Chapter 84: Occasionally Seeing a Fierce Light

It turned out that in some matters, Ji Yuan's confidence could be quite mystifying. This, of course, wasn't about cultivation, but rather something more mystical.

Ji Yuan was absolutely certain he hadn't taken the wrong direction. After leaving the city and crossing a small hill, he had run wildly south along the ridge.

But Ji Yuan suddenly realized a serious problem: the maps he knew might not be accurate.

After all, his impressions from his previous life were too deep; he had forgotten that ancient maps were sometimes very abstract, and their precision naturally couldn't compare to the live photography and satellite positioning of his past life.

Ji Yuan's main geographical reference was a map carved by the Military Judge of Ning'an County's City God Temple. So, here was the problem.

The Military Judge had been a Military Judge for dozens or even a hundred years since his death, hadn't he? And in his lifetime, he might not have traveled far. The maps he carved were naturally pieced together and copied from existing ones. Furthermore, some of these maps might have been old ones stored by the Underworld Division of the City God Temple.

Just because the mapmaker was a ghost cultivator of the Incense and Fire Divine Path, one shouldn't assume the maps were miraculous and accurate. In reality, their precision was probably questionable.

After a long bout of rambling thoughts, Ji Yuan stopped, muttering to himself.

"It's a bit different from what I imagined... So... where's the road?"

Ji Yuan felt a bit lost. After running frantically all day, stopping and starting, he ran slower and slower, growing more and more flustered, finally admitting that he had, once again, gotten lost.

A life-questioning thought—'I know who I am, but where am I?'—arose in Ji Yuan's mind.

He should have seen a river channel much earlier, but he hadn't seen any prominent waterways along the way, so Ji Yuan had run boldly and without worry until now.

To his left and right, all he could see was sparsely wooded land. The terrain consisted of low, gently sloping hills and mounds, probably only a few dozen meters high, not even qualifying as peaks.

However, there were some small paths on the ground. Some looked like they were made by wild animals, while others were clearly left by humans. Though overgrown with weeds, Ji Yuan could still feel slight traces of cartwheels when he stepped on them.

On another note, regarding the comfort of shoes, Ji Yuan felt both his lives had their merits. The shoes now were all hand-stitched by seamstresses in embroidery workshops or by virtuous women in common households. The soles were quite soft, and the uppers were made of multiple layers of cloth; they were comfortable to wear and didn't chafe. However, this might also be because in his previous life, Ji Yuan didn't understand shoes, didn't have much money, and never bought high-end ones.

Ji Yuan wasn't worried about anything. As long as the general direction was correct, it would be fine. After all, he wasn't an ordinary person anymore; if he got hungry, with his ability to identify sounds and smells, he wouldn't have trouble finding food and drink.

Ji Yuan didn't run anymore this time. He walked leisurely, taking it as a rest. He chose a narrow path that followed his general direction, possibly an animal trail. He also took out the flask of wine from his bag, opened the lid, took two sips, then put it back in his bag.

As he stepped over a patch of withered grass, Ji Yuan, just about to step down, suddenly felt a slight tremor in his heart and stopped. He withdrew his suspended foot, squatted down and carefully pushed aside the withered grass with his hand, revealing an animal trap.

He leaned his face closer and strained to see clearly. Through the blur, he could see two iron rings with sharp teeth as the main part. In some small holes in the middle, there were many bamboo strips, possibly treated with oil or other methods. However, the bamboo strips were now severely bent and seemed to be connected to some sinew-like material. Although it differed significantly from the spring technology of his previous life, it was likely an animal trap.

"How much force could this have without springs?"

A somewhat curious Ji Yuan found a wooden stick, about thumb-thick and forearm-long, nearby. He poked the metal plate in the middle of the trap, which served as the trigger.

"Snap..."

With a crisp snap, the branch in his hand was directly severed.

"Gasp!"

Ji Yuan gasped sharply. He knew that if he had stepped on it, he wouldn't have been severely injured, but it still made his scalp tingle.

But where there were animal traps, there were naturally hunters, indicating that there were still people living nearby.

After a moment's thought, Ji Yuan carefully reset the not-too-complicated trap according to its mechanism. Traps based on bamboo strips and sinews probably couldn't be triggered many times, as the bamboo strips would quickly lose their elasticity.

After covering it with the previous weeds, Ji Yuan got up again and continued his journey, but this time he avoided the animal trail.

After climbing a low hill a few dozen meters high, Ji Yuan's eyes lit up. Although his poor eyesight made things blurry, he didn't lack keenness for dynamic objects. He could see smoke rising in the distance, dark in color, indicating someone was burning a fire.

...

On the leeward side of a mound about three li away, four people, dressed in light leather vests with leather armguards tightly bound to their pant legs and forearms, were resting by a bonfire. Most of them carried bows and arrows, some slung over their backs, others set aside. There were also plenty of machetes, spears, and similar weapons.

A skinned wild rabbit and a plucked, gutted pheasant were being roasted on skewers over the fire.

