< Chapter 11: After All, He Is Just a Youth >
Faced with Ning Zhanji’s sudden test, the others looked at each other in bewilderment.
Ning Zhuo speculated aloud, “These spirit plants are very young and of low value; picking them is certainly not for the plants themselves. I think it’s about maintaining this pathway, deliberately clearing it. With the spirit plants here, spirit beasts and demon beasts will be attracted. If our clan intends to use this pathway for a long time, it’s obviously about preventing problems before they arise.”
“Indeed,” Ning Zhanji nodded, “The family academy’s training is indeed effective.”
“Choose one of these spirit plants as a reward for a correct answer.”
“As for which one you can pick, it depends on your discernment.”
Ning Zhuo didn’t hesitate; he reached out and took a Fire Crystal Grass, then thanked him: “Thank you, Lord Ning Zhanji! I have some research on the herbal market, and among these spirit plants, this Fire Crystal Grass has the best quality and will surely fetch the highest price.”
Ning Zhanji nodded, then shook his head: “Choosing the one with the highest market price is not bad.”
“But if I were you, I would choose the Strength Ginseng.”
“As members of the Ning family, we practice ice attribute techniques, and Fire Crystal Grass is not suitable for our constitution. But Strength Ginseng is good, as it can nourish our bodies.”
“You are still young, do not be solely focused on money. Remember, investing in oneself is the best path to success.”
“Once you reach the Foundation Establishment stage, you will find yourself in a different realm of life.”
Upon hearing this, Ning Zhuo showed a stern look of enlightenment.
Ning Zhanji took the opportunity to impart wisdom: “Excellent cultivators are always those who dare to strive hard. One must fully estimate the ratio of risk to reward. If you join the battle hall and are assigned to guard here, you will be able to harvest several spirit plants every day, plus have the protection of a temporary camp. This is a rare opportunity.”
“Many times, refusing risk is refusing opportunity.”
Ning Zhuo showed an interested expression.
This change in expression did not escape Ning Zhanji’s notice, and he thought to himself with a light chuckle, “After all, he is just a youth…”
“Lord, I wish to be stationed here,” Ning Yong suddenly exclaimed.
Ning Zhanji laughed lightly: “Newcomer, pass the special training first.”
The Ning family’s cultivator squad entered an underground hall.
Clearly, this was a frontline position deliberately constructed by the Ning family.
Inside the hall, there were two Ning family cultivators stationed.
The stationed cultivators quickly responded to their arrival.
Ning Zhanji ordered a temporary rest while he positioned himself in the center of the underground hall, stimulating his mana and forming hand seals.
Soon, complex array patterns emerged on the ceiling of the hall.
At the center of the array patterns, a millstone-sized array disc slowly descended and finally came to rest before Ning Zhanji.
He placed both hands on the array disc, connecting with it through his spiritual sense, quickly accessing the recorded information within. Thus, within a few breaths, he comprehended everything that had transpired at this frontline camp.
Having done this, he then took out spirit stones from his money pouch, replacing the fully greyed-out or significantly dimmed spirit stones in the array disc.
After a brief rest, the Ning family’s team of cultivators continued on their way.
During the journey, Ning Zhuo passed three more forward camps.
Some were for rest and repairs, while others they simply passed through.
As the group ventured deeper into the volcanic underground, the threats gradually increased.
Traces of demon beasts became more apparent.
There were fire fluff mice the size of a paw, floating stone heads known as Red Rock Demons, and Flame Striding Lizards.
“Stop!” Ning Zhanji, who was leading the group, suddenly raised his hand and halted in place.
The cultivators quickly came to a standstill, transitioning from motion to stillness, demonstrating excellent tactical discipline.
Ning Zhanji bent down to closely examine a small ditch in front of him.
He extended a finger, gently touching the smooth surface of the ditch, which subtly emitted a lustrous glow like glazed glass.
“It’s a Fire Serpent, likely over a hundred years old, a Foundation Establishment stage demon beast,” Ning Zhanji explained, then ordered the troops to be on full alert.
