Chapter 15: Fierce Hand
Chapter 15: Fierce Hand
In a distant world...
Within the temporary camp, Fang Xing booted up a second-hand smart computer he had acquired from the marketplace.
"Initiating data transmission!"
His fingers danced across the keyboard, bringing up a series of images and videos captured by his simulated bird drones and beetle surveillance devices.
"Hmm, it's indeed an ancient agrarian society... Their farming techniques are quite primitive."
Most of the footage consisted of farming activities. Fang Xing observed the tattered 'farmers' toiling in the fields, their faces weathered and their backs bent towards the yellow soil as they toiled under the sun. What intrigued him was that these 'farmers' were, at the very least, first or second realm warriors, and some even possessed the prowess of the Primal Jade realm!
Fortunately, the local Primal Jade realm warriors were generally cautious, or perhaps they had never encountered simulated surveillance equipment before, as they didn't seem to notice anything amiss.
Most of the time, these warrior farmers worked in silence, their faces devoid of emotion and their movements mechanical. Only on rare occasions did they exchange a few brief words.
After days of data collection, information on their lip movements and pronunciation was now complete.
All that remained was for Fang Xing to let the AI brain integrate and decipher this new language!
'It's a shame I don't have a learning device, but mastering this language shouldn't take too long...'
After all, as a product of the rigorous exam-oriented education system, Fang Xing was confident in his abilities.
The practice of martial arts was, in essence, a form of self-evolution. As one progressed through the realms, their memory, cognitive abilities, and mental acuity would also undergo significant enhancement!
"In this world, warriors are reduced to farming, scavenging for manure, or venturing into the wilderness in search of adventure."
As he waited for the second-hand computer to process the data, Fang Xing continued to scan through the surveillance footage, attempting to gain a deeper understanding of the local warrior ecosystem. He had witnessed warriors farming, transporting manure, and embarking on perilous adventures. Most of them led difficult lives, except for those who had attained the Primal Jade realm, who seemed to fare slightly better.
"Aside from them, there seem to be individuals of even higher status..."
Fang Xing opened a particular surveillance clip that had been captured from a great distance. It showed a middle-aged man, slightly chubby, dressed in silk robes, resembling a wealthy landowner. This man was going from house to house, collecting various resources, including rice, minerals, herbs, and even the crystal sand that Fang Xing himself possessed.
In the end, his haul filled several large carts, which were then escorted away by a group of Primal Jade realm warriors. However, in the presence of this well-dressed middle-aged man, they seemed to hold a lower status, behaving politely and even subserviently towards him.
This disparity seemed to be rooted not just in social status but also in strength!
This short and stout man appeared to possess the capability to defeat several Primal Jade realm warriors single-handedly!
"Fulu..."
Fang Xing recalled the Fulu used by the leader of the adventuring party of four, as well as the image of the Golden Bell Cover. He made a mental note of this, suspecting that the man might possess similar abilities.
"For now, my priority is to learn the local language, change my attire, and attempt to make contact with the locals."
He glanced at the second-hand computer screen and noted that the progress of deciphering the 'alien language' was still below 10%.
"There's still time. Hmm?"
At that moment, the initial surveillance drone transmitted another image.
In the footage, a woman with tattered clothes and bloodstains all over her body was fleeing in panic.
Judging by her direction, she would stumble upon the temporary camp in just a few minutes!
"Hmm? Another victim of that wild boar?" Fang Xing furrowed his brows.
The nearby beast was incredibly powerful. Aside from the leader of the Primal Jade realm adventuring party who had barely escaped using Fulu, anyone else who crossed its path was doomed. It had become notorious as a killer of herb gatherers, and its victims often ended up as its meal, leaving no traces behind.
This woman was undoubtedly another unfortunate herb gatherer, driven to desperation by the wild boar.
"But how did she end up here?" Fang Xing felt a headache coming on.
"Judging by her speed and physique, she's probably a second realm warrior... She doesn't seem to possess any dangerous items either. Otherwise, even with just one Fulu, she wouldn't have been chased to such a desperate state."
He sighed, ensuring that his protective suit covered every inch of his body, including his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. Then, he grabbed the electric stun baton and said, "Let's go take a look..."
...
Whoosh!
Xue Yuling's figure darted swiftly, her graceful body maneuvering effortlessly through the thicket of thorns and bushes.
Tall and slender, with fair skin, she possessed a pair of long legs that had once captivated even the Celestial Masters.
If not for her current predicament, she wouldn't have ventured out alone on this perilous herb-gathering expedition.
"Damn it, I've been had!"
"The price of 'Jade Dragon Grass' at Qinglinfang has gone up, making its collection even more dangerous... Those people above aren't leaving us any room to breathe." Xue Yuling grit her teeth in frustration.
The competition in the Fangshi marketplace was fierce, and it was said that some female Celestial Masters specializing in enchantment arts had also entered the fray, making it even harder for others to earn a living.
