Cultivation Starting from Choosing Augments

Chapter 309 - 174: Mutated Spirit Turtle, The Local Demon Beasts Aren’t Very Polite

Furthermore, distinct black patterns were still clearly visible within the Inner Core, a telltale sign that it came from a Demon Beast that had undergone Demon Transformation.

But that was fine, as it still contained a great deal of Spiritual Power.

He took a storage box from his Storage Bag and carefully placed the Inner Core inside.

Next, he raised his Flying Sword and began cutting the shell from the Spirit Turtle’s back.

Without its Spiritual Power, the turtle shell had become much softer, and his Top Grade Magic Sword cut through it with ease.

Just as Xiao Chen finished removing the shell, he suddenly felt two puffs of warm breath against his back.

An indescribable, feral presence followed.

He slowly turned his head. A massive Golden-striped Tiger was squatting silently behind him.

Its black and yellow fur was sleek and glossy, and its long, immaculately white whiskers trembled slightly with each breath. Its vertical pupils, like a pair of emeralds, betrayed a human-like wariness and curiosity.

Even though he knew he had the Blade of Night, Xiao Chen’s heart still began to race uncontrollably.

He was less than three feet away from the Golden-striped Tiger.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, dappling the space between them. Light and shadow crisscrossed, and it seemed as if time itself had frozen.

The surrounding forest fell still, all sound insulated, leaving only the two of them locked in a gaze.

Xiao Chen took a deep breath and put the turtle shell into his Storage Bag.

Then, with a smile, he slowly extended his hand.

He gently stroked one of the tiger’s whiskers—which was as thick as his forearm—and said, "Hello."

The next moment, he activated the Blade of Night, his entire body instantly turning ethereal.

’Looks like the local Demon Beasts aren’t very polite.’

’Isn’t there a saying about not hitting a smiling face?’

’How could it just flip like that?’

But this was no time to get caught up in such matters.

Wasting no time, Xiao Chen sprinted away, desperate to put distance between himself and the dangerous area.

He pushed the Vertical Earth Golden Light to its limits, covering a good thirty miles before his ethereal state ended.

He then found a crevice in the rocks and hid inside.

He immediately pulled out Song Jingyi’s Concealing Breath Spirit Liquid and sprinkled it in two full circles around his hiding spot.

He hid there for a full twenty-four hours, waiting until he confirmed the Blade of Night was ready again before reactivating his Sealing Acupoint Concealing Qi Technique and heading back.

「In the burrow outside the valley.」

Song Jingyi and Qi Xingwen had been waiting for thirty-six hours.

"Qi, what should we do now?"

"What’s the use of asking me now? Why didn’t you stop Xiao back then?"

"I did try to stop him! What was I supposed to do when he wouldn’t listen?"

Song Jingyi sounded aggrieved. "But he’s Elder Jia Dan. What more could I have done?"

"What if we go into the valley and get the Turtle Eggs ourselves?"

Qi Xingwen shook his head. "From what I know about Earth-Storage Spirit Turtles, there are at least four females still in there."

"The two of us alone won’t be able to handle them."

"We should just wait for Xiao. It’ll be much simpler once he gets back."

Song Jingyi opened his mouth as if to say something.

But in the end, he just sighed. "I just wonder how long it’ll be until Xiao comes back."

’In his opinion, Xiao Chen still didn’t have a sufficient grasp of how dangerous the Ten Thousand Demons Mountain Range truly was.’

’To survive in these mountains, you have to avoid danger before it finds you. Once you run into a Golden Core Demon Beast, it’s already too late to escape.’

’Such a young Fake Pill Cultivator... what a waste.’

However, the thought had barely formed when a familiar voice drifted in from outside.

"Song, Qi, I’m back."

Song Jingyi immediately scrambled out of the burrow. "Xiao! Thank the heavens, it’s good to have you back."

’There’s hope for the Turtle Egg quest after all.’

Qi Xingwen hastily jumped out as well. "Xiao, are you alright?"

"Of course I’m fine."

Xiao Chen took out the turtle shell. "Here. I brought back the shell I promised to split with you."

"Unfortunately, the rest of the Demon Beast Meat was tainted, so I didn’t take any."

Staring at the massive turtle shell, the two of them froze in place, stunned.

’Did Xiao Chen really brave that danger and head north just to get the shell for them?’

’It had all happened so suddenly, a complete accident. No one could have said a word if he hadn’t gone.’

’And yet, he’d resolutely braved the danger, all to fulfill such a minor promise.’

’Such noble character, the very mark of a true gentleman—a man whose word is his bond, whose actions are decisive!’

"Come on, let’s go get those Turtle Eggs."

Xiao Chen set down the turtle shell and smiled. "We’ve been delayed long enough. It’s time we headed back."