While in Battle Through the Heavens, one can pre-appoint oneself as an emperor.

The rabbit is gone, the crow is down, and it's another new day.

Opening his eyes from his cultivation, Chen Xiao glanced at his two exposed arms.

The Little Fairy Doctor's medicine powder was extremely effective; he fully recovered overnight.

Having truly experienced the benefits, Chen Xiao suddenly understood why the girl had accumulated such high popularity.

For people from low-income backgrounds with limited resources, seeking treatment from Little Fairy Doctor is indeed a highly cost-effective option.

"Today, let's continue into the mountains!"

Jumping off the bed, Chen Xiao practiced his Swallow Counterattack a few times as usual. Estimating that the time was about right, he left the inn to accept the mission.

With the aim of familiarizing himself with the environment and gaining experience, and after confirming that the Wan Yao Zhai herb-gathering team would not be entering the mountains that day, Chen Xiao once again joined a team hunting magical beasts.

However, this time the target is a first-tier Black Wolf. Apart from the requirement of a larger number, the level of danger is not high.

With his strength as an eight-star Dou Zhe, Chen Xiao did not feel threatened this time.

The next few days were the same: accepting missions, going into the mountains, and returning to Qingshan Town.

Apart from one time when he encountered a mercenary's corpse in the mountains and picked up a waist knife, the rest were not worth mentioning.

This state continued until the morning of the seventh day, when Chen Xiao finally received the recruitment mission from Wan Yao Zhai.

"The Wan Yao Zhai is going into the Monster Beast Mountain Range to gather herbs. We need fifty people at the second-star Dou Zhe level or above. Everyone, hurry up!"

The shouts brought a brief silence to the bustling street. A moment later, a group of mercenaries rushed toward the middle-aged man dressed in the Wan Yao Zhai uniform.

Mercenaries are selective about the missions they accept. Simple missions with high pay are always their first choice, while they try to avoid life-threatening hunting missions.

Wanyaozhai is considered a minor giant in Qingshan Town, as evidenced by its recruitment of fifty mercenaries at once.

What's even more attractive is that their pay is much higher than that of other employers' herb-gathering tasks, making them naturally very popular.

Chen Xiao had been waiting for a long time, and he was determined not to miss this opportunity. He squeezed into the crowd and surged toward the middle-aged man.

With his slightly stronger strength, despite his lack of height, he managed to squeeze to the front and successfully grab a spot.

After a while, the mercenary team of fifty people was assembled, and they escorted the Wan Yao Zhai herb-gathering team into the mountains in a grand manner.

When there was no danger, the escort mission was very easy, which made it convenient for Chen Xiao to firmly remember the route.

"This is definitely not the same direction as the tasks from the past few days. No wonder I haven't found anything after searching for so many days."

Following the group, Chen Xiao cautiously surveyed his surroundings. After seven consecutive days of training, he was like a sponge, frantically absorbing the mercenaries' experience, which gradually taught him how to better survive in the Monster Mountain Range.

In the past few days, whenever Chen Xiao saw a cliff nearby, he would find an excuse to go and explore it.

Unfortunately, the search yielded nothing.

Only after following the route of the herb-gathering team from Wan Yao Zhai did I realize that we had been going in the wrong direction.

Fortunately, Chen Xiao had inquired beforehand and learned that the route of the Wan Yao Zhai herb-gathering team was fixed and never changed direction; the only difference was the depth they went into each time. Otherwise, it would have been much more difficult for Chen Xiao to find the cave.

They traveled in silence for about an hour, and finally arrived at the herb-gathering area of ​​Wan Yao Zhai, which was a small basin with slightly lower elevation.

Under the watchful eye of the herb-gathering team leader, the fifty mercenaries displayed the proper qualities, acting swiftly and decisively to protect the entire small basin, with sentries every three steps and guards every five steps, ensuring that no magical beasts could threaten the herb-gathering team.

Upon seeing this, the leader smiled with satisfaction.

What's wrong with spending a little more money?

It's worth it for this sense of security!

"Get moving, get moving, be quick and efficient, and try to get back this afternoon."

At the leader's call, the herb-gathering team immediately surged into the valley to begin today's task.

The medicinal materials used by physicians are more common and readily available than those used by alchemists to refine pills. In this Monster Mountain Range, resources are incredibly abundant.

However, its value cannot compare with the rare medicinal materials used by alchemists, which is one of the reasons why the price of pills has always remained high.

You get what you pay for.

