Plop plop...
Small raindrops fell on Ye Mo's head one after the other at intermittent intervals.
When he opened his eyes, the centipede wandering on his ruined face quickly scurried away in panic.
He grunted deeply as he used his hands to support his body with difficulty, the rocks on his back falling on both sides.
As he did, pangs of pain ran through his body, and he felt his bones creak loudly.
"My injuries are too severe, the healing pill that was usually so effective could only preserve my life while I was unconscious..." Ye Mo could see the blood on his clothes and feel his broken bones with each movement.
He slowly dragged his wounded body towards a tree and used the trunk as support to sit down. He left a trail of blood in his wake mixed with the dry pool he was lying on being washed away by the intensifying rain.
"I can't stay here indefinitely, my qi recovered by half so I must have been out for one day and two nights at least. I have to quickly heal and leave this place."
Without actively cultivating to restore your reserves, qi recovery was slow. Ye Mo looked at his reserves and deduced how long he was unconscious.
He popped another healing pill in his mouth and cultivated using the qi absorption of the Nine Revolutions Fiend Body.
Right now was not the moment to regain his qi but to recover from his injuries.
Now that his situation was stabilized, the healing pill finally showed a recovery effect. Coupled with the qi absorbed in his body, Ye Mo could feel himself slowly recuperate.
New skin grew out on his face and slowly joined the old, creating irregular claw marks all over. Although he was still disfigured, it was much better than his previous frightening appearance. With time and proper treatment, those scars would disappear as well.
However, the rate of recovery of his body was minor, and he would need at least an entire day just to be able to move properly.
"So it was all a trap... Wei Leng knew there were rank 3 beasts in this jungle and sent me to my death. This story about hunting here or the cave of pure iridescent iron was just bullshit." Ye Mo lamented.
From Wei Leng's story, he was a mortal hunting in the jungle when he found the cave, but how could it be possible with rank 3 beasts living in the surroundings when even Ye Mo barely survived?
It was impossible, a mere flesh devourer sleeping plant could easily kill a mortal if they attacked.
Moreover, blood beasts were very territorial creatures, once one set foot in their domain, they would immediately attack. That's what happened to Ye Mo when he was chased by the ape, and that's what happened to the ape when he was confronted by the firebird.
"He probably prepared this fake map from the start, in case he was in danger, he could use it as a bargaining chip. Not only would he be able to save his life, he would also send his assailant to his death. A flawless plan, and I have been played like a fool!" Ye Mo was infuriated.
When he thought of his current situation, what has transpired became evident. At the time, he carefully observed Wei Leng's expressions, fully listening to his story, waiting for a small loophole to uncover his lies, but in the end, he didn't find anything. Now that he realized he had been tricked, he was truly enraged!
But soon he quickly calmed down and returned to his cold disposition. What happened was already fixed in the past, there was no use setting his emotions ablaze over it. Better dealing with the situation at hand.
Ye Mo always had a cold-blooded nature, but it was even more true since he started cultivating a demonic technique.
True demonic cultivators always had to cover their tracks and remain hidden, not only were they hunted down by righteous forces, but they would also engage in killing among each other for benefits. Being an enemy of all, you couldn't survive as an impulsive idiot.
Big heavy raindrops fell perpetually, and the earth quickly turned into mud. Although Ye Mo was sitting under a tree, its foliage couldn't completely protect him, and after some time he was drenched from head to toe.
But he paid it no mind as he was immersed in his reflections. From time to time he would swallow another healing pill and continued cultivating.
As he completely focused on his recovery, he also had a lot of time to think.
He incessantly replayed the story in his head. From the instant he met Wei Leng to the moment he stepped into the jungle until his current position.
What mistake did I make? What lesson should I learn from this? Did I miss something?
Ye Mo was indignant.
He was unwilling!
If he really was tricked, then he won't allow it to happen again.
Time passed and scenes flashed in his mind continously, each word spoken resounded in his head.
Everything turned in his mind again and again.
A long time passed in silent musing.
And at some point, Ye Mo's eyes brightened.
The shadows of doubts were dispelled.
A flash of understanding!
At this instant everything became clear.
"It wasn't a ploy from Wei Leng. From the start I had a weird feeling because, beside the flesh devourer sleeping plants, I didn't encounter anything but ordinary animals and bugs. There were no blood beasts at all. It was because I was in the territory of a rank 3 blood beast. From blood beasts to cultivators, these territorial creatures don't accept anyone in their home. That's why since I have set foot in their domain, the ape chased me all the way back to the firebird terrain."
However, it still had flesh devourer sleeping plants inside its territory. That's because as plants they are just seen as a part of the vegetation for the ape, and since they live most of the time underground, they wouldn't even be seen in the first place. That's the same for Wei Leng, as a mortal he was just an ant, insignificant, a part of nature like the animals living there. Would you go out of your way to kill an ant? There was no reason to do so."
