Chapter 110

Outside the Man Yun Mountain Range, the atmosphere grew heavier day by day.

A few cultivators who had only recently come from the mortal world, hoping to try their luck in the mountains, had just reached a relatively gentle mountain entrance when they were stopped by several cultivators in uniform attire.

"Halt!" the leading Wan Family cultivator, with triangular eyes glaring, spoke in an unfriendly tone: "Which family are you from? Show your waist token! What are you doing coming into the mountain, and what are you bringing out? Tell me the truth!"

Those young loose cultivators had never seen such a scene; they were so frightened their calves felt like cramping. "Senior, I… we… we are loose cultivators, just… just wanting to go into the mountain to pick some ordinary herbs to exchange for a few spirit stones," one of the braver ones stammered.

"Herbs?" the Wan Family cultivator snorted, sizing them up from head to toe, his eyes like those looking at a few fat sheep ready for slaughter: "Things have been unsettled in the mountains lately; the Wan Family is on business, so idle people had better not barge in! Open your storage bags—I'll take a look!"

Another Wan Family cultivator chimed in: "Be thorough! The Great Elder has ordered that anyone found with suspicious traces, or carrying large amounts of talismans and pills of unknown origin, is to be detained and strictly interrogated—better to kill the innocent by mistake than to let a guilty one go!"

The few young loose cultivators, near tears, could only meekly open their shabby storage bags and let the other side rummage through. Inside, besides a few worthless herbs, there wasn't even a decent piece of demonic beast material.

"Scram, scram, scram! You pauper!" the Wan Family cultivator waved his hand impatiently, like shooing away flies.

Such inspections were being carried out at every big and small entrance of the Man Yun Mountain Range. The Wan Family's blockade net was drawing tighter and tighter.

At the same time, some loose cultivators who usually had secret dealings with the Wan Family, as well as a few notorious mercenary bands from nearby towns, also sprang into action upon hearing the news.

In a makeshift hut, several burly cultivators gathered around a rough wooden table, on which lay spread a bounty notice.

"Tsk tsk, the 'Danfu Fierce Old Man'?" a burly man with a face full of flesh pointed at the portrait, which had been deliberately drawn ferocious and ugly, with a cloak covering most of the face: "The Wan Family really shelled out this time! Alive capture rewards three hundred upper-grade spirit stones, and providing accurate intel gets one hundred! Even dead, the reward is halved, but that's still enough to keep us brothers happy for a while!"

A lean man beside him gave a hehe laugh: "Boss, the name 'Danfu Fierce Old Man' sounds like no good sort. To have Wan Tianjue, that old fox, personally issue the bounty and mobilize so many cultivators—surely he's not easy to deal with. We'd better not get ourselves killed."

"What's there to fear!" the fleshy man slammed the table: "We seek wealth through danger! The Wan Family's people are out in the open, while we lurk in the shadows. No matter how slippery that kid is, can he really evade the eyes of the entire Man Yun Mountain Range? I hear he's skilled with talismans and pills, so he must have plenty of good stuff on him! Brothers, cheer up—this is a big deal!"

"Exactly! Who knows, maybe a blind cat will bump into a dead rat!"

"Come on, guys, let's sneak over to the Black Wind Mouth! The woods are dense there—maybe we'll find something!"

For a time, outside the Man Yun Mountain Range, besides the Wan Family cultivators, wave after wave of greedy-eyed 'hunters' appeared, the tension so tight it felt like a string about to snap.

Deep in the mountain range, inside a more concealed cave.

"Huff… huff…" Li Hu plopped onto the ground, his chest heaving violently, his face still bearing lingering panic: "Brother Wang, no… it's not good! Outside… outside is practically gone mad!"

Zhang Mei held out a bowl of water, carefully handing it to Wang Shan, then glared at Li Hu: "Brother, speak slowly! Elder Brother Wang just finished his breath regulation."

Wang Shan took the water bag, sipped a mouthful, and looked at Li Hu: "What's up? Speak slowly, no rush."

Li Hu caught his breath, then exclaimed urgently: "Those Wan Family bastards have blocked the mountain entrances! Their inspections are so strict that even a mouse trying to sneak through would get its skin peeled off! I wanted to take a detour to scout the route, but I nearly slammed headfirst into their warning array!"

"A warning array?" Wang Shan's brow twitched slightly.

"You bet!" Li Hu patted his chest, still shaken: "Just a few insignificant broken stones—who'd know there's a trick inside? If it weren't for Mei'er's sharp eyes pulling me back in time, I'd have stepped right in! Then the Wan Family people would have surrounded me on the spot!"

Zhang Mei snapped: "Brother, how dare you say that! I've warned you several times already—outside is dangerous, be careful—but you wouldn't listen, just charging forward!"

Li Hu gave a hehe laugh, scratching his head: "It's not that I'm anxious to gather news…… but, Brother Wang, Mei'er is right—the Wan Family has really gone all out this time, expanding their search range even further than a few days ago. Our hiding place probably won't stay safe much longer."

Wang Shan pondered for a moment: "They're not only numerous, but they also seem to always be able to roughly judge our direction. We've moved several times, each time trying to erase traces as much as possible, yet they still manage to follow the scent."

Zhang Mei looked worried: "Elder Brother Wang, do you mean… they have some special tracking method?"

"Mm." Wang Shan nodded: "Last time at the camp, Wan Tianjue brought a couple of second-order bloodthirsty hounds and shadow leopards—those beasts have incredibly keen noses. Most likely they're relying on them, or perhaps they have some other secret art we don't know about." He recalled Wan Tianjue's old face and those greedy eyes, and a feeling of discomfort welled up. This old guy really is a persistent haunt.

