Chapter 11: Wild Wolf Valley

Xu Chen was somewhat excited. Although he had never been to Wild Wolf Valley, he had heard of it while on the mountain. It was a place for rogue cultivators to trade not far from Nanyang City, where folk cultivators gathered year-round to trade various cultivation items; spirit medicines, spirit materials, spirit pills, magic treasures, cultivation techniques, and even items of mysterious origin were all available.

However, that place was several dozen miles away from Nanyang City and located within a canyon. Large numbers of wild wolves and fierce beasts lurked in the surroundings, and occasionally even demon beasts appeared. Therefore, ordinary mortals could not approach it; only those folk martial arts experts with high-level skills and cultivation practitioners who could ride the air could enter.

The three of them left the city together, then rose into the air on their flying swords. Soon, they entered the mountains. After flying over two mountain ridges in succession, in less than a quarter of an hour, they saw a steep canyon ahead that stood tall like a gate. In the surrounding primeval dense forest, one could indeed hear the howling of wild wolves echoing one after another.

Jiu Shixiong and Zhao Xuan were both very familiar with this place. They called out, tapped their feet lightly, and dove into the valley. Xu Chen followed behind, wobbling on his flying sword.

Soon, the three of them passed through the narrow and steep valley, and the area ahead suddenly opened up quite a bit. They saw a waterfall hanging at the end of the canyon several miles away, and a stream wound its way out of the valley like white silk. In the center of the valley, on a river beach where trees had been cleared, more than a dozen thatched huts were scattered, and there were also some people who seemed to be sitting on the ground, setting up stalls for trade.

Seeing that more immortals had arrived on flying swords, the valley suddenly erupted in lively cheers.

After the three landed, two middle-aged men wearing Daoist robes quickly came up to greet them with beaming faces, bowing and saying, "So it is the three Daoist Friends from the Taiyuan Sect who have come; we failed to welcome you from afar."

Jiu Shixiong nodded and greeted them with a smile, and introduced Xu Chen to the two of them. It turned out that these two were the masters of Wild Wolf Valley: one was the Second Valley Master Ouyang Ping, and the other was the Fourth Valley Master Li Gui. Neither looked young; Ouyang Ping was at least fifty, and Li Gui was over thirty. However, their cultivation levels were very shallow. Ouyang Ping's cultivation was about the same as Xu Chen's, and Li Gui had only just entered the Qi Refining stage.

Upon learning that this was Xu Chen's first time down the mountain, Ouyang Ping and Li Gui were very enthusiastic. They bowed to Xu Chen with great respect again: "Since Daoist Friend Xu is here for the first time, we must naturally host you well. Three Daoist Friends, please!"

The three exchanged a few polite words, then followed the two valley masters toward a thatched hut not far away.

At this time, many people who were setting up stalls or trading gathered around, but none dared to get close. Instead, they kept a distance of over a zhang, quickly bowing and greeting them.

Jiu Shixiong only nodded slightly to acknowledge them. They walked into the thatched hut and sat down. Li Gui called for a few servants to serve hot tea, and then Ouyang Ping smiled and asked, "Since the three Daoist Friends have come today, is there anything you need to trade?"

Jiu Shixiong shook his head and pointed at Xu Chen, saying, "That is not it. We are under orders from our sect to go to Jingshi to offer birthday wishes to the Emperor. We are passing through Nanyang City, but seeing that the time is still early, and our Junior Brother is coming down the mountain for the first time, we came to pay a visit and get familiar with the faces. In the future, when our Junior Brother comes, I hope the few Valley Masters will look after him."

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Ping and Li Gui were filled with envy and quickly bowed together to express that it was only natural. After a brief exchange of pleasantries and finishing a cup of tea, the three walked out of the hut and began to wander around the valley.

There were not many people in the valley, totaling less than thirty scattered about. Moreover, most were folk martial arts experts, either in the Postnatal Realm or the Innate Realm. Each had a sturdy build and even carried weapons like sabers, spears, bows, and arrows. There were only a sparse three or five who had reached the Kaiyuan Realm, and they were basically in the initial entry state.

There were more than a dozen stalls, most of which were just people sitting on the ground, using a piece of burlap or animal skin spread out to display some wild herbs like mountain ginseng, lingzhi, deer antler, and polygonatum. Otherwise, there were animal bones, teeth, skins, or even some tattered, unrecognizable strange things.

