Translated by Kollumceti of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

The two ran through the dense forest. The rest of the participants seemed to have intentionally parted so they were able to quickly throw the others off. The occasional roars of demon beasts drifted over in the endless forest.

You XiaoMo stood under a large tree and let out a small sigh of relief. He had just been pulled along while Ling Xiao was running. The distance they covered was more than several kilometers and could even be said to have reached ten kilometers. If it was the past him, he would have been running till he was panting for breath. But it was as if his whole body was full of energy ever since he trained in the Gravity Mountain for several months.

Why are you running so fast? You XiaoMo turned around and looked at Ling Xiao, not understanding his sudden move.

Ling Xiao tilted his head glanced at him, slightly narrowing his eyes, Could it be that you want to complete this task together with your Gao-dage?

You XiaoMo guiltily rubbed his nose, No, I dont. So where are we going now?

Their task was the first one. So as not to let other people discover Ling Xiaos secret, they certainly could not cooperate with others.

Ling Xiao declared, Lets familiarize ourselves with the terrain here.

The deep mountains range was exceedingly vast. Moreover, there may be unforeseeable danger behind every corner, so it was impossible for someone to know the terrain of the deep mountains like the back of his hand.

But since the academy had organized the Trails, they naturally would not set the task at a particularly dangerous and far place, for example, the Demon Forest Mountain a high-risk area where the inhabitants were very much stronger than them.

Ling Xiao had come into the mountains with others before when he was in Ward B.

However, the scope of activities at that time was just in a small corner of the mountains, so this was also his first time here.

The only silver lining was that the approximate direction and toponym was indicated on the back on the content of the tasks published by the academy. Furthermore, everyone would first go around gathering some information after deciding on their tasks, so they usually would not be running around blindly.

However, it was more troublesome for You XiaoMo who had never been into the mountains as he completely did not know where to run at all.

Lets head north first. Ling Xiao said as he took the lead.

Their task was located in the north, but they did not know the general location. Hence they could only slowly look around for it.

You XiaoMo quickly followed him; it looked like there was no other way.

He could not help but brood over it, no wonder the school gave them half a months time. Apart from giving them enough time to complete their task, they had probably intended to let the students train in the mountains.

Besides the large forests, the mountains also had many ranges and valleys that were connected to each other. Innumerable demon beasts hid themselves in there, and one moment of carelessness could cost one their life.

There was a vast mountain range located in the north, the length of the range covering the entire north side. It was known as the Demon Forest Mountain and countless demon beasts inhabited the area. It was doubtlessly the most dangerous place in the mountains.

This was all the information You XiaoMo had gathered before they left.

He roughly knew why everyone did not choose the first task now.

Without even mentioning that the objective of the task was a level nine magic herb, the demon beast protecting the herb would definitely be a level nine demon beast too. It was simply an impossible task to sneak into the Demon Forest Mountain and steal the magic herb from a level nine demon beast.

There would be many high leveled demon beasts around these mountains that were full of danger. It was imperative to gradually advance cautiously and carefully, as a single misstep could lead one into entering the territory of a demon beast.

Lets run there. Ling Xiao who was walking ahead suddenly looked back.

You XiaoMo was somewhat taken back, but he did not question Ling Xiao. This was just the chance for him to test out the results of his training in the Gravity Mountain. Ling Xiao smirked at him, Do you need me to carry you?

You XiaoMo rolled his eyes and without saying anything, he dashed away. Did Ling Xiao think he was still the old You XiaoMo? No matter how weak he was, he could not possible have always remained at his original place. The present You XiaoMo was already incomparable to the past.

Ling Xiao looked at his back, chuckled, and then caught up to You XiaoMo.

Two figures, one ahead and the other behind, speedily dashed through the forest, occasionally startling a few weak crows that cawed and flew off to other habitats.

You XiaoMo let Ling Xiao fully witness the results of his training. He was still going strong after continuing to run for most of the day. Other than being slightly out of breath, there was generally no problem.

Just as he was jauntily running, shrieks abruptly sounded ahead. A large flock of birds were frightened in the wake of the snarls of the demon beasts, and one after another, the dense mass took flight in all directions.

You XiaoMo stopped on the branch of a large tree with Ling Xiao following behind.

You XiaoMo hurriedly looked forward, Theres been an attack by demon beasts so soon?

Ling Xiao stood beside him, The ones being attacked probably arent students from the academy.

They were moving quite fast and were also the first group to leave the plain. Although some groups had tasks that were in the north too, those people should not be that fast.

Then who are they? You XiaoMo asked.

Lets take a look then well know. Ling Xiao replied.

