Chapter 456: Clues in the Dense Forest

Even in that predicament, the crow leader still managed to fly backward.

He Lingchuan’s patience snapped. With three sharp flicks of his wrist, he sent out three throwing knives in rapid succession.

The leader of the crows twisted midair with impressive agility, dodging the first two blades. The third, however, struck its wing with a dull thunk and pinned it to the wall of the inn.

Outside the window, the remaining dozen crows erupted into frantic cawing. They battered at the window, trying to break in and rescue their leader.

But at that moment, a lean figure vaulted over the courtyard wall. With a sweep of its powerful wings and a flash of its steel talons, it dove straight at the flock.

Their natural predator had arrived.

The crows scattered in terror.

He Lingchuan reopened the window. The goshawk folded its wings mid-spin and slipped neatly through the opening, landing lightly on a cabinet shelf. It stood less than half a meter from the crow leader. One thrust of its steel beak would be enough to punch straight through the crow’s skull,

and it looked entirely willing to do so.

Ignoring the racket outside, He Lingchuan addressed the trapped crow leader calmly, “Well then, name your price again.”

“T-there’s no need to pay me, no need at all!” The crow leader swallowed its resentment. With the goshawk’s hooked beak so close, it did not dare to test its luck anymore. “I’ll tell you everything!”

It gave two sharp caws. Outside, the restless flock quieted at once and retreated to the trees.

From start to finish, He Lingchuan had handled the entire flock in less than a dozen breaths. Everything had been clean and efficient.

“About five or six days ago, my children discovered several corpses in the forest. Some of the remains were human, while others were beasts... or perhaps, monsters.” The crow leader then added, “You know how it is, finding human bones alone, or monster bones alone, isn’t strange, but finding them mixed together? That’s strange. There were several drillwind beasts among them.”

“Where were the remains?”

“Zhitian Township, sixteen kilometers from here.” The crow leader cocked its head again. “They were originally buried, but it seems that wild dogs dug them up. There were paw and claw prints from dogs all over the surrounding soil.”

“Can you guide us there?”

“Yes.”

He Lingchuan pulled the knife that was pinning its wing to the wall before asking, “If you had this clue, why not report it to the authorities? Why let Pockmarked Wang and the others die?”

“Who gives away meat that’s already at their beak?” The crow leader tested its wing and saw that it still functioned. “And the authorities? Hah!” It let out a bitter laugh. “Half a year ago, Little Seven disappeared too. We reported it. The county warden still hasn’t given us an answer. They only serve humans. They never care whether we live or die!”

In Beijia’s county cities, there existed a special official post called the county custodian. This was an office that specifically handled monster affairs, including disputes and petitions. The position itself was held by a monster, to better understand their kind.

“You also had a companion disappear six months ago?” He Lingchuan’s gaze sharpened. “Had it already become a monster?”

“It had,” answered the crow leader honestly. “It was fortunate enough to benefit from the previous year’s imperial nectar.”

“Imperial nectar turned into a death warrant,” He Lingchuan murmured. “These people are targeting monsters specifically. If they’re not eliminated, all of you remain in danger.”

This was the state of monsters. For someone to dare abduct monsters here was audacious beyond belief. If exposed, there would be no redemption, only certain death.

“Targeting monsters?” The crow leader flapped once. “Don’t lie to me. Didn’t they eat humans too?”

Oh? It’s quite a sharp-minded bird.

He Lingchuan did not argue. Instead, he changed tack. “Lead me there, and serve as my eyes and ears. In return, you’ll receive sixty kilograms of fresh beef and mutton per month, plus thirty spirit-preserving pills for one year.”

If he had made that offer earlier, the crow leader would have mocked him. But now, it actually sounded quite reasonable. In winter, when food was scarce, they would have fresh meat. They would not have to dig through snow for scraps, peck at unripe berries, or search for frozen corpses.

From the perspective of crows, that could already be considered prosperity.

“Deal!” It shook loose a feather dislodged by the knife and handed it over as a token of oath.

Ever since the incident at the Three-Heart Plain, He Lingchuan had harbored little affection for crows. He saw them as nothing but greedy, opportunistic creatures with no loyalty. However, he had to admit that they were everywhere.

He had even heard that Lingxu City maintained an entire Heavenly Crow Corps dedicated to intelligence gathering.

With guides secured, He Lingchuan immediately set off for Zhitian Township.

* * *

Zhitian Township was about fifteen kilometers northwest of Shuangyi Town.

As He Lingchuan traveled, he noticed fewer grain fields and more varied crops, along with more medicinal herbs.

“Eh?” he asked, pointing roadside. “Is that glossy ganoderma[1]?”

Don’t those grow under tree roots? Why are they planted in rows like wheat?

“This is Zhitian Township,” answered Jiao Yu, who was lounging inside the carriage. “They cultivate lingzhi on cut timber.”

