Happy Times Should Be Photographed to Commemorate

In the dead of night, Ji Ruo and the others finally stopped eating—they simply couldn't take any more. Just the sight of meat now made them nauseous.

Besides, the endless cycle of eating, excreting, and eating again had taken a toll on their bodies.

"Chief, let's call it a day. We really can't convert any more. Let us rest."

"Rustle rustle~ (Fine, fine, you rest well, hahaha! Heaven favors our Tree Demon clan! To think I'd encounter such miraculous trees as you, hahahaha!)"

Ji Ruo smiled. The qi and blood within him were more abundant than ever before, and his Iron Sand Palm proficiency was on the verge of reaching the 'Pure Mastery' level.

With two and a half days left, barring any accidents, it was practically a done deal that he and Liang Shixian would become ninth-rank Martial Apprentices.

He hadn't expected the Martial Exam to yield such massive gains.

With that thought, Ji Ruo stood up and said, "Class monitor, use my wristband to take a picture for me."

"A picture?"

Liang Shixian was starting to get a vague sense of how Ji Ruo's mind worked, so he didn't bother trying to talk him out of it.

"We don't run into situations like this every day, so of course I have to take a photo to remember it."

Ji Ruo turned his back to the large group of Monster Beasts bound by the Tree Demons, flashed a peace sign, and wore an exceptionally bright smile.

Liang Shixian shook his head slightly and took Ji Ruo's wristband—aside from its special functions, this high-tech gadget naturally had a camera, and the resolution wasn't bad either.

"Click."

Liang Shixian pressed the shutter. "Done."

He handed the wristband back to Ji Ruo.

In the photo, Ji Ruo was grinning widely, flashing a peace sign, with a tiny Black Cat perched on his head like a black felt hat.

The background was a cluster of ferocious-looking Monster Beasts tangled and bound by branches and vines, along with a crowd of Tree Demons.

The background seemed somewhat at odds with the smile on Ji Ruo's face, yet the picture looked surprisingly harmonious.

[Congratulations, host little friend, for successfully unlocking a functional achievement: Happy times should of course be recorded with photos~]

[Acquired talent: Check-in Check-in!]

[Check-in Check-in!: By photographing happy moments, you can gain a certain degree of all-around stat boost. The boost effect depends on the 'level of happiness' and the 'background.'

Current all-around multiplier boost: 0.01%

Can be upgraded.]

[Note: I came, I saw, I recorded, I conquered!]

Ji Ruo was ecstatic.

This talent was insane!

Little Rosie, perched on his head, curiously stared at the image displayed on the wristband.

"Meow~ Meow~ (Ah, master, there's a cat in there that looks just like me, and it seems like there's another master too. How strange.)"

"Haha, this is called a photo." In a great mood, Ji Ruo briefly explained what a photo was to Rosie, then handed the wristband back to Liang Shixian.

"Class monitor, you've got a good eye for photography!"

Ji Ruo said cheerfully. Liang Shixian had directly snapped a photo that unlocked a growth-type functional achievement for him—how could that not be impressive?

"Take a few more, take a few more."

"Alright."

Liang Shixian took the wristband and was about to take another picture.

He thought for a moment, then suddenly turned around, aimed the camera at himself and Ji Ruo behind him, and broke into a happy grin—he'd been infected by Ji Ruo's mood.

Suddenly—

A fierce wind kicked up!

Little Rosie seemed to sense something, her expression shifting drastically: "Meow—(Mas—)"

A massive figure, carried by the gale, appeared beside Ji Ruo as if teleporting. An enormous shadow engulfed most of the forest.

Rosie's words continued: "...ter, watch out!"

Cold sweat instantly poured down Ji Ruo's back, every hair on his body standing on end.

All the Monster Beasts immediately held their breath, not daring to move.

Liang Shixian turned his head to look, was so terrified his eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.

The wind howled, but the Tree Demons stood frozen, not even daring to rustle their leaves.

