Chapter 424: Scent of Blood
Chapter 424: Chapter 424: Scent of Blood
When Su Qing returned the ring, the gray squirrel tilted its head in confusion and pushed it back toward her.
Su Qing smiled and tapped the gray squirrel’s little head. "I really don’t need it. You can take this ring back and play with it."
With that, Su Qing placed the ring in front of the gray squirrel again.
The gray squirrel tilted its head at Su Qing, seemed to think for a moment, then took the ring in its mouth and scurried away.
Su Qing thought the squirrel had understood. She put the low table back into her space and was just about to leave when the gray squirrel suddenly ran back. This time, she saw it was carrying a pendant in its mouth.
Just like before, the gray squirrel placed the pendant by Su Qing’s hand and stared at her, its large eyes blinking rapidly.
Su Qing couldn’t help but laugh. ’So the squirrel thought I didn’t like the ring and decided to offer a different thank-you gift instead?’
Su Qing smiled and picked up the pendant. It was also silver and shuttle-shaped, its surface engraved with intricate patterns. A green pine stone was set in the very center. A hole had been drilled through one end, and a leather cord was threaded through it.
As she examined it, Su Qing’s brow furrowed slightly. She realized the pattern carved on the pendant was identical to the one on the ring.
Su Qing examined the pendant more closely. ’That’s right,’ she thought. ’My memory couldn’t be wrong. The pattern on this pendant is identical to the one on the ring.’
’In other words, this pendant and ring are part of a set, and they probably belong to the same person. For one person to drop both a ring and a pendant, and for the same squirrel to find them... that seems like too much of a coincidence.’
Most importantly, Su Qing examined the leather cord threaded through the pendant. There were no signs of it being broken. This pendant couldn’t have just fallen off; its owner must have taken it off intentionally.
A ridiculous idea suddenly popped into Su Qing’s head. ’Could it be that someone has been trading things with this squirrel, using the ring and pendant as payment? And now the squirrel is just copying them, trying to trade the jewelry with me for the food I gave it?’
"Little guy, where did you get this?" Su Qing asked the gray squirrel, holding up the pendant.
The gray squirrel tilted its head at Su Qing, apparently not understanding what she was saying.
Su Qing repeated herself a few more times, but the squirrel just stared back with a bewildered expression. Seeing this, Su Qing decided to give up. ’After all, not every creature is like the Black Tiger in the Da Hu Mountain Ancient Forest, gaining sentience in a place dense with Spiritual Energy.’
’This gray squirrel is too small, after all, and its brain isn’t very big. Mimicking a trade for food is probably the most it’s capable of. Getting it to understand my words is likely impossible.’
"Alright, I need to head deeper into the mountains. You can go play now," Su Qing said with a smile, stroking the gray squirrel’s head.
With that, Su Qing stood up to leave.
But to her surprise, the gray squirrel grabbed her pant leg with its paws and started tugging her in a specific direction.
Su Qing found this curious. ’Does this squirrel want to lead me somewhere?’
Su Qing was just wandering through Xiqing Mountain looking for Purple Danshen without any specific plan, anyway. Since the squirrel wanted her to follow, she figured she might as well see where it led. She was quite curious about what it wanted to show her.
When it saw that Su Qing understood, the gray squirrel chattered happily a couple of times and then, sure enough, began to lead the way.
Su Qing’s curiosity grew, so she followed the squirrel. It led her through the mountain forest for ten-odd minutes until they arrived in front of a cave.
Su Qing blinked as she stared at the cave. ’This scenario feels a bit familiar,’ she thought.
The gray squirrel bounded into the cave. When it sensed Su Qing hadn’t followed, it quickly darted back out and tugged on her pant leg.
Su Qing knew she wouldn’t get any answers from the squirrel. And besides, she was powerful enough now to handle any danger she might find in the cave. So, she followed the gray squirrel inside.
The moment she stepped into the cave, Su Qing frowned. She smelled blood. ’Is someone injured in here?’
Su Qing quickened her pace, pulling a flashlight from her space. Its beam cut through the dimness, instantly illuminating much of the cave.
"SQUEAK! SQUEAK!" The gray squirrel chattered twice. At the same time, Su Qing was able to see the situation inside the cave clearly. A person was curled up in a corner. Judging by their clothing, they were likely a villager from the area at the foot of Xiqing Mountain, as their clothes looked similar to what the people of Xiuma Village wore. The clothes were just covered in stains and tears. As she drew closer, she realized that even the reek of blood couldn’t mask the sour stench coming from the person.
The person in the corner didn’t seem to hear Su Qing and the squirrel enter; they remained curled up and motionless. The squirrel went over and nudged the person with its paw, but there was no reaction.
"SQUEAK." When the person didn’t respond, the squirrel pawed at the Pine Stone Necklace around their neck before looking back at Su Qing.
Su Qing finally understood. ’So that’s it. The squirrel thought I didn’t like the ring and the pendant, so it brought me here to pick something out for myself.’
Su Qing gently patted the little squirrel’s head. She was in no mood to tease it now. The person in front of her was still alive, but their breathing was incredibly faint. If the squirrel hadn’t led her here today, this person would have undoubtedly died.
It was a human life, after all; Su Qing couldn’t just stand by and do nothing. Besides, the kindness of the Xiuma Village residents had left her with a good impression of the local people. So, Su Qing knelt down. With a slight twitch of her finger, a wisp of green mist drifted toward the person and quickly sank into their body.
The gray squirrel seemed to sense the green mist. It grew excited, chattering as it reached out its paws to grab her finger.
Su Qing wasn’t stingy; she sent a little of the green mist to the squirrel as well. After receiving it, the squirrel’s eyes brightened, and it became even more affectionate. With a scramble of its little paws up her sleeve, the squirrel leaped onto her shoulder in a couple of bounds. It even gave its large tail an ingratiating wag and nuzzled its face against her cheek.
Su Qing couldn’t help but smile faintly as she gently stroked the squirrel’s back. She didn’t stop it; she was quite fond of the clever little creature.
Thanks to the green mist from Su Qing, the man’s vital signs quickly stabilized. A moment later, he opened his eyes. He flinched instinctively upon seeing Su Qing, his voice raspy. "Who... Who are you?"