Chapter 17: Ch 17- Hunting
The Hong Family directed all of their suspicion toward Grey and several other major families, never once imagining that the real killer was only an Origin Seed Realm cultivator.
Because of that, no matter how hard they investigated, every lead ended in failure.
After all, Grey was already dead. How could they possibly find someone who no longer existed?
It could be said that as long as Mo Yuan never intentionally revealed the Black Shadow Saber or used his Shadow Talent in front of others, the Hong Family would never be able to trace the murderer back to him.
Over the following days, Mo Yuan quietly stayed inside Dong Hai Base. Every day, he practiced the Body Forging Method as if nothing had happened, while keeping a very low profile.
At the same time, the entire Dong Hai Base was thrown into chaos because of Hong Yuan’s death. The death of a genius with Superior Grade Cultivation Talent drove the Hong Family into complete madness.
They openly and secretly clashed with several rival families, and many people died during those conflicts.
The fighting only came to an end after the Yan Family, the strongest family in Dong Hai Base, stepped in and forced everyone to calm down.
As more time passed without any trace of Grey, the Hong Family gradually came to believe that Grey had already fled Dong Hai Base.
Although they had no choice but to accept that conclusion, they never removed the secret bounty placed on Grey.
The moment Grey appeared anywhere...
The Hong Family would hunt him down without mercy.
...
Ten days later.
Dong Hai Base had finally returned to its usual peace.
Mo Yuan decided it was time to leave the base and enter the vast wilderness to hunt Beasts.
Only by obtaining a large amount of Beast Blood could he quickly cultivate to the Origin Vessel Realm.
Even after breaking through, Beast Blood would still be one of the best resources for increasing his strength.
Since entering the wilderness meant he probably wouldn’t return for several days, he first needed to explain things to his younger sister.
Naturally, he couldn’t tell her the truth.
Instead, he casually made up an excuse. He told her that the academy had selected several outstanding students for a period of closed cultivation, and that he wouldn’t be coming home for a while.
His younger sister knew very little about cultivation.
She believed him without any suspicion.
This time, Mo Yuan prepared carefully before leaving.
He brought two sabers.
The Shadow Saber would only be used when nobody else was around.
The newly purchased Refined Iron Blade would be used whenever other people were present. Besides that, he packed several bottles for collecting blood, food, water, and other daily necessities.
After making sure everything was ready, Mo Yuan headed toward the eastern gate of Dong Hai Base.
...
East City Gate.
Groups of soldiers constantly patrolled the area.
Almost every ordinary soldier was an Origin Seed Realm cultivator. Only the squad leaders had reached the Origin Vessel Realm.
After all, Origin Vessel Realm cultivators held much higher status. People of that level normally wouldn’t be assigned to guard city gates.
The base actually had a surprisingly large number of Origin Seed Realm soldiers. Whenever a Beast Tide attacked the city, they formed the first line of defense.
Without enough manpower, defending the city would be impossible.
Because of that, the military recruited large numbers of Origin Seed Realm cultivators every year.
Becoming a soldier was considered one of the best professions inside Dong Hai Base.
The rewards were good.
The status wasn’t low.
But the danger was equally high. Every year, countless soldiers lost their lives fighting Beasts.
Mo Yuan calmly walked through the city gate. As he disappeared into the distance, one of the soldiers looked at his back and shook his head.
"Another Origin Seed Realm cultivator dreaming of getting rich overnight."
He sighed.
"Does that kid think the wilderness is anything like the inside of the base?"
"I’d be surprised if he survives a single day."
Clearly, the soldier had mistaken Mo Yuan for one of the many desperate cultivators willing to gamble their lives for wealth.
There were plenty of people like that.
If someone was lucky enough to discover the corpse of a dead Beast in the wilderness and bring it back...
The money earned would be enough to support them for several years because of those huge profits, countless Origin Seed Realm cultivators willingly risked their lives every year.
Many never returned.
...
The area within one or two kilometers outside Dong Hai Base was relatively safe.
Any Beast wandering too close to the city would usually be hunted down by Origin Vessel Realm cultivators long before reaching the walls.
Unless a Beast Tide broke out...
The surroundings remained fairly peaceful.
Anyone who truly wanted to hunt Beasts had to travel much farther.
Mo Yuan’s destination was one of the nearby Beast habitats.
Blackwind Mountain.
According to rumors, Blackwind Mountain had once been nothing more than an ordinary mountain range.
However, after the world changed, the land expanded hundreds of times.
The mountain range became unimaginably vast. Towering ancient trees stretched into the sky. Countless Beasts made their homes there.
It had long since become a paradise for monsters.
"I’ve heard there are Advanced Beasts living deep inside Blackwind Mountain."
