Chapter 48: The Lair
Chapter 48: The Lair
Translator: yikaii Editor: yikaii
After the battle ended and there was no more need for them, the ten water buffaloes vanished into thin air, returning to the spiritual fields.
"How are you feeling? Can you get up?" Barbarian Bone stepped forward with concern, thoroughly impressed by Lu Yang's decisive azure sword strike that turned the tide of the battle.
Although he and Meng Jingzhou assisted and injured the tiger demon, Barbarian Bone suspected that even without their help, Lu Yang's sword alone could have slain the tiger demon.
Lu Yang consumed a packet of Qi Recovery Powder, quickly regaining his calm breathing and steadily increasing his energy at a rate far beyond what a few Qi Recovery Powders could achieve.
"If I had known, I would have bought Qi Recovery Pills instead; this powder is too dry," Lu Yang muttered, operating the Condensation Technique to produce a small orb of water at his fingertips. A stream of water two fingers wide flowed into Lu Yang's mouth.
"Was that the Size Manipulation spell you used just now?" Meng Jingzhou, recognizing Lu Yang suddenly shrinking and then enlarging, felt the technique was familiar, resembling a spell used by an uncle in his family called Size Manipulation.
However, as far as he knew, that spell was extremely difficult to master, requiring a cultivation level no less than Golden Core to succeed.
"Something like that, I used the 'Shrink' spell."
"Shrink?" Meng Jingzhou was puzzled, having heard of all spells known to the Meng family but finding "Shrink" utterly unfamiliar.
Could it be a unique spell created by Elder Sister Yun Zhi?
Thinking this made sense.
"Young Lady Lan Ting pays her respects to the three fellow Daoists," Lan Ting approached gracefully.
"We three are disciples of Dao Seeking Sect; this is Meng Jingzhou, and this is Barbarian Bone," Lu Yang introduced, as the situation was urgent before, and he had only introduced himself.
"So, you are Daoist Meng and Daoist Barbarian." It was evident that Lan Ting was well-cultured, treating everyone with courtesy. She didn't drive Qi Wu and the others away when she sought shelter in the mountain god temple from the rain.
"Thank you, Daoist Lan Ting, for your assistance. If not for you, dealing with both tiger demons would have been quite troublesome; perhaps we might have failed our mission," Lu Yang expressed his gratitude.
This was somewhat of a polite exaggeration; they actually still had some tricks up their sleeves.
"So, this was your mission," Lan Ting didn't say much more, as she was also on a secret mission when she descended the mountain.
Being unfamiliar with the area, she hadn't descended the mountain during the day, and encountering a rainy night, she sought shelter, only to stumble upon this incident.
"I have some knowledge of talismans. The tiger pelts look quite good; may I have them?" Lan Ting asked.
"Of course," Lu Yang smiled, "If Daoist Lan Ting needs anything else, feel free to take it."
Tiger pelts were valuable, but compared to the help Lan Ting provided, they were less significant.
Lan Ting shook her head, asking for nothing more.
Barbarian Bone, having grown up in the wilderness with his parents, was well-versed in skinning, his fingers as sharp as a butcher's knife. With a few swift moves, he skinned both tiger pelts intact.
After receiving the tiger pelts, Lan Ting politely bid farewell to Lu Yang and the others before disappearing into the depths of the forest.
Her sisters had warned her not to approach members of Dao Seeking Sect too closely until her mental fortitude was strong enough, lest she be assimilated by them.
"Jingzhou, do you want the tiger bones and whip?"
Meng Jingzhou was confused: "What do I need tiger bones and whip for?"
"For virility," Lu Yang teased with a smirk.
"Get lost!"
As someone with a pure Yang spiritual root, he didn't need any enhancement. How could he bear it if he became even more vigorous?
"Let's properly store these two tiger demons; they are crucial evidence for completing our mission." Lu Yang took out his identity jade token, swiped his thumb over it, and the two tiger demon corpses were collected into the token.
The jade token could also be used as a storage ring.
"Let's go. The female tiger demon made quite a commotion coming here, knocking down many trees. We can follow the trail it left to find their lair."
The two tiger demons had occupied Song Mountain for many years, certainly having a lair.
The heavy rain had no effect on the three, as any basic rain-avoidance spell could keep them dry.
Following the trail of fallen trees and cracked boulders, it didn't take long for them to find the tiger demons' lair.
It was a cave about three meters high, pitch black, with the interior invisible.
"Does anyone have a torch?" Barbarian Bone asked, noting the darkness within the cave could conceal traps.
He had read in books that such eerie caves were perfect for setting traps, like accidentally stepping on a brick that triggers arrows from the walls to turn someone into a hive, or suddenly releasing a cloud of poison gas, or even triggering a rolling boulder to crush intruders.
"Who would set up so many traps at home? Could they be worried their house is too convenient to live in?" Lu Yang commented, finding Barbarian Bone's thoughts to wander to odd places.
That said, a torch would indeed add to the atmosphere of exploration.
"Who carries a torch when going out?" Meng Jingzhou scoffed, reminding them they were cultivators who could use fire spells instead of torches.
"Think outside the box," Lu Yang said, pulling out a deep-fried dough stick, lighting it with a spark, and soon the entire youtiao was ablaze, appearing to burn for a long time.
Lu Yang held the burning youtiao without fear of being burnt, quite pleased with himself.
Indeed, the cafeteria's offerings were versatile, serving not only as food and a weapon but also as a torch.
Barbarian Bone had an epiphany, realizing he could indeed learn much from Lu Yang.
With the lit youtiao leading the way, Lu Yang moved ahead, followed closely by Barbarian Bone and Meng Jingzhou.
There were no traps as Barbarian Bone had imagined, only a beast's lair.
Merchants' treasures, scholars' collections of classics and history, warriors' secret martial arts manuals...
These items didn't need to be turned over to the sect and counted as their spoils of war.
"Jewelry and antiques..." Meng Jingzhou, with the broadest experience among them, took charge of identifying these items.
"A hundred-year-old teacup, not worth much." For cultivators, a century passes in the blink of an eye, a brief moment, making any household item easily over a hundred years old.
In the cultivation world, antiques were the least valuable, only coveted by mortals.
"A rusty iron knife, what did the tiger demon keep this for, teeth sharpening?" Meng Jingzhou shook his head.
Lu Yang thought to himself not to underestimate a rusty iron knife—a cut could lead to tetanus.
"Shape-Imitating Fist? I remember it's a martial art from the common folk, mimicking animals?" Meng Jingzhou flipped through a few pages, uninterested, and tossed it to Lu Yang.
Lu Yang was somewhat interested, planning to practice it when he had time.
"The Sage's Words..." Meng Jingzhou scoffed, "What use do two beasts have for 'The Sage's Words'? Are they not still beasts?"
The Sage's Words is a basic text for Confucian cultivators, containing the profound teachings of sages. Barbarian Bone knew it by heart and deeply understood its contents.
Barbarian Bone took The Sage's Words, not because it was particularly valuable, but because its significance was extraordinary, deserving proper respect.
This was an act of reverence for the sages.
"Hm? There's a letter here, addressed to the tiger demon?"
(End of the chapter)