Deep Communication, Obtaining Demon Intelligence

I stared at the twitching body on the ground, its hand still outstretched, its mouth opening and closing. The word "release" just now sounded like it was squeezed from its throat.

I didn't move.

The Bronze Seal in my storage bag was burning hot; I knew I could use it two more times. But I didn't even have the strength to lift my hand now. My spirit beast leaned against the stone wall, its head bowed, ears twitching occasionally as it stayed alert.

Wind blew from the depths of the forest, carrying moisture and the smell of burning. In the distance, several little demon corpses lay scattered, their bone knives broken or rusted. I didn't look at them, my gaze fixed on the dying little demon before me.

It wasn't a leader, nor was it one of the ones charging at the front. Its clothes were badly torn, and a ring of grass rope was tied around its waist, hung with half a piece of dried meat and an empty leather pouch. It wasn't old; its horns hadn't fully grown, just two short, branch-like protrusions on either side of its face.

I slowly crawled over, my knees scraping the ground. Every movement sent a sharp pain through the wound on my calf. When I got closer, I reached out to check its breathing.

It was still alive.

It opened its eyes a slit, and its pupils contracted when it saw me. Its lips trembled, and it tried to speak again.

Just then, a voice sounded in my mind.

[Detected interactive NPC. Completing the "Benevolent Heart's Pathfinding" quest will reward a Beginner Intelligence Decryption Talisman.]

I didn't respond to the System immediately, just looked down at the little demon. Its chest rose and fell slowly. The wound on its belly was deep, its intestines spilling out halfway. Blood had mostly stopped flowing, indicating severe blood loss and that it was close to death.

If I didn't help it now, it would die within minutes.

But if I did, it would use up the last of my healing ointment and consume some of my spiritual power to stabilize its meridians. My spiritual power was almost depleted, so doing so carried a great risk.

However, the System wouldn't prompt me for no reason.

I gritted my teeth and fumbled for the small porcelain bottle in my storage bag. Only a fingernail-sized amount of ointment remained, grayish-green with a slightly fishy smell.

I pulled out the stopper, dipped my fingertip in a tiny bit, and gently applied it around the edges of its wound. I moved slowly, afraid of stimulating its nerves and causing it to thrash. Then, I placed my hand on the back of its neck, sending the last trace of my spiritual power into it.

The little demon's body jolted violently, and a muffled groan escaped its throat.

"Don't move," I said. "If you want to live, be quiet."

It stopped struggling, though its breathing became more rapid. After a few seconds, its eyelids fluttered, and its gaze seemed to clear a little.

I released my hand and stared at it. "Who sent you?"

Its mouth moved, and its voice was extremely low: "...King's Order...patrolling...three days...sacrifice..."

The words were disjointed, but the key points came out.

I pressed further: "Which king? From Black Mist Valley?"

It seemed surprised I knew the name, its eyes darting around before it finally nodded.

"Northern Ridge...Black Mist Valley...Great King said...all little demons must capture live humans...deliver to the valley entrance within three days...otherwise...kill entire clan..."

My heart tightened.

This wasn't a random ambush; it was an order. All the little demons in the Northern Ridge area had been mobilized, their target being live humans for sacrifice. And this place wasn't far from the valley entrance, meaning we had stumbled right onto their patrol route.

"Why three days?" I asked.

"Lunar eclipse...on the day of the lunar eclipse...Great King wants to use the celestial phenomenon...to open a formation..." It was speaking with increasing difficulty, white foam appearing at the corners of its mouth.

I lowered my voice further: "What is the formation for?"

"Connect...underground...summon something up..." It suddenly coughed violently, spitting out a mouthful of black blood that splattered on my shoe.

I frowned.

Underground? What was coming from underground?

Just as I was about to ask again, its gaze suddenly unfocused, its hand went limp, and its whole body slumped.

I tried to inject more spiritual power, but its chest was no longer moving.

It was dead.

I sat there, unmoving. The only sound in my ears was the wind rustling through the leaves. My spirit beast lifted its head, glanced at me, and let out a low growl, as if reminding me that the surroundings were still unsafe.

I nodded, laid the little demon's hand flat, and unbuckled the leather belt from its waist. There was nothing inside, only the dried meat. I threw away the meat and put the leather pouch into my storage bag.

Then, I got up, walked to the side, dug a shallow pit, pushed the body in, and covered it with soil. I didn't erect a tombstone or say any prayers, just patted the earth firm.

After doing all this, I could barely stand.

Leaning against a rock, I took a few breaths and looked back at my spirit beast. It could barely stand, its right hind leg dragging on the ground, swaying with each step.

"Can you still walk?" I asked.

It let out a low whine and took a step forward without falling.

I breathed a sigh of relief, bent down, and picked up a sturdy-looking branch to use as a crutch. My left hand rested on my storage bag, confirming the Bronze Seal was still there. My right hand supported the spirit beast's neck as we slowly made our way back.

The sun was setting, and the light in the forest grew dimmer. Shadows stretched long on the ground, but I didn't look up at the sky. My mind was filled with the words I had just heard.

Black Mist Valley, lunar eclipse, sacrifice, underground...

These events couldn't be viewed in isolation. Behind every ritual, there was often a larger scheme. And the reason I was still alive wasn't just from fighting, but from judgment.

The System's quest was complete. I didn't feel any immediate change, but a reward should be credited soon. I didn't have time to check now.

After walking for a while, my foot kicked something hard. I looked down and saw a broken saber, half its length, like one struck by lightning, its blade blackened and its hilt cracked.

I stopped, crouched down, and picked it up.

This wasn't an ordinary bone knife used by a little demon; its material was more like metal, and it was carved with a pattern—curved like a snake, with its head pointing down.

I stared at it for two seconds before stuffing it into the storage bag as well.

This kind of marking didn't appear randomly. It was either a symbol of identity or some kind of token. Since it appeared here, it meant this group of little demons had a deeper connection with Black Mist Valley than I had imagined.

Moving forward, the woods gradually thinned, and I could see the outline of the valley in the distance. As long as we crossed this slope, we could return to our hiding place.

But I suddenly stopped.

The spirit beast also sensed something was wrong, its ears perked up.

There was a shallow trench in the ground ahead, as if it had been recently dug and refilled. The soil color was different, reddish, and carried a hint of rot.

I walked closer, leaning on my cane, and used a branch to push aside the topsoil.

Buried underneath was a wooden plaque, palm-sized, with a burnt corner. Flipping it over, I saw three characters written on it:

"Do Not Approach Valley."

The handwriting was messy, as if hastily carved.

I stared at the plaque, my heart beating a little faster.

This wasn't a warning to enemies; it was a reminder to allies. It meant other little demons were unwilling to participate in this sacrifice, and might even oppose that "Great King."

In other words, there were cracks within the enemy's ranks.

I put the wooden plaque away and stood up straight again.

It was getting dark, and we had to get back before we couldn't see anything. This battle had exhausted all our trump cards, but the intelligence gained was important enough.

Black Mist Valley was in the Northern Ridge. In three days, during the lunar eclipse, they were going to activate a formation to awaken something from underground. And all the nearby little demons were forced to participate in capturing live humans.

We were safe for now because we repelled this squad. But they would soon discover that someone had failed to report the mission's failure, and the next ones wouldn't be these low-level grunts.

We had to hurry.

I supported the spirit beast and continued forward, my steps steadier than before.

Before reaching the valley entrance, I took one last look back the way we came.

The woods had completely darkened, and the wind rustled through the treetops. In the area where the bodies had been buried, the soil was slightly raised at one corner, as if something was pushing up from beneath.