Chen Xiao stood on a high point on the outer edge of the basin, silently guarding the area with a long sword that was half a person's height.

"We've passed seven cliffs along the way. From tomorrow onwards, I'll act alone and search them one by one. This is still the outer area, with very few second-tier magical beasts. The probability of encountering a third-tier magical beast is extremely low, so the safety is still guaranteed."

As Chen Xiao planned out the future of the story, time ticked by.

At noon, the sun blazed down fiercely.

The mercenaries guarding the small basin were also suffering greatly, with many taking off their shirts and tying them around their waists, muttering curses under their breath about the awful weather.

However, at that moment, a rustling crawling sound suddenly came from the distant jungle.

The mercenaries reacted quickly, gathering together and drawing their weapons, ready for battle.

The sudden turn of events caused the herb-gathering team below to look over nervously, their hands involuntarily stopping their work.

"Is there a monster attack?"

"Don't panic, there are so many of us."

The middle-aged leader of the herb-gathering team loudly controlled the situation; he had done this dozens of times before and was very skilled at it.

This is why Wan Yao Zhai always hires so many mercenaries whenever they go into the mountains.

Under the tense gaze of many eyes, the source of the strange noise finally came into view.

"Seven Crimson Ice Serpents! Be careful!"

The nearest mercenary saw the approaching monster clearly and shouted a warning.

The Crimson Ice Serpent is a Tier 1 magical beast, commonly found in the outer areas of the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Its attribute is ice, and the ice contains toxins. If a person is not treated within half a day after being poisoned, their blood will be frozen by the cold poison until they die.

Upon hearing the reminder from the mercenaries ahead, the mercenaries who had taken off their shirts changed their expressions slightly and immediately hurriedly put their clothes back on.

However, the Crimson Ice Serpent was extremely fast. After darting out of the bushes, it glanced at the group and instead of leaving, it attacked them without hesitation, moving like lightning. Using its slender body, it shot into the group at a tricky angle, and in just one exchange, three mercenaries were bitten.

Instantly, the three men, whose faces were as pale as ice sculptures, collapsed to the ground, their hands and feet turning icy cold.

"Don't let these beasts get away! Attack them all!"

A mercenary shouted and swung his long sword.

A group of stunned mercenaries followed closely behind.

Chen Xiao neither flinched nor stood out, but followed the crowd, drawing his sword and slashing.

Aside from the terrifying cold poison, the strength of the Crimson Ice Serpents was comparable to that of an ordinary fighter. With the combined efforts of more than forty mercenaries, the seven Crimson Ice Serpents were hacked to death in less than two minutes.

Unfortunately, no one could find any trace of the magic core inside them.

"What should we do with the three of them?"

Seeing the three mercenaries lying on the ground trembling, everyone couldn't help but turn their attention to the herb-gathering team.

"Bring them over, I'll detoxify them," the middle-aged man from the herb-gathering team nodded and said.

To cope with such special circumstances, the Wan Yao Zhai herb-gathering team always has at least one physician accompanying them, which is an experience accumulated from years of working in this area.

Upon hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

However, just as the three mercenaries stepped forward to help the three people up, a sudden change occurred.

A long snake, the color of mountain rocks, suddenly shot out from a corner where no one was paying attention, and bit into the throat of a seriously injured mercenary before anyone could react.

Chen Xiao's expression changed, and he hurled his long sword, cleaving the snake in two and preventing it from having any more chance to cause trouble.

"There's another rock serpent lurking in the shadows, its throat ruptured, beyond saving..."

The leader of the herb-gathering team rushed forward, quickly examined the mercenary, and pronounced him dead. He then began to rapidly treat the other two mercenaries.

Hearing his words, the surrounding mercenaries couldn't help but sigh.

As mercenaries, they often fantasized that one day they might perish in the Monster Mountain Range, and they were all mentally prepared for it.

Therefore, they live a very carefree life, enjoying every day with their limited abilities.

However, even watching his comrade die tragically before his eyes still left him with a deep sense of sorrow.

Chen Xiao silently stepped forward and picked up his long sword.

Looking at the mercenary beside him who was on his deathbed, Chen Xiao felt his steps become heavy. He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say or what he could say.

This was the first time in his life that he had witnessed a person die in front of him, and it was completely different from the corpses he had seen before.

He felt a deep-seated disgust and aversion to this scene, but reason told him that this was a necessary lesson to learn in order to grow up in this world!

"I can get used to it, and I must get used to it!"