The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

They hadn't gone far when they encountered another second-tier demonic beast, the Crimson Flame Fox.

The fox was entirely red, like a ball of flame.

This time, Shen Yifei wasn't in a hurry and slowly moved closer.

The Crimson Flame and the Fox were squatting on a blue stone, licking their paws. When they saw him coming, their ears perked up and their bright red eyes stared at him.

Shen Yifei didn't draw his sword; instead, he swaggered over with the Myriad Things Cauldron in his hand.

The Crimson Fox growled and leaped off the rock, its back arched, teeth bared, and tail held straight up.

"Come on, bite me."

Shen Yifei stretched out his arm.

The Crimson Flame Fox had never seen anyone like this before. It was stunned for a moment, then pounced and bit down.

"Click—"

Several of the Crimson Fox's teeth broke off.

It let out a miserable howl and opened its mouth. Shen Yifei wasn't about to let it go, and smashed the Myriad Things Cauldron directly onto its head. It actually knocked it unconscious.

Strangely, this time it wasn't put into the furnace. Shen Yifei looked at the furnace, wondering what had gone wrong.

But this is fine too. He took out his longsword and dug out the demon core near the heart of the Crimson Flame Fox.

The mission was considered complete, but Shen Yifei discovered that the cauldron was sometimes effective and sometimes not, so he would have to study it carefully when he got back.

Shen Yifei was about to turn back when he suddenly heard a woman's cry for help.

He discerned the direction and walked a short distance westward, where he found people, a man and a woman, in a clearing in a mountain hollow.

The man was bald, with a face full of scars, and he was holding a large machete. The woman was a young girl, who was being pinned to the ground by the bald man; her skirt was torn in half, revealing her white shoulders.

"Senior brother... senior brother, please spare me!" the girl cried. "I'll give you everything, just let me go!"

"Let you go?" The bald man chuckled. "I want the stuff, and I want you too. What are you doing running all this way, a woman? You're just offering yourself up!"

"I...I came here to gather herbs..."

"Gathering herbs? What herbs? The Hehuan Sect's, I guess?" The bald man leaned closer and sniffed. "A strong, pungent smell. The Hehuan Sect's women are the most potent. Today I'm going to indulge myself. After I'm done gathering, I'll sell them to a brothel and exchange them for spirit stones."

The girl struggled desperately, but she was no match for the bald man. She was pinned down, and another piece of her skirt was torn off, revealing her upper thigh.

Shen Yifei saw this and hesitated, wondering whether to save her or not.

He wasn't a good person, but he couldn't stand seeing women being bullied like this. Besides, that girl was from the Hehuan Sect, so they were practically fellow disciples.

But that bald guy didn't look like a good guy, and it was questionable whether I could beat him. If we really fought, I might end up losing my life.

While she was hesitating, the bald man had already pinned the girl to the ground and started unbuckling his belt.

The girl cried her heart out: "Help! Help me!"

Shen Yifei gritted his teeth and darted out from behind the tree.

"Let her go!"

The bald man was startled, turned around and saw him. He looked him up and down, then sneered, "Oh, here comes someone who's just coming to die. You're tired of living, kid?"

Judging from his young age, the bald man guessed that his cultivation level couldn't be that high!

Shen Yifei didn't waste any words and immediately launched a fireball.

The fireball headed straight for the bald man's face. The bald man dodged to the side, and the fireball grazed his ear before slamming into a tree behind him with a "bang," leaving a black mark.

"Fireball spell?" The bald man laughed even harder. "You think you can play the hero and save a damsel in distress with just that little bit of skill?"

He charged over with a machete and swung it down.

Shen Yifei didn't dodge; instead, he reached out to block.

"when--"

The machete struck his arm, sending sparks flying.

The bald man was stunned.

He was in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, primarily cultivating his body. He had used eighty percent of his strength in that strike; even someone of the same cultivation level wouldn't dare take it head-on. Yet this kid had blocked it with his arm, without even breaking a sweat!

