To everyone's surprise, Landlord Chen Deping called the villagers to the Ancestral Hall, not to hold a meeting.
But to give out benefits!
Every household received twenty pounds of rice and a small jar of coarse salt.
For the villagers of Chen Family Village, this was no small gesture; they even thought this landlord was too generous.
Many villagers couldn't afford a few meals of rice in a year.
Their usual staple foods were mostly root vegetables and grains.
For some, having a bowl of white rice signaled the New Year!
And the value of a jar of coarse salt was even higher than the twenty pounds of rice.
All the villagers were deeply grateful, gaining a greater respect and sense of acceptance for the landlord.
Chen Deping then announced that to protect the village's safety, he specially invited a martial artist from the town.
This martial artist was the man in the strong outfit standing next to Landlord Chen, named Zhang Xiong.
The villagers felt reassured.
A martial artist from the town must be very formidable, right?
Chen Deping's prestige instantly rose another level!
Zhang Yuan, mingling in the crowd, also greatly admired this landlord's blend of kindness and authority.
However, he felt more caution and vigilance in his heart.
The idea of leaving Chen Family Village to settle in the town became even more intense!
After the villagers left, Zhang Xiong, accompanied by Steward Zhang and the household servants, went to visit Hunter Gao's home.
The martial artist looked silently at the ruins in front of him.
After a moment, he suddenly said, "You go back first, I'll stay here for a while."
What's there to see in this ruined walls and debris?
Steward Zhang secretly criticized, but outwardly remained respectful: "Yes."
He dared not provoke this martial artist.
Landlord Chen also treated Zhang Xiong with respect, honoring him as the Honored Guest Elder of the Chen family.
Steward Zhang even knew.
It was on Zhang Xiong's recommendation that Chen Deping arranged for his three sons to apprentice under Hunter Gao.
He even hired him as an instructor for a high salary.
Now that Hunter Gao had gone missing, neither alive nor dead.
Upon arriving from the town to Chen Family Village, Zhang Xiong's first request was to inspect the ruined home of the former.
There must be something significant in this!
But Steward Zhang dared not think too much about it, let alone inquire.
He quickly left with the two household servants.
As soon as they departed, Zhang Xiong began a thorough search of Hunter Gao's burned-down house!
Despite the martial artist's efforts, uncovering every inch, he found nothing of value.
Finally, he could only give up in disillusionment.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yuan was already in the mountains.
The small favors given by Landlord Chen were of no concern to Zhang Yuan, and he suspected that there were ulterior motives in such a public show of goodwill.
The Chen Family Village might very well become a place of trouble in the future!
Therefore, for Zhang Yuan, the urgent task was to earn enough silver coins to settle and reside in the town.
He once again reached the forest stream.
"Brother Ya~"
Zhang Yuan had barely called out when the strange crow appeared as expected, flying out of the dense forest and landing in front of him.
But before he could speak, the strange crow had already spread its wings, flying toward the right!
Zhang Yuan had to swallow his words and followed it closely.
This time, the strange crow did not lead Zhang Yuan to the small valley but guided him through dense woods to a towering cliff.
Baa~
Zhang Yuan's eyes lit up.
He saw a dozen or so rock goats, large and small, climbing and foraging on the cliff face!
Rock goats are very similar in size and appearance to mountain goats, but their fur is brownish-gray, their limbs more robust, navigating the rugged terrain with ease, and they are very agile.
Zhang Yuan had seen rock goats before, but had never hunted them.
According to village elders, rock goat meat is delicious, and their tanned hides are premium materials for making warm clothing.
They would definitely fetch a high price in town!
Zhang Yuan didn't expect Brother Ya to be so helpful, leading him to a large herd of rock goats, a pleasant surprise indeed.
But the problem quickly arose.
The herd of rock goats climbed very high, and the hunting bow he carried was very ordinary, unlikely to cause harm from a shot below, even risking breaking the bowstring.
And even if the arrows reached them, the mountain wind would likely destroy any accuracy!
If he missed, the startled prey would mean today's efforts were in vain.
After some consideration, Zhang Yuan decided not to rashly use the hunting bow.
He scanned the cliff with his eyes, searching for a suitable sniping point.
Suddenly, Zhang Yuan had a bold idea.
He took a few steps forward and picked up a stone lying at the base of the cliff.
The stone was an ordinary rock, fist-sized and angular, feeling heavy in his hand.
Zhang Yuan weighed it, his eyes fixed on the rock goats still moving on the cliff, deciding to give it a try.
He gathered a few more stones of roughly the same size, stuffing them into his clothes.
Zhang Yuan stepped back several paces, holding a stone, and suddenly activated the Power of the Black Giant Ant.
Double strength augmentation!
The next moment, Zhang Yuan rushed forward a few steps and hurled the stone at his chosen target with all his might.
The hunting bow was too weak, so he hoped to rely on his own strength to knock down a rock goat!
The stone whistled through the air, in an instant flying to the cliff, landing beside an adult male goat.
Just a foot away from hitting the target!
Baa!
The male rock goat was startled by the sudden attack, instinctively issuing a warning.
The entire herd was alarmed.
A dozen rock goats scrambled higher up.
However, Zhang Yuan quickly threw the second and third stones!
Pop!
The second stone missed, but the third hit the left forelimb of the male rock goat unerringly.
It immediately lost its balance, tumbling from the cliffside.
Heavily crashing down among rocks a dozen yards below!
Success!
Zhang Yuan hadn't expected this method to work, successfully bringing down a large rock goat weighing over a hundred pounds.
Overjoyed, he immediately climbed the steep cliff, heading toward where the goat had fallen.
Entering Force, Zhang Yuan not only gained increased strength but also greater agility than before, so the tall cliff was not an impassable barrier, and he climbed up smoothly.
After climbing over a large protruding rock, Zhang Yuan saw the rock goat lying in a pool of blood.
The head of the male rock goat was crushed, long since lifeless.
He reached out to grab the curved horns, preparing to drag it slowly down to the base of the cliff.
At this moment, out of the corner of his eye, Zhang Yuan suddenly caught sight of a bright red color.
He instinctively turned his head and saw a green stem protruding from the crevice beside him, adorned with several bright red Vermilion Fruits.
Rock Ginseng!
With many years of experience in herbal collecting, Zhang Yuan immediately recognized the Rock Ginseng that only grows between rock crevices.
An exceptionally precious medicinal herb!
He suddenly felt as if a pie had fallen from the sky and hit him.