As Xu Chen walked along, he could tell without using his Divine Sense that almost all of them were items with no Spirit Qi. Occasionally, there were one or two with fluctuations of Spirit Qi, but they were too weak to be perceived.

"How is it? Is Junior Brother very disappointed?" Before they had finished the round, Jiu Shixiong asked with a smile.

Xu Chen nodded: "Indeed a bit disappointed. I used to hear the Senior Brothers and Sisters talk about Wild Wolf Valley, but I didn't expect it to be like this; there's nothing good here!"

A disheveled old Daoist in a tattered robe nearby chimed in obsequiously: "The three are high disciples of the Taiyuan Sect, so naturally the things in Wild Wolf Valley cannot catch your eyes. Actually, Wild Wolf Valley does occasionally have some good things, it's just hard to come across them!"

Jiu Shixiong curled his lip: "That is true, but the so-called good things aren't that great either!"

The old Daoist looked embarrassed and could only smile bitterly: "How can we rogue cultivators compare our knowledge with Daoist Friends from the Taiyuan Sect? However, a few days ago, some strange Daoist Friends passed by and brought a second-tier Feng Hou inner core and a Stone-Born Flower; that was the most impressive thing this old one has ever seen in his life."

Jiu Shixiong's body trembled, his eyes lighting up as he said: "Indeed, both are good things, rare and hard to find."

Zhao Xuan also nodded in surprise: "That is true. A second-tier Feng Hou inner core can be used to refine second-grade Wind Spirit Pills, and the Stone-Born Flower is the main ingredient for refining third-grade Ascending Dragon Pills. They are indeed rare and likely worth a fortune!"

The old Daoist nodded with lingering fear: "Immortal Zhao is absolutely right. The Feng Hou inner core was priced at thirty Spirit Stones, and the Stone-Born Flower was priced at one hundred Spirit Stones. We rogue cultivators are usually too poor to eat, and even one or two Spirit Stones are hard to come by; who could afford them? Therefore, those Daoist Friends only stayed for half a quarter of an hour before leaving. I fear this old Daoist will only get to see such things once in this lifetime."

At this, Jiu Shixiong, who had been disdainful all along, stopped talking, his face full of dejection.

Xu Chen was even more crestfallen.

Let alone thirty Spirit Stones, even three Spirit Stones were more than the three of them could scrape together right now.

The Taiyuan Sect appeared high and mighty in the eyes of these rogue cultivators, but in reality, they were just as poor, only too embarrassed to say it out loud.

The three of them no longer had the heart to continue wandering through Wild Wolf Valley. After a cursory look at all the stalls, they didn't see anything worth their attention, so they prepared to bid farewell to the two valley masters and leave.

However, just as they were speaking, a streak of Escape Light suddenly whistled through the air from the direction of the valley entrance. In an instant, it landed near the trading area. A gray-haired old man, looking disheveled and in a sorry state, stumbled a few steps and then collapsed to the ground.

"Great Valley Master?!"

Ouyang Ping and Li Gui were shocked and rushed forward to help the newcomer up.

The incident happened suddenly, and almost everyone in Wild Wolf Valley surrounded them at once.

"Song Qingshi is in such a sorry state; what on earth happened?"

Xu Chen did not recognize the person, but Jiu Shixiong muttered as he followed along.

"Great Valley Master, what happened? Didn't you and the Third Master go to visit the Five Thunder Sect? Why are you in such a state?" Ouyang Ping asked urgently while supporting the old man.

The old man's face was pale, and he gasped for breath, trembling all over: "Quickly find someone to help, otherwise the Third Master and the two Daoist Friends from the Five Thunder Sect are likely in trouble."

"Great Valley Master, what exactly happened?" Li Gui asked nervously again.

The old man waved his hand and gasped: "No time to explain in detail. Black Wind Ridge, go save them quickly!"

The onlookers erupted into a sudden, intense clamor of shock.

Ouyang Ping was still preparing to ask more questions, but the old man looked up and spotted the three from Xu Chen's group. His eyes lit up, and he lunged forward to grab Jiu Shixiong's arm, his face full of surprise and urgency: "So it is Daoist Friend Lu and Immortal Zhao from the Taiyuan Sect who are also here. This is perfect. The matter is urgent; please, I beg you to save them. I will be eternally grateful. If the Taiyuan Sect has any requests in the future, Wild Wolf Valley will surely go through fire and water."