"Ugh, it's been a few days out here," one complained. "Not only have we not caught anything big, but I also lost the prayer beads my mother gave me. What terrible luck!"

"Alright, alright," another said, "you can just buy another string of beads for five wen at the temple stall later. Do you have to complain about it so many times?"

"What do you know!" the first retorted. "My mother got those from the temple as a blessing, they weren't bought from a stall. It's not the same!"

"Look at you," the second replied, "I didn't say they were the same. Can't you just buy one to fool your mother? Otherwise, won't she scold you to death?"

"Uh... that makes sense!"

The two others nearby chuckled at this. They weren't particularly disheartened by the lack of game; how could hunting in the mountains always yield a full haul?

"Shh... quiet everyone," one hunter suddenly whispered. "Someone's coming!"

The sounds by the bonfire immediately ceased. The hunters either reached for their bows or grabbed their spears.

However, it wasn't dark yet, so while the men were vigilant, they weren't tense.

"Gentlemen," Ji Yuan's clear voice called out from a slight distance. He had deliberately made some noise to ensure they noticed him, stopping a dozen steps away from them. "I lost my way while traveling. Seeing a fire here, I've come specifically to ask for directions."

"Where are you going?" a hunter holding a spear asked loudly. At the same time, the others were observing Ji Yuan.

The newcomer carried a travel pack and an umbrella. His clothes weren't very suitable for traveling through mountains and forests. Although his appearance was refined, he still seemed a bit suspicious.

"May I ask which direction Qingwater County is?" Ji Yuan inquired. "According to my understanding, after I cross Luoyue Ridge and head south, I should see a river channel. Following it would lead to Qingwater County. Why have I seen no river along the way?"

"A river channel?"

The hunters exchanged bewildered glances, all completely confused.

Then the oldest one among them suddenly seemed to recall something.

"You're not talking about the Old Qingwater River, are you?"

Ji Yuan didn't know the river's name, but given the situation, it was probably that one.

"Likely."

"I've heard the old folks in the village say," the elder hunter explained, "that the Old Qingwater River used to flow from Qingwater County through the Front Ridge area. But apparently, to facilitate irrigation for the fields, the county magistrate organized the villagers to change the river's course more than twenty years ago. So it doesn't flow towards these mountains anymore."

Ji Yuan suddenly understood.

"So that's how it is," Ji Yuan said. "How far is Qingwater County from here then?"

"Head east for about twenty or thirty li, and you'll reach the main road," the hunter replied. "Another half-day's walk from there will bring you to inhabited areas."

Twenty or thirty li; that didn't seem too far.

"Thank you all for the information!"

Ji Yuan clasped his hands in a respectful gesture and then simply walked away. He didn't intend to impose or shamelessly ask for roasted meat; they were clearly wary of him. Twenty or thirty li was just a matter of running for a while.

Seeing Ji Yuan leave so decisively, especially dressed as a refined scholar, the hunters were somewhat taken aback.

"Uh, esteemed sir," one hunter called out, "are you really leaving already? It's twenty or thirty li of mountain road, and it's almost dark!"

They were kind-hearted after all. In the end, a hunter called out to Ji Yuan; it was the one who had lost his prayer beads.

It was that call that made Ji Yuan look at the speaker twice, and in that glance, he noticed something.

Since his spiritual energy had taken form, Ji Yuan's eyes had undergone some changes. He could now perceive certain "qi-fire" in ordinary people. The *Tongming Strategies* called this 'qi-gazing'; both innate talent and cultivation techniques could achieve similar effects, and Ji Yuan felt his ability was due to innate talent.

To confirm, Ji Yuan widened his eyes slightly. The blurry sensation didn't lessen, but the "qi-aura" he perceived from the hunters became much clearer.

The one who had just spoken actually had a subtle wisp of red and black energy coiling above his head. It was like a faint smoke occasionally darting through the outer aura of his blurry life-fire; if one didn't look closely, it would go unnoticed.

Ji Yuan stopped. He complained to the hunter a little cautiously.

"What choice do I have?" Ji Yuan said. "If I don't hurry, will I spend the night in this desolate wilderness? What if there are wild beasts? Besides, those bows and spears in your hands are quite intimidating..."

Ji Yuan's slightly nervous and flustered demeanor ironically lowered the hunters' guard.

"Hahaha, don't worry, sir," the hunter who had called out said with a laugh. "We're just hunters, not bandits. If there are wild beasts tonight, we'll just hunt them. If you don't mind, please come and sit with us. We're also heading back to our village tomorrow morning, which isn't far from Qingwater County."

Ji Yuan looked overjoyed but still hesitant to approach.

"Would... would that be appropriate?"

"Hahahaha... come on over, sir," another hunter chimed in. "There's nothing inappropriate about it. Look, this pheasant and rabbit are almost done roasting. Come and taste a country hunter's cooking!"

The other hunters also let out good-natured laughs.

With words exchanged to this extent, they had both considerably lowered their guard towards each other. Ji Yuan, naturally, approached them with profuse thanks.