3: Chapter 3 The Vanishing Little Stone

Chapter 3 The Disappearing Small Stone

"Who is it?"

The wife, who was cooking in the kitchen, asked as she walked toward the courtyard gate.

"Xiaochuan's mother, it's me, Xiaoer's wife."

A woman's voice came from outside the courtyard gate.

Hearing the voice, Mo Shoutian, who was sitting on the brick bed inside the house, hurriedly stuffed the things on the table into his bosom.

The Xiaoer the woman mentioned was fully named Mo Xiaoer, and his family lived just one household away from theirs.

Liu Chunmei walked to the courtyard entrance and looked at Mo Xiaoer's wife standing outside, asking,

"Why haven't you gone to sleep so late?"

Mo Xiaoer's wife sounded somewhat anxious.

"I heard some movement in your kitchen, so I came over to check. Is your old man back from the mountain?"

Liu Chunmei nodded.

"Yeah, he just got back a little while ago. Xiaochuan was crying out that he was hungry, so aren't I making them something warm to eat?"

Mo Xiaoer's wife glanced into the courtyard.

"My Xiaoer went into the mountain several days ago. With such a big commotion on the mountain yesterday, I really can't set my mind at ease."

"Just now I saw the light on in your kitchen, so I thought I'd come over and ask if your old man saw my Xiaoer in the mountain."

As soon as she finished speaking, Mo Shoutian walked out of the house.

He came to the courtyard entrance and said to Mo Xiaoer's wife,

"Xiaochuan and I stayed in the mountain for three days, and we didn't see Xiaoer."

Hearing this, Mo Xiaoer's wife sighed.

"He hasn't come back after going into the mountain for so many days. Could something have happened to him?"

"How many days has Xiaoer been in the mountain?"

Mo Shoutian asked.

"Counting today, it's already the fifth day."

Hunters from Mo Family Village usually stayed in the mountain for at most five days.

Regardless of whether they caught any prey, they would return on the fifth day, because the dry rations they carried could only last for five days at most.

Mo Shoutian thought for a moment and said,

"Xiaoer's wife, if Xiaoer hasn't returned by dawn tomorrow, you come find me."

"I'll call more people to go into the mountain together and search."

Mo Xiaoer's wife quickly said,

"Thank you, Brother Shoutian."

"I'm truly sorry for coming to disturb you so late. Then I'll go back first and wait a bit longer."

After speaking, she turned and walked toward her own home.

After she walked far away, Mo Shoutian let out a long breath.

He looked around, turned, and went to Mo Xiaochuan's room next door.

Mo Xiaochuan was standing behind the door at this moment, looking outside through the crack in the door.

The knock on the door just now had also startled him.

Because at that time, he was burning the clothes stripped from the two Immortal cultivators inside the room.

Seeing his father walking this way, Mo Xiaochuan proactively opened the room door.

"Dad."

Mo Shoutian glanced at his son.

Mo Xiaochuan was still tightly gripping that dagger in his right hand.

Seeing this scene, Mo Shoutian felt both gratified and somewhat surprised.

Although his son was only thirteen years old, even he himself might not be able to match this level of vigilance and ruthlessness.

Mo Shoutian nodded and walked into the room.

Beside the stove opening inside the room, there were still a few unburnt clothes piled up.

Baitou Mountain was covered in snow year-round with a cold climate, and almost every room in Mo Family Village had a heated brick bed built into it.

The heated brick bed of the main house was connected to the kitchen, while Mo Xiaochuan's room had a separate heated brick bed built independently.

"Xiaochuan, burn the rest of the clothes first."

"Mn."

Mo Xiaochuan squatted back down in front of the stove opening of the heated brick bed, stuffing the clothes on the ground into the fire one by one.

Mo Shoutian sat on the edge of the brick bed, took out the broken jade carved with a Dragon pattern from his bosom, and examined it carefully in his hand.

Just at this moment, the Dragon carved on the jade suddenly moved slightly.

