Ji Yang raised his head and looked up through the narrow gap in the mountains. Between the two rocky walls, he could see brilliant starlight unobscured by trees.
A wave of bewilderment washed over him.
Brightest star in the night sky, can you hear me?
The loneliness and sighs deep in the heart of the one gazing up.
After thinking quietly for a long while, he finally muttered in confusion, "Damn it! What the hell is going on?"
Until tonight, he'd always thought that, objectively speaking, he might not be among the best in the world, but he should at least be one of the top young cultivators in Jiang City, right?
When he ran into a monster he couldn't beat, he hadn't lost confidence. It was normal for the production crew to overlook something. Maybe they'd accidentally let in a monster whose cultivation was way above the limit.
But other people had encountered it too, and they'd all won easily. That was a little bizarre.
He'd nearly been killed in an instant by that Rhinoceros Demon, and then that Rhinoceros Demon had nearly been killed in an instant by Yue Wen. By that reckoning, couldn't Yue Wen kill him sixty times in the time it took to fart?
If he were comparing himself to Liu Yuanjun, he could still just about accept it. After all, he'd heard since childhood that Xuanfeng Temple had a boy with an immortal body. But Yue Wen was just a freelance cultivator. He'd diligently practiced the Shadow Profound Supernatural Power for all these years, only to be trampled by some wandering cultivator—and seen by hundreds of thousands of viewers in the livestream...
Maybe I should just die?
As soon as the thought surfaced, his heart gave a sudden lurch, as though he'd faintly resonated with someone far away.
But he wasn't the sort to give up easily.
After a while, his thoughts rallied once more.
Combat could change in an instant, and there were many factors that could determine the outcome. Perhaps that Rhinoceros Demon had unusually keen instincts and happened to counter his supernatural power. And perhaps Yue Wen had some supernatural power that happened to counter the Rhinoceros Demon.
It was also possible that although the Rhinoceros Demon hadn't seemed injured when it fought him, he'd actually inflicted internal injuries, weakening its combat strength a hundredfold.
Anything was possible.
The sample size was too small to draw a conclusion.
"Phew—" He exhaled a breath of stale air. "I can't let myself get discouraged. I have to prove myself."
Proving himself would be simple. He just had to kill his way forward, crushing every monster he came across, and then he could show that what had happened earlier was just a fluke.
With that in mind, he walked out of the mountain gap.
Just then, a new Bee Camera sent by the production crew arrived. The yellow spirit insect beat its wings rapidly without making a sound, its capsule-sized camera dangling beneath it as it flew over.
Before the camera had disappeared, he'd been getting beaten badly by that Rhinoceros Demon. Plenty of viewers must have seen it.
Ji Yang lifted his head and pointed at the camera.
"Dear viewers, there was a little accident earlier. Sorry for scaring you." His expression was ice-cold. "Give me one more chance, and I'll show you all my strength. Younger viewers, please watch with a parent... because it's time for slaughter!"
With that, he strode forward.
He imagined the clip spreading across the internet, followed by edited footage of him slaughtering monsters in a frenzy.
I'm going to look so damn cool.
He hadn't gone far before a gust of rank wind blew toward him. He leaped onto a raised platform and saw a half-transformed tiger in a suit emerge from the mountain path below.
"A Tiger Demon?" Ji Yang narrowed his eyes.
It was a little strange to see a monster in a suit, but after seeing the Rhinoceros Demon in work clothes carrying a wrench, he wasn't surprised. Some monsters in the Wasteland Zone did wear human clothes. Cultivators sometimes died out there, and their belongings naturally fell into the hands of monsters.
This suited Tiger Demon was Yellow Big Tiger, who had been searching for Yue Wen.
He'd heard the Rhinoceros Deer brothers calling out in the distance and wanted to see what had happened. As he passed by, he happened to sense a living person nearby, so he'd come over to see whether it was his target.
When Ji Yang stepped forward, Yellow Big Tiger realized he wasn't one of the targets and spoke first. "No offense meant. Let's go our separate ways."
"Heh." Ji Yang gave a cold laugh. "If we'd met earlier, I might have let you go. But you've run into me as I am now, so you can only blame your bad luck."
At that moment, his intent to kill was firm.
He had to personally reclaim the face he'd lost at Hidden Dragon Pool!
With that, he spun around, transforming into a shower of fire that roared toward Yellow Big Tiger in a spectacular opening attack!
Yellow Big Tiger knitted his brows. It wasn't that he feared this human cultivator. It was just that, based on everything he'd learned about humans over the years, young cultivators like this often had a whole chain of sects and families backing them. Killing him rashly could lead to a situation known as "the elders come after you once you've beaten the youngster."
That was why he'd been unwilling to fight.
But since Ji Yang had attacked first, Yellow Big Tiger couldn't just stand there and let himself be killed. As the fiery rain bore down on him, he assumed a boxing stance and suddenly closed his eyes.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
In the blink of an eye, more than ten sparks struck him and burst. Yellow Big Tiger's suit was shredded on the spot, and the stripes in his fur were singed.
Only after taking the full barrage did Yellow Big Tiger suddenly open his eyes and roar, "Roar!"
Crackle—
After building up power for a while, a surge of electricity erupted around him, spreading ten meters in every direction. Silver dragons of lightning writhed through it, leaving nowhere to escape.
The fiery rain was swallowed up. Sparks burst one after another, and a figure suddenly appeared amid the swirling flames.
Ji Yang's true body was forced out. He was still somewhat dazed, but he reacted at once and tried to retreat to gain distance. This Tiger Demon could actually use martial arts techniques—more outrageous than the Rhinoceros Demon before! The most that one had done was wield a wrench.
