Ye Ling sped along the deserted path.
She was using the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique to travel. This not only allowed her to move quickly but also gave her a chance to practice her movement technique along the way, killing two birds with one stone.
Two hours later, she finally arrived at the foot of the Baiyun Mountain Range.
Looking up, mountains stretched upon mountains, seemingly endless.
A vast sea of trees rustled as the mountain wind brushed against her face, creating a grand and imposing atmosphere.
Dressed in form-fitting green robes and holding the steel sword her father had given her, Ye Ling chose a narrow path and headed into the mountains.
Once inside the mountains, she did not dare to be careless in the slightest.
Here, she had to watch out for more than just demon beasts; some malicious martial artists specifically targeted solo travelers.
Even a disciple of a prominent family could easily be targeted if they were alone.
She concealed her aura and scanned her surroundings, staying alert with every step.
She hadn't walked far when a dark shadow suddenly lunged at her from the nearby bushes.
Ye Ling had been on high alert, so she reacted instantly.
With a swift slash of her sword, the creature was sliced into two and fell to the ground.
Looking down, she saw it was a low-stage Tier One dark-green snake.
Its body was still writhing, and black blood was oozing from the cut.
This snake was only equivalent to the Houtian Second Layer in strength. It wasn't particularly powerful, but its venom was lethal.
If bitten, even an ordinary late-stage Houtian Realm martial artist would struggle to survive.
“This place is indeed perilous.”
Ye Ling felt a slight chill. If her reaction had been a split second slower, or if she hadn't noticed it and had been bitten, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
She probably would have been in serious trouble. She had to be even more cautious from now on.
Stepping around the snake's corpse, she continued forward.
As she walked, she suddenly remembered something.
She had heard the clan elders mention that Xiantian Realm martial artists had a much easier time navigating the mountains.
This was because they possessed Divine Sense, which allowed them to perceive their surroundings clearly. They didn't have to live in constant fear like Houtian Realm martial artists, worrying about something jumping out at them at any moment.
Wait. Divine Sense? She had that too!
Ye Ling stopped in her tracks and slapped her forehead.
After the souls of her two lives had merged, she had already awakened her Divine Sense.
But over the past few days, her mind had been entirely focused on practicing martial arts, causing her to completely forget about it.
“I've really gone stupid from practicing my swordplay.”
Standing in place, she closed her eyes and tried to channel her Divine Sense to expand outward.
At first, it felt a bit stiff, like an unused muscle that she couldn't quite exert force with.
She tried a few more times and gradually got the hang of it.
Her Divine Sense could cover a maximum range of twenty meters.
Every rustle of grass and potential danger within this area was clearly mapped out in her perception, as if a detailed map had been laid out inside her mind.
After experimenting, she decided to maintain her Divine Sense at a range of about ten meters.
Expanding it to its full limit was too mentally exhausting and couldn't be sustained for long.
A ten-meter range was more than enough to guard against sudden ambushes.
While adjusting her Divine Sense, she suddenly noticed something unusual to her front-left.
About eighteen meters away, there was a concentration of spiritual energy that was significantly denser than its surroundings.
It felt like a faint ball of light hidden in the grass, exceptionally conspicuous to her Divine Sense.
Ye Ling's heart stirred. A spiritual herb?
She approached cautiously while scanning her surroundings with her Divine Sense.
Seeing no trace of any other demon beasts, she figured that the dark-green snake from earlier must have been guarding this spiritual herb.
If she hadn't used her Divine Sense and had relied solely on her eyes, she probably would have missed it.
She walked over quickly. Next to a large blue boulder grew a plant with thick, glossy green leaves and slightly serrated edges, the entire herb emitting a faint halo of light.
Condensing Emerald Grass.
Ye Ling squatted down to examine it closely. She had seen illustrations of this herb in the clan's medical manual.
It was a Yellow-grade low-tier spiritual herb that could stabilize one's cultivation realm, making it highly useful for those who had just made a breakthrough.
Most importantly, it was valuable. It was worth four taels of gold.
Four taels of gold was no small sum. One tael of gold could be exchanged for ten taels of silver, and one tael of silver for a thousand copper coins.
An ordinary family in Baiyun City only earned a total income of ten taels of gold after a whole year of hard work.
Although she was a renowned genius in the clan, her monthly allowance was only ten taels of gold. This single herb was worth half a month's allowance.
“Not bad luck.”
She carefully brushed away the soil, dug up the entire herb intact, and placed it into a jade box she carried with her.
A jade box could seal in spiritual energy, preventing spiritual herbs from withering and losing their efficacy.
After closing the lid, she tucked the box into her bundle and continued forward.
