What do you mean I'm a cultivator?-Chapter 43

The deeper Cheng ventured into the forest, the denser the foliage became. Slivers of light filtered through the canopy, casting shifting shadows that danced across the undergrowth. His steps were measured, careful to avoid snapping twigs or rustling leaves unnecessarily. He had learned the value of silence. Learned from a book about stealth.

He moved with patience, scanning the surroundings for any signs of movement. It wasn’t long before he spotted the first of his targets. A horned rabbit.

The creature was nibbling on the base of a tree, its ears twitching at the faintest noise. Cheng exhaled slowly, shifting his stance. He knew better than to repeat his mistake from before.

For all intents and purposes, it looked like a regular rabbit, albeit quite large. The most prominent feature was the light blue horn in the center of its head.

His subconscious found it funny. As if he had seen something like that before. But where? god was it infuriating sometimes to feel like you should know something that your brain was telling you.

At first, he attempted to catch it without using Qi, but he was just slower. By not much, but it wouldn't be a good waste of time.

Drawing on his Qi, he gathered energy into his legs, feeling the subtle hum of power course through him. In an instant, he burst forward.

The rabbit’s reflexes were sharp, its body already twisting to bolt, but Cheng had accounted for it. His hand lashed out, fingers brushing against fur before finding purchase on its back, grabbing at the hide, picking the creature up, ignoring its frantic kicks, and swiftly ended its struggle with a clean stroke of his knife, putting it right back to the side pocket of his satchel.

One down.

The process was repeated once more by the time night fell. This time, though, he wasted no time attempting to catch them without Qi.

He moved forward nimbly, grabbing it, this time by surprise, the creature not being able to react in time, as he slit it's throat as well. A bit too much Qi used, but better than missing and spending even more.

As he now understood, sometimes it was better to pay properly than be stingy and pay twice. Yeah. That felt like a nice analogy. Cheng thought, setting the rabbit down, and using a specific set of bandages, having made sure he could sense no heartbeat, bandaged the neck of the creature, making sure no more blood would spill.

As he did, he wondered if he should have brought a bow. maybe it would have made the hunting easier. Use up less Qi. Something else to think about.

The bandages were specially made, and had been provided so the blood, presumably a useful ingredient, wouldn't spoil easily, or spill out. Not only that, it almost felt like it somehow connected with the horned rabbit's corpse, stabilising it, as it drew slight amounts of Qi from the surroundings, keeping it fresh.

Interesting. Could he use that to draw Qi without cultivating?

Cheng thought, finding it similar to how the fragment drew Qi on his own. Perhaps some materials or methods drew Qi in naturally.

Maybe that was why White jade was so sought after, as a book said.

He wanted to know how it worked, but that was something for another day. For now, he was content with having their warm bodies resting in his satchel, the weight a silent reminder of his mission.

One more remained, and then the Razorwolves.

Cheng continued deeper into the forest, his movements smooth, calculated.

The air had taken on a crisp chill, and the sounds of the forest shifted with the arrival of nocturnal creatures, as the forest slowly transitioned into nighttime. He could feel the presence of life all around him, yet none of it exuded the dense Qi that he sought.

After some time, he came across a boar. A normal one. It lacked the presence of Qi rich beasts, its dull brown hide blending into the undergrowth.

He moved his grip on his sword, taking a low stance as he studied the creature. It was rooting through the dirt, oblivious to his presence for some reason.

Was he naturally getting better at hiding his Qi presence somehow, or was something else in play?

He gathered a small amount of Qi into his legs and burst forward. The boar barely had time to react before his blade found its mark.

clean, precise. The creature collapsed with only a brief struggle.

Dragging the carcass to a small clearing, he set about preparing the meat. He skinned and cleaned the boar. Once done, he gathered some dry wood and struck a flint, coaxing a small fire into existence.

This was one of the times when having a fire affinity would have been cool. If he did have one, he could probably ignite the wood somehow with just his Qi.

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Perhaps if he vibrated his Qi enough, it might work, but experiments like those had their time. And that time was not now.

The flames flickered, casting shadows that danced across the trees.

Cheng watched them idly as he skewered strips of meat and set them over the fire to cook. The scent of roasting boar filled the clearing, mixing with the earthy aroma of the forest. He allowed himself to relax slightly, stretching out as he waited.

As the meat cooked, he reached into his satchel and pulled out one of the horned rabbits. Even now, he could feel the faint trace of Qi lingering in the preserved corpse. It was minuscule, yet undeniably present. Compared to the boar, the difference was stark.

It was interesting how the bandages seemingly locked the vitality of the rabbit in, keeping it fresh and stopping its Qi from dissipating, and even gathering small amounts that entered the Rabbit.

Truly interesting stuff.

And as he ate the boar, his mind wasn’t on the rabbits. His thoughts lingered on the fragment. The small, wooden chunk that now hid in his robes.

"If this piece of whatever it was could enhance my cultivation, could it also work on a beast? Would the bandages work as well?"

