Chapter 57: Is This Too Sudden?
Someone shouted, and the noisy crowd immediately fell silent.
Nearly a hundred pairs of eyes locked onto the returning hunting team - or more precisely, the prey they carried.
One, two, three, four... no, five kills! Including the one Chen Fan dragged behind him.
When had the village ever seen such abundance?
Gulp.
Wang Ping swallowed audibly, his voice quivering. "Am I... dreaming?"
"N-no," Zhao Feng stammered, shaking his head with glazed eyes. He knew this reality couldn't be imagined.
Beside them, Zhang Ren wore matching astonishment. Could this be Chen Fan's doing again? Who else but him?
The approaching hunters wore broad grins as they crossed the suspension bridge. Under the villagers' awed gazes, they deposited their haul in the village square.
"Today's success belongs to Xiao Fan!" Liu Yong boomed, triggering an immediate shift in attention.
Hundreds of eyes snapped to Chen Fan.
"Wow! Brother Chen Fan's amazing!" A chorus of children's voices rose, Chen Chen standing among them with starstruck admiration.
"He brought back triple last time's haul!"
"Our village's true savior."
Elders wept joyful tears while Meng Yu smiled brightly from the crowd.
"Uncle Liu exaggerates." Chen Fan rubbed his neck awkwardly. "This was everyone's effort."
The hunting team chuckled knowingly. They'd contributed to hunting the antelope-sheep, but when Li Village ambushed them later... Without Chen Fan's intervention, they'd have been lucky to return with half their spoils. Some stories were better left untold.
"We'll trade these at Song Fortress for grain and salt," Chen Guodong announced. "Distribution follows the exchange."
Nods of approval rippled through the crowd. Some had endured saltless days already.
"Another announcement." Chen Guodong's voice deepened. "Gu Village will merge with ours."
The revelation struck like a boulder through calm waters.
"Gu Village? Here?"
"So sudden!"
"More people means safer hunts!"
"And better defense against bandits!"
In these end times, human predators proved as dangerous as beasts. Recent years saw fewer village raids, but winter's lean months still tempted desperate souls.
Yet concerns surfaced:
"But their numbers..."
"Almost as many as us! How will we feed them?"
Wang Ping's group exchanged uneasy looks. While new blood strengthened their dwindling community - once 400 strong, now barely 100 - could their resources handle the influx?
"Silence!" Chen Guodong clapped sharply. "The decision's made. They arrive tomorrow as fellow villagers."
Excitement and worry warred in the crowd's expressions.
"Regarding provisions - remember Chen Fan's archery?" Chen Guodong gestured to his son. "Gu Village has their own prodigy. An eighty-pound draw master."
Chen Fan nodded confirmation. "Gu Ze. My equal in skill."
A pin-drop silence followed.
Wang Ping held his breath. Even Zhang Ren looked shaken. For Chen Fan to offer such praise...
"With Gu Village joining, our future brightens daily!"
"Nothing to fear!"
Liu Yong's group chimed in, privately knowing Gu Ze's true significance - a fellow awakened.
Reassured, villagers relaxed. If another Chen Fan-level hunter joined, future hauls would dwarf today's!
As twilight fell, laughter and meaty aromas filled the settlement. Anticipation buzzed for tomorrow's newcomers.
Chen Fan devoured nearly four pounds of beast meat alone. His Tempered Body Third Layer metabolism raged - inconvenient, but beneficial. Two methods fueled his growth: passive system gains and active consumption. Tonight's feast added 40 potential points.
"Still hungry?" Yin Fang teased, though pained by the meal's extravagant cost. "I'll cook more."
"Full," Chen Fan lied through a meat-stuffed belch.
"Me too!" Chen Chen patted his drum-tight belly.
Chen Guodong nodded when his son glanced over.
"Rest first," Chen Fan proposed. "Then martial training."
"Training?" Yin Fang blinked.
"Ah, right!" Chen Guodong chuckled. "I'll gather Liu Yong's team."
Hunters alternated between daylight expeditions and nighttime drills. They'd teach the adults first, then children, then women - until the whole village could defend itself.
One man would bear this burden, but the payoff...
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(Chapter end)
