First Showing of Skill

Yuan Ming watched Wulu draw closer, his brow furrowing unconsciously before quickly smoothing out again.

Wulu's shoulders, chest, arms, and other places were all injured. Blood was even still seeping from several wounds, as though he had just gone through a fierce battle not long ago. He looked quite bedraggled.

Speaking of which, Yuan Ming had no idea what special opportunity Wulu had encountered. Though he was still some distance from the first level of Qi Refinement, his overall cultivation speed seemed no slower than Yuan Ming's.

Moreover, the beast hide he had obtained was a Spotted Fierce Tiger. In terms of overall combat strength, it was far stronger than the white ape and should have had no trouble dealing with ordinary low-grade Level One fiend beasts. Yuan Ming had no idea what he had encountered.

"Elder Huohuo, I came late. This is this month's fiend beast essence blood." Wulu stopped before Elder Huohuo and handed over the blood-storage pouch.

Elder Huohuo seemed not to see Wulu's miserable state. Expressionless, he took Wulu's five portions of essence blood, tossed down two portions of antidote, then summoned the giant bird and left.

After taking the antidote, Yuan Ming did not linger either and was about to turn and leave.

"Brother Yuan, wait. Do you still have that kind of healing herbal salve?" Wulu suddenly called after Yuan Ming.

"I have one tube left." Yuan Ming stopped.

"Wonderful. Could you sell it to me? I'll trade this tube of Soft Bone Poison for it." Wulu's face lit up as he took out a bamboo tube, its opening tightly sealed with beast hide.

"Sure." Yuan Ming took a bamboo tube from his robes and tossed it over.

"Thank you." Wulu hurriedly caught it and handed over the bamboo tube in his hand.

Yuan Ming opened the tube. It contained more than half a tube of thick, purplish-black liquid.

Since the incident when Yuan Ming had saved him last time, their relationship had grown much closer, and they had begun speaking with one another more often.

Wulu claimed to come from a small clan in the southern frontier and knew how to refine certain highly poisonous substances. This Soft Bone Poison could make one's tendons and bones go limp, and it was quite effective against fiend beasts. Yuan Ming had traded his own blended healing salve for it twice and found its effects quite good.

"Just now, I vaguely heard Elder Huohuo speaking. I wonder what he said?" Wulu glanced in the direction Elder Huohuo had departed, asking curiously.

"I asked Elder Huohuo about some matters concerning fiend beasts," Yuan Ming replied.

Since Elder Huohuo had not told Wulu about becoming a registered disciple of Jade Luo Cave, Yuan Ming naturally would not blab about it.

The two chatted idly for a while before leaving one after the other.

Yuan Ming returned to his earthen cave and began considering his plans for the future.

He had originally intended to travel to other regions of the Hundred Thousand Mountains to find some Furred Beast Slaves and ask about Jade Luo Cave and the Heart Rot Pill, to see whether he might find a chance to escape this place. After all, he had no desire to remain a beast slave, coerced by others and without any future, forever.

Now that Elder Huohuo had pointed out a clear path to joining Jade Luo Cave, there was no need to go through all that trouble.

A thousand portions of fiend beast essence blood sounded like a lot, but if he reduced his cultivation time, he was confident he could gather them within a year.

Something isn't right. Jade Luo Cave doesn't look like a sect that is easy to deal with, so why would it set such lenient conditions? Any furred beast slave with a bit of strength should be able to complete this task as long as they are careful, shouldn't they? Yuan Ming thought, stroking his chin.

Could there be some other hidden catch behind this?

Unable to see through it for the moment, he did not waste any more time. At the very least, while gathering essence blood, he could cultivate the Nine Yuan Art and raise his cultivation as much as possible. That would always increase his ability to protect himself in the future, if only somewhat.

With that thought, Yuan Ming rose and began packing up the things in the earthen cave.

This earthen cave was rather far from the gorge. Going back and forth every time took a great deal of time, so he needed to change residences.

Yuan Ming wrapped the items in the cave in a piece of beast hide and left the earthen cave where he had lived for nearly half a year. Before leaving, however, he still blocked the entrance with the large stone.

This place was quite secluded. Perhaps it would still be useful in the future.

Carrying the beast-hide bundle, Yuan Ming headed south and soon arrived near the gorge.

"Crossing the gorge won't take much time. I might as well make my home on this side of it."

Yuan Ming swept his gaze around and, rather than continuing onward, began searching nearby for a suitable place to live.

Before long, he found a winding cavern beneath a low earthen hill. It appeared to have been dug out by a burrowing wild beast such as a pangolin.

The cavern was long, extending all the way to the other side of the low hill. Aside from the front entrance, there was also a rear exit in the shaded area behind the hill.

The rear exit was simply too small for a person to pass through.

Yuan Ming blocked the rear exit with a large stone. Then he transformed into a white ape and swung his claws, expanding the space near the front entrance by more than double and forming a fairly decent earthen room.

Fortunately, this low hill had much soil and little stone, saving him considerable effort. Otherwise, no matter how sharp his claws were, expanding the cavern by so much would not have been something he could accomplish in a day or two.

Yuan Ming carried a large stone over from nearby to block the cave entrance, then gathered plenty of dead branches and dry grass. He laid down a simple bed inside the cavern, and a basic dwelling was complete.

Lying on the dry grass bed, his entire body relaxed, and he could not help yawning.

The conditions in his previous earthen cave had been crude. He had also been busy cultivating and hunting fiend beasts, paying no attention at all to his personal living conditions. Now, lying on the soft grass bed, the fatigue he had accumulated seeped forth bit by bit, making him somewhat sleepy.

