Two months passed in the blink of an eye.
Time silently flowed by as the caravan’s wheels churned through the dust of different terrains, as they traversed the eerie Soul Wood Mountain, the torrential Giant Rain Mountain, and the rugged Square Brick Mountain.
The caravan’s route meandered on the map, with Roaring Moon Mountain as their next destination.
These two months were not wasted for Tu Dai.
Under the continuous nourishment of the Sharira Gu provided by Dao Tian Can Hun, Tu Dai had steadily advanced to the high stage of Rank Two. The Rank Two Golden Forging Gu he had purchased at Golden Mountain had long been completely refined by him. Now, the depths of his bones throughout his body displayed a subtle yet tough golden luster, like refined gold hidden beneath flesh and blood. When he moved his thoughts slightly and activated the Rank Three Rib Shield Gu, two rows of massive ribs, shimmering with brilliant golden light as if cast from pure gold, instantly burst from his body, crossing and encircling him, firmly protecting the vital points of his upper body! Its defensive capability had significantly increased compared to when he initially relied solely on the Rib Shield!
However, the increase in power did not bring the slightest relaxation.
Tu Dai leaned against a flatbed cart piled high with goods, expressionlessly chewing on a piece of dried meat as hard as firewood. His brows, however, were slightly furrowed.
“Recently… something feels very wrong,” he murmured to himself, his heterochromatic eyes vigilantly scanning the somewhat weary caravan members and the deep forest path. The frequency of beast attacks on the caravan was increasing. From initial sporadic harassment to almost daily assaults by beast groups of varying sizes on the periphery! This was definitely not normal!
Tu Dai was someone who strongly believed in his intuition, and his intuition had saved his life countless times on the brink of death. At this moment, the string named “danger” was tightening more and more! His gaze repeatedly swept over the ugly, eyebrow-less, burn-scarred man in the Zhang family’s contingent, and the equally silent, cold-auraed “companion” beside him.
For these two months, this man and woman had acted like loyal servants, tirelessly managing Zhang Xinci’s business. Their methods were seasoned, and they even made the Zhang family’s goods trade flourish, yielding considerable profits. Zhang Xinci relied on and trusted them more and more.
“Purpose?” Tu Dai sneered inwardly, “Money? Beauty?” These worldly temptations could never move such cold-blooded vipers! He even had a vague, terrible suspicion: could these increasingly frequent and organized beast attacks be orchestrated by them? Using some unknown means to drive beasts to attack the caravan, create chaos, and conceal their true motives?
At this thought, a cold chill quietly crept up Tu Dai’s neck, bringing with it a shiver of dread that made his scalp tingle!
He couldn’t wait any longer!
He decisively pulled out the map from his Pregnant, already somewhat worn from repeated handling. Under the faint glow of the bonfire, his gaze, like a hawk, locked onto the route.
“In two more days, the Sharira Gu will be enough to push me to the early stage of Rank Three!” He calculated inwardly, his eyes growing sharper.
“But staying on this dilapidated ship, which has clearly been targeted by vipers, is far more dangerous than facing the jackals of the wilderness alone!”
Shang Clan City was already within sight! Rather than suffer in suspicion and a conspiracy that could erupt at any moment, it was better to leave tonight!
Once the thought arose, there was no longer any hesitation in Tu Dai’s eyes. He quickly tidied his supplies. As night deepened, snores filled the camp, and the night watchmen’s spirits were flagging from days of exhaustion. His figure flickered, like a ghost merging into the night, without alarming anyone. He resolutely detached himself from the large caravan and plunged into the primeval jungle!
The forest at night was another world.
The chirping of insects and birds from the daytime vanished without a trace, replaced by a deathly silence. The dense canopy blocked the already sparse starlight, and cold droplets of water instantly soaked his pant legs, bringing a bone-chilling cold. The mountain night wind, like a cold ghostly hand, pierced through his thin clothes, greedily stealing Tu Dai’s body heat.
In the distance, occasional long, mournful howls of unknown beasts echoed through the empty valley, adding to the eerie terror.
