Chapter 3

The cave where Ji Ran was hiding was not too far from here. The group tidied up their spoils of war and followed Ji Ran towards the cave.

Speaking of spoils of war, it was actually just a Red-Tailed Fire Wolf. Although there were many other Red-Tailed Wolf corpses, the body parts of these ordinary beasts were not very useful—while the meat could be eaten, the taste of wolf meat was not particularly good.

"Let's leave these corpses here; they'll be eaten by other beasts soon enough. This Red-Tailed Fire Wolf, however, is quite good. It's almost at the third stage, so the quality of its magic crystal should be decent."

The bearded uncle—Ji Ran now knew his name was Lai Si—was quite pleased. Their adventuring team had come to this Blue Pine Forest to hunt magical beasts and obtain spoils. Although the Red-Tailed Fire Wolf was not a rare magical beast, it was still a good catch.

Ji Ran did not comment on this, as he had only recently arrived in this world and knew little beyond the fact that it was a magical world. However, he did have some basic knowledge of these so-called magical beasts, as the world he was in was very similar to the worlds of the two games he had played. In the immortal cultivation game he played, these magical beasts were called demon beasts.

He also knew about magic crystals, as in the past half month, he had hunted a couple of magical beasts. These things were similar to the demon cores in the demon beasts, being excellent materials with various applications. Although the Red-Tailed Fire Wolf was killed by him, he had essentially picked up the leftovers from others, so he did not feel right taking it directly. Anyway, meeting this group was already the biggest gain for him.

The cave where Ji Ran was hiding was actually quite good, situated on a small hill with high ground, so rainwater would not flow in. There were a few large rocks at the entrance, with vines hanging down, and some shrubs growing nearby. Even if someone passed by, they would find it hard to discover the cave unless they carefully examined the vines. Of course, this was after Ji Ran had arranged it.

The inside of the cave was dry and well-ventilated, with ample space, which made Lai Si and the others very satisfied. "This cave is really nice; it can be used as a long-term base. It's also close to the area where second and third-stage magical beasts mix. We can stay here for a few more days... Ji Ran, you don't mind, right?"

Ji Ran naturally shook his head with a smile. "Of course not! I actually hope to travel with you. I got lost here and need to leave. On my own, I don't know how long it would take, but with your help, it would be much easier."

After hearing Ji Ran's words, Lai Si thought for a moment and then made a decision. "No problem! Let's make it official! You are now a temporary member of our adventuring team!"

Lai Si's decision was not opposed by the others, so it was basically approved. Ji Ran did not expect things to go so smoothly and was slightly surprised. However, it seemed that these people were not the type to go back on their word, so it should be fine.

Once they entered the cave, Lai Si and the others found a place to rest. In a corner of the cave, Ji Ran had spread out dry, soft grass, making it a good place to rest.

The cave also contained other items, such as some tubers and roots, dried wild vegetables, and some pine nuts. There was not much meat stored, as Ji Ran knew few methods to preserve meat without salt, and there were plenty of wild beasts around to hunt.

During the journey, they also hunted a few mountain chickens and rabbits, which were enough for dinner.

Once they arrived at the cave, Ji Ran started to get busy. He processed the prey, selected some wild vegetables and roots, washed them, and cut them into pieces. There was a small stream nearby, making it easy to fetch water.

"Ji Ran, I saw your sword technique just now. It's very unique and quite different from the sword techniques we use here. But it seems to be very powerful... especially that last strike, I couldn't even see how you did it!"

The two young men were brothers. The younger brother, while helping to clean the Red-Tailed Fire Wolf, chatted with Ji Ran.

Ji Ran now knew the names of the two brothers: the older brother was called Ban, and the younger brother was called Beck. Ban had a more steady personality and used a sword and shield, while Beck was more lively and skilled with a spear.

"Um... it's a family sword technique called 'Four Seasons.' I'm not very proficient with it, and I really regret not practicing it more when I was at home." Ji Ran shrugged.

