The Little Tower

Over a hundred crimson fireballs struck the yellow earthen wall one after another, transforming into rolling flames that engulfed it until the wall shattered, sending dust and smoke billowing into the air.

Shen Long and the other five scattered, fleeing in different directions to save their lives.

They were no match for dozens of Fire Crows; it was simply a matter of whose luck was bad enough to be targeted.

Qin Qing ran the fastest, relying on his perfected Wind Control Technique to vanish into a green bamboo forest after a few flashes of movement.

Xu Lei immediately took out an Earth Escape Talisman and slapped it onto his body; a yellow curtain of light emerged to envelop him, and he burrowed into the ground and disappeared.

Sun Yang slapped a Flight Talisman onto his body, causing a pair of green feathered wings to sprout from his back. With a gentle flap, he soared high into the sky, moving at great speed.

Shen Long summoned his Black Tortoise Shield, which began to spin rapidly around him.

Several crimson fireballs slammed into the Black Tortoise Shield, turning into a surge of red flame that swallowed the shield whole.

Two Fire Crows flapped their wings and lunged at Shen Long.

Shen Long raised his right hand, and a crimson fireball the size of a water vat flew out, striking one of the Fire Crows and engulfing its body in rolling flames.

The other Fire Crow's sharp claws struck the Black Tortoise Shield, producing a dull thud.

Shen Long chanted an incantation, his right hand glowing with intense green light. With a flick of his finger, a beam of green light shot into the ground, and a green vine as thick as a baby's arm burst from the soil, binding the Fire Crow's claws.

He sprinted toward the distance, the Black Tortoise Shield spinning continuously around him.

The Fire Crow spat out a stream of crimson flame, which landed on the green vine, reducing it to ashes.

Multiple Fire Crows swooped toward Shen Long, their wings flapping gently as they released several crimson fireballs each, all hurtling toward him.

Most of the dozen or so crimson fireballs struck the Black Tortoise Shield, turning into a wave of flame that submerged it.

Shen Long chanted again as two more Fire Crows flew over. He shook his sleeve, and two crimson fireballs the size of millstones flew out, striking the two crows accurately and engulfing them in flames.

A green light lit up his feet, making his body feel light as he moved toward the distance.

Over a dozen Fire Crows pursued Shen Long, releasing crimson fireballs to attack him, but they were blocked by the Black Tortoise Shield. Whenever they came within ten zhang of him, a water-vat-sized crimson fireball would be hurled their way.

After a while, a rushing river appeared ahead. Shen Long retracted the Black Tortoise Shield and jumped into the water.

A dozen crimson fireballs descended from the sky, slamming into the water surface and kicking up a spray of waves, filling the air with white mist.

Half a day later, Shen Long surfaced from the river and found himself flanked by green bamboo forests, so he climbed onto the bank.

His mana was severely depleted, so he sat cross-legged, took out two spirit stones, and absorbed the spiritual energy within them to slowly recover his strength.

A quarter of an hour later, Shen Long put away the spirit stones and stood up.

With a thought, a blue light flashed across his body, and a blue water curtain emerged to protect him. He stepped forward and walked into the bamboo forest.

As he passed a certain bamboo stalk, a thick, long green tongue shot out and struck the blue water curtain, causing ripples to spread across its surface.

Shen Long reacted quickly; he raised his right hand, and a water-vat-sized crimson fireball flew out, slamming into the bamboo stalk.

Rolling flames engulfed the bamboo, revealing a green lizard that had been hidden there. It was consumed by the fire, letting out a painful hiss.

A blue flying blade arrived, severing its head and killing the early-stage first-rank monster insect.

"Color-Changing Lizard!"

Shen Long recognized the creature. This type of monster insect was adept at concealment and could blend perfectly into its environment; it was a common sight in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range.

Shen Long collected the carcass of the Color-Changing Lizard and continued forward.

A tea-time later, he emerged into an open clearing.

Several yellow earthen spikes, each a foot long, burst from the ground and struck his blue water curtain, causing it to ripple.

Shen Long flicked his right hand, and a water-vat-sized crimson fireball flew out, slamming into the ground.

