Chapter 139 Not Killing
139 Not Killing
The arrow whooshed into the bushes and hit a pheasant.
From the moment she pulled out the arrow, Wei Jiaoniang’s horse never stopped. When the horse galloped past the bushes, she bent down and casually picked up the pheasant, whose throat had been pierced by the arrow. Her movements were elegant and nimble.
She worked perfectly with her horse and gained a hunt in the blink of an eye without even catching her breath.
After hunting the pheasant, the two of them did not stop. They continued forward, looking at the scenery along the way, admiring the flowers and trees, talking and laughing.
After another hour, Wei Jiaoniang hunted another badger. However, Gu Yanfei had never drawn her bow, so she naturally found nothing.
Wei Jiaoniang put the badger in the game basket and casually asked, “Yanfei, have you never hunted hares, pheasants, or anything like that before?”
“No.” Gu Yanfei shook her head honestly.
She had indeed never killed hares, pheasants, or badgers.
She had only killed black fire wolves, nine-tailed foxes, eagles, and flying snakes…
As a medical cultivator, Gu Yanfei had to learn alchemy, talismans, divination, and curse techniques… These often required the bones, blood, and teeth of spirit beasts as materials.
Her master always pushed her to learn array formations because these could save her life. He said that medical cultivators were so weak and were not those sword cultivators who liked to fight and kill.
Medical cultivators had to learn to protect themselves.
Thinking of that period in the Bright Spirit Realm, Gu Yanfei’s eyes curved slightly. Her black eyes were like the blue sky above the forest, clean, transparent, and bright.
Wei Jiaonang looked at Gu Yanfei’s child-like flawless eyes and smiled knowingly. She thought to herself, ‘This is how people who have never killed are. No matter how good they are at riding and shooting, no matter how accurate their targets are, they won’t dare to draw their bows at their prey. It was just like the first time I entered the hunting ground when I was young!’
Wei Jiaoniang said excitedly, “Yanfei, I’ll teach you. Don’t be afraid!”
“The key to the path of hunting is to have eyes and ears in all directions. Your judgment has to be accurate, and you have to be steady and ruthless.”
As she spoke, she looked around. Her eyes narrowed as she aimed at something 200 feet to the southwest.
She stopped talking and patted Gu Yanfei’s shoulder gently with her hand. With her other finger, she pointed at the prey she had her eye on and mouthed, “This will do.”
Wei Jiaoniang was referring to a doe standing under a tree. Its brown-red fur was glossy, and its back was covered in white spots. The doe faced them with its tail, lowered its head, and quietly grazed, as if it did not notice their gaze.
Wei Jiaoniang silently gestured for Gu Yanfei to try shooting this doe.
Gu Yanfei did not move.
She stared at the doe for a moment without blinking, then shook her head.
Wei Jiaonang thought that Gu Yanfei’s heart had softened. Just as she was about to speak, Gu Yanfei raised her hand and pointed at the deer’s abdomen. She whispered to Wei Jiaoniang, “Let’s not hunt a pregnant mother deer.”
This was one of the rules of her sect: Spirit beasts that were pregnant and had babies should not be killed.
This rule was for the sake of continuing the race and maintaining a balance between heaven and earth.
“…” Stunned, Wei Jiaoniang narrowed her eyes and focused on the doe.
The doe’s chest and abdomen sagged slightly, but it was half hidden by the lush gra.s.s around it and didn’t look obvious…
Wei Jiaonang had loved to follow Imperial Duke Wei everywhere since she was young. She had been to the hunting ground many times and had seen countless wild beasts. At this moment, upon closer inspection, she came to a realization.
Just as Gu Yanfei had said, this female deer still had its cubs!
“Your eyes are really bright, and your heart is meticulous,” Wei Jiaoniang praised in a low voice, afraid that she would alarm the female deer. “In the past, when Grandpa took me out hunting, he told me the same thing.”
Wei Jiaonang’s eyes sparkled like gems. She felt that she and Gu Yanfei really hit it off. No wonder she felt a sense of familiarity with her at first glance.
Her grandfather had also said that all things had spirits and had continuous growth.
He had repeatedly warned them not to kill young beasts, pregnant beasts, and mother and son beasts when hunting.
In fact, many people knew these principles, but once they arrived at the hunting ground, they often had the intention to kill or the desire to win, so they abandoned these most basic principles.
However, Gu Yanfei was different from those people!
Thinking of this, Wei Jiaoniang felt even closer to Gu Yanfei. Her smile was bright and clear as she said with a smile, “Then let’s find other prey.” In any case, there were many prey in the forest.
“Don’t worry, I won’t let you return empty-handed.”
Wei Jiaoniang patted her chest proudly and was filled with confidence. She was just short of saying “I’m fond of teaching others” on her face, making Gu Yanfei laugh.
“Let’s…”
Before she could say ‘go’, Gu Yanfei’s ears twitched. She turned around warily and looked behind her right. Her eyes turned cold, and her aura was different from its relaxed state just now.
Between the trees, a gleaming white-feathered arrow was nocked to the bow. The tip was aimed at the doe, who was grazing.
The bone-chilling mountain wind sent a man’s cold and heartless whisper over.
“This doe seems to have cubs…”
“That’s good too. The cub must be nearby. Let’s take it down together and make a set of mother and son pads.”
As the man muttered to himself, his fingers casually released the bowstring.
“Swoosh!”
The white-feathered arrow tore through the air and shot quickly at the female deer under the tree.
This arrow carried a cold killing intent, colder than the winter wind.
Without thinking, Gu Yanfei took off the bull-horn bow on her back and drew a black feather arrow with her other hand. She nocked an arrow, drew the bow, and released it without hesitation.
The series of actions happened in an instant, impossibly fast, smooth, and coherent.
Her black-feathered arrow was as fast as lightning and as sharp as a blade. The arrow was extremely accurate and hit the white-feathered arrow that the man had shot.