A few days later, Zhou Shu finished drawing the necessary talismans, and the three of them set out for the Qingyuan Mountains.
The Qingyuan Mountains are vast, teeming with countless demonic beasts.
These beasts are cultivators' natural adversaries and their greatest resources, their flesh and blood, as well as their demonic elixirs, offer countless benefits. However, most cultivators only venture into the outer reaches of the mountains, never venturing deeper. It's said that deep within the mountains lie demonic beasts as high as the fifth rank, equivalent to a human cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage. Encountering them is certain death.
Within the Qingyuan Mountains, each sect, depending on its power, has designated its own demon-hunting areas, and other sects rarely venture beyond their boundaries.
Zhou Shu was thrilled on his first demon-hunting adventure, a departure from his usual self.
He and Yang Mei walked together, running around, earning the mature Yan Yue occasional smiles and scoldings.
She sighed softly. If she hadn't been desperate, she wouldn't have brought two Qi Refining Realm First-Level cultivators with her. But if she failed to complete her mission this time, her chances of entering the Inner Gate would be slim, and her future would be difficult.
Looking at Zhou Shu's back, she frowned. "What's wrong with me? I pinned my hopes on a young man who's just started cultivating immortality, and even led them through such danger. I just hope the result is as he promised, and that the mission will be successfully completed."
All three of them used the magical talisman, and in just two hours, they had covered over fifty miles.
"Don't run around anymore. Monsters could appear up ahead at any moment," Yan Yue warned in a low, serious voice.
Yang Mei stuck out her tongue and quickly moved closer to Yan Yue, her steps becoming more cautious.
A small, shimmering white sword suddenly hovered above Yan Yue's head, its light flickering like a serpent, warily scanning its surroundings, as if ready to swoop out and devour anyone.
She hesitated for a moment, "Junior Brother Zhou, you'd better come over too."
"Okay,"
Zhou Shu replied immediately. He was only at the first level of the Qi Refining Realm and didn't yet know the shield spell. Even if he did, his spiritual power wouldn't last long.
"Senior Sister Yan, is this okay?"
"Yes,"
Zhou Shu nodded softly, seemingly muttering to himself. "Being closer will reduce the spiritual energy consumption of Senior Sister. Don't worry about me. I'll be careful if danger strikes."
Yan Yue smiled. He was just a teenager, so he didn't dwell on it and quickly walked forward.
As he approached the two women, a faint fragrance hit him, and Zhou Shu's heart fluttered slightly, but he quickly regained his composure and stared calmly ahead.
"Senior Sister, a demonic beast!"
Yang Mei suddenly exclaimed.
From the boulder ahead, an extremely majestic bear-like demonic beast slowly emerged. Nearly a meter tall, its body covered in long, jet-black fur, its crimson eyes fixed on them intently.
Yan Yue glanced at it calmly, "The black-haired bear, a low-ranking demonic beast, don't be afraid. If it doesn't come, we won't have to deal with it."
But the black-haired bear refused to obey. It waddled closer, raised its palm-leaf fan-like paw, and struck directly at them.
Yan Yue raised her eyebrows slightly and shouted, "How dare you come!"
The silver sword above her head whistled softly and shot out with the speed of a dragon, piercing through a tuft of white hair on the black bear's forehead.
Instead of the expected splash of blood, the black bear collapsed to the ground, dead without a single movement.
That single sword had extinguished all life in it.
"Excellent technique, Senior Sister!"
Zhou Shu's eyes shone with envy. Flying like a fairy with a sword had always been his dream, but after this incident, he had to put it on hold.
The sword flew back to its original position, hovering above Yan Yue's head, humming softly.
Yang Mei clapped her hands and praised, "Hey, Senior Sister, you're the best."
"Let's go. There's nothing worthwhile on this monster."
Yan Yue frowned and took the lead, with the two quickly following.
They traveled day and night for two days, encountering many monsters along the way, but they were relatively safe. Most of the monsters were low-level, with only two first-level monsters killed by Yan Yue.
Yan Yue, at the seventh level of the Qi Refining Realm, was only two levels away from establishing her foundation. Specializing in sword control, she possessed formidable offensive power and considerable strength, making it no wonder she was able to accept such challenging missions.
Zhou Shu believed that if Yan Yue were in the Wuwang Sect, she would be well on her way to becoming a direct disciple, but in the Heyin Sect, she was merely an outer disciple.
After passing through several hidden valley paths, the three of them stopped before a chasm stretching for several miles.
"This is it,"
Yan Yue said, having explored the route several times on her own since accepting the mission.
The chasm was incredibly deep, perhaps over a hundred feet deep, and the bottom was pitch black.
Without the ability to fly unless one reached the Condensing Veins Realm, and lacking any magical instruments for flight, the group could only carefully descend along the cracks in the rocks.
As soon as they touched down, Zhou Shu shuddered, his body filled with a chilling dampness that bit his bones. The temperature had dropped by at least several dozen degrees, and the chill was mingled with a pungent, fishy odor that made one nauseous.
Yang Mei shivered and asked with concern, "Brother, are you alright?"
Yan Yue apologized, "I haven't learned any techniques to ward off the cold, so I'll have to ask you to bear with me."
"It's okay,"
Zhou Shu nodded. Remembering the Warm Sun Jade Ring he'd obtained earlier, he quickly took it out and channeled some spiritual energy into it. The ring instantly lit up, forming a shield several feet wide around him, blocking out all the cold air.
Yang Mei leaned over in surprise, smacking her lips, "Wow, Brother has something like this."
Yan Yue was slightly taken aback. "Junior Brother, is this a second-tier magic weapon?"
The jade ring looked of exceptional quality, and a magic weapon that could create a regional shield couldn't be low-tier. However, it was unusual for Zhou Shu, a casual cultivator at the Qi Refining Realm, to possess a magic weapon. Even she only had the Flying Water Sword, a low-tier one.
Zhou Shu smiled and explained, "It's not a magic weapon, it's a useless one. It's useless except for warding off cold and water."
"That's quite impressive, too."
Yan Yue nodded, a faint smile playing on her face. "Junior Brother is always unexpected. Maybe this time there's hope."
Yang Mei shouted quickly, "Of course you can! Senior Brother is a cultivator who can draw a thunderstorm talisman!"
She seemed to have a blind confidence in Zhou Shu, and she didn't know where it came from.
Yan Yue smiled but said nothing.
Like Hua Ruoan, she didn't believe Zhou Shu had actually drawn the thunderstorm talisman.
The valley floor was littered with jagged rocks and tangled vines, making it difficult to walk. The short distance of just a few miles took the three of them nearly half an hour.
"It's right there,"
Yan Yue suddenly pointed ahead, quietly reminding him.
Zhou Shu looked up and saw a giant python coiled against the cliff face several dozen feet away. It stretched out to a length of at least three feet, its body covered in golden stripes. It was undoubtedly the Golden Ringed Kui Python.
As if sensing their presence, the coiled python suddenly stood up, reaching several feet in height, its green gaze darting directly towards them.
Its huge mouth opened and closed, sending up a dense white mist. Its long tongue flickered in and out, creating waves of hissing sounds that echoed throughout the empty valley, appearing particularly terrifying.
Yang Mei was so frightened that she trembled all over, her legs and feet went weak, and she almost collapsed.