Just as she stepped out of the courtyard, Ling Yue immediately spotted Little Squeak sprawled across the doorway.
Lately, this little guy had become quite familiar with the Eastern Quarter residence and acted fearlessly wherever he went. Although his temperament was a bit much, no one could blame him—he was just too adorable. In the end, everyone doted on him.
At that moment, Little Squeak was busily munching on melon seeds with his tiny paws. Lying nearby was a large yellow dog—none other than the one Ling Yue had rescued at the forge. Its fur was now sleek and glossy, its muscles strong and full of energy, a far cry from the sickly state it had been in before the spirit smoke treatment.
Speaking of that fierce dog, it seemed to have some intelligence. It instinctively recognized Ling Yue as its savior. Though it didn't fully understand what made her special, it could sense that she carried something extraordinary.
Since then, the dog had often roamed near the forge, constantly searching for the girl who had saved it.
Once it finally found her, the dog simply followed her all the way home.
Ling Yue tried to chase it away a few times, but the dog was clever—it would always return shortly after.
This comical back-and-forth continued until the housekeeper took notice. He was surprised by the dog's appearance—he could tell there was some wolf blood in its lineage. Seeing this as a good opportunity, he offered to raise the dog as a watchdog for the estate.
Ling Yue thought it over and figured: why not? It would also give Little Squeak a playmate.
So, she agreed and brought the dog into their living quarters, naming it "Big Yellow."
"Squeak!" Finishing off the last of his melon seeds, Little Squeak casually tossed the shell off to the side.
At the sound, Big Yellow rushed over like a soldier following orders, snapping up the shell in one bite.
"Squeak!" Another command came, and Big Yellow immediately returned to his original spot, sitting obediently.
Back and forth, the two moved like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Who would've thought you had the aura of a boss," Ling Yue chuckled at the funny display. Over the past few days, she had often seen Little Squeak bossing Big Yellow around like this.
Sensing that they were about to head out, Little Squeak ran up to her and burrowed himself into her chest.
Everything went smoothly until Ling Yue reached the outer edge of the forge—there, she noticed someone familiar waiting.
"Big cousin, what are you doing here?" she asked. It was Ye Saint, who had recently been confined to solitary reflection and hadn't even attended Ye Gu's birthday banquet.
"In five days, Autumn Maple Town will hold its once-every-three-years mountain hunt," Ye Saint said with a smile. "This year, I'll be leading the Ye family's juniors into the mountains. I want you to join us, Ling Yue."
The Autumn Maple Town mountain hunt was a three-day hunting contest held at Seven Star Mountain.
Anyone under the age of twenty could participate, regardless of their status.
Unlike the previous mountain training Ling Yue had done, this time they would be venturing into the peak areas of Seven Star Mountain—an area teeming with wolves, tigers, jackals, and other dangerous beasts. These predators were powerful and had no fear of humans. Even a Lower Celestial martialist would struggle to escape if surrounded by a pack.
The hunt was originally proposed by the town mayor to help train young people. But ever since the Ye and Song families rose to prominence, the event had taken on a different meaning. Though not officially acknowledged, it was widely believed that whichever family caught the most prey would win the priority acquisition rights for mining in Seven Star Mountain.
Because of that, the Autumn Maple Town hunt had become a fiercely competitive affair for both families.
It didn't take long to finalize Ling Yue's participation. Along with her, four other Ye family juniors would join the hunt: Ye Saint, Ye Qing, Ye Ning, and another youth from a branch family.
On the day of the hunt, Ling Yue was nearing the base of Seven Star Mountain when she heard a loud commotion from behind.
Clomp, clomp, clomp!
Just as she arrived at the base, the sound of galloping hooves grew louder behind her. Due to the heavy rain the night before, the road was muddy, and as the horses passed, mud splashed all over Ling Yue.
Irritated, she looked up to see five arrogant young men on horseback—their robes clearly marked with the Song family emblem.
The Song family again... Ling Yue muttered to herself and calmly continued walking forward.
The young men trampled down the path without a care for anyone else's safety, eventually reaching the mountain's base where the Ye family had already gathered.
Seeing the beautiful Ye Ning, one of the playboys spurred his horse and approached with a smug grin.
"Well, look who it is. Tch, Ye Qing—I heard you lost to a mentally challenged girl. Can't believe you still have the guts to show up here." The one taunting him was Song Han, second son of Song Mo Shi.
A notorious scoundrel, Song Han had been terrorizing the townsfolk for years. He relied on his sixth-rank martial cultivation to bully others.
Because of Ye Ning's good looks, Song Han had been harassing her for a long time. As the main house's second son, she hadn't dared to confront him and her only choice was to avoid him instead. Unfortunately, fate had thrown them together again at this mountain hunt.
"Song Han! Who are you calling useless?" Ye Qing barked. Ever since losing to Ling Yue, he'd been bothered by it. And since he secretly liked Ye Ning, being humiliated in front of her made him feel even worse.
"Still mad, huh? Ye Qing, if it weren't for your sister's protection, you wouldn't have made it this far. Ye Ning, why don't you join us instead? Your current group is just full of trash and fools. They'll only drag you down once we're inside the mountain." Song Han reached out and tried to stroke Ye Ning's cheek.
Outraged, Ye Qing lunged forward, knocking aside anyone in his way to get to Song Han and his horse.
But Song Han dodged skillfully, leaping into the air with his horse in tow—a show of immense strength, no less than 300–400 jin (roughly 270–360 pounds) of force!
[1 Jin = 0.9 pound]
Ye Qing's face turned pale in shock—he hadn't expected his opponent to be so capable.
"Garbage will always be garbage—you're not even as good as an animal," Song Han sneered, laughing arrogantly.
But just then—whack!—a rock came flying and smacked the horse's rear end.
Startled, the horse reared up in panic, thrashing wildly. Caught off guard, Song Han was thrown high into the air and then kicked backward by the horse's hind legs, landing face-first in a muddy puddle.
Covered in muck, he looked completely ridiculous.
"Who dares sneak attack this young master!" Song Han roared, still unsure what had just happened.
"Oh? Didn't you say people are trash if they can't beat a 'dumb girl'? Then why are you kneeling in front of me like you're bowing? Doesn't that make you worse than trash?"
As the voice faded, a pair of delicate little boots appeared before his eyes.