The Discovery of Tess

Chapter 34 The Discovery of Taixi (Please read and add to your favorites)

Mia couldn't feel the effect of the movements and postures she had secretly learned.

But it was a fact that Alphonse's body had become stronger.

Even that short guy, Tessie, has gotten a bit bigger.

Little did she know that the subsequent movements of the Yi Jin Duan Gu Pian (易筋锻骨篇) required corresponding Qi circulation techniques to be effective; otherwise, they would be nothing more than empty gestures.

Taixi has cultivated true qi, but Miya doesn't have such a thing.

In the afternoon, Tessie suddenly ran back and found Alphonse in the room.

"There's something I need to report to you."

"What is it?" Alphonse asked, puzzled.

They've all gotten used to Taisi not calling them master anymore, but it seems he's still clinging to a shred of dignity deep down, unwilling to admit the truth.

But it doesn't matter, Alphonse doesn't care about that.

"These past few days, I've practically covered the entire Coldwind Territory and discovered something very strange: there are far too few monsters here," Tessie replied.

"Is this strange?" Alphonse didn't understand. Wasn't it a good thing that there were fewer monsters?

Coldwind Territory is known for its barrenness and lacks any special products.

It's normal for people from remote, impoverished areas to be disliked by monsters, right?

"That's strange!" Tessie nodded firmly, reaching out to scratch his bushy beard. "So far, I've only found two kinds of monsters: Walking Mushrooms and Slimes. That's very unusual!"

"Why do you say that?" Alphonse was even more confused.

Indeed, these days, besides raising slimes, Tess has only come up with new dishes like walking mushrooms.

Walking mushrooms are plant-type monsters that are much thicker than ordinary mushrooms, but have legs growing from their roots. They are about the height of an average person's calf. If you get close, they will suddenly attack and hurt you. Even if you run away, they can still chase you for a short distance.

But it wasn't a powerful monster. Commoners didn't often go into the mountains; only hunters would go hunting. If they saw a large mushroom in the forest from a distance, they would naturally know to avoid it and shoot it with a bow and arrow from a distance, killing it like flying a kite.

Such large mushrooms with multicolored caps are obviously poisonous, and ordinary people would never catch and eat them.

Only the Taixi region can filter out the toxins and use walking mushrooms as an ingredient to cook a delicious dish.

Sliced ​​walking mushrooms can be grilled or cooked into a thick soup with potatoes and onions; both are quite delicious and very flavorful. Their two legs are also particularly crisp and tasty.

Taisi provided the answer: "If there is a place where Walking Mushrooms grow, there must be its natural enemy, the Great Horned Rabbit. But I searched everywhere and couldn't find any Great Horned Rabbits. The Great Horned Rabbit is a very perceptive monster. The fact that this kind of monster doesn't dare to live in these mountains, and there are so few kinds of monsters in the mountains, means there is only one explanation. I suspect that there are even more powerful monsters in the mountains, which is why other kinds of monsters avoid this place."

Alphonse was taken aback. "There are even more powerful monsters? Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

Tessie scratched his beard again, shook his head, and said, "Based on my years of experience studying monsters, I'm not wrong! Only low-intelligence monsters like slimes and walking mushrooms don't care about all that; they just need a place to survive and reproduce!"

"That's right! A giant-toothed demon wolf appeared in Coldwind Territory before. Could it be related to that demon wolf?" Alphonse immediately thought of the giant-toothed demon wolf that had perished with the old baron.

"That's even more wrong! I heard from the cook that the giant-toothed demon wolf was the murderer of your father, but it is indeed dead, and you sold the magic crystal." Tessie seemed to realize something was amiss. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up your painful memories!"

"It's alright." Alphonse waved his hand. His impression of the old baron existed only in his memory. There was no familial bond between them, so he couldn't be sad at all.

"Based on my experience, this mountain range isn't suitable for the Megalodon to survive. It prefers much colder places, usually in snowy mountains. Normally, even if it appears here, it would only be passing through during its migration and wouldn't stay for long. But the cook told me that it ate two hunters who came up the mountain to hunt, which is why your father led soldiers to hunt it down. There was a period of time between discovering its existence and your father leading troops to search for its location. So, this Megalodon is very strange." Tessie was also a little puzzled.

Alphonse frowned. According to Tessie, this was a giant wolf that shouldn't have appeared in Frostwind Territory. Could there be something strange about the old baron's death?

Taisi shook his head, as if trying to clear his mind of the jumbled thoughts. "Anyway, that giant-toothed demon wolf is dead, and its lingering scent should have dissipated long ago. Besides, I checked, and there are Great Horned Rabbits in the neighboring territory, but they haven't come over to ours. There must be another powerful monster on the mountain! Maybe even more than one, which is why the Great Horned Rabbits don't dare to enter its territory!"

As he spoke, Tess took off his large backpack and pulled out a dead rabbit. "Look!"

Compared to ordinary rabbits, this Great Horned Rabbit is slightly larger, with thick fur that looks somewhat rough and fluffy. Its long ears have drooped down, and in the middle of each ear is a short, thick, conical horn. Its claws and teeth are exceptionally sharp.

His head was dented in a large area, and judging from the semi-circular mark, it looked like he had been hit to death with a Western soup spoon.

There was a clear knife wound on its throat, and the surrounding fur was stained with blood, indicating that it had been bled out by Taixi.

Alphonse casually touched it.

Rabbit fur is very prickly, like a bunch of barbs gathered together.

If the monster's fur were a bit smoother, it would be a good material for making fur scarves.

Pity.

"What kind of monster do you think lives in the mountains?"

"I'm not sure. I didn't encounter it while I was wandering around. There might be areas I haven't searched yet. I'll have to investigate carefully to find out," Tessie replied. "It's very likely a nocturnal monster."

"Then be careful when you're scouting, and if you can't win, run for your life as fast as you can," Alphonse instructed.

"It shouldn't be too troublesome, otherwise they would have started fighting when that giant-toothed wolf appeared." Tessie clenched her fist, which was bigger than a sand pot, and her knuckles cracked. "After practicing the two methods you taught me, I'm stronger than before. Even if I can't beat them, I can still escape."

Tessie was quite confident in dealing with the monsters.

As we were talking, we suddenly heard a knock on the door.

When Taisi opened the door, a maid appeared outside.

The maid entered the room, bowed respectfully, and handed the letter she was holding to Alphonse. "My lord, this is an invitation from the guards of the Mujik family."

(End of this chapter)