Chapter 57: Deep Woods and Quiet Shadows Conceal Mortal Peril

As he ventured deeper, Lu Xiao knew he had to be much more vigilant.

What he needed to guard against right now was not merely the danger that the supreme treasure might bring.

It was people!

At Liushui Slope, in places where crowds gathered, martial arts experts would abide by the laws of the Great Xia and follow the rules.

However, in the mountain forests, in remote or even completely uninhabited areas, one had to be far more careful.

In such places, stumbling upon someone else's secrets was even more likely to invite a fatal disaster.

His best bet was to find a populated area as soon as possible.

He could mingle in the crowd, observe, and watch others clash and contend.

From that, he could gain experience without drawing trouble to himself.

As he penetrated deeper into the mountains, his traveling speed slowed down significantly.

The sky was growing dark once again.

Just like the previous night, Lu Xiao directly set to work and built himself a small makeshift hut.

His martial arts cultivation was only at the completion of the Stone-Moving Realm.

Although his vision and hearing had improved considerably compared to the past, they were still heavily restricted at night.

Lu Xiao cherished his life; he was not going to take risks in the dark.

His experience in training within the mountain wilderness was also limited, so he had to be cautious with every single step.

Once finished, Lu Xiao went straight inside the hut as darkness fell.

During the night inside the small wooden cabin, Lu Xiao heard loud, rumbling explosions.

He also heard the roars of several wild beasts.

Throughout the night, it felt as though the deep mountains were unusually lively.

Yet, no matter how lively it got, Lu Xiao refused to recklessly go out and join the commotion.

To see even slightly clearly at night, he needed at least the strength of the Qi-Condensing Realm.

At present, being in the Stone-Moving Realm, his focus was primarily on strengthening his own physical body.

When the night finally passed, Lu Xiao stepped out of the hut, ate some food, and continued his journey deeper into the mountains.

Throughout the entire process, there were virtually no clear paths.

Relying on the "Spirit Wind Step," Lu Xiao moved lightly, borrowing the momentum of the spiritual wind to press forward.

This was the purpose of practical training—the improvements it brought.

Within just two or three days, his mastery over the "Spirit Wind Step" had advanced by leaps and bounds.

He could now be considered to have achieved a rudimentary level of success in this movement technique.

Holding a woodcutter's blade in his hand, whenever he encountered obstructing vines, he would simply hack them apart with a swing.

It did not look particularly stylish, but the blade proved quite useful.

The direction he was advancing in was the exact same path taken by that high-level expert who traversed the skies yesterday.

Within the mountain forest, traces left behind by people could occasionally be seen.

On the surrounding bushes and withered vines, the cut marks left by sharp weapons were clearly visible.

Aside from human traces, Lu Xiao also discovered some droppings and footprints left by wild beasts.

They still looked very fresh.

Lu Xiao felt quite puzzled by this.

During this period, so many powerful experts had been coming and going through the mountains.

Although these wild beasts lacked human intelligence, they still possessed the instinct to avoid harm and pursue benefit.

With people continuously encroaching upon their living territory, these beasts should logically have fled.

It was somewhat strange, but Lu Xiao merely noted it down without delving deeply into it for the time being.

In this world, exceptions were perfectly normal.

As he walked deeper, Lu Xiao once again heard rumbling sounds.

Noticing a slightly protruding peak not far ahead, Lu Xiao headed directly toward its location.

Standing higher would make his vision less restricted.

Utilizing the techniques of the "Spirit Wind Step," Lu Xiao quickly made his way toward the summit.

The peak was somewhat steep, but Lu Xiao climbed with steady steps.

The "Spirit Wind Step" movement technique possessed miraculous effects at times like this.

Even if his footing became unstable while scaling the mountain, he could use the spiritual wind to steady himself.

With the existence of the "Spirit Wind Step," the safety coefficient of navigating perilous terrains had increased significantly.

In less than an hour, Lu Xiao reached the summit.

Looking out over the entire mountain range from here, his field of vision had indeed broadened immensely.

Although it was not the highest peak, it already offered a bird's-eye view of a vast expanse of forest.

Lu Xiao gazed in the direction from which the sounds had come.

The moment his eyes cast outward, he saw a row of large trees crashing down in the distance.

A tremendous roar erupted, accompanied by a piercing, frigid flash of light.

As the cold light swept past, the surging aftermath of the shockwave even flattened many of the smaller, lower trees...

Seeing this scene, Lu Xiao hesitated for a moment, unsure whether he should get any closer to watch.

With the terrifying power of such a technique, he might not even be able to withstand the aftermath alone.

Top-tier practitioners truly possessed formidable strength.

Witnessing this, Lu Xiao understood even more clearly why so many people desperately pursued martial arts prowess.

A surge of extra motivation welled up in his heart.

With that kind of strength, who could force him to harvest this spiritual bone?

Meng Xinchen leaving his spiritual bone to him would be much more fitting instead.

After sitting atop the peak for quite a while and carefully observing the surrounding situation, Lu Xiao prepared to walk a bit further forward. Being able to catch a distant glimpse of those powerful experts in action would be enough for him.

During his descent from the mountain peak, Lu Xiao suddenly noticed three young disciples not far away walking deeper into the forest from a different direction.

It seemed they, too, were looking to take a detour to find a suitable vantage point to watch those powerhouses fight.

After a moment of hesitation, Lu Xiao decided to follow their path further inward.

When training in the outside world, one could encounter danger and trouble at any moment.

This was also one of the meanings of practical training.

Martial artists who grew up in greenhouses might look impressive on the surface.

Yet, without experiencing those perilous situations, it was difficult for them to undergo a true transformation.

Putting aside whether their state of mind could pass the test, even if they managed to raise their realm through certain shortcuts, they would inevitably face numerous problems when dealing with danger.

Powerful practitioners all forged their way forward by wading through rivers of danger.

No one ever became a top-tier cultivator of a region by living a completely sheltered life.

Descending from the summit, Lu Xiao traced the footprints of those people and followed them deeper into the forest.

After covering four or five miles, Lu Xiao suddenly received a strange sensation.

It felt as though he had walked through a waterfall, and a chilling sensation washed down over him from head to toe.

He looked around in all directions, yet could not spot anything out of the ordinary.

Everything around him remained as usual.

Hesitating for a moment, Lu Xiao continued to follow the tracks left by the previous group, pressing all the way into the depths.

When the supreme treasure manifested, all sorts of celestial phenomena had previously occurred.

It was hardly surprising for him to encounter some bizarre occurrences upon coming here.

After stepping into this stretch of the forest, Lu Xiao's most direct sensation was that it had become much quieter.

The massive commotion previously stirred up by the clash of powerful experts seemed to have completely vanished now.

Only the occasional howl of a wild beast could still be heard.

Having entered the forested zone, Lu Xiao continued advancing toward the western side.

The reason he took this route was still to make a detour,

in order to find a suitable and safe spot to observe the experts fighting.

However, before he had walked very far to the west, Lu Xiao spotted something.

Within the mountain forest, traces of fierce combat had suddenly appeared.

Interspersed among these traces were quite a few bloodstains.

Lu Xiao abruptly halted his steps, then squatted down to examine the marks closely.

Among these traces were not only bloodstains, but also shredded pieces of clothing, as well as animal fur...

Were the wild beasts in the mountains actively harming people?