Chapter 34: Chapter 34: The Summer Insect Cannot Talk of Ice, Demon Ape
The Demon Mist Mountain Range was located seventy li outside of Luoyang City.
This was a paradise for Demon Beasts. The entire Demon Mist Mountain Range was teeming with hundreds of species of them, both large and small.
But at the same time, it was also an adventurer’s paradise for Martial Artists.
Many Heavenly and Earthly Treasures could be found within the Demon Mist Mountain Range, such as rare medicinal herbs. For example, the Golden Summit Silver Snake Grass was unique to this mountain range, and a single stalk was worth over ten thousand Primordial Stones.
There were also weapons. These were often left behind by those who had entered the Demon Mist Mountain Range and unfortunately perished, losing both their lives and their fortunes.
Therefore, Martial Artists often ventured inside to explore. If they were lucky, they could obtain the entire fortune of a fallen Martial Artist and become rich overnight.
Aside from all that, the most precious things were actually the various Demon Beasts themselves.
Inside a Demon Beast’s body was something called a Demon Core.
A Demon Core was the crystallization of a Demon Beast’s life force. It contained energy which, while it couldn’t be absorbed by Martial Artists, was an excellent ingredient for Alchemy.
Besides the valuable Demon Cores, many materials from a Demon Beast’s body also had value.
The claws and fangs of some Demon Beasts could be fashioned into weapons, their hides could be made into Treasure Armor, and even some of their blood could be used in concocting medicines.
「Outside the Demon Mist Mountain Range.」
Ning Jiang’s gaze swept across the horizon.
Before him, rolling hills of forests stretched out endlessly, filled with towering, ancient trees.
A single tree could easily be over ten zhang tall, so thick that it would take two or three people to encircle its trunk. The entire place was saturated with a primeval, dangerous aura.
"ROAR!"
"SCREECH!"
From time to time, the roars of Demon Beasts echoed from within the mountain range, shaking the surroundings and adding a layer of terror to the Demon Mist Mountain Range.
In the sky above, enormous flying Demon Beasts soared. Their house-sized bodies possessed sharp talons capable of snatching an elephant from the ground and tearing it to shreds.
Looking deeper into the range, the area was shrouded in mist.
That was the Demon Fog zone. Even Innate Realm experts dared not enter it lightly. It was said that an expert at the Innate Limit once relied on his profound cultivation to force his way into the depths, only to never return.
Ninety-nine percent of Daoist Practitioners only dared to operate in the areas outside the Demon Fog, or perhaps venture slightly into its domain, but they would never dare to go too deep.
The bloody examples of the past served as a constant warning to all.
"Everyone, we’re about to enter the Demon Mist Mountain Range. Remember to be careful."
This was a team of over thirty people, belonging to the Zhou Family, a third-class family from Luoyang City.
Ning Jiang was among them.
He had originally intended to enter the Demon Mist Mountain Range alone, free and unrestrained.
However, Ning Yu’an had been worried sick about him, so Zheng Zhiyuan took the initiative to suggest that Ning Jiang join the Zhou Family’s Medicine Collection Team.
Zheng Zhiyuan himself had no backing or faction; he was a Loose Cultivator who came and went as he pleased. But with his cultivation at the Peak of Postnatal, he had some connections. He had done some work for the Zhou Family in the past, so he had a bit of a relationship with them.
The Zhou Family was a family of apothecaries that dispatched a Medicine Collection Team into the Demon Mist Mountain Range every month. This time, Zheng Zhiyuan used his connection to get Ning Jiang a spot on the Zhou Family’s team.
To put Ning Yu’an’s mind at ease, Ning Jiang had no choice but to agree.
Within the thirty-odd person Medicine Collection Team, half were medicine collectors, and the other half were Martial Artists at the Postnatal Realm or above. These people were all Zhou Family guards, responsible for protecting the team’s safety.
Ning Jiang, at the Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer, actually had the lowest cultivation of them all.
"Brother Ning, you’re carrying a sword. You must be a Sword Cultivator, right?"
Beside Ning Jiang was a cheerful, bouncing young girl of twelve or thirteen. Her face was still a bit childish, but her features were well-proportioned, delicate, and petite. She was the very picture of a budding beauty.
In a few more years, she would likely blossom into a regional beauty.
The girl’s name was Zhou Chuchu. She had a cheerful and lively personality and was the most boisterous one on the team, unable to stay quiet for the entire journey.
Next to Zhou Chuchu was another woman, around twenty years old, who bore some resemblance to her. This was Zhou Chuchu’s older sister, Zhou Lingwei.
"I am," Ning Jiang replied casually.
"Sword Cultivators! Repaying kindness and avenging wrongs, roaming a thousand li, traveling the world with a sword in hand. In the future, I want to become a famous and chivalrous Sword Cultivator, too!"
