The market district was as lively as ever. Chu Ran made his way through the crowd and headed straight for Lin Gu’s stall.
Lin Gu’s stall was a permanent one. He had been setting up at this spot for ten years and, barring exceptional circumstances, came out every day without fail, rain or shine.
At that moment, Lin Gu was sitting cross-legged behind his stall. When he saw Chu Ran approaching, his eyes lit up, and he said with a smile, “It’s only been a few days, Junior Brother Chu, yet your complexion looks rosier than ever. Have you found a way to cure the snake venom?”
Chu Ran shook his head, a wry smile appearing on his face. “No. I didn’t make it to the Forbidden Arts Hall. On the way, I ran into a kind senior brother who taught me a method of bloodletting. I gave it a try, and it did ease the venom’s effects somewhat. It should buy me another month or so of life.”
The reason he said this was to explain where his spirit stones had come from later.
Otherwise, it would be suspicious for a fourth-level Qi Refinement cultivator to earn more than a dozen spirit stones in just a few days.
In this Demonic Sect, poverty was the norm. Being wealthy, on the other hand, was liable to invite trouble.
A look of regret crossed Lin Gu’s face. “What a pity. What brings you here today, Junior Brother?”
“Senior Brother, is that Blackiron spirit sword I sold you still here?”
Back then, Chu Ran had traded this very magical artifact for three mid-grade first-rank Blazing Fire Talismans.
“Are you looking to buy it back?”
“Exactly. I didn’t end up using the spirit stones I had set aside for the Forbidden Arts Hall, so I thought I’d take the sword back first.”
“Fortunately, that sword still hasn’t sold. Since you need it, you sold it to me for nine spirit stones, so I’ll only charge you one spirit stone as a storage fee. Ten spirit stones in total. How does that sound?”
“Thank you, Senior Brother!”
On the surface, Chu Ran thanked him cheerfully as he took out ten spirit stones and handed them to Lin Gu.
Inside, however, he cursed. Whenever he did business with Lin Gu, that man never took a loss. Even breaking even was impossible.
Lin Gu reached into his storage pouch and took out a black greatsword.
The sword was about four feet long and five fingers wide, with artifact inscriptions carved into its blade.
Chu Ran took the Blackiron spirit sword and examined it repeatedly. There was nothing wrong with it.
“Then I won’t disturb you any further, Senior Brother. I’ll take my leave.”
Chu Ran cupped his fists, placed the sword beneath his feet, and turned to leave on his sword.
Lin Gu smiled and returned the salute. His gaze lingered on Chu Ran’s back for a long while. Then he lowered his head and looked at the ten spirit stones in his hand, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully.
“These spirit stones… don’t seem to be the ones I gave him.”
With the sword in hand, Chu Ran’s speed increased considerably.
Before noon, he appeared in the skies above Ten-Mile Slope, ten li outside the gates of the Heavenly Demon Sect.
Demonic cultivators were generally unrestrained. As a demonic sect, the Heavenly Demon Sect did not place overly strict restrictions on its disciples. Unless there were special circumstances, they were free to enter and leave the sect.
Chu Ran had thought he had arrived early enough, but to his surprise, Xue Zhi and the other two were already waiting there.
Xue Zhi was sitting cross-legged on a bluestone. The moment he saw Chu Ran approaching, he rose and greeted him.
“I didn’t expect Fellow Daoist Chu to arrive so early. We thought you wouldn’t get here until noon.”
Chu Ran cupped his fists. “Greetings, Senior Brother Xue, Fellow Daoist Zhu, Fellow Daoist He.”
The night before, Xue Zhi had already introduced his two junior disciples to Chu Ran.
The female disciple was named He Lin, while the male disciple was named Zhu Heng.
“Since Fellow Daoist Chu has arrived, let’s set out early.”
“Very well.”
The four of them mounted their swords and transformed into four streaks of light, racing across the sky toward the southeast.
The valley where the Red Profound Fruit grew was more than six hundred li from the Heavenly Demon Sect.
All four of them were Qi Refinement cultivators, so their flying speed was not particularly fast. Even if they pushed themselves to the limit, they could only cover a little over two hundred li in an hour—and their spiritual power would soon be exhausted.
To preserve their combat strength, the four tacitly kept their speed at around one hundred li per hour, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth as they flew in order to keep their reserves as full as possible.
They were even slower than the electric scooters of Chu Ran’s previous life. Fortunately, they could fly in a straight line and did not have to take detours as they would over mountainous terrain.
Along the way, Xue Zhi was quite talkative, chatting animatedly with Chu Ran. His words carried an unabashed straightforwardness.
His cultivation was one level higher than Chu Ran’s. He should have addressed Chu Ran as junior brother, yet he consistently called him Fellow Daoist, treating him as an equal to an almost excessive degree.
