Chapter 1: The Entanglement of Love and Hatred, Haicheng's Solitude
"A single feather cannot be added, a fly cannot land." "The body is united with the heart, the heart is united with the breath, the breath is united with the spirit, and the spirit is united with nothingness. There is a subtle existence, a sound that is only heard by those who are attuned to it. Even if one is far away in the eight wildernesses or near at hand, as soon as someone comes to disturb me, I will know." "By guarding the One, and dwelling in stillness, one can attain unity with heaven and humanity, and through the resonance of vibrations, obtain the energy of the harmony of yin and yang. In a state of function, through introspection, inner observation (inner vision), and inner listening to the flow of qi and blood, it is possible to perceive the influence on oneself of the exchange of yin and yang at dawn and dusk. The concept of unity between heaven and humanity, as spoken of in Daoist culture, can be perceived from the perspective of qi and blood." At this moment, Dong Zhaofeng's previously obscure words suddenly became clear.
Li Huqiu held onto a ball of Qi and blood in his Dantian, internally illuminating the five viscera and storing them away. His heart merged with his Qi and spirit, and at the moment when the energy of heaven and earth was transformed during the alternation of day and night, he reached the realm of unity between heaven and man! As he dispersed the Qi and blood in his Dantian to his four limbs and hundred bones, his entire body's strength suddenly returned, like a great river flowing unceasingly. Li Huqiu felt that his physical strength was more robust than ever before, as if it had increased tenfold overnight! The sound of his heartbeat, the flow of Qi and blood, the frictional sounds of joint movement, all seemed clear and distinct to his ears, and he felt a clarity of perception.
His perception of the outside world returned, and Li Huqiu carefully listened to the sounds from far and near, finally confirming that the sound was actually quite far away. The reason why he heard it so clearly earlier was mainly because at that time he had entered a state of unity with nature, making him extremely sensitive to external sounds and moving objects.
After he distinguished the direction, he jumped down from the tree and went towards the sound. When he got closer, he saw clearly that there were not only one person coming, but four forest rangers and a girl, as well as a large German Shepherd dog.
Li Huqiu didn't want to cause trouble, so after taking a closer look at the approaching people, he knew they didn't need his help finding someone. He climbed up the large pine tree beside him and hid in the canopy over 30 meters above the ground, watching as the five people and one dog walked by below. Li Huqiu waited until they were far away before climbing down. With his keen senses far surpassing theirs, he followed them from a distance where he could see them but they couldn't see him. Li Huqiu didn't know which direction he was in, and even if he figured it out, getting out of the vast forest wouldn't be an easy task. The police officers up ahead were all seasoned veterans who knew the way, so following them would definitely lead him out.
The forest was shrouded in a chaotic mixture of light and shadow at dawn. The small animals that had risen early were startled by the group of people ahead, and from time to time, the alarm calls of squirrels could be heard. The shrubs and grasses around them swayed back and forth, it was unclear whether it was due to the wind or the movement of animals within. Suddenly, the German Shepherd in front stopped, its alert eyes scanning the surroundings, sniffing the air for scents, and then suddenly let out a loud bark. No matter how the patrol soldiers tried to stop it, it was useless, and instead, it barked even more fiercely. Li Huqiu, who had been hunting with Gaodashan in the mountains since he was young, suddenly felt a chill run down his neck - wolf! As soon as this thought arose, a wolf howl suddenly echoed from ahead, like a battle horn sounding the charge!
Li Huqiu sprang up and climbed a big tree to observe, only to see dozens of large grassland wolves forming a circle around the five people and one dog walking ahead.
This place is located in the transition zone between forest and grassland, where the wolf pack that has difficulty hunting in winter will occasionally visit during this season. When Li Huqiu was young, he heard many stories about wolves from old men. These stories not only described the ferocity and terror of wolves but also revealed another fact: animals second only to humans in intelligence are wolves!
As a wolf howled, the pack emerged and surrounded the five people and one dog. A robust male wolf walked at the forefront, its deathly eyes fixed on them. The restless wolves occasionally let out low, mournful howls. The five people were all startled; four of the soldiers had only two rifles among them, while the other two each had a clip of bullets, which was clearly insufficient to deal with such a large pack of wolves. The two soldiers who carried rifles expertly loaded their guns and chambered a round. The lead wolf let out a low growl, and one of the wolves behind it suddenly sprang forward, followed closely by several more ferocious wolves. Three of the wolves immediately targeted the German Shepherd, pouncing on it and tangling with the brave military dog.
Two warriors' guns fired, at this time there was no time to aim, they could only fire directly at the target. Only after hitting the initial target did the subsequent bullets go high. Firstly, the recoil of the submachine gun was very large, and the accuracy was extremely low in continuous shooting; secondly, because the two warriors were also experiencing such a scene for the first time, excessive tension and fear caused them to lose control of their emotions.
