Infinite Hunter

With this thought in mind, Cheng Yijiu finally rode away. He returned to the main road and, after pondering for a moment, chose to run in the upwind direction. "A werewolf should be riding in a carriage, sniffing the air and choosing its prey." Cheng Yijiu had let the horse go for a long time when he felt something in his heart... Cheng Yijiu turned his head to look at a longhouse on the side of the road. It looked like a lumberyard, where the lumberjacks would gather, rest, eat, and hold meetings.

Now it is a silent grave.

Even with Cheng Yijiu's keen sense of smell, he could smell the strong stench of blood. He tied his horse aside—it was clearly a bit frightened, constantly pawing the ground with its hooves and snorting. After soothing it for a while, Cheng Yijiu took out a bag of beans, opened the bag, and placed it on the ground for the horse to eat. He then picked up his rifle and walked towards the longhouse, circling it as usual.

"The werewolf broke in from the other side of the house," he said, looking at the massive hole in the wall. "It ripped and shattered such thick wood. This guy is incredibly strong." Without even going inside, just a glance from the entrance revealed at least six or seven people sprawled out, all of them sturdy men. The house was soaked in blood, and those people had been torn apart like rag dolls, thrown carelessly on the floor, on tables, and even hung from window frames.

Cheng Yijiu turned back, mounted his horse, and continued his pursuit along the main road. Given the current situation, it might take a day for the bodies of these workers to be discovered. "But the blood hasn't even completely solidified yet! The werewolves haven't gone far!" He rode his horse and saw the traces of horse wheels on the road. Since they hadn't left the main road, it would be easy. Cheng Yijiu continued in pursuit.

At dusk, Cheng Yijiu spotted his target. It was a four-wheeled carriage. The carriage was black, the horses were black, and even the driver was dressed in black, but Cheng Yijiu couldn't see anything else about him. "That head looks weird?" Because the light was rapidly fading, Cheng Yijiu only saw now that the driver seemed to have strange antlers on his head.

The carriage wasn't going very fast, but considering the time Cheng Yijiu had discovered the body and the time he had been chasing it, it should have been going very fast. Cheng Yijiu immediately took out his musket and prepared it, moving closer to see what was going on. If there was anything unusual, he would open fire.

Chapter 18 Duel

As the black carriage moved along, aside from the clatter of horseshoes hitting the ground, the entire carriage, including the bearings, was completely silent. As Cheng Yijiu approached, the horse beneath him began to refuse to obey. Its gait was erratic, it refused to move forward, its head tossing and snorting. Cheng Yijiu dismounted, trying to calm the horse. Without further ado, he aimed his musket at the black horse in front of the carriage and fired.

A long flash of fire shot out from the muzzle, and the black powder burned beautifully. The silver bullet, propelled by the gunpowder, quickly rushed out of the barrel and kissed the black horse's head in a very short time. Cheng Yijiu watched the horse's head explode with an exaggerated force. "It actually has the same effect as a dumdum bullet? Well, it is indeed a dark creature." Cheng Yijiu quickly gave himself an explanation.

The headless black horse stumbled, and the two horses collided with each other, causing the carriage behind to jolt and slow down, but soon the headless horse seemed to be running again as if it were safe and sound. Cheng Yijiu was no longer surprised. He pulled out the shotgun from his waist, aimed directly at the axle of the carriage and fired - the shotgun was loaded with real 12-gauge bullets, the kind with lead bullets instead of silver bullets.

Two massive bullets fired simultaneously, the muzzle flames longer than the barrels, and a mighty roar echoed across the desolate road. The two shotgun shells shattered one side of the axle, sending a wheel flying. With a sharp grinding sound, the carriage toppled over and rolled, dragging along the driver and the horses. The carriage came to a stop on its side, tipped over on its side.

Cheng Yijiu calmly pressed the release button, and the double-barreled Winchester M21 folded open. He shook the gun, letting the remaining burning material fall out. He blew on it, pulled two new oil-soaked cardboard bullets from his belt, and loaded them. With a flick of his wrist, the gun closed again with a click. Cheng Yijiu then folded the gun open as well, loaded a new bullet, and then walked slowly towards the carriage.

There was no sound inside the carriage, and outside—the two horses were completely dried-up dead, whereas just a dozen seconds ago they were still full of life, one of them still running despite having lost its head. The driver looked like he had horns because he was wearing a sheep skull mask. Cheng Yijiu used a dagger to pry open his black cloak, revealing the dried-up corpse of a man underneath.

