Northern Yan Chapter Twenty-Two: Stirring Up Great Trouble

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Though Mo Hao and the others possessed the strength of mid-stage fasting cultivators, they still could not swiftly slay over ten resentful beasts. As the beasts battered the formation’s protective shield, Feng Xing flicked his fingers across his spatial pouch, producing a talisman between his two fingers. Instantly, ripples of water appeared around the beasts, trapping them as if caught in a quagmire, rendering them immobile. Feng Xing shouted, “The Water Swamp Talisman can only bind them briefly. Li An, set up an additional protective formation on the outer perimeter. Junior Brother Mo Hao, quickly kill the beasts. It’s clear the beasts are losing patience from the formation’s pressure.”

Hearing Feng Xing’s command, Li An dashed toward the formation and began setting up a small flag. Since formations take time to establish, continuous fighting inside one is impractical; thus, as long as Mo Hao could hold off the beasts, the kills would become much easier.

Mo Hao maneuvered skillfully among the beasts, wielding the newly learned Lì Tiān Sword Art. Yet the beasts’ physical bodies were incredibly tough. He aimed his sword techniques at the beasts’ three eyes, but the third eye emitted a black glow that blocked all attacks—a truly formidable foe.

As Mo Hao used his sword art, he simultaneously swallowed pills to restore his mana and held spirit stones to replenish his power. After fifteen minutes, the three of them finally combined forces to slay seven beasts, breathing a collective sigh of relief. The remaining beasts no longer had the strength to break the killing formation. Li An then shot two spirit stones toward the formation’s core, reigniting the formation’s brilliance, which now shone even more potently than before.

After clearing the beasts inside the formation, Feng Xing summoned Li An and Mo Hao to enter the nest and eliminate the remaining beasts. When Mo Hao saw Feng Xing prepare to slaughter the beast cubs, he let out a small gasp. Feng Xing turned to him and said, “Junior brother, go ahead. We’ve already killed the adult beasts. The cubs won’t survive long without the adult beasts’ spiritual breath!”

Mo Hao hesitated, though Feng Xing’s reasoning was sound. Still, he refrained from striking and advised, “Senior brother, the cycle of heaven and earth binds all living things. Let them live or die naturally. Our mission here is already accomplished.”

Feng Xing bowed his head in thought before nodding slightly. They gathered the corpses of the beasts outside. Feng Xing conjured a dagger, which made Mo Hao’s heart skip a beat—it was a fine mid-grade magical weapon. The blade’s tip gleamed with a cold light, sharpened further by mana. Feng Xing stabbed the dagger into a beast’s skull, slicing it open, then plunged his hand inside to search. Finding nothing, he moved to the second corpse, then the third, and so on, until the fifth.

Upon cleaving open the fifth beast’s skull, a golden orb appeared within the brain. Mo Hao instantly recognized it as the coveted demon core.

The demon core is the treasured essence formed through cultivation by demonic beasts. Human cultivators must reach the Golden Core stage to condense a core, but demonic beasts can form one as early as the fasting stage. Human cultivators use these demon cores to refine numerous pills or to aid in cultivating certain spells.

Feng Xing’s eyes brightened upon seeing the demon core. They proceeded to open all the beasts’ skulls. Feng Xing cursed their misfortune: despite the effort to kill over twenty beasts, only two had formed demon cores. He looked toward Li An and Mo Hao and said, “You both have witnessed the beasts’ strength. However, demon cores are rare—only a few beasts can form them. I need many demon cores on this trip. If you two leave now, I can divide these cores between us, but surely neither of you would be content with only two cores. If we cooperate properly, not only can we complete our sect’s mission, but each of us will also gain sufficient demon cores and Spirit Awakening Flowers. What say you, comrades?”

Mo Hao understood that while Feng Xing agreed to let them leave, the latter words hinted at the benefits of staying. Before Mo Hao could respond, Li An said, “Feng Daoist, isn’t it true that we came here for demon cores? I shall stand with you through thick and thin!”

