One night without words.
The next day, early in the morning, Chu Ming and several sect disciples got up to escort the medicine collection team into the inner periphery of the Cyan Yang Mountain Range. The leader of the medicine collection team was Li Lin's daughter, Li Lingru. Accompanying them were more than a dozen ordinary guards of the Li Family, all of whom were Transcendence Realm martial artists.
...
In a dark and dense forest, overgrown with weeds and incredibly quiet, a group of people vigilantly watched the surroundings. The atmosphere was a bit oppressive. This was Chu Ming and his group.
The destination this time was the middle layer of the inner periphery of the Cyan Yang Mountain Range, while the place where Chu Ming had previously been training could only be considered the outer periphery. Therefore, even for Chu Ming, this task was not to be taken lightly.
"Ah!"
A startled cry broke the silence. Chu Ming and several others immediately ran to the guard who had screamed. At that moment, his face was turning black, and he was constantly foaming at the mouth. A small green snake was still coiled around his calf.
Poof
Huang Liangping triggered a blade aura from his fingertip, slicing the green snake into two pieces. The green snake twitched twice, then slowly fell silent, its life force extremely tenacious. Li Lingru, being a physician, immediately began treating the poisoned guard, but her face soon turned grim.
"It's the poison of the Green Breath Snake, there is no cure!" Li Lingru took a deep breath and said. As soon as her words came out, the faces of many guards changed, even Chu Ming's face didn't look good.
The Green Breath Snake, also known as the Green Death Snake, was not very powerful, merely a Second Level demon beast. However, its venom was so potent that even Transcendence Realm martial artists would die immediately upon contact. In other words, anyone bitten by this snake here had essentially no chance of survival!
Seeing the change in the guards' faces, Li Lingru silently felt bitter, knowing that it was time for her to take a stance.
"Everyone, please rest assured. As long as we collect the medicinal herbs this time, there will be an extra ten thousand silver for each of you when we return. And in the unfortunate event of death, fifty thousand silver will be given to your widow!" Li Lingru said loudly, hoping in her heart that they would return with a full load of herbs this time.
"Miss Li is truly kind!"
The remaining guards were suddenly overjoyed and considerably relieved upon hearing this. Normally, it would take them three to four months to earn ten thousand silver, and that would only be if they had no time off and sustained no injuries. If they died unexpectedly, fifty thousand silver would be enough for their widow to live comfortably for the rest of her life.
Chu Ming couldn't help but nod secretly upon seeing Li Lingru's actions, recognizing her leadership qualities!
The journey ahead was not very smooth; everyone's vigilance was raised to the highest level. Even so, several more people died, making Li Lingru's face turn pale. It wasn't fear but rather the heartache for the silver.
Each dead guard meant she had to pay fifty thousand silver to their widow. The Li Family was just a small family; adding up all their assets amounted to about four hundred thousand silver. Hiring the sect disciples for this mission had already been a significant expense. If a few more people died, it would be a severe blow to the Li Family.
Chu Ming walked at the front of the group, vigilantly watching the surroundings. Suddenly, his expression changed, and Spiritual Power surged from his body, forming Primordial Gang outside. Using his hand as a sword, a burst of dark sword light shot out from his hand. All around, a piece of dimness shattered like a mirror.
Poof
A wolf corpse fell from the bushes nearby. A finger-sized hole pierced its neck, the fatal blow. The guard closest to the wolf corpse showed a look of relief and gratitude in his eyes, looking at Chu Ming. Even Luo Qianyi and Huang Liangping showed expressions of surprise. A martial artist's keen senses were extremely important, sometimes saving their own lives. The two of them admitted that their senses were far inferior to Chu Ming's.
"Thank you, Young Master Chu!"
Li Lingru walked up to Chu Ming, expressing her gratitude. Chu Ming nodded, and the group continued forward. Along the way, they encountered several more demon beast attacks. The sect disciples fought off the beasts, handling them without much trouble.
However, as they went deeper, the frequency of demon beast appearances increased. To reduce casualties, the sect disciples decided to take turns handling the attacks. Naturally, the materials obtained from the demon beasts would go to whoever fought them.
This way, other disciples could recover their Spiritual Power in the meantime and also prevent any sudden incidents. The ordinary guards looked at the sect disciples with envy, knowing that the disciples' cultivation techniques and martial skills were top-notch. Any one of them could easily defeat the guards.
Boom
A huge roar sounded, making everyone jump. A black figure emerged from the dense forest, smashing all the trees in front of it into pieces. Standing in front of everyone, the sight made them gasp.