"I don't think werewolves have the ability to control the dead," Cheng Yijiu muttered, looking at the carriage. Cheng Yijiu took a few steps back, and he could hear breathing. "The thickness of this carriage..." Cheng Yijiu gave up the idea of ​​shooting. The thickness of the carriage was enough to make his silver bullet return ineffective. Soon, the upturned carriage door was opened by one hand, and another hand grasped the edge of the door and exerted force. A person easily climbed out of the overturned carriage and stood on the road.

Looking at the man before him, Cheng Yijiu sighed. "So it's still you, Reverend John. Perhaps I shouldn't call you by that name? You must have gone by many names in your long life." Cheng Yijiu didn't aim his gun and shoot directly. Instead, he spoke. "You have a little secret too, Mr. Van Helsing... You're called this name now, right? Oh, looking at your eyes, I guess I'd better not tell you how I know your name." The guy before him really was the priest.

It was just that after changing into an ordinary gentleman's attire, this guy looked completely different. "Long time no see, Mr. Van Helsing. Last time... Are you going to be my enemy this time? What a pity, I quite like you." The werewolf's eyes instantly turned red, and he jumped behind the carriage. When Cheng Yijiu raised his gun, a huge werewolf directly bypassed the carriage and pounced on Cheng Yijiu from left to right.

Without a second thought, Cheng Yijiu grabbed his musket with his left hand and pulled out his short-barreled shotgun with his right. It was loaded with shotgun shells, each tipped with silver beads. He aimed the shotgun at the werewolf's incoming trajectory and pulled the trigger. A single shot roared, spraying twelve silver beads that blanketed the space in front of him. The werewolf, practically ignoring inertia, went from lunging forward to rolling sideways, roaring and tumbling to the side.

Cheng Yijiu had a feeling his shot had landed, with at least half of the silver bead striking the werewolf. Sure enough, as the werewolf rolled over, a faint cloud of smoke rose, along with the smell of burnt protein. Unfortunately, it was only a black powder-propelled shotgun shell, with limited power. At a closer range, it could have inflicted considerable damage, but Cheng Yijiu believed it would only inflict physical pain on the werewolf.

The silver bead would embed itself into its flesh, because Cheng Yijiu saw that at the last moment, the werewolf used its arm to block the trajectory of the bullet. Would this cripple the werewolf's arm? Probably not, the angle and distance weren't right. At best, one arm would be temporarily less flexible. Sure enough, after the werewolf stood up, wisps of green smoke could be seen rising from its drooping left forearm. The werewolf's left claw twitched, looking uncomfortably weak.

Cheng Yijiu changed his gun and took aim. The werewolf howled, then ducked again, changing direction and charging forward. Suddenly, he stood up and swung out with his claws. A crescent of white light swept over him, and Cheng Yijiu dodged the blow by ducking down. He then quickly opened fire. The werewolf's pause gave Cheng Yijiu an opportunity. After so many hunts and so many hours of shooting practice in the cabin, Cheng Yijiu had become an excellent marksman through his ammunition.

The silver bullet did hit its target, but the werewolf's reaction was too quick, and it avoided the vital part in the blink of an eye. There was only a small splatter of blood. The werewolf was shot in the stomach this time. Now Cheng Yijiu still had one shotgun shell, and the only thing left was the silver dagger. This shotgun shell had to be effective, so he couldn't fire it lightly. Cheng Yijiu drew his dagger and took a reverse stance, ready to fight.

A dagger in the left hand, a shotgun in the right—this was Cheng Yijiu's current style of sword fighting. The werewolf took a bullet in the stomach, and silver-white flames erupted from the wound. However, it looked like the bullet had hit the intestines, so it wasn't a big problem for the werewolf for now. "But if the bullet isn't removed in time, who knows where it might get squeezed during the fight?" Cheng Yijiu was well aware of this; the fight between him and the werewolf had to be swift and decisive.

"I know you're not an ordinary human—whether it's your appearance that hasn't changed in decades, or your extraordinary reactions and strength..." The werewolf spoke at this time, "Killing you and devouring you might allow me to take a new step!"

Chapter 19 Death Fight

The werewolf was now on all fours, a position that gave him perfect coordination between acceleration and maneuverability. The werewolf's movement created illusions, and Cheng Yijiu began to feel dizzy and chest tightness—he understood exactly why, because when he was a man-eating tiger, he had a similar ability: a low-frequency snoring sound that could disrupt the prey's senses, vibrating its internal organs and causing discomfort.

Cheng Yijiu only had one chance to fire, and the ensuing hand-to-hand combat was imminent. Honestly, he felt a little regretful. "If I'd known this would happen, I should have traded my dagger for a short sword." As for the shotgun, he'd done his best. He actually had another trump card: a grenade reinforced with silver flakes and beads, its fuse a simple safety plate contact fuse. However, he had no confidence it would hit the werewolf, so he would only use it when the odds were against him.

