Chapter 26

Chapter 26: The Hunt Continues
Dragon Roar Valley.

A burly middle aged man raised his hand and slapped the head of the scrawny companion beside him, snarling, “Skinny Monkey, you dare try to fool me?”

Skinny Monkey bared his teeth in pain and shrank his neck, then put on a fawning smile and said, “Brother Blade, even if you lent me three extra guts, I still wouldn’t dare trick you! Everyone we’ve met these days came to Dragon Roar Valley to look for the Seven-colored Deer!”

“Then where is that Seven-colored Deer? I haven’t even seen a single deer hair!”

Brother Blade spat hard on the ground, his face full of impatience.

Lately, Dragon Roar Valley had become unusually lively. All kinds of people were mixed together, and experts were everywhere. The two of them had wandered around here for more than half a month. Not only had they failed to find anything good, they had also suffered many sneak attacks.

Luckily, both of them were Foundation Establishment cultivators. Skinny Monkey was quick and clever, and Brother Blade was fierce and strong. Only then had they kept their lives, though they had collected quite a few injuries.

Brother Blade knew Skinny Monkey would not dare lie to him about something like this, but he had a belly full of anger. If he did not find an excuse to vent, he felt like he would explode.

Now that he had slapped Skinny Monkey once, some of the fire in his chest finally let out. He looked left and right and said, “Let’s find a place to rest for a bit. That little girl today looked all charming, but her hands were really vicious. Hiss…”

As he spoke, the movement tugged at his wounds, and he could not help drawing in a sharp breath.

Skinny Monkey did not dare have any objections, and he was exhausted too.

He thought for a moment, then pointed at the path to the east and suggested, “Brother Blade, I remember there was a little stream we passed a few days ago. Why don’t we go there to rest? If we happen to meet a Demonic Beast coming to drink, we can even have a snack.”

“Fine, we’ll go there.”

Brother Blade thought back for a bit and felt that place was indeed a good spot. He waved his big hand and set out at once.

After they walked for about half an hour, the moisture in the air grew thicker, and the soil beneath their feet became more damp. A hint of joy appeared in both Brother Blade’s and Skinny Monkey’s eyes, and they could not help speeding up.

They passed through a stretch of low forest, and a gentle, murmuring stream came into view.

Brother Blade laughed loudly and strode to the edge of the stream. He buried his head in the water and gulped it down in big mouthfuls.

“So good.”

Skinny Monkey’s way of drinking was much more polite in comparison.

He cupped his hands together, scooped up water from the stream, and drank it in small handfuls. A pleased expression appeared on his face.

After the two finished drinking, they started looking for a place to sit.

Looking around, they both set their eyes at the same time on an oddly shaped rock not far from the stream.

The rock was brownish overall and a full zhang wide, but only a foot tall. The top and bottom were both quite flat, like a natural stone slab.

Brother Blade and Skinny Monkey had been on the road for days and were already completely worn out. Now that they had found a good place to rest, they rushed over to the stone slab in two long strides and lay down comfortably.

“Phew.”

Brother Blade let out a long breath, and even the folds of fat on his face seemed to relax.

Skinny Monkey also felt very comfortable. He stretched his limbs, but his Divine Sense kept paying attention to the surroundings. His palm rested on the Storage Pouch at his waist, ready to fight at any time.

Brother Blade kept his eyes closed and said, “Skinny Monkey, don’t be so tense. Relax a little.”

Skinny Monkey chuckled and said, “Hehe, alright, Brother Blade.”

He agreed out loud, but in his heart he sneered.

It was not like he had not seen it. The arm Brother Blade was using as a pillow was gripping the hilt of his blade tightly.

In a place like this, it was never wrong to be careful.

“You’re just too young. Back in my day…”

Bzzz.

Brother Blade was about to talk about his glorious past when he suddenly heard a faint buzzing sound in his ear.

He flipped over and sat up at once, holding his blade across his chest as he scanned the surroundings warily.

Skinny Monkey reacted even faster than Brother Blade.

He jumped straight up, both feet landing on the stone slab. Two black long rods had somehow appeared in his hands.

Brother Blade asked, “Did you hear that just now…”

Skinny Monkey answered firmly, “I heard it.”

The two of them met each other’s eyes. In the next instant, their bodies shot into the air at the same time, fleeing in two different directions.

“Too late.”

A slightly hoarse voice sounded out of nowhere.

Before Brother Blade and Skinny Monkey could react, the buzzing rose all around them. A swarm of brown flying insects poured in like a tide and wrapped around the two of them in an instant.

They let out piercing screams that echoed through the valley, startling countless birds into flight.

A few breaths later, two sets of white bones fell from the air and hit the ground with a crack, shattering into pieces.

At this time, a young man wearing strange clothes stepped out of the forest.

He leaped over to the two piles of bones, picked up the fallen Storage Pouches, and casually stuffed them into the basket on his back. Then he took a cloth bag from his waist and opened it.

“Whew.”

The brown flying insects circling in the air seemed to be summoned by something. They lined up in a row and flew into the cloth bag one after another.

When the last insect entered the bag, the young man tied the mouth of the bag tightly. He raised his brows and curled his lips, his smile carrying an indescribable hint of cruelty.

“The Grand Ancestor’s Handscroll says that if you want Corpse-eating Insects to evolve quickly, they must devour a large amount of cultivators’ flesh and blood. I think after two more hunts, my Corpse-eating Insects can evolve again.”

The young man greedily drew in a breath of the blood scented air, then turned and walked back into the dense forest of the valley.

“The hunt continues.”

…

“Senior Sister Zhou, there is a cultivator city ahead. Let’s rest there tonight.”

Zhou Jin Yue looked back at the speaking Fang Cheng Lang, then at Ye Cong Xin, who was pale and leaning on his arm. She slowed down and said in a clear voice, “We’ll reach Lantern City soon. We’ll rest for the night in Lantern City.”

Fang Cheng Lang nodded to her gratefully, then lowered his head and softly comforted Ye Cong Xin, “Junior Sister, hold on a bit longer. We’ll be able to rest soon.”

Ye Cong Xin gave a weak smile and said apologetically, “Sorry, First Senior Brother. I’m the one slowing you all down.”

Fang Cheng Lang continued to comfort her, “Junior Sister, you’ve already done very well.”

Lan Zi Yu also said, “That’s right, Junior Sister. It’s amazing that you could hold on for this long. We’ve been on the road for so long that even I’m almost at my limit. It really is time to stop and rest for a night.”

Ye Cong Xin pulled at the corner of her mouth, then glanced sideways at Yu Zhao. She saw that Yu Zhao’s face was calm and her breathing steady. There was no sign of fatigue at all.

For the first time, Ye Cong Xin felt a sense of embarrassment in front of Yu Zhao.

To take care of the few Foundation Establishment Stage disciples in the group, Zhou Jin Yue had already tried her best to slow their traveling speed.

Even so, Ye Cong Xin still felt strained.

Clearly, she and Yu Zhao were both at Mid Foundation Establishment. But because her body was so broken and weak, she was worse than Yu Zhao in everything.

She was very unwilling.

She absolutely would not allow such an embarrassing scene to happen a second time.

Ye Cong Xin’s gaze swept lightly over Fang Cheng Lang and Lan Zi Yu, then finally landed firmly on Lan Zi Yu.

Fang Cheng Lang’s attitude toward her lately had been a bit strange, so she did not dare make a move on him easily. Lan Zi Yu, on the other hand, would be easier to deal with.

Ye Cong Xin lightly licked her lips.

Besides, Lan Zi Yu’s Fortune was not bad either.