SFS Chapter 196 The Secrets of Spiritual Plants
Chapter 196 The Secrets of Spiritual Plants
Chapter 196 The Secrets of Spiritual Plants
At this moment, the monster's eyes had been successfully blinded by them. After losing its sight, it became even more ferocious, rampaging across the battlefield and leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. Jiang Jingzhi and his two companions seized the opportunity and continuously unleashed spells and sword energy, launching wave after wave of attacks on the monster's body.
Although the monster was severely injured, its enormous body and tenacious vitality still made it a formidable fighting force.
Jiang Jingzhi brandished his longsword, the sword energy like sharp blades, constantly leaving new wounds on the monster; Xu Xiaoxiao's spirit sword also slashed at the monster time and time again, each strike imbued with her full strength; Mu Zhusheng continued to cast rune spells, interfering with the monster's movements, trying to find more of its weaknesses.
Just when the three thought victory was in sight and the monster was about to be completely defeated, something strange happened. The monster, which had been struggling wildly and was as big as a mountain, suddenly let out a painful whimper, and then its body began to shrink rapidly.
In just a moment, the enormous, terrifying monster that blotted out the sky transformed into a creature the size of a kitten, quietly crouching on the ground.
A pair of tiny wings had sprouted from its back, fluttering slightly. Its two little claws were waving frantically in the air, and it was muttering, "Don't kill me, don't kill me!" Its voice was filled with fear and pleading.
Xu Xiaoxiao reacted quickly, stopping Jiang Jingzhi's sword just as it was about to fall: "Senior Brother, wait a minute, this monster is talking!"
Jiang Jingzhi's sword stopped in mid-air, and he and Mu Zhusheng stared in astonishment at the "monster" that had suddenly shrunk in front of them.
The three of them gathered around and examined it closely, unable to reconcile the somewhat cute little creature in front of them with the ferocious and terrifying beast they had seen before.
"Is...is this really the same monster from before?" Mu Zhusheng asked, her face full of doubt.
They all knew that the ferocious beast was a legendary creature from ancient times. It was said that the ferocious beast was huge, had a fierce face, a black body, sharp claws and fangs, and huge and powerful wings on its back, which allowed it to soar freely in the air, giving people a very terrifying feeling. But this little thing in front of them, apart from the small wings on its back, did not seem to match the legendary ferocious beast at all.
The ferocious creature seemed to know the three people's doubts. In order to save its life, it disregarded all morality and looked at them pitifully with its big, watery eyes that had healed itself, and began to tell its tragic story.
“A long, long time ago, I accidentally ate a few spiritual plants belonging to the master of this secret realm. Who knew he would fly into a rage and suppress me here? This suppression has lasted for thousands of years! ... I am trapped in darkness every day, never seeing the sun. I don’t know what those people sprinkled on me. When I wake up, I can’t control myself. All I want to do is kill and drink blood. This is really not my intention!” As he spoke, tears even welled up in his ferocious eyes.
It paused, then continued, "As long as you don't kill me, I'm willing to let the strongest person here be my master, to be his mount, and to be at his beck and call!"
After saying that, it turned its gaze to Jiang Jingzhi. In its opinion, Jiang Jingzhi had shown great strength in the battle just now and might be the "strongest one".
Upon hearing this, Xu Xiaoxiao felt a pang of pity. She looked at Jiang Jingzhi, her eyes welling up with tears: "Senior Brother, this ferocious beast is so pitiful. Just because it ate a few spiritual plants, it has been imprisoned for thousands of years."
Jiang Jingzhi frowned, lost in thought. He looked at Xu Xiaoxiao, then at the ferocious creature on the ground, unable to make up his mind.
Mu Zhusheng calmly analyzed from the side, "This matter is indeed strange. It should be said that the ferocious ancient beast, Zheng Ning, is so powerful that it should not be suppressed so easily. Moreover, it has changed too much in the past few thousand years. There must be some hidden story that we do not know about."
Jiang Jingzhi nodded slightly. He squatted down, looked directly into the ferocious eyes, and asked, "Is what you said true? Are you really willing to acknowledge me as your master and never cause trouble again?"
The ferocious creature nodded vigorously, its head shaking like a rattle: "Absolutely true! As long as you let me go, I will keep my promise. I've been trapped in this dark and hopeless place for too long, and I really don't want to stay here any longer."
Xu Xiaoxiao chimed in, "Senior Brother, why don't we just trust it this once? It looks really pitiful, and if it can really become our help, it might even be helpful for our exploration in the Demon Realm."
After pondering for a long time, Jiang Jingzhi finally said slowly, "Alright, we'll believe you for now, but if you dare to play any tricks, we will show no mercy."
Upon hearing this, the ferocious creature was overjoyed and jumped up and down excitedly: "Thank you, thank you! From now on, I will be your most loyal partner."
After saying that, it flew to Jiang Jingzhi's shoulder and obediently squatted down, looking completely different from the ferocious beast from before.
