Horror mailman

Bear meat

"Sasa..."

Pushing aside the grass in front of him, a small path down the mountain appeared before Zhao Ke. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he could vaguely see a village below the mountain.

Judging by the time of day, he estimated that he could reach the town by tonight before it got dark.

He wasn't in a hurry to return to reality anyway; there was still ten days left. Instead of blindly going back, he thought it better to explore this world and see what it was like.

As for the extended task of protecting Zhou Shun down the mountain, it had already been marked as failed when he killed Zhou Shun.

However, Zhao Ke didn't care. He preferred being alone and free rather than dragging along someone who could cause trouble at any moment.

Reaching out, a water bottle appeared in Zhao Ke's hand.

"Sip..."

Warm tea flowed out of the spout, made from the broken tea leaves he found at Xiong Er's house. The taste wasn't great, but it was refreshing.

"Transform!"

With a thought, Zhao Ke saw the water bottle immediately turn back into a stamp in his hand, returning to the postal book.

Although he had been studying along the way, Zhao Ke couldn't help but show a hint of joy on his face. The more he studied, the more interesting it became.

After transforming items into stamps, everything seemed frozen in time. Whether it was the temperature or the taste, everything remained the same as it was during the transformation, and it wouldn't change no matter how much time passed.

For a chef, this was simply a magical tool. Wherever he went, he had all the utensils he needed, like carrying around a vacuum space freezer.

Moreover, unless he allowed it, no one could see what was inside his postal book. And for him, there was an even more important ability: disposing of corpses!

However, the postal book didn't seem to be omnipotent. When he tried to transform a huge four-meter-high boulder into a stamp, he received a prompt saying it couldn't be transformed due to insufficient permissions.

When he encountered a snake on the way down the mountain, he tried to put it inside, but still received the same prompt. In the end, he could only turn the snake into a corpse and put it in the postal book.

Obviously, in some aspects, he couldn't transform everything into stamps. This made Zhao Ke somewhat annoyed, but fortunately, most of the items he wanted to transform had no issues.

For example, the bodies of Xiong Er and the old lady. Although the old lady's body was just a pile of bones, it was still good material for making soup. As for Xiong Er, he was an extremely rare specimen.

He had regretted before that he could only take two bear paws, but now... he stuffed the entire bear corpse into the postal book.

After eating some roasted bear meat, Zhao Ke set off lightly. When it was almost dark, he finally arrived at the town at the foot of the mountain.

It was called a town, but in Zhao Ke's eyes, it was more like a village. Grass huts and wooden houses were visible everywhere, and the streets were filled with various strange smells.

There were pigsties, sheep dung, and... the smell of rotting sourness. As soon as he entered the town, Zhao Ke was almost nauseated by the smell and had to plug his nostrils with a cloth.

Looking at the attire of the pedestrians on the street, they looked like peasants in ancient costume dramas, wearing clothes and cloth shoes made of hemp. For a moment, Zhao Ke wondered if he had traveled through time.

As Zhou Shun had said, this year was a year of disaster. Along the way, Zhao Ke saw many people curled up in corners, their bodies emaciated from hunger.

When Zhao Ke passed by an alley, he could feel some unfriendly gazes on him, sizing him up, apparently not welcoming this strange outsider.

"Master! Please, have mercy and give us some food to eat."

A beggar with disheveled hair, whose face couldn't be seen clearly, pounced on Zhao Ke as he walked past.

Zhao Ke's brows furrowed. Without waiting for the beggar to get close, he stepped aside and kicked the beggar with his foot, sending him flying.

This kick didn't use much force, but with the blessing of the special stamp, Bear Clothing, the strength was extraordinary.

With a "bang!" sound, the beggar's body slammed into the wall, convulsed a few times, and then passed out. Although the kick didn't hit any vital spots, given the beggar's physique, he probably wouldn't live for more than a few days.

The other beggars, seeing this, changed their expressions. The legs they had just stood up with immediately squatted back down, bowing their heads and not looking at the beggar who had passed out.

Zhao Ke noticed the expressions of these beggars and sneered coldly.

Approaching the unconscious beggar, Zhao Ke covered his nose with his hand and used his foot to open the beggar's hand. Under the already tattered sleeves, there was still a triangular iron spike hidden.

As the saying goes, there is something hateful about a pitiable person.

He wasn't the kind of goody-two-shoes like Qi Liang. Otherwise, if they were to pester him, he would probably be lying on the ground in the next second.

After looking at these beggars, Zhao Ke walked forward. When he walked out of the alley, the beggars around him exchanged glances, slowly stood up, and gathered around the beggar who had passed out on the ground.

Several faces covered in dirt gradually revealed a sinister expression. After exchanging glances, they silently took out a kitchen knife from their pockets.

Although the town was very desolate and the environment was average, it was still a town after all. Zhao Ke found a relatively clean inn and threw a piece of silver, enough for at least half a month's turnover, then was arranged to the upper room.

After all, it was inconvenient to travel these days. Most of the people staying in the inn were some laborers, staying in the chicken feather shop (also called a common bunkhouse, just covered with chicken feathers) in the backyard for a penny a day. Zhao Ke's silver could cover at least half a month's turnover.