Tu Dai held his breath, keeping the power of the Little Void Gu on the verge of activation. Relying on the vague markings on the map and the faint directional guidance from Dao Tian Can Hun, he struggled through the darkness towards his predetermined direction.
It wasn’t until dawn, when a few faint, grayish rays of light filtered through the forest, that Tu Dai stopped by a relatively secluded stream. He carefully checked his path, confirming there were no traces of pursuit. Only then did he nimbly climb a large tree like an ape, hiding among the dense branches and leaves. His taut nerves finally relaxed slightly, and he began a brief rest.
Just then—
“About three hundred paces directly ahead of you, there’s a lone Gu Master who’s badly injured.”
Dao Tian Can Hun’s voice, carrying a hint of playfulness and insight, entered Tu Dai’s mind without warning.
Tu Dai’s fingers, clinging to the branch, paused slightly.
“Are you sure… it’s only one person?” His thoughts were concentrated as he silently asked.
“Yes,” Dao Tian Can Hun’s reply was concise and affirmative, carrying a subtle, almost imperceptible allure of guiding a hunt.
The corner of Tu Dai’s mouth slowly curved into a cold, blade-sharp arc.
A badly injured, lone Gu Master in the desolate wilderness?
Nine times out of ten, he was a Demonic Path Gu Master who had fallen out with enemies or been abandoned by companions! Such a person was a moving trouble in himself, but also potentially… a moving treasure trove!
Kill him!
Seize any Gu, primal stones, or Materials he might possess!
In this Gu World where the strong prey on the weak, this was simply a heaven-sent resupply! Enough to add a heavy weight to his strength and chances of survival!
“If not now… then when?!”
Killing intent, like cold venom, instantly filled his heart! Tu Dai no longer hesitated. He suppressed his aura to the extreme and cautiously stealthily moved towards the direction permeated with the scent of blood, guided by the remnant thought.
“Pah! A bunch of snot-nosed brats!”
Jin Peng spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, his teeth clenched, veins bulging on his forehead. He was using a torn strip of white cloth to tightly bind a gruesome wound on his left arm. The flesh was torn open, deep enough to see bone. Each wrap caused excruciating pain, contorting his face in agony.
He was originally an ordinary hunter in the mountains, but his fate took a sharp turn during a hunt—he accidentally fell into a cave and unexpectedly obtained the Legacy of a Rank Three Demonic Path Gu Master! Ecstasy instantly overwhelmed him. His first thought was to rush out of this dark cavern and find Er Ya, the girl next door he had grown up with, to share this world-changing encounter.
However, shortly after he stepped out of the cave, disaster struck. Several youths dressed in luxurious robes, clearly from aristocratic families, inexplicably attacked him without a word! If Jin Peng hadn’t constantly battled fierce beasts, developing almost beast-like intuition and desperate fighting skills on the brink of death, and if those youths hadn’t clearly been greenhorns, lacking practical combat experience despite their cultivation, he would already be a cold corpse.
Even so, he paid a heavy price.
Blood continued to seep from the bandage. Jin Peng’s breathing was heavy, and his vision swam. He fumbled with trembling hands, pulling out his shiny dry tobacco pipe from his Pregnant. He shakily filled it with tobacco, brought it to his mouth, and took two deep, desperate draws. The pungent, strong smoke choked his lungs, bringing a momentary numbness and clarity.
“No good, if this continues… I’ll bleed dry!” An alarm blared in his heart. He had no healing Gu on him. His only chance of survival was to quickly find herbs to stop the bleeding and heal his wounds.
Enduring the excruciating pain that threatened to tear his consciousness, Jin Peng propped himself up with his uninjured right hand, struggling to stand. Just as he was about to leave his hiding place, the corner of his eye suddenly caught a movement in the distant forest.
A cold killing intent flooded his brain. His eyes, which had been somewhat unfocused from blood loss, instantly sharpened. He stared fixedly in the direction where the figures flickered, squeezing out a venomous growl from between his teeth:
“You curs! I’ve already escaped this far… you lingering bastards, you still came after me?!”