Jiang Jingzhi, Xu Xiaoxiao, and Mu Zhusheng, carrying the ferocious beast they had just subdued, left the place where they had fought the beast and prepared to explore other parts of the secret realm.
They walked along a quiet path, surrounded by silence, with only the occasional sound of the wind and their soft footsteps.
Suddenly, dark clouds rolled in the sky, and a strong evil aura spread out. Jiang Jingzhi gripped his long sword tightly and scanned his surroundings with sharp eyes: "Not good, a powerful evil force is approaching."
Xu Xiaoxiao also drew her spirit sword and stood nervously beside Jiang Jingzhi: "This aura... could it be a demon?" Mu Zhusheng quickly condensed runes in her hand, ready for battle.
A group of demons suddenly appeared out of thin air, led by a man in black robes with a cruel smile on his face: "Haha, I didn't expect to run into a few little cultivators like you here."
Jiang Jingzhi looked at them coldly: "Demons, what conspiracy do you have in coming to this secret realm?"
The man in black robes scoffed disdainfully: "A conspiracy? We've already achieved our goal. We just didn't expect you to be able to hold your own against this ferocious beast for so long."
At this moment, a ferocious and furious creature flew up from Jiang Jingzhi's shoulder and roared at the demons, "It's you! It's you despicable creatures who, while I was being suppressed, kept arousing my killing intent, driving me into endless madness!"
The man in black robes laughed loudly: "That's right, we were just going to collect the killing aura on your body to offer to our great Demon King, to help him refine his divine skills. Now that the killing aura has been collected, we should naturally leave."
Jiang Jingzhi and the others then realized that the demons had been hiding in the shadows, using the suppressed ferocity to collect killing intent.
Xu Xiaoxiao said angrily, "You demons are truly unscrupulous!" The man in black robes ignored her completely, waved his hand, and prepared to leave with the demons.
Just as they disappeared, the man in black robes left behind a sentence: "This secret realm has many more secrets. Explore them slowly, but it's best not to interfere with the great cause of our demon race."
After the demons disappeared, peace returned to the surroundings, but the oppressive and evil aura they brought seemed to linger in the air.
The ferocious creature returned to Jiang Jingzhi's shoulder, looking somewhat dejected: "If I hadn't been used by them, so many innocent lives wouldn't have been harmed..." Jiang Jingzhi gently patted its little head: "It's not your fault. Now you've broken free from their control."
Xu Xiaoxiao looked at the ferocious creature with curiosity: "By the way, you said before that you were suppressed because you ate the spiritual plant of the master of the secret realm. What's so special about that spiritual plant?"
Zheng Ning blinked and recalled, "Those spiritual plants grew in a hidden medicinal field. I was just curious at the time, so I ate a few. Later I learned that those spiritual plants were used to refine an extremely precious pill. Perhaps it was because of this that the master of the secret realm was so furious and suppressed me."
Mu Zhusheng pondered, "It seems that the medicinal fields in this secret realm are not simple; there may be other precious spiritual plants there."
At this moment, the ferocious creature suddenly became excited: "I know of a medicinal field with many spiritual plants, and it is very well hidden. No one has discovered it for so many years."
Xu Xiaoxiao's eyes lit up, and she teased, "Is it the piece you stole?"
The ferocious creature scratched its head sheepishly: "Hehe, that's it. The spiritual plants there must have grown even more luxuriantly after all these years."
Jiang Jingzhi pondered for a moment and said, "In that case, let's go take a look, but be careful, there might be other dangers."
Everyone nodded in agreement, and so, led by the ferocious beast, they headed toward the hidden medicinal field.
Along the way, Zheng Ning told them about the environment around the medicinal field and the dangers they might encounter.
After walking for a long time, they came to a valley shrouded in a thin mist, appearing and disappearing indistinctly.
The ferocious creature pointed to the valley and said, "This is it. There are many traps in this valley. I accidentally triggered some of them back then, which is why the master of the secret realm discovered it."
Jiang Jingzhi cautiously stepped forward, carefully observing the surrounding environment. He noticed some strange patterns on the ground, which seemed to conceal some kind of mechanism.
Mu Zhusheng squatted down, studying the patterns: "These patterns look like an ancient formation. We must be careful and not trigger it lightly."
Xu Xiaoxiao also chimed in: "So how do we get in?"
The ferocious creature took flight, circled once above the valley, and then returned, saying, "I remember a safe path. I'll lead the way, and you follow me."
So, the ferocious beast flew slowly ahead, while Jiang Jingzhi and the others followed cautiously behind. They avoided the seemingly dangerous places and finally arrived inside the valley.
The sight before them amazed them. A lush medicinal field stretched out before them, with various spiritual plants emitting a soft glow and the air filled with rich spiritual energy.