Duanmu Jing held 64 small handguns in her hand, her face pale and sweating. Although she had been practicing martial arts since childhood and was braver than most boys, when faced with this creature that was second only to snakes and mice in terms of terror for girls, her emotions were still dominated by fear. A large wolf rushed at her and she raised the small handgun and fired wildly, killing the wolf but also wasting her last bullet due to inertia.
The gunshot boosted the courage of the five people and also intimidated the ferocity of the wolves. The head wolf let out a howl, and the pack quickly dispersed. It seemed they had no intention of giving up. Only after the wolf pack temporarily retreated did the five people discover that the loyal German Shepherd had been bitten all over its body and was lying on the ground, gasping for breath.
The first round of attack, the human side lost a dog and consumed most of their ammunition. The wolf pack lost two wolves. Li Huqiu watched from a high vantage point and saw that the wolf pack had not retreated but instead expanded its encirclement, still focusing on these few people. Li Huqiu hesitated in his heart whether to go down and help, not only because he feared the terror of the wolf pack, but also because he had to consider Duanmu Jing's inquiry about Duanmu Ye's whereabouts. Last night, Duanmu Ye obviously didn't return either, and Li Huqiu estimated that after Duanmu Jing sent those robbers to the authorities, she waited in vain for Duanmu Ye and then contacted the local garrison, asking them to send people to help her search for Duanmu Ye in the mountains. If Li Huqiu showed up now, what would Duanmu Jing think? It was not worth the effort and might lead to misunderstandings, so Li Huqiu had some doubts.
The wolf pack retreated on the surface, but it would soon return with a vengeance. Li Huqiu decided to continue following the few people and lend a hand at critical moments.
Du Mu Jing held the empty gun, feeling both fearful and disappointed with her own performance. As the only heir of the Du Mu family in this generation, she was determined to prove that a girl could inherit her father's legacy just as well as a boy. The Du Mu family had been single-handedly passed down for four generations, and now it was up to her, a girl, to carry on the tradition. Every time Du Mu Ye thought about this, he couldn't help but sigh. Du Mu Jing saw it in his eyes and felt indignant in her heart - what was wrong with being a girl? She wanted to prove that girls could also inherit their father's legacy just like boys. So far, she had been very satisfied with her own performance. From learning martial arts as a child to attending police school after growing up, she had unhesitatingly followed the path of the six-panel door that her family had taken for hundreds of years. On this path, her previous performances had always surpassed those of boys. Her irrational behavior just now made her feel regretful.
Four warriors stood in place, two were injured, one was lightly wounded, only scratched on the thigh. The other was more serious, his arm was bitten by a wolf, and the sleeve was full of blood. All four looked at Duanmu Jing, seemingly wanting to retreat. Several people were all old soldiers, having been stationed in this mountainous and grassland border for a long time, and they had long known about the ferocity of wolves. The recent personal experience made them have a deeper understanding of it. Everyone was clear that the wolf pack would not give up easily, and now that the distance from the troops' camp was not particularly far, they should hurry back before the wolf pack came back to kill them, as long as they were close to the troops, there was still a chance to escape.
The head of the class finished expressing his thoughts to Du Mu Jing, who nodded after a moment of contemplation: "Alright, you all go back, I'll continue searching for my dad. I'm worried he might have encountered this pack of wolves too. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine; if I run into another wolf pack, I'll just climb a tree to hide." The class leader glanced at the towering trees surrounding them, their lower halves over 10 meters high and smooth as jade, impossible for ordinary people to climb. He asked with some concern: "These trees are all so slippery, how will you get up?" Du Mu Jing replied: "Don't worry, I've trained in martial arts; climbing this tree won't be a problem for me. You all go back; my goal is finding my dad, while you're just forced to come out and complete the task – no need to risk your lives accompanying me."
Four warriors looked at each other, and the determination in Tongmu's eyes seemed unstoppable. After a fierce ideological struggle, they finally made a decision. The squad leader said: "Since that's the case, we'll return to our unit. Miss Tongmu, we still hope you can come with us. The prairie wolves that appear here are all starving wolves. Once they find food, they won't give up easily. It's really dangerous for you to continue staying here to look for your father. Who knows if your father has already left this place? Is it worth taking such a great risk?"
Du Mu Jing smiled slightly and said thank you. She still decided to continue searching. The class leader reluctantly handed her a military dagger, saying: "Your handgun is out of bullets, keep this for self-defense, we'll report back to the leaders when we return and they will send more people to help you search for your father." Du Mu Jing thanked him again, and the four soldiers bid farewell to her before embarking on their return journey.
Four warriors left, Duanmu Jing took out the compass and map, identified the direction, and continued to walk up the mountain. The forest suddenly became quiet, Duanmu Jing's mind tightened, stopped in her tracks, and her hand unconsciously placed on the hilt of the military dagger.
