Green Wind Monkey

Wang Hong took out a small clay pot, opened the leaves sealing its mouth, and heated it with spiritual power. Then he plucked a scallion from his space, swiftly chopped it into minced scallions, and sprinkled them over the top.

At once, the rich fragrance of the broth melded with the fresh scent of scallions and drifted outward. It whetted everyone's appetite, making the few of them secretly swallow.

Wang Hong used spiritual power to support the clay pot and a flatbread, sending them before the Lei cultivator.

The Lei cultivator caught them one-handedly, brought them to his nose, and took a deep breath, revealing an utterly intoxicated expression. It was not merely the scent of the food—he could also sense the dense spiritual energy contained within it.

He picked up the flatbread and found it soft yet springy to the touch. After taking a bite, he found it wonderfully chewy, carrying the fresh fragrance of wheat. It must have been made from spirit wheat; this single flatbread was worth at least two Spirit Stones.

He took another sip of soup. It was fragrant and smooth on his tongue, and once it entered his stomach, it transformed into spiritual power that slowly flowed into his meridians.

This was the difference between Spirit Meals and medicinal pills. After consuming Spirit Meals, there was no need to deliberately circulate one's cultivation to refine them. They directly transformed into spiritual power and were absorbed by the body.

Moreover, eating Spirit Meals over a long period was harmless and had no side effects.

Pills, on the other hand, needed to be refined through cultivation, or most of their medicinal power would go to waste.

The Lei cultivator had eaten Spirit Meals a few times before, but their spiritual energy had been relatively thin. Compared to this soup, they were worlds apart.

As the Lei cultivator ate, he repeatedly praised it as being worth far more than its price. Though the others were tempted upon hearing this, they felt their shriveled storage pouches and ultimately abandoned the idea.

Twenty Spirit Stones could buy two Qi Gathering Pills, or two low-grade talismans that might save their lives at a critical moment.

They risked their lives entering Black Dragon Marsh, yet even after venturing about for an entire month, they might not earn twenty Spirit Stones. Asking them to casually spend twenty Spirit Stones on one Spirit Meal was truly more than they could bear.

The group could not help but wonder about Wang Hong's identity and background. First, he had exchanged pills for spirit herbs; now, he was offering a Spirit Meal worth twenty Spirit Stones.

An ordinary Rogue Cultivator did not possess such wealth. He was probably some Lineage disciple disguised as a Rogue Cultivator while out gaining experience.

After finishing his meal, Wang Hong took out a tent, set it up, and plunged straight inside.

His Primordial Spirit floated within the space. The space now covered more than three mu of land. The spirit herbs transplanted over the past two days had already occupied one fen. If he wanted to transplant a sample of every spirit medicine in Black Dragon Marsh, the space would need to expand by at least several more mu.

Suddenly, he saw a Green-tailed Spirit Bee flitting among the spirit herbs. Wang Hong wrapped it with the power of his Spiritual Sense and caught it. After one look, he recognized it immediately—he had been fighting these spirit bees for the past few days, and this was definitely the same species.

Sweeping his Spiritual Sense through the space, he discovered that there was more than one. There were at least a dozen of them.

He brought the beehive he had previously stored inside into his hand. He had not paid much attention before, but there were still many unhatched eggs in the hive. Those dozen or so spirit bees must have hatched from them.

Could living creatures now enter the space? Previously, he had not even been able to bring in a flea. He left the space, went outside the tent to catch two ants, then hurriedly burrowed back inside.

Seeing this, the Lei cultivator, who was sitting on a rock outside, could not help but sigh. "Fellow Daoist Wang truly is an extraordinary man. His every action is always impossible to fathom."

Wang Hong caught the two ants, yet no matter what he did, he could not bring them into the space. He then grabbed a spirit bee from within the space and brought it out, only to find that he could easily take it back inside.

Wang Hong guessed that as the space upgraded, it might now be able to admit living eggs. As long as a creature hatched within the space, it could pass in and out through him.