With a loud boom, a pit a zhang wide appeared in the earth, and a house-sized yellow giant rat crawled out from underground. Its eyes were blood-red, and it had several thick, long whiskers on its nose.

"A mid-stage first-rank Spirit-Devouring Rat!"

Shen Long recognized the giant yellow rat. This type of monster beast was quite brutal, loved to eat anything containing spiritual energy, and frequently attacked cultivators; it was a common beast in the Thousand Bamboo Valley.

The Spirit-Devouring Rat charged at Shen Long, attempting to use its massive body to shatter his defense.

Shen Long raised his right hand, and a crimson fireball flew out, striking the Spirit-Devouring Rat. Rolling flames engulfed its body, but it endured the high heat and slammed its right claw into the blue water curtain, causing it to cave inward.

Shen Long summoned a short blue blade, on which the characters "Mystic Water" could be seen.

The Mystic Water Blade flew straight for the Spirit-Devouring Rat's eyes, but the beast hurriedly waved its right claw to swat the blade away.

With a metallic "clang," a shallow cut appeared on the Spirit-Devouring Rat's right claw.

Low-grade magical tools struggled to inflict heavy damage on the Spirit-Devouring Rat, but it was also unable to pierce the blue water curtain.

Shen Long began to chant, his right hand slowly glowing with green light before he slammed it against the ground.

A beam of green light shot into the earth, and a green vine as thick as a baby's arm burst forth, binding the Spirit-Devouring Rat's body.

The Spirit-Devouring Rat opened its blood-red maw, revealing a row of sharp teeth, and bit into the green vine, snapping it instantly.

Shen Long swept his hands through the void, and with a flash of red light, a house-sized crimson fireball appeared above his head, radiating astonishing heat.

He pointed a finger lightly at the Spirit-Devouring Rat, and the crimson fireball shot out, slamming into the beast.

A massive explosion rang out, and rolling flames engulfed the Spirit-Devouring Rat's body as it let out a painful roar.

Shen Long continuously unleashed massive fireballs, slamming them into the Spirit-Devouring Rat while maneuvering the Mystic Water Blade to strike at its eyes, successfully blinding it.

As time slowly passed, the Spirit-Devouring Rat's reactions grew increasingly sluggish, and its body began to emit a charred stench.

A short while later, its head was severed by the Mystic Water Blade, and it collapsed to the ground.

Shen Long let out a long sigh of relief; both the Mystic Water Blade and the Black Tortoise Shield were low-grade magical artifacts, and the fact that he was able to take down the Spirit-Devouring Rat this time was largely due to his Fireball Technique being at the Great Perfection stage.

He walked over to the carcass of the Spirit-Devouring Rat and used the Mystic Water Blade to slice open its abdomen, intending to process the beast's remains.

His storage bag was only three feet square and could not hold the entire body of the Spirit-Devouring Rat, but fortunately, the most valuable part of the creature was its hide.

As he gutted the Spirit-Devouring Rat, he discovered a small blue pagoda about a foot tall inside its body.

A magical artifact?

Shen Long was both surprised and delighted; this was an unexpected windfall.

He stowed away the blue pagoda, peeled off the hide of the Spirit-Devouring Rat, and departed from the area.

One day later, Shen Long returned to the marketplace.

He first went to the Craftsman Hall and found Sun Huowang, taking out the hide, the corpse of the Color-Changing Lizard, and a leg from a Flame Spider.

"The hide of a first-tier mid-stage Spirit-Devouring Rat, plus a first-tier early-stage Color-Changing Lizard and a leg from a first-tier late-stage Flame Spider," Shen Long explained.

Sun Huowang inspected them carefully, and after confirming everything was correct, he spoke up: "You've got good luck, kid, managing to get your hands on so many materials. That'll be one hundred spirit stones in total."

This price was slightly higher than the market rate, but Sun Huowang could still turn a profit by refining them into magical artifacts for resale.

Shen Long nodded and agreed to the deal.

Sun Huowang flicked his sleeve, and a sweep of azure light flashed across the table, leaving behind a pile of low-grade spirit stones.

Shen Long counted them to ensure they were correct, stowed away the one hundred spirit stones, left the Craftsman Hall, and returned to his residence.