Wild cultivation begins with wielding the Taiyin talisman.

As dusk fell, the sunlight seemed veiled in gray, casting a deathly stillness over the boundless wilderness. The wind swept through, carrying dry grass clippings and yellow dust, occasionally brushing against one's face, forcing one to squint to move forward.

Ning Che and Fu Gui stood on either side of each other, maintaining a distance of about ten steps, as they headed towards their destination.

The road was eerily silent, devoid of any living creature. In the distance, the black pine forest could already be seen. It resembled a colossal beast lying on the ground, hidden in the hazy sky, exuding an indescribable menacing aura.

Ning Che recalled Fu Gui's explanation of the black pine forest along the way:

The so-called black pine is a spiritual material, far more resilient than ordinary wood, and can be used to make magical artifacts with water and wood properties. However, this spiritual material is only considered the lowest tier of choice, and it grows deep in the wilderness. Powerful cultivators disdain it, while weak cultivators lack the ability to move it, thus allowing it to form forests here.

It is precisely because of the magical nature of this black pine that this place is dominated by demonic beasts with water and wood magical properties. Having lived and cultivated here for a long time, they may possess some magical techniques adapted to the local environment. Fu Gui had encountered several such beasts in his younger days, all of which were wondrous and difficult to deal with. Later, as he grew older, he dared not venture here again.

When Fu Gui got to this point, he said that nowadays, no one in the village can say for sure what the situation is like in the Black Pine Forest, or what powerful monsters are lurking there.

He replied that they would have it when they got back.

Memories faded like mist, revealing blackened rocks beneath my feet. The entire black pine forest grew on this rocky ground. Perhaps due to some extraordinary power, the black pines still retained their characteristic black needles, instead of withering away like ordinary plants.

Ning Che consciously closed the distance between himself and Fu Gui, keeping about five steps apart, and searched from the northeast to the southwest.

Fu Gui marked some protruding stones along the way, while Ning Che focused on keeping watch on his surroundings.

The nine days gradually climbed over the mountain, and the sky darkened, with fog rising.

"Something's not right." Fu Gui also came closer and said in a low voice, "This black pine forest wasn't this lush before, and it's even affecting the surrounding environment. I'm afraid there's something special about it."

Ning Che nodded slightly, his eyes scanning the surrounding dense forest, ready to deal with any unexpected situations.

But there was nothing there.

He couldn't help but frown. Along the way, in the vast black pine forest, not a single bird or beast was in sight. It was as quiet as a huge tomb. Only the sound of their footsteps seemed particularly jarring in the deathly silence.

This is highly unusual and cannot be explained by mere luck.

Suddenly, he heard Fugui shout, "Watch out behind you!"

Ning Che reacted almost the instant the sound rang out. He instantly shifted his body to the side, making way for his original position, and at the same time turned half a circle around, looking warily at what had been behind him.

But there was nothing there.

He only saw surprise on Fugui's face, which quickly turned into fear.

It's sorcery!

Ning Che immediately realized something was wrong and tried to dodge again. But at this moment, even with his reaction speed, it was too late to dodge.

Something slammed heavily into his back, making him feel as if his internal organs were being squeezed out. Knowing he couldn't take it head-on, he lunged forward with the force, rolling and turning around the moment he landed, looking behind him.

But behind them was only a vast fog, swallowing their vision in the darkness of night.

Ning Che, panting, leaned against the ground. Fu Gui approached, drawing his bow and arrows as a precaution, and asked, "How are you?"

"Cough cough—it's nothing, I just got hit on the back. What kind of monster was this? Did you see it?" Ning Che coughed lightly, caught his breath, and then stood up to ask.

Fu Gui's hand, gripping the bow, veins bulging, kept scanning his surroundings. His voice trembled, and he stammered, "I didn't shout 'Watch out behind you.' I'm so sorry, I don't know what that thing is. I was stunned when I heard my own voice and didn't react."

I'm sorry I couldn't be of much help, but all I saw was a humanoid shadow with a large belly and short limbs appear behind you.

Ning Che frowned even more deeply and said reassuringly, "Uncle Fugui, don't be nervous. Try to recall how it appeared and disappeared."

Fu Gui let out a long breath, finally catching his breath. After carefully recalling the events, he shook his head and said, "I didn't see it when it appeared, and it disappeared in the end, like a wisp of fog being blown away by the wind."

Was it blown away by the wind? Was it an illusion, or did this monster never have a physical form to begin with?

The thought had barely formed when the surrounding fog thickened even more.

The sun sank completely below the mountaintop, leaving only pitch-black darkness between heaven and earth. The black pine trunks that were previously visible a dozen steps away could now only be vaguely discerned as outlines within arm's reach. The hazy mist, like a living thing, coiled around their ankles, carrying a biting chill, and climbed up their trouser legs.

"We can't stay here!" Fugui suddenly grabbed Ning Che's arm and said urgently in a low voice, "This fog is strange, it's getting thicker and thicker. If we stay any longer, we'll both go blind! Let's get to the forest entrance first, and then we'll figure things out!"

Ning Che drew his sword, brought it close to his face, and carefully checked him before giving instructions: "We'll walk back to back and be on guard at all times."

Fu Gui was, in the end, just an old hunter who made a living in the mountains and forests year-round. He had an instinctive awe for esoteric arts and cultivators that was ingrained in his bones. At this moment, he was already feeling uneasy and chilled to the bone from the strange phenomenon he had just witnessed. Upon hearing Ning Che's arrangement, he immediately agreed.

The two stood back to back, protecting each other's blind spots, and slowly moved towards the forest entrance they had come from, taking one step at a time.

Relying on his intimate knowledge of the mountain terrain, Fugui would occasionally lower his voice and whisper to report the locations: "There's a reclining ox rock three steps to the left, which we just passed when we entered the forest! Go around it and continue for another two hundred steps, and you'll reach the Black Stone Slope at the forest entrance!"

After walking for a full half incense stick's time, we still hadn't seen the black stone slope under our feet. Instead, we stumbled upon the reclining ox stone with the mark on it.

The knife marks were still fresh, right in front of their faces.

Fu Gui's face instantly drained of color, and his hand gripping the hunting knife began to tremble: "Impossible... I was clearly heading due east, how did I end up back here? This is a ghost wall! It's sorcery!"

Ning Che's heart sank.

Shi Ying said that some cultivators use unpredictable spells, and even if one's cultivation level is much higher than theirs, it's easy to fall into their trap if one doesn't handle it properly. She never expected to experience it here first.

In a one-on-one fight, relying on the sword energy within his chest, he would dare to fight with all his might even against an eighth-rank opponent. But in this situation, even if he had ten sword energies, he would be helpless.

Worse still, the attacks continued.

Although the two were back to back, completely sealing off any blind spots in their defense, the sudden attacks that could strike at any moment were still relentlessly wearing down their mental and physical strength.

Coupled with the "ghost wall" magic that traps them, it seems clear that the two will eventually be worn down and die here.

The moonlight was shrouded in mist, obscuring the way home.