Upon hearing that, Li Hu grew anxious: "What can we do? We can't keep hiding east and west forever—this mountain is only so big; sooner or later they'll corner us in some nook!"

"Hiding is an inferior strategy." Wang Shan's eyes remained calm: "Constantly hiding only makes us more passive. We must find a way to counter them, to make them blind, or…… give them something else to occupy themselves."

Zhang Mei pressed her lips together, as if she had something to say but hesitated.

Wang Shan noticed: "Mei'er, if you have something to say, just speak freely."

Zhang Mei finally made up her mind, took out a somewhat creased paper from her bosom, and handed it to Wang Shan: "Elder Brother Wang, this is… I picked up today… secretly from an injured loose cultivator."

It was a bounty notice issued by the Wan Family.

Wang Shan took it, his gaze falling on the portrait. The person in the picture had a cloak covering the face, revealing only a pair of sinister, sharp eyes, with a few deliberately painted scars on the face, making him look fierce and evil. The title beside it was even more intimidating—"Danfu Fierce Old Man".

"Danfu Fierce Old Man?" Wang Shan almost laughed out loud—this Wan Tianjue really knows how to give people nicknames. He examined the portrait's outline and those eyes more closely; although the artist had tried hard to make it ugly, there was still a faint resemblance to his earlier disguise as "Old Wang".

Li Hu also leaned in to look, and after seeing it he exclaimed: "Who drew this? It's hideously ugly! Danfu Fierce Old Man? That name sounds like a bad person! Why would the Wan Family put a bounty on someone like this?"

Zhang Mei whispered: "Brother, take a close look… Elder Brother Wang, that injured loose cultivator said the person the Wan Family has put a bounty on is skilled at using various powerful talismans and can concoct some strange, exotic pills; though he looks young, his actions are ruthless, his heart cruel and hands vicious… the more I hear, the more I think… they might be talking about you, Elder Brother Wang."

Wang Shan set the bounty notice down, his expression unchanged: "It seems my earlier disguise still left some clues. But this is fine—letting them keep guessing in the direction of an 'old monster' actually helps conceal my true age and background." He thought, however, that once the bounty is out, those eyeing him won't be limited to the Wan Family alone. Those desperadoes who risk their lives for spirit stones can sometimes be harder to deal with than the big clans.

"Since they're using tracking methods, we'll find a way to interfere." Wang Shan looked at Li Hu and Zhang Mei: "Since they've issued a bounty, let's make their people also taste what it's like to be hunted as prey."

He immediately sank his mind and communicated with the system.

"System, exchange for 【First-Order Obscuring Talisman Array Manual】, 【First-Order Breath-Concealing Talisman Manual】, and 【Basic Camouflage Trap Setup Details】."

"【Exchange successful, deducted 6 Spirit Plant Points, remaining 2.5 points.】"

Several streams of information flowed into his mind, and Wang Shan quickly digested this new knowledge.

"Li Hu, starting tomorrow you'll study with me how to set these up." Wang Shan pointed to the manuals in his mind: "We won't just hide; we'll also take the initiative, laying out some mist arrays and traps to confuse the enemy, and if luck is good, we might even counter‑kill some lone pursuers."

Upon hearing that, Li Hu's eyes lit up: "All right! Brother Wang, you say how to do it, I'll do it! I've been suffocating these past days; I've long wanted to fight them!"

Wang Shan then looked at the brother and sister, his tone turning a bit more serious: "In the Man Yun Mountain Range, what is the greatest danger to us, do you know?"

Li Hu scratched his head: "Is it the Wan Family people? Or even stronger demonic beasts?"

Zhang Mei thought for a moment, then said softly: "Is it… human hearts?"

Wang Shan nodded approvingly: "Exactly. Under a heavy bounty, there will be brave men and also desperadoes. For those bounty spirit stones, they'll do any vile, shameless thing. These people might be even harder to deal with than the Wan Family cultivators, because they have no bottom line and will stop at nothing. From now on, when we act in the mountains, besides guarding against the Wan Family's pursuit and demonic beast attacks, we must also be wary of these scheming loose cultivators. Don't trust anyone lightly, understand?"

"Understood, Brother Wang!" Li Hu and Zhang Mei replied in unison, their expressions becoming much graver.

Night grew deep; Li Hu and Zhang Mei took turns keeping watch, while Wang Shan sat alone cross-legged in a spot deep in the cave where the spiritual qi was slightly thicker.

Although the system's scanning function is handy, the accumulation of Spirit Plant Points is still too slow. This exchange of a few items has used up the points we had painstakingly gathered, leaving hardly any left.

The Wan Family's pursuit clung like a shadow, the pressure weighing on his heart as if it were substantive.

He was at the early stage of the ninth layer of Body Refining, his foundation not yet solid. Meanwhile, the Wan Family's leader, Wan Tianjue, had reached the peak of the ninth layer of Body Refining, with many cultivators and tamed demonic beasts under him. To clash head‑on would be like striking a stone with an egg.

"We must quickly increase our strength! Foundation Establishment! Only after Foundation Establishment can we truly have self‑defense capability, and only then can we go to Ghost Sorrow Cliff to seek the Purple Monkey Flower."

Wang Shan clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white from the force.

"Wan Family… this account, I, Wang Shan, have recorded it down to the last detail! Just wait—someday I'll collect it back with interest!"

The night in the Man Yun Mountain Range remained deep. Yet within this deep darkness, a new undercurrent had already begun to surge. And Wang Shan, amid these layered dangers, was honing his claws, awaiting the moment to strike back.