Thirty-Eight: "Why Don't We Go Beg for Food?"

"As expected, there were no major surprises."

Lu Changzhi withdrew his gaze from the city below.

This Two-Horned Giant Rhino is quite large, but it's still not very resistant to explosions.

Now that the city's leading Two-Horned Giant Rhino is dead, the other spirit beasts and demon beasts are not as fierce as before.

After all, the fact that even the strongest of its kind had been killed naturally meant immense danger.

In an instant, the spirit beasts and demon beasts were about to scatter in terror.

However, what hindered them were the rising array formations.

"It seems you've done quite a bit of preparation before coming."

Seeing this, Lu Changzhi nodded with great satisfaction and felt very gratified.

The master is there to guide you through the door; the rest is up to you.

It's so convenient and saves so much effort.

Regaining his composure, Lu Changzhi turned his attention back to his External Avatar.

While you're still motivated to be diligent, be diligent a little longer.

To be honest, after searching for so long, I mostly ended up picking up storage rings.

For some reason, Lu Changzhi suddenly had a feeling.

It was as if I hadn't come to seek opportunities, but rather to scavenge.

Of course, thinking about it is one thing, but taking action is another.

Somewhere in a secret realm.

Several figures fled through the jungle.

Judging from his expression, he seemed rather flustered.

The group stopped in front of a thick tree trunk.

The five of them first glanced warily behind them, then let out a long sigh of relief.

"Damn it, this is no good place at all. Running is exhausting, and attacking here is like my dantian is leaking out," one person cursed.

"Yes, this place is really weird." The other person nodded in agreement.

"How could an ordinary porcupine have such strength? Compared to the ones outside, they're like child's play."

As he spoke, he looked at someone beside him and asked:

"Xiao Hao, how are you feeling? Are you feeling better?"

The boy called Xiao Hao looked rather disheveled, probably because he had been violated by a porcupine. He had a bruised and swollen face and was slurring his words, so it was impossible to understand what he was saying.

At this moment, the leading boy said:

"The environment here is harsher than back home. These monsters will definitely need to be stronger to survive. We still need to be careful."

"We can't even beat a porcupine. Are we going to miss out on this opportunity?" one of the boys said with a worried look on his face.

"We've only just entered; there will be plenty of opportunities later," the leading boy said, placing his hand on the tree trunk.

The next moment, his expression shifted slightly, as if he had discovered something, and he looked at the tree trunk.

The others noticed this and were about to ask a question when the leader raised his hand, formed a fist, and punched the tree trunk.

Bang!

Wood chips flew everywhere, and the boy's fist went straight into the tree trunk; on the other side, a large piece of the trunk flew off.

"Empty?!"

Everyone was startled and quickly looked or sensed.

Their eyes lit up when they discovered the bones protruding from inside the tree trunk.

"No way, what a coincidence! It's just a matter of chance, and here it is?!"

"Tree trunk, withered bones—this must have been left by a master; we're about to strike it rich!"

"To be clear, I only discovered this opportunity because I was lucky."

As the boy in the lead spoke, he quickly widened the opening of the hole with his knife.

Everyone crowded around.

As the dust settled, besides the skeleton, several exquisite jade bottles were found inside the tree trunk.

Unfortunately, it's empty.

But such exquisite craftsmanship immediately gave everyone confidence.

For a time, the group was busy as bees.

However, the excitement didn't last long.

"How could that be? Don't the people here need to use storage rings?"

"There's no sign of the storage ring at all. Could it be that it's also been destroyed due to the passage of time?"

"Could it be that someone else has already gotten there first...?"

The atmosphere grew slightly somber.

At this moment, the leading youth shook his head and said:

"That's definitely impossible. I suspect there's another possibility."

As he spoke, his gaze fell upon the skeleton on the ground:

"I've heard that some powerful individuals hide important things or legacies within their bones, so..."

Everyone immediately understood and busied themselves again.

In the blink of an eye, some time has passed since we entered the secret realm.

The pace of those entering from all sides also began to slow down.

The reason is simple: the way those top geniuses travel is something that ordinary people simply cannot learn.

