Chapter 61

Second update! A new volume begins, with many details of the outline still needing refinement. There will be two updates today, and three more tomorrow. I seek your support through subscriptions and votes!

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Waves of mountain peaks, layer upon layer.

Towering mountains, nearly ten thousand feet high, were shrouded in clouds, their shapes varying in height and form, resembling ancient behemoths silently squatting.

It was now dusk, and the setting sun cast a blood-red glow, dyeing the clouds. The majestic mountains, bathed in the sunset, formed a grand and imposing scene.

"What happened?"

"Where am I now?"

At the edge of a steep cliff, a young man was muttering to himself. His face was thin and refined, his features broad and resolute, exuding a steely determination. He was Chen Xi.

Cotton-like clouds drifted over the cliff, and the mountain wind howled, making his clothes flutter. It seemed as if he might take flight at any moment.

However, Chen Xi's brows were furrowed, his eyes filled with deep thought. "I clearly remember fleeing in a panic when the Immortal Mansion collapsed, almost thinking I would die there. How did I end up here in the blink of an eye?"

"Don't think too much. A great being tore through the void to save you." Ji Yu appeared quietly, standing at the edge of the cliff, his expression tinged with surprise.

Tear through the void? A great being?

Chen Xi drew a sharp breath. He could hardly imagine what kind of powerful being could possess such a terrifying ability to tear through the void.

After a moment, he noticed something. Ji Yu had said "you" in the plural, implying that Chai Letian and Su Jiao had also been saved.

"But why did that great being help us?" Chen Xi asked.

Ji Yu shook his head and sighed, "I can't understand it either. Perhaps he just happened to pass by and saw you on the brink of death, so he helped you out, accumulating some merit for himself."

Accumulating merit, but it seems too coincidental...

Chen Xi couldn't figure it out and stopped thinking about it. He sighed, "I narrowly escaped, but now I'm stranded in these vast mountains. The mountains stretch endlessly, and I don't know how to get back to Songyan City."

"If my guess is correct, this should be the heart of the hundred-thousand-mile Southern Barbarian Mountains. Look over there, the demonic aura rises to the sky, dense and unscattered, clearly indicating that a powerful demon beast is lurking there." Ji Yu pointed to a towering mountain peak in the distance.

Chen Xi's heart tightened. He looked in the direction Ji Yu pointed and saw, indeed, a mountain peak in the distance shrouded in rolling black mist, like a pillar of smoke that wouldn't dissipate.

A demon beast that had reached the innate realm could transform into a human form, but the demonic aura on its body could not be erased. The deeper its cultivation, the denser the demonic aura.

The towering demonic aura on that distant mountain peak undoubtedly proved that a very powerful demon beast was lurking there. Even Ji Yu couldn't accurately judge its strength, let alone Chen Xi.

"Hmm?"

Ji Yu seemed to sense something, his brows furrowing. After a moment of silence, he relaxed and said, "It seems you've indeed wandered into a dangerous place infested by demon beasts." With that, he vanished.

"Actually... a human!"

Before Chen Xi could understand what Ji Yu meant, a rough voice echoed from the distance, the words halting, as if the speaker had just learned to talk.

Chen Xi stood on the edge of a cliff at the top of a steep mountain peak, surrounded by clouds. Behind him was a rugged, uneven rock surface.

A black-clothed youth with a hideous face and a sturdy build stood there, his green eyes gleaming with cruelty and savagery.

"An innate realm demon beast?"

Chen Xi had once slain several innate realm demon beasts in the Southern Barbarian Mountains. He was no longer a novice and could immediately identify the black-clothed youth's identity.

"Ah, indeed a human. I, Mu Kui, have practiced for nearly a thousand years and have never encountered a human before. I've heard that human flesh is tender and delicious. I wonder if it's true."

Mu Kui spoke to himself, growing more excited as he spoke. He occasionally licked his lips with a blood-red tongue, revealing a mouth full of sharp, cold teeth.

"Want to eat my flesh? Demon beasts are still demon beasts, even if they transform into human form, they can't change their bloodthirsty nature."

Chen Xi shook his head and, with a step, used the Eight Steps of the Heavenly Dragon, his body darting forward like a hunting leopard, charging at Mu Kui.

Mu Kui never expected Chen Xi to attack so suddenly. In a daze, he was already being assaulted by Chen Xi.

Bang!

A simple punch sent Mu Kui flying. Before he could land, Chen Xi pounced again, elbowing and swinging his arm, his fist drilling down.

With a loud thud, Mu Kui was slammed into the hard rock, his body deeply embedded, and blood trickled from the corners of his mouth.

