In the wind and snow, Xu Qing returned to the courtyard. Before he entered, he heard Lei Dui's happy laughter.
Accompanied by the barking of dogs, Xu Qing opened the door and saw more than a dozen wild dogs in the courtyard.
They lay there, coldly looking at Xu Qing. Xu Qing's gaze swept over them, but it didn't emit any fierce light. It was just a glance, but the dozen or so wild dogs bristled and slowly retreated.
A soft sound came from Lei Dui's room.
As the door opened, Shizi and Luan Ya came out. They looked at Xu Qing, then at the dozen or so wild dogs. Shizi smiled.
"Child, they said you have a strong evil aura." Luan Ya squatted down and gently stroked the head of a wild dog beside her. She smiled and said to Xu Qing.
Xu Qing didn't say anything and just looked at Lei Dui who came out of the room.
Lei Dui was wearing a thick leather jacket and holding a tobacco pipe. He pointed at Luan Ya and said helplessly.
"Luan Ya, that girl, thinks I'm injured and is worried about my safety in the camp, so she sent these wild dogs to guard the house."
This sentence was simple, but Xu Qing understood.
Lei Dui didn't tell them about Xu Qing, just as Xu Qing didn't tell them about the singing and let Lei Dui decide for himself. Lei Dui also gave Xu Qing the right to speak about this matter.
Xu Qing nodded and took out the leather bag containing the White Pill and handed it to Lei Dui.
Lei Dui took it and looked at it. He smiled and didn't say anything.
"Okay, I do need this stuff, but don't buy it in the future. I have a lot of savings here, enough to buy it." After saying that, he looked at Shizi.
"Shizi, the child is back. You can say what you want."
Shizi put away his smile and spoke slowly with a solemn expression.
"This time, I came here for two things."
"The first is the captain's medicine. Luan Ya and I have already bought it. It's about a month's worth. As for the rest, we'll buy it after we finish eating." Shizi took off a leather bag from his waist and put it aside.
"Secondly, because of Blood Shadow's annihilation, although there were other scavengers who participated in the Seven Leaf Grass harvesting, they didn't have as many as we did."
"Yesterday, Luan Ya and I went to the Camp Commander to hand over the payment, but … the Camp Commander still skimped on us as usual. He didn't give us three Clear Dust Pills, but only one." Cross looked at Luan Ya.
Luan Ya took out four leather pouches and placed them to the side. He then took out a wooden box and opened it in front of everyone, revealing a green pill the size of a pigeon egg.
A medicinal fragrance wafted out. Clearly, this pill was much better than a white pill.
"Barbarian Ghost doesn't have any relatives, so I made the decision to divide his share. These four leather pouches contain our respective spirit coins. As for this Clear Dust Pill …"
After Shizi said this, he looked at Lei Dui and waited for his assignment.
"Give it to the child."
Captain Lei said coolly. At this moment, he seemed to have regained some of his aura as the captain of the Thunder Division.
Shizi nodded. Luan Ya was stunned for a moment before he fell into deep thought. Before, they had asked Captain Lei what had happened in the forest, but Captain Lei hadn't said anything. Now, the assignment had clearly given them the answer.
"As for Barbarian Ghost … it was right to divide us. We are his relatives."
Captain Lei sighed and picked up his share. Shizi and Luan Ya also picked up their pouches. Xu Qing silently picked up his pouch as well.
As for the Clear Dust Pill that Luan Ya handed over, Xu Qing glanced at Captain Lei. Captain Lei's eyes were a bit strict. Xu Qing understood the meaning behind his gaze, so he silently put it away.
The four of them talked for a while. Most of them were Shizi and the other two who spoke. Xu Qing was as taciturn as ever and quietly listened to them.
But whether it was Shizi or Luan Ya, they didn't ignore Xu Qing's existence and would occasionally ask for his opinion.
Like this, time passed. Soon, noon arrived. As the snowstorm temporarily stopped, Shizi and Luan Ya chose to say their goodbyes. Before they left, Shizi said to Xu Qing in a low voice.
"Child, Luan Ya and I have received a mission and have to go out. During this time … I'll leave the captain to you." As he spoke, he took out a dagger and handed it to Xu Qing.
"Your dagger is rusty. Change it to this one. It's very sharp."
Luan Ya also handed a whistle to Xu Qing.
