Free Web NovelChapter 137: Chapter 136: Demon Boar, a "Practical" Talent
A glint appeared in Xu Hengjiang’s eyes. He fell silent for a moment before slowly answering, "I have.
But this is the first time I’m dealing with one myself."
Fu Juemin looked thoughtful, then asked, "Got enough gear?"
"Barring any surprises, it’s enough."
"Have the people in the village up ahead been evacuated?"
"It’s been empty for months."
After these few questions, Fu Juemin nodded. In a casual tone, he said, "Alright. Let’s begin."
"Aren’t you going to review the preparations first?"
Xu Hengjiang frowned.
"I haven’t even seen the Demon Boar, so I wouldn’t know if it’s round or flat. Looking would be pointless..."
Fu Juemin glanced at him and said flatly, "What, you won’t feel at ease unless I find some fault with your plan?"
Xu Hengjiang’s expression froze. He said no more, turning and striding away down the earthen slope.
He started shouting orders, his voice rising and falling in a harsh local dialect that Fu Juemin couldn’t understand a word of.
The men of the Ghost Camp, who had been lying on the muddy, snow-patched ground, sprang into action at the command. They rose nimbly, each pulling out a firearm of varying length from beneath their bellies.
Fu Juemin had provided the group with a total of thirty rifles, fifteen handguns, a Czech-style light machine gun, and a large supply of ammunition.
It was all second-hand junk from the Shenghai black market, having passed through who knows how many hands. Its quality was even worse than the equipment used by his uncle Fu Guoping’s Civil Affairs Bureau members back on the Luan River.
But time had been short and his channels were limited, so he had to make do.
Now, however, the men of the Ghost Camp clutched this "junk" like treasure. The moment the guns were in their hands, their eyes shone with a frightening light, like a pack of long-starved wolves.
Fu Juemin waited for a while but saw no one else emerge. He couldn’t help but turn his head and ask Big Cat, "Is this it? Just these thirty-odd men?"
Big Cat replied, "For men like them, who’ve already died once, how could they possibly commit all their forces at once?
They’ve always had one man do the work of two, sending out half and keeping half in reserve. If the men outside fall, the ones inside are responsible for cleaning up the mess and taking revenge..."
Realization dawned on Fu Juemin. He let out a soft sigh. "That’s rather interesting."
’No wonder Xu Hengjiang said the gear was enough,’ he thought. ’If they’re only sending out half their men, then the number of guns is indeed more than sufficient.’
Fu Juemin had no objection to the Ghost Camp remnants’ unique methods. As long as they achieved his goals, he didn’t care about the process. In any case, if something went wrong, it wouldn’t be his own men dying.
Having received their orders, the Ghost Camp men began walking toward the distant low woods. Xu Hengjiang, however, didn’t follow them. Instead, he walked back to Fu Juemin’s side.
"You’re not going to command them?"
Fu Juemin was slightly surprised.
Xu Hengjiang’s tone was flat. "We’ve drilled this many times. They don’t need me to command them.
They know what to do."
Fu Juemin clicked his tongue lightly but said nothing more.
By now, the Ghost Camp men who had descended the slope had reached the flat fields before the woods. The group silently and swiftly dispersed, each man dropping to the ground in a different position, melting into the wilderness like clumps of gray thistle.
Following them were another six or seven men, who began to strip off their clothes piece by piece—despite the freezing cold, they stood nearly naked on the snow-covered ground.
Immediately after, they rubbed their bodies ferociously until their skin was bright red. Then, they began to smear a viscous, dark-colored substance on each other.
"What’s that?"
Fu Juemin finally couldn’t resist asking.
Xu Hengjiang replied, "Corpse Oil."
"Corpse Oil?!"
Fu Juemin was stunned.
"That Demon Boar prefers eating human corpses far more than the living. They first warm their bodies by rubbing them, then smear on the Corpse Oil.
Once their body heat activates the scent of the Corpse Oil and it spreads, they become the best ’live bait’ to draw the Demon Boar out..."
Xu Hengjiang paused, then continued, "Your original method used dead bait. I tried it. For one, the scent of dead bait doesn’t travel well in this freezing weather, and for another, it’s not flexible enough to work with.
Besides, that Demon Boar is an extremely picky eater. It won’t even touch a truly rotten corpse placed before it, specifically picking out the bloated corpses that float down the river.
Ultimately, it’s because floating corpses ’move’..."
After hearing Xu Hengjiang’s explanation, Fu Juemin didn’t speak, just gave him a deep look.
’This man,’ he suddenly thought, ’is a true "talent" in his own right!’
Compared to "theorists" like Gu Shouyu, this man could be called a "practitioner" of Demon Fiend hunting. The two complemented each other perfectly.
Watching the few Ghost Camp men serving as "live bait" run into the low woods and disappear, Fu Juemin felt a strange sense of "anticipation" well up inside him.
So, he didn’t activate his [Yao Ling] to track them. Instead, like an ordinary person, he stared out at the wilderness and waited quietly, not wanting to spoil the suspense and mystery of the Ghost Camp’s impending actions.
He didn’t have to wait long before a man shot out of the low woods like a leopard.
Then a second, a third, a fourth...
At a certain moment, Fu Juemin’s fingertips twitched slightly.
Within his body, two Demon Soul Seeds trembled almost simultaneously, releasing waves of a familiar throbbing, like an electric current shocking his heart.
Fu Juemin quietly raised his eyes. The next second, he saw the so-called Iron-Maned Demon Boar appear before him in the flesh—
Quite different from the information provided in Gu Shouyu’s files, the monster before him was far larger than a full-grown water buffalo.
It had a disproportionately massive boar’s head that was nearly sunk into its thick shoulder and neck muscles.
Its hide was a bluish-black, the color of something long-soaked in filthy water. It was covered in hard scabs that looked like verdigris on red copper. Thick, short, twisted black bone spikes grew out from that rust-colored flesh without any pattern, like rusty iron halberds that had been violently snapped and randomly stuck into its back.
Yet its speed was much slower than Fu Juemin had anticipated. Its bloated, enormous body moved laboriously across the icy, muddy ground, leaving a long, conspicuous drag mark in its wake.
Even from such a great distance, and with the wind not blowing toward the slope, the moment the Demon Boar appeared, everyone standing there was still hit by an incomparably thick, pungent stench—a mix of gamey funk, the reek of corpses, the smell of mud, and the foul odor of rot.
The sounds of violent retching filled the air as several men from the Qinglian Gang bent over, unable to hold it in. Even Big Cat and Kitty couldn’t help but frown deeply.
Fu Juemin pulled out his handkerchief to cover his mouth and nose. He subconsciously glanced at Xu Hengjiang beside him and saw that his expression was unchanged, as if he had long grown accustomed to the foul odor.
The creature looked like a monster stitched together from a giant wild boar and great masses of corpse flesh and coppery chunks. It spewed great clouds of white vapor from between its teeth, letting out a great "HOH... HOH..." sound like a broken bellows. The bare-chested Ghost Camp men led it all the way to the fields between the low woods and the slope.
Just then, a gunshot exploded!
BANG—!
The bullet struck the Demon Boar, making a faint, crisp sound. The brass slug was easily deflected, and the monster seemed not to notice.
But the second shot that followed struck the Demon Boar squarely in the eye socket.
This time, the Demon Boar clearly felt the pain. It finally abandoned the temptation of the "live bait" before it and began to turn, charging toward the Ghost Camp man who had fired.
"This step..."
Xu Hengjiang, standing beside Fu Juemin, began to speak slowly, his voice steady and calm.
"...is to wear down its stamina."
