Chapter Ninety-Six: The Young Man Named Pan and the Wolf-Headed Leopard

Zhao Yuhai had no idea who had ambushed him. Fortunately, aside from the itchy welts left by venomous insects all over his body, the items in his storage pouch had not been lost.

After cursing for a while, he found a safe place and secluded himself there to recuperate.

It was not that Chu Xin'er was unusually merciful; Zhao Yuhai simply had a truly miserable fortune. A dozen low-grade spirit stones and an ordinary low-grade flying sword were hardly worth a second glance to her.

They bore no grudge against one another. Allowing Xiaowen to drain his blood was already more than enough. There was no need to go so far.

Since Zhao Yuhai had been busy healing and had not spread the matter in the short term, Chu Xin'er traveled onward without encountering any trouble.

Over the next few days, she used Xiaowen's numbing ability to help her catch several cultivators at the eighth level for blood-drinking.

And through what she saw and heard along the way, she also came to understand where she was: the northern domain of Pingzhou, an area under the jurisdiction of the affiliated powers of the four great sects and the Sky Soaring Sect.

Unlike the barren lands of Meilin Prefecture and Tiannan Prefecture, the northern domain of Pingzhou stretched across millions of li and was crowded with cultivation sects. Its spiritual energy resources were far richer as well.

At that moment, Chu Xin'er was flying above a mountain range. In the forest below, she could occasionally see cultivators traveling in small groups to temper themselves through experience. Some worked together to hunt demonic beasts; others gathered spiritual herbs to exchange for resources.

Yet these male and female cultivators were all of low cultivation, and most had not broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage.

Of course, even if the cultivation level in the northern domain of Pingzhou was higher and one had reached Foundation Establishment, who would still join others to hunt low-tier demonic beasts at the outskirts of the mountain range?

After leaving the mortal kingdom of Beilin, Chu Xin'er had come seeking the chance to break through. She did not know the name of the mountain range below, but since so many low-level cultivators were moving about here, she thought that if she paid close attention, she would surely gain something.

Thus, she unconsciously slowed her flight and spread out her divine sense to search.

"Mm, that is Hibiscus Spirit Branch. It is one of the auxiliary materials for refining Foundation Establishment Pills, and it seems to be at least two or three hundred years old. My luck is truly not bad."

The Drifting Clouds and Falling Rain Art that Chu Xin'er cultivated had the effect of enhancing divine sense. After reaching the great completion of the Qi Refinement stage, she could easily cover a range of a hundred zhang. With careful inspection, she quickly made a discovery.

Foundation Establishment Pills were far too expensive, and Chu Xin'er became even more determined to gather spiritual medicines and have them refined by an alchemist.

The Hibiscus Spirit Mushroom happened to be one of the auxiliary materials she lacked, and there were many treasure-seekers in this mountain range. Such an opportunity should not be missed. With that thought, she had already gathered her escaping light and descended quickly into the woods where the Hibiscus Spirit Mushroom grew.

Within several hundred meters around her, there were no cultivators, and the process of digging up the spirit herb went very smoothly. Chu Xin'er was overjoyed and no longer in a hurry to continue on her way. She stepped out of the woods and moved forward with the same calm as the other tempering cultivators.

Over the next few hours, although Chu Xin'er was not as fortunate as she had been at first, she still gained something here and there.

Suddenly, a thunderous crash from a ravine ahead made her frown slightly.

"Friend, come quickly and help us. If we kill this beast and obtain the Red Jade Berries, the three of us can split them equally..."

In the ravine, a young man and a young woman were controlling their magical tools as they fought the wolf-headed beast opposite them.

The handsome young man in white was already a half-step from Foundation Establishment, and the female cultivator beside him had reached the perfect completion of the thirteenth level of Qi Refinement. Yet the strange beast with a wolf's head and a leopard's body moved with astonishing speed, and with its innate fire-spitting ability, the two of them were actually at a disadvantage.

If they could not win, the best course would be to turn and flee. But several red berries deep in the ravine had already ripened; if they were not picked, this beast would surely devour them.

