Living steadily in the world of gods and mystery

Midnight!

The moonlight was bright, illuminating the shantytown clearly with its brilliance.

A figure was sprinting rapidly, the light sound of footsteps echoing distinctly in the silent night.

After advancing to the Sixth Level of Qi Cultivation, the only feeling Chen Li had was that his body seemed lighter when running, and his thoughts much sharper and smoother, though this could also be a result of the adrenaline pumping through him at that moment.

He ran all the way.

Soon his speed began to decrease, his movements growing gentler and quieter, until his steps were soundless upon the ground.

He passed an empty house.

With a flip, he climbed onto the roof, not far from where the demon beasts were.

A layer of mist pervaded the ground ahead, thankfully not too dense, coming in waves; after a big wave of mist passed, there would be an interval before another surged in.

Chen Li lightly sniffed, the mist carrying a faint fishy smell.

Similar to the smell of fish.

But even fouler.

Mixed with a hint of the scent of blood.

Chen Li flicked away a beetle that had been attracted by the foul smell and had landed on his arm.

He held still, listening intently.

The thing you feared most while fishing was accidentally catching a great white shark.

Soon he heard a rustling noise, as if something was rubbing against the ground. The sound was intermittent, sometimes close, sometimes distant, occasionally interspersed with piercing screams and curses.

He hesitated for a moment, then lightly jumped off the roof.

Continuing forward, he stooped low and moved slowly; the mist ahead grew thicker, carrying with it a sense of moisture.

After moving nearly a hundred meters further, he stopped on a slope.

It was a small dirt hill, about seven or eight meters high, overgrown with all kinds of climbing plants.

Chen Li lay at the top of the hill, looking down its edge, and through the hazy mist, he quickly spotted the figure of the demon beast.

At this sight, his face slightly changed.

In the thick mist in the distance, a dark shadow snaked its way forward.

A snake? A snake demon?

Chen Li even noticed a strange phenomenon: the surrounding mist wasn’t natural at all, but emanated from the snake demon itself, clouds of mist continuously spreading outwards.

He suddenly had an ominous premonition.

At that moment, the snake demon seemed to notice something?

A pair of green, luminous eyes peered through the fog, and then it ’slowly’ began to slither in his direction.

At first, because it was far away, Chen Li felt nothing, but soon an oppressive aura started to envelop the area, and an intangible fear rapidly took root in his heart.

Chen Li’s heart skipped a beat, and he quickly drew back his head, his face turning pale.

Damn it!

Damn it!

Damn it!

What kind of luck was this?

He shouldn’t have come out today!

He cursed under his breath, his heart pounding violently, without a second’s hesitation, he "swished" down the slope.

Then, without looking back, he bolted frantically.

With his current strength, fighting a Second Order demon beast was almost no different from courting death!

The irritating rustling sound gradually became clearer in his ears, and the noise grew louder and louder.

Chen Li couldn’t help but look back once, his heartbeat almost missing a beat at the sight; the monstrous beast was now less than a hundred meters behind him, the houses it swept past along the way were destroyed like building blocks.

Chen Li even saw a large wooden beam tumbling through the air in an arc, flying ten meters before crashing down and causing another house to collapse.

He really couldn’t understand.

Why was it so hell-bent on chasing him?

But he had only taken a peek.

What grudge could there be?

What grudge?

He was certain that the demon beast he had encountered last winter was not the same one.

He chanted a spell while his hands rapidly formed seals.

Preparing to cast the Traction Skill, ready to fight for his life.

"Wait..."

At that moment, he realized he was about to inadvertently run out of the shanty area, and an idea struck him.

"Maybe it’s not after me..."

The spell instantly failed.

The next moment, he immediately changed direction and ran.

As expected.

The snake demon slithered straight ahead, paying no mind to Chen Li’s presence. It moved into the wilderness and soon vanished from sight, along with the mist in the air gradually dissipating.

Chen Li, who had been running and was now dripping with sweat, stopped.

He took a deep breath.

It had been a false alarm.

Thinking back on it, he felt a wave of fear wash over him again.

"Fortunately, I reacted in time at the last moment, interrupting the Traction Skill. Otherwise, the Mana fluctuations from the spell could have drawn the terrible demon beast’s attention. Then the false alarm would have become a real scare," he thought.

Chen Li stood stationary for a while, allowing his pounding heart to slowly calm down.

Thinking of the demon beast’s recent foraging, he retraced the sinuous trail of the beast, planning to pick up some leftover Magic Artifacts and Spirit Stones to calm his nerves...

Unfortunately, his hope was dashed halfway there.

Many people nearby had already come out and were rummaging through the ruins.

Chen Li sighed, not in the mood to join the crowd, so he turned back reluctantly.

His journey there was filled with hot-blooded enthusiasm, but the way back was plagued with lingering fears.

Along the way, he reflected deeply on his previous encounter with the second-order demon beast.

He realized that his fear was uncontrollable; his first instinct had been to run until he could run no more, and only then did he consider resistance.

"Could it be because of that terrifying aura... Is it the suppression of rank and order?" he wondered.

"What a terrifying creature!"

...

In the following days, Chen Li kept a low profile.

More than ten days later.

Zhang Yan’s new house was completed, and he officially moved in next door to Chen Li.

Chen Li brought a fish as a housewarming gift and went to congratulate him.

"You haven’t bought any talisman paper for a long time, why haven’t you been making talismans recently?" During casual conversation, Zhang Yan subtly brought up a question of concern.

"It’s a long story, I must put talisman making on hold for a while," said Chen Li. He was so exhausted from practicing three spells every day, he didn’t have any extra Spiritual Power to create talismans.

At these words, Zhang Yan felt a wave of disappointment.

Ever since he got injured, he had been continuously spending money.

After recovering from his injury, he didn’t dare to go out and sell talismans anymore. Recently, the Green River District had been too chaotic, with robbers everywhere. Selling talismans was as risky as adventuring, resulting in little to no income for some time.

He had thought he could supplement his income through Chen Li, but even that hope was now gone.

Although he still had some savings, his monthly expenses were high, especially for the Qi Replenishing Pills for himself and his daughter. Spending without earning was quickly depleting his resources, causing him great anxiety.

"If you’re not making talismans, what do you rely on for living?" Zhang Yan pressed down the disappointment in his heart, asking with curiosity.

Of course, the main sources were selling Demon Beast Meat and Magic Artifacts.

Of course, he couldn’t say that out loud.

Chen Li thought to himself.

"My savings should last me a while. I made plenty of talismans last winter, and I’ve sold a lot in the past period," Chen Li said with a smile.

Zhang Yan, struck by the thought, said, "How about I let you sell my talismans, at half price to you?"

"Half price, are you sure you’re willing to part with them?"

"What’s there to be unwilling about?" said Zhang Yan, forcefully hiding his pain and trying to laugh it off generously. "But you should think it over. There’s risk involved. I nearly lost my life last time."