Upon hearing this, Jiu Shixiong quickly waved his hand: "We are under orders from our sect Elder to go to Jingshi to offer birthday wishes to the Emperor. We were just passing through Wild Wolf Valley to take a look. Black Wind Ridge is over a hundred miles away from here; it would take an hour or two to go and return. Furthermore, we don't know what happened. How could we act rashly? Valley Master Song, please ask someone else!"

The old man's face turned ashen, and he let go of his hand, smiling bitterly: "If that is the case, then I dare not trouble Daoist Friend Lu."

Zhao Xuan seemed to have some sympathy, but she did not speak.

Xu Chen had even less say in the matter, but he was somewhat interested in Black Wind Ridge. It was said to be an Evil Land closest to the Southern Border of the Song Kingdom. All year round, black wind blew out from the cracks in the earth, causing the mountain ridges for over ten miles around to be barren and covered in a layer of Black Mist, hence the name Black Wind Ridge.

Since it was an Evil Land, it was certainly dangerous. Nothing grew there, and wild beasts would avoid it from afar. As for mortals, no one dared to step foot there; only some cultivators dared to enter.

In reality, it was said that there was nothing inside except for black wind and rocks; one couldn't even find a decent clod of dirt. It was truly a place where birds wouldn't lay eggs.

But why did the Great Valley Master of Wild Wolf Valley and several cultivators run to that godforsaken place, and it seemed they had encountered great danger?

Although this Great Valley Master, Song Qingshi, was a rogue cultivator, his cultivation was not too bad. He was at least in the middle to late Kaiyuan Realm, his aura much stronger than Xu Chen's, and even stronger than Thirteenth Senior Sister Zhao Xuan's.

In addition, there were two cultivators from the Five Thunder Sect. Even if their cultivation was only in the early to middle Kaiyuan Realm, the four of them working together could fight a second-tier Demon Beast. After all, cultivators fighting did not rely solely on cultivation, but also on support from magic treasures, magic spells, and spirit pills. Theoretically, as long as a cultivator wasn't too incompetent, resisting a demon beast of a higher level was generally not a problem.

Just like Xu Chen, who was only at the entry level of the Kaiyuan Realm, yet was able to escape from the Divine Sense lock of a third-tier Demon Wolf. That was entirely due to his flying sword and spirit pills, and had nothing to do with his own strength.

Therefore, Xu Chen couldn't help but ask curiously: "Valley Master Song, what exactly happened to you all at Black Wind Ridge?"

"And this is?" Song Qingshi looked at Xu Chen, who was wearing the Taiyuan Sect's Daoist robe but was young and unfamiliar.

"This is my Junior Brother, Xu Chen, who is down the mountain for the first time!" Jiu Shixiong introduced him briefly.

Song Qingshi was in a state of desperation, seeking help from anyone. Originally, the situation was urgent, but since people from the Taiyuan Sect were right there in Wild Wolf Valley, they were the best possible reinforcements. He had been very discouraged after being rejected by Jiu Shixiong, but seeing that Xu Chen was interested, he simply stopped looking for others and quickly explained the ins and outs of the matter.

It turned out that recently, the wild beasts in the vicinity had suddenly become restless, and several demon beasts had even appeared. Many villages and towns had been attacked, and many civilian livestock had died.

Song Qingshi was the Clan Leader of a relatively large family in the area, and with his high cultivation, he went to investigate personally. He discovered that the root cause was at Black Wind Ridge. A large number of wild beasts and demon beasts had recently gathered around Black Wind Ridge, howling and fighting; the situation was very strange. Some demon beasts had even entered the cracks. Song Qingshi intended to go in and investigate, but feeling he was alone and weak, he took the Third Master to visit the Five Thunder Sect to invite some familiar fellow Daoists to go in together.

But after entering the cracks, they found that the black wind seemed to be several times stronger than usual, and even their Divine Sense was greatly interfered with. Soon, they lost their way and were separated. Moreover, Song Qingshi was attacked by an unknown fierce creature inside. If he hadn't escaped quickly, he would likely have died inside by now.

Therefore, after escaping from Black Wind Ridge, he did not dare to stop for a moment and flew back in one breath to find help.