The Old Hunter

Little Bao of the Huo family gave Zhan Xiaobai and the others a brief introduction to his profession: Mountain Hunter, Level 24. The skill he was currently learning was Arrow Making, with his proficiency at the Novice level—shaft, fletching, arrowhead—not yet fully mastered.

Zhan Xiaobai understood the importance of a hunter in their ranks, especially one who knew how to craft arrows. He immediately invited Little Bao to take up residence in Xiaobai Village, or even to become a full-fledged villager.

Faced with the eager gazes from everyone in the village, Little Bao hesitated. “I don’t have a settled village right now, so of course I can go to Xiaobai Village. But I’m still in training and have to stay by my master’s side. It will take at least ten days or half a month before I can finish learning. I’ll join you after I master the skill.”

Zhan Xiaobai replied cheerfully, “No problem! As soon as you finish, come to Xiaobai Village. I’ll arrange a good position for you, and your treatment will be no lesser than what you’d get in Grey Sun Village.”

Afei interjected excitedly, “Little Bao and I are about the same age. Why not team up with me? From now on, the development of our village’s archers will depend on you, brother!”

Qiushui, the Young Hero of Spring and Autumn, and the others all expressed their approval.

“With you leading the archers, no one could be more suitable.”

Little Bao smiled, “You flatter me, Elders. All right, since that’s the case, I’ll definitely come. By the way, I came here after hearing that the NPC soldiers were recruiting players to help eradicate bandits. Chief Xiaobai, you all must be here for that as well, right? Is there anything I can help with?”

Zhan Xiaobai nodded and led Little Bao closer to the cliff, explaining the situation in detail. “Look, there’s a cliff here. If someone could climb up and lower a vine ladder from above, it would be much easier for everyone to enter the bandit stronghold.”

The bandit archer hadn’t left; he was still pacing atop the cliff, peering down to see if any players were approaching. Seeing Zhan Xiaobai and his group return, he quickly fired an arrow, but his range fell short, and the arrow landed more than ten meters before Zhan Xiaobai. Seeing he couldn’t reach them, the bandit archer reluctantly stopped firing.

Little Bao estimated the cliff to be over ten meters high. With his strong bow, he could easily hit the bandit minion, but defeating that bandit alone was not enough—someone still needed to climb up, which was beyond his abilities. He shook his head. “It’s too steep for me to climb.”

Everyone felt a wave of disappointment. If even a professional hunter like Little Bao couldn’t scale it, there was little hope for anyone else.

Unexpectedly, Little Bao added, “If my master would help, he could probably make it. He has a Climbing skill; this kind of cliff is nothing to him.”

Everyone was overjoyed.

Zhan Xiaobai immediately said, “Where is your master? Take us to him at once!”

“Come with me, I’ll take you to him.” Little Bao nodded. The group descended Tiger Head Mountain and headed into the neighboring hills. The journey was a bit long, so Zhan Xiaobai had the others return to their temporary camp. He, Little Bao, Qiushui, Afei, and three or four player guards continued on. Considering the mountain bandit strategist Gou Buli’s advanced Flattery skill might come in handy, he brought him along as well—such peculiar abilities sometimes worked wonders on NPCs.

They passed through a dense forest; without Little Bao’s guidance, it would have been impossible to find the way. After more than an hour of trekking, they reached a mountain stream. There, in the midst of a small fenced garden, stood a hunter’s cabin, with wild vegetables growing nearby.

The place was tranquil.

Little Bao opened the gate in the fence and went in first to greet his master, the NPC mountain hunter. Only after receiving his consent did he call Zhan Xiaobai and the others inside.

They entered to find an elderly man in his fifties, dressed in simple hemp clothing, sitting in the garden and focused on crafting arrows.

On the way, Little Bao had already told Zhan Xiaobai about his master’s prowess: a level 35 Mountain Hunter. These were just the skills Little Bao knew about—there were likely others yet undiscovered.