Time passed bit by bit.
After harvesting the Condensing Emerald Grass, she didn't come across any other spiritual herbs for several hours.
The occasional demon beasts that lunged at her were all the weakest low-stage Tier One creatures, such as Red-Tailed Scorpions or Stone-Armored Beetles. She dispatched them easily, killing them with a single strike of her sword.
As Ye Ling ventured deeper, the surrounding trees grew denser, and the light began to dim.
Since she had yet to encounter a decent demon beast to fight, she felt a bit of regret that she couldn't truly test her swordplay.
Just as this thought crossed her mind, her Divine Sense suddenly flared with a warning.
Behind a large tree to her front-left, a heavy and powerful aura was hidden.
It was completely different from those weak demon beasts from earlier—fierce, steady, and weighing down on the area like a massive boulder.
Ye Ling's heart tightened. She immediately executed the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique, her figure swiftly retreating several paces.
Tapping her toes against a tree trunk, she flipped through the air and landed cleanly on a nearby large tree, crouching on a thick branch.
Holding her breath, she looked in that direction.
From behind the large tree, a massive creature stepped out.
It was a Giant-Tusked Boar, a late-stage Tier One demon beast whose strength was equivalent to a human martial artist at the Houtian Ninth Layer.
This creature was several times larger than an ordinary domestic pig, with its back standing nearly as tall as a human.
Its body was covered in thick, grayish-brown hide filled with wrinkles, looking incredibly tough.
She recalled the clan elders mentioning that a Giant-Tusked Boar's hide was as tough as iron armor, completely impervious to ordinary blades and swords.
Its limbs were thick and sturdy. Every step it took on the ground produced a dull thud, causing the fallen leaves to tremble.
Two white tusks, half a foot long and gleaming with sharp light, protruded from its mouth like a pair of scimitars.
Its pitch-black eyes gleamed with fierce malice. It looked up, glaring at Ye Ling on the tree, snorting white steam from its nose as if ready to charge at any moment.
Ye Ling looked at it, then at the sword in her hand, making a quick mental calculation.
It was just strong enough to require her full effort, making it the perfect opponent to practice on.
She expanded her Divine Sense to its maximum range, quickly scanning the surrounding area.
Once she confirmed there were no other demon beasts lying in ambush, she finally relaxed and leaped down from the tree.
Landing with a stable posture, she looked up, locked her gaze onto the Giant-Tusked Boar, and tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword.
Without waiting for the Giant-Tusked Boar to make the first move, she dashed straight toward it.
The Giant-Tusked Boar let out a furious roar, dug its hooves into the ground, and charged forward with its massive body.
It was incredibly fast, its two tusks flashing with cold light as they aimed straight for her chest and abdomen in a ferocious charge.
Ye Ling didn't panic at all. Executing the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique, she lightly tilted her body and narrowly dodged the attack.
The heavy body of the boar brushed past the edge of her robes and crashed heavily into a tree trunk behind her. With a loud snap, the tree broke in half.
Had that collision connected, she would have broken several bones, if not lost her life.
Having missed its target, the Giant-Tusked Boar shook its head, spun around, and lunged at her again.
Ye Ling didn't clash with it head-on, instead circling around and dodging to avoid its tusks.
Drawing her steel sword, she sent a flash of sword light slashing onto its back.
With a metallic clang, it left only a white mark. Its hide was indeed incredibly tough.
Stung by the pain, the Giant-Tusked Boar flew into a rage, launching a flurry of wild and frantic charges that kicked up clouds of dust from the ground.
Calm and unhurried, Ye Ling relied on her movement technique to dodge time and time again.
After exchanging a few rounds, she understood its pattern.
This beast could only charge blindly without any real tricks.
Seizing the moment when it turned to gather its strength, Ye Ling suddenly halted her steps and poured her inner energy into the blade.
With a flick of her wrist, her sword momentum suddenly plunged, bypassing the thick hide to stab precisely into the vulnerable spot on its neck.
Pfft.
The blade sank into the flesh, and fresh blood gushed out.
The Giant-Tusked Boar's massive body suddenly stiffened, its limbs trembling wildly.
The fierce light in its eyes quickly faded, and it crashed heavily onto its knees. After a couple of struggles, it stopped moving.
The entire fight had lasted only a few exchanges.
Ye Ling sheathed her sword and adjusted her breathing.
Having the assistance of her Divine Sense gave her too much of an advantage.
Every time the Giant-Tusked Boar was about to charge, she could perceive its direction in advance and dodge with ease.
Although she still could have won without her Divine Sense's prediction, it would never have been this effortless.
Rate on N.U.