"Some people even say there are creatures stronger than Advanced Beasts."
"I wonder if that’s actually true."
Mo Yuan silently thought as he continued moving forward.
Advanced Beasts were terrifying creatures. Only Origin Sea Realm cultivators were qualified to fight them. Even an Origin Core Realm cultivator would have difficulty escaping after encountering one.
Fortunately...
Mo Yuan had no intention of entering the mountain’s depths.
His goal was simple.
He only planned to quietly hunt a few Low-level Beasts around the outer areas.
However...
Less than ten minutes after leaving the base, before he even reached Blackwind Mountain, he encountered his first target.
"Iron Bull!"
Mo Yuan’s expression immediately became serious.
Standing before him was a giant Iron Bull nearly six meters long.
Unlike before, this wasn’t a newly evolved Beast.
It was a genuine Low-level Beast.
Whether it was strength, defense, or endurance, it far surpassed the newly promoted Iron bull.
Even an ordinary Early Stage Origin Vessel Realm cultivator would struggle to deal with it.
Normally, several Origin Vessel Realm cultivators had to work together just to kill one Iron Bull.
Mo Yuan tightened his grip around the Refined Iron Blade.
Speed Talent activated instantly.
Without hesitation, he unleashed Shadow Kill toward the Iron Bull’s neck.
Bang!!
The moment the blade landed, it felt like striking a thick steel wall.
Only a faint white mark appeared on the Iron Bull’s hide.
The attack hadn’t even broken its skin.
"My Refined Iron Blade simply isn’t sharp enough."
"My current strength of eight hundred jin also isn’t enough to pierce the Iron Bull’s defense."
Mo Yuan sighed helplessly.
Without hesitation, he put away the Refined Iron Blade.
Then...
He drew the Shadow Saber.
Compared to the ordinary saber, the Shadow Saber was incomparably sharper.
Breaking the Iron Bull’s defense wouldn’t be a problem.
Since there was nobody nearby, he didn’t have to worry about exposing his identity.
"Kill!"
Mo Yuan’s figure blurred into several afterimages.
His saber flashed repeatedly.
Attack after attack landed on the Iron Bull at astonishing speed.
The Iron Bull roared angrily.
Again and again, it attempted to charge forward and trample Mo Yuan beneath its hooves.
Unfortunately...
Speed was its greatest weakness.
Compared to Mo Yuan, it was simply too slow.
No matter how furiously it attacked, it couldn’t touch him.
After nearly a full minute of relentless attacks...
The Iron Bull finally collapsed with a loud crash.
Its enormous body shook the ground.
Mo Yuan immediately took out an empty bottle.
Without wasting any time, he began collecting the Beast Blood.
He filled ten portions before finally stopping.
It wasn’t because he didn’t want more.
He simply had no way to carry everything.
Besides the blood, he also cut away about ten jin of Iron Bull meat.
He had heard that Iron Bull meat wasn’t just rich in energy.
It also tasted exceptionally good.
After packing everything away, Mo Yuan continued toward Blackwind Mountain.
...
About an hour later...
He finally arrived.
The journey hadn’t been peaceful.
Along the way, he had encountered several small groups of Beasts.
Once, he even sensed the terrifying aura of an especially powerful Beast from far away.
Every single time...
He barely escaped.
Using Shadow Talent, he hid himself inside the nearest shadows and patiently waited for danger to pass.
Had he been even slightly slower...
He would’ve died several times already.
Only after experiencing it himself did Mo Yuan truly understand how dangerous the wilderness really was.
A lone cultivator entering the wilderness had more than a fifty percent chance of never returning.
Even experienced hunting squads sometimes disappeared without leaving behind a single survivor.
And this was only the area close to Dong Hai Base.
The farther one traveled...
The more terrifying the Beasts became. Their numbers increased dramatically. Their strength also rose to frightening levels.
Even if every Origin Vessel Realm cultivator in Dong Hai Base joined forces...
They would still be little more than prey in those deeper regions. Mo Yuan remembered something his parents had once told him. Dong Hai Base was located in a remote corner of human territory.
The surrounding resources were limited.
Powerful Beasts simply had no interest in such a poor area.
Otherwise...
Dong Hai Base would’ve been destroyed long ago. After reaching Blackwind Mountain, Mo Yuan wasn’t in a hurry to begin hunting again. He had already collected ten portions of Low-level Beast Blood.
For now that was enough. He planned to spend several days cultivating first before continuing his hunt.
After searching the surrounding area for some time. He finally found a small hidden cave concealed by thick bushes. After making sure there were no Beasts living inside, Mo Yuan nodded with satisfaction.
"This place will do."
For the next few days...
This quiet cave would become his temporary home.