"But concerning myself, I am a cultivator. I have clear qi fluctuations that can easily be sensed by rank 3 beasts. In this case, if Wei Leng is an ant, I'm comparable to a mosquito. Although I'm of no real danger as well, I am a bother buzzing around constantly and if I tried, with my battle skills, I could still cause it an unpleasant itch. Such an eyesore, it was better to crush immediately once spotted and be done with it."
"As for flesh devourer sleeping plants, they don't attack if you don't walk right above their position. If you know well about these plants then there are multiple ways to avoid them no matter if you are a mortal or a cultivator. For mortal hunters to come here, it means they should roughly know the terrain and their dangers and due to their frail constitution as mortals, they would be much more careful than a cultivator. Not only would they easily know the position of the flesh devourer sleeping plants, but there would be no reason to go in their area since the few beasts that pass by would quickly get devoured."
When he thought about it, Ye Mo was certain to be correct. The fact he was still alive after all this time only confirmed his conjectures.
Being in a rank 3 blood beast's territory almost killed him but also saved his life. If there were many blood beasts living in the surroundings, he would have been devoured while unconscious, but here he rests in peace, only bugs approaching him.
Ye Mo reviewed all the clues he had so far and was sure he touched on the truth.
After all, why would Wei Leng create a fake map and trick people in the first place? Those that took part in the Tiger Martial Institute's recruitment competition were filled with expectations and were willing to pursue a bright future. They would not think of their death at all.
Even if they did so, to create such a scheme, it would take someone extremely cunning and desperate.
Does Wei Leng fit this description? Cunning was debatable, but desperate? He was part of a good team and had Ren Xue Tu, a powerful 5th layer Qi Gathering Realm cultivator from a good family to fight off the dangers of the forest. He had high chances to pass the first phase.
Once in the tournament, the trick with the map held no meaning, he couldn't just pull it out in front of everyone and ask his opponent to forfeit. Not only would the map be seized, but Wei Leng would still get disqualified.
Moreover, even if he wasn't able to join the Tiger Martial Institute, he had a good cultivation technique that could meet his needs for several years.
"The cave of pure iridescent iron should be real as well then."
Ye Mo smirked.
With a peaceful mind, he cultivated a day and a night, recuperating to the best of his abilities.
At the first lights of dawn, Ye Mo rose up.
The rain has stopped, but dark grey clouds lingered, sending a morose atmosphere.
"I am good to go around and use my battle skills, but internal injuries remain. I will have to deal with it later, or they could impact my cultivation."
Ye Mo moved towards the battle site of the two rank 3 beasts.
When he reached the place, what welcomed him was a scene of devastation. A barren land, the few trees standing were burnt black, no vegetation, and broken boulders and small craters littered the ground all around the enormous one created from the initial explosion.
As he examined the surroundings, he found tufts of wet black fur mixed with blood, sending a disgusting smell. He also found a curved, sharp claw almost half his size planted on the ground.
He knew the rain did its job as he would certainly have found pools of blood and lingering flames in the area if he had come a day earlier.
"None of them died or there would be clear traces about it, but they sustained deep injuries. Ultimately they are rank 3 beasts, rather than giving in to their rage and fighting to the death, they both retreated and went deep in their respective territory, showing their superior wisdom over ordinary blood beasts."
"Yet, to retreat, both of them should have been severely injured or they would not have let their enemy escape. None of them would bother with me at this point even if I intruded on their territory. This is the law of the jungle, they have to heal and recover their strength to be able to defend themselves, or they might be killed and have their place taken by another beast."
Ye Mo concluded in his heart.
The world was harsh to every living being, humans and beasts alike.
He was relieved, but at the same time he thought it was a pity. His cultivation of the Nine Revolutions Fiend Body has been stagnating for a while now; if he could use it on one of these rank 3 blood beasts, the enormous energy he would garner would immediately make him breakthrough the second revolution.
The beasts should be in a very bad state, it was a great occasion if only he were stronger.
"The Nine Revolutions Fiend body is the most effective against humans, but it doesn't matter in this case. There's such a gap between my current cultivation and these beasts that absorbing their blood would directly propel my body refining technique to a new level!"
The problem was how to achieve such a feat. Ye Mo was only at the 5th layer of the Qi Gathering realm, even if the Wrathful Black Ape or the firebird were on the brink of death, they could just roll on their side in their sleep to kill him.
Ye Mo started retracing his steps as he kept in thought.
He could feel there was an opportunity at hand, but to grasp it was difficult and depended on the person's resourcefulness.
"Considering they are severely wounded, it would require at the minimum a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator with good offensive methods to make some damage, but I have no ally. What I have instead..."
The corners of his mouth raised slightly.
He left the zone of battle and engulfed himself in the woods, his silhouette blending with the shadows as he moved towards Azure Water City with an evil glint in his eyes.