Ji Ruo's body stiff as a board, he slowly turned his head.

He saw two golden pillars suddenly appear beside him.

He swallowed hard, then slowly looked up.

Those weren't pillars at all—they were two enormous legs!

From the claws, this was a bird-type Great Demon.

In the deep, dark night, this massive avian demon radiated a faint cyan glow all over its body, its height likely reaching tens of meters!

Ji Ruo recognized the identity of this enormous avian demon almost instantly—one of the sky rulers of the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Secret Realm, the Wind God Falcon!

Its flight speed surpassed several times the speed of sound, and its feathers were tough and sharp enough to split metal and shatter stone as easily as chopping vegetables!

An adult Wind God Falcon was comparable to a peak existence at the Fourth Realm of the Martial Dao!

Not only that, but this type of Great Demon generally mastered the Law of Heaven and Earth divine ability. This height of tens of meters was probably not even its maximum size!

Ji Ruo's entire body stiffened, and Rosie above his head had long since gone limp with fear, not daring to even entertain the thought of resistance.

"Y-you, hello." Ji Ruo forced himself to speak, his smile uglier than a cry.

"Hu...mans?"

The Wind God Falcon tilted its head slightly, speaking human language as if somewhat unaccustomed, not very fluent, and with a strange accent.

It sniffed lightly, and visible air currents reversed into two small tornadoes, funneling into its nostrils.

"Smells... good." The Wind God Falcon's cold, sharp eagle eyes locked onto Ji Ruo: "You, just, ate, what? Let, me, taste."

"O-okay."

Ji Ruo dared not resist, his nerves taut.

Perhaps due to the vast gap in strength between them, after one round of conversation, the [Diplomatic Spokesperson] title upgraded on the spot, granting a ten percent boost to language influence!

He quickly slaughtered a monster beast resembling a water buffalo, skillfully skinned and cut it, and sprinkled on seasonings—facing the Wind God Falcon's massive size, Ji Ruo's Iron Sand Palm simply couldn't roast enough in a short time to give the Wind God Falcon a taste, so he had to start a fire.

Ji Ruo didn't have the heart to harm the Tree Demon, so he used his Iron Sand Palm to ignite an ordinary tree instead.

The Tree Demon beside him stood right next to the flames, yet was so terrified it didn't dare move even with the fire so close!

Ji Ruo began roasting the monster beast, fully focused.

To speed things up and make the roasted beast easier to eat, Ji Ruo kept slapping the carcass with his Iron Sand Palm as he cooked.

The hidden cooking bonus attached to this achievement martial technique quietly took effect, surprising even Ji Ruo as the entire beast cooked so quickly.

The Wind God Falcon watched Ji Ruo roast the monster beast meat, the flesh gradually turning golden, a rich aroma rising.

A hint of interest flickered in those sharp eagle eyes.

Ji Ruo said cautiously, "Y-you, hello, you can eat now."

"Shoop~"

The Wind God Falcon opened its beak and sucked in, drawing the entire roasted buffalo beast into its mouth.

Then, the Wind God Falcon spread its wings, vast enough to block out the sky, as if celebrating.

"Hu...man, you're, not, bad."

It praised.

Ji Ruo was stunned, because the stage achievement [Sincere Praise from an Elder] had actually increased by one point!

"Come, with, me, back."

The Wind God Falcon said, reaching out a claw to grab Ji Ruo, ready to soar into the sky.

"Bring my companion along!" Ji Ruo shouted hurriedly.

Liang Shixian had already fainted from fear; leaving him alone here would likely mean doom.

Although being taken away by the Wind God Falcon alongside Ji Ruo wasn't necessarily safe either, at least Ji Ruo was still awake and could look out for him.

At worst, even if death was unavoidable, dying in the Wind God Falcon's beak would be far more dignified than dying in the mouths of these low-tier monster beasts.

Thanks to reader 'Reader20220305144730198' for the 3000-point tip~

Thanks to reader 'Tang Min Yu' for the 5000-point tip!