It was already noon, the sun high in the sky, its scorching rays illuminating everything.
In the sunlight, a youth with a basket on his back and a sickle in his hand sat under a tree canopy, gazing up at the mountain peak.
"Rustle, rustle..." A strange sound reached the youth's ears from behind.
The youth started, focusing his mind as he looked around. This was not the sound of leaves rustling in the wind, nor did it come from above; it definitely came from the ground.
This mountain was home to all kinds of animals, with dense, overgrown trees, some nearly a hundred meters tall and so wide that ten people couldn't encircle them. This was a primeval forest, and the scorching heat often drove fierce beasts from their lairs.
The youth adopted a defensive stance, his ears straining to listen, his eyes fixed on a thicket in front of him.
A very faint sound came from that spot. The youth was certain it was a wild beast, but as for what kind, he would have to wait for it to emerge to know.
A furry arm emerged, pushing aside the entire thicket. From the gap in the dense foliage, a furry body appeared. It was a Grizzly Bear, over two meters tall.
The youth was startled, his eyes staring unblinkingly at the Grizzly Bear. He silently cursed his bad luck.
The youth's name was Lê Minh. He was a disciple of the Tam Sơn Sect. When he was young, by a stroke of fate, he met Lý Hiên, an alchemist of the Tam Sơn Sect. Lê Minh followed him, becoming his alchemy assistant.
Today, his purpose in entering the forest was to gather some medicinal herbs to return and refine some pills to advance his cultivation. Due to his limited talent, he was not highly regarded by the sect, which meant they would not provide him with any resources. Unfortunately, by some stroke of bad luck, he had encountered this Grizzly Bear.
"This Grizzly Bear has a cultivation level equivalent to the second layer of the Spirit Qi Realm," Lê Minh thought, circulating his spiritual energy and casting the Spirit Aura Observation Art to assess the bear. The so-called Spirit Aura Observation Art was merely used to observe the cultivation of people or creatures possessing spiritual energy. It was purely an auxiliary spell with no defensive or offensive capabilities.
Lê Minh was very cautious with a beast whose cultivation was on par with his own, not wanting to make a foolish mistake. His hand rested on his storage pouch; he channeled spiritual energy into it and pulled out a short sword. Although this short sword was only a low-grade spiritual artifact, for a "magnate" like him, it was his entire fortune. He rarely even took it out to use, but in this situation...
The Grizzly Bear sensed that this youth was not easy to provoke. It slowly circled Lê Minh, observing him.
Seeing the Grizzly Bear's caution, Lê Minh sneered inwardly.
Although the Grizzly Bear's sentience had not yet awakened, its instincts alone made it very dangerous. Lê Minh channeled spiritual energy into his short sword and concentrated, waiting for the Grizzly Bear's attack.
The Grizzly Bear continued to circle, sensing danger from the youth.
"Grrr..." The Grizzly Bear's stomach made a strange sound.
Lê Minh shivered. He held his short sword up before his chest. Although he didn't know what move the Grizzly Bear would make, he cautiously awaited this strange move.
The Grizzly Bear swallowed mouthfuls of saliva. It was very hungry, and the youth before it was the best meal right now. Without further thought, the Grizzly Bear stomped its feet on the ground, and its two furry paws lunged towards Lê Minh.
The Grizzly Bear's body charged forward like a boulder. It opened its mouth wide, increasing the pressure on Lê Minh, unleashing its full power in this instant.
Lê Minh saw the Grizzly Bear charging. He dodged to the side, raised his short sword, and stabbed it into the Grizzly Bear's arm.
The Grizzly Bear's charge halted, its entire body stopping with it. It continuously retreated, avoiding Lê Minh's attacks.
Lê Minh took a breath, his two layers of spiritual energy circulating fully. His feet pushed off, and he lunged forward, raising his hand to stab the Grizzly Bear's arm once more. "Success" was not yet within reach, but seeing his target struck, Lê Minh immediately retreated.
The Grizzly Bear sensed trouble and immediately concealed itself in the thicket.
At the second layer of the Spiritual Qi realm, Lê Minh couldn't yet employ his divine sense, only relying on his ears and eyes.
Lê Minh pursued the Grizzly Bear's tracks, but upon passing through the thicket, he found no sign of it.
Following the bloodstains, Lê Minh proceeded cautiously.
Suddenly, Lê Minh stopped. A dangerous aura surged from behind him. Without thinking, Lê Minh shot forward, then turned his head to look back.
A massive figure lunged out from the left, landing exactly where Lê Minh had just been standing. The Grizzly Bear's two large, bloodshot eyes stared intently at Lê Minh.
"Hmph..." Lê Minh grunted, his entire body soaring as he charged straight towards the Grizzly Bear.
Unlike the first time, the Grizzly Bear raised its massive paws to meet Lê Minh's attack.
"Grrr... Aaargh!" Lê Minh's short sword plunged directly into the Grizzly Bear's chest. The Grizzly Bear roared in agony, its two paws flailing wildly. One paw accidentally struck Lê Minh, sending him flying several meters away.
"Hmph!" Lê Minh, lying on the ground, quickly scrambled to his feet. He looked down at himself. "Perfect," he thought. Aside from torn clothes and a few scratches, he was unharmed.
He continued to charge and attack the Grizzly Bear.
The two-meter-tall Grizzly Bear appeared, raising its two paws to strike forward.
"Boom!"
The two sides collided, emitting a loud bang.
The Grizzly Bear's massive body flew into the air, then struggled as it fell to the ground, its eyes darting around. The Grizzly Bear quickly sprang up, turned, and desperately fled.
This time, Lê Minh absolutely would not let it escape. His body, swaying from the impact, gradually stabilized. Once again, he raised his short sword and lunged forward, his arm swinging the short sword to plunge it directly into the center of the Grizzly Bear's head.
Without a whimper or any resistance, the Grizzly Bear's body toppled forward, lying prone on the ground.
Lê Minh bent over, panting heavily...
A moment later, he sliced the Grizzly Bear in half and extracted its gallbladder. This gallbladder was very beneficial for his cultivation.
The Grizzly Bear had a cultivation equivalent to the second layer of the Qi Refinement realm. It hadn't yet formed an inner core, but its gallbladder still satisfied Lê Minh.
Lê Minh suddenly remembered his herb basket and felt annoyed. He secretly decided that once he returned, he would immediately buy a new "herbal storage pouch."
Lê Minh continued climbing the mountain. Halfway up, he turned and passed by a waterfall. Below was a lake, and the water from the lake continued to flow downwards.
This was the upstream, so the water was very clear. Lê Minh looked at his "tattered" body and felt a pang of annoyance. He slowly took off his clothes.
Lê Minh jumped into the lake and began scrubbing off the Grizzly Bear's blood from his body. A refreshing sensation washed over him, and he comfortably swam a few laps.
A moment later...
Lê Minh turned, intending to step ashore, but then he found himself staring intently at a corner of the lake.
From there, a faint light emanated, flickering on and off....