Zhou Chuchu’s little face was flushed, her eyes sparkling as she talked about Sword Cultivators. "By the way, Brother Ning, do you know Liu Xianyu from our Luoyang Ten Heroes? Everyone says she’s a genius of the Sword Dao who has achieved Body Sword Control. Her talent is extraordinary! I wonder if I’ll be able to match her achievements when I’m her age."
"Liu Xianyu is decent enough, but her Sword Technique lacks some killing intent. She’s short on practical experience and has never been in a life-or-death battle."
Ning Jiang knew Liu Xianyu better than she knew herself. "Don’t be fooled by her Body Sword Control and her ’genius’ title. If she were to face a desperate fugitive who fights for a living, even at the same realm, she wouldn’t necessarily be their match, despite having achieved Body Sword Control."
"Practicing the sword is ultimately just a set of moves. No matter how beautifully you practice, without real combat, it’s just flashy but useless theatrics."
Every word Ning Jiang spoke was a pearl of wisdom.
A person without combat experience, no matter how talented, is like an unsharpened, dull blade. But a person rich in combat experience is a sharp blade, its edge dangerously keen.
In fact, when he had Liu Xianyu practice her sword on the edge of a cliff, although it couldn’t compare to a true life-or-death battle, the life-threatening stimulation was quite close.
Once Liu Xianyu got used to the cliff, he planned to have her fight others to build up her combat experience.
"Hahaha, ridiculous! A guy with a cultivation of merely Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer, the weakest among us, yet you talk so big. You make it sound like you’ve actually met Liu Xianyu."
At that moment, a mocking voice drifted over.
The speaker was a man of about twenty-five, with thick arms, bronze skin, and a tall build. His cultivation had reached the Postnatal Late Stage, and he served as the captain of this Guard Team. His name was Li Jie.
In Luoyang City, the top tier of the younger generation was naturally the Ten Great.
The second tier consisted of those at the Peak of Postnatal, some of whom were candidates for the Ten Great.
Someone like Li Jie could be ranked in the third tier and could be considered a young talent. If his cultivation advanced further, he might even be able to make a name for himself at the annual gathering.
"Li Jie, I’m talking to Brother Ning. What’s it to you?" Zhou Chuchu said, displeased.
"Chuchu, what Li Jie said might have been a bit harsh, but he has a point. With a mere cultivation of Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer, he dares to criticize one of the ten most outstanding people in Luoyang City from behind their back. He has no idea what humility is. Don’t listen to his nonsense."
Zhou Lingwei also spoke up at this point, her tone filled with dissatisfaction regarding what Ning Jiang had just said.
’Who is Liu Xianyu? She’s one of the ten most outstanding individuals in Luoyang City, someone even I can’t hope to compare to, yet in Ning Jiang’s mouth, she sounds like some ordinary person.’
’What right does Ning Jiang have to say such things?’
"Sister, I know you’re in a bad mood because the family wants you to marry Zhao Feng, but you don’t have to be like this, do you? Maybe Brother Ning was exaggerating a little, but he didn’t mean any harm," Zhou Chuchu muttered.
"Zhao Feng?" Ning Jiang was taken aback.
"What, you know him or something?" Zhou Lingwei glanced at Ning Jiang.
"Know him? More than that. On the fifteenth of the first month, I will use his head to christen my sword," Ning Jiang said, his eyes lowered.
Hearing this, Zhou Lingwei grew even more disappointed in Ning Jiang, feeling he was full of nothing but nonsense and boundless arrogance.
By comparison, even Zhao Feng was much stronger than Ning Jiang. After all, Zhao Feng was a direct descendant of the Zhao Family, a second-tier family. He might be a bit of a libertine, but at least he had a Postnatal Middle Stage cultivation.
At this thought, Zhou Lingwei’s beautiful eyes dimmed once more.
The Zhou Family was gradually declining, with only two Innate Realm experts left to hold the fort. That was why they needed to form a marriage alliance with the Zhao Family, and she had become the sacrifice for it.
But she didn’t have the slightest favorable impression of Zhao Feng.
She was also a proud person. Having reached the Postnatal Middle Stage herself, her ideal partner, even if not a genius like one of the Ten Great, should at least be a candidate for the Ten Great.
It was precisely because of the matter with Zhao Feng that she was in a bad mood and had joined the Medicine Collection Team to clear her head.
But she hadn’t expected to run into such an arrogant person like Ning Jiang, who even dared to look down on a talented noble lady like Liu Xianyu.
Comparing Ning Jiang to the Ten Great in her mind, Zhou Lingwei shook her head repeatedly, believing the gap between them was as vast as the heavens and the earth, like the difference between clouds and mud.
