Chapter 8: Crossing Paths with This Woman Was Truly a Curse!

Is this still the timid, deaf-mute young wife? That strike was far too fierce!

He shook his still-dizzy head and looked up, only to see Xiaolin Xuezi standing steadily, holding a firewood stick with both hands.

Her clothes still hung loosely and ill-fitting on her frame, but at this moment, her eyes were icy and sharp, radiating a chilling aura that sent shivers down the spine—there was not a trace of the previous timidity.

“Baka!” Xiaolin Xuezi whispered sharply, her voice crisp yet tinged with a roughness, clearly from not having spoken for a long time.

That word was spoken in pure Japanese.

Though Wang Erhu could not understand Japanese, the deadly intent in her tone was unmistakable.

Only then did he realize—this woman was not deaf or mute at all! She had been pretending!

“Alright! You little bitch, how dare you deceive me! And how dare you lay a hand on me!” Wang Erhu was both shocked and furious. Being struck by a woman was a tremendous humiliation to him.

He scrambled to his feet, wiping the blood and snot from his face, eyes flashing with murderous intent as he lunged viciously at Xiaolin Xuezi. “Just you wait—I’ll kill you today!”

Relying on his robust physique and his reputation as a skilled brawler, he did not take the frail woman before him seriously.

He thought he had merely been careless when struck earlier.

Xiaolin Xuezi’s gaze remained unflinching as Wang Erhu charged. With a flick of her wrist, the firewood stick spun deftly in her hand. Instead of retreating, she stepped forward to meet him.

Her footwork was light and swift, seemingly simple but embodying the essence of “ashi sabaki” from kendo.

Before Wang Erhu could react, Xiaolin Xuezi had closed the distance.

His large fist hadn’t even swung when the stick struck precisely at his wrist like a venomous snake striking from its den.

“Crack!”

A sharp snap rang out as pain exploded in Wang Erhu’s wrist, as if a bone had fractured. His fist lost all strength.

“Ah!” he screamed in agony.

Before he could recover, Xiaolin Xuezi’s wrist flicked again, the stick arcing upward to slap hard across his other cheek.

“Smack!”

Another crisp, harsher crack echoed.

His right cheek swelled rapidly, matching the bruising on the left, transforming his face into a grotesque mask of bruises—the true “blossoming peach flowers.”

Dazed and disoriented, stars dancing before his eyes, blood, saliva, and tears mingling, Wang Erhu was utterly humiliated.

“Who... who exactly are you?” he whimpered, fear overtaking him.

He couldn’t fathom how such a delicate-looking woman could possess such strength and speed.

This was no fight—it was a one-sided beating.

Xiaolin Xuezi offered no answer, knowing that with people like him, words were useless. Only by instilling fear could she ensure he would never dare harm anyone again.

Her firewood stick seemed alive, weaving up and down with relentless precision.

Each strike landed perfectly on Wang Erhu’s joints and vulnerable ribs, carefully measured to inflict pain without causing fatal injury.

“Bang! Bang! Clap!” came the dull thuds inside the room, punctuated by Wang Erhu’s agonized screams and desperate pleas.

“Please, forgive me! I was wrong! I won’t dare again!”

“Stop hitting me! You’ll kill me if you continue!”

“I’m a bastard! A beast! Please, have mercy!”

Initially, Wang Erhu tried to resist, but Xiaolin Xuezi’s mastery was too refined. He couldn’t get close, and every attempt to fight back brought even fiercer blows.

His crude, rough-and-tumble fighting skills were no match for someone trained in the strict discipline of kendo.

Soon, Wang Erhu lay curled on the ground, battered and bruised, a broken dog with only breath leaving his body, no strength to fight back.

His sheepskin vest was torn to shreds, his face a patchwork of purples and blues, swollen grotesquely like a pig’s head—so much so that even his own mother might not recognize him.

Seeing that he was utterly defeated, Xiaolin Xuezi finally ceased her assault.

She panted lightly, beads of sweat gathering on her forehead, her chest rising and falling.

The long-suppressed frustration and fear had drained from her after the outburst, but it had also exposed her completely.

“Get out!” she said coldly in Dragon Kingdom language, tapping his head with the tip of the firewood stick.

The word was clear and resolute.

Wang Erhu, as if granted a great pardon, scrambled up, ignoring his pain and humiliation, crawling desperately toward the door.

He was consumed by fear, desperate to escape.

Just as he reached the exit, he glanced back at Xiaolin Xuezi, hatred and unwillingness mixed with terror in his eyes.

Her gaze turned icy, the firewood stick raised slightly.

Frightened out of his wits, Wang Erhu rolled and crawled out of the courtyard at top speed, vanishing without a trace, not daring to utter a single harsh word.

Watching his pathetic retreat, Xiaolin Xuezi finally exhaled in relief, dropping the firewood stick with a clatter.

Leaning against the doorframe, she felt her strength ebb away.

The venting had dissipated much of the pent-up gloom and fear, but it also left her completely exposed.

How would Xu Feng... feel about her when he returned?

She glanced back at the chaotic room.

Tables and chairs lay askew, blood stains from Wang Erhu marked the floor.

Sighing softly, she began to silently tidy up.

[Notification: Affection change detected: Xiaolin Xuezi, current affection level: -2 (Relieved, trust beginning to bud)]

Far away in the forest, Xu Feng suddenly heard the system’s alert in his mind.

Minus two? Relieved? Trust budding?

Xu Feng paused, then a playful smile curved his lips.

It seemed that Wang Erhu had indeed not disappointed him, and Xiaolin Xuezi likewise had not disappointed him.

...

This trip into the mountains had yielded far more than expected.

Besides the initial plump wild rabbit, he had hunted seven more.

Wang Erhu’s bow was indeed impressive. Though his shoulder injury had not fully healed and he couldn’t draw fully, his experience and precision made hunting small game like rabbits and pheasants manageable.

Estimating the time, Xu Feng decided it was best to leave before dusk made the mountain paths treacherous.

He bundled the eight wild rabbits tightly with grass rope, slinging the heavy load over his shoulder, and began his descent.

The setting sun bathed the forest in a golden-red glow.

When Xu Feng appeared at the village entrance carrying the string of plump rabbits, the entire Old River Gully Village seemed to erupt in excitement.