"But you are not a cultivator."
"I will be, and a weapon from the Qi Condensation stage is not going to harm me even if I overuse it. Come on, Yan Shi, wouldn't that be a more interesting challenge than fixing fences?"
"Hmm. I can easily craft the spear itself, and perhaps bind the concepts of force and piercing into it." Yan Shi murmured to himself for a time, then shifted several jeweled spheres toward him. "Activating those inscriptions would likely be harmful to you, but I will trust in your good judgment."
"Thanks, Yan Shi." Chen Tian stayed beside him and chatted for a while longer so it wouldn't appear he had only wanted the spear, but that had been his goal. Yan Shi would take several days to craft it, then he would have a weapon far superior to any of the primitive armaments that could be purchased in the town.
Before they resumed their journey, Chen Tian managed to improve his position in several other ways. He facilitated trades between the villagers and their guests, gaining a small profit each time, and soon had enough of the wooden plates used as currency in the Peaceful Earth Realm. With those, he could buy something more valuable and make a greater profit. Peaceful Earth villagers might haggle cheerfully, but they didn't have many cutthroat merchants.
In the end, he finally left behind the simple clothes he had acquired when he arrived. Instead he had pants and a tunic that wouldn't impede his movement, as well as better shoes. He also had a proper pack to store his spiritual materials and a few other pieces of equipment he had picked up. The only valuable one was a spirit chisel, it would be a useful tool for cultivation, once he gained the ability.
When Yan Shi gave him a spear on the night before their departure, he almost felt prepared. Chen Tian spun it experimentally, finding it lighter than expected despite being made of stone. He was no master with a spear, but he had chosen it for a simple reason learned in the mortal world: until he regained his former speed, the reach of a spear made it a far more practical weapon. Once he reached the higher stages of cultivation, he would simply be able to tear enemies apart with his bare hands.
Not that it seemed likely he would need to tear anyone apart, as their peaceful journey resumed. Chen Tian trained a little with the spear, just to get used to the movements, but that was simply developing basic muscle memory, not the advancement he really needed.
Two days later, the demons attacked.
The first sign was a tremor in the earth that made the wagon wheels rattle. Chen Tian looked up from his spear practice to see one of the Earth Guards pointing toward the horizon with alarm. Dark shapes moved there, too distant to make out clearly, but approaching rapidly.
"Demons!" the Earth Guard shouted. "Form defensive positions!"
The peaceful caravan erupted into chaos. Some refugees screamed and ran, while others, the few cultivators among them, began gathering their qi for battle. Chen Tian gripped his stone spear tighter, though he knew it would be of limited use without the ability to channel spiritual energy through it.
Li Yuyue appeared beside him, moving with the silent grace of her realm. Her blindfold was gone, replaced by a strip of dark cloth that allowed her to see in the daylight. "Zhang Kai, can you fight?"
"I can try," he said grimly. "What about you?"
"I am Qi Condensation third stage. I can hold my own against lesser demons, but if there are Demon Soldiers..."
The approaching shapes resolved into clarity as they drew nearer. A pack of Demon Beasts, twisted creatures that looked like wolves crossed with shadows, raced across the fields. Behind them came several larger forms that made Chen Tian's blood run cold.
Three Demon Soldiers, each the size of a house, their muscular forms wreathed in dark qi. And bringing up the rear, moving with terrible purpose, a single Demon General whose presence made the very air tremble.
"This is bad," Chen Tian muttered. In his previous life, he might have been able to face the Demon Soldiers after forming his Golden Core. But the Demon General was a threat that required multiple Soul Formation cultivators working together.
The Earth Guards were brave but outmatched. Their warm, golden qi flared as they prepared their strongest techniques, but Chen Tian could see the fear in their eyes. They were used to dealing with the occasional minor demon, not a coordinated assault of this magnitude.
"Everyone who cannot fight, retreat to the village!" the lead Earth Guard commanded. "Cultivators, form a battle line!"
Chen Tian found himself standing shoulder to shoulder with Li Yuyue and a handful of other cultivators, most barely at the Qi Condensation stage. Against them came a force that should have required a sect's worth of experts to defeat.
As the Demon Beasts reached them first, their howls splitting the air like knives, Chen Tian raised his stone spear and prepared to fight for his life. Again.
The real question wasn't whether they could win, it was whether anyone would survive long enough to flee.