Swish!

Chen Xi raised his fist again.

"Stop, stop, I surrender! Please, sir, spare my life, spare my life!" Mu Kui cried in terror, a cruel and angry look flashing in his eyes.

Trying to deceive me?

Chen Xi sneered inwardly, ignoring Mu Kui's pleas. He delivered dozens more punches, each one with full force, until Mu Kui's flesh was torn and his bones shattered.

For a moment, the entire mountain peak was filled with Mu Kui's desperate cries for mercy, the sound so pitiful that it moved the heart.

"Are you still going to eat my flesh?" Chen Xi asked coldly, looking at the nearly lifeless Mu Kui on the ground.

He wasn't heartless and didn't intend to exterminate all demon beasts. However, Mu Kui was extremely cunning, clearly pretending to surrender to deceive Chen Xi. If he didn't instill a deep fear in Mu Kui, who knew what might happen.

The world of demon beasts was even more brutal than that of humans, adhering to the law of the strong ruling the weak, where the one with the strongest fist had the final say, without any regard for reason or emotion.

"I dare not, I dare not. I, a lowly one, failed to recognize your greatness. Please, sir, forgive me."

Mu Kui's voice was filled with fear and respect. His face, swollen and red from Chen Xi's punches, made his already hideous appearance even more unbearable to look at.

"Good. I have some questions. If you answer them to my satisfaction, I'll spare you. Get up."

Chen Xi folded his arms and said.

"Certainly, certainly. I will answer everything to the best of my knowledge, ensuring your satisfaction." Mu Kui struggled to stand, nodding despite the intense pain.

"Where are we?"

"Sir, this is within the hundred-thousand-mile Southern Barbarian Mountains. This mountain is called Bao Yue, where I practice."

"Do you know how to get out of here?" Chen Xi asked, his expression unchanged, making it impossible to read his true thoughts.

To Mu Kui, Chen Xi seemed unfathomable, reinforcing his belief that Chen Xi was a powerful human who had mistakenly wandered into this place.

However, Chen Xi's second question left Mu Kui momentarily stunned. "Sir, don't you know how you got here?"

Chen Xi hummed, the dissatisfaction in his voice making Mu Kui shiver. He hesitated and said, "Sir, I have practiced here since childhood and have never left Bao Yue Mountain in a thousand years. I cannot answer this question."

"Alright, you may go." Chen Xi pondered for a moment and waved his hand.

Mu Kui was taken aback. Was he being let go so easily? He was unsure what to do.

At that moment—

A deep, booming voice echoed from the foot of the mountain, "Mu Kui, I will kill you today! Come out and face me!"

The voice was so loud that it reverberated throughout Bao Yue Mountain.

"Finished. That guy Li Hu is back..." Mu Kui's face changed, looking utterly desolate and dispirited.

Chen Xi couldn't help but ask, "Is he very powerful?"

Mu Kui laughed bitterly, "He is about as strong as I am, but in my current state, I am no match for him. Sigh, if it weren't for Sir just now..."

"Are you blaming me for injuring you?" Chen Xi coldly interrupted.

Mu Kui was startled, realizing that the person beside him was even more ruthless than Li Hu. He quickly explained, "Sir, please don't be angry. I absolutely did not mean that, absolutely not!"

"Why does Li Hu want to kill you?" Chen Xi was just scaring him. Seeing his submission, he felt a bit sorry for him.

"It's all because he wants to seize my practice cave."

Mu Kui gritted his teeth, "To be honest, Sir, my cave contains a segment of an excellent spirit vein. Li Hu somehow got wind of it and wants to take over my cave, leaving me with no place to live."

"Why are you telling me this? Aren't you afraid I'll take it?" Chen Xi looked at Mu Kui meaningfully.

Mu Kui knew his thoughts couldn't be hidden from Chen Xi and answered straightforwardly, "If Sir can help me kill Li Hu, I will gladly give you the practice cave."

"What about you?" Chen Xi pressed.

Mu Kui fell to his knees, kowtowing repeatedly, and said loudly, "I am willing to follow Sir, becoming your spirit beast, serving you for life."

Chen Xi was taken aback, never expecting Mu Kui to make such a sacrifice.

When a demon beast recognized a master, it was equivalent to making a heavenly vow, binding it to serve its master for life, with its life and death completely in the master's hands. No spirit beast would willingly do this unless under special circumstances.

"Mu Kui, you can't hide. Come out and face your death!"

The deep, booming voice echoed again, and a fiery red figure was sprinting up the mountain toward the peak.

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