"Humans—watch closely—use your ears—listen to the darkness!"
The bat suddenly emitted an invisible sound wave toward the distance, then—
[System Prompt: The cave bat has imparted to you the Skill ’Sound Recognition’.]
[System Prompt: Your Beast Knowledge Skill has added new related content.]
Xiao Jie hurriedly checked the new Skill.
[Sound Recognition (Mystical Skill)
Use: Conduct a listening check around you once, scanning and discovering enemies in the darkness, marking them on your mini-map.
Side effect: Darkness before your eyes. You need to close your eyes to use this Skill, so your screen will go black for one second when you activate the Skill.
Skill Description: Bats can detect things in the darkness through their unique hearing ability. Although humans cannot fully do so, they can still use similar techniques to discern the direction of enemies through sound.]
Xiao Jie then checked his Beast Knowledge again.
Currently, the animals labeled in his Beast Knowledge had reached nine species.
They were—sheep, domestic pigs, dogs, wild boars, horses, bears, monkeys, wolves, bats.
He was almost halfway to 20 species. At the moment, he had not come into contact with any Immortal Beasts, demon beasts, or Demon Beasts, so he was uncertain about what to choose next, but there was still time to consider.
"Wait here, I’m going to drive those people away!" Xiao Jie gestured a salute to the bat with his hand, then rushed toward the direction of the thief hole.
When Xiao Jie walked back to the Dumping Area, he immediately saw a crowd eagerly waiting for him.
They were all here killing monsters and leveling, casually watching the excitement.
"How did it go, Feng?"
"Feng, did you succeed?"
"Feng, I did a good job acting just now, right?"
"It was a success!" Xiao Jie said indifferently.
"Dang, it worked like that?"
"Why do you think animals are dumb, they fell for such poor acting?"
"Dang, my acting was perfectly on point, totally Oscar-worthy," Dongfang Sheng said defensively, not wanting to miss out on the glory he deserved despite the embarrassment.
"The acting was indeed good, thanks Dongfang."
"Haha, don’t mention it, it’s my honor to be able to help Feng."
Today’s rescue operation not only united the Luoyang Branch more closely but also significantly boosted Xiao Jie’s status in the branch, second only to Hidden Dragon Do Not Use, greatly increasing his prestige.
Everyone knew that Feng could handle big issues and save people.
Their attitude toward Xiao Jie had shifted from previous respect to expectation.
"I say, Feng, can you really talk to animals? That’s amazing."
"It’s just good luck, stumbled on an adventure. If you guys pay more attention to details when playing games, keep an eye on some inconspicuous clues, you might encounter one too. The game isn’t just about fighting; many quests from daily life can trigger special adventures."
After hearing this, everyone thought deeply. Previously, if Xiao Jie had said this, people might have considered it idle talk, but now, having witnessed the magic of Beast Language Skill and Corpse Language Skill, they all started to ponder.
"Alright, let’s not talk too much, let’s continue leveling. We aim to reach Level 18 before nightfall."
Only then did everyone remember... Feng wasn’t Level 20 yet...
Those in the team over level 20 began to realize, there’s quite a big difference here.
The continuous slaughter of the newly spawned zombies ensued. With more people came greater power. As soon as a zombie would spawn, a line of weapons would chop it down, leaving no chance for any effective resistance.
This easy battle continued until four in the afternoon.
A flash of white light enveloped Xiao Jie, successfully leveling him up to 18!
Phew, finally made it.
Xiao Jie allocated all five newly acquired attribute points entirely to Constitution, as this adventure was likely to be dangerous, and the more Life Value, the better.
He checked his attributes,
Constitution: 32 (Equipment +2). With Red Jade Blood Marrow included, his Life Value reached an impressive 370 points.
Endurance: 22 (Equipment +2).
Strength: 22 (Equipment +2).
Agility: 49 (Equipment +5).
It was time to start the inheritance of the Ancient Qi Refiner!
When everyone exited the mine and returned to Luoyang Town, Xiao Jie met Hidden Dragon who had just finished a meeting.
"This is the Escape Light Talisman you asked for, specially approved by the guild leader. However, I really can’t find any from the Epic Sword Association, the Dragon Soaring Knights are mostly led by Generals, there are a few Epic polearms though, but swords and sabers are indeed hard to find.