Indeed, the township’s name itself proclaimed its specialty. Zhitian, after all, literally means ganoderma fields.

“The conditions here are exceptionally suited for spiritual herbs,” Jiao Yu continued, stretching awkwardly in the cramped carriage. “Nearly thirty percent of all standard medicinal herbs in the State of Chiyan come from here.”

Thirty percent, huh? That’s an enormous market share.

They passed what looked to He Lingchuan like primitive greenhouses. These were buildings made of bamboo frames covered with cloth and coated in oil plaster for insulation.

“What’s that?”

“Grow sheds,” Jiao Yu replied. “They place heated stones inside to keep the herbs warm.”

The heated stones Jiao Yu referred to were actually rocks that could generate heat on their own. Pour several scoops of water onto a pile of them in the corner of a room, and the room would soon become no different from a sauna.

He Lingchuan chuckled. “But it’s the middle of summer right now, wouldn’t extra heat dehydrate the plants?”

“For certain species like firecloud pearls or dragonflame graspers, which are plants native to volcanic craters, temperatures below fifty degrees won’t be able to sustain them,” Jiao Yu said. “Though you’re right, these sheds are also used for drying herbs.”

He Lingchuan smiled. “Lord Jiao seems well-versed.”

Jiao Yu replied frankly, “I served in a neighboring county for years. I know this region like my own fur.”

It seems that Fushan Yue had indeed assigned me an excellent assistant. This tiger is not only strong in combat, but it’s also familiar with local matters.

No heir apparent is ever truly simple-minded.

The goshawk perched atop the carriage roof. The crow, intimidated, had no choice but to cling to the horse’s back and guide the driver.

General Ling followed as well, though with only a few guards. It did not appear to be the stay-behind-and-command type. Judging by the scars across his body, it was the charge-first kind.

Soon, the carriage left the main road and wound into the mountains.

Zhitian Township was mostly composed of mountainous terrain, like hills, peaks, ravines, and stone forests.

After about an hour, the road they were on ended, and the carriage could no longer proceed.

He Lingchuan switched to riding the cliff ram. The tiger and drillwind beasts flanked him.

Even at greater speed, it took another two hours to reach the site that the crow leader had spoken of.

The disposal site lay in a dense forest at the base of the mountain. Sunlight barely penetrated the canopy.

A thick carpet of rotting leaves covered the ground. Each step sank ankle-deep into decay and black humus.

The air reeked of mold and damp rot.

The crow landed on a thick branch, flapping its wings as it called, “Over here! It’s over here!”

The slope faced north. Moss covered the stones; everything felt perpetually wet.

He Lingchuan soon came upon a large pit beneath a massive tree root, filled with scattered bones.

The crow had spoken true. The bodies had been buried deliberately, but had later been dug up by wild dogs. Fresh soil lay everywhere, the dogs’ prints stamped across it.

The pit was only half-excavated. Many bones remained partially buried.

Mosquitoes and flies swarmed the site.

Thanks to Zhu Xiu’er’s insect-repelling silk brocade bag or sachet, none approached He Lingchuan. Still, the stench was foul.

If not for prior exposure to stink dumplings, the Demon Nest, and all kinds of beast dens, He Lingchuan might have just vomited right then and there.

Unlike most humans, tigers, goshawks, and crows were typically unbothered by the smell of corpses. Jiao Yu even leaped into the pit and dug further, uncovering two or three relatively intact animal skeletons.

General Ling glanced once and said hoarsely, “They are indeed my children.”

While human bones were difficult to recognize or identify, General Ling immediately recognized the drillwind beasts among the remains.

“They served under me for years. I never imagined that they would not fall on a battlefield, but have such an end.”

He Lingchuan crouched to inspect the remains, even touching a few here and there. “Though there are signs of dog gnawing, these corpses look as if they’ve been, ugh...”

The goshawk completed his sentence, “Digested?”

He Lingchuan snapped his fingers. “Exactly.”

Though buried for days, the bones retained a slickness. Their flesh was gone. All that remained were bones, skin, and fur, shriveled and compressed.

Wild dogs could not have cleaned them so thoroughly. Even the deeply buried corpses, which had been untouched by scavengers, were in identical condition.

Birds of prey expelled partially digested remains that looked much the same.

General Ling’s eyes blazed with fury. With a violent swing of its head, it split a sapling in half with its horns. “When I find the murderer, I will trample them into mud!”

“So our target is a monster with an enormous appetite, one that’s able to swallow a dozen humans and seven or eight beasts in one sitting, then it moves fifteen to twenty kilometers before excreting them?” He Lingchuan then looked at the goshawk and asked, “Among birds of prey, do you know any such glutton?”

1. This is what I was referring to when I was talking about ganoderma that typically have more magical/fantastical characteristics when in these fictional novels. ☜