The accommodation wasn't bad, but the taste of the food... Zhao Ke couldn't compliment it at all. Besides, the price was so high that Zhao Ke was speechless. He estimated that if he ate three meals a day here with the silver he found at Xiong Er's house, he probably wouldn't last two days.

Fortunately, he wasn't short of ingredients. After discussing with the shopkeeper, he cooked his own meals. The shopkeeper was also happy to agree, and after staying for two or three days, Zhao Ke had almost explored the entire town. He didn't find anything special, but every time the shopkeeper saw Zhao Ke, his face would light up like a flower, wishing Zhao Ke could stay for a few more days.

There was no way, because the food Zhao Ke cooked was so delicious. There was no range hood in this era, and when Zhao Ke cooked in the kitchen, the entire street could smell the strong fragrance, making passersby drool.

However, since Zhao Ke wasn't the inn's chef, the innkeeper could only bring a jug of good wine each time and try to get close to him with a flattering face. Over time, the two became quite acquainted.

"Hey, young man, how many days have you been here? If you're feeling bored, you can go to Xiangshan An (Fragrant Mountain Nunnery) on the north slope. That place... hehe."

Seeing Zhao Ke coming down from upstairs, the innkeeper greeted him warmly and suggested.

"Xiangshan An? Where the nuns live?" Zhao Ke was puzzled by the suggestion, not understanding what could be fun in a nunnery.

However, seeing the innkeeper's smirk, Zhao Ke understood. His eyes lit up not because he was interested in brothels but out of curiosity. After all, nunneries were already rare to find in reality, let alone the idea of a brothel inside one.

"Brothel, in a nunnery?"

Seeing the innkeeper's expression, Zhao Ke understood. His eyes brightened. He wasn't interested in brothels per se, but he found it intriguing. After all, nunneries were already rare to find in reality, let alone the idea of a brothel inside one.

"Hey! Where's the food? Hurry up and bring it, and another jug of wine!"

While Zhao Ke was chatting with the innkeeper, a group of people came in from outside. Judging by their appearance, they were some street thugs who, having gotten some money from somewhere, decided to dine out.

Initially, Zhao Ke didn't pay much attention. He was about to get up and check out the Xiangshan An as suggested by the innkeeper. However, just as he took a couple of steps, Zhao Ke suddenly stopped, sniffing the air. A very familiar smell made his eyebrows furrow, and he turned his gaze back to the thugs.

With a glance, Zhao Ke saw a young man in his early thirties sitting among the thugs. He looked quite handsome, but there was a sinister air about him. Most importantly, there was a faint smell of blood on him, reminiscent of the scent from Xiong Er and the old woman.

Remaining calm, Zhao Ke sat quietly to the side, listening as the young man lowered his voice and whispered to a few thugs, "My information is absolutely accurate. That family lives on the eastern mountain, just an old person and a young one, both from an official background and rumored to have hidden a lot of valuable treasures..."

Several thugs widened their eyes upon hearing this, exchanging glances and getting visibly excited.

"What..." Someone started to ask for more details, but the young man gestured for silence, indicating that it wasn't safe to talk in such a public place.

Seeing this, the other thugs agreed and urged the waiter to hurry up with the food.

"Sure enough, it's you!"

After hearing the young man's words directed at the others, Zhao Ke already understood his identity. Just as he had suspected, someone was intentionally spreading rumors to lure people into a deadly trap.

With the familiar smell emanating from the young man's body, Zhao Ke was certain of his identity. He narrowed his eyes slightly, got up, and headed straight for the kitchen.

"What's taking so long with the food?"

After a while, seeing no sign of the food, the thugs sitting at the table couldn't help but urge. But they soon caught a whiff of a peculiar fragrance. They couldn't quite identify the meaty aroma, but it was unique. Even the innkeeper couldn't help but salivate and tiptoed to the kitchen to take a look.

"It's here!"

As the kitchen door opened, Zhao Ke appeared, carrying a basin of stewed meat soup, which he placed in front of the thugs. The soup was golden-yellow in color, with translucent red meat chunks floating inside, garnished with a sprinkle of chopped green onions.

Without hesitation, the thugs picked up their chopsticks and began devouring the food. The meat melted in their mouths, tender as fermented bean curd. With a bite, the thick bone marrow oozed out along the bone seams, making them want to swallow the bones whole.

The thugs' faces gleamed with oil, and they even fought over the soup. In the blink of an eye, they finished the basin of meat.

"Waiter, what kind of meat is this? Why is it so fragrant? Is there more? Bring another basin!"

Feeling unsatisfied, someone called the waiter over, seeking more information.

"This..." The waiter looked troubled, shaking his head and saying, "Gentlemen, this dish wasn't made by our chef. It was made by a guest staying at our inn. He said that a few days ago, he passed by the eastern mountain and saw a house where someone had killed two bears. He thought the meat was a waste, so he cut some and brought it back. This is bear meat, we don't usually..."

"Bang!"

Before the waiter finished speaking, the young man sitting at the table turned pale, staring fixedly at the pile of bones on the table. His lips turned purple, and he staggered to his feet, shouting, "Mother! Brother!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the young man's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.