The consumption is too great. If it weren't for having abundant resources, disciples wouldn't even be able to fly, let alone use a flying boat.

In most places here, the concentration of spiritual energy is truly impressive.

If one doesn't replenish the energy through external means, the time and cost of absorbing World Spirit energy on one's own will be considerable.

Of course, this doesn't seem to be the case everywhere.

Within this secret realm, some locations have relatively good spiritual energy levels.

This includes some cities where, upon approaching a certain area, one can clearly feel that the spiritual energy is much denser than in other areas.

Without exception, these locations are all guarded by powerful spirit beasts.

Those with limited abilities simply cannot reach that level.

In such a secret realm, the benefits derived from the differentiation of strength are extremely different.

It was dusk.

"Finally, we're almost done with the work."

Looking at the city now quiet and peaceful, Mu Fan sighed.

At this moment, Gu Chen followed Luo Ling'er back.

Mu Fan's expression shifted slightly, and he smiled:

Looks like they're about to start serving dinner.

Luo Ling'er nodded, not without excitement:

Wow, we collected so many new ingredients this time!

At this moment, Gu Chen looked at Mu Fan:

"Junior Brother Mu, help Ling'er get ready. I'll go collect the useful parts from the monsters."

After saying that, Gu Chen took Luo Ling'er's chef's boning knife and left.

Let's go.

Mu Fan greeted Luo Ling'er:

"Today, we're having a picnic."

On the other side, Qin Li, along with Jin Fugui, was responsible for collecting the spirit beast's essence blood, while the other was responsible for recording and packaging it.

Each performs their own duties.

A short while later, wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys.

Over a thin flame, chunks of spirit beast meat were skewered together, sizzling and dripping oil as they were roasted.

The aroma of meat is the most comforting.

In the distance, Gu Chen's movements also noticeably quickened.

"Master, dinner's ready!"

Luo Ling'er's voice drew Lu Changzhi's attention back.

With a thought, Lu Changzhi External Avatar into a large blue stone and stepped out of the flying boat.

Sniffing the air, Lu Changzhi's eyes lit up slightly:

"Barbecue, huh? It tastes somewhat familiar."

Above, in the void.

"The food at Hidden Origin Peak looks pretty good, even though I can't smell it."

"I think it smells great too. Wait, I'll go take a sniff."

"It's been so many years since he's eaten, and this old guy at thirty-eight is still so concerned," a voice chuckled.

In the blink of an eye, a while had passed.

Thirty-eight's voice rang out:

"Gentlemen, the food these little ones are eating tastes absolutely delicious!"

"I think we could go over and ask for some food?"

There was a moment of silence, then a voice said:

"You didn't help at all, and you're begging for food from the younger generation. Don't you feel ashamed, old man?"

"I doubt it. At thirty-eight, with dark skin, his face won't even turn red."

"You!" Thirty-eight exclaimed.

"It really smells good! Come over here and smell it if you don't believe me."

"No, don't try to trick me into begging."

"You promised to protect me discreetly, how can you show up and freeload as soon as you arrive?"

Faced with the rejection from everyone, Thirty-Eight looked down at the Hidden Origin Peak members who were eating meat and drinking wine with gusto, and fell into an internal struggle.

To try and freeload, or not to try and freeload, that is the question.

Ultimately, he took no action.

Having lived for so many years, I still have this much self-control.

Of course, another reason was that Lu Changzhi and his entourage had finished eating.

"Comfortable."

After a hearty meal and plenty of wine, Lu Changzhi was quite satisfied.

"It would be even better if the liquor were stronger."

The Marrow Cleansing Fruit Wine is still a bit too mild and lacks potency.

He stood up, glanced at the sky which had completely darkened, and was about to return to the airship to lie down.

Suddenly, Lu Changzhi's expression changed.

He sensed a sudden fluctuation beneath the city.

It was as if something had been triggered.

I was just thinking about it.

Suddenly.

Brush.

Suddenly, a bright white light appeared on the ground around the edge of the city, and in the next moment, it shot straight into the sky.

In the darkness of night, it stands like a jade pillar reaching to the sky, towering and upright.