"Hunting!?" Zhou Ri exclaimed, "You?"
Song Qingchao stood with her hands behind her back, gently swinging the bow in her palm.
"Yes, me."
Zhou Ri immediately burst into laughter. "Are you serious?"
Song Qingchao did not bother with the child. After Zhou Yi handed her an arrow, she drew the bow and shot.
Watching the arrow land in the snow, Zhou Ri couldn't help but laugh.
But Song Qingchao didn't care.
The other brothers of the Zhou family, however, had mixed expressions.
Zhou Ri might not have seen clearly, but they had.
The arrow had penetrated a tree trunk before embedding itself in the snow, not a miss.
They were genuinely worried about Zhou Ri's fate.
As the saying goes, youth is reckless, and Zhou Ri was perhaps too much so.
"Shall we make a bet?" Song Qingchao asked Zhou Ri calmly as she put away her bow.
"Bet on what?"
"Whoever has more prey. The loser builds the latrine."
Building a latrine was the first thing Song Qingchao intended to do.
She truly couldn't stand life without a toilet!
"Okay," Zhou Ri agreed readily. "Does prey have size differences?"
Song Qingchao nodded. "Not by number, but by weight."
After all, her goal was to solve the problem of food, which was why she chose hunting, an extremely time-consuming activity.
Hearing this, Zhou Ri became even happier. "Wait until I bring back a wild boar. I'm sure to win."
Zhou Si: "Don't be too happy too soon. We're participating too."
Zhou Wu: "Exactly."
Zhou Liu: "You just wait to build the latrine."
These three sentences nearly made Zhou Ri collapse.
"Brothers! Please root for me a little!"
The remaining few were stifling laughter but said nothing.
They all tacitly agreed that Zhou Ri, this unruly child, needed some discipline.
Zhou Ri, however, didn't seem to realize it at all.
Perhaps it was because he was dragged directly out of bed, his mind was not clear.
Zhou Ri thought that he wouldn't be the last. Even if his skills were inferior to his brothers', he was definitely better than that young lady who shot a miss!
So, he decided to raise the stakes!
"The loser not only has to build it but also sweep it afterwards, okay?"
Song Qingchao's eyes lit up at this.
"That's an excellent idea!"
Seeing Song Qingchao agree, Zhou Ri turned around with satisfaction and left.
Song Qingchao shook her head looking at Zhou Ri's energetic back.
Still too young.
"Everyone, go about your own business."
"Master, don't you need us to follow you?"
Song Qingchao took the quiver and shook her head, "No need. You help protect Mumu and the other two."
She shouldered the quiver and headed into the deep mountains. "See you at You Shi (5-7 PM)."
Everyone watched as she picked up the arrow she had shot earlier and placed it in the backpack behind her.
Then, she disappeared into the snow.
Several people looked at each other, then dispersed.
They all knew that this competition was not just about dealing with "Little Sunny" Zhou.
After entering Ling Shi Valley, one could only start working on the seventh day.
This time frame was set to observe the criminals' adaptability.
After all, the border was harsh and cold.
Only by surviving for seven days could one determine their usefulness.
For them, seven days was the time to adapt to this place and prepare for the future.
During the long winter, food was limited, and they needed to obtain sufficient resources for the winter ahead.
Moreover, they saw that their master had no intention of leaving Ling Shi Valley, so they could only do their best to survive.
Meanwhile, Song Qingchao was not thinking that much.
She shot as she walked, and now her spatial storage already held eight rabbits, three pheasants, and one elk.
Now, she was lying prone behind the crown of a tree, drawing her bow and aiming at another elk.
With a "swish."
The arrow directly pierced the elk's neck.
Before the elk could fall, Song Qingchao immediately put it into her spatial storage.
Just as she was about to move forward, she heard cries for help.
Song Qingchao lowered her bow-holding arm, carefully discerning the direction, about a kilometer to the southeast.
Without hesitation, she shouldered her bow and ran towards the sound.
As she got closer, the cries for help grew louder.
By the time Song Qingchao could roughly see what was happening, the person calling for help was in mortal danger.
A snow-white wolf was pouncing on an old woman lying on the ground!
Song Qingchao acted decisively, drew her bow, and shot without hesitation.
"Swoosh!" The arrow sliced through the sky.
With forceful momentum, the arrow pierced the belly of the white wolf leaping in the air.
As the white wolf fell.
The other surrounding wolves and wolfdogs raised their wild pupils and stared at Song Qingchao.
Song Qingchao ran quickly, slinging her bow over her left shoulder, and then drew the twin hooked swords from her spatial storage with both hands.
The twin hooked swords twirled in Song Qingchao's palm before being gripped tightly.
In close combat, the twin hooked swords were definitely a formidable weapon capable of defeating a hundred with one!
At the same time, the pack of hungry wolves ferociously lunged at Song Qingchao.
Song Qingchao, without hesitation, used the terrain to her advantage to reap the lives of the white wolves.
Her movements were swift and precise.
But there were simply too many wolves.
As soon as Song Qingchao slaughtered one wolf with her left hand, two more would pounce.
She had no choice but to offer one of her arms first, then stab in with her right hand.
Blood splattered across her face.
The warm blood smeared across half of her eye, but the killing intent grew stronger.
Unable to see clearly, she closed one eye and continued to kill.
Even when one was snatched away, she could still grit her teeth and get back up.
She fought until flesh and blood were blurred.
She fought until the wolf pack was afraid.
Song Qingchao dropped the twin hooked sword in her right hand, used her right hand to support the wound on her left arm, and with her left hand, which dangled loosely, held the twin hooked sword, letting blood drip onto the already reddened snow.
The remaining few wolves were calculating, staring intently at Song Qingchao, waiting for her to fall.
Song Qingchao knew exactly what these wolves were thinking.
Wolves were also sentient beings.
She was not afraid.
Scattered hair blocked her vision, and also the wolves' vision.
Song Qingchao took a pill from her spatial storage and stuffed it into her mouth.
Then, a sinister smile curved her lips.
She turned her head to the right, craning her neck with a pop, then glancing westward at two old men hiding behind a large tree.
She really hadn't expected that just by coming out to hunt, she would encounter such a situation.
She tore off a strip of cloth with her teeth, then tightly wrapped it around her left arm, and then took the twin hooked sword held in her left hand.
She stepped back with her left leg, twisting her waist backward to gather strength.
Seeing Song Qingchao's stance, the wolf pack instinctively retreated.
When Song Qingchao moved, the wolf pack also moved.
But this time, the wolf pack ran in the opposite direction!
They seemed to have discovered the blind spot! They discovered the two old men behind the tree!
Song Qingchao clicked her tongue, a fierce light in her eyes.
She then threw the twin hooked sword in her hand.
The twin hooked swords traced a beautiful arc in the air, perfectly decapitating the white wolf.
"Awooo—"
The remaining two wolves let out a mournful howl, as if begging Song Qingchao to spare them.
Song Qingchao took a deep breath, the white mist further blurring her vision.
Should she let them go?