Under the fist

Chapter 6 Unexpected Changes, the Old Man, and the White Lotus

That night, a northwest wind blew through the forest farm. The howling wind howled and swirled through the forest, sounding like the wailing of ghosts and wolves.

Lian Youming lay on the kang, his head resting on his arms, seemingly asleep, but his mind was filled with the images of people on the brocade, especially the meridians marked on it.

With a sudden thought, he imagined himself transforming into a small fish, swimming into his body, and then imagining the meridians as great rivers, swimming freely within them, almost without restraint, letting his imagination run wild, releasing his wildest thoughts, as if only in this way could he soothe the aches and pains throughout his body.

But for some reason, all my imagination suddenly vanished.

The battle on the train inexplicably flashed into Lian Youming's mind.

Fists and kicks clashed, figures crisscrossed.

But they were quickly dispersed.

After all, a simple life is what's common, and it's the kind of life that ordinary people should have.

As for that world that didn't belong to him, it was nothing more than a fleeting illusion.

After a brief moment of thrills, it's time to wake up from the dream.

In this place where water freezes instantly when splashed and breath turns to frost, Lian Youming couldn't think of anything other than eating well, dressing warmly, and sleeping every day. He even had money but nowhere to spend it.

Fortunately, Platoon Leader Yang said that once winter arrives, they can take advantage of their free time to organize and choreograph programs and read books.

The cold moon hung high outside the window, its pale light seeping through the forest and into the dormitory through the rustling window paper.

Lian Youming jumped up and took out some dried meat that Qin Yuhu had brought from under the mattress on the heated kang.

The others also took out what they had brought, wrapped themselves in blankets, and gathered around the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) to connect with each other and strengthen their bonds.

But just when they could finally eat, Liu Dabiao, who had gone out to urinate, still hadn't returned.

Yu Wen was getting impatient. "Is this guy going to fall into a pit? Why is it so difficult for him to pee?"

Lian Youming, on the other hand, was drowsy. During this time, he had followed Xie Laosan and basically figured out the terrain around the forest farm. He went out early and returned late, and also had to train donkeys to move wood. He was exhausted.

"Why don't you go out and take a look?"

"I'm not going on such a cold day."

As the group chatted, a strange noise suddenly came from outside the window.

"Wow!"

"Who the hell is yelling and screaming outside in the middle of the night?"

Yu Wu, being quick-witted, instinctively cursed.

But his expression changed after he finished scolding her.

This doesn't sound like a human making that noise.

It looks more like some kind of wild beast.

"not good!"

Lian Youming's tiger-like eyes widened suddenly. Without saying a word, he got out of bed, wrapped himself in his coat, grabbed the rifle beside him, and rushed out.

"Lock the doors and windows, and whatever you do, don't come out."

I left the dormitory.

A cold wind rushed into his chest, and feeling the overwhelming chill in his face, Lian Youming tucked in his collar, gripped his rifle tightly, and without thinking, headed towards the toilet as if he were blowing up a bunker.

Besides getting bullets from Platoon Leader Yang regularly, he also had a spare bullet in his rifle for emergencies.

Liu Dabiao had not returned for a long time, and coupled with that beastly roar, it was highly likely that he had encountered danger.

Could I really be that unlucky?

He held his breath, his feet treading on the bright moonlight, and hurried forward, quickly reaching the toilet in no time.

The sound of other people could be heard in the night wind. It seemed that the militiamen guarding the forest farm had all heard the roar of the beast, but they couldn't tell where it was coming from.

"Liu Dabiao?"

Desperate to save lives, Lian Youming didn't care about anything else and crept into the toilet, calling out softly.

However, the sound seemed to disappear into thin air, and there was no response whatsoever.

By the moonlight, he quickly scanned every corner of the toilet until he saw a patch of crimson on the floor, and his heart sank to the bottom.

"Blood?"

Just as Lian Youming was filled with doubt and uncertainty, a faint cry for help suddenly came from the latrine.

"Lian Youming, I'm here! Help me!"

Lian Youming looked in the direction of the sound and saw a head vaguely sticking out of the latrine, its voice trembling with sobs, its hands gripping the edge, covered in excrement and urine.