Both men then looked toward Mo Hao simultaneously. He didn’t immediately agree but pondered for a moment before nodding gently. “Senior Brother Feng, naturally. We came here with this goal. Yet so far, we have only found demon cores, no Spirit Awakening Flowers or companion grasses.”

Feng Xing smiled upon hearing Mo Hao’s consent, “Junior brother, don’t worry. We have only just killed the beasts; you might not have noticed the glowing plants at the deepest part of the nest—that is the Spirit Awakening Flower!”

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Mo Hao immediately headed toward the nest, with Feng Xing shaking his head but following close behind. Feng Xing whispered something confidentially to Li An. Mo Hao ventured into the deepest part of the cave, where a patch of glowing flowers appeared before him. Each flower was in full bloom, exuding a faint blue light, and beside each grew an unremarkable little grass. Counting roughly, there were over thirty glowing flowers in total. Feng Xing tossed a jade box to Mo Hao.

“Junior brother, I know you may not have prepared a jade box, but the Spirit Awakening Grass must be stored within one, or much of its spiritual energy will be lost!”

Mo Hao gratefully accepted the jade box, slapping his forehead in regret for not bringing more. Many spiritual flowers require containment in jade boxes to preserve their energy. He picked the flowers and their companion grasses, placing them carefully inside. Mo Hao intended to divide the harvest evenly, but Feng Xing chuckled, “No rush, junior brother. With our cooperation, why worry about division now? Let’s wait until we’ve hunted enough beasts and then divide everything fairly.”

Mo Hao scratched his head, realizing Feng Xing was right—not to be hasty. The three drove out all the beast cubs from the nest. Li An set up a small formation at the cave entrance, and the three began to recuperate, preparing thoroughly for the next battle. Though this fight had drained them greatly, the abundance of Spirit Awakening Flowers and grasses, along with two demon cores, made the gains substantial and satisfying.

In a low-lying area within the Resentful Beast Valley, the beasts’ roars shook the sky. Below, three cultivators unleashed various spells, swiftly killing over ten beasts. These three were none other than Mo Hao and his comrades. After countless hunts, their gains were plentiful, and their teamwork had grown more adept.

Yet demon cores were regrettably scarce. Mo Hao calculated that they had slain over a hundred beasts, but only held sixteen cores—though even that was valuable. Plus, they had over a hundred Spirit Awakening Flowers and companion grasses.

At that moment, Feng Xing suddenly turned to Mo Hao with a broad smile, which struck Mo Hao as curious and surprising. Feng Xing said, “Junior brother, this trip’s gains have been rich. I think it’s time to return to our sect and submit the mission. But before that, we need to kill one more beast. If we succeed, it will be a grand achievement!”

Mo Hao looked at Feng Xing in surprise, “One more beast? What do you mean? Could it be a mid-stage fasting beast? No, Feng brother wouldn’t be so solemn for that. Could it be a late-stage beast?”

Mo Hao felt incredulous. A late-stage fasting resentful beast was no trivial opponent. Though he had once slain a late-stage fasting cultivator named Xiao Huan, back then he was reckless and lucky with a surprise attack. Otherwise, he would have been bones by now. How could they hope to take down a late-stage fasting beast now?

Feng Xing must be mad. Even with ten or more people, killing a late-stage fasting beast and escaping unscathed was unlikely. Beasts differ from cultivators; while late-stage cultivators might evade and strike, the physical strength of late-stage resentful beasts far surpassed that of early-stage beasts. Leaving aside whether Li An’s formation would work, even the full force of the Heartless Sword Art might only scratch the beast’s skin.

“Junior brother is right!” a voice interrupted Mo Hao’s thoughts. Feng Xing, noticing Mo Hao’s hesitation, spoke to break the silence: “Junior brother, I understand your concerns. Please listen carefully.”