Although it was just for a split second, it gave Mo Shoutian a start, almost causing him to throw away the jade in his hand.

But when he looked closely again, the Dragon pattern on the jade had already returned to its original state, without the slightest movement.

Mo Xiaochuan stuffed the last piece of clothing into the stove opening and looked back at his father.

Seeing that his father's expression was somewhat tense, he stood up and walked over.

"Dad, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, Dad probably just saw things."

"What on earth is wrong, Dad?"

Mo Shoutian hesitated for a moment, pointed at the broken jade, and said,

"Just now I seemed to see the Dragon carved on this move."

After hearing this, Mo Xiaochuan also stared closely at the Dragon on the broken jade.

However, the father and son stared at it for a long time, and the broken jade still showed no movement whatsoever.

Mo Shoutian also had some doubts in his heart. Could it be that he really saw it wrong? But how was that bag of glowing small stones to be explained?

Just at this time, Liu Chunmei's voice came from the courtyard:

"Shoutian, Xiaochuan, time to eat."

"Mom, I know, Dad and I will be right there."

Mo Xiaochuan shouted toward outside the courtyard.

Afterwards, he dropped his gaze back onto the broken jade in his father's hand.

"Dad, did you just see things wrong?"

Mo Shoutian looked at Mo Xiaochuan, and then looked at the broken jade in his hand.

He didn't answer, but instead took one out from the bag of glowing small stones and placed it beside the Dragon on the broken jade.

Then he said,

"Let's go, eat first."

Mo Xiaochuan looked at his father's actions with some strangeness, but in the end didn't ask further.

When Mo Shoutian went out, he casually picked up a piece of clothing on the brick bed and covered the broken jade with it.

Afterwards, he walked out of the room and went to the main house.

Mo Xiaochuan didn't say anything either, following his father to the main house.

At this moment, four or five hot dishes had already been placed on the brick table in the main house.

Liu Chunmei carried a basin of brown rice and placed it on the table.

The father and son didn't talk nonsense either, taking a bite of brown rice and a bite of dish, eating heartily.

Hunter households had one advantage: they never lacked grease and oil year-round.

Even the vegetable dishes were stir-fried with raccoon fat; although there was no meat, a layer of oily sheen glistened on top.

The other three non-vegetarian dishes were also game, which the father and son had hunted back from the mountain a few days ago.

At this moment, in Mo Xiaochuan's room next door, the clothing covering the broken jade moved slightly.

Following closely, a trace of white light flashed from beneath the clothing and quickly returned to calm.

In less than the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the father and son had eaten up the five dishes and a large basin of brown rice into their bellies.

Liu Chunmei, who had been watching the father and son eat, finally spoke up and asked at this moment:

"Just now I was solely focused on cooking for you two, and didn't have time to ask."

"With such a big commotion on the mountain yesterday, do you two know what happened?"

Mo Shoutian was packing tobacco into his pipe and didn't speak.

Mo Xiaochuan took over the conversation and said,

"We know, Mom, it was two Immortals fighting."

"But we were in the back mountain ravine at the time, far away."

After hearing her son's words, the wife let out a long breath.

"It's good that you were far away."

"Those Immortals too, they are already Immortals, what are they still fighting for."

After finishing speaking, the wife began to tidy up the bowls and chopsticks, and then carried the things to the kitchen to wash.

Mo Shoutian took a puff of his pipe and glanced at Liu Chunmei washing dishes in the kitchen.

Afterwards, he glanced at his son again, put on his shoes while smoking, and walked toward Mo Xiaochuan's room.

Mo Xiaochuan naturally understood his father's meaning and closely followed behind his father.

Arriving at Mo Xiaochuan's room, Mo Shoutian had his pipe gripped in his mouth and gave his son a wink.

Then, he suddenly reached out and flipped open the clothing covering the broken jade.

The father and son immediately stared dumbfounded at the broken jade on the brick bed.