Li Lang’s group continued their travels toward Polarity City. It was a neutral territory that belonged to neither the righteous sects nor demonic organizations. Cultivators from both factions didn’t dare to feud within its territory.

“We should be donning some disguises before we get too close,” Li Lang declared.

His two companions, Long Yi and Wei Ping, nodded, while Sima Xue looked on in bewilderment.

“Disguises? For what?”

“Nothing too serious. Just some cloaks and straw hats. We’d rather not flaunt our presence entering from Demonic Cultivator Territory. It would give the righteous sect a reason to find issues with us later on.”

“Hmm, I’d say just forget about those stuck-up fools.”

Li Lang simply let out a chuckle and didn’t elaborate. There were too many reasons why he would continue visiting the orthodox sects’ territories. Not only did they possess the greater community of cultivators on Violet Isle, but they also had access to the most resources. Even if he now possessed the pocket realm, now known as the Crucible, Li Lang still desired access to modern cultivation techniques and more materialistic resources.

Then there was the issue of finding the Abductress, which was another can of worms that Li Lang wouldn’t want to share.

Silence permeated through the Skyrunner as Li Lang stayed silent. Before any of its occupants could strike up another conversation, Sima Xue suddenly snapped to their right. She wore a deep frown and began steering them to a higher altitude.

The trio could sense the seriousness in her demeanor and Li Lang stepped forth as their representation for clarification.

“Something wrong?”

“Hm, not for us. Another group over there seems to be having some trouble.”

“Explain trouble.”

“Just a fight between cultivators and Qi beast. Both parties are at the upper stages of Energy Gathering, but the human party is struggling because they can’t fly while they’re up against an aerial Qi beast at the peak of the realm.”

It took a second for Li Lang to process what was happening. That was because Sima Xue was so nonchalant about the matter. She only kept an eye on the situation and went on her way, like a driver going around a site of collision.

“Shouldn’t we go help?”

Those words earned Li Lang a strange look from his chauffeur.

“Why?”

Li Lang took a second to glance over at his other companions to see their reaction. Long Yi gave him a firm look that yelled, “We should help,” while Wei Ping left the decision up to him.

“Because there’s someone there that needs help and you have the power to do it.”

Sima Xue blinked blankly at those words, taking a long moment to consider them.

“Um, I thought those values were just something the righteous sects spew. I guess some of them actually carry them out.”

“Is it against your rules to help or something? Your senior, Jian Beiyun, selflessly helped us when we first arrived at Polarity.”

“That’s different. I heard he met you at the alchemy guild so he could confirm your identity and cross out any ill intent. We’re taught not to assist in situations like this when we’re out in the wild. They could be malicious parties pretending to be in need only to strike us in the back. I’m sure every disciple in our valley is taught to steer clear of conflicts that they have no part in.”

The pragmatic words dazed Li Lang for a second. It had such an effect because he somewhat resonated with it. He knew what the Nightmoon Valley taught was the safer course of action and likely what most residents of this world would choose.

In a way, all cultivators were competitors. They all competed for a finite amount of resources, whether they cultivated orthodox or demonic techniques. There were no reasons to lend a hand to a complete stranger. Doing so recklessly would only put you in danger. While it may sound cruel, it was also this self-reliance that made those who survived that much stronger. It was the cultivation world’s survival of the fittest.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

I knew those flowery words I heard back in Spirit Grove sounded too good to be true. It was all textbook good samaritan crap, while many disciples behaved arrogantly. The pragmatic demonic cultivators, huh? My quest to find someone amongst them to help rescue the Zi siblings is starting to look less and less probable…

“Wait,” Li Lang said as he placed a hand on Sima Xue’s shoulder.

“Hmm?”

“We should go help anyway. We’re so close to the city that it’s unlikely to be anything nefarious, right?”

“Well…we should be in the detection range of the city master, at the very least. Still, why would you want to help them?”

“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t based on my emotions, but that’s not entirely it. Saving them in their time of need would make them owe us a debt. I don’t know about you, but making connections isn’t something I’d be averse to.”