Chu Ran listened in silence, occasionally responding with a few words, but the more he heard, the stranger he found it.
Xue Zhi and the other two were nothing like disciples of a demonic sect.
They spoke without beating around the bush, made no attempt to test his strength, and had even volunteered information about Xue Zhi’s Foundation Establishment–realm uncle.
In the Heavenly Demon Sect, this was no longer mere straightforwardness.
It was stupidity.
“Senior Brother Xue is certainly forthright,” Chu Ran said, probing him without revealing his intentions.
Xue Zhi waved his hand and laughed. “We’re fellow disciples, and when we’re traveling outside, we ought to stand together and help one another. What’s the point of hiding things? I admire Fellow Daoist Chu’s courage. Since I invited you on this mission, I absolutely won’t treat you unfairly.”
Chu Ran smiled but did not reply.
Through their conversation, he gradually pieced together Xue Zhi’s background.
The three of them had all become disciples of the same Foundation Establishment core disciple, who also happened to be Xue Zhi’s uncle.
That explained it.
Unlike Chu Ran, who had climbed step by step from the bottom as a menial disciple, Xue Zhi had entered the sect with a powerful backer.
He never lacked cultivation resources, received his monthly allowance without fail, and was assigned lucrative missions arranged by his uncle. He only had to go through the motions to collect his spirit stones; there was no need for him to risk his life.
Naturally, someone like that had no need to learn how to scheme, nor did he need to guard against the hearts of others.
Chu Ran relaxed his vigilance somewhat. It seemed this trip would not involve any treachery.
It was not until late at night that the four finally arrived at a valley.
The moonlight was faint, and the starlight dim. The valley was shrouded in darkness.
The four landed after sheathing their swords, then hid along a cliff on one side of the valley. Using the scattered rocks as cover, they peered down into the valley.
Although cultivators possessed eyesight far superior to that of mortals, the night was simply too dark, and their vision was ultimately hindered.
Xue Zhi pointed toward a patch of darkness in the valley. “The Red Profound Fruit is over there. I’ll go down first and draw out the two demon foxes. You three follow after me.”
“Yes, Senior Brother.” He Lin and Zhu Heng acknowledged him.
“Wait!”
Chu Ran grabbed Xue Zhi just as he was about to leap into action.
Xue Zhi’s expression stiffened for a moment. Chu Ran released his hand, and Xue Zhi quickly returned to normal.
Lowering his voice, Chu Ran said, “Senior Brother Xue, the night is too dark. Human vision is inferior to that of demonic beasts. If we go down recklessly now, we may fall into an ambush.”
Xue Zhi turned around and smiled. “Junior Brother, you’re overthinking it. Although Bewitching Heart Foxes have excellent eyesight, whenever they draw upon their demonic power, the fur around their bodies shines as brightly as the full moon. In the darkness, they’re actually easier to spot.”
Without waiting for Chu Ran to say anything else, Xue Zhi shot down toward the darkness.
Not long afterward, two streaks of silver light flashed rapidly through the forest in the valley, repeatedly charging and striking at a blurred figure.
“Come help me!”
Xue Zhi’s shout rang out from the valley. It was hurried and carried a trace of strain.
Seeing this, He Lin and Zhu Heng leaped down without hesitation, charging toward one of the silver streaks.
Chu Ran hesitated for a moment before gritting his teeth and following them.
Fortune was always found amid danger. If there really were no Red Profound Fruit, he could leave later.
Besides, it was already close to midnight.
Chu Ran gripped the hilt of the Blackiron spirit sword with both hands, leaped from the cliff, and followed behind He Lin and Zhu Heng, bringing the sword down heavily toward that streak of silver light.
The silver light moved with incredible speed. With a single bound, it evaded Chu Ran’s attack,
The greatsword cleaved through the air and struck an ancient tree as thick as a man’s embrace before Chu Ran.
“Crack!”
The massive tree split down the middle with a thunderous crash, toppling to either side as branches and leaves scattered and dust billowed.
Chu Ran did not pursue. Instead, he used the rebound from that strike to retreat several yards, widening the distance between them as he focused on the streak of silver light.
Only then did he get a clear look at the fox demon.
It was a silver-white fox, nearly the size of an adult human. Its sharp claws were deeply embedded in the tree trunk, and it bared its teeth viciously, eerie red light gleaming in its eyes.
The Illusory Heart Fox let out a howl, raised its claws, and swiped down at Chu Ran.
Chu Ran held the greatsword upright, hiding his entire body behind it.
“Skreee!”
The fox demon’s claws scraped across the blade, producing a grating sound that set his teeth on edge.
Chu Ran took the opportunity to retreat, putting more distance between himself and the fox demon.
He glanced sideways and saw three shallow claw marks on the blade.
As expected of a demon beast comparable to a fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator—its claws were as sharp as a low-grade magic weapon.