Chapter 19: Journey to the Village
The next morning, Duoduo and Gray were already waiting early.
The two children wore the clothes Chu Feng had given them, backpacks slung over their shoulders, looking proud and full of energy.
The box filled with salt was carried by Ilya.
Chu Feng carried a travel bag and held a stun baton in his hand.
Since Crescent Village was reportedly far away, Chu Feng opted to travel light.
“You’re saying we should just leave the box and all this stuff behind?” Gray asked in disbelief.
Chu Feng nodded.
“Yeah.”
Gray looked at Chu Feng, full of reproach.
“You really want to leave such a precious box here?”
Chu Feng blinked and thought: This box isn’t even that precious—it only cost about 100 yuan. Maybe before, I would’ve felt bad about it, but now I’ve got millions. I can afford to let go of small things like this.
If Gray loves it that much, next time I’ll bring him a name-brand suitcase… but then again, he probably won’t recognize the brand. Better to bring one with a cartoon character on it—kids like cute things anyway.
“Yeah, it’s inconvenient to carry, so we’ll just leave it behind,” Chu Feng said.
Gray muttered sadly, “What a waste…”
He looked heartbroken. He’d been too scared to even touch the box before—and now it was going to be left behind?
Chu Feng said righteously, “A real man knows when to let go. If you want to do big things, sometimes you have to learn to give things up.”
Crescent Village is supposed to be far. What if I can’t keep up while dragging it along?
Gray looked dazed. “What are you even talking about?”
Chu Feng blinked, slightly helpless: Right… that was probably too deep for him.
At this point, Chu Feng and the others could already manage basic conversations, though just barely.
After carefully considering the situation, Ilya agreed to leave some things behind.
He felt like he could pull two boxes if needed, but the road to Crescent Village might be dangerous. He needed to protect everyone, and hauling two boxes would only get in the way.
Ilya handed Chu Feng a small pouch of herbs.
“What’s this?”
“A sachet to ward off poisonous insects—I just made it recently,” Ilya said.
Chu Feng asked curiously, “Does it work?”
Gray said proudly, “Of course! My brother learned medicine from the village shaman, Master Qiu Luo.”
“Master Qiu Luo?” Chu Feng asked, intrigued.
This wasn’t the first time he’d heard Gray mention that name. Master Qiu Luo seemed to be the most important person in Crescent Village—possibly an ability user too.
Chu Feng nodded with a neutral “Oh.”
“Do you have one for snakes too?”
Gray looked at him and said, “You’re really scared of those big bugs, huh?”
Chu Feng: “…” Since when are snakes considered bugs?!
Gray chuckled.
“Master Qiu Luo loves snakes. Snake skin, snake gall—they’re all great stuff. I used to catch snakes and trade them with her for candy.”
Chu Feng: “…”
Kids in this world are seriously hardcore—catching snakes for snacks?!
He silently regretted not bringing any realgar powder. He should remember it next time—but who knows if realgar even works on the snakes here?
Gray looked at Chu Feng and said confidently, “Don’t worry. If we run into a snake, I’ll protect you.”
He patted his chest, full of self-assurance.
“Leave it to me.”
Chu Feng: “…”
Being told I’ll be protected by a kid… doesn’t make me feel any safer at all.
“Let’s go,” Ilya said.
Chu Feng nodded.
“Alright.”
They set out together. Ilya dragged the large box, yet still walked swiftly.
Chu Feng noticed a gray mist surrounding the box—it looked like it was floating.
Ilya’s powers are really something… Chu Feng thought. But my powers are decent too—just hard to control. The timing of my crossings isn’t even stable. If only I could cross over whenever I wanted… I wonder if that part of my power can be improved?
*
Ilya led the way, with Chu Feng and the others following. They walked for most of the day.
“There’s a waterfall up ahead,” Ilya said.
“Let’s rest there for a bit.”
Chu Feng let out a sigh of relief when he heard Ilya’s words.
“Great!”
The jungle trail wasn’t easy to walk, and after trekking for most of the day, Chu Feng was genuinely tired.
“Tired?” Ilya asked Gray.
“Not at all!” Gray kicked his feet excitedly.
“These shoes are super comfy! Makes walking so much easier.”
Chu Feng gave a forced smile.
“As long as you like them.”
He hadn’t known Gray’s exact shoe size and had just estimated when buying them. They were probably a bit big, but luckily Gray wasn’t picky.
The group sat down by the lake to rest.
Gray glanced at the rocks by the waterfall and asked, “There are some stones over there—do you want them?”
Chu Feng shook his head. “No need.”
The stones he’d brought back last time had only partially sold. These smooth pebbles by the waterfall weren’t the kind of raw jade ore he wanted.
Gray looked confused. “I thought you liked stones?”
Chu Feng: “…”
It wasn’t like he liked every stone. And besides, he’d already brought back a bunch of jade ores and only managed to sell some of them. If he brought back more, he wouldn’t be able to deal with them all.
Gray looked a little distressed. “If you don’t like stones anymore, then… what do you want?”
Chu Feng shook his head. “Nothing in particular for now.”
Gray looked a bit dejected. “Then what should I do…”
Chu Feng: “…”
Was Gray worried that if he stopped liking stones, there’d be nothing to trade for snacks?