Despite realizing the dangers and lack of benefits from assisting others, Li Lang still couldn’t completely ignore the situation at hand. He was someone from a peaceful world of law and order. Watching someone within arm’s reach fall into a precarious situation and leaving them to their fate wasn’t something he could do without feeling anything.

I don’t want to lose sleep over something entirely within our power to change. Especially when the risks are so low. I wonder if I could make the same decision if this took place further away from any civilization, though…

“I completely agree with Li Lang!” Long Yi righteously jumped into the decision.

It gave them the majority, pressuring Sima Xue to go along with it.

“Come on,” Li Lang continued. “I know you want to do it too. You tried to warn me too back at Spirit Grove when you didn’t have a reason to back then, either. You want to help.”

“That’s because… I didn’t want any more young children to fall into the hands of the righteous sects. I—I don’t know…” Sima Xue’s face went through a plethora of emotions within a split second. “You know what? Fine! Let’s do it. Let’s just hope it doesn’t come back to bite us.”

“You said it was only a Qi beast in the Energy Gathering realm. I doubt it could hurt you, even if it did bite you.”

Sima Xue crossed her arms and scoffed, turning her head toward the scene of the nearby battle.

“Hold on tight, I’m going to go a little faster.”

With her deep cultivation, the Skyrunner abruptly sped up in a way that none of the trio had ever experienced before. If it wasn’t for the warning, they may very well have lost balance.

A distance away, a young man and woman were currently fighting for their lives. Unbeknownst to them, a rescue party was heading their way.

“Ning Fei, we have to land the Skyrunner if we want to have a chance! None of my familiars can do anything up here!”

“I know, I know. You’ve said that five times already! It’s not so easy when that stupid bird is blocking our path!”

Every time they tried to steer their Skyrunner down, the Qi beast would sweep down for an attack. It appeared to be intelligent enough to know that they would be vulnerable during their descent. After all, if the bird simply pressed them down during descent, it could smash them against the ground instead of the gentle landing they were hoping for.

Still, that would allow them the opportunity to jump off before that came to be, but neither of them wanted to proceed with that. Skyrunners were expensive, and the journey back to their hometown was too far to safely traverse on foot.

It was this dilemma that kept them in a stalemate against the Qi beast.

“Maybe try speeding up. We’re so close to Polarity City, and the guards are bound to do something if we get close enough.”

“Gui Hong, have you gone crazy? Inciting a Qi beast to attack the city, regardless of its strength, is a major offense! We’d be lucky if they just locked us in a cell for that.”

“Hey, at least there’s a way to talk out of that situation. Or maybe one of our elders could smooth things over?”

“You’re going with diplomacy being our pavilion’s strong suit now?”

“I…”

The young man known as Gui Hong didn’t have time to ponder further before being forced to swing out his sword, launching a Qi art for the umpteenth time to keep the bird at bay. After sending out his blows, he still kept a careful watch of where it would dodge.

Qi beasts, especially those in the lower realms, were still beasts by nature. Their intelligence wasn’t anything to speak of, so it was a viable plan to observe and study their movements. It was their weakness, while their superior physical capabilities were their gift. Regardless of how strong they were, beasts often still had habits.

However, the Qi beast didn’t dodge in any direction the boy had presumed. In fact, it hadn’t dodged at all. His wave of Qi landed squarely on its chest, scattering its plumage through the air.

Gui Hong stared at the scene with wide eyes. It wasn’t due to his attack, but because of the lone girl who was currently floating in the air beside the bird. She was holding it by its throat while the beast tried to flap its wings in defiance. The beast managed to strike the girl multiple times, but it had absolutely no effect.

The gulf between a major realm was vast. Once a cultivator had shed their mortality and truly stepped forward onto the path of cultivation, many of their previous weaknesses were gone. No longer could they be caught off guard by an unexpected blow. There was no need to direct Qi to the area they were defending. Their entire body was simply one entity. Every part of it was better protected than if they were to channel all their Qi into defense during their previous stage.

“A…a Foundation Establishment expert,” he muttered in fear.

Few good things ever came from a powerful expert approaching you out in the wilderness. It was fear born from all the lectures he had throughout the years. He wanted to slap himself for not forcing his companion to speed toward the city sooner. Trouble had come to find him.