Big Brother, I Really Have to Thank You

Just as it was about to charge over and stop that man from picking the spirit herbs, a massive creature blocked its path.

Moo!

Black Bull stood upright on two legs, clapped his hooves together, and struck with a thunderous blow. His speed shocked the Red-Skinned Lion!

Flames burst forth, but the Red-Skinned Lion's spell was effortlessly dispelled by Black Bull. One of its fangs was caught in a hoof, and no matter how it struggled, it could not break free.

Roar!

Moo!

Black Bull suddenly exerted himself, swung the Red-Skinned Lion up, and smashed it viciously into the ground. The Red-Skinned Lion's face twisted in agony, and stark terror filled its eyes. Its heart lurched—it felt as though its brains were about to be smashed out.

Moo!

Black Bull gave another savage swing. The Red-Skinned Lion began to question its very existence as a lion, blood spraying from its throat. The spiritual power within its body would not even circulate.

Moo!

Black Bull roared furiously and kept swinging his hoof. The Red-Skinned Lion's tongue had been smashed out, and whimpers constantly escaped its mouth. Big brother, I beg you, stop smashing me!!

Chen Xun picked two stalks each of Ice Mandarin Grass and Cold Spirit Grass. Their bodies were white as jade and gave off a chill. Chen Xun placed them carefully into his medicine case for safekeeping.

He then shouted toward another lakeshore, "Old Bull, get ready to go."

"Moo~" Black Bull hurriedly dragged the Red-Skinned Lion before Chen Xun, leaving a long trail of blood across the ground.

"Old Bull, you're really something." Chen Xun exclaimed. Damn, he almost smashed this lion to death alive.

"Moo~ moo!" Black Bull grinned. This Red-Skinned Lion really had no eye for things. He was already imagining whether to braise it in soy sauce or steam it.

Whimper~

The Red-Skinned Lion's eyes were dull and lifeless. It yielded. It truly yielded.

"Ah, how miserable." Chen Xun shook his head. "Brother, tend to your wounds well. If you run into anyone else, they might skin you and refine your bones."

Chen Xun hoisted the Red-Skinned Lion onto his shoulder and headed into the forest with Black Bull. If they had not eaten Grain-Avoidance Pills, they would not have dared light a fire here—they would have long since started the feast.

They threw the Red-Skinned Lion into a hidden spot and left it to fend for itself. It definitely would not be able to move around for the next half year, which would keep their fellow disciples from finding it.

Whimper~ The Red-Skinned Lion cried weakly. Big brother, I really have to thank you two!

"Old Bull, let's get out of here, let's get out of here." Chen Xun and Black Bull began climbing trees again and vanished in the blink of an eye.

They left, but they left the Red-Skinned Lion with a massive shadow that would haunt it for life. In the future, whenever it saw a pile of dead leaves, it would crawl on the ground and weep, recalling all the wrongs it had done in its life.

"Old Bull, look at the map."

Up in an ancient tree, Chen Xun spread out a crude map. Many places were unmarked. "Was that lake from earlier this one?"

This map carried the painstaking efforts of countless generations of Five Aggregates Sect disciples. It had been bought entirely with lives, so Chen Xun treasured it greatly.

"Moo?" Black Bull pointed to several large lakes on the map. They all looked somewhat alike.

Chen Xun was troubled as well. The teleportation was far too random. Although they had all been transported to the edge of South Dipper Mountain, the place was absurdly huge, and they could not tell their directions at all.

"Let's take it one step at a time. We'll naturally know where we are eventually," Chen Xun said indifferently.

Moo! Black Bull nodded, then patted Chen Xun with a hoof, making him laugh.

They continued deeper in. Along the way, they even found a supplementary spirit herb for Foundation Establishment. Chen Xun and Black Bull were over the moon, repeatedly saying that Elder Sun and Master Ning were blessing them from above.

Three days later, Chen Xun and Black Bull were dumbfounded. They finally accepted reality. Well, they were lost!

East, south, west, and north all looked exactly the same, filled with towering ancient trees. They did not even dare to be sure they were not simply circling back to where they had started...

