Blood-Colored Valley

Chapter 44: Blood-Colored Valley

Sitting cross-legged on the ground, Luo Mu let his heart slowly settle. An hour later, his mind was perfectly tranquil, devoid of joy or sorrow, and he poured his entire being into the jade slip, carefully pondering and studying the Poison Spirit Art. Another hour passed, and a faint green glow began to swirl around Luo Mu as he entered a state of cultivation.

While Luo Mu was immersed in his practice, the spirit insects around him were far from idle; they lay in ambush, motionless as if they were inanimate objects. Before beginning his cultivation, Luo Mu had issued a strict order to these spirit insects: they must keep a close watch for the female ghost from the previous night, and the moment she appeared, they were to wake him immediately.

Luo Mu truly felt uneasy not having uncovered the female ghost.

Time ticked away, second by second. The dark night faded, the sun peeked over the horizon at dawn, and Luo Mu slowly opened his eyes, ending his cultivation.

The female ghost had not appeared again last night, which Luo Mu found somewhat strange. However, for him, this was a blessing; if the ghost had appeared, he would have been forced to abruptly exit his cultivation, which would have had a severe impact on his progress.

It was best that she hadn't shown up, and Luo Mu did not wish to speculate too much. Once he rose early in the morning, he headed straight for the nearest large restaurant. He wasn't going there to eat or drink, but because his thirteen Plum Blossom Snakes and five White Jade Ants required a significant amount of beast meat.

They had already gone hungry for one meal, and Luo Mu dared not let these little fellows continue to starve. If they were to die of hunger, all his previous efforts would have been in vain. The Plum Blossom Snakes were manageable, but as for the five White Jade Ants, Luo Mu had no idea where he could find such precious eggs again.

Tiandu Restaurant, while not the premier establishment in the North City, was by no means small; it was one of the most reputable, long-standing restaurants in the area, and the dishes prepared by its chefs were considered a unique delicacy in the North City.

Here, one could not only taste all manner of mountain delicacies—creatures that flew in the sky, ran in the mountains, swam in the water, or burrowed in the earth—but if one had spirit stones, one could even feast on gourmet dishes made from the flesh of demonic beasts.

Precisely because of this, business at Tiandu Restaurant was exceptionally booming. Not only did wealthy commoners enjoy spending their money there, but even cultivators who had stepped onto the path of immortality would occasionally come to satisfy their cravings.

Er Gouzi was a waiter at Tiandu Restaurant. Due to issues with his spiritual roots, he could not cultivate, and his path to immortality had been severed since childhood. After coming of age, Er Gouzi had worked at Tiandu Restaurant to make a living. Working as a handyman here paid significantly better than similar jobs elsewhere, and the benefits were far superior. Over the years, Er Gouzi had lived quite well at Tiandu Restaurant, and he was very satisfied, which made him work all the more diligently.

And so, not long after dawn, while other colleagues had yet to open for business and the rest of the restaurant staff were still asleep, Er Gouzi had already climbed out of bed, eager to clean the place up. Perhaps if the manager saw his efforts, he might even get a raise of a few spirit stones a month.

Just as the front door opened, a youth wearing the Jinxiu Academy uniform and a black mask appeared in Er Gouzi's line of sight. Judging by his appearance, he had been there for a while, as if specifically waiting for them to open.

In the eyes of a commoner like Er Gouzi, students of Jinxiu Academy were bona fide immortal masters, figures to be looked up to. Upon spotting Luo Mu, Er Gouzi was startled; not daring to show the slightest bit of negligence, he immediately hurried forward to greet him.

"May I ask what brings you here, Immortal Master? Our shop has just opened, so if you wish to order dishes, it may take some time, though we can serve you wine immediately." Er Gouzi spoke with utmost respect, yet his demeanor remained calm; it seemed that after years at Tiandu Restaurant, he had seen his fair share of cultivators, so he did not lose his composure in the presence of one.

"I am not here today to sample your restaurant's cuisine, but rather to speak with your manager regarding a matter," Luo Mu said as he walked into the restaurant.

"Please wait a moment, Immortal Master. The manager should be awake by this hour; I shall go and summon him at once." Upon hearing Luo Mu's intent, Er Gouzi did not hesitate and went to call the manager, leaving Luo Mu alone.

With Er Gouzi gone, the idle Luo Mu found a seat and began to curiously survey the entire restaurant.

When he first entered, Luo Mu had noticed the restaurant's luxury, but upon closer inspection, he realized that "luxury" was an understatement—in his eyes, it was sheer extravagance.

All the tables and chairs were crafted from precious Iron Wood. Iron Wood was not only rare but exceptionally hard, impervious to ordinary blades; to fashion such furniture from it was a feat no commoner could achieve. It must have been the work of a cultivator.

To have a cultivator craft their furniture—Tiandu Restaurant certainly had deep pockets!

The walls of the restaurant were embedded with a large number of Moonlight Stones in a very orderly fashion. This gave Luo Mu an even greater shock.

The rarity of Moonlight Stones was in no way inferior to that of Iron Wood. By day, these stones looked no different from ordinary rocks, but once night fell, they would glow like full moons, constantly emitting a soft light. In his earlier distraction, Luo Mu had almost overlooked them.

To this day, Luo Mu had not been able to bring himself to buy even a single Moonlight Stone; he still used ordinary oil lamps in his own shop. Yet, Tiandu Restaurant had them embedded all over its walls, a testament to its immense wealth.

