As Song Wei finished speaking, she climbed back up the slope and, with a gentle tug, pulled the bone-setting herb from its spot, then safely jumped back down.

She tucked the herb into her basket. “Come on, let’s go gather some walnuts.”

The walnut trees here were huge, and there was more than one.

The branches above were heavy with fist-sized green walnuts, resembling small green pears, while the ground beneath was littered with fallen ones, most with skins already darkened to a brownish-black.

These decayed shells came off easily, revealing the walnuts inside with just a little poke.

Ignoring the ones still hanging on the branches, they focused on the ground, busily picking through what had already fallen.

Before long, their hands were stained black.

Walnut husks release a white sap that darkens over time, leaving a stain that’s nearly impossible to wash off.

Song Wei’s once fair hands were now pitch black, but she didn’t care. To her, food came before everything.

There were so many walnuts on the ground that after filling their baskets to the brim, they still couldn’t pick up all of them.

“Lucky I brought a burlap sack,” she said with a proud grin, pulling it out.

“We should gather as many as we can while we’re here.”

With her blackened hands, she cracked open a walnut with a single squeeze. The creamy white nut inside had an aroma that was impossible to resist.

The meat(walnut) looked like a little brain, and once peeled of its thin brown skin, it was tender, white, and inviting.

Song Wei popped one in her mouth, cheeks full as she chewed happily, then cracked one open for Heidan.

“Here, have some.”

There was nothing better than snacking and gathering at the same time.

Heidan’s dark face beamed with delight.

They continued munching and gathering, filling the burlap sack as they went.

After standing up and stretching, Song Wei turned her head to find several dark things coming towards her.

“Wild boars?!”

Two massive adult wild boars were heading their way, with a few smaller piglets in tow.

These boars were much bigger than the pigs the village kept.

Song Wei’s eyes gleamed with a wolfish hunger as she eyed the boars.

The boars, meanwhile, seemed occupied with digging through the ground for fallen walnuts and hadn’t noticed Song Wei and Heidan yet.

“What?” Heidan asked, looking in the direction of her gaze. When he spotted the wild boars drawing near, panic crossed his face.

“Sister Song, we have to run! Wild boars are fierce!”

While wild boars were herbivores, they had a reputation for aggression and would attack anything in their sight other than their natural predators.

Each of this adult boar easily weighed over three hundred pounds, larger than any pig in the village. With tusks that sharp, they could easily pierce a person.

Heidan had a lot of admiration for Sister Song’s strength, but he wasn’t so sure she could take down a wild boar barehanded, let alone two.

Abandoning the walnuts, he grabbed Song Wei’s hand to pull her away, but after two steps, he found himself yanked back. Song Wei hadn’t moved an inch, her eyes glued to the boars with a hungry, predatory look.

“Meat… so much meat…”

She looked downright fierce, her gaze practically devouring the wild boars.

Heidan was speechless.

“Sister Song we don’t have any weapons. We can’t fight wild boars like this!”

He was nearly in tears. Why was she more hungrier for meat than he was?

Ignoring his protests, Song Wei picked him up and hoisted him into a walnut tree.

“Hold tight and don’t come down.”

Then she bent down and grabbed a large, jagged rock.

The boars had finally noticed them. With piglets to protect, the mother boar huffed, scraping the ground with its thick hoof, and then charged at Song Wei.

Heidan clung to his branch, his dark face paling in fear. “Song Jie…”

“If you even think about climbing down, I’ll spank your butt.”

With that threat, Song Wei took the rock and hurled herself forward, eyes shining with excitement.

Meat, here she came!

THUNK!

The boar missed her, and Song Wei leaped up, slamming the rock down on the boar’s skull.

The impact was loud, followed by a sickening crack. The ferocious boar, which had looked ready to trample her, collapsed to the ground with a pitiful squeal.

Watching from the tree, Heidan shivered, nearly losing his grip.

He tightened his hold, eyes wide with disbelief as he saw Song Wei—a girl who looked small and delicate—bring down a boar weighing several hundred pounds with one blow.

Standing over the hefty creature, she looked even more slight and petite. Yet there she was, straddling the boar, swinging the rock down repeatedly with a grin that was half-gleeful, half-maniacal.

The ground shook under the boars’ struggles, but the look in Song Wei’s eyes was as wild as a predator’s.

Watching her, Heidan swallowed nervously, wondering if she might actually be scarier than the boars.

Eventually, both boars lay still. Song Wei was covered in blood spatters, the rock in her hand practically drenched. Her skin, apart from her hands, was pale, and the red stains on her face resembled dark cherry blossoms.

There was a disturbing beauty to it all.

But more than that, it looked like a crime scene.

With a quick swipe of her hand across her neck and face, she wiped away some of the blood, then pounced on the remaining piglets like a predator.

Each small boar weighed about forty pounds. Song Wei grabbed two by the hind legs, dragging them back to their spot while they squealed in protest.

“Heidan, get down here and find some sturdy vines!”

One of the piglets turned to bite at her, and Song Wei smacked it sharply.

“Stay still!”

The blow left the little boar dazed, collapsing in a dizzy heap.

The other tried to take advantage of her momentary distraction to escape, but a swift backhand left it sprawled out as well.

Rubbing her wrist, Song Wei muttered, “One smack and they finally behave.”

Heidan climbed down with some vines, looking at the pitiful piglets. He was awed into silence.

“I think they’re almost knocked out.”

Sister Song was fierce—truly fierce.

But he was even more in awe now.

“Sister Song, that was amazing.”

Admiration filled his voice. If he could be as strong as she was, he’d never worry about being hungry again.

Song Wei, covered in blood, flashed him a smile. “Heh, we’re eating well tonight.”

“But… how are we going to take it all back?”

Her grin faltered. Transporting it wouldn’t be a problem—she had the strength and was determined to haul it all home.

But she couldn’t afford to be seen bringing boar meat back. If the others in the village found out, they’d want a share, and sharing wasn’t an option in her book.

Giving up even a bite wasn’t on the table.

“We’ll have to find a way to sell it.”

There was no way to hide it all.

“Let’s stash the walnuts here. I’ll check if there’s another way out of the valley where we can sneak the boars through.”