Zhan Xiaobai dared not slight such a prominent NPC. He stepped forward and bowed respectfully: “Greetings, elder. I am Xiaobai, village chief of a small settlement ten miles from here.”

The old hunter glanced at him and nodded, his hands never pausing as he shaved arrow shafts. He spoke coolly, “I’ve already heard your purpose from my apprentice. You wish my assistance in eradicating the bandits, is that so?”

“It is indeed,” Zhan Xiaobai replied. “If you would lend us your aid—”

The old hunter shook his head and interrupted bluntly, “No.”

After all they’d gone through to get here, Afei couldn’t help but ask, “Why not?”

The old hunter paid them no mind, continuing to shave bamboo into arrows.

The group grew anxious. What now? They all looked to Little Bao for help.

Little Bao was well-prepared; he wouldn’t have brought them all this way without some confidence. Drawing them aside, he whispered a secret he’d discovered through long observation: “This NPC is rather eccentric and doesn’t like to deal with people. Ordinary players who ask for his help or to learn his skills are simply ignored. But if you exploit his one weakness, he’ll agree more readily than anyone.”

The Young Hero of Spring and Autumn asked eagerly, “What weakness?”

Little Bao glanced back to make sure the old hunter wasn’t paying attention, then whispered, “He has said himself that he hates horse bandits more than anything. If a player has killed a horse bandit, he’ll be much more welcoming.”

Zhan Xiaobai asked, “Have you killed a horse bandit?”

“Of course,” Little Bao replied. “Back when Grey Sun Village fought off an invasion of horse bandits, I was one of the main leaders and killed a horse bandit myself. Otherwise, he’d never have taught me arrow making.”

“Let me try,” Afei said, eyes twinkling mischievously. He dashed over to flatter the old hunter, but the man ignored him completely. After a while, Afei returned, crestfallen. “No reaction at all.”

The Young Hero of Spring and Autumn laughed, “You haven’t killed any horse bandits yourself, of course it didn’t work.”

They discussed the matter and realized that only Little Bao had personally slain a horse bandit; the rest had not. Yet no matter how Little Bao pled with his master to help Zhan Xiaobai, the old hunter remained unmoved.

Then Zhan Xiaobai noticed the bored bandit strategist off to the side. He hauled him over, saying, “Now it’s your turn.”

Gou Buli, the “Doghead Strategist,” jumped up in alarm, pointing at himself. “Me? What can I do? I haven’t killed any horse bandits; no matter how I beg, that old man won’t listen.”

Zhan Xiaobai grinned. “I’m not asking you to do the impossible. But you can use your flattery skill to coax some useful information from him. Ask what conditions he requires to help us. That, at least, you can manage!”

Reluctantly, Gou Buli approached the old hunter. At first, the old man ignored him, but after a barrage of advanced flattery, the hunter actually began to smile and chat with him.

After a good while, Gou Buli came running back, elated. “I got a major scoop from him!”

“Out with it!” everyone urged.

Gou Buli, brimming with excitement, reported, “He has a hidden quest: Old Hunter Lü Shan was born in a Di tribe, but his people were slaughtered by horse bandits, so he utterly despises them. If a player who has killed a horse bandit seeks his help, he’ll assist them once. If they seek to learn a skill, he’ll teach them one. As for recruiting him: you’d have to wipe out a small horse bandit tribe—about fifty people. He’s got seven or eight practical skills: 1. Butchering (skinning, meat, sinew, bone), 2. Climbing, 3. Crafting hunting bows and arrows, 4. Advanced trapping, 5. Trap detection, and so on…”

Zhan Xiaobai’s eyes shone with delight—he hadn’t expected Gou Buli to dig up such detailed intelligence. He gave the strategist a hearty slap on the shoulder. “Excellent work! I’ll see you properly rewarded for this contribution!” In his excitement, he completely forgot that Gou Buli was still technically a bandit strategist.

Gou Buli grinned through the pain, his heart swelling with pride. Who would have thought that he, the great strategist Gou Buli, could achieve such merit!