Cheng Yijiu's fighting technique was unprecedented, and he had been forced to try it out of desperation—he'd only seen similar things in games and movies before. It was a combination of gunfighting, which didn't exist in the world, and the Western dagger fighting techniques he'd practiced in the past. There were similar techniques in modern times, but they were the close-quarters combat techniques of some special forces—the combination of pistol and dagger.

Few people used this technique, and Cheng Yijiu was being forced into it. The werewolf lunged at him from the left of his dagger, preventing him from firing with his right hand. Cheng Yijiu spun, retrieving his right shotgun with his left hand and placing it on the triangle of his left elbow, pointing the muzzle directly at the werewolf. The werewolf was indeed incredibly fast, ducking down and out of range. An ordinary person would have noticed the werewolf suddenly vanish.

The werewolf practically lunged forward, then raised its arms and unleashed four lances of light. Cheng Yijiu also lost his footing and spun, leaping over two or three men. His spin was accompanied by a deep, powerful stride, a similarly transcendent shift. After unleashing his claws, the werewolf also veered sharply, pouncing from Cheng Yijiu's left and rear—by now, the distance between them had closed to within two meters.

For a beast, this kind of life-or-death struggle would likely be decided in a single blow—the preceding moments were merely probing; the actual clash lasted no more than the blink of an eye. Physically, Cheng Yijiu was at a disadvantage, and the werewolf, having taken a bullet in the stomach, couldn't afford to stall any longer. Both sides were intent on a decisive blow. The werewolf extended his claws, knowing that with a single embrace, a single claw, a single bite, and a single tear, any opponent would be annihilated.

Cheng Yijiu twisted and stepped back, his entire body gathering force like a torsion spring. Just as the werewolf's body almost completely enveloped him, a dull gunshot rang out. At this distance, there was no chance of missing, and the werewolf wasn't fast enough to dodge—it was a bullet. Cheng Yijiu took a step forward, twisting his body and thrusting the dagger in his left hand upward. This strike was aimed at the werewolf's jaw. Even if it didn't penetrate the werewolf's brain, it would at least cut into his jaw and throat.

Bullets pelted the werewolf, but it didn't retreat. As its claws closed in on Cheng Yijiu, blood gushed from half his body. There was the crisp sound of bones snapping. The werewolf's claws gripped Cheng Yijiu's body, rendering the chain mail almost useless. His leather windbreaker, which was originally nearly as tough, was pierced through, ripping the chain mail to shreds. Its claws dug into Cheng Yijiu's sturdy muscles.

Cheng Yijiu was practically glued to the werewolf's chest. Its coarse black bristles could even pierce human skin, and there was a burning smell. All twelve silver bullets from this shotgun blast hit the werewolf's chest, and it could be said that the werewolf was also seriously injured. The same was true for Cheng Yijiu. The werewolf's claws had already gripped his muscles and bones, and even pierced his lungs. Now Cheng Yijiu felt like he couldn't breathe.

Both men were seriously wounded, and surprisingly, their injuries were similar, all in the chest and lungs, though the werewolf was struck from the front and Cheng Yijiu from the back. Cheng Yijiu's stab had also landed—the blade had nearly sliced ​​the werewolf's mouth all the way to the back of his head, and the upward thrust of the blade had just happened to allow the werewolf to bite down. In the blink of an eye, the werewolf managed to turn its head in time, its teeth grazing the blade, its mouth dripping with blood.

The teeth grazed by the silver blade were unharmed, but the cut flesh began to decay and burn. The werewolf couldn't bite down, only gnawing at the dagger, about to bite it off. The werewolf began to exert its strength, trying to tear Cheng Yijiu in half. Cheng Yijiu's physical strength was top-notch among humans, but he couldn't hold out for much longer—the werewolf had already surpassed humans. Cheng Yijiu let go of the shotgun and fumbled for a grenade.

He flicked the safety with his thumb, grabbed the grenade with his right hand, and rammed it forward. The wound in the werewolf's chest, opened by the bullet, had grown considerably larger due to the reaction between the silver and the werewolf's flesh, but the werewolf's muscles still resisted Cheng Yijiu's thrusts. He tried his best but could only shove his fist and grenade in to his wrist, and no further. This depth hadn't even broken through the thickness of the werewolf's muscles.

