"Little brother, congratulations on joining us."
The scarred man walked over and took the initiative to speak. "I am Hong Yi, the captain of the Chasing Wind Squad."
Xu Chen cupped his fists toward Hong Yi and said, "Xu Chen."
"My name is Xu Hu!"
The pockmarked youth, Xu Hu, introduced himself first and then introduced the rest of the squad to Xu Chen. There was Wang Shuo holding a broadsword, Yang Jian with a dark complexion, and Li Zhong with a sturdy build. These three, along with Hong Yi and Xu Hu, were all members of the Chasing Wind Squad. The last person was named Zhao Feng, who was at the peak of the Third Layer of Qi Condensation Realm. Just like Xu Chen, he was a temporarily recruited member of the Chasing Wind Squad.
With the personnel assembled, the seven-member squad immediately set off, hurrying toward the Heavenly Abyss Mountain Range eighty miles away.
The party of seven crossed the eighty-mile distance and arrived at the Heavenly Abyss Mountain Range.
"Xu Chen, the Heavenly Abyss Mountain Range is boundless, and monster beasts are countless. Since we are only at the Qi Condensation Realm, we can only operate in the outer periphery of the mountain range and must not venture deep. Of course, opportunity always coexists with danger..." Xu Hu sidled up to Xu Chen and whispered.
Xu Chen listened carefully as he walked. Along the way, he and Xu Hu had basically grown familiar with each other.
The terrain of the Heavenly Abyss Mountain Range was complex, filled with briars and tall, lush trees, making it suitable for monster beasts to lurk and hide.
"A First-Grade Advanced Monster Beast, Ice Rabbit."
Hong Yi suddenly stopped and said in a low voice.
Xu Hu's eyes lit up. "An Ice Rabbit! Good stuff. Its meat is tender and juicy, an absolute delicacy in the world. We can't let it escape!"
Xu Hu licked his lips and looked in the direction of Hong Yi's gaze. Not far away in the bushes, a pair of slightly scarlet eyes gleamed with a trace of cold light.
Having pinpointed the Ice Rabbit's location, Xu Hu took a large stride forward, his longsword unshielding from its scabbard behind him, and thrust it toward the Ice Rabbit.
"Plop!"
With a soft sound of a sharp blade entering flesh, the sword in Xu Hu's hand pierced into the Ice Rabbit's head, killing the First-Grade Advanced Monster Beast with a single strike.
"Done, haha, we're in for a treat!" Xu Hu retrieved his sword and laughed aloud.
Just at that moment.
Hong Yi's expression changed abruptly, and he shouted, "Careful!"
Almost the instant the words left his mouth, a fierce gale whipped through the bushes, followed immediately by a massive black shadow pouncing fiercely toward Xu Hu.
The shadow was too fast. Hong Yi simply had no time to effect a rescue.
Xu Hu, having let down his guard, was completely unprepared. By the time he heard Hong Yi's warning, he had already caught the fishy stench rushing toward his face.
The grim reaper was rapidly closing in. And he had no time at all to draw his sword to parry.
His pupils shrank violently. Just as he was about to meet his end in the beast's maw, a figure abruptly lunged out and, with a loud *bang*, collided head-on with the massive black shadow.
The shadow's momentum was blocked, and it flew backward. Meanwhile, that figure also staggered back a single step.
Saved! Xu Hu felt as though he had been granted a reprieve.
When he clearly saw the person who had struck in the nick of time to save his life, he was slightly dazed. Because the savior was not Hong Yi, who possessed the greatest strength, but rather Xu Chen, the newly joined member of the squad.
Xu Hu came to his senses and hastily said with gratitude, "Thank you!"
"Don't mention it."
Xu Chen's gaze never left the massive black shadow.
This was a monster beast the size of an ox, shaped somewhat like a tiger, with a tail like a scorpion's whose tip was hooked and shimmered with a deep blue metallic luster.
"A Scorpion Tiger!"
Xu Hu's expression turned stern. Only now did he clearly see that the monster beast which had ambushed him was a Scorpion Tiger.
The Scorpion Tiger was a Second-Grade Intermediate Monster Beast with a vicious nature, claws like knives, fur like iron, and astonishing strength, making it extremely difficult to deal with. Its power was comparable to that of a human warrior at the peak of the Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation Realm. Because its tail contained potent venom, even some warriors at the Sixth Layer of Qi Condensation Realm were unwilling to make an enemy of it.
Had Xu Chen not rescued him in time just now, he most likely would have already lost his life to the beast's jaws.
Thinking of this, he felt a chilling sensation all over his body, breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Kill!"
