Witch Hunter: Goujian Sword

January 29, 2023

In the forest near the village, a young man with long, straight black hair, slightly wavy and wild, was doing sit-up exercises on a tree branch.

His legs dangled from the branch while his upper body was below, moving like a caterpillar, training the strong abdominal muscles he has.

The defined dry muscles on his scarred skin glistened with sweat.

Drops of sweat fell from his face, flowing into his hair, then dripping to the damp ground.

"Ninety-nine, one hundred..."

After feeling his count was complete, Sizhu performed an acrobatic leap, spinning twice in the air, then landed on both feet on the ground. He nearly stepped on a wildflower that had just bloomed in the morning.

"My warm-up is done. Next, I must investigate further what's happening to this village."

Sizhu sat beside the tree and the wildflower. His wooden staff, which he always carried wherever he went, lay on the ground. His sweat soaked his bare chest; he wore only his usual black pants, which he never changed.

He gazed up at the blue sky. Though above, the sky appeared bright through the lattice of tree leaves, down below in the forest, mist lingered knee-high.

Since stepping onto the soil of this village, Sizhu had felt an uneasy premonition. It was almost the same as when he faced the Stag Head Witch.

"Why would the Witch order the villagers and give them strange rules to obey? The offerings vanished in an instant last night. I didn't sense the presence of the creature that Qing's father mentioned at all.

"By the way, the handless Witch also disappeared last night. Could it be that that creature kidnapped him?" Shrugging, Sizhu didn't dwell on it too much.

"Besides, he's lost his legs and arms. Even if he went riding his crocodile, he wouldn't dare come back here."

After feeling he had rested enough, Sizhu stood up and took his staff lying on the ground.

"Whatever it is, I just have to find it and exterminate it. The villagers here—I don't know if what I saw were human body parts or magical creatures resembling humans.

"But seeing Qing's father say the villagers hunt them means there are many creatures like those around here, and they offer them as tribute to that creature."

Sizhu then thought again.

"First, I should ask other villagers about this. Last night, I saw about ten to twenty houses quite close together in this village. Does the village really have that many houses and people?"

Sizhu walked toward Qing's house, continuing to think calmly as he walked.

Qing's house was located a bit farther from the other village houses. Because for the past five years, Qing's family was the last to move into this village.

A delicious aroma of smoke rose from behind the simple wooden house. There, Qing and his younger sibling were fanning large fish caught the day before.

The big fish were being smoked over a small campfire. Their mouths were tied with short cords so the fish hung and were smoked from underneath, letting the hot smoke slowly cook them.

Four large fish hung on wooden poles for smoking. While waiting for the fish to cook, Qing maintained the fire's steadiness, and his younger sibling brought branches to feed the fire when Qing asked.

"Ah, good morning, Brother Sizhu. Breakfast will be ready soon. You can wait on the porch. We will bring the delicious cooked fish there later."

Qing greeted Sizhu who was walking closer. His hands were smudged with charcoal stains.

Yaoyao immediately hid behind her brother when she saw Sizhu coming over bare-chested.

"Let me help." Sizhu offered, reaching out his hand to take the bamboo fan held by Qing.

Without hesitation, Qing handed it over. Then he stepped back a few steps along with his younger sibling.

"Who is thad, brodher?" Yaoyao, who was just learning to speak, asked her older brother.

"That's Brother Sizhu. He's very strong and cool. When i grow up, i'll be like him!"

Qing answered enthusiastically with a bright smile. Yaoyao, who was still scared of Sizhu's bare, scarred chest, clung nervously.

"Yaoyao, don't be afraid. Brother Sizhu is a good person. Look, he's helping brother fan the fish so it cooks faster."

While the siblings chatted, Sizhu began fanning the fish with the bamboo fan.

However, he fanned too hard, and the fire went out immediately with one strong blow.

"Ah!" Qing and Yaoyao were shocked to see the campfire they had prepared in the early morning suddenly extinguish. Sizhu froze like someone caught dropping a glass.

"Brother Sizhu!" they two siblings shouted out loud.

Sizhu just scratched the back of his head. He truly lacked skill in cooking. That's why for the past ten years, his teacher never let Sizhu prepare food because hes master knew Sizhu was unreliable in that area.

"I fanned too hard. But don't worry, I can spark the fire again."

Seeing the charcoal still glowing red, Sizhu gathered many large branches and placed them into the fire pit where the red embers remained.

Then he began fanning the branches.

