On the second day, Yue Jinghua, having successfully progressed in her cultivation, departed from Hundred Beast Mountain, because in Old Xia's grocery store appeared a middle-aged man with a smile, Lao Hu, said to be Old Xia's distant cousin, who would take over running the store from now on.
From the conversation that day, it was not hard to guess that there was a mysterious and vast organization supporting Old Xia, and Lao Hu's appearance indicated that the organization was already aware of Old Xia's death. To avoid exposing any clues, leaving Hundred Beast Mountain was urgent.
When "Yue Jinghua" arrived, she was accompanied by people from Xuanji Royal Academy. The group from the academy had left several days earlier.
Poluo City, the capital of Shang Kingdom, is a thousand miles away from Hundred Beast Mountain, a journey that could be reached within ten days on a fast horse.
Yue Jinghua bought a Gale Horse that was good for long-distance travel, prepared her luggage, and set off towards Poluo City.
The route from Hundred Beast Mountain to Poluo City first goes through several desolate mountains and dense forests, the scenery along the way is beautiful, with overlapping mountain ridges and babbling streams, several times more beautiful than the steel cities of the 23rd century.
Although there were occasional bandits and Dark Beasts along the way, with Yue Jinghua's current Jade Profound Cultivation, the journey was relatively calm and safe.
After three more days, the smooth mountain terrain became steep, and up ahead appeared a red mountain, blazing like fire at sunset.
Only when she got closer did she notice the mountain was planted with a type of maple tree common in Shang Kingdom - the Passion Maple.
The excessively enchanting color of the maple leaves made Yue Jinghua feel alert, and she slowed her horse down.
A faint smell of blood drifted on the wind.
After practicing "Divine Stab," Yue Jinghua's senses had sharpened a lot, and she could hear sounds from miles away; a faint noise of combat was discernible.
Deep in the Maple Leaf Forest, a shiny black Flash Mink Leopard faced off against three lavishly dressed young nobles.
The three young men were around fourteen or fifteen years old, with cultivation at about the Human Dark Sixth or Seventh Level.
The Flash Mink Leopard, a Fourth-level Dark Beast, was smaller than an ordinary leopard, only the size of a house cat, possessing both the ferocity of the leopard and the agility of the marten; it was unusual for it to appear in such a maple forest.
If it were a fair fight, three Dark Practitioners at the Human Dark Sixth or Seventh Level against a Fourth-level mink leopard would be like fighting a Dark Practitioner who had achieved Small Success of Jade Dark – they would be nothing more than punching bags.
Yet, those three young men were wielding sharp weapons and had formed a triangular encirclement strategy, with two attacking and one defending, well-coordinated in their actions.
The Flash Mink Leopard kept dodging and weaving, showing signs of defeat and being forced into a corner.
"Lie Meng, we have hit the jackpot this time; thanks to that bag of Dark Powder you brought, killing a Fourth-level Flash Mink Leopard, we can show off quite a bit when we get back to Poluo City," the young men said with an air of triumph.
Upon hearing the name "Lie Meng," a vague face surfaced in Yue Jinghua's mind.
The three young men were all dressed in fine leather armor, with the family emblems of several Poluo City families branded on their chests, forming a stark contrast with Yue Jinghua's old deer skin armor and the ornamental dagger she used for decoration.
The youth known as "Lie Meng," tall and strong, was indeed Yue Jinghua's cousin, from the third branch of the Lie Family Mansion.
Truly, there is no limit to one's depravity – using poison against Dark Beasts is an utterly despicable act, something only a villain like Lie Meng could stoop to doing.
Originally not wishing to meddle, a sharp light flickered in Yue Jinghua's eyes as she snorted coldly; indeed, it was a narrow road for enemies to meet.
The trial this time was supposed to be a team one. The teacher from the academy who was meant to lead had urgent matters and couldn't accompany the team, leaving it to several members to look out for each other and together head to Hundred Beast Mountain.
Midway they encountered robbers. In terms of strength, Qi Feng and the others were no match for the three from the Lie Family, even with the help of a female mercenary, they wouldn't have succeeded so easily.
But what was unexpected was Lie Meng completely ignored Yue Jinghua's calls for help. Afterwards, he even concealed the news, simply saying "Yue Jinghua" had gone missing.
Oh Lie Meng, you showed no kindness towards "Yue Jinghua", why should I show you any "righteousness".
Murderous intent erupted from her eyes; without making a sound, Yue Jinghua leapt onto a tree. With a subtle flick of her wrist, she launched two silent Dark Forces.
The Dark Power struck one person's wrist, causing heart-wrenching pain; he screamed as both his wrists were instantly dislocated.
The Flash Mink Leopard seized the opportunity, its jaws ready for combat, aimed at the other's chest, and in an instant blood and flesh flew, the man died in its jaws.