But Yellow Big Tiger didn't give him the chance. He planted his right foot and unleashed his fist. The tiger shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow!
BOOM—
A fist wrapped in crackling lightning slammed into Ji Yang's chest, sending him flying dozens of meters into several trees, which came crashing down!
He hit the ground over there with a series of thuds, kicking up a cloud of dust. It was impossible to tell whether he was alive or dead.
Yellow Big Tiger glanced over but didn't go back to finish him off. He was here to kill Yue Wen and didn't want any complications. Compared to that, this passerby didn't matter.
After dealing with Ji Yang, he turned and hurried toward the direction from which the Rhinoceros Deer brothers had called out.
Meanwhile, things weren't going well at all for the Rhinoceros Deer brothers.
Big Rhinoceros Deer was being hunted by Yue Wen, while Second Rhinoceros Deer was being hunted by Zhao Xing'er. The two brothers had both called for help, and they'd managed to meet up.
But now they had two powerful enemies.
One in front and one behind, blocking their escape routes.
This was when the importance of advanced languages became clear. A roar was convenient and could convey simple emotions, but it couldn't explain what sort of enemy you were facing.
If they knew Dragon Tongue, one shout could describe the enemy's height, weight, and build in perfect detail, and even tack on a last will and testament. If the brothers had known about each other's situation, they might have gone their separate ways—at least then, they'd each have had a chance to escape.
When Yue Wen caught up with Big Rhinoceros Deer, he found that there were now two Rhinoceros Demons instead of one. He was hesitating over whether to keep fighting when he saw dust billowing in the distance and Zhao Xing'er darting into view.
Only then did he realize that Second Rhinoceros Deer had been chased here too.
Seeing the faint red glow in Zhao Xing'er's eyes, he immediately felt reassured.
He looked around. He'd rushed along this stretch too quickly, and his Bee Camera didn't seem to have kept up. He wasn't sure whether it could catch up, so he didn't rush into action. He stayed where he was and waited for Zhao Xing'er.
"What do we do, Big Brother?" Second Rhinoceros Deer sounded like it was about to cry. Zhao Xing'er had cracked its whole body with a single hammer blow, leaving it completely terrified. "That woman's nuts! She said I was keeping her awake and smashed me like this with one hit."
Big Rhinoceros Deer was covered in blood, but its injuries weren't as bad as its brother's. Seeing its brother like this gave it a better idea of how strong their pursuers were.
"Don't panic. I'll handle the talking." It did its best to stay calm, steadying Second Rhinoceros Deer.
Then, leaving Yue Wen alone for the moment, it stepped forward to block Zhao Xing'er as she charged over.
"Why'd you stop running?" Zhao Xing'er braked and looked up. Seeing that there were now two Rhinoceros Demons, she said, "So there are two of these stupid deer."
She'd come just as quickly, and her Bee Camera had been left far behind somewhere.
From the viewers' perspective, there was only a chaotic, swaying forest. The little Bee Camera, having lost its target, was clearly flustered; all six of its wings were beating so fast they were about to smoke. It wasn't that they couldn't fly fast enough. It was that these humans were too fast.
"Hmph—" Big Rhinoceros Deer's eyes flashed red at Zhao Xing'er's words, and it bared its teeth.
"Big Brother." Second Rhinoceros Deer immediately showed it its wounds.
"Phew." Big Rhinoceros Deer took a deep breath and smiled. "Hello, beautiful lady."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Zhao Xing'er frowned and looked from the two of them to Yue Wen. She wasn't quite sure what was going on.
"My younger brother disturbed your rest. I'm truly sorry. As its older brother, I apologize on its behalf." Big Rhinoceros Deer even adopted an elegant tone of voice. "We don't mean you any harm. We came here only to kill that man!"
As it spoke, it pointed at Yue Wen behind her. "And his assistant."
"So, could you stay out of our grudge?"
Its plan was simple: persuade one enemy to back off, then the brothers could join forces against their target.
This sort of thing happened often in the Wasteland Zone. When three monsters faced off, they had to prioritize their threats and avoid getting surrounded. Zhao Xing'er was the more ruthless of the two and had less reason to hate them, so she was the natural choice to persuade.
At Big Rhinoceros Deer's question, a bewildered look appeared behind Zhao Xing'er's mask. "You two have a grudge against that man... and his assistant?"
"Of course!" Big Rhinoceros Deer knew it needed to win her sympathy, so it lowered its voice. "Those two are downright wicked! They killed our parents and relatives. They didn't even spare the little Rhinoceros Deer that had just turned one month old!"
"They also stole my food—the half a chicken leg I'd just found in the trash!" Second Rhinoceros Deer added, naming what it considered the most delicious thing in the world.
"They even defiled my wife, a beautiful female Rhinoceros Deer!" Big Rhinoceros Deer said.
"They also chopped off our antlers, ground them into powder, and sold them as deer velvet!" Second Rhinoceros Deer said.
"They even cut off the old Rhinoceros Deer's arms and smeared itching powder on their backs!"
Zhao Xing'er: "..."
"So, we'll fight him to the death, no matter what." After playing the victim, Big Rhinoceros Deer switched to a show of force. "Even someone as powerful as you wouldn't want to face two enraged monsters ready to fight to the death, would you? So perhaps it'd be best to leave?"
Zhao Xing'er looked at them, a faint, inscrutable smile on her face.
Before she could say anything, an excited shout came from the other side.
"You two really are here!" A black-furred Tiger Demon scrambled up from below the trees. "You scared me half to death. Now I feel much better seeing you. Hey, why do you two look so miserable?"
Before you continue