Target Found

Afterward, Gu He and Sun Yi turned all the small animals they had caught into roasted meat and filled their stomachs. Since Gu He was already a Dou Wang, he could draw Dou Qi from heaven and earth to sustain his body and could go months without eating. He ate mainly for the pleasure of it, so Sun Yi consumed most of the meat.

Afterward, Sun Yi sat meditating beside the fire and kept watch through the night. Gu He also remained in the tree, using nearly half his Soul Power to sense the surroundings. The night passed without incident.

When he rose the next morning, Gu He was refreshed. Although he had spent the entire night sensing the surroundings with his Soul Power, he had also divided his attention to cultivate, thoroughly dispelling his fatigue.

Sun Yi, meanwhile, sat beside the extinguished fire, yawning repeatedly. Seeing the obvious dark circles under his eyes, Gu He chuckled. "Don't tell me you stayed nervous all night!"

"How could anyone not be nervous at night in the Monster Mountain Range? Even when traveling with a group, people sleep in their clothes with their weapons in their arms, ready to fight at any moment. Let alone in a team of only two." Sun Yi forced himself to his feet, preparing to wash his face.

Gu He did not explain further. With an alchemist above the fourth rank present and using Soul Power to monitor the surroundings, there was no possibility of being ambushed. But Sun Yi might not understand any of this. After all, he had yet to come into contact with Soul Power at all; explaining it would be like playing the lute to a cow.

The two then headed toward the final basin. They encountered many First Tier Magical Beasts along the way, but none could hide from Gu He's soul perception. Gu He had no interest in these low-tier magical beasts, so he told Sun Yi where they were and let him deal with them. Only when Sun Yi could not handle one would Gu He step in and kill the remaining magical beasts.

Watching Gu He casually kill several peak First Tier Magical Beasts, Sun Yi's gaze grew increasingly reverent. The strong were always worthy of respect, especially in a place like the Monster Mountain Range, where the law of the jungle reigned.

After killing several magical beasts, Gu He split open their heads. He found a Magic Core in one of them and picked it up. Sensing the energy within, he decided to use this lowest-grade Magic Core to test the abilities of the Devouring Flame and see whether it could transform a Magic Core into pure energy as well. If it could, he could temporarily delay raising his alchemist rank and first increase his strength in the Monster Mountain Range before considering alchemy. Of course, if it could not, then he would continue with his original plan of raising his alchemist rank before increasing his strength.

"My lord, this Magic Core is of decent quality. It could easily sell for 450 gold coins in a large city. But if you need to sell it quickly, you could get 350 gold coins from an acquaintance in Qingshan Town. If the people buying Magic Cores see that you are not from Qingshan Town, they drive the price down hard and often offer only 300 gold coins." Seeing Gu He staring pensively at the Magic Core, Sun Yi assumed he was considering how to sell it and told him what he knew about Magic Core prices.

"That is in line with the market, but I do not plan to sell this for now." Gu He smiled and placed the Magic Core into his Ring.

"Let's continue."

The farther inward they went, the more densely packed the magical beasts became. Eventually, to increase their speed, Gu He took the lead to clear the way while Sun Yi followed behind to guide him.

With a Dou Wang expert like Gu He clearing the path, even though he used only part of his strength, the rest of their journey became much smoother. Before long, a large basin came into Gu He's sight. Sensing the dense energy within and identifying the medicinal herbs growing there, Gu He felt that this was very likely the place he had been searching for.

Gu He tossed a bottle of pills to Sun Yi. "All right, this is most likely the basin I was looking for. Since you were fortunate enough to help me find this place, your reward will naturally not be lacking."

"Thank you for your reward, my lord." Sun Yi knew that for a great figure with such high alchemy and immense martial strength, killing him would take no more than the flick of a finger. In fact, with Gu He's Soul Power, he could likely make him lose the ability to think without even moving a finger. Thus, after taking the pills, Sun Yi swallowed them without hesitation and sat down to refine their medicinal power.

"Clever fellow." Gu He could roughly guess why Sun Yi had acted that way, but he did not dislike it.

After scattering some Fifth Tier Magical Beast dung around Sun Yi, Gu He headed into the basin. There truly were many rare medicinal herbs within, treasures seldom seen outside. But that was only for ordinary people. Gu He used these herbs often enough, so they were not particularly precious to him. Standing at the center of the basin, Gu He used his Soul Power to probe its depths and found that it easily passed through the thick fog shrouding the area and entered within.

Inside was a not particularly large Small Valley. The energy within was dozens of times denser than that of the basin outside, already reaching the energy level at the peak of Misty Cloud Mountain. Some of the herbs growing there even moved Gu He.

After confirming that this was the Small Valley Xiao Yi Xian had taken Xiao Yan to, Gu He was in high spirits. But before he could laugh aloud, a long howl sounded from the edge of the basin.

Gu He sighed softly, knowing that Sun Yi had broken through to Dou Master and could not contain his excitement, causing him to shout. Gu He did not blame him. By the time Gu He walked over, Sun Yi had already calmed down. Knowing that his breakthrough was entirely due to Gu He's pills, Sun Yi clasped his fists and said, "I will never forget your kindness, my lord. If you ever have need of me, just call for Sun Yi in Qingshan Town. Even if I must brave fire and water, I will not refuse."

Based on his limited experience and the strength Gu He had displayed along the way, Sun Yi felt that he was utterly unworthy of catching Gu He's eye. He gave up on the thought of following Gu He and could only offer polite words to express his gratitude.

"While the pills certainly helped you break through to Dou Master, the solid foundation you laid at Fighter Nine Stars was also indispensable. Otherwise, even with the aid of pills, you would never have been able to break through to Dou Master."

"I have found the place I was looking for, so return to Qingshan Town on your own. With your current strength as a Dou Master, you should be able to return safely as long as you are careful." Now that Gu He had found the Small Valley, he was naturally impatient to enter and see whether Xiao Yi Xian had arrived there before him, whether there was a house inside, and satisfy his curiosity. He only wanted to send Sun Yi away quickly so he could fly into the Small Valley.

Hearing Gu He's obvious intention to send him away, Sun Yi was not so tactless as to remain. After expressing his gratitude to Gu He once more, he left the basin.

Once Gu He sensed that Sun Yi had gone far enough that he could no longer see this place, he directly summoned his Dou Qi Wings and flew toward the depths of the basin.