All of this happened in a fraction of a second. Cheng Yijiu's muscles had already been torn apart when the werewolf exerted its strength, but he didn't faint from the pain. Instead, he tried to enlarge the wound with the dagger, trying to see if he could cut the cervical vertebrae along the jaw joint and sever it. Although the werewolf had to bite the dagger, the carefully crafted steel of the dagger was strong enough—this was a modern material, and the silver inlaid in the middle constantly reacted with the flesh and blood of the wound, causing the werewolf's gums to shrink, muscles to burn, and even a tooth to fall out.

The grenade exploded, the force of the blast not only completely shattering Cheng Yijiu's right hand, but also shattering his forearm. He was completely blown away, his ribs broken, and his internal organs bleeding. Without emergency treatment, he would have only ten minutes to live. This was due to the reduced charge used in the black powder—after all, it was used to propel the silver shell and silver ball at a very close distance to cause damage—so the werewolf's chest and abdomen were completely blown apart.

By the way, Cheng Yijiu's left hand was also broken. When it was blown away, the bones of his left wrist and forearm were shattered... Cheng Yijiu was laughing, because the werewolf was most likely finished. He could see the werewolf a few meters away who had been blown apart - open wounds in the chest and abdomen, and it was burning. Cheng Yijiu tried hard to support himself on his broken arm and almost fainted. "I can't faint! If I faint, I'm dead!"

He struggled to his feet and saw the werewolf's heart beating stubbornly in its chest. The werewolf struggled, but its heart had been pierced by shattered silver shrapnel, its body covered in silver beads, and its heart was now burning. Cheng Yijiu ignored it. He walked over to the carriage, used his broken left hand to hold onto the body, gritted his teeth, and dragged himself up, then flipped over and fell through the carriage door...

Chapter 20 Afterwards

Cheng Yijiu was lying on his back in the living room, his breathing was very heavy, his eyes staring at the ceiling above. His clothes were tattered, especially the arms which were completely torn, exposing a pair of strong arms. Cheng Yijiu let out a long breath, sat up, and looked at his hands in front of him. "It turns out that once I complete the mission and come back alive, all my injuries can be healed." But Cheng Yijiu didn't know if this was free of charge.

The hut's power could already transport him to a different world, so what was the point of creating a mere human body? "Killed the werewolf?" Cheng Yijiu muttered, rubbing his cheek, which was covered in sweat—only now had he begun to break out in a cold sweat, recalling the desperate fight that had nearly left him paralyzed. A common reaction among animals when they encounter a powerful predator is to freeze in their movements, commonly known as being "stupefied."

It was only now that Cheng Yijiu had this similar feeling in retrospect; he hadn't felt it before. It had to be said that he was quite suited to fighting. After sitting on the floor for a long time, Cheng Yijiu finally stood up. He wanted to see his prey—the prey he risked his life to kill, when everyone's life would be lost in a matter of minutes. Cheng Yijiu recalled now that the injuries he suffered were not just to his arms.

"My lungs must have been punctured by my ribs and the wolf's claws, making it difficult to breathe. The explosion must have caused internal bleeding. The fact that I'm still able to move might be a last gasp of life," Cheng Yijiu thought. If he hadn't held on for a breath, he would have been unable to move in less than a minute and would have died. Cheng Yijiu went up to the second floor and found a door at the end of the hall where the specimens of the animals he had hunted were kept.

"Has it expanded again?" Cheng Yijiu muttered to himself. He pushed open the double doors and was greeted by another hall with a high ceiling and ornate Rococo decorations. There were two specimens in the hall. "Looks like the inferior werewolf originally in the hall has been moved here as well." Cheng Yijiu calmed himself down and walked over to the two specimens. The inferior werewolf had changed its posture and was now crouching at the feet of the other werewolf.

The werewolf was indeed the one that Reverend John had transformed. The specimen was so lifelike that Cheng Yijiu could only then discern that its fur was reddish-brown. It was truly enormous, even taller than a European brown bear, with long arms and legs, and much greater mobility. Next to the specimen was a glass jar containing what must have been a large heart soaked in formalin—the werewolf's heart.

"This is the source of the werewolf's life force..." Cheng Yijiu thought, looking at the giant heart. Now that he had killed the werewolf, would this entire mission be over? "I'm not sure, but I have a feeling there's something fishy going on here." The werewolf didn't appear to have the ability to control corpses in the books, so that only proved someone else was controlling them. Who could it be? Cheng Yijiu had an idea, but he really didn't want to do it again.

"I am a human being, not the Australian Van Helsing. Fighting this werewolf is almost a matter of life and death... and the hut limits my skill level in carrying weapons. Oh! Damn it, the shotgun is lost again, and even the dagger is gone, and I can't bring back the musket!" Cheng Yijiu thought bitterly. If he faced the werewolf again, the possibility of him being able to fight better or losing his life immediately was completely 50-50.

