Chapter 3: Thousand Cleft Cliff

In the territory of the Thousand Cliffs Sect in the Southern Domain, there is a cliff shrouded in mist all year round, surrounded by ancient trees that are thousands of years old. Due to the numerous layers of the cliff, there are also cliffs below the main cliff, making it unfathomably deep. Hence, it is called the Thousand Cleft Cliff. It is said that the name of the Thousand Cliffs Sect was given by the founding ancestor because of this cliff.

Wild beasts often appear near the Thousand Cleft Cliff. According to rumors, there are even legendary demonic beasts that can attack humans with supernatural powers. Ordinary people dare not approach, but strangely, the wild beasts never venture too far from the Thousand Cleft Cliff, as if they are restrained by something.

Wild beasts generally do not cultivate, but once they start, they enter the Qi Absorption stage and are called demonic beasts, similar to the Qi Practitioner stage for humans, but without a demonic core. After prolonged absorption of the essence of the sun, moon, and earth, they form a demonic core, and once the core is formed, they are called 'Core Formation' stage, with strength comparable to a human Foundation Establishment stage.

Here, wild beasts often fight fiercely over food, and even the legendary demonic beasts frequently engage in small-scale conflicts, but they usually do not fight to the death unless for some spiritual item.

Near the center of the Thousand Cleft Cliff, the mist is somewhat thinner, and strange rocks stand tall. At the base of a cliff, there is a green python about ten feet long and a three-legged toad about five feet tall, both of which are covered in wounds, staring at each other. Their injuries are quite severe.

Between them, a plant is particularly eye-catching, as the fruit it bears is so alluring, a blood-red color that can make one feel dizzy and unable to break free, as if one's mind is being drawn into it.

Above the two demonic beasts, about thirty feet up the cliff, a small tree grows, and a figure is lying motionless on its branches. This figure is dressed in white, around thirteen or fourteen years old, with slightly dark skin and a very ordinary appearance. His small eyes are slightly cloudy, and he is staring intently at the blood-red fruit at the bottom of the cliff.

This person is Ye Fei, who fell off the cliff. Fortunately, he managed to grab a vine, which slowed his fall, and he ended up hanging from a small tree. It was fortunate that he did not fall to the bottom of the cliff, but even hanging here, thirty feet up, is not easy for an ordinary person to climb down.

At this moment, Ye Fei's face is slightly pale, and he is struggling to move his gaze away from the alluring red fruit. He dares not even take a deep breath. If it weren't for his determination to see his parents, his mind might have been absorbed by the fruit, and he would have lost consciousness.

"Phew, if I had woken up any later, I would have fallen and been devoured by those two demonic beasts. This small tree is almost at its limit; I need to leave quickly," Ye Fei whispered to himself, pondering the strange nature of the alluring fruit.

Looking along the cliff, Ye Fei searched for a way down. "Without a rope or vine, I can only use my sword to pierce the cliff and move down bit by bit. But I can't move as long as those two demonic beasts are here. They seem to be at the human Foundation Establishment stage."

"Absolutely cannot alarm those two demonic beasts, or it will be even more dangerous." As he spoke, a hint of anxiety flashed in Ye Fei's eyes. He touched the gray leather pouch at his waist, which is a storage bag used by cultivators. Though it looks small, it has a considerable internal space.

Suddenly, the small tree creaked and bent, with only the roots still attached to the cliff, as if it could break off at any moment. Ye Fei was startled and broke out in a cold sweat, tightly hugging the tree.

The two demonic beasts below heard the noise and, as if a fuse had been lit, resumed their fierce battle.

The green python opened its mouth and spewed a pale blue light containing icy power, which surged towards the three-legged toad.

The three-legged toad glared and opened its mouth, spewing a gray mist that instantly mixed with the blue light.

A series of 'crackling' sounds followed, and the mist was instantly frozen into ice sheets, which fell from above the two.

