Chop Two Tree Demon Brothers to Grill Fish and Eat

"Ji Ruo, I still think—"

Watching Ji Ruo climb a tree to pick a White Spirit Fruit on one side, then scale another to pluck a Red Heart Chili on the other, Liang Shixian couldn't help but speak up.

The Red Heart Chili was a type of pepper, also considered a spiritual object.

Its main function, as the name suggested, was to induce internal heat. More specifically, its unique spiciness could affect the heart, accelerating blood circulation—translated into practical terms, it could slightly increase the speed of one's Martial Dao cultivation.

The spiritual fruits borne by these Tree Demons weren't all the same, embodying the principle of "not putting all your eggs in one basket."

Before Liang Shixian could finish his sentence, Ji Ruo shot him a glance and asked, "You think what? That we should run?"

"Yeah. We're not really Tree Demons after all. If we get discovered, with all these Tree Demons around—"

Ji Ruo spread his hands, laying out facts and reasoning: "Class monitor, look at it this way. You saw what happened yesterday. This place has definitely long since left the original Martial Exam Designated Area. There are high-level Monster Beasts everywhere. Even if we went somewhere else, it wouldn't be safe either."

"But—"

"Staying with these Tree Demons might be dangerous, but they haven't found us yet, right?" Ji Ruo said. "Until they do, we're theoretically safe.

Seeking benefit and avoiding harm is an instinct for the demon race. The direction they're heading in must be relatively safe for them. Before we're exposed, we're necessarily safe too.

Tree Demons aren't strong individually. Even if we're discovered, we have the ability to escape. Plus, there's all this fruit to eat. Why run? Nowhere else is safe either!"

"But—" Liang Shixian wanted to argue further, but after frowning in hesitation for a moment, he realized Ji Ruo had a point. "Alright. But we still need to be careful."

Ji Ruo added, "And this time, don't even think about sacrificing yourself to cover my retreat again. You've seen the monster levels in this area. Even if you gave your life to hold them off, when danger comes, I'd still be unable to escape."

Liang Shixian: "..."

After a moment's thought, Liang Shixian joined Ji Ruo in climbing trees and picking spiritual fruits to eat.

The two ate quite a few Red Heart Chilies. Their mouths burned, their cheeks flushed slightly, and the blood in their bodies flowed faster and faster.

Standing among the Tree Demons, they began slowly practicing the various basic Martial Arts the school had taught them.

During this process, the spiritual fruits they'd consumed earlier were rapidly refined, converting into their strength.

The increase was slow, but still noticeable—progress visible to the eye.

After several days of frantic running, sustained by Blood Rice and various spiritual fruits, the two naturally completed a small breakthrough, becoming seventh-rank Martial Apprentices.

"Hiss—so spicy!" Ji Ruo stuck out his tongue. Besides slightly accelerating Martial Dao cultivation, the Red Heart Chili's most prominent feature was its unique, intense spiciness.

After breaking through to seventh-rank Martial Apprentice, the energy from the spiritual fruits stored in Ji Ruo's body had been mostly consumed. With his physique improving, the spiciness in his mouth felt even more pronounced.

"Class monitor, let's go get some water. We'll come back and train later," Ji Ruo said.

Liang Shixian was also feeling uncomfortable from the spiciness, but for some reason, he felt Ji Ruo's words sounded like "Class is over, let's hit the convenience store." He realized Ji Ruo really wasn't panicked at all!

Tree Demons were plant-type demonic creatures with a significant need for water, so every time they "camped during the day," there was bound to be a water source nearby.

The branches stuck into Ji Ruo's body swayed as he moved. His clothes were already so dirty their original color was unrecognizable.

With mud-stained clothes, the leafy branches on his body, and the green plant juice smeared on his face and hands, at a glance, he actually looked a bit like a Tree Demon.

The two arrived at a small stream. The water was clear, with a few two-finger-long fish swimming in it—the Secret Realm wasn't entirely filled with demons and monsters; there were still ordinary animals.

Of course, the ordinary animals in the Secret Realm were a bit stronger than those outside, but not by much.

