Clearing the Level, the Red Phoenix Stirs, Hidden Ability

The aura of this demon was already extremely close to that of a beast at the second or third level of Qi Refining in the cultivation world.

Compared to the Man-Eating Demon Fox from the tutorial stage earlier, they were not even on the same level.

In the cultivation world, beasts were significantly more formidable than cultivators of the same rank. They often possessed incredibly tough physical bodies, extraordinary traits, and specialized beast techniques.

Usually, it took two or three cultivators working together to have a decent chance of taking down a beast of the same rank.

As for the more powerful ones, it was even harder to say.

"This is the demon that killed my father..." Shen Qingchan's eyes turned slightly red. With a sharp cry, she drew her sword and charged out.

Mu Ye frowned slightly. As this demon boss appeared, he caught a whiff of a strange fragrance.

According to the experience of a Demon Sealer, demons were usually covered in filth and emitted a foul, unbearable stench. How could there be a pleasant scent?

Mu Ye looked into the well and discovered that the fragrance was wafting from within.

Could there be a treasure down there?

[1. Enter the well to explore first.]

[2. Subdue the demon first.]

This seemed to be an important branching path.

If he went down first... Mu Ye looked at Shen Qingchan, who was locked in a fierce battle with the demon.

At this moment, Shen Qingchan was executing a mysterious sword technique called Frost Cold Absolute. Every time her blade carved a wound into the Dragon Demon Fish, ice flowers would burst forth, rapidly spreading to other parts of its body and dealing significant damage.

However, because the Dragon Demon Fish possessed wings and could fly, it would quickly retreat after being injured, acting with extreme cunning and trickery.

It was clearly trying to exhaust Shen Qingchan's strength.

When a martial artist opened their Divine Aperture, they stored their internal energy within it. Even if one had hundreds of Divine Apertures, if the fight continued like this, they would be drained before long.

Moreover, Shen Qingchan had only just entered the third rank. Although her sword technique was powerful, it was still inferior to this incredibly cunning Dragon Demon Fish.

She can't win... If I go down... the outcome might be her death...

If I don't activate Real Mode, the two of us combined might be able to wear it down to death...

Mu Ye decided to strike first and test the waters. If the Dragon Demon Fish died, he could still go down and take a look.

With this thought, Mu Ye equipped the gauntlets given to him by Master Yan. He pushed off the ground, unleashed the power of all his Divine Apertures, and, spotting a gap in the exchange between Shen Qingchan and the creature, lunged directly into the fray.

A crimson stream of fire gathered around Mu Ye's arms, forming a faint dragon shape.

He threw a punch.

Rolling waves of flame surged, forming a sea of fire clouds in mid-air.

The Dragon Demon Fish let out a sharp, piercing shriek as it was smashed directly onto the ground by that single punch.

"Hundred Aperture Divine Power, you're at the third rank!" Shen Qingchan was stunned, her voice filled with shock. "Aren't you at the second rank?"

Second rank in one month.

How could he be at the third rank?

Wait, just how high was this person's talent for martial arts?

For a moment, she was too shocked to speak, staring at Mu Ye as if she had seen a ghost.

"I just broke through a short while ago." Mu Ye charged down toward the Dragon Demon Fish. "Let's finish off this beast first!"

Shen Qingchan snapped back to reality and followed Mu Ye down, swinging her sword toward the fallen Dragon Demon Fish.

Although it was their first time fighting in tandem, both were determined to slay the demon. While their coordination wasn't exactly seamless, they were at least united in purpose.

Soon, under their relentless assault, the Dragon Demon Fish was left on the verge of death.

Seeing this, Shen Qingchan's expression turned excited.

"Be careful, there might be a second phase." Mu Ye's expression was grave.

"A second phase?" Shen Qingchan blinked. "What does that mean?"

Right, I forgot, you aren't a player.

Mu Ye shook his head slightly. This boss felt like it had a second phase; he didn't know if it had any ultimate moves left up its sleeve.

"Do you feel like something is... off?" Mu Ye panted.

"What's off?" Shen Qingchan's arm, holding the sword, trembled slightly; it was clear she had also exhausted a great deal of energy.