The Red Jade Berries were the main ingredient in spiritual elixirs used to enhance the cultivation of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Their value was enough to make any Qi Refinement cultivator's eyes burn with greed. Therefore, even at the risk of everything, the young pair were unwilling to give them up.

Because Chu Xin'er was at a somewhat higher cultivation level, her divine sense was difficult for the young man to detect. When he discovered that the newcomer was a beautiful girl on the same level as his younger sister, he immediately cried out to her with eager delight.

"This..."

Chu Xin'er showed a hesitant expression. She could see the several fist-sized fruits on the vines in the ravine, each glowing with a ruby brilliance. There were five of them in all, and with the materials obtained from killing the wolf-headed leopard, the total value to be split evenly would still exceed a thousand spirit stones.

But would the other side keep their promise? The answer was very likely no.

After all, in the cultivation world, there were no few who broke their word for the sake of treasure. She did not want to lend a hand only to end up with the fate of the rabbit once the hound was cooked away.

"Friend, you need not worry. I, Pan, swear here and now that I will certainly keep my promise. Otherwise, may I go mad from qi deviation while cultivating..."

Seeing that the young girl, who had finally appeared, still would not easily agree to help, the young man surnamed Pan grew anxious and immediately sent another vow to her.

"Very well. I only hope Brother Pan will not break his word."

Chu Xin'er appeared indecisive not because she feared them. With Xiaowen helping in ambush, not to mention killing the young man surnamed Pan and the woman in an instant, she could at least ensure she would not be defeated.

The reason for her hesitation was that she had only just arrived in this unfamiliar mountain range. Without knowing the background of the two of them, if she rashly killed them, it might invite disaster.

Now that the other side had already sworn an oath, Chu Xin'er had no reason to stand by any longer. To be honest, the Red Jade Berries were also quite tempting to her.

Clang.

Before her person even arrived, Chu Xin'er's flying sword had already sliced through the void and fiercely struck down at the wolf-headed leopard.

Boom, boom, boom.

Though the wolf-headed leopard was ferocious, it was not yet a second-tier demonic beast; otherwise, the young man surnamed Pan and the woman would likely have fled long ago. Once Chu Xin'er joined the battle, the situation between them immediately reversed.

With the pressure greatly reduced, the red-dressed woman, tall and graceful with almond-shaped eyes and willow brows, let out a long breath. The young man surnamed Pan even surged forward with sudden force and, with a single strike, opened a deep, bone-visible wound across the wolf-headed leopard's front paw.

Roaring in pain, the wolf-headed leopard let out an enraged howl and lunged forward at great speed. Blazing flames poured from its mouth in bursts, surging toward the young man surnamed Pan.

Seeing the beast fight with reckless desperation, the young man surnamed Pan did not dare be careless. He retreated to avoid the sharp edge of the attack, then raised a hand and drew a defensive talisman from his storage pouch. Combined with his own protective spiritual light, it formed two thick layers of shimmering barriers.

Even that was not the end of it. The young man surnamed Pan continued forming hand seals as the flying sword he controlled spun back at high speed.

Boom, boom. The flames crashed against the light barrier formed by the mid-grade defensive talisman, twisting and deforming it, but failing to break through at once.

However, the wolf-headed leopard, with its swift figure, had already followed close behind. It opened its bloodied maw and bit down savagely. Fortunately, the white-clad young man's magical sword had already flown back. Under his full control, it blazed with spiritual light and struck down fiercely.

At the same moment, Chu Xin'er's flying sword and the woman's short blade also came whistling in from the sides.

With the two women working in tacit coordination, the young man surnamed Pan finally let out a breath of relief. In his view, if the wolf-headed leopard did not want to be gutted alive, it could only give up on him and use its speed to evade instead.

Yet the result was beyond his expectations. The wolf-headed leopard's intelligence was not high, and its injury had stirred its primal savagery. It did not dodge at all, but instead charged at the young man surnamed Pan with claws tearing and teeth snapping, clearly intent on risking its life to severely injure and kill him.