Chapter 66

Chapter 66: Rank Increased, Difficulty Decreased

Although Lou Yun was eager to forge weapons to earn money, the lack of sufficient materials to craft common weapons above the intermediate level forced him to wait until the next rest day or until he got another opportunity to leave the academy on a mission.

A week later, he indeed got his chance. Lou Yun’s team received their second mission. And since the team composition remained unchanged while Xia Zhilan’s cultivation had surged to intermediate one-star, the mission grade was directly raised to C-level Grade Three!

While the mission rank was higher, in Lou Yun’s view, its difficulty had actually decreased. This time, they were only required to travel to a nearby mountain forest and kill three Intermediate One-Star Demon Beasts!

Long before coming to the Ancient Weapon Academy, Lou Yun had independently slain an Intermediate One-Star Demon Beast. Now, with his power significantly increased and with the support of Xia Zhilan and Nie Jiu, dealing with three Intermediate One-Star Demon Beasts was a simple task.

Han Tianxiao, as the supervising teacher, still accompanied the three. Even he thought this mission offered no real challenge and would pose no difficulty for Lou Yun’s group. Even Nie Jiu, currently the weakest member, should be capable of killing a demon beast alone.

After brief preparations, the foursome once again departed the Ancient Weapon Academy, heading for Tianqi Mountain near Chaoyun Valley.

Considering the mission’s simplicity, Lou Yun specifically brought Xiao Huo along. Being confined alone in the room most days recently, it had grown quite restless.

Xia Zhilan clearly adored Xiao Huo, so Lou Yun placed the creature with her. Though Xiao Huo protested loudly, a few stern words from Lou Yun subdued its complaints. Looking aggrieved, it curled up in Xia Zhilan’s embrace. Fortunately, her constant soothing voice won it over quickly, and it soon bounced around cheerfully, accepting her attention.

En route, Lou Yun took the chance to voice his small request to Han Tianxiao: after completing the task, he wanted to make a detour to Tianrang City to purchase materials needed for forging weapons. Han Tianxiao, always agreeable, readily consented.

About halfway through the journey, Chang Xiang suddenly reminded Lou Yun quietly, "Kid, I noticed two people seem to have been following you all along."

The path they walked was a main road, frequented by many travellers. Lou Yun didn’t pay it much mind. "Brother Chang, you’re overthinking it. Probably they’re just heading the same way. Besides, why follow us? We have no enemies and carry no money. Surely they aren’t about to rob us?"

Chang Xiang didn’t press the matter, and Lou Yun let it pass without further concern. In roughly half a day, the four reached Tianqi Mountain.

Lou Yun looked up at Tianqi Mountain and then noticed a small village at its foot. He remarked with surprise, "Tianqi Mountain isn’t wilderness! How could demon beasts be here?"

Han Tianxiao nodded. "Precisely because it isn’t wilderness, yet demon beasts have appeared here, that the local villagers petitioned our academy. They hope we can eliminate the creatures and restore normal life for them."

Xia Zhilan asked, puzzled, "But why would demon beasts come here? And why only three Intermediate One-Star Demon Beasts?"

Higher-level demon beasts possess considerable intelligence and might deliberately choose places like Tianqi Mountain – not utterly wild, inhabited by harmless ordinary people – to establish their territories. Yet, Intermediate One-Star Demon Beasts rank too low to conceive such complex plans, making their presence here unusual.

Han Tianxiao, however, saw no need for complex theories. Shaking his head, he offered, "Perhaps they wandered here by accident, found people living below, a ready food source, and simply decided to stay."

Although the probability seemed low, it was still possible. Lou Yun nodded and let the matter drop without further thought.

Leaving their horses at the mountain foot village, the four began their ascent on foot. Each simultaneously released their spiritual sense to detect the precise locations of the demon beasts.

It was then Chang Xiang spoke again, "Kid, something’s wrong. Those two are still following you, and they’re right at the foot of the mountain. I’m sure they’re targeting your group. Be cautious!"

Before Lou Yun could respond, Xia Zhilan whispered softly, "I detected one! But only one."

The substantial enhancement in her magical weapon realm had equally improved her spiritual sense, allowing her to perceive the energy fluctuation of a demon beast before Nie Jiu could.

However, her heightened sense still lagged behind Lou Yun’s. His spiritual awareness could now cover nearly half the mountain. Even as Xia Zhilan spoke, Lou Yun pinpointed all three demon beasts.

The trio were each in separate locations, spaced quite far apart. Safety dictated they stick together as one group to eliminate the beasts sequentially. But that approach would waste significant time. Lou Yun planned to buy materials in Tianrang City on the return trip; arriving late might mean finding the shops closed.

Though Han Tianxiao was accommodating, it was unlikely he’d agree to letting them all spend a night outside.

After a brief moment of thought, Lou Yun devised the optimal plan. He addressed Xia Zhilan and Nie Jiu, "Little Lan, A Jiu, both of you head together to deal with the demon beast on the left. I’ll handle the one on the right. Whichever group finishes first, meet up at the middle one. Agreed?"

