Page 24

"Ye Qinghui lost his Inner Core, and now he's lost his wits too? Instead of fighting for the Dragonblood Stone, he's here catching Spirit Fish."

"How much spiritual energy could a little Spirit Fish have? Dragonblood Stone can greatly strengthen spiritual energy and help you break through."

"He picked up a sesame seed and threw away a watermelon. What a fool!"

This time, even cultivators with no stake in the matter shook their heads and talked among themselves. Shen Xingyan, Jiang Kui, and the others curled their lips in disdain. "Those paupers from Cloudsky Sect have never seen the world. I bet they've never even eaten Spirit Fish." They flew straight toward the summit on their swords. The Dragonblood Stone would be theirs!

[Wow, that fish looks so plump and delicious.]

[It must weigh twenty or thirty pounds at least. The soup will smell amazing.]

[Too bad I don't have teeth yet, so I can only drink the soup. Once I'm a little older, I'm going to roast one and sprinkle it with pepper.]

The spirit fish was too big for an ordinary pot, so Ye Qinghui dug a Purple-Iron Cauldron out of his Heaven-and-Earth Bag and used it as a cooking pot. He poured in some Spirit Spring water, then heated it with Spirit Fire. At first, the fish thrashed nonstop, but before long it was bubbling away, cooked through and giving off a mouthwatering aroma.

[Big Brother, pour in the milk from my bottle too.] The little

foodie

Ye Zhenzhen began giving orders again.

The milk made the fish soup even richer and smoother. As it entered the mouth, its velvety, full-bodied flavor spread across the tongue. The dense essence of heaven and earth flowed down the throat and into the heart, lifting the spirits and filling one with happiness.

Cultivators stopped needing food after Foundation Establishment, but an occasional bowl of fresh soup was still delicious. Better yet, soup made with Spirit Spring water helped guide the spiritual energy within the body and left the muscles and bones feeling limber.

At only nine, Ye Qingchuan was still in the Qi Refining stage and had yet to give up food. He was growing, too, so he downed three bowls of fish soup in a row and ate plenty of fish. The flesh was wonderfully fresh, as tender as tofu and more savory than poultry. As he ate, the pallor faded from his face and a healthy flush took its place. His beautiful, peach-blossom eyes shone.

Ye Zhenzhen sucked the delicious fish soup from her bottle while sneaking glances at Ye Qingchuan. She watched him eat the belly, then the tail, and could hardly contain herself. [Third Brother, the fish head is delicious too, especially the brain. That's where the best part of the whole fish is.]

"I'm not eating that."

[Dear Third Brother, could you get it out for me, then? Sorry for the trouble.] Ye Zhenzhen pleaded in her muffled little voice.

Ye Qingchuan looked at her round eyes fixed longingly on the fish head and her little mouth smacking away. The faintest smile touched his lips. He deftly cracked open the skull, scooped the translucent fish brain into a spoon, and fed it into Ye Zhenzhen's wide-open mouth.

A warmth as smooth as silk bloomed gently across her tongue.

Ye Zhenzhen felt as though her entire life had been elevated. Besides, as the saying went, eating brains nourished the brain. Her little head was clever already; surely she had just grown a little cleverer.

[Third Brother, hurry and use my Heaven-and-Earth Pearls to put all the Spirit Fish in there.]

[Then we'll have plenty to eat later. Just thinking about it makes me happy.]

There they went again.

Ye Qinghui and Ye Qingyao had already witnessed the pair's bandit ways, but they still could hardly bear to watch.

"Zhenzhen, you shouldn't be so greedy..." Ye Qinghui was about to stop her when her inner voice cut him off. [Big Brother, this isn't for eating. We'll need them when we go up the mountain.]

Ye Qingchuan expertly drew the Spirit Fish and Spirit Spring water into the Heaven-and-Earth Pearls in one smooth motion. He was an old hand at it by now. Besides, the fish really was delicious. Its lingering flavor still filled his mouth, and he couldn't help smacking his lips.

[Third Brother is the best. From now on, I'll share half the fish bellies with you.]

[Big Brother and Second Sister can have some soup and a little fish tail.]

She had allocated everything according to each person's contribution.

Gathering Spirit Mountain looked unremarkable, but a mysterious Barrier sealed the entire mountain. No one could approach it by sword, much less fly straight to the summit. Everyone had to climb the old-fashioned way.

Halfway up, dozens of Demon Beasts resembling giant beetles suddenly charged out. They were all low-level beasts that had yet to develop intelligence, but their bodies were as sturdy as small hills. They blocked the path, leaving the cultivators unable to advance.

Shen Xingyan and the others hastily drew their swords and hacked at them, but the giant beetles seemed invulnerable. They could neither drive them away nor wound them, and even fire spells failed to set them alight.

Enraged, the Demon Beasts extended their scissor-like mandibles, ready to tear them in two.

Shen Xingyan took a stack of Earth-Diving Talismans from his Storage Ring and handed them out to the members of Kongtong School. They passed the beasts with ease. But as they kept climbing toward the summit, the Demon Beasts grew ever more numerous, and their strength rose from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core. Gradually, they closed in from all sides.

There were Black Bear Monsters strong enough to tear a person to shreds in moments; Leopard Demons that bared their fangs and lunged at anything alive; and Lion-Tiger Beasts whose eyes gleamed with savage red light. The Lion-Tiger Beasts had even reached the Golden Core Late Stage. They could rip open a cultivator's belly, seize the Inner Core, and swallow it whole.

Wherever the cultivators ran, the horde pursued. Anyone they caught was devoured by the Demon Beasts, without so much as a scrap of bone left behind.

When Ye Qinghui and the others reached the halfway point, they began encountering Demon Beasts too.

Giant beetles lined up across the path, glaring at them fiercely. Their great mandibles reached out to tear them to pieces.

[Third Brother, quick, take out the Spirit Fish.]

[These Demon Beasts have been sealed on the mountain for years. They've gnawed through all the plants up here and must be sick of the taste. One whiff of fish, and they won't be able to walk away.]

Ye Qingchuan hesitated, then tossed several Spirit Fish to the giant beetles.

Sure enough, they came forward for a sniff, bobbed their heads in delight, and fought to snatch up the fish with their mandibles before digging in.

"One fish per beast. Once you've eaten, you can't block our way," he told them.

The giant beetles clumsily nodded their enormous heads. Deal.

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