Muyang in the Wild

To reach Guihua City, you need to leave Yuyang Village and travel along the Talisman Path for three days.

Once you reach Guihua City, you are considered safe.

Guihua City is a fortified city with runes carved into its walls to prevent Monsters from entering.

Everyone knows this, but few dare to enter the city, not even martial artists.

Merchants travel between regions, and most of them are martial artists themselves, or they hire martial artists.

However, the journey from here to Guihua City is incredibly difficult.

"This guy is truly an idiot."

Jiang Yan shook his head. There must have been precedents for people fleeing, and he believed that even if this person managed to reach Guihua City alive, Dahe Gang would make him pay.

More importantly, his escape had a negative impact on the morale of the newcomers.

"Jiang Yan."

Tang Long walked over. "Come with me. The Grand Leader has summoned a few of us."

Jiang Yan nodded and followed him towards Sheng Fuwu's residence.

After knocking, a pale-faced young man opened the door.

"Brother Tang, Brother Fei, you're here."

The young man greeted them casually. Seeing Jiang Yan behind them, he asked, "What should I call this brother?" He smiled playfully. "My name is Sheng Lunxin, do you know me?"

Jiang Yan's expression stiffened.

Tang Long smoothed things over. "Jiang Yan, this is the Grand Leader's nephew."

Jiang Yan cupped his fists towards Sheng Lunxin.

Sheng Lunxin seemed unfazed. He smiled at the three of them and gestured them inside with his right hand.

The four entered the room. "Please, have a seat."

Sheng Fuwu nodded and proceeded to prepare tea.

The others sat down in silence.

After a while, Sheng Fuwu poured tea for them.

"Please!"

Jiang Yan picked up his teacup and took a sip. A sour, salty taste hit his tongue, making his face twitch.

He noticed from the corner of his eye that Tang Long and Fei Shan were drinking with seemingly normal expressions.

He steeled himself and drank it down expressionlessly.

Sheng Fuwu poured them another cup.

They all finished it.

Putting down their teacups, no more tea was poured. It was time to get down to business.

But Jiang Yan felt a heaviness in his heart. It wasn't just because the Grand Leader's nephew had personally welcomed them and the Grand Leader himself had prepared and poured the tea.

What kind of world was this? It was a world where martial arts reigned supreme and the strong dominated.

Sheng Fuwu's demeanor was a message to the three of them, a form of pressure.

Since he had gone to such lengths, they would have to agree to his request later, or else they would be offending him.

"Ahem."

"Brothers, to be frank, I have a favor to ask."

Sheng Fuwu got straight to the point.

"My nephew has been stuck at the Martial Apprentice realm for a long time and has hit a bottleneck. I hope the three of you will accompany me to the wilderness tomorrow to hunt a Muyang."

Tang Long's expression remained unchanged, as if he had already guessed Sheng Fuwu's intentions.

"Grand Leader, a Monster like the Muyang is at the peak of Blood Sha and is as fast as the wind. Even you wouldn't be able to catch it. I'd like to know how you plan to proceed."

He didn't ask if Sheng Fuwu was confident he could kill the Muyang. Since he intended to capture it, he must have a method.

What he wanted to know was what price he, Fei Shan, and Jiang Yan would have to pay to hunt the Muyang.

After a moment of silence, Sheng Fuwu slowly said, "I have my ways of finding the Muyang. Once we find it, I need the four of you to surround it and create an opportunity for me to strike, even for just a moment."

He knew this wasn't enough, so he took out three Yellow Talismans from his embrace.

"These are Bodyguard Talismans, enough to withstand one strike from a Body Refining martial artist."

"Upon success, each of you will receive a Blood Qi Pill."

"Oh, and I need to remind you that these Bodyguard Talismans are only semi-finished products and will only last for five breaths. Don't try them out carelessly when you get back."

He wasn't willing to give them the genuine Bodyguard Talismans yet.

Jiang Yan and the other two exchanged glances and agreed.

They had no choice but to agree. Their previous silence was merely a tactic to negotiate for better terms.

Offending a Body Refining martial artist, especially one's direct superior, was not a wise choice.

With a Bodyguard Talisman, they had enough to resist the Blood Sha and escape.

The three collected their talismans and took their leave.

Sheng Lunxin stood up and personally saw them out. Returning to his room, he poured himself a cup of tea and chuckled softly.

Sheng Fuwu, however, ignored him and instead stood up, walking into the room.

The group emerged, the air feeling fresh.

A flicker of confusion crossed Jiang Yan's eyes. He had smelled medicinal herbs in Sheng Fuwu's room.

"We profited."

Tang Long smiled, "I didn't expect Chief Sheng to treasure his nephew so much."

Jiang Yan blinked. He still hadn't figured out what kind of Monster Muyang was.

Ever since he arrived here, his worldview had been shattered. He couldn't apply the standards of his previous life to things in this world.

He inquired, "Brother Tang, are there any precautions I should take tomorrow when we surround the Shepherd Monster? Please enlighten me."

"Muyang is a Monster whose power is infinitely close to Body Refining."

"What's most terrifying is that this Monster is incredibly fast. Unless a Body Refining martial artist has cultivated a higher-level movement technique, they won't be able to catch up."

Jiang Yan's expression grew serious.

With strength comparable to a Body Refining martial artist and speed like the wind, a Martial Apprentice encountering such a Monster would be a nightmare.

"Although this Monster is difficult to deal with, its heart blood essence can be used to refine a Breakthrough Pill."

"Monsters can also be used as medicine?"

This time, he was truly astonished.

"Mmm... there are simply too many types of Monsters. Most can just be killed, but a small portion of them also have usable materials."

Yuyang Village was too small, too isolated. At this moment, Jiang Yan felt this acutely.

He knew too little about the Monsters, the great enemies of humanity in this world.

"Right, what does Muyang actually look like?"

He was curious how a Monster could have such a strange name.

Fei Shan interjected, "It's a sheep-shaped Monster, bigger than a cow."

"It makes strange sounds like 'Mu, mu'."

Jiang Yan asked a few more minor questions and then took his leave.

He had night duty tonight.

The night passed without incident. After returning from his night duty, Jiang Yan rested quickly.

To the north of Yuyang Village was the Dahe Gang mining area. To the south, after passing the formerly thin and short Red Willow Forest, one entered a patch of woods.

The trees here were not tall but were very dense.

Jiang Yan and his group left Yuyang Village, needing to cross the red willow shrubs and pass through this forest to reach their destination, the Yellow Alkaline Land.

Although it wasn't far from the village, it was already the wilderness. Jiang Yan gazed at the lush green trees in the forest, their leaves glistening, appearing full of life.

He felt no joy at the sight of nature's vitality, only indifference and vigilance.

It was in this environment that should have been refreshing that several green snakes leaped down from beneath the verdant leaves.

These were common venomous snakes in the forest, usually hiding on tree trunks and ambushing prey.

Sheng Fuwu was positioned in the middle, holding the formation.

The other four took turns clearing the path, and when they encountered an impassable route, they would chop through the trees with their swords.

Jiang Yan's body remained constantly tense. While clearing the path, he meticulously observed his surroundings.

His peripheral vision occasionally swept behind him. Although there were three others behind him, he didn't yet have the confidence to completely entrust his rear security to others.

In the dense, shaded parts of the forest where sunlight couldn't reach, it was dark, as if undisguised malicious eyes were fixed upon them.