He hasn't surpassed humanity yet... Human abilities have their limits, and Cheng Yijiu feels that he has already touched this line, unless he surpasses humanity... But where can he find something that is no longer human?

Cheng Yijiu left the cabin, having changed back into his regular work clothes. He took the werewolf's tooth and headed to his shop on the first floor. He exited through the back door and, unsurprisingly, saw a golden eagle resting in a tree. On the ground lay a torn and nearly devoured dog. "This can't go on. Sooner or later, the neighbors will complain to my heart's content." Facing the golden eagle, Cheng Yijiu was overcome with anxiety, wishing he could request the authorities capture it and take it to the zoo.

If he stayed here, it would fly right onto his arm, and he'd end up in jail sooner or later... And his plan to train hunting dogs would likely fail with the golden eagle around. Then a phone call solved his problem—it was from the forestry department, saying they were taking the golden eagle to the mountains and releasing it into the wild. "Great! Come quickly, or I'm afraid it'll eat all the nearby cats and dogs!"

The golden eagle's presence attracted a lot more people, which actually had a positive impact on his business. If just one out of ten people who came to see the eagle bought something, he'd be doing well. His best sellers were the exotic wood carvings and small Indian deities. These were priced quite high, and the sale of just one could equal a month's worth of pet food sales.

Cheng Yijiu never let his guard down—he wasn't quite sure why those people had sneaked into his shop. However, it was certain that the world wasn't as harmonious as it appeared—the two "people" he had seen and knocked down were proof of that. Perhaps the same thing happened to those who had sneaked in as well. What they wanted... Cheng Yijiu thought it was most likely the information he had taken out. "I can't take it out and look at it again, or else something serious might happen."

Mainland China has strict gun and knife controls, so Cheng Yijiu couldn't walk around with a knife or gun—in fact, carrying a baton was illegal. Therefore, the most appropriate self-defense tool was a cane—no cane swords, or it would be confiscated in a matter of seconds and could even land him in detention. A simple, integrated plastic-steel cane would suffice. As for a gun? Cheng Yijiu couldn't think of anything suitable—he had some simple firearms that looked more like melta guns.

"My opponent shouldn't carry firearms on the road. Fortunately, we are not in the United States..." Cheng Yijiu thought.

If the next mission involved another werewolf, he was probably doomed. So Cheng Yijiu checked his computer to see if there was an option to "surpass humanity." There was nothing, nothing at all, just the phrase "punishment missions are opportunities." After that, no matter how many keywords he searched, he couldn't find any further explanation. So far, Cheng Yijiu hadn't felt the punishment missions were particularly dangerous. He felt they were more like reward missions than punishment missions...

No matter what, Cheng Yijiu had to rebuild his weapon. He had a feeling that he might fail this time and end up on a punishment mission.

Chapter 21 Abnormal

As for new weapons, relying solely on silver bullets wouldn't be affordable—the precious metals provided in the hut were limited and regenerated very slowly. The problem was that silver was generally the most effective metal against dark creatures. There were other metals with even better killing effects, but Cheng Yijiu had no idea where to find them.

These things undoubtedly carried myths and legends, and the most common of them was holy water—which had nothing to do with women. He went to the church to get some, but it was considered ordinary drinking water in the hut. The hut did not provide any such materials, which made Cheng Yijiu feel very difficult.

So he went to the study - in many cases, there were always some small surprises in the study, such as the information book on dark creatures he found some time ago. This book was one of the strange books that appeared inexplicably in the study. Cheng Yijiu pushed open the door of the study and began to browse the books on the bookshelf at random.

The study is still so small and cozy. As long as the heavy curtains are drawn, the large floor-to-ceiling windows and doors can be completely covered. In this way, even if it is daytime outside, it will be a warm night in the room - especially after turning on the soft yellow reading lamp.

Cheng Yijiu left the curtains open. In the sunlight streaming in, he walked through the bookshelves, searching the spines for the book he wanted. "That's it." Before Cheng Yijiu lay two books: "Encyclopedia of Special Materials" and "Introduction to Alchemy."

He took down the two books and placed them on the desk. In the days to come, these two books, along with the monster encyclopedia piled on top, would probably be the objects of Cheng Yijiu's constant study. In the following week, no one in particular came to disturb Cheng Yijiu, at least he couldn't see any special people.

The Forestry Bureau arrived and trapped the golden eagle with raw meat. "We'll release it into the mountains of Zhejiang, where we hope it can fly freely."