"Ah, Brother Sizhu, that's too many branches—"

Qing spoke too late, as the fire blazed faster than his words. Flames shot up as high as an adult man, burning the large fish directly.

Behind Qing, Yaoyao could only gape. The fish they prepared for breakfast were burning just because of Sizhu's fanning.

Ten minutes later.

"Brother Sizhu, it seems your teacher never taught you how to cook, huh?"

Qing looked disappointed at the fish hanging on the wooden poles. The fish had changed color from cooked brown to pitch black.

Sizhu also looked at the black, smoking fish, feeling a little confused seeing the fish change color even though the fire was out.

"My teacher once told me to roast deer meat. He said it tasted tough and bitter. Does that mean it's delicious?" Sizhu said with an innocent look.

"No way!!!"

"Not ad all!!!"

Qing and Yaoyao shouted simultaneously, then laughed together afterward.

"Brother Sizhu is funny."

"Yes, Brother Sizhu is so silly!"

The siblings kept laughing while Sizhu stood there bewildered.

After a few minutes, the four black, still-smoking fish were served on banana leaves. They were then brought to the front porch to be eaten together.

"Father's home. Have you finished grilling the fish?" Qing's father appeared from the path shortly after. He carried something covered by a worn cloth.

Qing, Sizhu, and Yaoyao sat on the porch after preparing their meal. Qing had soy sauce and chili. Then she combined and added a little salt to make chili soy dipping sauce to add flavor to the grilled fish.

"Here, Father, we just finished grilling them." Qing patted the empty spot beside her left.

Qing's father nodded, went inside to put away his things, then joined them sitting in a circle on the porch.

"They're very black. Did you burn these fish, Qing'er?"

"Well..." Qing found it hard to explain, glancing at Sizhu who was already picking his portion.

"Brodher Sizhu did it, Fadher." Yaoyao answered the father's question.

She also began picking pieces from the slightly burnt fish skin, then dipped them in the chili soy sauce. Even though the skin was a bit burnt, the inside was white, juicy, and delicious!

Hearing that Sizhu smoked the fish, Qing's father stopped questioning further. He then began picking the fish like the others.

After finishing the big fish, leaving only bones, Qing and her sibling started cleaning the leftovers. They threw them into the forest, letting animals or insects eat the remains.

After breakfast, Qing's father and Sizhu sat side by side on the porch, while the siblings played chasing butterflies near the house.

A slightly strong wind blew some small leaves. The leaves came from the dense forest.

"Master Sizhu. Maybe it's too much to ask something of you. But may I ask for your help?" Qing's father turned, his tone serious.

Sizhu also turned to listen, then nodded.

"What can I do?"

"Every end of the month, the villagers go hunting in the forest. Usually, we go in groups for three days at noon. Because only at that time are, we allowed to leave this village."

"Hunting?"

Qing's father nodded. "We hunt magical creatures that resemble humans to offer them tonight. We also keep some for a few weeks ahead. If we don't offer the blood of those magical creatures, that creature will attack and demand from us directly."

Sizhu said nothing and remained silent. From the porch, he could smell the scent of human blood stored in the kitchen.

Is it true that those human pieces are just parts of magical creatures? Last night I saw fish with human hands. Magical creatures with human bodies do exist, but their blood smell is clearly different from real humans.

I must follow this hunt to see those magical human-like creatures firsthand.

"That's why, may I ask Master Sizhu to watch the children while I go hunting? My neighbor just died during a hunt a month ago. I can't entrust the children to other villagers except my old neighbor."

Sizhu shook his head. "I can't."

Qing's father looked disappointed but still respected Sizhu's decision.

"Alright, I realize it was rude to ask for help from a young stranger like you. But I can only trust them to you, Master Sizhu. Please."

Sizhu shook his head again. "No."

Qing's father's mouth opened slightly without words. Then he sighed heavily.

"Right, forgive me for forcing you."

Qing's father lowered his head, worried about the children's safety for the next few days. He feared something might happen to them, especially from that creature.

"But, in return, let me go hunting instead of you."

Qing's father raised his head, surprised to hear that.

"I'm an expert hunter. I can't take care of the children. So it's better that Father Qing stays here, and I'll go hunting instead."

Qing's father felt somewhat relieved hearing that. It meant he didn't have to risk his life hunting those magical creatures this month.

Seeing Sizhu's ability last night, he believed Sizhu would easily complete the hunt and come back with results.

"Alright, thank you, Master Sizhu."

***