A stern shout came from Hong Yi's mouth. He took the lead and charged at the Scorpion Tiger. Wang Shuo and the others followed closely behind.
Powerful though the Scorpion Tiger was, under the combined assault of Hong Yi and the others, it only managed to hold out for less than ten breaths before collapsing resentfully in a pool of blood.
Drawing his sword from the Scorpion Tiger's body, Hong Yi finally had time to look at Xu Chen. Seeing that the latter's complexion was normal and he was completely unharmed, a trace of surprise flashed through his eyes.
The incident had happened so suddenly just now that even he had been unable to rescue Xu Hu in time. Logically speaking, Xu Chen, who was further away, should have had even less of a chance. Unless Xu Chen had discovered the Scorpion Tiger a step ahead of him.
But was that possible?
Xu Chen was at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation Realm, whereas he himself was at the Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation Realm. The higher the cultivation, the stronger the perception. Could Xu Chen's perception be superior to his?
Seemingly sensing the doubt contained in Hong Yi's gaze, Xu Chen smiled and explained, "I just happened to spot the Scorpion Tiger. Being prepared in advance, I managed to barely block a strike for Xu Hu."
So he had simply stumbled upon the Scorpion Tiger's tracks by chance. Hong Yi had a sudden realization. This explanation from Xu Chen was much easier to accept.
"Xu Chen, you aren't hurt, are you?"
Having survived a near-death experience and calmed down, Xu Hu began to worry about whether Xu Chen was injured.
Xu Chen explained, "I'm fine. The Scorpion Tiger's target was you, and I caught it off guard by suddenly appearing, so I wasn't hurt."
You can know a person's face, but not their heart. He did not want to expose his true combat prowess too early.
Hong Yi spoke up, "The commotion from the fight just now wasn't small; it has already attracted nearby monster beasts. Clean the battlefield and let's leave quickly."
Xu Hu and the others said no more, neatly and efficiently processing the Scorpion Tiger's carcass and taking away all the materials that could be carried.
***
Hong Yi said solemnly, "Stop! There is movement ahead!"
As his voice fell, the others also detected the commotion in front of them.
"Thud, thud, thud!!!"
The earth shook. A monster beast was charging toward them.
"Boom!"
The bushes suddenly burst apart, and a reptilian creature charged out as ferociously as an armored vehicle.
This was a reptilian creature covered entirely in silvery-white scales. Its head alone was the size of a water vat, its scarlet eyes were as large as lanterns, it had a maw full of tusks, and a tail shaped like a saw—it was ferocious beyond compare!
It emanated a dense demonic aura from its entire body! It was far more powerful than the Scorpion Tiger.
Hong Yi's eyelids twitched. "A Second-Grade Advanced Monster Beast, Thunder Lizard!"
Though he was a Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation Realm warrior, in a one-on-one situation, he knew he was no match for the Thunder Lizard. Fortunately, however, he had six helpers!
With seven people joining forces, they did have the strength to put up a fight against the Thunder Lizard, and perhaps even overcome and kill it.
"Captain, what should we do? Do we retreat or fight?" Xu Hu's expression was taut, treating the situation as a formidable enemy.
"The Thunder Lizard is clearly coming for us. To retreat without fighting would be extremely disadvantageous to us, and could even end in total annihilation. Things have come to this; we can only join forces and fight it!"
Hong Yi drew his longsword and let out a roar, "Everyone, together!"
With that, he took the initiative, wielding his sword as he charged at the Thunder Lizard.
Xu Chen and the six others followed closely behind.
In an instant, sword gleams, blade radiances, fist qi, and palm gales were exceptionally brilliant! The momentum was astonishing!
Xu Chen appropriately made his move, displaying the strength expected of the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation Realm.
Seven attacks converged on the Thunder Lizard from different directions.
Powerful though the Thunder Lizard was, under the encirclement of the seven people, it was instantly battered into retreating repeatedly, suppressed to the point where it could only parry.
Driven back step by step, the Thunder Lizard suffered several more wounds on its body. Amidst its fury, its beastly maw snapped wide open, and a cluster of silvery-white thunder blasted outward.
The target pointed straight at Hong Yi. Clearly, Hong Yi, with his Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation Realm, was regarded by the Thunder Lizard as the most dangerous enemy, and it intended to cripple him first.
Hong Yi was greatly startled, knowing that the Thunder Lizard was going all out in desperation. He immediately channeled all his spiritual power, and the current-like spiritual power surged through both hands into his longsword. At this moment, he held nothing back and fought for his life.
"Clang!"