"These words still indicate that I am raising this golden eagle..." Cheng Yijiu thought, "If there wasn't anything abnormal about this golden eagle, I would probably be in jail now." Fortunately, the matter was resolved, but the mess that followed still had to be solved by Cheng Yijiu.

So he simply bought a small high-temperature waste incinerator and burned all the remains left by the golden eagles. The ashes were scattered on the ground, which was also a kind of cycle.

A werewolf fang in the shop had been bought. Cheng Yijiu had actually labeled it "Extra Large Wolf Fang" and put a five-figure price on it, and someone actually bought it without bargaining. The buyer was a girl. Cheng Yijiu, the shop owner, was sitting outside the shop, bored and playing games on his computer.

A tall young woman walked in. Cheng Yijiu's body trembled slightly when he saw her for the first time. It wasn't because of her beauty—although the girl was young, her appearance could only be described as average. "There's something wrong with this body. It feels very wrong to me. It doesn't seem like a simple 'human'?"

Cheng Yijiu didn't know why he had such an idea, but his body and his intuition told him that there was something very wrong with the girl in front of him, and he absolutely shouldn't make any other moves. So after a slight shock, Cheng Yijiu acted as usual, not even greeting the customer - isn't that what a normal shop owner should do?

The girl walked into the store and the first thing she looked at was the cashier counter where Cheng Yijiu was. She seemed to sigh quietly because she didn't see something. Then she walked directly to the glass cabinet where Cheng Yijiu placed those strange things and began to look at them carefully.

Cheng Yijiu was just looking at the girl through the surveillance camera, "Something is indeed wrong. She doesn't look like a collector of cultural relics. She looks at these things as if she is looking at some kind of weapon." Cheng Yijiu remembered the time when he was choosing weapons, the atmosphere was similar.

"Boss, how much is this?" the girl asked, pointing to something in the glass case. Cheng Yijiu stood up and walked to the glass case. The girl was pointing to a black wooden sculpture. Cheng Yijiu remembered that he had taken it out from the decoration of the spoils. It was a wooden sculpture with a strong black African style.

The wood carving depicts a slightly distorted Maasai warrior holding a spear and shield—his long legs and neck, as well as the texture of his clothing, are emphasized. Cheng Yijiu's asking price was over 8,000 yuan, but the girl's expression clearly indicated a willingness to bargain... "I brought this thing back from Africa, and it's related to a legendary story, so I won't give a discount."

Cheng Yijiu spoke with a firm tone. He would not fight if he was beaten because it violated his personal standards. After saying this, the girl looked at Cheng Yijiu curiously, "A wood carving has a legendary story? Uncle, you are really good at bragging. No wonder you dared to ask for 8,800 yuan to rob him."

"Miss, you are wrong. This is African ebony. The price of the wood alone must be several thousand dollars, right? Add to that the carving, and I haven't even counted the story of the statue - it involves a man-eating lion." Cheng Yijiu simply started bragging with the attitude of an old liar.

"A man-eating lion, you're not going to say 'Night Ghost', are you? I've seen the movie. Go ahead and brag." The girl looked at the shop owner. Cheng Yijiu smiled, "So, the price won't be discounted." The girl snorted, then pointed to another item, "This one's not discounted either?"

She was pointing at the werewolf's fang that Cheng Yijiu had put there not long ago. This was the canine tooth on the left side of the werewolf's upper jaw, and its length was almost a little longer than a palm. The werewolf's fangs did not need to be too long, otherwise it would be difficult to bite, and it would not be easy to bite large targets, so a suitable length was enough.

This thing is yellow and has not been bleached, so it doesn't look very beautiful. Cheng Yijiu glanced at the girl and said, "Miss, your hobbies are quite peculiar. That's right, of course I won't discount the things I offer. As long as you pay, I can sell them all."

The girl also gritted her teeth and said, "Then I want this and the wolf's fang. Boss, you can use the card here, right?" Cheng Yijiu glanced at her and said, "Of course you can use the card. Who would carry more than 30,000 yuan in cash around? Especially a little girl like you."

Laka took the goods and left. Cheng Yijiu clearly noticed that the girl was excited. It seemed that these two items were very important to her. "What can werewolf teeth be used for? For dark mysteries?" Cheng Yijiu was a little skeptical, so he recorded the girl's information.

When he saw the girl again, it was the next day...

Chapter 22: Excessive

Cheng Yijiu spent the night reading materials, sleeping until almost the shop's opening time. When he pulled up the shutter, he found the girl had been waiting outside for a while. After she came in, she continued to linger around the glass case. Cheng Yijiu ignored her and sat at the cashier, turning on his computer.