"Old Bull, boldly march onward..." Chen Xun began singing to Black Bull. Black Bull wore a pained expression and kept letting out low moos, occasionally covering his ears with both hooves.

The forest was pitch-black, so dark one could not see one's own fingers. The tree trunks were extraordinarily broad; the two of them could lie atop one without feeling crowded in the slightest.

Sometimes they could not tell whether it was night or day. Everything was black anyway, and the sky was entirely obscured by dense branches and leaves.

Suddenly, a venomous snake silently appeared. Its tongue flickered, a ghostly gleam shone in its eyes, and it sensed warmth—two prey, no less. It was just about to release its poisonous mist.

Chen Xun was still deep in thought, seemingly unaware. In an instant, his hand shot out like the wind and yanked the venomous snake over.

With a twist of both hands, he tied the snake into a dead knot, then gave it a vicious pull. The snake was dead beyond dead and immediately went to see Zhong Kui.

"Little thing."

A faint flame flickered to life. Black Bull hurriedly got up and covered it, blocking the light. The snake's corpse turned into ash.

They rested for a while before being awakened by the sounds of fighting. By sheer coincidence, it was directly beneath their tree.

There was a group of men and a group of women. The battle was strangely one where three women had surrounded three men.

Chen Xun and Black Bull remained utterly still, looking down. They seemed to be disciples of the Ten Great Immortal Sects—likely disciples of the Pill Cauldron Sect and Purple Cloud Sect.

"Hehe, junior brothers, why not stop running?" A Purple Cloud Sect woman laughed sweetly, her alluring eyes like silken threads.

"Senior sisters, we are willing to hand over the spirit herbs. Please spare our lives."

The three Pill Cauldron Sect disciples were already at the end of their strength. Blood continuously streamed from their mouths, their clothes were ragged, and they had been hunted all the way here.

"How could that do?" Another woman laughed sweetly as well, seemingly toying with them without end.

Suddenly, one woman's expression changed. The Silicon Valley Bird in her hand was sounding a constant warning—someone was nearby!

The three Purple Cloud Sect women naturally trusted the Silicon Valley Bird. They had relied on it to keep catching up with the Pill Cauldron Sect disciples.

The three Pill Cauldron Sect disciples also lit up with joy when they saw the women's strange reaction. We're saved!

"Fellow cultivator, stop hiding. Come out—we have already discovered you!"

The three women shouted in all directions. Even the Silicon Valley Bird could not determine where the person was, so they must be hiding deeply.

Chen Xun and Black Bull snorted in disdain. Trying that trick on them? Did they really think they were twenty-year-old children? They remained motionless right above the women's heads.

The Purple Cloud Sect women exchanged looks. Since they could not find the hidden person for now, they would first quickly finish off the Pill Cauldron Sect disciples. Delay could breed trouble.

Kill! The three women brought out their respective magic artifacts and charged at them with a thunderous rush.

"Junior brothers, fight with everything we've got!" The Pill Cauldron Sect disciples' eyes split wide with fury as they unleashed every method they had and began a bloody battle.

Spiritual power howled beneath the tree, while Chen Xun and Black Bull remained as steady as Mount Tai. Fierce gusts occasionally swept past them.

But the Pill Cauldron Sect disciples had never been a match for them to begin with, and they were already at the end of their tether. Several flashes of cold light swept past, their heads flew into the air, and their corpses were split apart.

"What vicious women." Chen Xun's gaze was dark as he inwardly cursed.

The women formed a small circle, streams of spiritual power coiling around their hands. Their eyes swept the surroundings, and they did not lower their guard in the slightest.

Chirp! Chirp! The Silicon Valley Bird hurriedly flapped upward. It had pinpointed the location!

"What?!" The three women could not believe it. Their hair stood on end all at once. Someone had been hiding directly above them, yet they had sensed nothing at all.

Chen Xun frowned. Why was this bird so annoying? Just because you disciples of the Ten Great Immortal Sects have so many tricks? Damn it.