While shocked, Luo Mu could not help but feel a twinge of envy; it was only human nature.

"Hehe... Fellow Daoist, may I ask what brings you to my humble establishment so early in the morning?" Just as Luo Mu was marveling at the restaurant's wealth, a hearty laugh rang out, interrupting his thoughts.

Coming into view was a tall, middle-aged man; it was he who had spoken.

Seeing this man, Luo Mu felt a jolt and his expression shifted slightly. The middle-aged man before him was also a cultivator, and his cultivation base was a notch higher than Luo Mu's.

"I hope you will forgive my abruptness, Fellow Daoist. Coming to your restaurant so early in the morning, I do indeed have a pressing matter to discuss with the manager," Luo Mu did not dare to be arrogant, quickly rising from his chair and speaking with a grave, serious expression.

"Oh? And what is your name, Fellow Daoist?" The middle-aged man raised an eyebrow; clearly, Luo Mu's words had piqued his curiosity. However, he did not ask about the nature of the matter, but instead inquired about Luo Mu's name.

"My surname is Luo," Luo Mu replied honestly, without concealment.

"Oh, so it is Fellow Daoist Luo. A pleasure, a pleasure. I am Shao Ke. You look quite unfamiliar, Fellow Daoist; you must rarely visit our Tiandu Restaurant," the middle-aged man, Shao Ke, said with a polite smile.

"Fellow Daoist Shao Ke truly has eyes like torches; this is indeed my first time visiting your establishment," Luo Mu replied with a smile.

"Hehe... no matter that it is your first time; just remember to visit often in the future. Er Gouzi, go brew a pot of tea; I wish to have a good chat with Fellow Daoist Luo." Shao Ke smiled, gave an instruction to Er Gouzi, and sat down opposite Luo Mu.

"If today's business is settled, I will certainly be a frequent visitor," Luo Mu said with a smile, tapping his fingers lightly on the table after the other man had seated himself.

"Oh? I am curious, then—what exactly is this matter you speak of?" Shao Ke asked, puzzled.

"It is like this..."

An hour later, Luo Mu walked out of Tiandu Restaurant, turning a jade slip over in his hands with a thoughtful expression. A moment later, his gaze sharpened, and he strode away.

Another hour passed, and Luo Mu's figure appeared at the North City gate. Once outside, without a word, he produced his flying artifact and shot off in a specific direction.

Luo Mu had risen early and rushed to Tiandu Restaurant without pause, all to purchase some beast meat. If the price was right, he had intended to set up a long-term supply, which would save him a great deal of time and spare him the worry of sourcing food.

However, Luo Mu had not expected the price of beast meat to be so exorbitant. While it could not compare to the materials used for refining artifacts, the cost was still far from low.

Tiandu Restaurant was indeed a grand establishment with deep resources; they had plenty of beast meat, ranging from the first to the third rank. According to Shao Ke, they could even occasionally acquire fourth-rank meat. Luo Mu had been overjoyed to hear this and, full of confidence, had explained his intent to Shao Ke. But the price of the meat had made him recoil.

The restaurant acquired the meat themselves, and after cooking it into fine dishes, they stood to make a handsome profit. It wasn't impossible for Luo Mu to buy the meat, but it would require a vast amount of spirit stones. As he currently had very few, he had to abandon the idea.

At the time, Shao Ke had been curious as to why Luo Mu needed so much beast meat and had asked him about it. Though young, Luo Mu was no fool; he certainly wouldn't tell the truth, so he had simply made up an excuse to brush it off, which fortunately did not arouse the man's suspicion.

In the end, seeing that Luo Mu possessed such a cultivation level at such a young age, Shao Ke had felt an inclination to befriend him and had kindly gifted him a jade slip, which recorded the locations around Jinxiu City where large numbers of demonic beasts could be found.

Luo Mu had accepted the jade slip with a wry smile. He had hoped for a peaceful period of cultivation, but it seemed he would have to embark on the path of hunting beasts to feed his spirit insects after all.

After expressing his gratitude, Luo Mu had left Jinxiu City and headed in a specific direction.

At this moment, Luo Mu stood atop his flying artifact, feeling quite dejected. If he had known this would happen, he should have hunted more beasts in the Ten Thousand Snake Mountain Range before coming to Jinxiu City. Now, with a month left before school started, his spirit insects needed to eat; he couldn't just watch them starve to death.

It wasn't that he hadn't considered returning to the Ten Thousand Snake Mountain Range; after all, there were many beasts there, and hunting would be much easier. But Jinxiu City was far from the mountain range, and the round trip would cost him too much time—time he could not afford to waste.

Furthermore, the beasts in the Ten Thousand Snake Mountain Range were exceptionally fierce. Given his current situation, going there to hunt would be a nine-deaths-and-one-life affair; it was unclear whether he would be the one hunting the beasts or the other way around.

As for the edges of the mountain range, the beasts were sparse, making it impossible for him to hunt in large numbers within a short period.

After careful deliberation, Luo Mu chose a place mentioned in the jade slip called the Blood-Colored Valley. At this moment, he was steering his flying artifact toward that very destination.

(The updates have resumed. My father's surgery is over; although he hasn't fully recovered, I have time to write again. As promised, there will be two chapters daily from now on. If there are any special circumstances, I will be sure to inform you all in advance. Sigh... it's only been a few days without updates, and the collection count is dropping like a waterfall!)