As night deepened, Chen Moxuan gazed at the pile of beast meat that simply wouldn't fit into their storage bags, his heart aching with regret.
Never before had their squad fought such a large-scale annihilation battle, and even with the three extra storage bags lent by Yang Lie, it wasn't enough.
He was already considering whether to buy a few more storage bags once they returned to Mora Mountain; better to be prepared for the future.
"So much beast meat left behind… what a waste."
Tian Yulei immersed his spiritual sense into his storage bag, thinking that if he could just squeeze things tighter, maybe he could make a bit more space.
Firehorn Rhino meat was nearly twice as valuable as Greenwood Ape meat; abandoning it would be painful indeed.
Chu He was doing the same, discarding a few low-value items.
If something had no value to begin with, fine, but if it was valuable and he couldn't bring it back, he'd forever blame himself.
Ji An looked at the leftover meat, coughed lightly, and said:
"I think if we each carried half a haunch of meat when riding the spirit birds, we could bring all of it back."
A single spirit bird could carry five hundred catties. Even if they wanted to preserve speed, each of them could still haul over two hundred catties of beast meat.
"The bloody stench we can mask with medicinal powder, and night temperatures are fine, but what about during the day? By the time we're back at Mora Mountain, the meat will already have begun to spoil.
We've used up all our Cold Wind Talismans; there's no way for us to keep it cool."
Jiang Qiuyue shook her head with a sigh. None of them knew a spell to lower the temperature.
"I can."
Spiritual power coursed through Ji An's meridians. He raised a hand, and a gust of icy wind swept out. Blood dripping from the slab of meat at his feet instantly froze, a layer of frost forming across the surface.
"Then that's settled!"
Chen Moxuan felt as though Ji An always had a surprise waiting. The others' faces lit up, bringing this much extra meat back would mean dozens more spirit stones in profit.
After Ji An's spell, they pulled out an oilcloth to wrap the meat and bound it tightly.
Flying at night was dangerous, so they found a desolate spot, set up a warding formation, and divided the night watch. By the second half of the night, the guards switched places, and the others slept.
...
Five days later.
Returning cultivators spotted Ji An's squad hauling goods on their backs, and curiosity flashed in their eyes. What sort of haul had they found that even their storage bags were overflowing?
The squad visited a few restaurants and easily sold off all the Firehorn Rhino meat.
Outside one tavern, Chen Moxuan said:
"You three handle the rest of the materials. Ji An and I will report to the sect's Law Enforcement Hall. Let's meet at Drunken Immortal Residence tonight."
The ambush absolutely had to be reported. He knew those rogue cultivators had likely already fled far away, but this grievance could not be swallowed.
Once it was on record, the sect would issue a wanted order throughout the territory.
Had it not been for Ji An's clever maneuver, they might not have even returned alive.
"Got it!"
Tian Yulei answered cheerfully. The spirit stones they'd just made from selling beast meat had left him more than satisfied.
"Senior Sister, Senior Brother, leave me two hides and twenty bottles of beast blood. I'll buy them at market price later."
Ji An reminded them. He would inevitably study fire-element spells in the future, and the Firehorn Rhino's materials were premium-grade. As a talisman crafter, of course, he needed to keep some for himself.
"Done," Jiang Qiuyue said boldly. "I'll set aside the best ones for you."
"Then I'll thank Senior Sister in advance."
Ji An clasped his hands in salute, bidding farewell to the three before following Chen Moxuan out of the market and up the mountain.
The sect had only occupied Mora Mountain for a few short years. After all, this was still deep within the wilderness. The mountain-protecting formation would automatically strike down anything flying overhead.
To enter the spiritual vein, one had to descend at the foot of the mountain and proceed on foot.
Soon, they arrived at the formation's entrance, where two Qi Refining disciples were on duty. Seeing someone approach, they immediately stepped forward and barked:
"Who goes there? State your purpose!"
Chen Moxuan stepped forward and cupped his hands in salute:
"I am Chen Moxuan. This is Ji An. We are both sect disciples.
A few days ago, while hunting beasts, our squad was ambushed by several rogue cultivators. We are here to report the details to the Law Enforcement Hall."
Handing over his own identity jade, Chen Moxuan also took Ji An's and passed them to the guards for inspection.
After checking, the guard's expression softened.
One of them returned the jade and said coldly,
"These rogue cultivators truly have the guts of bears and leopards, daring to ambush our sect disciples within our own territory. Such people deserve death!"
Then his tone shifted, showing concern:
"Did your squad suffer any casualties?"
"Thank you for your concern, senior brother. We reacted quickly and didn't suffer any losses.
But since we were locked in battle with demonic beasts at the time, those clowns managed to escape."
"No casualties, that's what matters. Go on inside and report.
The Law Enforcement Hall is down the path on the left after you enter. Don't linger in the spiritual vein, make it quick."
"Thank you for the guidance, senior brother."
Chen Moxuan cupped his hands, and the two of them entered the spiritual vein to find the Law Enforcement Hall.
They were received by a Foundation Establishment cultivator. After Ji An explained the situation, he presented the confiscated magic sword.
"Martial Uncle, this is the weapon I took from the attacker I killed. Can you extract its aura trace?"
The cultivator accepted the sword, smiling:
"Not bad. You even managed to turn the tables and kill one. You haven't shamed the sect.
It's only been a few days, of course, the aura trace can still be extracted."
After a moment, he said,
"Done.
The Law Enforcement Hall will verify your report through its own channels. If confirmed, you'll be awarded 100 contribution points.
Come back in a month to check the progress."
Hearing about the contribution points, Ji An felt the ambush had been well worth it.
Once the formalities were finished, they left the spiritual vein. Chen Moxuan said:
"Every few months, the Law Enforcement Hall compiles a wanted list with posted bounties.
If you're going to spend much time outside the sect, make sure to stop by and take a copy of the jade slip."
At the Drunken Immortal Residence.
Inside a private room, wine and laughter flowed, the atmosphere lively and bright.
After two consecutive hunts with huge returns, every face in the squad glowed with genuine smiles.
Ji An unconsciously patted his storage bag. Besides beast hides and monster blood, he had also pocketed 256 spirit stones.
And since the spoils from the rogue cultivator he personally killed were his alone, he had cleared over 400 spirit stones in less than a month.
If he could keep up gains like this for a few months, wouldn't he have enough for a Foundation Establishment Pill?!
Still, he knew that such profits were rare. If beast hunting were always this lucrative, who would bother staying in the sect to cultivate quietly?
Half-drunk, Jiang Qiuyue tilted her head and asked:
"Junior brother, your Minor Rain Technique covers such a wide area… what level have you trained it to?"
"Perfection."
"And your Geng Metal Finger and Water Curtain Technique?"
Jiang Qiuyue suddenly shook her head.
"I've asked too much. Junior brother, you don't have to answer."
It was improper to probe so closely after all, they weren't bound to be long-term teammates.
"It's fine to tell Senior Sister. Both of those spells are also at the Perfection stage."
Ji An answered openly. These were spells he used often, and the others had likely guessed most of it anyway.
Being honest would give them a clearer picture of his true strength and help the squad choose more suitable hunting grounds in the future.
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