Sometimes, accounting still needs to be done. Although a micro-business like his uses an accounting agency, he only needs to submit all purchase and sales invoices to the accounting agency and everything will be handled. His shop generally doesn't have anything that would trigger tax alarms - these small shops are prone to tax evasion, like those two things he sold yesterday, which actually weren't taxed.

This is perfectly normal. There's no invoice for this stuff, and sales are done directly from personal accounts. Normally, the tax bureau doesn't bother to investigate—I'm afraid they'll get busted once they get big data, but for now, no one seems to care. After all, his monthly turnover is only a few thousand yuan. If he hadn't bought the house, he wouldn't even be able to pay the rent for this shop.

Just as he was taking notes in an Excel document on his computer, the young girl walked up to him and said, "Boss, don't you sell books here?" Cheng Yijiu looked up at her and said, "Miss, this is a pet supply store. If you want to buy cat food, dog food, or bird food, we have it here. If you want to buy cat litter and dog houses, we have it here too. Even if you want to buy those statues, idols, imitation dog teeth and lion claws that I collected purely for my own interest, that's fine too. But buying books? Do you think I have any books here?"

Cheng Yijiu shook his head. "Selling books requires going to the Cultural Bureau to apply for a publication business license. How could I possibly go through such a hassle? That's why I don't sell any books here, not even books on pets." However, Cheng Yijiu had a rough idea of ​​what kind of books the girl wanted to buy...

What else could it be? The only time he was noticed reading a book at the checkout counter was when he was reading a book. That book was about dark creatures... Listening to Cheng Yijiu's words, the girl had nothing else to say. It seemed difficult for her to force Cheng Yijiu, so she bought a small bronze statue of Shiva and left.

This time, Cheng Yijiu sat in front of his computer in silence for quite a while. From that moment on—or rather, even earlier—he had begun to doubt this world. "Is this a real world?" Cheng Yijiu could only assure himself that he was real, that the place he visited was "real"—but was the cabin that could freely travel through time and space actually located in the same real world? Cheng Yijiu had no idea.

Having parents was nothing. Who knew if it was a parallel universe? But according to Occam's razor, Cheng Yijiu could only assume that, up to this point, he was in the same real world. And this world was anything but simple, Cheng Yijiu had already confirmed—which also meant the possibility of not being human.

Cheng Yijiu had read books about a genre called "Infinite Flow." Wasn't his own adventure in the cabin a form of Infinite Flow? It was just that he was a solo adventurer, with minimal power-ups, relying on weapons to slay ferocious beasts—and now, even dark monsters to contend with... So, was it possible, even remotely possible, that the world he was in was also a "quest" world within the Infinite Flow?

It's hard to say, and it's hard to be sure—it's even hard to say whether it's some infinite stream original world or a mission world. Cheng Yijiu thought for a long time, and finally closed the door—even though it wasn't time yet, but he didn't think any customers would come.

So he decided to go out for lunch. He'd recently discovered a noodle shop nearby that served excellent noodles, especially the broth and freshly fried toppings. "Shrimp noodles, boss. Thick broth, cross-bridge style." A bowl of noodles arrived shortly after, along with a small bowl of stir-fried shrimp.

The soup was clear and delicious, with a rich and mellow aroma of lard and a hint of chopped green onion. The umami flavor of the soup was completely absorbed by the dragon beard noodles. Cheng Yijiu poured half of the shrimp and all the shrimp soup into the bowl of noodles and savored it carefully. After finishing a bowl of noodles, Cheng Yijiu felt satisfied and relaxed his originally tense spirit.

Facing the dark monster, Cheng Yijiu began to feel that relying solely on a firearm wouldn't cut it. If he kept resorting to a mutually assured destruction strategy, he'd eventually be the first to die. Therefore, he also needed to possess close-quarters combat skills. With his current physical fitness, he should be able to reach the level of a top human fighter. Perhaps what he lacked was a combat mindset?

Cheng Yijiu himself had practiced full-armor combat, but back then, he'd trained only in the mechanics of the game. The truly brutal techniques of piercing and slashing required a retracted attack. What weapon would be most suitable for hunting those monsters? A dagger? A swift sword? The greatsword was the first to be ruled out...

Cheng Yijiu could now wield a heavy saber or two-handed sword, but using them against nimble monsters would be disastrous—for such monsters, Cheng Yijiu believed shotgun shells were more suitable. Of course, sabers and swords were good for dealing with larger monsters—the problem was, Cheng Yijiu didn't think he could walk around with such heavy weapons in his arms.

He continued crafting weapons in his workshop. Having already read through the material encyclopedia and the introduction to alchemy, he was now trying to make some of the materials himself, including some metals. Many of these materials were actually common materials that could be collected and purchased, but their names were completely different from what people used in everyday life—this was the secret code. And a third of them required alchemical processing to form them.