"This Dragon Demon Fish is indeed very strong..." Mu Ye said, "but back then, the Demon Sealers organized by Taiping City, your father, and several other martial artists—their strength wasn't lacking. Even if there were only two or three at the third rank... how did they all end up dead?"

"The two of us combined are only barely managing to defeat this Dragon Demon Fish..."

Hearing this, Shen Qingchan froze.

That's right.

Why was that?

She knew her father's strength; he was very formidable.

The next second.

A figure appeared.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The scene gradually faded.

[Dead.]

[Mission target has died.]

"..." Mu Ye sat up from his bed in a single motion.

Damn it!

There's a camper!

I knew something felt off!

"That boss didn't have a second phase, but there was a camper... who exactly was it?"

Mu Ye narrowed his eyes.

In that state, neither he nor Shen Qingchan had the strength to fight back. Coupled with the sneak attack, a single strike was fatal; the culprit had to be at least Third Grade.

"If I change the scenario, even if it were Hero Shen or a Demon Sealer who came here... they wouldn't have been able to react to a sneak attack like that."

Reload the save.

But how was he supposed to explain this to Shen Qingchan?

No matter how many times he reloaded, the moment that demon appeared, Shen Qingchan would inevitably enter combat mode.

The hatred in her heart made it impossible for her to stop, let alone leave this place first.

To survive, he either had to go down the well or just run away.

Even if he switched to his main account, his main was far away in Taiping City and couldn't possibly arrive here in time.

For a while, Mu Ye tried several methods. For instance, he tried going down the well first, but he didn't find any treasure; instead, he heard Shen Qingchan's scream as she was killed outside, and then the demon rushed down the well, leading to his own demise.

He could run away, but the prompt indicated that Shen Qingchan would still die, resulting in a failed mission!

Or, the moment he killed the Dragon Demon Fish, he could try to grab Shen Qingchan and run, but they would still be taken out by the sneak attack.

It seemed... saving Shen Qingchan was not going to be easy.

"This dungeon is truly not simple... This mission, a one-star mission... It seems the hardest part is protecting Shen Qingchan..."

As for entering Real Mode, because he couldn't save his progress, Mu Ye didn't dare to enter it recklessly.

If I failed in Real Mode, I would have to start all over from Taiping City. I don't even know how much time I would have wasted; today would have been essentially for nothing.

"I have an idea..."

In Chishui Village, looking at the Dragon Demon Fish covered in sword wounds, Shen Qingchan, her face slightly smudged with dirt, was filled with excitement.

"Father... I have avenged you..." Shen Qingchan raised her sword and glanced at Mu Ye beside her. "It's all thanks to his help..."

Mu Ye looked at her, his expression complex.

"Brother Mu, what's wrong?"

"Actually, I have something to tell you," Mu Ye said.

"What is it?"

"Come here first, a bit closer."

Shen Qingchan sheathed her sword and walked to Mu Ye's side.

The next second, Mu Ye lunged forward, grabbed her, and turned his back to the surroundings.

Shen Qingchan was stunned, unsure of what was happening.

Immediately after, a dark shadow flashed by, and the sound of a sharp weapon piercing flesh rang out.

Mu Ye let out a muffled groan. This damn camper's primary target in every ambush was almost always Shen Qingchan.

She was always the first to die.

This time, it was different.

Mu Ye held her tightly. In Real Mode, the sensation was incredibly vivid, but the next moment, he jumped straight into the ancient well while clutching Shen Qingchan's body.

The ancient well was deep and dark. The whistling wind roared in Mu Ye's ears, accompanied by faint, hurried, and muffled shouts.

[Yunhai Sword Sect side quest 'Chishui Demon Extermination' completed (Ranger exclusive)]

[Reward: 100 Paradise Coin, Ranger hidden ability 'Sacrifice Life for Righteousness' unlocked.]

[Shen Qingchan favorability increased 40/100 (Heart Stirring)]

Watching the screen gradually fade to black as his character fell unconscious, a slight smile curled at the corner of Mu Ye's mouth.

"Not bad. Looks like it worked."

Thanks to the big boss for the 10,000 reward.