Accumulation

The entry into the Dragon-Elephant Blood-Baleful Body brought immense changes to Shen Mo; he could now be considered a dual cultivator of both magic and body.

For the better part of the next month, he focused on consolidating and adapting to these changes.

In his spare time, he continued his routine of alchemy and talisman crafting.

As for the Spirit-Hidden Rat, it kept its promise, arriving every day thereafter to beg for meat.

At the same time, it would present a gift as a reciprocal gesture of courtesy.

Sometimes, the item brought was Mystic Crystal ore.

Other times, it was low-grade spirit fruits gathered from the wild mountains and forests.

Occasionally, it would bring back the desiccated carcass of a demonic beast.

Sometimes, it would even trot over, tail wagging, to present a Spirit Stone it had scavenged from who-knows-where, clearly looking for praise.

However, no more treasures like the Dragon-Elephant Blood-Baleful Body jade slip appeared.

Shen Mo was satisfied with this nonetheless.

After all, his only task was to roast meat for the Spirit-Hidden Rat to devour.

The meat was provided by the sect's kitchen, so it cost him nothing but his own labor.

Being able to receive anything at all was already quite good.

He only needed to prepare the roasted meat each day and wait for the creature to deliver its daily gift.

This experience was much like opening a blind box, and it kept Shen Mo quite expectant.

With such a fulfilling schedule, time passed quickly.

In the blink of an eye, the two-month term for guarding the Mystic Crystal Mine had arrived.

"Today is the moment to return to the sect," Shen Mo muttered, washing his face and gazing at his reflection in the bronze mirror.

"These two months have yielded no small harvest."

Although his original intention in coming here with Chen Mengze was merely to collect those fifty Spirit Stones and incidentally slack off or practice alchemy, fate had other plans.

Not only had he gained the friendship of Guo Zhao, obtaining the Dragon Sparrow Sword and learning the art of weapon forging from him, but he had also encountered the Spirit-Hidden Rat here, acquiring an exceptionally effective body-cultivation technique along with various other odds and ends.

These gains were things he had never anticipated beforehand.

[Master of Destiny: Shen Mo]
[Cultivation: Body Tempering Realm, Ninth Heaven]
[Talisman Dao: (First Grade) 784/1000]
[Alchemy Dao: (First Grade) 597/1000]
[Weapon Forging: (Unranked) 300/500]

Opening his attribute panel, Shen Mo examined the experience points for his current cultivation arts: talisman techniques, alchemy methods, and weapon forging.

Over this period, he had performed alchemy and talisman crafting with similar frequency.

However, his Alchemy Dao experience had increased significantly faster than his Talisman Dao.

This gap existed because the alchemy insights provided by the Red Cloud Cauldron had allowed him to avoid many detours.

"Lesser Foundation Establishment Pills, ninety-four; Qi Recovery Pills, thirty-one; Vitality Strengthening Powder, thirteen portions."

"Light Body Talismans, twenty-two; Separating Fire Talismans, six; Focus Talismans, four; Strength Testing Talismans, three."

He took out all the pills and talismans from his Qiankun Pouch to conduct a full inventory.

The quantity was substantial.

Although the pills and talismans from the first month had been traded away for demonic cores and beast carcasses, his efficiency in alchemy and talisman crafting had improved alongside his growing experience, allowing him to accumulate quite a lot over these last twenty-plus days.

"Finally, the situation of my Destiny!"

Opening the Destiny Panel, Shen Mo scrutinized his current base attributes.

[Physique: Strong and Robust]
[Aptitude: Superior]
[Luck: Average]
[Appearance: Dashing and Distinguished]
[Wisdom: Unremarkable]
[Destiny: ???]
[Longevity: ???]

"Recorded three white, two green."

Over these past two months, Shen Mo had accumulated a total of nineteen Destiny Points, all of which he had poured into upgrading his basic destiny.

However, the failure rate was exceptionally high.

He had wagered the nineteen Destiny Points one by one, yet he had only managed to raise his "Intelligence" basic destiny from the original gray-tier "Naturally Dull" to the current white-tier "Mediocre."

Overall, my current destiny foundation is only slightly better than that of an ordinary person.

Shen Mo could not say he was satisfied with this, but he was not disappointed either.

After all, changing one's destiny was never an easy task.

As long as he continued to obtain a steady stream of Destiny Points, he would eventually be able to elevate his destiny grade.

The road is long and arduous, but I shall take it slow!

"Junior Brother Shen, the disciples coming to take over have arrived. Pack your things; we are leaving!"

Pushing open the door and entering the cave dwelling, Guo Zhao saw him and gave the instruction before hurrying back out to negotiate with the incoming disciples, handing over the rosters, logs, and other items to his successors.

Are we leaving already?

Shen Mo went to find Chen Mengze, who was also packing her belongings.

Everything he needed to take with him had already been placed into his Qiankun Pouch.

Yet, as the moment of departure arrived, he felt a sense of emptiness in his heart.

"Ying ying ying!"

From a distance, a series of beast cries could be heard.

At the same time, a black shadow darted rapidly toward Shen Mo.

It was the Spirit-Hidden Rat, coming to beg for food once again.

"Here, it's all for you."

Shen Mo had already prepared ten pounds of roasted meat, laying it all out before the creature.

"Ying! Ying!"

Usually, Shen Mo would roast at most three pounds of meat for it.

Ten pounds was a first; seeing such a portion, the Spirit-Hidden Rat was overjoyed, the tuft of hair on its head swaying excitedly.

Soon, it began to devour the food like a whirlwind.

As Shen Mo watched it eat, he gently stroked its soft body, feeling a pang of reluctance: "I am leaving. After this meal, you will have to forage for yourself from now on."

"Ying!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the Spirit-Hidden Rat paused, staring at him blankly, suddenly feeling that the meat in its mouth was no longer delicious.

Didn't we agree that I would find gifts for you, and you would provide the meals?

He seemed to see a great deal of confusion in its small eyes.

Shen Mo sighed and said apologetically, "I am a disciple of the River-Facing Sect. Guarding the Mystic Crystal Mine was a sect mission; I cannot stay here permanently."

"Today, the mission period has ended, and I must return to the sect."

"Our meeting was a matter of fate, but all good things must come to an end."

"I will prepare some more roasted meat for you to keep and eat slowly in the future."

Shen Mo changed his tone, adding, "Or, if you are willing to leave with me and head to the River-Facing Sect, I can guarantee you meat at every meal."

Having said this, he looked quietly at the Spirit-Hidden Rat, waiting for its decision.

This Spirit-Hidden Rat was quite intelligent and possessed a divine ability.

Although this ability did not seem very powerful at the moment, as long as this little guy had food, it could fetch things for him, offering a quite decent return on investment.

Shen Mo naturally hoped to tame it and keep it by his side.

However, this ultimately depended on its own wishes; Shen Mo could not force it.

"Ying!" The Spirit-Hidden Rat tilted its head, looking at Shen Mo, its small eyes seemingly deep in thought.

Since its birth and as far back as its memory went, it had always been active along the banks of the Lancang River and had never left this area.

Now, being suddenly asked to leave this region, the Spirit-Hidden Rat felt quite hesitant.

Moreover, Shen Mo said he would roast more meat for it; even if he left, it shouldn't have to worry about running out of meat for a short time, right?