"What...what are you?"

Taking advantage of his momentary daze, Shen Yifei pulled out the Myriad Things Cauldron and smashed it against his forehead.

The bald man instinctively used his knife to block.

"Bang!"

The knife broke in two, and the Myriad Things Cauldron smashed onto his forehead. A flash of red light, and his bald head was gone.

Shen Yifei breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the Cauldron of All Things worked again this time. He looked down at the girl.

The girl was still lying on the ground, staring at him with wide eyes. The fear in her eyes was even greater than when the bald man had been riding on her!

Shen Yifei was startled when he saw the girl's terrified eyes.

"Oh no, she's seen the Cauldron of All Things!"

"Where...where did you take him?" the girl asked, trembling.

"Who?"

"That bald guy!"

Shen Yifei blinked. "They ran away."

"He ran away?" The girl's eyes widened. "I saw you hit him with something, and then he... he just disappeared!"

"That's it?" Shen Yifei scratched his head. "Miss, you must have seen wrong. That bald guy ran away when he realized he couldn't hurt me. Maybe your cultivation level is too low to see clearly!"

The girl was skeptical, but what the young man said made sense; the bald man's cultivation was indeed much higher than hers, though she couldn't see it.

Shen Yifei reached out and helped her up: "Are you alright?"

The girl then came to her senses and looked down at herself. Her skirt was torn in a large section, covering very little area.

"I...I'm fine." The girl quickly covered her chest with her hand.

Shen Yifei took out an outer robe from his ring and handed it to her: "Put this on first."

The girl took the robe, put it on, and whispered a thank you.

Shen Yifei then took a closer look at her. She was in her early twenties, with a beautiful face, and her downcast eyes made her look endearing.

"What's your name?" Shen Yifei asked.

"My name is Liu'er, from the outer sect of the Hehuan Sect," the girl said softly, glancing up at him. "And you, Senior Brother?"

"Inner Sect, Shen Yifei."

Liu'er's eyes widened: "You're Shen Yifei, the one who used medicine residue to achieve Foundation Establishment?"

Shen Yifei cursed inwardly, "Damn it, my reputation has spread throughout the Hehuan Sect."

"It's me. Why did you come here all alone? Do you know how dangerous it is here?"

"I...I came to gather herbs. Outer disciples have to hand in their monthly tasks, and I took on a herb-gathering job. I had finished gathering herbs on the outskirts when I ran into that bald guy..."

"What is your cultivation level?"

"Three levels of Qi Refining".

"You fucking have some nerve!" Shen Yifei couldn't help but curse. "Coming to Hengduan Mountain at the third level of Qi Refining? What's the difference between that and suicide?"

Liu'er was so scolded by him that tears streamed down her face.

Seeing her pitiful state, Shen Yifei couldn't bring himself to scold her.

"Alright, alright, stop crying. Let's go, I'll see you out of the mountains!"

The two walked out one after the other. Liu'er was wearing his outer robe and was walking with a limp; she had twisted her ankle when the bald man had pinned her to the ground.

Shen Yifei walked for a while, then looked back at her and sighed.

"Come on, I'll carry you."

Liu'er hesitated for a moment, but still obediently climbed onto his back.

Shen Yifei carried her on his back, used his lightness technique, and walked quickly outside.

Although Liu'er is not very old, she has a great figure.

Liu'er lay on his back, her arms wrapped around his neck.

At first, everything was fine, but gradually, Shen Yifei realized that something was wrong.

Liu'er's arms around his neck tightened even more, for fear of falling.

Shen Yifei tried hard to control himself, but the more he tried, the less he could control himself.

"Senior brother," Liu'er suddenly spoke, "you're sweating."

"Yeah, I'm tired from running."

"Would you like to take a break?"

"No need, it's getting dark, the sun... is about to set... above the mountain."