Stirring the Grass to Startle the Snake

Jiang Lu blinked as well. The Flowing Cloud Sect was going too.

"Uncle Chi means... I should trail behind them and pick up the leftovers?"

Clap—

At the sound of a clap, Chi Miao brought his hands together and gave her a thumbs-up.

"That's right! Think about it—they have numbers on their side and formidable strength. They'll clear away the obstacles up front, and you can simply follow behind them. With your current strength, don't even think about obtaining some great fortuitous opportunity. Following them may bring you greater gains than training on your own."

Jiang Lu thought of Liu Qingqing. At a time like this, how could the female lead of a beloved-by-all novel possibly resist joining in the excitement?

She nodded. "I understand, Uncle Chi."

"Hehe, it's good that you understand. Your master left you quite a few good things. Hurry and sort through them, see what you can use. If nothing else, you can certainly manage to follow behind them without being discovered."

His eyes narrowed into slits. His already plump face looked even rounder, while his eyes seemed even smaller.

Jiang Lu nodded. That would not be a problem.

At that moment, neither of them imagined that when cultivators gathered in droves this time, Jiang Lu would formally enter the sights of the major factions.

"Master, what are you doing?"

When Chi Li opened its eyes, it saw Jiang Lu crouching amid a huge pile of magical treasures.

Its face was full of question marks. Where had all these things come from?

Its master was not rich enough for this.

"Chi Li, you're awake?"

Hearing the voice, Jiang Lu saw the fluffy little ball. She walked over and rubbed its head. Once she saw its cultivation, she could not help but be surprised.

"Not bad. Your strength has increased—you're already a second-rank spirit beast."

Chi Li nodded proudly.

"That's right, Master. If Cangchen and I were not too weak right now and needed to split the Spirit Pearl's spiritual power between us, I definitely could have risen another rank."

With its temperament, how could it possibly share a treasure with someone else—especially that stinking dragon?

But now, the beasts were in the Lower Realm.

If they did not absorb the Spirit Pearl, possessing a jade would become a crime.

They might as well cooperate for now and use it to raise their strength.

Jiang Lu nodded. So that really was a Spirit Pearl. Since her contracted beasts had obtained it and were using it themselves, she had no intention of claiming it for herself.

"Master, where did all these things come from?"

Flapping its wings, it hopped onto the table and asked.

The corners of Jiang Lu's lips lifted, her voice brimming with irrepressible excitement and pride. "My master gave them to me."

Master?

"Master, when did you get a master?"

Chi Li was thunderstruck. What had happened while they were asleep?

Had her master discovered their identities?

"Yes, but Master has something to do and has left for now. Once it is settled, Master will come back to take us home. For the time being, we'll head to the Illusory Forest to train. My strength is still too low, so I need to increase it as quickly as possible."

At that, Chi Li let out a breath and patted its chest. Good, good. As for how to conceal their identities afterward, they could discuss it together once Cangchen woke up.

Heart-protecting mirror, put it on!

Swift-running shoes, put them on!

And this bracelet that concealed one's cultivation—put it on. Cultivators below Spirit Transformation would be unable to see her true strength.

Prepare the medicinal pills.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you won't have trouble finding it next time.

Right!

Prepare these hidden weapons too. At a critical moment, they could strike the enemy a blow!

As Jiang Lu sorted through everything, she categorized these heavenly treasures and earthly materials and stored them in her space.

Now that Chi Li had awakened, her safety had gained another layer of protection. As for Cangchen, since Chi Li was awake, it should be waking soon as well.

Early the next morning, she placed the two spirit beasts into a cloth pouch and headed toward the Illusory Forest.

The dense forest was not especially dangerous now, but there was no ruling out the possibility that some powerful demon beast might suddenly appear before her. She had grown accustomed to caution, so naturally, she would not swagger openly before everyone.

Uncle Chi had said that the Flowing Cloud Sect's disciples would head to the Illusory Forest from another direction. She only needed to wait within that area.

Sure enough, after only a few days, Jiang Lu caught sight of the Flowing Cloud Sect disciples. Disciples from the Sunrise Sect and Divine Sword Sect were traveling with them as well.

Jiang Lu carefully concealed her aura and saw that familiar figure.

It was Liu Qingqing.

She stood at the side of the Flowing Cloud Sect's group, very quietly.

Yet her eyes carried both unwillingness and eager anticipation.

Jiang Lu shifted her gaze to the person at the head of the group. She wore flamboyant red robes, her hair swept high and secured with a golden hairpin. Two crescent blades on her back gleamed with dangerous light.

What a valiant woman. Her bearing was beyond that of ordinary cultivators.

The instant Jiang Lu's gaze rested on her, the woman immediately turned to look in Jiang Lu's direction.

Jiang Lu was startled and swiftly looked away.

What keen perception.

The red-clad woman at the head, the one Liu Qingqing did not dare provoke so openly, could only be the Flowing Cloud Sect's chief senior sister—Fu Yao.

Now at the middle stage of Golden Core, she was the foremost of her generation in the Crimson Reed Domain.

Even she had come. It seemed that the news drawing everyone to the Illusory Forest this time was far from as simple as the rumors claimed.

Jiang Lu was secretly alarmed. Perhaps the leaked information was false, and Uncle Chi had been drawn into the game as well.

But since she was already here, and she felt no foreboding, she would see just what medicine they were selling in their gourds.

Fu Yao looked toward Jiang Lu's direction but sensed nothing unusual. After only two glances, she shifted her gaze away.

She had long been accustomed to such furtive scrutiny. The gaze just now had carried no malice, so naturally, she did not investigate further. After all, their group truly was quite large.

Cultivators were not all fools. It was only normal for people to see them and realize that something was unusual about the news.

It merely depended on each person's choice.

There would always be cultivators unafraid of death who wanted to try their luck.

That day, elders had been sent to investigate. Magic Beasts existed in the middle region of the Illusory Forest, but they concealed their auras too well for the elders to locate them. That was why this training expedition had come about.

As for the anomaly in the inner region, they could not interfere.

Every domain had its own factions and overlords, and the Illusory Forest was no exception. The inner region had its own ruler, rumored to have already taken human form. If they ventured in without permission, it would be a provocation.

Once the news spread everywhere, people indeed formed teams and came to investigate.

What they wanted was to stir the grass and startle the snake.

The more cultivators who came here to train, the more likely they were to uncover the Magic Beast's existence.

These low-level cultivators would take the lead at the front. The moment the Magic Beast's aura leaked, the elders would immediately arrive and capture it.

Jiang Lu did not know at that moment that every move she made had already fallen under the watchful eyes of the elders from the upper three sects.

Yet the ring on her hand kept them from acting rashly.

The ring of a direct disciple of the Medicine King Pavilion—among those they knew, only a few possessed one. Now it had appeared on the hand of a cultivator they had never seen before. They did not believe it was a coincidence, nor did they think it was fake.

They had never seen a cultivator so audacious as to impersonate a personal disciple or the direct disciple of any sect.