"Chuchu, if he had the cultivation of one of the Ten Great, I would immediately apologize for what I just said. I’d even rather be his concubine than marry Zhao Feng. But unfortunately, he’s just an arrogant fool who loves to talk big. I forbid you from interacting with him, lest you be corrupted by him and learn nothing but his wild boasts."
Without another word, Zhou Lingwei grabbed Zhou Chuchu’s hand and pulled her toward the front of the group.
Zhou Chuchu was young, after all, and didn’t dare to disobey her older sister. She stuck her tongue out helplessly at Ning Jiang before being pulled away.
"It was only out of respect for Zheng Zhiyuan that we let you join the Medicine Collection Team, but that doesn’t mean you can spout nonsense. Remember your cultivation and your place. If you dare to belittle Liu Xianyu again, I won’t hesitate to teach you a lesson and show you what you’re up against."
After the two women walked away, Li Jie’s expression turned cold.
"I see. You have a crush on Liu Xianyu, so you can’t stand to hear anyone else’s opinion of her." Ning Jiang saw through Li Jie’s thoughts in a single glance.
He wasn’t surprised. Liu Xianyu was one of Luoyang’s four great beauties and a genius of the Sword Dao. The number of people who admired her was countless.
His thoughts exposed, Li Jie snorted coldly and, without saying another word to Ning Jiang, walked to the front of the group.
Some of the surrounding guards also unconsciously kept their distance from Ning Jiang.
’A summer insect cannot talk of ice. How could any of you possibly know my capabilities?’
Ning Jiang remained as tranquil as still water. With his magnanimity, how could he be angered by a few mere words?
If people like Zhou Lingwei and Li Jie knew that Liu Xianyu was learning Sword Technique from him and treated him with the utmost respect—that Liu Yuanlong even wanted to matchmake him with the two pearls of the Liu Family—they would probably all be shocked speechless.
Of course, Ning Jiang knew that even if he said it, no one would believe him. They would just think he had lost his mind.
The terrain of the Demon Mist Mountain Range was complex, so the team’s pace was not very fast. This was mainly to guard against Demon Beasts, and they often had to take detours.
Slowly, night fell.
The Medicine Collection Team found a relatively quiet valley and set up camp.
"Everyone, get some good rest. We have a long road ahead tomorrow. Patrols, be on alert." Zhou Lingwei gave the orders, showing some of the authority befitting the eldest daughter of a noble family.
No one dared to light a fire in the Demon Mist Mountain Range; they all ate dry rations.
After wheedling her sister a few times, that girl Zhou Chuchu sidled up to Ning Jiang again. Perhaps because Ning Jiang wasn’t much older than her, she rather enjoyed talking to him.
The night grew deeper.
All was silent.
"What’s so great about Liu Xianyu to worship? She herself is still unaccomplished in her art and needs someone to teach her."
"Wenhua City? He was just an old man who only achieved Heart-Sword Control at seventy. His aptitude was too poor."
"Sword King Chu Bai? He’s barely passable, I suppose."
That girl Zhou Chuchu was obsessed with the sword, dreaming of becoming a great, chivalrous Sword Cultivator, so her conversations with Ning Jiang all revolved around Sword Cultivators.
Ning Jiang wasn’t the type to push people away, so when he heard Zhou Chuchu mention some famous Sword Cultivators, he casually offered a few critiques.
When the people around them heard Ning Jiang’s words, they immediately shot him mocking glances. Never mind them; this time, even Zhou Chuchu felt that Ning Jiang was bragging.
Sword King Chu Bai was hailed as a once-in-a-century prodigy of the Sword Dao, standing above even the Four Great Sword Sects, and Ning Jiang actually said he was ’barely passable’?
"That’s enough! I believe I already warned you to stop spouting nonsense. It seems you’re incapable of changing your arrogant nature."
Li Jie strode over. Hearing Ning Jiang belittle Liu Xianyu yet again, he could no longer hold back.
"I’ll give you two choices right now: either leave the Medicine Collection Team, or apologize for what you just said and swear to keep your mouth shut from now on!" Li Jie said aggressively.
"Sister," Zhou Chuchu quickly looked to Zhou Lingwei. On this Medicine Collection Team, only Zhou Lingwei had the authority to control Captain Li Jie.
"It’s deep into the night now, and the Demon Mist Mountain Range is even more dangerous than during the day. Making him leave is the same as sending him to his death. Forget it. Just have him apologize, and then he can leave tomorrow," Zhou Lingwei said, also displeased with Ning Jiang.
She now wanted nothing more than to keep Zhou Chuchu away from Ning Jiang, lest she be led astray by him.
"Watch out!"
"A pack of Long-armed Demon Apes is approaching!"
Suddenly, an anxious shout echoed from not far away.
It was the patrol!