Feng Xing then took from his spatial pouch a round yellow object resembling a disk. His right hand formed a seal, condensing mana, then he pointed to the disk’s center. The yellow disk darkened, revealing a black surface speckled with many red lights.

“Junior brother, this is the Blood Star Disk, a star chart designed to detect cultivators or beasts with cultivation nearby. Our ability to find these early-stage beast nests is entirely thanks to this disk.”

Mo Hao examined the star chart carefully and nodded slightly. Though expressionless, his mind was stirred profoundly. Such magical tools truly exist in this vast world. No wonder Feng Xing always quickly located beast nests without encountering mid-stage fasting beasts in groups.

Feng Xing pointed to a particularly bright spot, “Junior brother, see how this light flickers? That’s the late-stage resentful beast. I don’t know why its light wavers, but from my understanding, it must be severely injured. This is our chance. Late-stage fasting beasts are extremely rare and solitary. Their nests always contain a century-old Spirit Awakening Flower. Junior brother, are you tempted?”

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A century-old Spirit Awakening Flower—pills refined from it have greatly amplified effects, unlike ordinary Spirit Awakening Pills. No number of ordinary pills could match the potency of century-aged medicine. Hearing there was such a flower, Mo Hao felt his heart stir. When Feng Xing mentioned the beast’s grievous injury, Mo Hao said, “Then let’s investigate immediately. If it is as you say, we should try to kill the beast.”

Feng Xing smiled and nodded upon hearing Mo Hao’s words, then looked to Li An, “Brother Feng’s suggestion is tempting, but I agree with Brother Mo: let’s investigate first.”

Following the red dots on the Blood Star Disk, the three found the late-stage beast’s lair outside a cave after half an hour. Upon arrival, they heard pitiful cries from inside. Their eyes brightened—just as Feng Xing predicted, the late-stage beast was seriously wounded. Without heavy injury, such agonizing howls would be unlikely. They summoned their magical weapons. Mo Hao held the Cold Paulownia Sword above his head, not daring to be careless.

Though injured, a dying camel is still larger than a horse. At worst, this beast was comparable to a half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator. Back in the Ghost Market, even a Foundation Establishment elder failed to kill a half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Glazed Palace. The threat was clear. The three proceeded cautiously, tiptoeing, which might seem comical to onlookers but was necessary at this critical moment.

About thirty feet into the nest, they saw a beast lying beside a Spirit Awakening Flower. The flower emitted a faint glow, and the beast seemed to be absorbing its medicinal power—indeed, a century-old Spirit Awakening Flower.

Though grievously injured and wailing, the beast’s eyes were tightly shut, apparently asleep. The three exchanged glances and nodded, simultaneously forming hand seals. Three beams of light shot toward the beast. Mo Hao struck the beast’s third vertical eye on its forehead with the Lì Tiān Sword Art.

Clang!

Not only were Feng Xing’s and Li An’s weapons repelled, but even Mo Hao’s sword, aimed at the beast’s weakest point, was deflected. All three were shocked. Even with its tough body, a late-stage beast shouldn’t so easily block a sword attack, especially at its most vulnerable spot. The beast awoke, glaring at the trio. They exchanged looks.

“Feng! Run!” was almost their simultaneous thought.

They realized this was no ordinary late-stage fasting beast. Worse, it might not even be a fasting-stage beast at all. They were in deep trouble. As they flew toward the cave entrance, the dark cave behind them rumbled fiercely. Feng Xing shouted, “Scatter! This is a half-step Foundation Establishment beast injured by the Dao itself. We were careless!”

With that, Feng Xing and Li An shot off in opposite directions on their swords.

Mo Hao was stunned. The two had already fled tens of feet away.

“I just heard him speak, and they’re already so far!” Mo Hao hurriedly mounted his sword and flew after them. But in that moment of hesitation, the beast charging out of the cave bore down straight on Mo Hao!