Suddenly, the three-legged toad let out a strange cry and spewed a dark gray beam of light, which struck the green python. The beam exploded, turning into a dense gray mist that wrapped around the python's body.

A series of muffled sounds followed, and the green python's skin began to rot visibly upon contact with the gray mist, showing the strength of the poison.

The green python stood upright, howling in pain, and its body glowed blue, resisting the gray poison. However, gray threads soon filled its eyes, indicating that the poison had invaded its body.

The green python's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and it used all its strength to spew a crystalline beam of light. Its body then stiffened and fell heavily to the ground, clearly on its last breath.

Seeing the crystalline beam approaching, the three-legged toad suddenly turned around, and its hind leg glowed gray, extending to twice its length. It then raised its huge leg and blocked the beam.

A loud 'boom' echoed, and a blue light burst, sending the three-legged toad flying several feet away, creating a large pit in the ground.

The three-legged toad was also severely injured, with its hind leg bloody and frozen by the blue light. Its aura was at its lowest, but it saw that the green python was still not dead.

The three-legged toad's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and it dragged its stiff body, leaping several feet high, and opened its terrifying mouth, pouncing on the helpless green python.

At this moment, a 'snap' was heard, and the small tree Ye Fei was on broke completely. Ye Fei's figure plummeted rapidly towards the three-legged toad in mid-air.

The three-legged toad felt a whistling sound from above and realized it was too late to dodge. It felt something heavy hit its body, and vaguely saw a human figure with a flash of green light in its hand.

Two muffled 'thuds' followed, and Ye Fei's body hit the three-legged toad, which then fell heavily to the ground. The toad, already on its last legs, let out a strange cry and could barely move.

Ye Fei also fell off the toad. Seeing this, the toad's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and it turned its head, opening its mouth to bite Ye Fei.

Ye Fei's face changed, but he maintained a calm look, using his last bit of strength to make a hand seal and point at the toad's back.

A strange scene unfolded: the fierce toad suddenly showed a look of fear, and its head let out a mournful cry, as if it had been injured. It then fell weakly to the ground.

At the same time, a three-foot-long sword had been inserted into the toad's back. As Ye Fei made the hand seal, the sword glowed with a green light and completely pierced the toad's body.

"Thankfully, I prepared in advance and used the Yuan Guang Sword to pierce the toad's body as I fell from the tree. Otherwise, I would have been devoured." As Ye Fei spoke, his vision blurred, and he fainted, falling between the toad and the python.

After an unknown amount of time, a gentle breeze blew, and Ye Fei, who was unconscious, moved his fingers slightly. A moment later, he opened his cloudy eyes.

"Am I not dead?" Ye Fei said, sitting up with difficulty and looking around. His eyes dimmed.

"Father, Mother, Fei must find a great person to cure the illness and live past eighteen. I will avenge you." Recalling the previous scenes, Ye Fei's young face showed immense determination, with a tear glistening in his eyes.

Wiping the corner of his eye, he looked at the two demonic beasts. Ye Fei realized that now was not the time for sentimentality. He was still in danger at the bottom of the cliff, and more demonic beasts might appear.

Moreover, he was injured. Even if he recovered, escaping the cliff would be extremely difficult, as he could not yet fly, which required the cultivation level of his father.

He was only at the sixth layer of Qi Cultivation, far from the Core Formation stage. The two demonic beasts could only leap short distances.

Shaking his head, Ye Fei decided to find a safe place to hide and recover first.

He looked up at the three-legged toad, which, though not dead, was clearly on its last breath, staring at Ye Fei with a fierce look.

The green python, clearly poisoned, though not fatally, would die if the poison was not cured. The python's eyes looked at Ye Fei pitifully, evoking sympathy.

Ye Fei stared at the green python for a while, then ignored it and struggled to stand up. As he placed his hand on the ground, he felt something and looked down, his face changing instantly. (End of Chapter)

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