Seeing that the man was still alive, he didn't care about the filth and, without thinking, was about to reach out to grab him. But as soon as he bent down, he noticed that Liu Dabiao's face had changed at some point. His eyes widened, his pupils twitched, and he was staring straight at him.

Lian Youming's eyes twitched. He was about to ask what was wrong with the kid, but before he could open his mouth, he felt a heat on the back of his neck, as if something had dripped onto his neck. He was immediately startled.

Suffered.

Liu Dabiao had already come to his senses, his expression filled with terror, and he kept giving him meaningful glances.

Lian Youming lowered his gaze to the shadow at his feet. He saw something lying on the high place in the shadow under the eaves, half-exposed, looking down at him.

As for the warm foreign object dripping onto the neck, it's most likely the thing's saliva.

Could it be a leopard or a lynx that can leap over walls and scale obstacles?

Before he could think further, Lian Youming's pupils constricted sharply. He saw the dark figure silently pounce down, moving with lightning speed and leaping like a bird. In an instant, he felt a foul-smelling gust of wind sweep over the back of his head, and the hairs on his body stood on end. He quickly rolled to the side.

As it tumbled, Lian Youming finally saw what this thing truly looked like.

It resembles a tiger but is not a tiger, resembles a cat but is not a cat, its body is covered with black and yellow stripes, its eyes glow green, and its mouth drips saliva.

"Huang Hu?"

It turned out to be a golden cat.

This is what is commonly known as "Biao".

Lian Youming was surprised, but before he could regain his footing, a ball of cotton burst out in front of him and drifted away in the wind.

A gaping hole had been torn in the military overcoat at the chest.

That beast has such sharp claws and teeth. Just as he was in shock, he felt a blur before his eyes, and a stench of blood rushed towards him, while a sharp claw reached for his throat.

"Fuck you!"

In his shock and anger, Lian Youming realized it was too late to fire, so he simply released his rifle, dodged the sharp claws in front of him, and at the same time lifted his coat to cover the golden cat.

With its view obstructed, the golden cat missed its target with its paw. Just as it was about to dodge, a straight right leg swept out from under the coat, striking its waist and abdomen.

In the blink of an eye, the two dark figures had already passed each other.

Lian Youming rolled several meters away, steadied himself on one knee, and slowly took off his coat. He squinted at the ferocious beast poised to pounce in the moonlight. But then he felt a warm sensation on his cheek, and his heart skipped a beat. He was still no match for this beast.

Before it could catch its breath, the golden cat leaped again, its fangs bared and the barbs on its scarlet tongue standing up.

But Lian Youming was no pushover. He gathered his breath, channeling his energy through his fingers, and subtly hooked his right foot. The overcoat that had fallen to his feet instantly billowed in the wind, resembling a large net, which enveloped the lunging black shadow.

Unexpectedly, the beast reacted extremely quickly. Although it was airborne, it could change direction mid-air with a flick of its thick tail and twist its waist to dodge the oncoming coat.

But behind the coat, a figure advanced instead of retreating, and also lunged into the air.

This time, it landed squarely on his head.

The man and the beast collided, smashing a large hole in the toilet and plunging into the night outside.

Lian Youming used a military grappling technique with one hand, his tiger's mouth opening and closing like an eagle's claw. He intended to grab the beast's neck, but the two were entangled together, and the beast kept rolling and struggling, making it difficult to exert force for the time being.

The two figures tumbled and rolled as they were thrown a short distance away.

Seeing that the ferocious beast under his command was about to break free, Lian Youming made a sudden decision. He wrapped one arm around the golden cat's neck and used all his strength to punch it.

In the fierce battle, the two figures were entangled and unable to gain the upper hand.

The golden cat scratched and bit, its thick tail lashing out like an iron whip, producing a series of crisp sounds.

Lian Youming was covered in blood, but he refused to let go even in death.

At this moment, he was both shocked and furious, yet also incredibly excited. Hot blood streamed down his face, and he felt a stinging pain all over his body. But this stimulation only made him swing his fists faster and harder, and soon his knuckles were covered with drops of thick blood.

It took five or six minutes of smashing before the frantically biting golden cat gradually calmed down.