"Su Chun," Yue Jinghua acted too swiftly, and Lie Meng and the others thought the young man had been attacked by the Dark Beast. The momentum of their three-person coordinated attack required sync to be effective.
Now that one of them had died, they became immediately flustered.
The smell of blood enraged the Flash Mink Leopard, which let out a furious roar. Electric lights burst from its black fur as its speed suddenly increased several folds.
With its forelimbs bent, it leaped forward with force, like a sharp black blade, and pounced towards another youth like lightning.
On the red maple leaves, fresh blood splattered everywhere. The young man's eyes widened as his face contorted, and he was torn in half.
The bloody scene sent chills down Lie Meng's spine, causing him to tremble and nearly faint.
After swiftly killing two people, the body of the Flash Mink Leopard began to wobble, eyes revealing a hint of panic as the last bit of its strength had been drained by the recent outburst.
Lie Meng burst into malicious joy, laughing arrogantly: "You beast, watch how I dismantle you with a thousand cuts."
With a blade in his hand, he approached the Flash Mink Leopard step by step. However, with a jolt of his wrist, the blade flew out of Lie Meng's hand.
From atop the maple tree, a young girl gracefully descended.
Her black hair danced in the mountain wind, and the cold killing intent beneath her eyes made him feel as if he was in the Nine Netherworld Hell. He screamed in horror: "Yue, Jinghua, Yue Jinghua, how are you here?"
"Cousin Lie, why wouldn't I be here? I should have returned to Poluo City with you all. But alas, you won't be able to go back anymore," Yue Jinghua paced forward.
Even the foolish Lie Meng realized at this moment that "Yue Jinghua" was different than before. The killing aura emanating from her made it difficult for him to breathe, his tongue twisting in fear: "Jinghua, I'm your cousin. Have you forgotten? Before we left, Aunt Lie told us to support each other."
"Support each other? Ha ha ha, what a joke. So-called support, was it forcing 'Yue Jinghua' to eat rotten food, drink muddy water, and sleep in stables? When 'Yue Jinghua' faced peril, you stood by indifferently," Yue Jinghua replied with a faint smile, her face appearing harmless, yet her eyes' chill made Lie Meng tremble uncontrollably. "What do you think, my 'dear' cousin?"
Retreating a few steps, Lie Meng didn't understand why "Yue Jinghua," obviously an individual incapable of condensing Dark Energy and thus considered waste, was currently exerting such immense pressure on him, as if a great enemy was before him: "What do you want to do? Don't forget, you are not my match."
Within the Maple Leaf Forest, the maple leaves danced chaotically, and Lie Meng was struck silent by the killing aura suddenly bursting from Yue Jinghua's body.
"You...when did you become a Dark Practitioner? No, impossible, you can't attack me. You'll regret this, you'll be expelled from the Lie Family Mansion," Lie Meng's eyes widened. Yue Jinghua's figure had already closed in on him, and the next moment, his body became a feast for the cannibalism.
Having received sustenance, the Cannibal Little Pu swayed its leaves, and Yue Jinghua scratched its leaf surface.
Lie Meng was merely the beginning—the recollections preserved in "Yue Jinghua's" memory of the Lie Family Mansion were not at all pleasant.
The accounts of Lie Family Mansion, she intended to settle them one by one.
While clearing the scene, Yue Jinghua was surprised to find that the day's haul was rather bountiful.
The belongings left behind by Lie Meng and his group represented a significant income.
The Lie Family Mansion was considered a significant family in Shang Kingdom. Lie Meng, coming from the third branch of the family as its only male offspring, had reached the Dark Human Sixth Layer by the age of fourteen. Among the younger generations, he was considered of average talent. The valuable items he carried were much more than a shabby mercenary like Qi Feng.
Fifty Gold Coins, dozens of Silver Coins, his leather armor crafted from Dark Silver was worth one hundred and fifty Gold Coins, and a pair of knee guards, another fifty Gold Coins.
Added to the possessions and respective Dark Pills left behind by the two men killed by the Cannibal Green Rushes, the wealth they carried was worth several hundred Gold Coins.
What shocked Yue Jinghua the most was that the backpack of one of the youths contained a metal mask of superior quality. Upon inspecting the youth's other belongings, it was discovered that he was not from Poluo; it appeared he met Lie Meng and the others by chance on the road but inexplicably ended up as a scapegoat.
All things considered, Yue Jinghua's earnings for the day were close to a thousand Gold Coins.
Although Yue Jinghua had hunted many Dark Beasts in recent days, the corpses of the beasts were all devoured by the cannibalism.
The one hundred and fifty Dark Pills were all taken by Qing Pu. Although it was unclear what use he had for so many Dark Pills, the thought of retrieving them, once swallowed by him, was undoubtedly a fool's dream.
After dealing with the bodies of the three, Yue Jinghua walked over to the Flash Mink Leopard and said from above: "Little fella, you're in luck. The first summoning, and it's your turn to be the practice target."