Chapter 78: The Black Plague Birds

Above the marsh.

A flock of large black birds opened their blood-red mouths, spewing gusts of wind that transformed into wind arrows, shooting out in rapid succession.

Chen Mobai immediately crouched in the spirit boat, activating two first-grade lower-quality wooden shield talismans in his hands. Two green shield-shaped light barriers appeared, enveloping his upper body.

With a series of thuds, the first wooden shield talisman's power was exhausted, and the second did not last long either. However, by this time, the large-scale wind arrows had already been blocked.

After breaking through two layers of wooden defense, only three wind arrows managed to reach Chen Mobai's head. The "Water Element Shield" responded to his thoughts, forming three waves of water to block the path of the wind arrows.

"Are you not ready yet?"

While taking out two more talismans from his inner pocket, Chen Mobai asked the person behind him.

"Ready!"

Qi Hou's voice rang out, followed by a burst of scorching heat from behind Chen Mobai. A fiery red sword light shot across the sky, slicing through a dozen black birds hovering above the marsh.

Caw!

With a series of mournful bird cries, the leading bird was cut in half by Qi Hou's fiery red sword light. The remaining birds, without a leader, scattered instantly, but some were still killed by Ba Jiang and others who were waiting.

"The meat of these black plague birds is not tasty, and they don't sell for much in the market."

Qi Hou looked at the talisman that had turned to ashes in his hand and then at the bird carcasses floating on the marsh, his face showing a pained expression.

This first-grade upper-quality "Crimson Flame Sword Talisman" was worth 8 spirit stones. This trip with the newcomers was a loss.

However, he didn't say anything, as in business, there are always gains and losses.

"The feathers of these birds can be sold for some gold."

Ba Xing, noticing Qi Hou's expression, quickly spoke up. Her words made Xi Shixiong, who was standing nearby, raise his head and glare at her, as he would have to pluck the feathers.

"No need. The gold is not worth a spirit stone, and it's not worth the time to waste."

Qi Hou immediately let it go. He took out another spirit stone and placed it in the spirit boat, calling for Chen Mobai and the others to leave.

Black plague birds always travel in flocks, and the highest rank is said to be second-grade.

Now that they had killed a group but not completely, they feared that several more flocks would come for revenge. Qi Hou, with his rich experience, immediately called for his team to flee after the attack.

Before leaving, Qi Hou had them take off and discard their outer coats stained with bird blood, as black plague birds use this to track their enemies.

Sure enough, not long after they left, a dark cloud of black plague birds flew over, circling the place where they had killed the birds and discarded their clothes, bombarding it with strong winds.

"Who would have thought we would attract the bird king. We can't come to this place anymore."

Qi Hou used a long-distance viewing talisman to observe, feeling a powerful and fierce spiritual aura far beyond his own. He frowned, took out his map, and marked an X on this spot.

"Thanks to Senior Brother Qi leading us, otherwise, we would not have escaped the black plague birds' pursuit."

After taking a spirit-recovery pill, Ba Jiang stood up and thanked Qi Hou.

"It's just a matter of mutual benefit."

But Qi Hou shook his head. This place was chosen by him as the leader. Usually, there were only some water python bull demons here, making it a good place for newcomers and independent cultivators to train.

However, today, for some reason, there was such a large flock of black plague birds, and even a second-grade bird king nearby.

The new recruit mission of the Divine Wood Sect usually lasts a month.

Chen Mobai followed several teams afterward and found Qi Hou to be the most reliable, so he joined this trip again. The Ba siblings felt the same way, and this was their third trip with this five-person team, so they were somewhat familiar with each other.

"Tomorrow, let's go hunt the black-armored turtles again."

Qi Hou spoke again. He was only at the ninth level of the Qi Condensation stage, and although he was confident in his combat skills due to years of hunting demons in the Yunmeng Marsh, a second-grade bird king was at the Foundation Establishment level, and even ten of him would not stand a chance.

He was not leading the newcomers to risk his life, so seeing that this area was no longer safe, he immediately changed the plan.

"Senior Brother Qi, I may need to seclude myself for a few days to make some talismans."

Chen Mobai suddenly spoke up, saying that he had gained a lot from following Qi Hou, but his spirit stones were used up, and he could no longer keep up with the team.

The Ba siblings were taken aback. Although they were not short of spirit stones for the moment, the place where the black-armored turtles were had lost its appeal after they had trained there. They also found an excuse to leave the team.

Qi Hou did not get angry when he heard this.

"From the talismans you use, it seems you are inclined towards wood attributes. Do you plan to join our Divine Wood Sect?"

The previously indifferent Xi Shixiong suddenly spoke up.

"Yes, I do have that intention."

Chen Mobai was taken aback, hesitated for a moment, and then nodded lightly.

"I remember you, Chen Guixian."

Xi Shixiong raised his head, looked at Chen Mobai seriously, as if acknowledging him, and nodded.

"With your talent, joining our Divine Wood Sect should not be a problem. Perhaps we will be fellow disciples in the future, so it's good to get to know each other early."

Qi Hou's words surprised the Ba siblings. They knew the requirements for the Divine Wood Sect to recruit independent cultivators: age must not exceed 30, and the cultivation level must be at least the seventh level of the Qi Condensation stage. Although they had teamed up several times, Chen Mobai had never revealed his cultivation level.

They thought he was at most at the sixth level of the Qi Condensation stage, like them.

However, today's actions against the black plague birds revealed Chen Mobai's true cultivation level to Qi Hou. Without forming a divine sense, it would be impossible to transform from someone who was flustered fighting black-armored turtles to someone who handled the situation with ease in such a short time.

"Senior Brother Chen, I didn't expect you to be a talisman maker. No wonder you have an endless supply of talismans, some of which even my brother and I have never seen."

After learning Chen Mobai's cultivation level, Ba Jiang treated him even more politely.

"Not at all, I just have an interest in this area."

After landing on the island, Qi Hou and his junior disciple left first. Chen Mobai and the Ba siblings exchanged a few pleasantries, politely declined their invitation to a meal, and returned to his wooden house.

"Unconsciously, it's been twenty days here."

Chen Mobai looked at the ordinary black robe he bought on Qingguang Island and couldn't help but feel a myriad of emotions.

His ancient-style outfit had long been worn out in battle. Although life in the天河界 (Tianhe World) was tough, he was somewhat addicted to the daily sense of improvement.

If it weren't for today being the day to check the college entrance exam results, he would have almost forgotten to return to the Earthly Origin Star.