Ancient trees towered into the sky, their branches and leaves cutting the sunlight into tiny flecks.
Shi Hou pushed off with his feet, sprang against several tree trunks, and landed before a secluded cave halfway up the mountainside.
Shi Hao followed close behind. The two surveyed their surroundings and only stepped into the cave after confirming there were no traces of Fierce Beasts nearby.
After tidying the place up, Shi Hou tossed Kang, whose eyes kept rolling back, onto the ground.
Shi Hao also set down Furball, who had fallen asleep from exhaustion.
Shi Hou crouched down and studied Furball's dull golden fur.
He reached out with two fingers, singled out the thickest hair on Furball's rump, and yanked it out.
Furball shuddered twice in sleep, smacked their lips, rolled over, and went on sleeping.
Satisfied, Shi Hou tucked the monkey hair into his robe.
With a thought, the pitch-black Stone Pot on his back expanded out of thin air and hit the ground with a thud.
He lifted Black Pig with one hand, grabbed Furball with the other, and dumped them both into the pot.
Gray light swirled inside the pot. Gentle vital essence enveloped the two exhausted exotic beasts and began nourishing them.
Once they were settled, Shi Hou clapped his hands and turned toward the open space.
Time to take stock of the haul.
He turned his right hand over, and the glossy, jet-black Black Fiend Lotus appeared out of thin air.
An extraordinary fragrance instantly filled the cave.
Next came the single-fruited Nine-Turn Dragon Blood Ginseng, the giant crocodile's tail, and the freshly severed section of the Three-Flower Black Tiger's tail.
The top-grade ingredients lay in a row on the ground.
Shi Hou rubbed his hands, his dark face splitting into a grin that revealed two