Cultivation: I can see the proficiency level

Somewhere far from Songlintan.

A demon with an indigo-blue face and wide mouth and fangs swept through the forest, accompanied by a foul stench, and pounced straight at the wild boars that were foraging for food. After a few moments of miserable howls, only a pile of white boar bones remained.

The demon, having devoured flesh and blood, cackled and laughed maniacally, as if drunk, and staggered toward the mountain peak.

Sometimes it knocked over rocks, sometimes it knocked over trees, and finally, it crashed headfirst into the tattered black banner shrouded in demonic energy, disappearing like a fish into water.

The red-haired demon held a black banner, his eyes closed and silent.

What the demon saw, heard, and experienced appeared in his mind, and the last image was of a white figure standing on a blue stone, stretching out its demonic body.

As expected, the result caused the Red-Haired Demon's heart to sink.

Standing beside him, the Broadsword Yama, who had been waiting for a long time, saw him open his eyes and hurriedly asked, "How is the situation?"

The red-haired demon sighed.

Such actions extinguished the last glimmer of hope in Broadsword Yama's heart. Whenever he thought of the dog demon entering the middle rank, and its speed of escape and demonic magic becoming even more formidable, he felt as if he had a thorn in his back.

Mid-grade demonic beasts possess both profound magical power and thick hides, roughly equivalent to the strength of a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator combined with half a physical cultivator. In battles between cultivators of the same realm, those without formidable methods are often no match for demonic beasts.

Not to mention the extraordinary talents that demonic beasts are born with, such as the Pine Forest Pool Dog Demon, which has an astonishing speed of escape, appearing and disappearing without a trace, leaving others far behind.

The three of them possessed no powerful magic, no protective artifacts, and no formidable magical power.

Anyone who is alone will likely be doomed.

Broadsword Yama turned to look at the silent Master Huang, then exchanged a glance with the Crimson-Haired Demon before the two sat down next to Master Huang.

Since being dragged onto the magical artifact to escape, and now hiding here, a long time has passed. Master Huang has remained silent, like a piece of wood, his face blank and speechless.

He was filled with grief and regret.

A sense of hatred lingered, and thoughts intertwined.

"Fellow Daoist Luo, do not grieve. You saw it yourself. That little rascal's swordsmanship was astonishing. None of your disciples could match him. Even when Fellow Daoist Bi and I fought with all our might, we could not save him," said Broadsword Yama.

Indeed, even if he fought Bi Si to the death and put himself in danger, he would still have difficulty rescuing those few good-for-nothings.

That's why the two of them were unwilling to take the risk.

Seeking good fortune and avoiding misfortune, protecting oneself wisely, assessing the situation, acting according to circumstances, and knowing when to retreat are all essential lessons for cultivators of Luopo Mountain.

Fighting for one's life is a choice made when all other options are exhausted and there is no other way out.

The Crimson-Haired Demon Bi Si continued, "Fellow Daoist Zhou is right. That dog demon is about to break through to the next realm. If we don't temporarily avoid its sharp edge, once we break through, it will be five against three. Not only will we not be able to save your disciples, but the three of us will also be in danger of losing our lives."

This is also true.

Their choice to flee before the evenly matched forces turned into an overwhelming odds was not wrong. They couldn't let Master Huang's disciple be killed along with his master.

It's just that his son and apprentice were beheaded. Whose son or apprentice hasn't been beheaded?

Bi Si's son and disciple were killed by that old thief Cangsongzi. Wasn't Zhou Shang's son and disciple also killed by that old thief Cangsongzi?

Since that scoundrel Cangsongzi couldn't kill the two of them, he killed their two disciples. Seeing their disciples' heads separated from their bodies, weren't the two of them just as grief-stricken, heartbroken, and in unbearable pain?

What's even more hateful is that when Cangsongzi beheaded his son and disciple, he did so effortlessly. The two of them tried to kill Cangsongzi's son and disciple, Wang Mian, time and again, but he always managed to escape.

Now that the petty thief has gained power, he has become the cause of our troubles and is in danger of being executed.

With revenge becoming increasingly hopeless, how could the two of them not feel hatred? They even hated the heavens, feeling that fate was constantly torturing them.

Master Luo Yi did not answer, but sat in silence.

Seeing this, the Crimson-Haired Demon Bi Si and the Broadsword Yama Zhou Shang exchanged glances. They both felt that Luo Yi was a sore loser. They were seeking revenge, while Luo Yi was the one who coveted the demon pet, the spiritual land, and the spiritual objects.

He coveted a family fortune, yet he gained nothing and paid a heavy price, causing him great sorrow.

Pooh!

Zhou Shang urged, "Master Huang, Fellow Daoist Luo, stop acting like a spoiled young lady and make a decision quickly."

The Crimson-Haired Demon Bi Si also said, "Fellow Daoist Zhou and I are both alone. At worst, we can go down the mountain to avoid trouble. Fellow Daoist is different from us. You have a family and a business. The road to the Green Bamboo Forest is very easy to find."

The two men were short-sighted and lacked strategic thinking; otherwise, they would have really wanted to give this bamboo teacher a good beating.

The situation is critical now. Given that rascal from Songlintan's character, it's nothing serious for him to harass us with his dog's power. But if we wait until his cultivation level increases, none of us here will escape being reduced to ashes.

They hold grudges, but that little rascal holds them even more.

