Magical Beast Town

Magical Beast Town

The sky had only just begun to brighten when a figure quietly walked out through the Xiao Family Gate.

Only after he had left Wu Tan City did the sky fully grow light.

Chen Xiao took some food from his pack to fill his stomach while comparing his map to determine the direction.

"Green Mountain Town, this way..."

Putting away the map, Chen Xiao swallowed the food in a few bites, then abruptly quickened his pace and headed northeast.

Although one could also enter the Magical Beast Mountain Range from the area near Wu Tan City, Chen Xiao's goal on this trip was primarily to find the cave from his memories, with tempering himself only secondary.

Therefore, entering the Magical Beast Mountain Range from Green Mountain Town was undoubtedly the choice with the highest chance of success.

The blazing sun hung overhead, and the scorching heat had baked the earthen ground until cracks spread in every direction. The moment one's soles stepped onto the hard dirt, a wave of heat surged up from beneath their feet, making travelers curse the damn weather nonstop as sweat poured down their bodies.

Yet on this broad yellow dirt road, there was a not particularly tall figure hurrying forward with his head lowered, forming a stark contrast with the leisurely swaying pace of the passersby around him.

After traveling another few hundred meters, he saw the three large characters "Green Mountain Town" on a stone stele by the roadside.

Chen Xiao lifted his head. His delicate face showed a trace of fatigue, yet strangely, there was not the slightest bead of sweat on him.

"The Ice Attribute is pretty useful too! A journey I estimated would take three days actually only took two!"

Muttering with a smile, Chen Xiao gathered the black robe around him and strode into the town.

Because Green Mountain Town was close to the Magical Beast Mountain Range, it was also known as Magical Beast Town.

Within the town, the most common people were mercenaries who spent their days licking blood from the edge of a blade. They gathered in groups, arms hooked around one another, spittle flying as they loudly and unscrupulously discussed which women in town had the most flavor, which liquor was the strongest, which magical beasts were the fiercest...

Walking along the street paved with bluestone, Chen Xiao, wrapped in a black robe yet unable to hide his thin frame, attracted a few looks.

In Green Mountain Town, people wearing black robes, or even bamboo hats to conceal their faces and figures, were not uncommon. The reason Chen Xiao drew attention was simply that the mercenaries could tell at a glance that someone with a build like his was, nine times out of ten, not yet an adult.

Someone of such an age walking around Green Mountain Town was not something seen often.

Fortunately, they did not know Chen Xiao's true age. Otherwise, they would probably have been even more astonished.

Ignoring the gazes of others, Chen Xiao sized up the shops on both sides of the street, searching for a place to stay.

After two consecutive days of rushing on the road, along with frequently circulating his Dou Qi to cool himself along the way, Chen Xiao was clearly not in the state he should be in before entering the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Green Mountain Town was small, but because of its advantageous location, it was extremely bustling.

Chen Xiao looked around with interest, and before long, a medicinal herb shop that occupied quite a spacious area caught his attention.

"Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion!"

A mountain need not be tall; if an immortal dwells there, it becomes sacred. This Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion seemed to have nothing special about it apart from being a little larger in area. The reason Chen Xiao paid it extra attention was because of one person inside.

"Xiao Yan is eight and a half this year. She's older than Xiao Yan, so at this point in time, she should already be at Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion..."

Chen Xiao tilted his head slightly and glanced inside. Sure enough, at one of the counters, he saw a girl in a white dress speaking with a mercenary whose right arm hung limply, her expression extremely serious.

Behind that mercenary, three more people were waiting in line.

Because of the angle, Chen Xiao could see through the gap beneath the counter that the girl seemed to be standing on a wooden box, which was why she appeared to be around the same height as those mercenaries.

"That bearing... She's even a bit more mature than Xun Er. It makes it very easy to overlook her age."

After briefly sizing her up, Chen Xiao withdrew his gaze.

At most, she was only around ten or slightly older. There was no point discussing looks or figure; she had not even grown into them yet.

This girl, who was suspected to be Xiao Yi Xian, gave Chen Xiao the first impression of being gentle and earnest. She listened very attentively when the mercenaries spoke, and when it was her turn to speak, a faint smile remained on her face.

But when he thought of her past, Chen Xiao immediately understood.

She was someone burdened with the fate of "born in calamity, dying in calamity," after all.

Even if she ultimately broke that fate, the suffering she endured had not been reduced in the slightest.

With a sigh, Chen Xiao did not step into Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion, instead heading toward the inn ahead.

Just as Chen Xiao passed the entrance of Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion, the girl at the counter took out a packet of medicinal powder and handed it to the mercenary before her. Using the chance as she watched him leave, she finally glanced at the street outside.

Just now, from the corner of her eye, she had noticed someone outside sizing her up.

Unfortunately, she had not managed to catch them.

But on second thought, she had accumulated a bit of fame at Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion over the past few years, and the mercenaries in town would occasionally come by out of curiosity to look at her. Perhaps it had been the same just now.

Thinking this, the girl no longer paid it any mind and shifted her gaze back to the mercenary who had stepped forward.

The silent night slipped quietly by.

When the east began to pale the next day, Chen Xiao, still asleep, opened his eyes right on time.

His diligent cultivation over the years had already adjusted his biological clock to be extremely regular.

After a night's rest, the fatigue from rushing along the road was gone. In its place was energy brimming with vitality.

Looking through the wooden window at the sky outside, Chen Xiao sat up cross-legged, formed the cultivation seal with his hands, and slowly closed his eyes once more.

The plan for the day lay in the morning; that was not an empty saying. Over these past few years, he had noticed that cultivating at daybreak was somewhat faster than at any other time of day.

Entering the Magical Beast Mountain Range could not be rushed. For safety's sake, Chen Xiao planned to team up with the mercenaries in town a few times first, accumulating experience while also familiarizing himself with the terrain around the outskirts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

After that, he would act alone and search for that cave.

His Dou Qi cultivation continued for an hour.

The morning sun shone in through the cracks by the windowsill, casting mottled specks of light across the floor.

Chen Xiao slowly opened his eyes and ended his cultivation. The hand seal he held dispersed, and a faint blue chill streamed from his mouth.

"At this rate, if I want to break through to Nine Star Dou Zhe, it'll still take half a month. Future breakthroughs will take longer and longer too."

Murmuring to himself, Chen Xiao gazed in the direction of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

What could cure worry? Only sudden wealth!

The riches in that cave were what he would rely on to change his current situation!

Leaping down from the bed, Chen Xiao practiced Yan Return Strike once more to loosen his muscles and bones. Only then did he wash up, tidy himself, and leave the inn.

On the streets.

Some mercenaries who intended to enter the mountains today were already calling out for teammates, while some employers stood on higher ground, recruiting mercenaries.

"Hunting four second-rank magical beasts, Fire Foxes! Six-Star Dou Practitioners and above, look this way! The pay is generous, and if the job's done well, there'll be an extra reward."

"Hunting Azure Wood Wolves! Need two Dou Practitioners above Four-Star."

"Searching for Serpent Spirit Purple Fruit. Those with experience get priority."

"..."