Mountains and giant beasts, cabins in the woods

The deal was settled in a few words.

Tie Shengcai and Bai Youyun left disappointed. If they could obtain the trading rights to the cure-all medicine, even just a small portion, their daily income could increase by more than ten yuan. Unfortunately, there are no "ifs."

On the other side, Bai Qinghe and Bai Daoyuan, as the victors in their business battle, were inevitably somewhat excited. High-quality goods are a merchant's most important trump card; whether or not they could rebuild their caravan hinged on this moment.

The strong winds in the mountains subsided, and the dark dawn sky lit up with a murky yellow, foreshadowing a brewing downpour.

Liu Xingmo kept Bai Qinghe and his nephew there, as he had some things he wanted to ask.

At this moment, Liu San Niang prepared tea and placed it on the tea table in the corner of the hall.

Three incandescent bulbs hung overhead, emitting a yellow light that illuminated the spacious concrete room.

The four people sat down in turn, each with a different expression.

Liu Xingmo frowned and tentatively asked, "Instructor Bai Qinghe, how much do you know about the incident involving the Bone Sturgeon caravan at the beginning of the year?"

Liu San Niang asked in surprise, "At the beginning of the year?"

Bai Qinghe hesitated: "I personally experienced that incident, but..."

Bai Daoyuan said, "Uncle, Brother Liu is not a bad person. He is an orphan from the Hongyan caravan tragedy nine years ago, just like me. If you know anything, just say it."

"Boom!" The surging thunder shook the heavens and the earth.

In the hall, the four of them took a sip of tea.

"I can't remember many things." Bai Qinghe tilted his head, looking troubled and deep in thought. "I just remember that it was a night when the group was stationed on the banks of the Tuoyang River, and we travelers were spending the New Year away from home..."

"Crack!" Liu San Niang accidentally knocked over her teacup. Ignoring the scalding tea, she exclaimed, "Night?! New Year's Day?!"

Liu Xingmo quickly took out a handkerchief and helped her wipe the water: "What's wrong, Third Sister?"

"No...it's nothing." Liu San Niang forced a smile. "You two continue chatting..."

Bai Qinghe continued his recollection: "Being thousands of miles away from home, it's inevitable to feel homesick, especially during the Spring Festival. The young men in the team were discussing setting off firecrackers and fireworks, which was not allowed. The team leader sternly reprimanded them."

At this point, the man seemed to have a headache, pressing his fist against his temple and muttering, "Why did I have to talk about these trivial things... My head is spinning... What happened next? Ugh!"

"Uncle!" Bai Daoyuan shouted, grabbing his hand. "It's all over now, it's alright!"

"Drip, drip, drip..." Large raindrops fell, and the sound of rain entered the house.

"Ah! That's right!" Bai Qinghe suddenly snapped out of his daze. "A group of monsters emerged from the shadows and attacked us! They were extremely strange, yet incredibly swift in their movements. The screams of our companions echoed through the darkness... Ah!" Bai Qinghe pounded his head with his fist. "Damn it! Why couldn't I see their faces clearly! Or did I forget? Ugh, my head hurts so much..."

Liu Xingmo held his breath and listened intently. At that moment, a soft body wrapped around him and held him tightly.

He smiled wryly and said, "Third Sister, why are you getting scared?"

Liu San Niang did not answer, but stared intently at Bai Qinghe with a wary and fearful look.

Bai Qinghe sat in the chair, lowered his head, held his head in his hands, and scratched his scalp incessantly with his fingernails, pulling out a lot of hair.

"Uncle..." Bai Daoyuan was a little at a loss.

"Alright, thank you for the information! I'm sorry for reminding you of painful memories," Liu Xingmo said in a deep voice.

"Whoosh—!" A damp, earthy smell blew in through the doorway, and the sky was a deep blue.

Bai Daoyuan patted Bai Qinghe on the back and looked up to ask, "Brother Liu, what did you discover?"

"I'm not sure either. Judging from the description, it sounds a bit like the legendary..." Liu Xingmo stroked his stubble and said, enunciating each word clearly, "The Heavenly Killing Sect!"

"What is that thing?" Liu San Niang exclaimed. She then stood up and said to Bai Daoyuan, "Your uncle isn't feeling well, you should all go home and rest!"

"Alright!" Bai Daoyuan helped his companion to his feet. "Uncle, let's go. You need to get a good night's sleep."

An old man and a young boy, one tall and one short, went out of the main gate and picked a large amount of grass leaves to weave into straw hats and raincoats.

Two green-clad figures, supporting each other, disappeared into the wind and rain.

Liu Xingmo's thoughts were churning when he saw Liu San Niang quickly wrap the teacups of the uncle and nephew with leaves.

He asked, "What are you doing, Third Sister? You're acting strange today!"

"What are you doing? I'm going to throw this unlucky thing far away!" Liu San Niang grabbed her teacup and walked out.

"Wait! That's top-quality blue and white porcelain! You've only had a few days of good fortune, and you're already throwing money away?" Liu Xingmo quickly caught up. "Besides, someone who survives a great calamity is bound to have good fortune later. Why are you saying they're unlucky?"

"Pah!" Liu San Niang crushed the teacup with both hands, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it several times.

She yelled, "Everyone else is dead, and he's the only one alive and well? And he's got amnesia? You're kidding me! I bet this Bai Qinghe is a spy in disguise! We need to stay away from him and not have any more contact with him."

"You really have a good head for this! How could the elders not know about something this big? They're a fifth-level Grandmaster, and they've investigated it countless times. Maybe even the Mountain Goddess has inquired about it. Since Bai Qinghe has returned to take charge of the caravan, then there's no problem."

Liu Sanniang gritted her teeth and said angrily, "No means no! My intuition is always right!"

The woman took a deep breath and realized that her behavior was too strange.

She took the man's hand and said softly, "My dear husband, please listen to me, I beg you!"

"Alright then," Liu Xingmo reluctantly agreed. "However, the cultivated mold from the Rat Bat Kingdom is really important; I have to get it."

"Let that weirdo run an errand for us once, and then we'll cut off all ties!"

"Wouldn't that be too heartless...?"

"I don't care, you promised me." Liu San Niang gathered up the broken porcelain shards from the ground, muttering to herself as she walked out, "Maybe I should set off a string of firecrackers every morning to ward off evil spirits!"

Liu Xingmo shook his head and smiled bitterly.

After eating and drinking his fill and feeding the livestock, he began his spiritual practice.

He went to the study, sat down next to the psychic rhinoceros horn, and began practicing the visualization technique of the benthic demon fish. However, he still couldn't connect with the mysterious spiritual world.

Undeterred, he began cultivating the Blood Path and the Wood Path. His innate physique granted him far greater control over his blood energy than before, and even at the second level, he could clearly feel himself growing stronger every day.

When the time was right, I ended my cultivation.

Everything has its proper measure; too much of anything is as bad as too little, and the same applies to spiritual practice. Just like building muscles, there's a daily limit to how much you can exercise; exceeding that limit can lead to injury.

Liu Xingmo walked briskly to the mushroom cultivation greenhouse.

The black beetle, bluish-gray, stood guard dutifully in the darkness. Sensing its owner at the door, it happily crawled out and removed the heavy steel bolt.

This once-powerful Gu worm suffered countless hardships at the hands of its former master in a minor sect. Now, having pledged allegiance to its new master, a powerful clan, it not only obtained a bloodline cultivation technique specifically for beetles but also enjoys a variety of precious spiritual herbs.

This is absolutely touching!