Blue scales shimmered in the sunlight, and flames spewed from its nostrils. Its claws glinted with a cold light, and the sharp spines on its head looked extremely deadly. Its eyes were filled with slaughter and brutality.
Third Level High Tier demon beast, Tiger-Wolf Jackal!
Among Third Level demon beasts, the Tiger-Wolf Jackal was well-known. Every part of its body was valuable: the scales could be forged into armor, the spines into treasure swords, and even its claws could be made into powerful gloves. Even its corpse, without any modifications, was worth over two hundred thousand silver.
Luo Qianyi and Huang Liangping looked at Chu Ming with envy. This time, it was Chu Ming's turn to take action. Although they had gained quite a bit earlier, it was nothing compared to the Tiger-Wolf Jackal.
Even with Chu Ming's normally calm demeanor, he couldn't help but feel a ripple of excitement. Using the Tiger-Wolf Jackal's body to create a treasure sword and armor would vastly increase his strength.
Roar
The Tiger-Wolf Jackal roared and charged at them with overwhelming force, the air exploding along its path. Chu Ming let out a long roar, his fist emitting dazzling golden light like a comet tail.
Boom
Thud, thud, thud
An immense force pushed Chu Ming back a few steps, but he quickly steadied himself. Spiritual Power surged from his body, forming solid green Gang Yuan, and golden light flickered on his hand. In that gold, there was a trace of green. With incredible speed, he launched a furious attack on the Tiger-Wolf Jackal.
Boom, boom, boom
Golden light flashed repeatedly. Under Chu Ming's assault, the Tiger-Wolf Jackal could only barely defend itself. Fear flashed in its eyes, and it tried to flee. Despite the intense attack, its injuries were superficial; its scales had absorbed most of the impact. No wonder so many martial artists wanted to make armor from its scales.
"Dominate the World!"
A burst of yellow light, carrying overwhelming force, exploded the air and shot towards the Tiger-Wolf Jackal's head. Explosions echoed, and in the blink of an eye, Chu Ming's fist struck the Tiger-Wolf Jackal's skull.
Poof
The Tiger-Wolf Jackal was no match for Chu Ming. In terms of strength, it was on par with Yan Zhenhai, if not slightly inferior. Its huge head exploded under Chu Ming's blow, bleeding from all orifices.
The others helped strip the scales, spines, and claws from the Tiger-Wolf Jackal, placing them in a large snake-skin bag. Chu Ming did not dare to take out his Storage Ring at this time.
"Brother Chu, I have a proposal!" As they continued on, Huang Liangping approached Chu Ming and said.
"Go ahead," Chu Ming said, already guessing what Huang Liangping wanted to say.
"I am willing to pay one hundred and fifty thousand silver for the Tiger-Wolf Jackal's spines and half of its scales. What do you think, Brother Chu?" Huang Liangping longed for the spines. Although not wide, they were enough to forge a great blade, significantly boosting his strength.
"I have no problem with the scales, but I also need the spines," Chu Ming shook his head, rejecting the offer. Huang Liangping glanced at the longsword at Chu Ming's waist and thoughtfully nodded. Although he felt some regret, it wasn't a total loss. In the end, Huang Liangping paid fifty thousand silver for half of the scales. Luo Qianyi had initially wanted to buy the spines too, but after hearing their conversation, he gave up.
"Ahead lies the inner periphery of the Cyan Yang Mountain Range. Everyone, be careful!"
After half a day's journey, Li Lingru shouted loudly. Chu Ming and the others nodded, knowing that even True Dao martial artists had to be cautious here. A slight lapse could result in death. They could not afford to be careless.
Without any delay, they pressed on. They had to return before sunset, as the mountains were even more dangerous at night.
"The medicine collection point is just ahead!" Feeling the dense Spiritual Qi around, Li Lingru's voice became excited. Chu Ming and the others also sensed the increased Spiritual Qi, faintly resembling a mist.
"Oh!"
The Li Family members couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Their nerves had been tight the entire way, not daring to relax for fear of becoming prey for demon beasts and never returning home.
Thankfully, their efforts would be rewarded. Once they collected the herbs, returning should be easier.
A moment later, the group reached a large basin. From the viewpoint, the basin spanned several miles, lush with various herbs like Gold and Silver Flower, White Poplar Fruit, Tianyang Fruit, Black Snake Grass, Purple Vine Flower, Thousand-legged Grass... nearly a hundred types of herbs. The dense Spiritual Qi gathered above, forming a faint mist, giving the scene an ethereal quality.