A Journey Packed with Hardships and Perils

Chen Chen let out a little scowl. Moments later, he heard the boisterous commotion of a group of people rushing in from the lobby of the station.

"Around thirty people, most likely some rich youngster's squadron."

With his sharp senses, Chen Chen estimated the number of newcomers flooding into the station by his sharp hearing.

However, he still didn't bother to care much about the situation. Closing his eyes, he began to rest.

Honestly speaking, with the status of cultivation that he had, he wouldn't grow weary even if he were to stay awake for three days and nights in a row.

...

Unknowingly, the night had progressed to its late hours.

Chen Chen's ears picked up a baffling ruckus from the next room over.

It was a rhythmic echo of bed pegs bumping into the wall.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The station was constructed of wood, which had terrible soundproofing. Along with that fact, due to Chen Chen's acute senses, his ears caught the sound with absolute clarity.

Chen Chen had been a human for two lifetimes, and there was no way he couldn't tell what the sound meant. Even so, he did not bother to fuss about it either.

In this magical world of cultivation, there weren't many ways to entertain oneself. When people had free time on their hands, they made babies. It was completely normal.

"After all the hustle and bustle from the previous day, it still didn't slip their minds to miss out on the act, I'm speechless."

After grumbling a little with displeasure, Chen Chen stuffed his ears, and carried on resting with his eyes closed.

...

An hour later.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

At this point, Chen Chen was on the verge of a meltdown. The uncanny sound had started an hour ago and was still continuing loud and proud. Upon his rough estimation, it could've been around 2,000 times!

"Could it be some sort of celestial beings? How else would he be so vigorous!"

Chen Chen marveled inside. With the given frequency, he could be worth tens of millions if he was taken to the White Horse Club.

Just what kind of extraordinary macho was he!

"Urgh!"

Right at that moment, the queer sound finally stopped, and it was replaced by a bellow.

Upon hearing the echo, Chen Chen heaved a sigh of relief.

It was finally over!

However, upon intent listening, the sound appeared rather unusual. It appeared that the bellow wasn't one that was filled with excitement, but agony.

"What happened? The macho guy's not feeling well? Did he run into a devil who feeds on the essence of men to nourish herself?"

Chen Chen became doubtful as he got down from the bed discreetly due to his vigilance. Furtively and soundlessly, he opened the door to his room, and turned up at the doorstep of the neighboring room.

The interior was illuminated by a dim, faint light.

However, Chen Chen's vision was extremely excellent. Through the narrow seam of the window, he saw what was going on inside.

It was the scene of an entirely naked woman with a willowy, alluring body, dressing herself up.

The shape of her body could only be depicted with one sentence.

"Protruding on the front and curvy at the back, overall a spectacular sight."

It took just one look and Chen Chen already felt his blood boiling and surging through his veins.

"D*mn it, demonic woman!"

Chen Chen cursed inside, and yet he couldn't help but begin looking again.

However, right at that moment, the woman turned around slightly, revealing the furry tail on her buttocks.

Upon catching sight of the tail, Chen Chen felt as if he had been doused with cold water while his heart turned chilly.

"Oh my freaking God, she really is a demon!"

"System, is there any demon in the nearest twenty meters?"

"Yes, there is a fox demon eight meters in front of you. Other than that, ten meters ahead on the left, there is an immature little morning glory demon."

Upon receiving the system's confirmation, Chen Chen broke out into a cold sweat along his forehead. Hastily, he returned to his own room cautiously and lied down on his bed, pretending as though nothing had happened.

"System, is there anyone in the nearby twenty meters who can fight that fox demon?"

"No, there isn't."

The mere three words made Chen Chen's heart freeze even colder. Obviously, that fox demon was more powerful than he was.

"I'll leave as soon as the sky out there lights up, this is freaking dangerous!"

Chen Chen cursed inside. He wasn't worried about running into robbers or bandits, and yet he had stumbled upon a demon, probably even a man-eating one.

Who could tolerate such a situation?

After fretting for about an hour or so, dim light gradually appeared outside. Without a word, Chen Chen got up and woke Zhang Ji, as well as several other companions.

"The road is long, we have to make the best use of our time and complete the journey. The sun has just brightened up, and the weather isn't hot yet, we should get started right away."

Chen Chen told his colleagues with a solemn expression. Shortly after, he grabbed the little morning glory and scurried for the carriage.

At this point, the rest of the group was still groggy, and nobody was fully awake. The stablemen looked very reluctant, but he was following the instructions of an immortal, so no one had the courage to raise any objections.

Chen Chen did not bother about the group's situation. After placing the little morning glory into the carriage, he hopped onto the back of the horse.

"Brother Chen, shouldn't we get some food first before we take off?" Zhang Ji hesitated.

"No, we shouldn't. We should leave right now." Zhang Ji uttered with firm resolution.