"Child, your battle strength is very strong, but you also need eyes and helpers, right? This whistle can be used to control the wild dogs in the camp. If you need it, you can blow it. They are very smart and will know what to do."
The two of them warned Xu Qing, then cupped their fists and left.
Looking at their backs, Xu Qing put away the whistle and stuffed the dagger that Shizi had given him into his boots. However, he didn't throw away his original dagger.
Then, he raised his head and stared at their figures. When Shizi and Luan Ya disappeared from sight, Xu Qing turned his head to look at Captain Lei's room.
After a long while, he passed through the wild dogs and returned to the room.
He closed his eyes and sat cross-legged in meditation.
The wind outside was very strong, forming a whimpering sound as it blew across the ground. The snow in the sky mixed with the snow on the ground in midair and entered through the gaps between the tents and houses, disturbing the people inside.
It also blew on Captain Lei, who was resting in his room. However, he was already used to it and didn't care about the cold wind.
However, the image of Xu Qing curling up in the cold wind appeared in his mind. Thus, he turned his head to look in the direction of Xu Qing's room. After a long silence, he put on his leather hat and walked out of the room.
Time passed. In the blink of an eye, three days had passed.
In these three days, the snow seemed to have exhausted its last bit of strength and spread out its remaining cold. The snow on the ground didn't have time to melt and accumulated in a thick layer.
Although the weather was harsh, for the scavengers, survival was more important than the cold.
As a result, more and more people gradually appeared in the camp. Some continued to see the doctor, while others went to the forbidden area.
At the same time, the Blood Shadow Squad's long absence gradually caused the scavengers to talk about it. It wasn't just a rumor that the Blood Shadow Squad was completely wiped out in the forbidden area.
At first, not many people believed this rumor. After all, the members of the Blood Shadow Squad couldn't be underestimated.
This was especially true of the Blood Shadow Squad's captain. He was an expert amongst the scavengers in the camp. Such a person had entered the forbidden area countless times, so the possibility of his entire squad being wiped out wasn't high.
But as time passed, another two days passed, and there was no trace of the Blood Shadow Squad. This caused the scavengers in the camp to gradually believe this rumor.
They also thought back to the day when Captain Lei had returned and how he had been unconscious.
When they thought back to the disappearance of Berserk Ghost, they seemed to have an answer.
And regardless of whether it was true or false, without Blood Shadow, the Thunder Squad was now the strongest squad in the camp.
Thus, when Xu Qing went out these days, what he saw the most were the looks of reverence from the surrounding scavengers.
He knew that these people revered the Thunder Squad and not him, but he didn't care about that. What he was puzzled about these days was that Captain Lei left early in the morning and returned late at night. He didn't know what he was busy with.
But Xu Qing knew that each person was independent and there was no need to disturb them. He also had many things to do. Thus, most of the time, Xu Qing was alone in his room, silently cultivating.
As he worked hard, his cultivation base slowly rose. His strength and speed steadily increased.
As for his own shadow, Xu Qing had studied it many times.
But this shadow didn't change at all. Only its absorption of foreign matter remained the same. Because of this, the foreign matter on Xu Qing's arm had completely disappeared.
With the purity of his body, Xu Qing could clearly feel that his cultivation speed was much faster than before.
Two days later, in the afternoon, he was sitting cross-legged in meditation, preparing to stabilize his cultivation base for a few more days before attempting to break through to the fourth level of the Sea Mountain Art. He frowned slightly and opened his eyes.
Wild dogs were barking outside, and someone was knocking on the bamboo door.
Xu Qing walked out of his room and noticed that Captain Lei wasn't there. He looked outside the bamboo door and saw a hesitant scavenger standing there.
Xu Qing had seen this person before. He was one of the seven or eight people he had saved when he returned from the forbidden zone.
When the scavenger saw Xu Qing appear, he quickly cupped his fists and greeted him.
"Little brother, it's me. I'm Bone Blade."
"What's the matter?" Xu Qing asked indifferently, his face expressionless.
"This …" Bone Blade was a bit hesitant, but after some thought, he gritted his teeth and spoke.
"Little brother, I want to use five white pills to buy insurance." As he spoke, he threw a leather bag at Xu Qing.
Xu Qing didn't catch it. He looked at Bone Blade in confusion. When the leather bag fell to the ground, the wild dogs looked over but didn't dare to approach.
Sensing Xu Qing's confusion, Bone Blade quickly explained. Hearing his words, Xu Qing gradually understood the meaning of this so-called insurance.
