"Boom, boom..."
A tremendous explosion echoed as the elegantly dressed young man unleashed a blinding burst of sword light from his longsword, clashing directly with the dense array of wind blades conjured by the Ghost Flying Squirrel.
The force of the collision caused a massive energy burst, sending the young man staggering back dozens of meters. His wings dimmed as he fell to the ground, coughing up blood. Similarly, the Ghost Flying Squirrel, a creature over a hundred meters long, was also sent crashing to the ground. Its frantic wing flapping kicked up a storm of debris, some of which flew towards Li Lin.
The Ghost Flying Squirrel let out an infuriated screech, its voice filled with immense killing intent and rage. Apparently wounded and unable to kill the human before it, the creature's anger intensified.
As its howl faded, the Ghost Flying Squirrel swiftly took to the air. The valley was filled with a thick concentration of wind energy converging towards the squirrel. A massive wind blade, like a bolt of lightning, shot from its mouth towards the young man in elegant attire.
Pale-faced, the young man desperately formed hand seals, unleashing his vital energy in a mighty surge. His longsword carved a lotus-like sword shadow in the air, whirling it directly into the path of the incoming wind blade.
"Whizz, whizz..."
The Ghost Flying Squirrel's wind blade transformed into countless smaller blades, forming a vast net that enveloped the young man, who was retreating rapidly. This dense array of wind blades clung to the space around him, trapping him.
With a grave expression, the young man changed his hand seals again, injecting more vital energy into his sword. The sword light blazed even more intensely, sending myriad sword beams scattering in all directions.
The entire valley space seemed to fracture and break apart. The force of the clash caused surrounding rocks and mountainsides to collapse and the ground to shake and crack.
The myriad sword and wind blades intertwined, creating a maelstrom of energy that shredded the space. Each collision sent ripples spreading through the air.
Witnessing this from a distance, Li Lin was utterly astounded by the young man's formidable strength.
"Whizz, whizz..."
"Screech..."
In the midst of this chaotic energy, a huge figure with scattered feathers was forcefully repelled and crashed heavily to the ground, creating a massive pit. It was the Ghost Flying Squirrel, struggling weakly and eventually becoming motionless, bleeding from several wounds in its underbelly.
"Bang..."
The young man was also thrown back several meters, spewing a mist of blood and landing hard on a rock. He rolled several times before stabilizing himself and, with great effort, stood up using his longsword for support. His face was ashen as he slowly approached the now-still Ghost Flying Squirrel.
"Bang!"
However, a few steps later, the young man in the fancy clothes collapsed on the ground, unconscious.
"Both suffered losses." Li Lin, observing from a distance, furrowed his brows. After a moment, seeing that neither the person nor the beast moved, he couldn’t resist the temptation and started walking towards the valley.
The Ghostly Flying Squirrel was a fourth-tier demon beast with a demon core. The core's usefulness to him was immense. Assuming that the Ghostly Flying Squirrel was indeed dead, leaving behind a demon core, Li Lin didn’t want to miss this opportunity.
Quickly reaching the Ghostly Flying Squirrel's side, Li Lin cautiously approached and found that the beast was indeed dead. Drawing his sword, he sliced open the beast's abdomen. Even in death, the Ghostly Flying Squirrel’s defenses were extremely strong. Li Lin almost had to exert eighty percent of his Qi to finally cut through.
"Hiss..."
A demon core the size of a baby’s fist, glowing white, appeared before Li Lin. The release of wild energy made Li Lin's heart race with excitement.
"Got it..." Li Lin swiftly secured the demon core. Getting a medicinal demon core without any effort was indeed fortunate.
After securing the demon core and considering what to do with the Ghostly Flying Squirrel’s body – a fourth-tier demon beast, valuable from head to toe – he decided not to keep it since it would take up half the space in his storage ring.
"Hiss hiss..."