Sword qi erupted. With a flash of cold light, the sword in Hong Yi's hand slashed fiercely toward the incoming thunderbolt.
"Boom!"
A massive sound resonated. The thunderbolt shattered and splattered in all directions!
Although the power of Hong Yi's sword—which cleaved through the thunder—was sharply reduced, it still landed heavily on the Thunder Lizard's neck.
"Plop!"
The sharp sword tore through the scales, and the meager remaining force left only a three-inch-deep sword scar on the Thunder Lizard's neck.
"Roar!"
Stung with pain and driven mad, the Thunder Lizard let out an angry roar toward the heavens, and its massive tail, carrying a low whistling sound through the air, lashed violently against Hong Yi.
"Bang!"
Hong Yi vomited a mouthful of blood and was sent flying backward.
Seeing this, Xu Hu and the others all wore expressions of horror. If Hong Yi were to die in battle or lose his combat capability, their situation would become extremely perilous.
Having suffered successive injuries, the Thunder Lizard went completely crazy, its eyes glowing crimson with monstrous killing intent.
"Roar!"
The roar shook the heavens. Its massive tail lashed wildly. With several *bang* sounds, Xu Hu, Wang Shuo, and the others were either sent stumbling back in disarray or coughed up blood.
The battle situation instantly reversed.
Hong Yi staggered to his feet. Seeing that his side had fallen into a disadvantageous position and that he himself was heavily injured, he feared that remaining any longer would risk total annihilation of the entire squad.
"Go! Scatter and run! Let as many escape as one can!"
Hearing this, how could the others dare to stay? They fled in panic.
Yet just as everyone was fleeing in disarray, a single figure instead advanced, instantly closing in on the Thunder Lizard. With a flash of cold light and a soft *splat*, blood spurted!
The Thunder Lizard's massive body suddenly stiffened, a reluctant roar issued from its mouth, and it toppled straight down.
"This..."
Hong Yi, who had turned to flee, was dumbfounded.
Xu Hu, Wang Shuo, and the others also halted their steps, staring blankly one and all at the lifeless Thunder Lizard.
"Dead?"
Xu Hu's lips parted slightly, uttering a low, trembling sound.
"Xu Chen, how did you pull that off?" Hong Yi stared with wide eyes, disbelief written all over his face.
The others also cast their gazes toward the person who had slain the Thunder Lizard.
Xu Chen!
Who would have thought that the Thunder Lizard, which had forced them to scatter and flee for their lives, would ultimately end up dead at Xu Chen's hands?
Xu Chen drew his longsword from the Thunder Lizard's body, shook off the beast blood clinging to the blade, and said, "Luck."
Seeing that the others did not believe him, Xu Chen explained, "The Thunder Lizard's target was always the captain, and it didn't take me seriously, which gave me the opportunity to approach it. And my sword just happened to pierce its wound."
"Without the captain's sword strike, I wouldn't even have been able to pierce the Thunder Lizard's scales."
After hearing Xu Chen's explanation, Hong Yi and the others finally understood.
"So that's how it was," Hong Yi said. "Even so, Xu Chen, your courage and your grasp of the battle opportunity are things I can only sigh at in admiration."
"Impressive!" Xu Hu gave Xu Chen a thumbs-up.
Xu Chen had first saved his life from the Scorpion Tiger, and now he had killed the Thunder Lizard. These two successive events made him convinced from the bottom of his heart that the latter was extraordinary, and his future achievements would undoubtedly be low. Such a person was definitely worth making deep friendships with.
Clearly, Xu Hu was not the only one holding this thought; Hong Yi felt the exact same way. He had even decided to invite Xu Chen to join the Chasing Wind Squad.
"Xu Chen, you played the biggest role in killing the Thunder Lizard. According to the rules, you take forty percent of the Thunder Lizard's materials, and the remaining sixty percent will be split among the six of us. How does that sound?"
"I have no objections," Xu Chen said.
***
Xu Hu sidled up to Xu Chen and suddenly asked, "Xu Chen, aren't you curious about our Chasing Wind Squad's mission this time?"
Xu Chen smoothly asked, "What mission?"
"Hehe, I was originally going to tell you once we reached the destination, but since I happen to take a liking to you," Xu Hu grinned and said, "our target this time is the Thunder Fruit."
"Thunder Fruit?" Xu Chen indicated that he had never heard of the Thunder Fruit.
Xu Hu patiently explained, "The Thunder Fruit is a thunder-attribute Mystic Grade low-tier spiritual fruit. It contains pure thunder-attribute energy and can temper the physical body."
Xu Chen's eyes lit up.