Cheng murmured as he took another bite. The meat was kinda tough and tasteless, but it was better than those bitter pills he was used to. Though their efficiency was clear, as even with him steadily eating the boar bit by bit, he might not even feel full.

As it turned out, Cultivators needed energy to function. Who would have thought?

It really did send his mind spinning. The natural process of a normal animal becoming a monster took time, often years to a decade, and required prolonged exposure to ambient Qi, or Qi rich materials, to shorten the time. But what if he could accelerate that process?

His fingers brushed over the fragment beneath his robes, feeling it gathering Qi on its own.

If I placed it inside a creature. What would happen? Would it transform? Would it die? Would it become something else entirely?

Cheng stared into the crackling fire, imagining the possibilities.

He exhaled sharply, shaking his head.

Too many unknowns. Too dangerous.

At least, for now. The bandages, though, were an interesting thing. What if he wrapped around a gathering pill? Would it start containing more and more energy? Or would it do nothing?

He had to get to the bottom of this. Because if it worked like he did, then he might be on to some grand invention.

As his teeth crunched bone, he thought of all sorts of things.

Tomorrow, he'd continue the hunt.

Morning came with a crisp chill in the air, the scent of damp earth and fallen leaves filling Cheng’s lungs as he stretched. He kicked dirt over the remnants of his fire, making sure it was fully out before slinging his satchel over his shoulder.

Time to continue.

The forest remained eerily quiet as he moved, save for the occasional rustle of wind through the trees. He kept his senses sharp, his Qi subtly spread outward, feeling for disturbances—any sign of the Razorwolves he still needed.

Instead, after nearly an hour of careful tracking, his gaze locked onto something small darting through the underbrush.

Another one.

A horned rabbit.

Cheng sighed but moved swiftly.

His body surged forward, a burst of speed closing the distance between them. The rabbit twisted mid air, trying to evade, but Cheng was faster. His hand shot out, fingers wrapping around its fur just behind its head.

It thrashed violently, its horn narrowly missing his arm. With a sharp breath, Cheng adjusted his grip, pinching the base of its ears, limiting its movement. The struggle didn’t last long. With a practiced motion, he brought his knife across its throat.

Warm blood spilled over his fingers, the creature’s body twitching before going still.

Now, five razorwolf corpses remain.

And yet, when Cheng expected a struggle when he finally found the Razorwolves, but this was something else entirely.

The forest clearing was drenched in blood, the thick scent of iron clinging to the air. Razorwolf corpses were strewn across the ground, their bodies torn apart, deep claw marks gouged into their flesh. Some had their throats ripped out, others had been crushed outright.

At the center of the carnage lay something else.

A beast, unlike any he had seen before.

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It was bear like, its massive form covered in deep orange fur, now matted with dark, drying blood. Its sheer size was imposing, far larger than a Razorwolf, and those were described to be about shoulder height to a mortal man.

But what stood out most was the state it was in. The creature was breathing, though barely. Deep wounds covered its body, fresh and raw. It had fought fiercely, but it was on the verge of death.

Cheng tightened his grip on his sword, instincts screaming at him. This was an opportunity. A wounded beast, clearly weakened. If he struck now, he could end its suffering and claim whatever essence it carried.

But something held him back.

A feeling. A deep, unsettling sense of wrongness.

His gaze lingered on the bear’s face, its massive frame rising and falling with shallow, labored breaths. Despite its size, despite its strength, there was something almost pitiful about it. It reminded him of something.

A cub?

Cheng stiffened at the thought. If this were a cub, then-

A deep, rumbling growl shook the air.

The trees trembled as something massive approached from deeper within the forest. The sheer weight of its presence sent shivers down his spine.

And then he saw it.

Towering over everything else, an even larger bear emerged from the shadows. Its fur was the same striking shade of orange, but its body was packed with muscle, each step shaking the ground beneath it. Blood dripped from its claws, but it wasn’t its injuries that caught Cheng’s attention. It was the power it emitted.

Peak Qi Condensation.

If he had acted a moment sooner, if he had tried to take the cub’s life, then he doubted he'd be leaving with his life.

The mother bear let out a guttural snarl, its eyes scanning the bloodied battlefield before landing on its fallen child.

Cheng didn’t hesitate.

He reached down, grabbing the legs of five Razorwolf corpses and slinging them over his shoulders. His muscles screamed in protest, but he forced himself to move, stepping away from the clearing as calmly as possible. He wasn't stupid enough to use Qi this close, lest he be deemed a threat.

The mother bear took a single step forward. Cheng tensed.

Then another.

But its attention was solely on its cub.

Cheng kept his pace steady, his breath controlled. Running might trigger an attack, but if he walked, if he didn’t present himself as a threat, then all should be fine.

And indeed, as he was far enough, the mother bear was more concerned with tending to her cub.

The beast let out a low, mournful rumble, kneeling beside its young.

Cheng exhaled slowly. This was not what he expected, but it was fine. At least he had what he needed now.