Just then, Little dragon hissed and leapt off Li Lin’s shoulder, transforming into an eighty-meter-long giant body. Opening its massive jaws, it swallowed the Ghostly Flying Squirrel in one gulp, slowly digesting it. The Ghostly Flying Squirrel’s body, full of fourth-tier demonic power in its muscles and veins, would surely benefit Little dragon. Li Lin smiled, having forgotten that Little dragon grew faster by consuming the bodies of demon or spirit beasts.
Yet, seeing Little dragon, only eighty meters long, consuming the Ghostly Flying Squirrel, which was over a hundred meters long, Li Lin was dumbfounded.
"Dead?" Li Lin slowly approached the young man in fancy clothes lying on the ground. The young man's clothes were torn and disheveled, his long hair covering his face. Approaching, Li Lin sensed a faint breath of life.
"Hiss hiss..." Little dragon, having swallowed the Ghostly Flying Squirrel and returned to its twenty-meter size, landed on Li Lin's shoulder, hissing something.
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"There are demon beasts coming?" Understanding Little dragon, Li Lin saw a few beasts approaching. He hesitated before saying, "Given that we shared a month's journey on the back of a demon beast, I'll save your life so you won’t be eaten by the beasts."
With that, Li Lin put the young man's sword in his space bag and picked him up. Not too heavy, Li Lin noted the softness and faint fragrance of the body, not paying much attention, he muttered, "You really are a pretty boy, like a woman, even smelling nice."
Carrying the young man, Li Lin quickly left the valley. With demon beasts approaching, he didn’t dare to linger. If even one third-tier beast came, he would have to fight for his life. Two of them, and his life would be in grave danger.
"They’re fast." Not long after leaving, Li Lin felt several strong presences approaching rapidly – surely many demon beasts were on their way.
Li Lin frowned and fled quickly. Some beasts could track a scent for a certain distance – a lesson he had learned in the Misty Mountain Range. Some beasts could find a person no matter how far they ran.
Moments later, dozens of demon beasts, each at least a third-tier level, suddenly appeared in the valley.
"Caw caw..."
Li Lin ran for his life as the sun set and darkness began to envelop the sky. Not far behind, he could hear the sounds of flying demon beasts in pursuit.
"Not good," Li Lin thought, breaking into a cold sweat. He had seen the ferocity of these beasts firsthand. If surrounded, he would have no chance of escape.
"Ao ao..."
Behind him, the cries of numerous beasts grew louder, indicating their approach. Li Lin's expression grew increasingly grave.
"Hiss hisss..." Little dragon, upon hearing the roars of the beasts, stood tall, ready to fight, showing no fear.
"Little dragon, hold back a bit. There are too many of them," Li Lin cautioned Little dragon. Despite knowing Little dragon's formidable defense, the sheer number of beasts, including fifth-tier ones, made him reluctant to risk a confrontation.
"I'll risk it..."
Li Lin gritted his teeth. Ahead lay a canyon with a rapidly flowing river several dozen meters wide. Taking a deep breath, he leaped into the river, clutching the young man in fancy clothes.
In the forest, escape from the beasts' search, especially with flying demon beasts around, seemed impossible. Only in the river could he find relative safety.
After entering the river, Li Lin quickly created a Qi barrier around himself and the young man. Little dragon dived into the water without any issue.
The current swiftly carried them downstream. Li Lin let it take them, hoping to leave the vicinity.
"Caw caw..."
Above, just after Li Lin had jumped into the river, several large flying demon beasts appeared, circling overhead, followed by dozens more beasts seemingly searching for something.
By then, Li Lin had been carried dozens of miles downstream by the swift current. He felt the beasts could no longer sense his presence.
But soon, he couldn't hold his breath any longer. The air in the Qi barrier was depleted, and he surfaced, gasping for air. His clothes were completely soaked.
"Pu-ch..." The young man in his arms, who seemed to have swallowed a lot of water, coughed up a mouthful mixed with blood, likely due to severe injuries.
Li Lin quickly climbed ashore, with Little dragon following. The location was unknown, but under the bright moonlight, it seemed relatively open and safer than the forest. Li Lin laid the young man down and stretched, drying his clothes with fire attribute Qi.