I can help you contact the guild’s logistics department to get in touch with merchants from other guilds, and there should be results within three to five days."
Xiao Jie thought to himself that he couldn’t wait for three to five days, he couldn’t just stop leveling and wait during this time, especially since Liu Qiang could discover his existence at any moment, and every day was precious.
"No need," said Xiao Jie, "If there’s no saber, then so be it; this sword is actually quite good."
Although the chopping damage was a bit low, which wasn’t ideal for cutting people down, the high piercing damage wasn’t useless either, as certain special Combat Skills could make good use of it, such as the Combat Skill—Thrust.
Moreover, damage not being high is relative to weapons of the same grade, a 29 chop was not low either, even 3 points higher than the Blood-drinking Blade stacked to the Sixth Layer.
Not to mention the two special effects of this weapon, one could kill Ghosts, and the other could burst forth in dire situations.
Xiao Jie had a feeling that he might need to use this during his action this time.
With the Cold Moon Saber and the Xuanming Sword, playing a Double Blade Style would be awesome.
"Having this Escape Light Talisman is enough, thanks Brother Qianlong, if I can return successfully, I’ll treat you to a drink."
Looking at the golden talisman in his bag, Xiao Jie suddenly felt reassured; now there was no way he would die.
[Escape Light Talisman (Talisman)
Usage: Transports you to the destination marked by the talisman.
Current marked location: Yuelai Inn in Xiaofeng City.
Item Introduction: A miraculous talisman made from powerful Mana, said to be the legacy of Ancient Immortals, it can traverse thousands of miles in an instant, moving at the speed of light. Because its crafting technique has long been lost, it’s extremely precious and hard to come by.]
"Then I’ll be waiting for your return, by the way, brother Feng, what mission are you undertaking this time? Do you need our help?" Hidden Dragon couldn’t help asking, his words were far from being merely courteous, after all, as a major component of the Luoyang Branch, a talent that the guild invested heavily in recruiting, it would be a huge loss if he were to die.
"Haha, I do wish that were the case, but unfortunately, this mission can only be done by me alone."
Xiao Jie’s words were not out of politeness either, as the conversation with the two Immortals involuntarily came to his mind.
Tianxuan True Man: "This Ancient Qi Refiner’s inheritance has long been severed. After all, the Spiritual Energy these days is so diluted, there are simply no conditions for cultivation."
Kaiyang Star Lord: "Fortunately, the method of cultivation has been preserved. Back then, a group of us Ancient Qi Refiners practiced cultivation together in the Skyfall Cave of Konglao Mountain, where we created the Ancient Qi Refining Skill. To prevent the Cultivation Method from being wrongly transmitted, we carved it onto the cave walls.
Once you get there and see the characters on the wall, you’ll naturally understand the mysteries."
Tianxuan True Man: "But remember, you must go alone."
Xiao Jie curiously asked: "Why is that?"
Tianxuan Taoist: "When we all ascended to immortality, in order to prevent disturbance by outsiders, we left behind an Immortal barrier. Ordinary people cannot enter it.
You have a thread of Immortal Fate that ties you to us, so if you go, you’ll be able to find it after a careful search. However, if you bring mortals with no Immortal Fate along, even if you break your head searching, you won’t be able to find the place."
Xiao Jie was astonished when he heard this the first time; these Immortals’ words were somewhat magical. Why couldn’t he find the place if he took people with him? Was there some identity verification system or what?
But the words of Immortals should always be heeded.
Kaiyang Star Lord: "Oh right, when we were all cultivating together back then, to prevent disturbance from Ancient demon beasts, mortal seekers of Immortality, the Witch Clan, and demons, we set up three trials outside the cave entrance. You’ll have to be careful about that."
(Damn it, I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.)
As Xiao Jie recalled those moments, he also let out a sigh, knowing he had to resolve this issue alone, and hoping that the three trials wouldn’t be too absurd.
Seeing him say so, Hidden Dragon did not ask further, "Then I’ll wish you success in achieving your goals."
"Hahaha, I’ll take your auspicious words; success is assured!"