When cultivators practiced Qi, their physical bodies were generally relatively weak.
The Thunder Fruit could temper the physical body. For a cultivator, enhancing the physical body yielded a minor boost in combat power, but a major enhancement to their means of survival.
Xu Chen asked, "Are there guardian monster beasts beside the Thunder Fruit?"
"Yes," Xu Hu nodded. "If there weren't guardian monster beasts, we would have casually picked them the last time we discovered the Thunder Fruit."
"What kind of monster beasts?"
"A pack of Thunder Apes."
"A pack?"
"Yes, a pack, probably around thirty-odd of them."
"Thunder Apes are Second-Grade Intermediate Monster Beasts. With over thirty Thunder Apes, do you think just the seven of us could be their match? Besides, there's definitely a Thunder Ape King among this pack, and its strength is at least Second-Grade Advanced."
"Who said we're going to fight the Thunder Apes head-on? The Thunder Apes live in a canyon. We can lure the Thunder Apes out of the canyon and kill them one by one. If we're no match for a whole pack of Thunder Apes, surely we can handle one or two?"
Xu Hu cast a disdainful look at Xu Chen, then slowly laid out their plan.
Xu Chen breathed a sigh of relief.
The group passed through the jungle, and the view suddenly broadened before them. Xu Hu pointed toward the canyon entrance and said excitedly, "We're here."
Faintly, the cries of apes could be heard echoing from within the canyon.
"Rest for a while, then act according to the plan," Hong Yi said.
The others nodded one after another and found places to conceal themselves. Half an hour later, all seven of them had fully recovered their physical and mental vigor to their peak condition.
Hong Yi was the first to stand up, followed closely by the others.
"Who's going to lure the monsters?" Hong Yi's gaze swept over everyone's faces one by one. "Luring monsters is an extremely dangerous task. If you're the least bit careless, you'll be besieged by the entire pack of Thunder Apes and perish within the canyon. Therefore, the person responsible for luring them cannot be slow, and yet their strength cannot be too high either, otherwise they'll draw the Thunder Ape King's attention the moment they enter the canyon, ruining everything."
"Captain, I'll go."
"I'll go."
Xu Chen and Xu Hu spoke almost simultaneously. Then the two of them exchanged a look.
Without giving the two of them a chance to speak further, Hong Yi, acting as captain, decided, "Xu Chen, you go. Be careful."
"Mm." Xu Chen nodded.
"Whoosh!"
Pushing off the ground with the balls of his feet, his figure flashed out, silently approaching the canyon.
Hong Yi and the others, hiding in the jungle, stared nervously at Xu Chen's retreating back.
"Roar—"
"Roar—"
Under the nervous watch of Hong Yi and the others, Xu Chen entered the canyon. Not long after, the roars of Thunder Apes echoed from within the canyon. Following that, a figure rushed out of the canyon, and right behind it closely followed two massive Thunder Apes running upright.
"They're coming!"
Hong Yi's spirits lifted, and he signaled everyone to restrain their auras. If the Thunder Apes sensed danger, the two trailing Xu Chen might very well retreat back into the canyon.
***
Xu Chen controlled his speed, maintaining a distance of about ten meters between himself and the relentless Thunder Apes chasing behind him. One human and two apes—one fleeing, two pursuing—gradually moved away from the canyon and entered the jungle.
As the two apes were successfully lured into the ambush circle, Hong Yi, lying in concealment in the dark, suddenly sprang out. "Attack!"
In a flash, six figures assaulted the Thunder Apes from different directions.
Xu Chen, who had been running, also abruptly spun around, drew his longsword, and thrust forward with a single stroke.
"Splat!"
This sword strike was fast and vicious, piercing directly into the left eye of one Thunder Ape, sending a spray of fresh blood flying.
Stung with pain and roaring, the Thunder Ape attempted to tear Xu Chen apart when two more attacks landed on its body. With a pair of *bang* sounds, the meter-high, massive Thunder Ape was sent flying backward. After hitting the ground and convulsing violently a few times, it drew its last breath.
The other Thunder Ape, caught in the ambush and joint assault, also quickly collapsed resentfully to the ground.
"Quick, clean the battlefield," Hong Yi said in a low voice.
As he spoke, he cast a nervous glance toward the canyon entrance, terrified that the dying screams of the Thunder Apes would draw the entire pack out from the canyon.
Fortunately, their ambush spot was sufficiently far from the canyon, and their strikes had been clean and swift; before the Thunder Apes could utter more than a few cries, they had already fallen in pools of blood.