This time, Yuan Ming did not drive away the drowsiness. He dropped onto the grass bed and soon fell into a deep sleep.

He slept exceptionally well. It was not until noon the next day that he awoke, refreshed and vigorous. After casually eating some dried meat, he left the cavern and came to the forest on the other side of the gorge.

Yuan Ming glanced toward the mountain hollow where the Green Fox den was located, then quickly withdrew his gaze.

He had hunted down more than half of that Green Fox pack. Ever since he had killed their leader last month, the remaining Green Foxes had scattered in all directions, leaving him without a stable hunting ground for fiend beasts.

Yuan Ming shook his head and strode deeper into the forest.

For the past few months, he had been circling around the edge of this forest. This was his first time venturing deep inside.

As he went farther in, he found that the surrounding trees had become extraordinarily tall. Hundred-year-old towering trees were everywhere. Dead branches and fallen leaves formed a thick layer beneath his feet, soft to step upon. As far as the eye could see, dense shrubs and tangled vines filled the forest, far more luxuriant than those on the other side of the gorge, blocking his view.

After a brief consideration, Yuan Ming transformed into a white ape, leaped into the trees, and began advancing by jumping from branch to branch.

Yet after traveling for a full quarter of an hour, the entire way remained peaceful, and he did not encounter a single fiend beast.

He was not surprised by this. This forest was still only the outskirts of the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Though fiend beasts dwelled here, their numbers were not actually high. Wulu had once complained that he spent far more time searching for fiend beasts than hunting them.

The fact that Yuan Ming had previously found such a large nest of Green Foxes was simply good luck, allowing him to complete his monthly task with ease. That yellow armadillo had vanished without a trace, and if he wanted to achieve the goal of one thousand portions of essence blood, he had to venture deeper.

Of course, Yuan Ming had no intention of rashly striving for merit. Safety came first.

After traveling another li or so, he heard the sound of rushing water ahead. A small waterfall spilled down from a cliff into a clear pool, and a cool mist of water washed over him.

Yuan Ming lay atop a tree and looked ahead through gaps in the leaves.

A tall, wild boar-like fiend beast was drinking by the pool. Its fur was entirely fiery red, while the muscles along its spine and four hooves bulged powerfully. One look was enough to tell that it was no weak fiend beast.

The boar fiend beast also had a sharp horn growing from its forehead, looking extremely keen. Two snowy-white tusks like swords protruded from the corners of its mouth, glinting with cold light that sent chills down one's spine.

Yuan Ming looked at the "prey" before him, the corners of his mouth lifting. His gaze swept over the surroundings of the pool, wanting to confirm whether there were any other potential dangers nearby.

Just then, the boar fiend beast's ears twitched. It abruptly raised its head from the pool and looked around, as though it had heard something.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming hurriedly hid behind the tree trunk, remaining utterly motionless.

The boar fiend beast twitched its ears as if listening to the movements around it. Only after several breaths did it lower its head and resume drinking.

Yuan Ming breathed a sigh of relief, quietly poked his head out, and carefully observed it.

Judging from this fellow's size, it's much stronger than the Green Foxes and armadillo from before. The goal of one thousand portions begins with you, he calculated inwardly, silently closing in until he was soon near the boar fiend beast.

At that moment, the boar fiend beast rose, shook the water from its body, grunted twice in satisfaction, and prepared to turn away from the pool.

Yuan Ming seized the opportunity and pounced down from the tree, landing squarely on the boar's broad back. Before the boar fiend beast could react, his two sharp claws stabbed viciously into its neck and slashed with all his strength.

Sssh!

Two terrifying wounds, deep enough to reveal bone, were carved into the boar fiend beast's neck, and blood gushed out in torrents.

It let out a shrill scream and bolted forward with its massive body, crashing through two large trees in succession. Broken trunks, branches, and leaves flew everywhere.

Yuan Ming had no time to steady himself and was flung away.

"Roar!" The boar fiend beast's eyes had already turned blood-red. It wheeled around and charged ferociously at Yuan Ming.

The boar lowered its head, aiming its crimson horn at Yuan Ming's chest like a gigantic spear. Its huge body whipped up a surging current of air, making even the forest several zhang away rustle loudly.

Yuan Ming had only just steadied himself. It was already too late to dodge, so he thrust out both hands and grabbed the crimson horn.

Screech...

His feet scraped against the ground as his entire body slid backward.

After retreating more than two zhang, Yuan Ming drove his feet half a chi into the earth and steadied himself. No matter how hard the boar fiend beast strained, it could not move him in the slightest.

"Up you go!" Yuan Ming shouted. The muscles in his arms swelled as he heaved upward.

The boar fiend beast's towering body was actually lifted into the air, spun halfway around, and smashed viciously against a nearby tree.

The great tree, thick enough for one person to wrap their arms around, snapped in response. The boar fiend beast's body then continued crashing into the ground with a thunderous bang, making the earth within several zhang tremble slightly.

Before the beast could recover its senses, a pale, gleaming claw descended from above and stabbed viciously into its head, piercing its hard skull.

The boar fiend beast let out a despairing scream. Its enormous body twitched a few times before quickly falling still.

Yuan Ming nodded. This boar fiend beast was not weak. Had he encountered it three months ago, the odds would have been stacked against him. Yet now, before him, it was as helpless as a kitten or puppy.

Abandoning the Blood Qi Method and switching to the Nine Yuan Art had indeed been the right choice.

Yuan Ming took out the blood-storage pouch and collected the boar's blood. Just as he was about to leave, a deep roar suddenly came from ahead. The ground began to shake, kicking up a wave of dust and air!