He had a feeling that if they delayed any longer, they would turn into somebody else's food, let alone find any food for themselves.

If he hadn't been afraid of alarming the enemy, he would have fled for his life last night.

"Alright, we'll do everything as Brother Chen commands."

Zhang Ji did not think much about the orders. He got up and mounted the horse, then summoned the stablemen to tidy up the horses, getting ready to set off.

At that moment, there were a few dozen horses tied to the stable, each of which were precious gallant horses. Obviously, they belonged to the group of people who entered the station last night.

The cart driver casted an envious look at the horses as he boarded the carriage, then he began driving forward.

Da! Da! Da!

The sound of thudding hooves echoed throughout the area, the three horse carriages carrying the seven men scurried from the station as if they were running from a disaster.

After traveling for several tens of miles, when the sun nearly reached the edge of the sky, Chen Chen finally called the squad to a halt.

"Alright, that's about it for now, let's all get some rest."

Seeing Chen Chen rushing all the way without even getting down from the horse to pick up soil and rocks, Zhang Ji could fathom what had occurred. With a somber look, he asked, "Brother Chen, the gang of people that we heard last night, were they thieves? Did they have their eyes on us already?"

"Not thieves, but there's a demon among them." Chen Chen replied.

Upon hearing the word 'demon', the faces of the three stablemen and the two bodyguards became doused with shock. Immediately, they switched from a breathless, panting state into an energetic, high-spirited state.

"Young Lord Chen, I think we can go even faster."

"Right, we've only covered a short distance, it's not a big deal, is it? Young Lord Chen, let us carry on with our journey."

"The vicinity is filled with large mountains and old woods, I feel like there might be monsters lurking around. We'll rest once we get away from this place."

"...Fine." Chen Chen shot a glance at each of the group members, speechless.

Moments ago, each person was looking as if they could die if he forced them to carry on, but right now, they seemed even more sprightly than he was…

The demon was indeed extraordinarily menacing.

However, their sustained speed had lowered quite a bit. After all, it was the horses that were doing the walking for them, and they had at most sustained some jolting.

Despite having fled several tens of miles from the station, Chen Chen still felt uneasy.

Ever since he undertook cultivation, he felt that he could dominate ordinary mankind, and that the journey this time would certainly be a smooth-sailing one. After seeing the demon however, he finally realized the hardships involved in such a journey.

Apart from guarding against evildoers, the group had to guard against demons and monsters.

At this point, it freaking felt like the Journey to the West. As the only member of the squad who possessed some power, Chen Chen had to play the role of Sun Wukong.

"Brother Chen, demons aren't very common, it's not like we'll surely come across them on our way, you don't have to be so worried."

Along the way, Zhang Ji couldn't help but try to comfort Chen Chen, as he saw the solemn, dismal look on his face.

Chen Chen took a look at the dense forest nearby, and replied softly, "We might not come across them, but what if we really do, and I'm no match for them?"

"Erm! In that case, I will ensure Brother Chen's safety at the cost of my own life!" Zhang Ji's face turned flushed red as he began to get agitated.

Upon hearing Zhang Ji's answer, Chen Chen shot a glance back. When he noticed the look that Chen Chen responded with, Zhang Ji shriveled.

He had a very clear notion about whether Chen Chen needed his protection.

A few moments of silence later, Chen Chen replied with a sigh, "Alas, brother, we shouldn't pin our hopes on luck, which is indefinite and intangible." 

However, as he thought it through, he felt that such words weren't very suitable to be said to Zhang Ji. Zhang Ji had always depended upon his luck when he was outside! Zhang Ji could depend on luck, but he still couldn't.

As he sensed the dense, rich air of ethereality in the forest nearby, Chen Chen suddenly swerved his horse in the opposite direction and began heading straight for the mountains.

"Wait for me here for a moment."

"Brother Chen, where are you going!" Zhang Ji followed him from behind subconsciously.

Moments later, the two of them stopped at the foot of the mountain.

"Brother Chen, what did you come here for?" Zhang Ji asked.

Chen Chen waved his hand but did not say a word. Instead, he closed his eyes.

"System, I'm going to utilize the chance of ten-thousand-meter-searching. Look around for anything that can be used to curb demonic beings."

A distance of ten thousand meters did not sound like a great one, but its actual coverage was in fact, considerably massive, which accounted for a good 314 square kilometers.

The area being searched was situated deep in the mountains, and no one had an idea of how many bizarre, unique things there could be in the surrounding 300 over square kilometers.

"Searching has begun…"

"Three thousand meters behind on the left, there is a lost fragment of a magical treasure, which can resist demons and evil."

"Five thousand meters straight ahead, six meters underground, there is a piece of Dragon-taming Wood."

"Eight thousand meters to the Northwest, in the cavern, there is a book on the Classic of Demon Atonement."

...

Moments later, twenty targets had turned up in Chen Chen's mind.