The presence of fish swimming meant the stream water was non-toxic.

"Let's catch a few fish later, chop down a couple of Tree Demon brothers, and roast them," Ji Ruo said while lying by the stream to drink.

Of course, Ji Ruo was just joking. If he really wanted to roast fish, his Iron Sand Palm could do the job...

Chopping down Tree Demons to make a fire—smoke rising wasn't safe, after all.

Liang Shixian: "..."

If the Tree Demon brothers you're talking about knew what you were thinking, they'd kick you out immediately!

But since things had come to this, Liang Shixian knew he couldn't convince Ji Ruo. He sighed, thinking to himself, Take things as they come.

After a moment's thought, Liang Shixian asked curiously, "Ji Ruo, that blade technique of yours from last night..."

He'd been worrying since yesterday about whether they'd be exposed. Now, trying to "adjust his mindset" like Ji Ruo, he couldn't help recalling that one slash.

The blade light was brilliant, incredibly fast—truly stunning.

Ji Ruo said nonchalantly, "I created it myself."

Liang Shixian clicked his tongue. Though he'd suspected as much, hearing the confirmation still made him feel Ji Ruo's talent was absurdly strong.

No wonder he was called Dual Mastery of Blade and Sword! Both his blade and sword techniques were self-created, and both were that powerful!

"That blade technique—are you planning to sell it? Like Arrow-Breaking Style?" Liang Shixian asked hesitantly.

The technique looked highly lethal and extremely stylish. Liang Shixian wanted to learn it.

Ji Ruo smiled. "Class monitor, if you want to learn, just say so. I'll teach you!"

Liang Shixian's face reddened slightly. "Ji Ruo, I've already learned your Arrow-Breaking Style for free. Even though I haven't reached the 'First Glimpse of the Path' level yet, I already know how to train it.

If you plan to sell that blade technique, I'll definitely buy it. But if you're planning to teach it for free, then forget it. I'd feel too embarrassed."

He knew Ji Ruo's family situation wasn't good. Learning Ji Ruo's sword and blade techniques, Liang Shixian intended to pay, but he worried that offering money might hurt Ji Ruo—making him feel like he was being pitied.

After all, Liang Shixian could tell that when Ji Ruo said he'd teach, he genuinely meant it.

"Hai ya, it's nothing really, just a blade technique. You've all looked after me so well over the years, it's no trouble for me to repay you a bit, right?" Ji Ruo said dismissively. "Class monitor, let me tell you, this technique is called 'Thunderclap and Flash.' It requires a special breathing method to stimulate the body's potential in an extremely short time, trading it for explosive speed. Normally, once you reach the 'First Glimpse of the Path' level, using this technique makes your speed instantly skyrocket to six times your normal state.

Let me show you."

With that, Ji Ruo took a deep breath.

"Hss—"

A faint white stream of air, visible to the naked eye, poured back into Ji Ruo's mouth.

In a daze, Liang Shixian seemed to see fine threads of electricity crawling across Ji Ruo's skin.

White lightning flickered around his fingertips as he suddenly struck out—

"Shwoosh~"

Liang Shixian was horrified. Ji Ruo had only extended his hand, yet there was already a faint sound of air being torn, and the speed was so fast that afterimages appeared!

When Ji Ruo withdrew his hands, he had directly grabbed two swimming fish from the stream!

"Gulp~" Liang Shixian swallowed unconsciously.

That move just now—he couldn't have dodged it.

Ji Ruo continued, "I discovered the breathing method by chance. I named it 'Total Concentration Breathing,' meaning you devote yourself entirely to the breath, letting your body absorb oxygen to the maximum, filling your lungs... Huh? What's that black lump over there?"

Liang Shixian was startled, then warily looked in the direction Ji Ruo was staring.

A black, unidentified lump was crouching by the stream downstream, as if trying to catch fish. But every time it struck, it missed, and the rather clever fish would even leap out of the water and slap the black lump with their tails.

"Meow!"

The black lump was clearly furious. Liang Shixian's expression turned strange.

"Looks like... it's a cat?"

Thanks to reader 'gzxz' for the 500-point tip~