Translator: Anubis Translations
Hiss~~
Hiss~~
In a corner of the Medicine Garden, a green and a red serpent flicked their crimson tongues, their glowing eyes fixed on Gu Feng, emanating an eerie light.
"Little Green, Little White, come at me together!"
Most of the spirit beasts here were in the Qi Refining Realm, and Little Green and Little White were two second-level Qi Refining serpents. Having mastered the "Ten Thousand Beasts Manual," Gu Feng used them as his sparring partners.
The serpents' attacks were swift, their fangs menacing. Gu Feng moved like a raging beast—sometimes like a lion descending a mountain, sometimes like a wolf pouncing, sometimes like a deer leaping, sometimes like an eagle swooping. He used every part of his body as a weapon: hands, feet, elbows, knees, shoulders, hips, even his head and teeth. Every bone in his body was in motion, maximizing its potential.
It didn't take long for the two serpents to be defeated, lying there with their eyes glazed, their bodies trembling slightly as they whimpered.
They couldn't understand why, among all the spirit beasts here, this human had chosen them to practice on.
Almost every day, they were subjected to a beating!
"Off you go, same time tomorrow!"
Gu Feng laughed heartily, flashing his bright teeth. For some reason, he simply enjoyed beating these two serpents.
Over the past few days, based on the improvements to the "Ten Thousand Beasts Manual" by Elders Liu and Wu, Gu Feng had further upgraded his martial skills by incorporating the weaknesses of human joints and body parts.
His combat skills had at least doubled compared to before he entered the Spirit Beast Garden, and his control and allocation of strength had also improved significantly.
If he were to encounter the thirty or so Body Refinement ninth-level cultivators led by Qiu Ze again, he was confident he could defeat them all in less than a quarter of an incense stick's time.
After stretching and eating a few bites of beast meat, Gu Feng was about to resume his training when the elder in charge of the Spirit Beast Garden slowly approached.
"Young man, you've really done a number on the only two serpents in my Spirit Beast Garden!" Seeing the mess, Elder Meng frowned, but there was a smile on his face.
Over the past few days, he had often secretly observed this young man introduced by Elder Liu. Without exaggeration, Gu Feng was the most talented and hardworking cultivator he had seen in years when it came to martial skill cultivation.
From the bottom of his heart, Elder Meng liked this driven young man. If not for his unique physique, he was destined for greatness—what a pity!
"Elder Meng, my apologies!"
As he spoke, Gu Feng took out a jug of Spirit Wine from his Storage Pouch and respectfully handed it over. Elder Meng, being a wine lover, accepted it with a chuckle.
"Someone's looking for you outside. They seem very anxious, so you'd better go see them."
Hearing this, Gu Feng was momentarily stunned, immediately thinking that the person looking for him must be Yan Xixi and the others.
"Well, I've practiced enough for now. Next, I just need to think about and improve the transitions between the beast forms...
These past few days, thank you for your care, Elder Meng. I'll come find you for a drink sometime!"
Due to the vastly different habits of various spirit beasts, smoothly transitioning between forms was no small feat. It required extensive practice and long-term contemplation. Only then could the "Ten Thousand Beasts Manual" evolve into a perfect martial skill.
After bidding farewell to Elder Meng, Gu Feng quickly made his way to the entrance of the Spirit Beast Garden.
"Xixi? And Wu Qi... why are all of you here?" Seeing the dozens of people standing at the entrance, Gu Feng was bewildered.
"Did you get beaten up again? Don't worry, I'll take you to settle the score. My skills have improved leaps and bounds these past few days in the Spirit Beast Garden. I'll definitely make them howl in pain." Seeing their worried expressions, Gu Feng assumed they had been bullied again and spoke boldly.
"Gu Feng, we weren't bullied!" Yan Xixi said in a low voice, hesitating to continue.
"Former Brother, as the saying goes, 'As long as the green hills remain, there will be no shortage of firewood.' I know you're proud and can't tolerate any slight.
But sometimes, taking a step back isn't a sign of weakness—it's a way to gather strength for a future counterattack!" Wu Qi said with a furrowed brow, his tone serious.
Gu Feng tilted his head, utterly confused. Since when had Wu Qi become so eloquent?
"Right now, the most important thing for you is to focus on your cultivation. After all, there are Outer Sect rules. Qiu Ze and his men won't kill them!" Guo Renkai walked over, patting Gu Feng on the shoulder.
"Huh? Has Qiu Ze's retaliation begun? Who did they catch?"
Finally understanding, Gu Feng's smile faded, his gaze sharp as he scanned the group, noticing Chao Yuan's absence.
"Did Qiu Ze capture Chao Yuan to lure me out?"
"No, no, Chao Yuan just happened to be away from the Outer Sect," Yan Xixi quickly denied, pulling at Gu Feng's sleeve. "It's the members of your Gu family in the Outer Sect. They were ambushed by Qiu Ze and his men while returning from completing an Outer Sect mission."
"Although that area isn't under Outer Sect jurisdiction, the news has spread. At most, Qiu Ze will beat them up. You mustn't act impulsively and fall into Qiu Ze's trap of luring you out."
