The Return

The jade slip Shao Ke gave to Luo Mu introduced several locations teeming with spirit beasts, and the Blood-Colored Valley was prominently among them.

Luo Mu chose this location for two reasons: first, it was the closest, requiring little time to travel to and fro. Second, the spirit beasts in the Blood-Colored Valley were relatively weak compared to those in other places; they were mostly low-level beasts, and it was rare to encounter anything formidable. Consequently, it had become one of the primary hunting grounds for low-level cultivators.

The Blood-Colored Valley spanned several hundred miles, and its origins were impossible to verify. Though the valley was filled with spirit beasts and cultivators flocked there to hunt them, the beasts had never been wiped out.

Over the years, the number of spirit beasts in the Blood-Colored Valley had not only failed to decrease but showed a trend of growth. Why this was the case remained unknown.

It was precisely because of the sheer number of beasts that many cultivators who came seeking fortune lost their lives, their bones buried within the valley. While their individual strength was low, their numbers more than compensated for this flaw.

Luo Mu's purpose for this trip was simple: spirit beast meat! As long as it was spirit beast meat, regardless of its grade, it was the target of his journey.

Looking at the demon wolf before him, which was three times the size of an ordinary wild wolf, Luo Mu frowned slightly. From the aura it emitted, he had already judged that this demon wolf was at the level of a Tier 2 early-stage beast.

The first beast he encountered upon entering the valley was already Tier 2; Luo Mu cursed his own rotten luck. If it were an average sixth-layer Qi Refining cultivator, they would surely be flustered and lament the difficulty of the situation. But for Luo Mu, a single demon wolf was of little consequence and could not pose any real threat.

Unperturbed, he took out the Black Shield. After injecting it with spirit power, the shield instantly expanded several times its size. It hovered before him, shielding his body tightly as it began to rotate slowly.

Just as Luo Mu deployed the shield, the demon wolf let out a howl and lunged at him with its bloody maw wide open, its speed as fast as lightning. Luo Mu felt a jolt of surprise but remained calm, quickly pouring more spirit power into the shield. The light emitted by the shield grew increasingly dazzling, and its rotation accelerated.

"Bang!" As the demon wolf's massive body neared him, the Black Shield seemed to sense the threat and automatically positioned itself in front of the beast. With a loud crash, the wolf collided with the shield.

The Black Shield blocked the wolf, preventing any injury to Luo Mu, but the sheer force of the impact sent him flying backward, his blood churning within him.

Having missed its first strike, the demon wolf's eyes glinted with ferocity as it gave chase, its sharp claws like steel blades slashing toward Luo Mu's face. Had those claws connected, Luo Mu's head would surely have shattered like a watermelon.

With a sharp slap to his Storage Bag, the Black Iron Chain appeared in his hand. A flick of his wrist sent the chain flying out like a venomous snake, coiling toward the demon wolf. Simultaneously, two Poison Fangs glowing with green light appeared in his hands.

Because they were so close, the demon wolf could not dodge the incoming chain. In its desperation, it raised its claws to parry. At that very moment, Luo Mu surged forward, the Poison Fangs in his hands transforming into two green streaks of light that stabbed toward the wolf's eyes.

The Poison Fangs were mid-grade magical artifacts; their sharpness was such that saying they could cut through iron like mud would be an understatement. Unable to dodge, the demon wolf felt a sharp pain in its eyes, followed by a sea of red, and it could no longer see anything else. Immediately after, it felt a chill at its throat as hot, scalding blood sprayed out.

A shrill, miserable howl erupted from the demon wolf's throat, echoing for several miles. A short while later, the howling ceased; the demon wolf was dead.

Watching the wolf that had been full of life just moments ago, now being devoured by the White Jade Ants until not even a scrap of bone remained in the blink of an eye, Luo Mu shivered, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.

He put away the White Jade Ants, retrieved the chain, and hid the Poison Fangs in his sleeves. As for the Black Shield, he did not put it away, letting it continue to protect his body. The Blood-Colored Valley was the territory of spirit beasts, and danger lurked everywhere; keeping the shield active made him feel more secure.

Without lingering, Luo Mu left the area immediately after stowing his artifacts. The howl the demon wolf had let out before dying sounded desolate, but Luo Mu knew it was a distress signal.