Now it's a situation where if you don't kill someone, you'll be killed. The sword is already at your neck, and you're still grieving here. If you don't think of a solution soon, even the concubine in the Green Bamboo Grove will be surnamed Wang.

"At this moment, fellow Daoist should think more about your family business, rather than about those dead disciples," Bi Si said.

Zhou Shang nudged Luo Yi's shoulder: "Master Huang, hurry up and think of a way to kill Wang Mian, otherwise we'll be killed by him. Are you even listening to us?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Yi paused slightly.

What they said was true. Given the current situation, if they didn't come up with a solution soon, the bamboo forest might be doomed. It was the family business he had painstakingly built up.

It absolutely must not be destroyed.

After a moment's thought, Luo Yi slowly spoke: "I have three strategies: superior, middle, and inferior..."

"Quickly tell me the best strategy. If you have the best strategy, who the hell wants to listen to your nonsense about the worst one?" The impatient Zhou Shang couldn't stand Luo Yi's slow, bookish manner.

Bi Si didn't like Master Huang's mild and bookish manner either, but he had no choice but to adapt because of his own lack of intelligence.

He nodded and urged them on.

Urged by the two, Luo Yi revealed his plan: "I have an ancient formula called Soul-Tearing Ointment. It does not poison the body, but specifically poisons the three souls of Taiguang, Shuangling, and Youjing. It is still missing a few spiritual herbs to prepare and will take about a hundred days to make."

"We don't need to leave our homes or live under someone else's roof. You two can come with me to the bamboo forest for a few months. With the three of us working together, that rascal won't dare to mess with us. Even if he does, he won't be able to do anything to us."

"In this way, the day the Soul-Tearing Ointment is fully refined will be the day that scoundrel dies!"

"What do you think of this plan?" Master Huang asked.

Upon hearing this, the eyes of the Crimson-Haired Demon Bi Si and the Broadsword Yama Zhou Shang gradually brightened. The three of them could watch over and help each other, ensuring their safety and eliminating the need to leave their hometown and go down the mountain to avoid trouble.

After a few months of waiting, we can end that little thief Wang Mian's life. This deal seems worthwhile no matter how you look at it.

They had to admit that scholars were more cunning and adept at scheming, while the two of them were not good at such things and only knew how to fight recklessly.

"Haha, Fellow Daoist Luo is truly resourceful!" Bi Si praised.

"Hahaha, Fellow Daoist Luo is cunning and shrewd." Zhou Shang praised.

Faced with their praise, Luo Yi remained calm. He glanced at Zhou Shang and then at Bi Si, before extending his hand and asking, "Fellow Daoists, who will pay for the spirit stones used to purchase the medicinal herbs? Or will we split it in half?"

After these words were spoken, the two fell silent.

Like most of the cultivators of Luopo Mountain, they chose to remain silent when faced with the topic of spirit stones.

It wasn't until Luo Yi's gaze had been fixed on them for a long time that the two reached out and touched their storage bags. When they opened their palms, each of them had three spirit stones with a dull color and insufficient spiritual energy.

The two of them, as if their flesh had been cut off, handed the spirit stones to Luo Yi.

Seeing the spirit stones handed over, Luo Yi, his face darkening, remained silent, staring at the two men with unfriendly eyes until their faces turned red, at which point the two men reached into their storage bags again.

This time, they had several more spirit stones in their hands, each with a bright color and abundant spiritual energy.

He handed it to Luo Yi.

Luo Yi, his face now dark with grime, couldn't help but ask, "What can these few spirit stones do? Huh!"

The two sighed.

There was nothing they could do about it; this was all the spirit stones they had saved up through frugality. Unlike Luo Yi, who came from a wealthy family, they were just like most of the cultivators on Luopo Mountain.

Poor and destitute.

"Fellow Daoist Luo, we really have no spirit stones left." The two said awkwardly, ignoring Luo Yi's burning gaze, they couldn't take out even a single spirit stone, and both handed over their storage bags for Luo Yi to check.

In order to deal with the crisis posed by Wang Mian, they have already emptied their last spirit stone.

Feeling suffocated by the predicament, Bi Si looked at the spirit grain in his storage bag and managed to say with difficulty, "How about I sell these dozens of kilograms of spirit grain too?"

Zhou Shang nodded: "I also have some spirit grains here."

In fact, they hoped that Luo Yi would cover the shortfall, since the Cuizhulin family was wealthy and Luo Yi had more spirit stones than they did, but they couldn't bring themselves to say it.

Unbeknownst to them, their expressions already conveyed this meaning.

Having encountered such a fellow Daoist, Luo Yi felt dizzy and his chest tightened; he just wanted to curse.

"You deserve to be driven to this state by the juniors. You two would be better off dead." Luo Yi said with a dark face, and took the lead in setting up his magic weapon and flying towards the bamboo forest.

The two men looked at each other, both feeling insulted by Master Huang.

"Damn it, how about we go back now? I'll hold off that dog demon, and you kill that scoundrel?" Zhou Shang said, somewhat resentfully, after being insulted by Master Huang.

Bi Si looked at him as if he were an idiot: "They just rode away on a demonic beast, how am I supposed to kill them? Do you think I'm a Foundation Establishment cultivator?"

After saying that, Bi Si also mounted his magic weapon and flew away, with Zhou Shang helplessly mounting his own magic weapon and following closely behind.

Several magical artifacts emitted bursts of spiritual light, streaking across the sky.