A crisp crack rang out as a dead branch snapped.
Su Chen froze in place as if pricked by a needle.
His back was pressed tight against a cold rock, and his heart pounded wildly in his chest, as if it were about to leap straight up his throat.
The wind.
The chirping of insects.
The rustle of leaves.
In that moment, every sound in the silent woods outside Wutan City seemed to swell without end, turning into countless invisible hands that clamped around his breath.
He didn't dare move.
His eyes stayed fixed on the direction the sound had come from: a dense thicket.
After a long while, a gray hare poked its head out. It glanced around warily, then bounded away and vanished into the depths of the woods.
Only then did Su Chen's taut muscles slowly relax.
Leaning against the rock, he gasped for breath. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead and slid down his cheek, leaving a chill in its wake.
He had been in this world for three days now.
For three days, he hadn't set foot beyond the shabby courtyard.
He'd traded the pitiful corpse of the Flame Rat for several days' worth of food in the slums south of the city, as well as a few basic tools.
A bundle of tough hemp rope, a palm-sized jade bottle, and a small skinning knife polished to a gleam.
He had spent the rest of his time preparing.
He'd soaked several scraps of meat traded from a butcher for two full days in crushed herbs with a potent numbing effect.
The herb was called Sleep Saliva Grass. According to the memories of hunters, it was a folk remedy used to knock out small beasts, and its effects were powerful.
Today was the first time he had willingly ventured beyond Wutan City's limits.
His target was a first-rank magical beast, one level higher than a Flame Rat.
A Fire Rock Lizard.
These magical beasts were lazy by nature and usually lived in sunlit, rocky areas, where they liked to sleep. But their strength and defenses far surpassed those of Flame Rats.
More importantly, they contained an innate beast flame known as Rock Fire. Its quality far exceeded that of a Flame Rat's beast flame, and its nature was more stable, making it the ideal beginner's kindling for apprentice alchemists.
Naturally, it was just as expensive.
The information he'd heard in the tavern had made his direction crystal clear.
If he wanted to sell the flames he had for a high price, he had to offer a good enough "product."
And the higher the quality of the flame refined by the Stone Platform, the more astonishing the increase in its value.
Refining the lowest-grade Flame Rat beast flame might fetch several times its original price.
But if he used this Rock Fire...
Su Chen didn't dare imagine it.
That would be the first lever he used to pry open Wutan City's entire alchemy market!
The enormous profit drove him to suppress his fear of death.
He checked his gear once more. Satisfied, he hunched over and continued creeping deeper into the woods like a cautious stray cat.
The farther in he went, the fainter the traces of human activity in the air became.
In their place came a raw, savage stench.
Every so often, the distant roar of some unknown magical beast made Su Chen's heart skip a beat.
He kept his presence to a minimum, placing each step on soft earth or stone to avoid making any unnecessary noise.
His nerves remained stretched to the verge of snapping.
* * *
Half an hour later.
The trees ahead began to thin, and a sunlit slope strewn with jagged rocks came into view.
The air had grown noticeably warmer.
Some of the rocks bore an unnatural, charred-black surface, as if they had been scorched by flames for years.
This was the place.
Su Chen's heart began to race.
He hid in the shadow of a boulder, peeking out with half his head as he carefully surveyed the rocky slope.
Soon, his gaze settled on a target.
Perched on a black rock about the size of a millstone was a lizard nearly a meter long.
Its body was covered in dark red scales that glinted like metal in the sunlight. Its thick limbs gripped the rock firmly, while its long, jointed tail swished lazily back and forth.
A Fire Rock Lizard.
It seemed to be fast asleep, its chest and belly rising and falling at regular intervals. Two streams of white vapor tinged with a faint smell of sulfur puffed from its nostrils.
Even from dozens of meters away, Su Chen could sense the savage strength hidden beneath its hide—far beyond anything a human could muster.
One swipe from that thing would tear his chest open with ease.
Su Chen's palm instantly grew slick with sweat.
He forced himself to look away and began surveying the surrounding terrain.
His plan was simple, and brutally crude.
A trap.
He would use the terrain to make a trap capable of holding it in place, if only for a moment.
His gaze finally landed on the steep slope above the black rock where the Fire Rock Lizard rested.
A great pile of rocks, large and small, had collected there. Some were as big as a human head, and looked ready to come crashing down at the slightest push.
A plan quickly took shape in his mind.
He drew a deep breath and took the bundle of hemp rope from his clothes. He tied one end firmly around his waist, then looped the other around a jutting rock and ran it toward the far side of the slope.
Once that was done, he took from another pouch the bait, which gave off a strong meaty aroma mixed with the faint scent of herbs.
He didn't act immediately. Instead, he waited patiently.
For the wind.
He was waiting for a breeze that would carry the smell of the meat straight to the Fire Rock Lizard's nose.
Time passed second by second.
The midday sun baked the rocks until they were scorching hot.
Su Chen's lips had begun to crack, but he didn't move, still as a lifeless statue.
At last, a mountain breeze blew from where he was toward the rocky slope.
Now!
A sharp glint flashed in Su Chen's eyes. He snatched up the piece of meat soaked in the numbing herb and hurled it with all his strength toward a patch of open ground not far in front of the Fire Rock Lizard!
Plop.
The meat hit the ground with a soft thud.
Its rich aroma, mixed with the strange scent of Sleep Saliva Grass, drifted over on the wind.
The sleeping Fire Rock Lizard's nostrils twitched.
Its tightly shut eyes, molten-lava red, snapped open!
A vicious, savage aura instantly filled the air.
It twisted its thick neck and fixed its gaze on the piece of meat giving off that enticing aroma.
