12 - Peculiar Situation
Instead of the usual warmth he primarily felt in his abdomen during spiritual cultivation in his spiritual core, this time, as he fed on death itself, a subtle yet deadly and powerful cold was present, the same chill he had sensed during the previous absorption of the beast's spirit.
The subtle yet unparalleled touch of death; an energy not absorbed directly from the world of the living, but from the dead... Heh, what an interesting sensation this is. He thought with a smile while keeping his eyes closed and focusing on the energy coursing through him.
To his delight, however, despite all these unusual occurrences, in the end, nothing bad happened. Both the internal energy and the vital essence from the beast hardly differed from the energies Long Shen already possessed within him, and thus, after refining them and making them his own, no conflict arose between the two sides; they simply mingled and strengthened as would occur naturally.
To his dismay, however, even after absorbing the energy from a being on the verge of reaching the peak of the Purified Physical Realm, it was still not enough for him to surpass the fourth layer and reach the fifth layer of his realm. At least it was enough to cover a good distance toward it.
When he opened his eyes and looked to his side, Long Shen found himself staring at the decomposing body of the beast. No more than an hour had passed; how could that vigorous and robust creature be in such a state? Its bones were protruding and marked its skin, and a putrid odor, as if it had died days ago, filled the air.
Could it be because I took its spirit? With no energy circulating through its body, especially its vital energy, I imagine its body cannot hold up much longer before it begins to fall into such a miserable state... This is the only explanation that comes to mind, it's not like I'm a doctor or anything. He shrugged, a slight look of curiosity crossing his face, which quickly faded within seconds.
Realizing he had nothing more to do there, having achieved his goal of washing himself and even having stumbled upon such a beast, likely due to the lingering smell of blood after his bath, Long Shen stood up, resolved to prepare to leave.
The only thing he regrettably could not test or use was the Death Points he had received, as with the System only at level 0, in its most limited state, and having nothing around him worth spending his points on. Even the things that could be worthwhile, like increasing his cultivation level or evolving his techniques, ultimately left him without enough points to take action. Thus, he had no choice but to save them for now.
Retrieving the white mask, which he had previously washed and left to dry along with his clothes since they were extremely dirty and smelled of blood after the fight with the beast, Long Shen put it back on his face and began walking away from the lake, leaving behind the carcass of the valuable beast.
What a shame I can't take its body with me. A Nightmare Wolf, even though relatively weak, is quite rare to find, so if I sold it, I could get a good sum of money. Sigh… Apparently, I'll have to think of another way to get some gold coins; maybe another spiritual beast will appear along the way. He tried to cheer himself up, though it didn't help as much as he desired.
Long Shen was not someone inherently greedy; ultimately, desiring to achieve unmatched status, becoming someone that even the heavens could not hold back, money seemed less important than he once thought. Still, it remained extremely crucial not only for his survival but also for his ascension.
Because of this and his past in misery, it was natural for him to feel a slight pang in his heart as he left behind what he saw as dozens of easily earned gold coins. For a moment, he even questioned whether it was worth it to absorb the beast's spirit, but that questioning quickly faded from his mind before it worsened.
That's it. I'll just put this thought aside and move on. No matter how much someone regrets and wishes to fix the past, such things are impossible to achieve, and will only bring negative consequences to one's body and mind... But it sucks to leave so much money behind.
Thus, with a tranquil mind, leaving behind the kinds of thoughts and feelings that his former self would have had, Long Shen pressed on, moving away from the beautiful open lake bathed in moonlight and entering the dark and unknown path among the trees and bushes of the forest.
...
In the depths of the Crimson Herb Forest, amidst an open field bathed in pools of blood reflecting the shape of the moon, something horrible yet extremely common in darker areas like this forest was occurring. Anyone who saw such a scene could easily guess what was happening.
Extremely tired and exhausted, as if they had run nonstop, a group of three young people found themselves cornered by a group of four mysterious masked men.
What stood out most in the scene, however, were the two bodies of strong, robust men dressed in bluish robes that lay fallen on the ground, dead, one having its head decapitated and the other with a blade piercing through its chest.
Among this group of youths, consisting of a girl and two boys, one apparently stronger and braver, and the other a skinny one shaking with fear, the girl was seriously contemplating betraying her group to save her own life.
Huff... Huff... Huff... Damn, what should we do? Should I leave both of them behind and run? No! They're probably after me; if I do that, I'll surely be the one in the most danger right now! Damn it, why did we have to run into them!?
The one responsible for such thoughts was Mei Hua, someone whom anyone could believe was merely a simple, cute, innocent girl, with her short, wavy dark brown hair, and a beautiful face that made her look slightly younger than she truly was.
Caught in the impasse between both groups, the young woman discreetly looked out of the corner of her green eyes at both her sides, trying to see if any of the other two youths stood a chance against those four men, but as expected, it was practically impossible.
Why did I accept to bring this idiot Jun Yong? I thought he was strong because of the stories about him being talented within the sect, but in the end, he turned out to be just another liar trying to impress me! And as for Huo Qiang? I brought him along just to serve as a pack mule, but he can't even do that right thanks to how weak and useless he is... Hmph, a bunch of pathetic men!
The fear she originally felt towards the men in front of her transformed into anger, which she directed toward the two boys, blaming them for not having enough strength to defend her, and very likely they wouldn't even have the "decency" to sacrifice themselves so that she could escape. Despair was something inevitable for her to face.
Suddenly, breaking the impasse that lasted only a few brief seconds, one of the men in black robes and white masks with red details in their eyes stepped forward, sheathing his sword and placing his hands behind his back.
"Hand the young lady over here, boys..." he said, showing one of his hands. "...I'm sure you must know you're not our targets. If you value your lives at all, pass her over quietly, and we won't do anything to you."
The mysterious man spoke with his persuasive snake tongue, openly threatening them, yet speaking with such calmness and control that it didn't even seem like he had just decapitated one of the martial artists who protected the group.
A great silence hung in the air; Mei Hua felt her heart race in anticipation and fear, fearing that she would be the one betrayed in the end by one of the boys; until one of them stepped forward.
"Shut up, you filthy kidnappers! How dare you speak like that in front of such a beautiful woman!? Do you really think we would betray her!? Right, Huo Qiang?"
"Y-Yeah... Right..." Huo Qiang responded, almost whispering, with an extremely disheartened voice.
"Hahahaha, the youth really are something these days... Well, if that's what you want, don't say I didn't give you a chance, boys!"
Without ordering anything to his companions, the man walked alone towards the group of youths, who remained paralyzed, even knowing they needed to do something if they wanted to survive.
When he was just over 2 meters away from the group, the man quickly drew his sword and charged toward the young Mei Hua.
"Don't worry; we won't kill you, Mei Hua!! But an arm or a leg won't affect our mission!!"
Clash!
Just as he was about to strike her, however, suddenly appearing like a ghost and blocking the man's attack with countless white, disheveled strands of hair, someone obscured the girl's vision.
"Who!?!! Who are you!?!! How dare you stand in our way!?!!"