According to Bone Blade, he wanted Xu Qing to go to the forbidden zone, the Poison Dragon Swamp, if he didn't return for three days, and rescue him just like he did last time.
"Little brother, I'm not worried about the strange beasts in the forbidden zone. Dying in their mouths is also a fate. What I'm most worried about is the fog. Dying in the fog is too unjust."
Xu Qing's expression was a bit strange. He didn't expect Bone Blade to make such a request, so he thought for a moment and asked.
"What if the fog doesn't appear in three days, or you come back early?"
"You don't need to return the pills. I just want to buy some peace of mind." Bone Blade bowed deeply to Xu Qing with a pleading expression.
Xu Qing was silent. He looked at the leather bag, picked it up, and opened it.
There were five white pills inside. Although he didn't need them, they were hard currency in the camp. So after thinking about it, he felt that this matter wasn't impossible.
So after some thought, Xu Qing nodded.
Seeing Xu Qing agree, Bone Blade let out a breath of relief. He cupped his fists in gratitude and left.
Xu Qing held the leather bag and narrowed his eyes. He was naturally vigilant, so he didn't completely believe Bone Blade's words.
However, he felt that the possibility of it being a trap wasn't high.
Because the fog didn't appear, he didn't have to go. And if Bone Blade could accurately calculate when the fog would appear three days in advance, with such ability, there was no need for him to scheme against others.
But he remained cautious and planned to make a decision when the time came.
So he turned around and returned to his room, continuing to meditate. The night passed.
The next morning, Xu Qing, who had just finished his cultivation, looked out of his room. He heard dogs barking outside.
When he walked out, Xu Qing saw a strange scene. Lei Dui was packing things. He tied bags of various sizes to the stray dogs, causing the stray dogs to stick out their tongues. A few of them were almost pressed to the ground.
"Finished cultivating?
Come, I'll take you to a place. "
Lei Dui wiped his sweat and said with a smile. Then, he patted the stray dog beside him, opened the bamboo door, and beckoned to Xu Qing.
Xu Qing was puzzled and followed. The stray dogs also followed behind. Just like that, the two of them and the pack of dogs moved through the camp.
From the middle ring to the inner ring, there were many shops. Most of the houses were made of brick and looked very sturdy.
When they came to a large courtyard, there were four independent brick houses. Each of them was much better than Xu Qing's previous residence. They were sturdier and denser.
Looking here, Xu Qing turned to look at Lei Dui.
"In the future, this will be our new home." Lei Dui said with a smile.
"New home?" Xu Qing stared in shock. The word 'home' gave him a familiar feeling of strangeness.
"I've been busy for most of my life," Lei Dui said. "I've saved up quite a bit. Now that my body is failing, I might as well move to a bigger house and enjoy myself."
Laughing heartily, Lei Dui took the lead, grabbed the bags from the stray dogs, and began to get busy.
Xu Qing stood there for a long moment, then slowly walked in. He looked at the black bricks on the ground, and the houses in front of him. He was a bit absent-minded, and even when Lei Dui called him to help, he still wasn't used to it.
After half a day of work, night came again. The cold wind was still blowing outside, and the snow was still falling. Amidst the whimpering, Xu Qing and Lei Dui sat beside the stove in the house. Heat flowed into their faces, and warmth filled the entire room.
There were no cracks in the walls, and the cold wind couldn't get in at all. Xu Qing quickly realized this, and felt warm all over.
"You're not cold anymore, are you?" Lei Dui asked with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm not cold anymore."
Xu Qing nodded. He looked at Lei Dui, and in the light of the stove, his eyes seemed to shine.
He really wasn't cold anymore. In fact, in this warmth, Xu Qing's heart trembled.
After a long, long time, Lei Dui left and returned to his room. Xu Qing leaned against the stove, muttering to himself.
"Home?"
At this moment, Lei Dui returned to his room. His smile was still there, but soon his face was flushed red.
He covered his mouth and coughed a few times. After a long moment, he swallowed back the fishy, salty taste in his mouth. Sighing, he stood in front of the window, looking in the direction of the forbidden zone. His eyes were filled with reminiscence.
"I really want to … go take a look again."
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I don't know if you guys like these two chapters. Personally, I like them very much. Slaughter and warmth both need to exist, to spread out a picture scroll. If either side is unbalanced, the story will lose some of its flavor.