"I've gone to great lengths to save your life; consider it a good deed. I'll give you another pill; your fate is in your hands." Looking at the young man on the ground, Li Lin mumbled to himself, feeling quite generous considering the young man's serious injuries.
After mumbling, Li Lin took out a second-tier healing pill, then hesitantly took out a more precious third-tier pill and put it in the young man's mouth.
"Being kind sure is expensive," Li Lin said with a wry smile. A third-tier pill cost thousands of gold coins, but fortunately, he was financially stable enough to afford it.
"Let's change your clothes; wet ones could worsen your injuries. Two men here, I don't mind, hope you won't either." Li Lin said, seeing the young man's drenched clothes. He had several robes in his storage ring.
"You don't look like a pretty boy, but you have chest muscles," Li Lin kindly helped the young man out of his clothes. Underneath was a pale red inner garment, with the chest tightly bound by a scarf. It was impossible to tell it was a disguise.
Li Lin gently pressed the area, finding it unexpectedly soft, like a woman's.
"Wait..."
Suddenly realizing something, Li Lin took a closer look. Chest muscles shouldn't be soft. To his surprise, the young man was actually a woman, her chest bound to appear flat.
"She's a woman, and I touched her..." Li Lin was startled, recalling the softness he felt.
Seeing the woman lying on the ground, dressed only in an undergarment, Li Lin decided to help her into one of his green robes, his favorite color. "Well, I'll just change you into a robe." Knowing she was a woman, Li Lin refrained from taking any liberties. He gently dressed the woman, who, if dressed femininely, would surely be a great beauty.
"Quite fragrant," Li Lin noted as he once again laid the cross-dressed woman on the ground. The faint scent emanating from her body grew increasingly pleasant to him.
After all this, the cross-dressed woman remained unconscious, possibly due to the third-tier pill she had ingested. Her breathing had stabilized.
"Little dragon, help me continue detoxifying." Li Lin sat cross-legged, as twenty percent of the toxins from the Blood Devouring Bone Corrosive Pill still lingered in his body. Now that he was away from the Soul Enchanting Poison Master, Li Lin wanted to get rid of the remaining toxins as soon as possible.
"Hiss hiss..." Little dragon understood and crawled onto Li Lin's arm, biting him gently. A cool stream of air mixed with golden flames surged into Li Lin's chest.
Li Lin frowned as the internal flames burned. The pain was unbearable for most, but he endured it, allowing Little dragon's golden flames to incinerate the deadly poison of the pill.
After three minutes, Li Lin had to stop Little dragon. He could only endure the golden flames for three minutes at most; any longer, and he felt his entire body might dissolve.
After resting for a while, Li Lin had Little dragon continue burning the toxin. During this process, Li Lin surprisingly felt his body strengthening from the inside out, a contrast to the external strengthening he experienced with the Marrow Cleansing Pill.
This unexpected discovery seemed beneficial. A more robust body was definitely an advantage for him.
After a night of detoxification, dawn broke, and the night passed safely.
As the first rays of light illuminated the east, the mountains woke up. The sound of the river's flow and the morning breeze rustling Li Lin's clothes created a serene atmosphere. The previously dark mountains and forests brightened with the morning light.
Li Lin exhaled a breath of turbid air. The poison from the Blood Devouring Bone Corrosive Pill was now ninety percent cleared, and his Qi had reached the peak of the seventh-tier warrior, close to breaking into the eighth tier.
"Little dragon, thank you for your hard work," Li Lin said, petting Little dragon's small head. Little dragon, now only twenty centimeters long but capable of transforming into an eighty-meter giant, had formidable strength.
"Hiss hiss..." Little dragon's eyes twinkled, and he shook his little head, seemingly saying there's no need for thanks.
"Hmm..." On the ground, the cross-dressed woman's chest heaved slightly, and she murmured softly in her throat, appearing to be waking up. Little dragon quickly hid inside Li Lin's sleeve.
With daylight upon them, Li Lin examined the cross-dressed woman again. Her delicate features, pale skin, and long eyelashes made it no wonder she seemed unusual as a man. Once back in women's clothes, she would likely be a beauty capable of causing national turmoil.