Food.
A low rumble rolled in its throat. Its forked, scarlet tongue darted out and flicked rapidly through the air.
The magical beast's instincts urged it toward the temptation, but its innate wariness made it suspicious of the food's unknown origin.
It didn't pounce right away. Instead, it slowly climbed down from the black rock, its thick limbs stepping over the loose stones with a series of crackles.
Every step made Su Chen's heart clench.
Hidden behind the boulder, he gripped the end of the hemp rope with both hands. His knuckles turned white from the strain.
The Fire Rock Lizard edged closer.
It stretched out its neck and sniffed the meat, as if trying to determine whether it was dangerous.
Su Chen could barely breathe.
Everything depended on this one moment!
Perhaps hunger overcame its caution. After a brief hesitation, the Fire Rock Lizard finally succumbed to temptation.
It opened its jaws, lined with sharp teeth, and swallowed the meat in one gulp!
Su Chen's heart leapt with joy.
But he didn't pull the rope right away. He forced himself to keep waiting.
He was waiting for the drug to take effect.
One breath.
Two breaths.
Three...
Just as the Fire Rock Lizard swallowed the meat and turned to head back to its lair, it suddenly stumbled.
Its massive body swayed uncontrollably.
The drug had kicked in!
A fierce glint flashed in Su Chen's eyes. He braced his waist and yanked the hemp rope with all his strength!
The rope connected to the pile of stones on the slope snapped taut!
Rumble!
A boulder, wrenched out of balance by the rope, dragged a vast cascade of smaller rocks with it, tumbling down like a miniature landslide onto the dizzy Fire Rock Lizard below!
"Roar—!"
Sensing the danger overhead, the Fire Rock Lizard let out an enraged roar!
It jerked its head up and looked toward the spot where Su Chen was hiding. Its jaws gaped wide!
A dark red fireball, about the size of a washbasin and far deeper in color and more viscous than a Flame Rat's beast flame, tore through the air toward Su Chen with a wave of scorching heat!
Rock Fire!
Su Chen's pupils shrank to pinpricks!
The shadow of death, cold as a rising tide, engulfed him in an instant!
Too fast!
He couldn't react in time. All he could do was watch as the destructive flame rapidly swelled in his vision!
At the very last moment!
Boom!
The falling rocks finally came crashing down.
Countless stones slammed into the Fire Rock Lizard's back and head, pinning its massive body beneath them.
"Aaagh—!"
A cry of unbearable pain rang out.
The Rock Fire, already flying toward Su Chen, abruptly lost control as its master could no longer sustain it. Its energy destabilized.
It skimmed past Su Chen's cheek by the narrowest margin and slammed into the boulder behind him!
Hiss—
The sound made his teeth ache.
The hard rock was scorched into a bowl-sized crater by the Rock Fire. Its edges glowed red, wisps of greenish smoke still rising from them.
The stench of something burnt, mixed with the acrid smell of melting stone, filled Su Chen's nostrils.
He could feel the terrifying heat as it passed by, scorching a patch of skin on his cheek until it stung.
If it had missed by one inch...
He couldn't bear to think about it.
Su Chen was drenched in cold sweat. His legs gave way, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.
It took him a long while to struggle to his feet, shaken by the overwhelming terror of surviving by a hair's breadth.
He looked toward the trap.
The Fire Rock Lizard had been completely buried beneath the pile of stones. Only its head and half its tail were exposed, both still twitching feebly.
Combined with the numbing effects of the Sleep Saliva Grass, it had lost all ability to fight back.
Su Chen didn't dare waste a moment.
He staggered forward, pulled the palm-sized jade bottle from his clothes, and uncorked it.
Then, suppressing his fear and disgust, he used the small skinning knife to pry open the Fire Rock Lizard's mouth, its jaws lined with sharp teeth.
His mind sank into the mysterious Void Space.
The ancient Stone Platform floated quietly in the air.
"Come out...!"
Su Chen let out a silent roar with his mind!
An immense force of attraction, several times stronger than the one he'd felt when drawing beast flame from the Flame Rat, burst from the depths of his mind!
Hum!
The dying Fire Rock Lizard's massive body shuddered.
A strand of innate beast flame, viscous as magma and dark red in color, was forcibly drawn from the depths of its throat!
The moment the flame left the Fire Rock Lizard's body, it became a streak of light. Guided by Su Chen's will, it shot straight into the jade bottle in his hand.
Su Chen moved quickly and sealed the bottle at once.
Without its innate beast flame, the Fire Rock Lizard's body stiffened completely, and the last trace of life left it.
He'd done it!
Su Chen gripped the warm jade bottle, his chest heaving violently.
In the bottle, a wisp of dark red flame burned quietly.
This was his first pot of gold!
It was also the first stepping-stone to his future, bought with his life!
He didn't dare linger here. Who knew what even more terrifying things the stench of blood and the sounds of fighting might attract?
He didn't even have time to retrieve his rope. Shoving the jade bottle into his clothes, he turned and fled for his life toward Wutan City as fast as he could.
Only when he saw the familiar outline of Wutan City's towering walls did Su Chen's taut nerves finally relax.
He braced himself against a large tree, panting heavily, his face etched with exhaustion.
But his eyes shone with startling brightness.
Carefully, he took the jade bottle from his clothes and peered through its translucent sides at the wisp of dancing "rock fire" inside.
The process had been perilous, a brush with death.
But his first proper "restocking run" had been a complete success.
The setting sun stretched his shadow long across the ground.
Su Chen's lips slowly curved into a wild grin.
"Alchemists of Wutan City..."
"Are you ready to welcome your 'good news'?"
Before you continue