Chapter 861 The Objective
"Ah? Then you should have said so earlier! Your room hasn't had a fire for how long? How can anyone live there?"
"Alright, alright, leave it to your old grandpa here!"
Chen Yang couldn't help but laugh at this exchange, realizing the old man didn't believe his earlier words.
Just after the old man hung up the phone, Chen Yang's phone rang as well.
It was Wu Biandao calling Chen Yang.
Chen Yang had a brief chat with Wu Biandao and understood the current situation.
Grandpa Fan was a hunter from the mountains in the past. Wu Biandao and Zhang Dao were not originally from this village. The fact that they had a piece of land in the village was entirely thanks to Grandpa Fan's efforts.
After learning each other's background, Grandpa Fan no longer had the same resistance towards Chen Yang.
"Where did you say you were going? Into the snow forest? Those two brats asked you to go to their old house?"
"Are you kidding me! Not to mention the heavy snow recently, there are also many wild beasts in the forest. Once you enter these mountains, it's not even certain you'll reach the snow forest!"
As Grandpa Fan spoke, something suddenly came to his mind, and his gaze towards Chen Yang changed slightly.
"Little Chen, have you practiced any martial arts?"
Chen Yang was taken aback for a moment, then nodded in response, "I've practiced for a few years. Entering the forest shouldn't be a problem."
Chen Yang couldn't sense any martial aura from Grandpa Fan.
Grandpa Fan was just an ordinary person.
Yet, Grandpa Fan seemed to know many things.
"Little Chen, are you wondering if I've also practiced?"
"Hahaha, you don't need to guess. I haven't practiced this stuff. I've known Little Wu and Little Zhang for over ten years."
"I know a little about what's going on with them. The person who raised them passed away recently, and I helped with the arrangements."
As he spoke, a hint of melancholy appeared in Grandpa Fan's eyes.
"That person was truly like an immortal. In the cold weather, he only wore a thin shirt and was completely unaffected. I even saw him crush a large rock with one hand."
"I always felt that Little Wu and Little Zhang must have learned a lot from that immortal. And indeed, one time when I was collecting herbs in the mountains, I encountered a black bear. If Little Wu hadn't intervened, I'm afraid I would have died in the mountains long ago."
"Since you are their friend, you must be no ordinary person. It seems I, this old man, was worrying unnecessarily."
While they were chatting, shouting suddenly came from outside the door.
"Old Fan! Old Fan! We've got a job!"
Grandpa Fan heard this and rushed to open the door to check.
Chen Yang, on the other hand, heard the sounds of many footsteps outside, more than one person.
The other party unceremoniously pushed open the wooden door, bringing the people behind him inside.
Chen Yang realized that the people who followed in were all tourists from the tour agency.
The leader, though dressed cleanly, wore clothes that were clearly old, but the cigarette he held was of an extremely expensive brand.
Grandpa Fan also spotted the cigarette in the man's hand and his eyes lit up, "Well now! You're smoking this kind of cigarette?"
"What are you talking about? How can I afford this? It was given to me by the young folks. Here, here, take the whole box!" After the leader spoke, he gestured to the people behind him.
"These are all tourists visiting here. They heard from somewhere that there's a hot spring in the mountains and they want to check it out. I figured you're familiar with the mountain paths, what do you say?"
As he spoke, he blocked the view of the others and showed Grandpa Fan his fingers.
In a low voice, he said, "Five hundred a day, and a few thousand at least for one trip!"
Hearing this figure, Grandpa Fan couldn't help but smooth his clothes, his face flushing, "Oh my, it snowed so heavily the past few days. Even if I'm familiar with the path, I wouldn't dare to go in recklessly."
As soon as Grandpa Fan finished speaking, one of the young men impatiently said, "One thousand a day. If you don't do it, we'll find someone else."
As soon as he said that, the cigarette Grandpa Fan had just lit fell to the ground. However, he quickly picked it up, blew on it, and put it back in his mouth, "Cough, cough, what are you saying? This is for everyone's safety. If you're really set on going, it's not impossible."
"You guys go and get ready. We'll set off tomorrow morning."
After seeing everyone off, Grandpa Fan then said to Chen Yang, "Alright, you should get some good rest today. You can accompany me into the mountains tomorrow. If they go to that hot spring, it happens to be on the way to where you're going in the snow forest."
Grandpa Fan didn't stay home long. Guiding so many people into the forest required preparation, and he also needed to stock up on some dry provisions for the journey.
However, Chen Yang didn't rest. After the old man left, he immediately took out the supplies he had brought.
When the villagers heard that the supplies were sent back by Zhang Dao and Wu Biandao, they were all very happy.
In their eyes, being able to leave this village was already an extraordinary feat.
Not only had Zhang Dao and Wu Biandao left the village, but they had also brought back so many supplies, clearly doing well for themselves outside.
The school was next to the guesthouse in the village. As Chen Yang was delivering the books to the school and was about to leave, he saw the same group of people who had appeared at Grandpa Fan's house earlier.
Two men and one woman, all young.
As soon as Chen Yang's gaze fell on them, they immediately reacted and made eye contact with him.
After Chen Yang left, the three of them also felt that something was amiss.
"That guy just now also went to the guide's house. Could he be after the same thing as us?"
"Probably not. The martial artists who know about this place are all from sects. Is there any we don't recognize? If we don't know them, we've still seen them."
"Stop guessing. Didn't you hear what someone passing by just said? He was delivering supplies."
Unbeknownst to the three of them, Chen Yang had heard their conversation clearly!
Chen Yang's spiritual power had already covered the three of them.
On the car, Chen Yang had already felt that these three were unusual. Their breathing, posture, and so on were very much like martial artists.
However, on the road, since they hadn't unleashed their spiritual power or internal energy, Chen Yang couldn't investigate casually.
Besides, even if they were martial artists, it wouldn't be a major problem for Chen Yang, so he hadn't paid much attention.
But their conversation just now had caught Chen Yang's attention.
Sect martial artists!
Could they be heading to the snow forest?
The next morning, as Chen Yang and Grandpa Fan put on their cotton-padded clothes and stepped out, they saw a donkey cart parked at the entrance.