This was the most balanced and time-efficient arrangement Lou Yun could devise. While all three could potentially fight a beast alone, Xia Zhilan had only recently advanced to an intermediate one-star magical weapons master and might not wield her spiritual energy or master her weapon techniques with full proficiency yet. Nie Jiu’s cultivation was somewhat lower; defeating a beast might prove arduous. Pairing them ensured no problem dealing with one Intermediate Demon Beast together.

Though Xia Zhilan disliked separating from Lou Yun, she immediately saw the reason for his arrangement. Without refusing, she agreed readily and added, "Lou Yun, be careful!"

Lou Yun smiled reassuringly. "No worries! An Intermediate One-Star Demon Beast? I can handle it."

He then turned to Han Tianxiao. "Teacher Han, although you generally don’t interfere, I’d like you to stay with Little Lan and A Jiu this time. You needn’t worry about me on my end."

This was an extra layer of security for Xia Zhilan and A Jiu. Han Tianxiao, understanding his intention, smiled slightly. "Agreed. Just this once, the Teacher will follow your plan."

So the four people were divided into two groups. Lou Yun watched the three of them leave, and only then did he turn and rush toward the place of the demon beast on the right.

Chang Xiang’s voice, clearly filled with dissatisfaction, rang out again: "I say, boy, did you ignore my warning?"

Lou Yun smiled and said, "Of course not. I considered your warning, and that’s why I made Teacher Han stay by the side of Little Lan and the others."

Chang Xiang said, "Then what about you? I’m telling you, two people are tailing you, and both are intermediate three-star magical weapons masters. You could handle one, but two would be tough for you!"

Lou Yun shook his wrist, and sparks flew between his fingers: "Brother Chang, I still have my final trump card for survival, the Fusang Fire!"

If Lou Yun could eliminate one person, then even if he couldn’t defeat the remaining one with the Fusang Fire, he should be able to protect himself and escape without any problems.

Chang Xiang didn’t speak again, but in his heart, he retorted to Lou Yun, "Your final trump card for survival isn’t the Fusang Fire, it’s me!"

Lou Yun soon arrived in front of that demon beast. It was a very common Flying Wing Tiger, with two wings growing on both sides of its body. It could fly in the air, but because of its large size, it couldn’t fly for long periods. The only difficult aspect was that it could attack both in the sky and on the ground, making it somewhat impossible to guard against.

However, that fear didn’t apply to Lou Yun at all, because the moment he saw the Flying Wing Tiger, he had already formed the best attack plan in his mind: chop off its pair of wings first to prevent flight, and then it would be simple to deal with.

Compared to the Three-horned Rhinoceros that Lou Yun had killed before, the Flying Wing Tiger’s attack power was clearly a bit weaker, and there was a significant gap in strength between Lou Yun back then and now, so currently dealing with this Flying Wing Tiger was extremely easy.

Originally, Lou Yun had intended to use it for move practice, but considering the unknown stalkers behind him, he directly brought out the Stone Sword and finished off the Flying Wing Tiger swiftly in the shortest time.

Lou Yun then used the sword to cut open the Flying Wing Tiger’s belly, as academy rules stated that any demon beasts killed during quests could be kept, with beasts’ souls not needing to be handed over to the academy if present.

The Flying Wing Tiger didn’t disappoint Lou Yun’s hopes, and sure enough, there was a beast soul inside!

Just as Lou Yun excitedly bent down to pick up that beast soul, his spiritual sense detected someone appearing behind him.

So with a grab in the air, he shot a stream of spiritual energy and flicked the beast soul into his hand, then turned around to see two people standing there.

They seemed around twenty years old in appearance. One had darker skin and a smile on his face, while the other was a bit taller but wore an unsmiling expression.

A quick sweep with his spiritual sense showed both were intermediate three-star magical weapons masters—obviously the ones who had followed him all the way here.

Before Lou Yun could ask, the smiling one among them spoke up first: "Young brother, we have something to ask you about!"

Looking at the other’s friendly and kind smile, if not for Chang Xiang’s earlier warning about them following Lou Yun and the others, Lou Yun might have been deceived and let down his guard. But now he certainly wouldn’t; he didn’t even retract the Stone Sword, just held it behind his back with a reverse grip.

Lou Yun asked, "What do you want to ask about?"

The dark-skinned guy continued smiling: "We two brothers are not locals; we came from far away. Here, we know no one or any place, and we were fortunate to meet you, young brother, so we wanted to inquire with you!"

Lou Yun couldn’t help frowning slightly. This guy talked in circles, rambling on without stating what exactly he wanted to ask about—definitely suspicious.

Just as the dark-skinned guy took a small step forward, Lou Yun subtly stepped back, keeping the distance at a suitable range.

Lou Yun said sharply, "What exactly do you want to ask about!"

The dark-skinned one chuckled: "Heh heh, young brother, no need to rush. I always talk like this. I actually just want to ask you about a person!"

Lou Yun replied coldly: "I’m not from here either, so I’m afraid I can’t help you."

The dark-skinned fellow shook his head repeatedly: "Young brother, don’t speak so finally. I’m certain only you can help us!"

Lou Yun gave them a deep look, then sneered: "Since you say that, I understand. The person you’re seeking, is it named Lou Yun?"