While she could scrape by with her half-closed door business, it was barely enough to keep starvation at bay. As for buying spirit rice or cultivation pills to improve her martial arts, that was nothing but a pipe dream.
And so, she had no choice but to come here, who would have thought that she would encounter a wild boar monster that seemed to have advanced a little, not to mention that her entire team was wiped out, and she ended up in such a pitiful state.
'Just a little further... As long as I escape a bit further, there will be a river, and then I can jump in and escape!'
Xue Yuling was unsure if the wild boar monster was still chasing her, but having endured hardships since childhood, she always thought of the worst-case scenario.
The rivers in the Great Wilderness were exceptionally dangerous, but they could wash away her scent, and it was her only chance of survival!
Suddenly!
She saw the grass in front of her stir, and a silver-white humanoid monster leaped out!
"What the hell is this thing?"
Xue Yuling shouted, her sharp temperament, honed from her struggles in the lower realms, showing no hesitation as she waved her hand, sending three cold, starlike darts towards Fang Xing's chest.
"Hidden weapons?"
Fang Xing was startled, and then he saw three flying darts fall to the ground, their sharp blades flickering with a blue glow, obviously coated with a layer of deadly poison.
Fortunately, he was wearing his nano-protective suit, and not a single point penetrated his defense, and it even lessened the force of the impact, leaving him with only a slight feeling of oppression on his chest.
"You dared to take the initiative to attack me. In any world, what follows can be considered self-defense on my part!"
Fang Xing shouted, his electric stun baton flashing down.
"What's that strange cry?"
Xue Yuling couldn't understand Fang Xing's language, but that didn't stop her from brandishing an iron judge's pen, blocking the electric baton with a remarkably skillful move.
The tip of the pen even trembled, pointing straight at several vital points on Fang Xing's body, obviously containing an extremely fierce countermeasure.
This set of brush techniques, known as the 'Splash Wind Pen', would be considered a remarkable and unparalleled skill in the mortal martial world!
Clang!
Feeling the force transmitted from the judge's pen, Xue Yuling relaxed slightly, "This strange man's strength is so weak..."
But the next moment, she was horrified to see sparks of electricity flashing from the tip of his black baton!
The terrifying current followed, sending her flying and convulsing on the ground.
"Blood-forged artifact? You actually have a blood-forged artifact?"
Xue Yuling looked at the approaching humanoid monster and confirmed that he was indeed human. She quickly cried out, "Spare my life..."
Coupled with her delicate appearance, she truly evoked a sense of pity.
"What are you saying? I can't understand you!"
Fang Xing could only vaguely guess the meaning of a few words, but he understood that she was pleading for mercy.
Unfortunately...
"The more beautiful the woman, the more troublesome. So, you might as well die!"
Fang Xing struck out with his baton.
Sizzle!
A stream of silver-white electricity surged from the tip of the electric baton, accurately striking Xue Yuling's forehead.
"This merchant is a fraud. It was supposed to be able to knock out an elephant, but this woman can still talk... I'll give it a few more shocks to be sure."
Fang Xing poked her with the electric baton to confirm that she was truly dead before donning rubber gloves and proceeding to search her body.
This woman didn't know that he had the eye of a drone, naturally knowing that the wild beast had long given up the chase.
Coincidentally, the path she had chosen, thinking it was her way to survival, had actually led her to her demise.
Who knows if she would be so furious that she would die again if she were to come back to life?
"Wait... Is this my first time killing someone? Am I supposed to vomit or something?"
Fang Xing felt a belated realization, taking a deep breath to calm himself.
Alright...
Perhaps it was because the act of crossing over was too surreal, coupled with the memories he inherited from his predecessor, and the suffering endured by the biomechanicals...
In any case, he found that he didn't feel as nervous or fearful as he thought he would.
After a few deep breaths, he felt only calmness, calmly searching the body.
"Nice figure..."
"Loot... A pair of judge's pens, a money pouch, three jade bottles... Hmm? There's even a book?"
Fang Xing picked up a book.
The paper quality was average, and it was thread-bound, with yellowed pages and some signs of insect damage and dirt.
On the cover, four characters from another world were written in a flamboyant style, none of which Fang Xing could recognize.
"Good stuff..."
He didn't disdain it at all, "This is excellent research data. I'll give it to the AI brain for analysis, which will greatly speed up the decryption progress!"
As for the money pouch?
Upon opening it, there were only three grains of sand that looked exactly the same as the ones he had obtained before.
"It seems to be... Some kind of general equivalent for currency, right? So, I have a total of seven units of currency in my hand?"
Fang Xing stroked his chin and looked at the few jade bottles.
Two of the bottle stoppers had been opened, and he didn't dare to smell them casually, let alone consume anything from them. He planned to use poison test papers and lab rats to test them later.
The last bottle was still sealed with wax, appearing intact and unopened.
There were three characters from another world engraved on the bottle, which he still couldn't understand.
'What are the chances that an intact bottle contains poison as a trap?'
'If it's a trap, would humans in this world directly consume items obtained from enemies?'
(End of Chapter)
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