Xu Xiaoxiao ran over excitedly, looking at the spiritual plants: "Wow, so many precious spiritual plants! This one is a thousand-year-old ginseng, and that one is a purple spirit flower..."
Jiang Jingzhi was also shocked by the scene before him, but he remained vigilant: "Everyone be careful, don't let your guard down, there might be other dangers here."
Just then, a rustling sound suddenly came from deep within the medicinal field. Everyone immediately became alert, and Jiang Jingzhi drew his longsword, preparing to deal with the unknown danger.
A huge figure slowly emerged from the depths of the medicinal field. It was a guardian beast. This guardian beast was enormous, its entire body covered with hard scales, and its eyes gleamed with a fierce light.
The guardian beast roared at them, "You outsiders, how dare you trespass here! Prepare to die!"
Jiang Jingzhi stood at the front and calmly said, "We have no intention of offending anyone; we just want to find some spiritual plants."
The guardian beast ignored his explanation and pounced. Jiang Jingzhi quickly dodged and unleashed a sword aura that struck the guardian beast, leaving only a shallow mark on its scales.
Xu Xiaoxiao and Mu Zhusheng also joined the battle. Xu Xiaoxiao unleashed the blade energy from her spirit sword, slashing at the guardian beast time and time again; Mu Zhusheng used rune magic to try to interfere with the guardian beast's actions. However, the guardian beast was very powerful, and their attacks did not seem to cause much damage to it.
At this moment, the ferocious beast flew up and shouted at the guardian beast, "Don't be impulsive! We're not here to destroy the herb field!"
The guardian beast was slightly taken aback upon hearing the ferocious voice. It looked at the ferocious beast closely and asked, "You...you're the guy who stole the spiritual plants back then?"
The ferocious creature nodded hurriedly: "It's me, but this time we really just want to find some spiritual plants, and we won't harm a single tree or blade of grass here."
The guardian beast hesitated for a moment before saying, "Over the years, many people have broken into this place, trying to steal the spiritual plants. I have no choice but to protect this place. Since you have been able to come here, you must not be ordinary people. If you can promise me that you will only take a reasonable amount of spiritual plants and will not damage the medicinal fields, I can let you leave."
Jiang Jingzhi quickly said, "We promise you, we only need a few spiritual plants that can help our cultivation."
The guardian beast nodded and stepped aside, allowing Jiang Jingzhi and the others to breathe a sigh of relief and begin selecting spiritual plants in the medicinal field.
After selecting a few spiritual plants that would be helpful to their cultivation, they prepared to leave.
Before leaving, Jiang Jingzhi said to the guardian beast, "Thank you for your trust. We will not disturb this place again in the future."
The guardian beast watched their departing figures and nodded silently.
Jiang Jingzhi and the others left the valley with the spiritual plants, their hearts filled with joy. They discussed their harvest as they walked along the winding path.
The afternoon sun shines through the dense foliage, casting patches of light on the ground. A gentle breeze brings a touch of coolness, making it a truly pleasant experience.
The tranquility did not last long. When they reached a narrow mountain pass, a group of people suddenly appeared in front of them, completely blocking the road.
The group of men were dressed in rags and looked fierce; they were clearly not good people. The leader was a burly man with a long scar on his face. He crossed his arms and coldly stared at Jiang Jingzhi and the others.
"This road is mine, these trees are mine, if you want to pass, leave your toll!" the big man shouted, his voice echoing through the valley.
Xu Xiaoxiao was taken aback at first, then smiled slyly, a glint of mischief flashing in her eyes: "Since someone has delivered something to our door, how can we refuse it? Senior Brother, don't you think so?"
As she spoke, she winked mischievously and gently shook the spirit sword in her hand, looking eager to try it out.
Jiang Jingzhi shook his head helplessly, but couldn't help but smile slightly: "You're full of clever ideas, but don't be careless."
He turned slightly to the side, shielding Xu Xiaoxiao and Mu Zhusheng behind him, while gripping his longsword tightly. The blade trembled slightly, as if it were eagerly awaiting battle.
Mu Zhusheng quickly condensed runes in his hand, which shimmered with a mysterious light, ready to unleash a spell at any moment. His expression was solemn as he calmly observed his opponent's every move, trying to find their weakness.
The ferocious beast also flew up from Jiang Jingzhi's shoulder, hovering in the air and emitting sharp cries, putting pressure on its opponent.
Its small body was filled with fighting spirit, as if it was proving to everyone that although it was small in appearance, its strength should not be underestimated.
"Hmph, you bunch of brats, you dare to resist? If you know what's good for you, hand over the stuff obediently, or don't blame us for being impolite!" Seeing that Jiang Jingzhi and the others showed no sign of backing down, the burly man was filled with rage and malice. He waved his hand, and his henchmen drew their weapons and slowly surrounded him.
Although these henchmen looked menacing, their eyes revealed a hint of tension and unease, after all, Jiang Jingzhi and his group did not appear to be ordinary people.