With that, the two jumped down from the tree. When they reached their destination, the strong stench of blood assaulted their senses in a split second. The ground was filled with mutilated limbs and the stench of blood was so disgusting that You XiaoMo nearly vomited. The human practitioners had the most casualties as the battle drew to a close. Their opponent was a horde of demon beasts whose shapes resembled shriveled corpses of humans.

You XiaoMo recognized this demon beast. It was a level seven mummy demon beast. Under sunlight, that is, in places with strong Yang Qi, its fighting strength would weaken. Likewise, its fighting strength would increase in dark and damp places.

t/n: Yang Qi means the aspects or manifestations of energy that are relatively immaterial, amorphous, expanding, hollow, light, ascending, hot, dry, warming, bright, aggressive, and active. In this case, its referring to sunlight.

These people had probably strayed into the mummy demon beasts territory and were massacred until there was not even half of their group left.

With more than a hundred mummy demon beasts and many injured cultivators, a complete wipe-out would occur sooner or later.

You XiaoMo discovered the same symbols placed on their arms, appearing to belong to the same group. There were more than twenty people there so they were definitely not students from the academy.

You XiaoMo looked at Ling Xiao and just as he was about to say something, one of the people discovered their presence. As if they had grasped a lifeline, they cried out to You XiaoMo and Ling Xiao for help without demur.

That friend over there, we are from the Flying Fish Sect. We would be very grateful as long as you attempt to save us!

His words resembled the cries of a person who had been consumed by despair in the desert but had encountered an oasis, and his eyes instantly shone with a glimmer of hope.

You XiaoMo looked at Ling Xiao, Do you want to save them?

Ling Xiao was not the type of good-hearted person, so he could not be sure that Ling Xiao would save them.

Save, of course we should save them. You wait over here, Ill be right back. Ling Xiao smiled. It was rare to encounter a group of outsiders. Considering their disposition of troops, it did not seem that it was their first time entering the mountains.

When he finished speaking, he threw himself off the slope.

The white figure fell into the horde of mummy beasts, stunning those who were witnessing this scene. He really ran into the horde of demon beasts! Without waiting for them to be over their shock, the white figure had swept out from the horde. Wherever the white figure passed, the heads of the mummy demon beasts rolled across the ground one after another, its green blood emitting a putrid stink.

My God, this person is really powerful! The people who were able to take a breather with Ling Xiaos participation, gasped and let out terrified noises.

His strength may be comparable to the level eight mummy beast. And he even killed more than a dozen in a single strike. Even the Sect master is unable to perform this feat. Zhou Lin had already disregarded the wound on his shoulder, his eyes closely following the white figure within the horde of demon beasts.

Less than fifteen minutes later, the circumstances had reversed.

Out of the hundreds of mummy beasts, ninety percent were dead and the remaining ten percent had retreated after perceiving that the enemy was too strong.

There was nothing more wonderful than escaping the jaws of death. The seven who had survived fell to the ground all of a sudden. Their mental nerves which had been stretched taunt were finally able to relax.

Zhou Lin walked to Ling Xiao and endured his wounded shoulder to clasp his hands, Many thanks for your rescue, Sire. The Flying Fish Sect will remember this kindness of saving our lives as long as we live. We would be sure to repay Sire in the future.

At this moment, You XiaoMo who had been hiding away saw that the fighting had finally ended, and quickly ran out from the shadows. The seven suddenly behaved like birds startled by the mere twang of a bow as they brought up their guard.

t/n: birds startled by the mere twang of a bow means people who frighten easily, due to past experiences.

Who is it? Zhou Lin shouted as he assumed a combat-ready position. They were somewhat taken aback when they saw You XiaoMo standing on the high slope.

Come here. Ling Xiao opened his mouth and said.

You XiaoMo was about to go over when he suddenly stopped again. He looked at the ground which hardly had a clean area to step onto and felt extremely sickened.

Zhou Lin and the rest finally reacted. So they were familiar with each other. Just as they breathed a sigh of relief, they heard the youngster speak, and the contents stuck each and every one dumb.

Why dont you come over instead?

This youngster did not look very strong and he actually used this type of tone to talk to their savior! However, what surprised them the most was that their savior really walked over.

Zhou Lin and the rest could not help but look at each other in dismay. Although they did not know what the situation was, since their savior walked over, they too could not continue to stay here. If they met another pack of demon beasts in their current wounded states, they would definitely be dead, so they hesitantly followed after Ling Xiao.

After walking to a clearing, Zhou Lin and the six others began to wrap their wounds up. Except for two who were heavily wounded, most of their injuries were not severe and they soon recovered after consuming a magic pill.

Ling Xiao waited until they were finished before he began to question them of their origins. As the questions were from their savior, Zhou Lin naturally answered without any reserve.