Yan Xixi spoke anxiously, and Wu Qi and the others nodded in agreement.
Outside the Outer Sect, killing wasn't prohibited, but openly killing an Outer Sect disciple was forbidden. Qiu Ze's goal was to lure Gu Feng out.
There was no denying that Gu Feng was strong, and Qiu Ze knew this. But even so, there were limits to his strength. Given his connections with his two brothers, Qiu Ze might have enlisted the help of Qi Refining Realm cultivators from Carp Mountain.
If Gu Feng dared to go, he would likely suffer greatly, perhaps even be crippled.
Looking at the crowd surrounding him, all trying to dissuade him, Gu Feng couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Using members of the Gu family in the Outer Sect to threaten me? Qiu Ze's quite the strategist!"
Gu Feng's uncharacteristic laughter made Wu Qi and the others feel heavy-hearted.
If they hadn't asked Gu Feng to seek justice for them that day, things wouldn't have escalated to this point.
"Alright, everyone, follow me!"
"Where... where are we going?"
"To celebrate!"
Before anyone could react, Gu Feng began explaining on his own. He recounted how his father's lineage had perished defending the mines, how his resources had been withheld, how he had left the Gu family, and how he had been pursued by his Second and Third Uncles...
"So, not only do you have no familial ties with the Gu family, but there's also significant enmity between you!"
"Qiu Ze's move is utterly pointless. His plan has completely failed."
"All that worry for nothing."
"We should indeed celebrate. Let those heartless Gu family members suffer at Qiu Ze's hands!"
"..."
After understanding the whole story, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The Gu family no longer considered Gu Feng one of their own, so Qiu Ze's threat using Gu family members had become a laughable move.
"Tonight, we drink until we drop!" With Qiu Ze doing what he had always wanted to do, Gu Feng felt a surge of joy.
"Wait!" Guo Renkai stood firm, eyeing Gu Feng cautiously. "Who's paying for tonight?"
"I am!" Gu Feng blinked and smiled.
"Eating together doesn't mean you're paying, and paying doesn't mean you're covering the Spirit Stones. You need to make it clear, or no one's daring to celebrate with you!"
Guo Renkai's words were met with unanimous agreement. Without Chu Youhuan around this time, if Gu Feng pulled another disappearing act, they'd be in trouble.
"Look at you all! Am I that kind of person? Don't worry, tonight, you won't need to pay a single Spirit Stone." Gu Feng pouted. These guys had gotten too smart—he couldn't fool them anymore!
"Haha, you should've said so earlier!"
"With Former Brother saying that, we can finally relax."
The group laughed and shouted as they followed Gu Feng forward.
Before long, they arrived at Gu Feng's small courtyard.
Before anyone could react, Gu Feng sat down on the ground, taking out plates of roasted meat, cups, and Spirit Wine from his Storage Pouch, placing them in the courtyard.
"Everyone, help yourselves!"
This guy was really something—all this food was leftovers from their meal at the "First Restaurant" the other night.
With the August heat, who knew if eating it would give them stomach trouble?
Looking at the food on the ground, Wu Qi and the others exchanged glances. Not eating it would risk angering Gu Feng, but eating it was truly unappetizing.
"Former Brother, I've come to realize that getting you to spend money on a meal is pretty much impossible in this lifetime.
Let's all chip in and go to a proper restaurant! I'll set an example—I'll contribute 500 Spirit Stones!" Guo Renkai took the lead.
"I'll contribute 500 too!" Wu Qi followed suit.
"500 from me!"
"500!"
"..."
After everyone had pledged their share, their eyes turned to Gu Feng, who reached into his Storage Pouch and generously pulled out a handful of Spirit Stones.
"I'll contribute fifty!"
"Cheap—"
"What? You think it's too little? Fine, I won't contribute then!" Ignoring the disdainful looks, Gu Feng put the fifty Spirit Stones back into his pouch, his eyes lingering on the large pile of Spirit Stones, licking his lips.
"Don't even think about touching these Spirit Stones. Xixi, you're in charge of them. Use them to pay after we're done eating!"
Wu Qi, ever vigilant, grabbed the Spirit Stones from the ground and handed them to Yan Xixi.
"Let's go then!"
"Let's go!"
The group laughed as they headed toward the restaurant.
"Gu Feng, here's your share." While the others weren't paying attention, Yan Xixi quietly took a handful of Spirit Stones from the pooled funds and slipped them into Gu Feng's hand.
"Is it enough for the meal?" Gu Feng asked softly.
"Definitely enough. I'll pick a cheaper restaurant, keep the total cost down, and there might even be some left over. I'll give you the extra!" Yan Xixi whispered back.
She didn't know why Gu Feng was so fond of Spirit Stones, but since he liked them, she wanted to give him some.
(End of the Chapter)
🔥 Read on Patreon.com/AnubisTL – Up to c96. [+12k Words]
☕ $5 Tier gets you ahead of the pack!
📖 Translated 150,000+ Words and counting!