing to be in her thirties, was of ordinary appearance, but her figure, clad in tight leather, was quite voluptuous, exuding a primitive allure. The two entered the bamboo courtyard, greeted the Thunder Team, and when they sat down in their chairs, the bow-wielding youth cast a glance at Xu Qing, as if inspecting him. The woman beside him showed curiosity, her voice carrying a hint of flirtation as she smiled and spoke. "Boss, how is it that after we went out for a while, you gained another child? You’re still quite vigorous, Boss. Could it be that this time you called us back to tell everyone that you’ve secretly left behind a child while out there?" "Age doesn’t fit," the robust man interjected. Xu Qing remained silent, slightly shifting his left foot to make it easier to draw the dagger strapped to his calf; he felt uneasy. The three newcomers each gave him a strong sense of pressure, even more so than Fat Mountain from yesterday. Especially the bow-wielding man, who even gave Xu Qing a sense of a needle prickling at his back. "Man Gui, third layer of Body Refinement, born with divine strength," the Thunder Team ignored their banter and glanced at Xu Qing, pointing at the robust man. "Luan Ya, third layer of Qi Condensation, able to communicate with fierce beasts; most of the wild dogs you see in this camp are her eyes and ears." "Cross, full fourth layer of Qi Condensation; there are few rivals in the same realm," the Thunder Team explained to Xu Qing one by one, then pointed at Xu Qing in front of the three. "Kid, second layer of Body Refinement." As the Thunder Team spoke, the expressions of the three in the team became considerably more serious, and Xu Qing sat quietly, listening attentively. "Eat first, we’ll talk while eating," the Thunder Team said, glancing at the four, picking up a piece of meat and taking a bite. "This time I called you back early because this year's spring harvest has come early; the camp master has issued a task. In addition to the original purchase price for the Seven Leaf Grass, the party with the most will receive three Clear Dust Pills, which are far superior to white pills!" "The piece of land we’ve been hiding in the restricted area can be harvested early; what do you all think?" The Thunder Team's words made the three of Man Gui's eyes shine with excitement; they exchanged glances and nodded in agreement. Xu Qing had never heard of Clear Dust Pills, but the Thunder Team's words were clear: this pill was better than the white pill. "Since you all agree, prepare yourselves. The kid will come with us this time into the restricted area," the Thunder Team said slowly. "Him?" The three of Man Gui looked at Xu Qing. Cross frowned slightly. "Boss, the second layer of Body Refinement is too weak; if we have to take care of him while completing the task, it’s a bit inappropriate." "Everyone has a first time." The Thunder Team glanced at Cross, then looked at Xu Qing. "Kid, you decide for yourself." "I can do it," Xu Qing nodded. He still had five white pills in his pocket, so he did not have a strong need for the Clear Dust Pills, but he understood that living in the scavenger camp, entering the restricted area was something he would eventually have to do. Since that was the case... it would naturally be better to learn more alongside an experienced team. Cross fell silent and said no more. "Finish eating and then disperse; we’ll gather here early tomorrow and set out!" The Thunder Team said, getting up and returning to the house. Xu Qing also picked up a large piece of meat, swallowed it, and glanced at the three before quickly returning to his room; he did not want to stay there. Xu Qing’s vigilance toward strangers always existed. A night without conversation passed, and Xu Qing did not have much preparation to do, as his habits kept him in a state where he could act in a flash at any time. So the next morning, led by the Thunder Team, the five of them left the camp. The azure sky was bright with sunshine. In the air, an eagle circled around the camp, seemingly observing, and their figures attracted the attention of surrounding scavengers. Perhaps due to Man Gui's unusually tall stature and Luan Ya's graceful form, even the convoy that had arrived a few days earlier and stayed there had people looking at them. At the convoy, there were many scavengers, and they were surprisingly lined up there, as if waiting. Xu Qing had not gone out all day yesterday and did not know what had happened there. At this moment, as his gaze swept over, Luan Ya smiled and spoke. "Last night I heard someone mention that this convoy came from Zitu, and there’s a doctor whose medical skills seem quite high; he cured the lame fox's leg injury yesterday, so many people are lining up to see him." "That doctor must have made a lot of money," Man Gui said enviously. Xu Qing also felt envious, glancing at the convoy from a distance, but in that instant, his eyes suddenly narrowed. Not just him, Man Gui and Luan Ya also cast sharp looks, while only Cross and the Thunder Team remained calm; yet if one looked closely, they could see a chill in their eyes. Because ahead of their group, another small team was gathering its members. This team had about seven or eight people, both men and women, each exuding a fierce aura. Especially one old man within, similar to the Thunder Team, was surrounded by the others. He had disheveled hair and a bloodthirsty look in his eyes, sitting on the carcass of a wild dog, eating its leg raw while speaking coldly. "Go find Ma Si and Fat Mountain, those bastards who dared to be late for departure; they must be tired of living!" It was indeed the Blood Shadow Team! The old man eating the raw meat was clearly the leader of the Blood Shadow Team. His aura of spiritual energy was released recklessly, causing Xu Qing, who heard his words, to slightly squint his eyes, hiding the sharpness in his gaze. Meanwhile, upon seeing the meat in the Blood Shadow Team leader's hand and the dog carcass beneath him, a strong wave of anger and murderous intent surged in Luan Ya’s eyes; that was her dog. At the same time, the Blood Shadow Team also spotted the Thunder Team's group. The old man sitting on the dog carcass grinned, licking his lips at Luan Ya. "Little flirt, your dog has good meat; I wonder how the taste of the meat on your body is." --- After finishing typing last night, I finally ran out to find a restaurant that could be considered dine-in and had a long-desired Chaoshang beef hotpot. It was the first time in three months, and I felt so happy. The new book needs support; I will take care of writing good works, and I rely on everyone for the rest.