After clearing the battlefield, Hong Yi and the others relocated their ambush spot. Because they had just been through a fight, residual auras and the stench of blood still lingered in the air; lingering to set up an ambush in the same spot risked alerting the Thunder Apes in advance and putting them on guard.
After moving to a new ambush location, Xu Chen restrained his aura and prepared once more to lure the monsters.
"Xu Chen, take a rest before going," Hong Yi said with concern.
"No need," Xu Chen shook his head. His exertion had been minimal and was practically negligible.
Xu Chen dashed out once again and entered the canyon.
Not long after, he lured three Thunder Apes out.
Proceeding by the book, they lured the Thunder Apes into the ambush circle and attacked them en masse. The three Thunder Apes failed to last ten breaths before falling into pools of blood one after another.
Next, Xu Chen made seven or eight successive trips, and the total number of Thunder Apes they had slain already reached twenty-eight.
Stupid though the Thunder Apes were, by this point they realized something was amiss.
The remaining six Thunder Apes in the canyon refused to step out of the canyon no matter how Xu Chen tried to lure them.
Since the Thunder Apes refused to take the bait, Xu Chen and the others were out of options. After a brief consultation, they decided to launch a direct assault on the canyon.
Anyway, there were only six Thunder Apes left in the canyon; in terms of numbers, their own side still held the advantage.
"I'll hold down the Thunder Ape King. Zhao Feng, Wang Shuo, Yang Jian, Xu Chen, the four of you each hold off one Thunder Ape. Xu Hu, Li Zhong, the two of you team up to deal with one. Spare no expense to kill that Thunder Ape in the shortest time possible, and then support the others."
Before entering the canyon, Hong Yi whispered his instructions.
Xu Chen and the others nodded successively.
"Let's go."
With a low shout, Hong Yi took the lead, charging into the canyon first. Xu Chen and the six others followed closely behind.
"Roar!"
As the seven of them rushed in, the remaining six Thunder Apes in the canyon stood up one by one, issuing threatening roars at the intruders.
Hong Yi drew his longsword, directly locking onto the much larger Thunder Ape King.
"Whoosh!"
He leaped ten zhang into the air, the sword in his hand blooming with silvery radiance. With a single slash, sword qi crisscrossed, causing the air to explode and the earth to fracture.
Xu Chen and the others each selected their targets as well, engaging them in fierce combat.
Xu Hu and Li Zhong joined forces, and within a few exchanges, they had suppressed the Thunder Ape opposing them. However, the Thunder Ape was resilient with thick hide, and the two of them were unable to kill it for a moment.
Unable to slay the Thunder Ape in a short time, they could not free up their hands to help the other two pairs. Zhao Feng, Wang Shuo, Yang Jian, and the others grimaced, gritting their teeth as they barely held on.
At the same tier, monster beasts possessed thick hides and astonishing defensive power, and their combat strength was generally superior to that of human warriors.
Xu Chen fought evenly with the Thunder Ape opposite him, trading blows back and forth while constantly keeping an eye on the overall battlefield. Seeing that Xu Hu and Li Zhong were failing to kill their Thunder Ape and the combatants in the other areas were in precarious situations—especially Hong Yi, who was fighting the Thunder Ape King alone and looking extremely strained, already bearing several claw marks on his body, particularly the one across his chest which would have disemboweled him had he not dodged quickly—he knew he had to act.
Xu Hu and Li Zhong clearly also noticed the plight of the other battlefronts and grew anxious. But once a person grew anxious, their fighting rhythm began to fray; far from killing the Thunder Ape, they instead plunged themselves into increasingly dangerous situations.
Seeing this, Xu Chen knew he could no longer pin his hopes on Xu Hu and the other man. Now, he needed to break this stalemate, or else someone from their party would definitely perish here.
Thinking of this, Xu Chen no longer held back.
His previously languid gaze instantly sharpened, resembling two divine swords.
He swept and slashed with the longsword in his hand, and with a *splat*, a bone-deep gash opened up on the Thunder Ape's body, blood flowing to stain half its torso red.
Roaring in pain, the Thunder Ape thrashed and lunged toward Xu Chen with flailing arms and a gaping maw.
Xu Chen neither dodged nor parried, thrusting his sword straight out.
"Plop!"
The dull thud of a sharp blade piercing flesh rang out.
The flailing Thunder Ape's movements abruptly stiffened, a dying shriek issued from its throat, and its massive body tilted powerlessly and collapsed.
As the Thunder Ape fell, Xu Chen withdrew the longsword he had driven into its left eye.
The sword had entered through the left eye and exited the back of the head—a kill with a single strike.