Cheng Yijiu's impression of alchemy was that it was completely unscientific. He just had to use special materials to draw a diagram on a dedicated alchemy table, then place the alchemy cauldron inside, add the materials in a specific order, and finally activate the alchemy array. Then he could perform a miracle?

Many of the drawing materials used here were simply beyond Cheng Yijiu's reach with his current abilities—completely illegal. Some were made from human organs, so Cheng Yijiu could only use the simplest cinnabar and chalk to draw the patterns on the marble floor. He had to use tools to create these patterns because they had to be perfectly round and proportioned. There were also some strange characters, and the candles he used had to be beeswax mixed with other materials.

He tried it, but it was useless. He didn't understand magic at all. So he had to find another way to activate it—the right time, the right weather, and a special "spell." Perhaps even Chinese? If he had to use Latin, Cheng Yi would have to memorize the pronunciation for a long time, or try using a tape recorder.

Chapter 23 Alchemy

When was the right time? On a full moon or moonless night, Cheng Yijiu recorded the Latin incantation and memorized the translated Chinese version. The alchemical array he'd drawn could be reused, eliminating the need for a cauldron. He simply placed the different materials in different positions and chanted the incantation according to the time. Sure enough, this unscientific method was useless. This world probably couldn't use this kind of alchemy.

Of course, there is another way to deal with it, which is to burn it.

Combusting materials in a combustion chamber constructed with specific alchemical patterns, combined with so-called "spiritual power," strong will, and the correct alchemical formula, can partially process the alchemical materials. To accomplish this, Cheng Yijiu had to find a suitable furnace and perform the processing himself within the furnace. By the time he had completed these preparations, two weeks had passed. The girl hadn't returned, and neither had the strange person been seen.

The golden eagle was doing well, and the forestry bureau experts who were monitoring it had shared recent photos on WeChat, which reassured Cheng Yijiu. That night was another full moon, and Cheng Yijiu was going to craft a weapon-grade material called cold iron. This material possessed excellent magical permeability and sufficient strength to be processed into weapons. The only problem was that it was extremely difficult to process, both forging and casting. Alchemy and alchemical blueprints were the best way to synthesize it.

Place a very pure iron ingot into the furnace—this would have been difficult in ancient times, but incredibly easy now. Then add other materials—such as a small piece of pure tin, an even smaller piece of pure copper, and some unscientific organic materials, ranging from chicken feet to feathers, and even blood, fifty milliliters of which Cheng Yijiu himself had released. And of course, a large ruby—in ancient times, this would have been the biggest cost, but now, industrially synthesized rubies, even fist-sized, are inexpensive and highly uniform.

After placing the ingredients, Cheng Yijiu lit the fire, gripped the specially installed handle with both hands, and closed his eyes in meditation. "It's so hot! I can't hold it anymore!" Cheng Yijiu quickly gave up and jumped to the side. The iron ingot inside the furnace turned white. The copper and tin had already melted, and the ruby ​​was still there, but it looked like it was about to shatter. The next moment, a flash of light appeared, and a large black iron ingot appeared in the furnace. The furnace temperature had dropped significantly and continued to drop.

Cheng Yijiu turned off the electric furnace, and the temperature quickly dropped to room temperature. The dark iron ingot remained stable at room temperature from the start. Inside the furnace, two irregular pieces of metal remained: melted and then solidified copper and tin. The ruby ​​had completely disappeared. "Sure enough, copper and tin are catalysts for alchemical reactions. The principle is equal exchange. I exchanged the ruby ​​for the iron ingot and converted it into cold iron."

This piece of iron is cold iron, comparable in strength to steel. Metallographic analysis reveals that it is iron, but it is difficult to heat up—it always remains at a lower, constant temperature, and raising it above that requires a significant amount of heat. Therefore, Cheng Yijiu discovered that this material is actually an extremely strong radiator, but it is thermodynamically impossible for this material to exist—the absorption and release are completely disproportionate.

"Wouldn't it be good as a thermal barrier?" Cheng Yijiu thought, looking at the properties of cold iron described in the Alchemy Primer and the Materials Encyclopedia. This thing only maintains a maximum temperature of around 35 degrees Celsius, which allows it to withstand temperatures approaching 2,000 degrees Celsius. However, if the temperature rises above 2,500 degrees Celsius, it completely loses its magical properties and melts away. After cooling, it becomes just ordinary iron. This material could be developed into a myriad of functions in the modern world, but it's a shame it can't be mass-produced.