No sooner thought than done. He left the tent again, used his Spiritual Sense to find a nest of ordinary Iron-toothed Ants, quickly overturned the soil, found some ant eggs, and returned to the tent.

"Who would have thought Fellow Daoist Wang enjoyed catching ants and raiding ant nests? That is truly a peculiar hobby!" the Lei cultivator marveled inwardly once more.

Naturally, Wang Hong had no idea about the Lei cultivator's thoughts. To his delight, these ant eggs could indeed be brought into the space. As for the rest, he could only wait until they hatched into ants before trying again.

After resting for a night, the injuries the group had suffered earlier had recovered seven or eight parts out of ten. They continued deeper into Black Dragon Marsh, their next destination being Mistwind Gorge.

Mistwind Gorge stretched dozens of li wide. Within it, either mist filled the air or violent winds raged, so many cultivators called it Mistwind Gorge.

Its unusual environment caused all kinds of spirit medicines to flourish within, while also making it a paradise for Demonic Beasts.

The group entered the gorge. White mist shrouded the place, and visibility was extremely low; anything beyond ten zhang could no longer be seen clearly.

All of them released their Spiritual Sense and cautiously guarded against their surroundings.

Not long after moving forward, their Spiritual Senses simultaneously discovered a Silver Thread Orchid. After some discussion, the spirit herb was ultimately assigned to Old Man Ge, who compensated each person with two Spirit Stones.

The Silver Thread Orchid was not particularly precious spirit medicine to begin with, so naturally no one objected. This matter also served as a reminder to them all: if they discovered precious and rare spirit medicines, they likely would not be able to divide them so easily.

At this moment, Cultivator Shi suggested, "Why don't we spread out a little, keeping about five zhang between us? It will make it easier to search for spirit medicines, and if danger arises, we can still provide timely aid."

"Not bad. Although the mist here is dense, keeping five or six zhang apart should not be a problem. If anything happens, the others can arrive in an instant." Cultivator Ding also agreed.

The Lei cultivator agreed as well. "We have all come in search of opportunities. It would be unwise if this harmed our harmony instead."

No one objected. They then spread out, with Wang Hong walking on the far left and the Lei cultivator on the far right, each separated by five zhang as they advanced shoulder to shoulder.

After traveling more than twenty li, each of them had made some gains, and Wang Hong had also gathered two spirit herbs.

"Wow! So many Crimson Silk Fruits!" Cultivator Shi cried out.

Wang Hong was on the far left and could not see the exact situation on the right. Seeing Old Man Ge and Cultivator Ding both dash toward that side, he followed them.

Only upon drawing near did he discover that the terrain here was completely different from the left side. The area he had just passed through on the left had been grassland, with only a few sparse little trees.

Here, numerous strange rocks several zhang tall rose up. Fruit trees over a zhang high grew between the stone pillars. Among their lush green leaves hung white fruits one after another, and a small half of the ripe fruits bore a touch of rosy red. At first glance, they were quite endearing.

These were Crimson Silk Fruits, a first-grade Spirit Fruit. Though they were not particularly valuable, harvesting so many of them would still bring in no small income.

Yet the people who had arrived first did not make a move. They were confronting several demon monkeys in the trees opposite them.

There were seven demon monkeys in the trees across from them. They had green backs and white bellies, and were not large, standing only a little over three feet tall. They bared their fangs and glared furiously at the group.

"These demon monkeys are called Green Wind Monkeys. They are wind-element Demonic Beasts that enjoy living in groups. A single group may have as few as a dozen members or as many as several hundred," Old Man Ge slowly explained.

"Should we kill our way through? I took a look just now—there is a large forest deeper inside, and every tree is a Crimson Silk Fruit tree. If we harvest them all, they will be worth at least tens of thousands of Spirit Stones," the Lei cultivator said.

At these words, everyone's eyes immediately turned bloodshot. With ten thousand Spirit Stones, they would have enough to cover the expenses of the entire Qi Refinement stage and would no longer need to worry about Spirit Stones.