Ning Yong, ever brash, showed his excitement: “Finally, we encounter one? With Lord Ning Zhanji here, why fear a mere demon beast?”
Ning Chen analyzed, “Apart from us newcomers, there are six Foundation Establishment stage cultivators here, the rest are high-level Qi Refinement cultivators.”
“Just a single Foundation Establishment stage demon beast.”
Ning Zhuo, however, remained silently vigilant.
He knew well: demon beasts’ innate physical abilities often far surpassed those of human cultivators. Moreover, this place was the Red Flame Demon Molten Cave; a prolonged battle could potentially attract other demon beasts to converge and attack.
The Ning family’s cultivator squad pressed on.
But this time, their pace had noticeably slowed down, and the atmosphere within the group had changed. Soon, they encountered the Fire Serpent.
The Fire Serpent was slender and emitted a dazzling fiery light from its entire body, resembling a fiercely burning flame. In fact, it was an essence of fire itself, lacking the flesh and blood typical of demonic beasts.
The Fire Serpent was ferocious and incredibly fast. It slithered through the rocks, often melting a serpentine path on the surface of the stones. Just moments ago, Ning Zhanji had spotted such a path, and from the width and the charred indentations, he made his assessment.
Now, facing the beast itself, they found Ning Zhanji’s judgment had been spot-on. This was a demonic beast of the Foundation Establishment stage.
The Ning family cultivators began their attack. First, a cultivator threw out an array disk to set up a temporary formation, concealing everyone’s auras. Then, numerous cultivators began preparing their spells.
Soon, a barrage of water arrows shot towards the Fire Serpent. Initially overwhelmed by the concentrated attack, which dimmed its fiery light significantly, the Fire Serpent then lunged fiercely at the Ning family’s team.
Two robust cultivators from the Ning family rushed forward, shielded by various spells, and engaged the Fire Serpent in close combat, holding it in place. Meanwhile, the other cultivators continued to cast spells, both to support their comrades in close combat and to actively harm the Fire Serpent.
Outnumbered, the Fire Serpent quickly shrank to one-third of its original size under the assault of water and ice spells. Realizing it was overpowered, the Fire Serpent attempted to flee.
Ning Zhanji moved like lightning, intercepting the Fire Serpent. With a clap of his hands, he released two palm prints formed of condensed frost.
The palm prints flew through the air, their chill pervasive, enveloping the Fire Serpent and slowing its movements.
Bang, bang.
The sounds nearly overlapped as the frost palm prints struck, directly killing the Fire Serpent. It was a beautifully executed surprise attack!
Ning Yong’s eyes sparkled with excitement, “This is the great Ning Zhanji!”
His words revealed a deep admiration and aspiration. Ning Zhuo nodded repeatedly, his expression similar to Ning Yong’s, yet he harbored doubts internally, “In this volcanic region, where the fiery spiritual energy is exceptionally strong, using frost spells is difficult and unrewarding. Why are they still being used?”
After several more battles hunting demonic beasts, Ning Zhuo began to understand. It turned out that Ning Zhanji was deliberately training his troops. When they encountered weaker demons and spirits, they used spells to fight, honing their coordination with each other. Against stronger demonic beasts, the Ning family cultivators would deploy various magical instruments with Ning Zhanji taking the lead.
To avoid prolonged battles, the Ning family cultivators aimed for swift actions, striving to end the fights in the shortest possible time.
“Suddenly, a cultivator responsible for scouting shouted a warning, “There’s a Fire Molten Demon Ape up ahead!”
The entire team halted.
An adult Fire Molten Demon Ape was notoriously tough to handle, a single ape could match ten Foundation Establishment cultivators. Clearly, the possibility of encountering a juvenile in this area was minimal.
Even Ning Zhanji frowned.
“Wait, something seems off about the demon ape,” the scouting cultivator said, his eyes closed and the headband he wore glowing faintly.
“It appears to be dead?!” he exclaimed in disbelief as he opened his eyes.