If he did not hurry away, once the wolf pack arrived, he would surely die. Even releasing his spirit insects would be of little use; death would be inevitable.

As for why he hadn't simply released his swarm of spirit insects to handle the wolf instead of risking his own life—especially against a Tier 2 early-stage beast where one mistake could lead to death or severe injury—he had his reasons.

On the way here, Luo Mu had already decided that during his time hunting in the Blood-Colored Valley, he would not use his spirit insects to fight unless absolutely necessary. He wanted to handle things himself to hone his combat experience and strengthen his own fighting prowess.

Only by constantly bathing in blood and emerging victorious from life-and-death struggles could one become a true expert! This was a principle Luo Mu understood well.

He had managed to kill that demon wolf without the aid of his insects. Though it was risky, he had dispatched it in a short time. His technique was one factor, but the quality of the artifacts in his hands was the most important.

Not long after Luo Mu left the spot, the sound of howling wolves echoed from afar. Judging by the sound of their running, the pack was quite large.

They were the wolves that had come in response to the call. But by then, Luo Mu was already far away.

Time passed quietly, and a month later, Luo Mu's figure suddenly appeared at the entrance of his own shop. He looked travel-worn, his face etched with exhaustion. Yet, beneath those tired eyes lay a deep sense of satisfaction.

In that month, the number of spirit beasts Luo Mu had hunted was massive, and the amount of spirit beast meat and crafting materials he had harvested was staggering. Furthermore, he had gathered quite a few spirit herbs and, more importantly, poisonous herbs that were incredibly useful to him!

Why was the harvest so impressive? Ultimately, it was thanks to his swarm of spirit insects.

After entering the Blood-Colored Valley, to avoid beasts far stronger than himself, Luo Mu would send the Plum Blossom Snakes and White Jade Ants ahead to scout. If they found low-level beasts, he would go and spar with them to hone his skills. If they sensed the presence of high-level beasts from afar, he would lead his insects and flee.

In this way, his harvest over the month was truly terrifying. He had killed countless low-level beasts. He never let his insects help with the killing, relying instead on his own artifacts and strength. This had significantly improved his combat techniques and his understanding of how to utilize his artifacts. It could be said he had benefited immensely.

As for the herbs, he owed his success to the Octagonal Spike. Thanks to its innate ability to sense the presence of potent toxins, he had managed to collect many highly poisonous items, which left him beaming with joy. The spirit herbs were found by chance, though their quantity was far less than that of the poisonous ones.

Between hunts, Luo Mu persisted in consuming the remaining poisonous herbs daily, constantly studying the mysteries of the Poison Spirit Art. After a month, he had firmly stabilized his progress at the first level of the art.

After practicing the Poison Spirit Art, he clearly felt his Poison Spirit Power's toxicity increase significantly, which left him very satisfied. It had shown results at just the first level; he was very much looking forward to the subsequent levels.

Having achieved his goals, Luo Mu did not linger in the Blood-Colored Valley and instead hurried back to Jinxiu City without rest. Now, he stood at the door of his small shop, looking exhausted and travel-worn.

Upon his return, he had noticed that students of Jinxiu Academy could be seen in the streets and alleys of Jinxiu City, all heading toward the academy. Tomorrow was the first day of the new school year, and students who had gone home to visit family or traveled abroad were all returning.

Among ordinary mortals, those with the affinity for cultivation were few and far between. However, over the years, Jinxiu Academy had gathered a large number of low-level cultivators of varying ages. Aside from the small portion selected by the Wanfa Sect, many students remained at the academy to continue their cultivation before they were ready to graduate, which resulted in the high number of cultivators at the academy.

With school not starting until tomorrow, the fact that students could already be seen throughout the city showed that the number of students at Jinxiu Academy was certainly not small.

Luo Mu had kept the start date in mind, and since he had collected enough spirit beast meat to feed his insects for a while, he had returned today.

Exhausted in body and mind, he did nothing upon returning to his shop, simply collapsing onto his bed and falling into a deep sleep. His nerves had been under high tension for this entire period, leaving him thoroughly drained. He had to report to the academy tomorrow, so he needed to adjust his state and restore his energy.