Lian Youming didn't dare let go yet. While rolling around, he picked up a piece of wood and stabbed the golden cat in the belly several times until the beast in his arms was completely still. Only then did he collapse in despair.

With just this one breath, Lian Youming felt as if his body had fallen apart, his whole body burning with pain.

He lay in the moonlight, panting heavily. He glanced to the side and saw that the golden cat beside him was bleeding from its mouth and nose, its head was smashed into a bloody mess, and there were several holes in its stomach with its intestines spilling out.

Just as he was about to catch his breath, Lian Youming suddenly felt a chill. His gaze fell upon a pair of bright, cruel eyes looking down at him from the branches of an old tree a few steps away.

Even when it hid in the shadows, the outline of this thing was still much larger than that of the golden cat.

By the moonlight, through the faintly visible spots, Lian Youming took a deep breath. It was actually an adult Siberian leopard.

"What's going on? Why haven't the militiamen arrived yet?"

Lian Youming groaned inwardly. Before he could struggle, the leopard had already leaped down with a "whoosh".

But faced with a life-or-death crisis, how could Lian Youming accept his fate? Holding the piece of wood in his hand, he was ready to fight to the death.

Unfortunately, he was now mostly exhausted and covered in injuries. Before he could even raise his hand, the leopard was already in front of him, its head lowered and two bright eyes staring at him. With its mouth wide open, it pounced.

It’s over.

Smelling the scalding, fishy air, Lian Youming felt a chill run through his body, his eyes wide with rage.

However, just as he was about to have his neck bitten off and blood splattered everywhere, at this critical moment, a figure suddenly appeared behind the leopard.

The newcomer was clearly as swift as the wind, moving as fast as an arrow released from a bow, yet he made no sound whatsoever. His leaps and bounds were like those of a ghost, and in the instant he took to the air, he silently appeared behind the leopard, his right hand reaching out, fingers spread wide, and then pressing down.

The hand was on the leopard's lower back.

Lian Youming's eyes widened, and he saw the leopard's bright eyes visibly dim, and its body flew three or four meters away like a kite with a broken string, crashing headfirst into a tree stump.

That's how he died.

The dark figure landed gracefully, and still, not a sound could be heard.

Lian Youming could see clearly that the person who came was none other than the old man in black.

The old man lowered his eyes and grinned strangely, "The White Lotus Sect's beast-driving technique? I haven't seen it in years."

This person wasn't speaking to Lian Youming, but rather to the night and the cold wind.

Lian Youming was horrified. From the old man's words, it seemed that these wild beasts had been deliberately driven here.

What on earth is the White Lotus Sect?

Isn't that something you only see in history books?

As if in response to his guess, two gunshots rang out from the other end of the forest, accompanied by a few animal roars.

No wonder the militiamen didn't arrive in time; they must have been unable to get away.

Meanwhile, as the old man in black finished speaking, his originally hunched body suddenly moved again, much like a ghost under the moon. His steps seemed ordinary, but each step covered four or five meters, which was truly astonishing.

Lian Youming lay on the ground, his hands and feet icy cold. He saw the old man take a step forward, and then a dark figure appeared in the moonlight behind him. The figure was dressed in night clothes and then retreated gracefully, fleeing without a fight.

Well, there's another person lurking in the shadows.

Lian Youming's mind was shaken.

However, the old man in black did not give chase, but turned around to look.

Lian Youming was startled and quickly closed his eyes, pretending to faint.

The old man, however, was unmoved by his words and said calmly, "Young man, where did you learn that Eagle Claw Kung Fu from? It's utter nonsense and a disgrace to our ancestors."

It turns out that when he was practicing the Youming Capture the Golden Cat earlier, he subconsciously used an Eagle Claw technique. But this was not something he had learned; rather, he had secretly figured it out after seeing someone else use it. Just now, in his nervousness, he used the capture technique along with it.

Lian Youming blushed and was about to speak, but when he opened his eyes, there was no trace of the old man under the bright moonlight.

"Why do these people appear and disappear so mysteriously?"

After muttering a couple of things, he suddenly remembered something, quickly got up from the ground, and hurried towards the toilet.

　Another chapter at 6 PM

　　
　
(End of this chapter)