The sword technique called 'Four Seasons' was indeed correct, but it was not a family sword technique. It was a signature sword technique of the Zang Jian Manor in one of the games he played, 'Sword Hero Unrivaled.' This sword technique, named after the four seasons, had twenty-four moves, corresponding to the twenty-four solar terms.

These moves were basic sword techniques, and their power depended on the amount of true qi Ji Ran invested. The last move, however, was not an ordinary sword technique but a sword skill.

Sword skills were different from sword techniques, with various bonuses and increased power when infused with true qi. However, the sword skills of the 'Four Seasons' sword technique were not something you could just learn; they required 'enlightenment.' In the game, certain conditions had to be met for the skill to appear in the player's skill list.

The last move was the first sword skill Ji Ran had enlightened, called 'Tide Breaker.'

A swift sword strike, cutting through the raging waves.

A perfect combination of speed and power, dealing massive damage to the enemy!

'Tide Breaker' was one of the most powerful sword skills in the 'Four Seasons' sword technique. However, its usage conditions were quite strict, requiring the user to dodge an attack before using it, and it consumed a significant amount of sword qi, half a bar.

Sword qi was a characteristic of the Zang Jian Manor. Each attack provided a certain amount of sword qi, and every ten levels added an additional bar. Sword skills required different amounts of sword qi to function properly.

Of course, if you used 'Tide Breaker' directly against an opponent, it could still be used, but its power and speed would be greatly reduced, making it not much stronger than an ordinary sword technique.

Ji Ran was currently level 18, having gained his first bar of sword qi at level 10. The next bar would be gained at level 20. Sword qi had other uses besides powering sword skills, but with so little sword qi, he had no chance to use those functions.

"Ji Ran's sword technique is really good. Look, the Red-Tailed Fire Wolf's injuries are all on its abdomen, and the fatal strike was a vertical cut. This way, the entire pelt can be removed intact, with almost no damage, making it much more valuable!" Beck, the younger brother, was excited as he skinned the Red-Tailed Fire Wolf.

Lai Si also nodded. "That's right. The most valuable thing on a Red-Tailed Fire Wolf, besides the magic crystal, is its pelt. An intact one like this will definitely fetch a good price!"

Ji Ran smiled. "When I was at home, I often hunted, and the old hunters in the village taught me various techniques. This is just one of them, a habit."

"This habit is no small matter; it's a necessary skill for a qualified hunter. Those two over there still haven't mastered it!" Lai Si smiled and nodded towards the brothers.

Ban's face immediately showed embarrassment, while Beck was nonchalant.

"Having Uncle Lai Si in the past and now having little brother Ji Ran, we don't have to worry so much. We can learn slowly. Look, at least we're quite skilled at skinning!" Beck finished peeling the last bit of fur from the Red-Tailed Fire Wolf and was about to throw the corpse away—having already taken out the magic crystal.

"Wait! Don't throw it away; this is the main dish for tonight!" Ji Ran immediately stopped Beck. This was the meat of a magical beast; how could it be thrown away so casually?

Beck looked at Ji Ran strangely. "The meat of magical beasts is generally hard to eat, and the chaotic magical energy inside is not suitable for human consumption. Only magical beasts can absorb a little. It's basically useless to us. I was planning to feed it to Hualuo. You want to use this to cook?"

Ji Ran was somewhat surprised. In this world, the meat of magical beasts could not be eaten? But in 'Immortal Cultivation Freedom,' the meat of demon beasts was highly nourishing and one of the main ingredients in cooking skills!

Moreover, he had previously killed a magical beast and eaten it, and the effects were different from the game but still provided significant benefits. This meant that the meat of magical beasts could be eaten!

"Rest assured, my family has a traditional method of cooking the meat of magical beasts, making it incredibly delicious—most importantly, it allows the magical energy within the meat to be used by humans! I won't lie to you; trust me with this!" Ji Ran looked up with a confident smile.