The red-tailed bird, as the name suggests.
Its tail is crimson, but its body is green.
Its body length is approximately two meters, the beak narrow and pointed.
The red-tailed bird had just landed briefly before starting to peck at the cliff face.
"Go!"
A point of golden star shot out, in the blink of an eye, piercing through the body of the red-tailed bird.
The distance was too great, and the red-tailed bird was alert and keen; the Geng Metal Qi originally aimed at its head only managed to pierce its body!
"Goo——"
The red-tailed bird cried out in pain, spewing out foul-smelling blood foam from its beak.
It turned its head to glare angrily at the two, flapping its wings and flying, the crimson tail feathers drawing an arc in the snow curtain.
Chen Ye’s pupils suddenly contracted, seeing the red-tailed bird’s wings spread wide, spanning over a zhang long, fiercely charging at him.
The speed of the red-tailed bird was beyond his imagination!
"Watch out! This demon beast is resilient to life!"
The Dark Old Man shouted fiercely, advancing with his sword horizontally, slashing towards the red-tailed bird’s talons.
The air exploded, the Dark Old Man’s blood surged, muscles bulging.
The rocks beneath his feet were full of cracks, deeply sunken.
It’s now or never!
If the Geng Metal Qi attacks a far-off target, its power inevitably diminishes!
Now, with the red-tailed bird right in front of him, it was the perfect opportunity to kill it!
"Swish swish swish——"
Three consecutive golden stars, in the shape of a character, tore through the snow and wind, penetrating the body of the red-tailed bird, exploding into three bloody holes.
It let out a sorrowful cry, its beak suddenly opening, condensing a mass of red flame in the terrified eyes of the Dark Old Man.
The scorching temperature twisted the Dark Old Man’s hair, the snow melting.
"Damn it!"
Chen Ye’s boot crushed the frozen earth, pushing the Heavy Body Technique to the extreme.
When the iron sword popped out of its sheath, the weight of seven Sinking Gold pieces brought a dull whistling sound.
He flicked his wrist, the spine of the sword hitting the red-tailed bird’s head.
"Bang!"
The sound of the skull breaking mixed with brain matter splattering on the snow, creating over ten steaming little pits.
The red-tailed bird twitched powerlessly, crashing to the ground.
At this moment,
The Dark Old Man collapsed to the ground, pulling out a flat flask from the lining of his leather armor and taking two gulps, heart still pounding: "Thanks, Brother Chen! Didn’t expect this beast to spit fire before dying."
Chen Ye also wiped away his cold sweat: "Also thanks to Big Gen, didn’t expect the red-tailed bird was so fast!"
The resilience of the red-tailed bird’s life was beyond his expectations; at close range, even with three Geng Metal Qi, he couldn’t kill it.
Luckily, there was the Dark Old Man, a Body Cultivator, protecting him, so he was unscathed, managing to slaughter this Qi Cultivation Middle Stage demon bird.
But the four Geng Metal Qi depleted nearly half of his Spiritual Power!
The Dark Old Man rested for a moment, got up, and tied up the red-tailed bird, smiling: "Brother Chen has never hunted demons before, lacking experience, but you’ll get better with practice. Did you notice something? This red-tailed bird was pecking at the cliff."
Hearing this, Chen Ye looked up, gazing at the cliff face.
In his previous life, goats often licked the rocks on naked cliffs to supplement salt.
But the red-tailed bird was pecking at it.
The Dark Old Man explained: "Wherever there’s a demon beast, there must be spirit materials accompanying... the red-tailed bird likes fire, so there must be a Flame Crystal there!"
As he spoke, he climbed up the cliff.
Using his Mountain-Cutting Saber to knock out a crystalline stone from the cliff.
"I see," Chen Ye was quite intrigued.
"This Flame Crystal can sell for two Spirit Stones in the market! In the future, Brother Chen, when hunting demons, pay attention to these details."
The Dark Old Man sighed, somewhat melancholic,
"Back then, it was my father who taught me these..."
After hunting the Red Flame Bird, they hurried back to the market while the sky was still bright.
Initially, Chen Ye was anxious, fearing they might encounter a Tribulation Cultivator.
But it turned out to be freezing cold, and they didn’t encounter anyone along the way.
In the market, demon beasts have always been in high demand.
Moreover, the red-tailed bird’s tail feathers can be used to make talisman brushes, which are quite popular.
In no time, along with the Flame Crystal, they sold everything for a total of thirty-six Spirit Stones.
"Shall we split the profits fifty-fifty?"
Chen Ye happily touched the Spirit Stones, no wonder so many people are willing to risk their lives hunting demons.
It’s much more profitable than toiling away cultivating Spirit Plants.
"No, no, no, this time it’s thanks to Brother Chen’s intervention; otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to kill this demon bird. I almost died at Eagle Beak Cliff."
The Dark Old Man smiled bitterly, taking sixteen Spirit Stones,
"Sixteen stones are enough for me... Previously, when cooperating with other cultivators, it took several days to kill a Qi Cultivation Middle Stage demon beast, earning only a few Spirit Stones."
At the same time, he pushed the package he had over to Chen Ye.
It was something he had picked up from home on their way back to the market.
Inside were clothes Granny Li had sewn for the two little girls.
Chen Ye took the package, his heart warming: "Big Gen, thank Granny Li for me"
The Dark Old Man glanced at Chen Ye, his tone complex:
"These days have gotten colder, my mother worries you might not take good care of the girls, so she made these clothes... Brother Chen, you haven’t been bullying the little girls, have you?"
"No way... No way..."
Chen Ye suddenly remembered the future’s abnormal celestial phenomena, speaking solemnly,
"Big Gen, it’s best that you quickly move to the market these days. With the Spirit Stones from hunting today, it should be enough for you to relocate. The weather’s been getting increasingly strange these days..."
As he said this, he gave his home address to the Dark Old Man.
The Dark Old Man saw Chen Ye’s serious expression, looked up at the dim gray sky, and nodded,
"When I return, I’ll speak to my mother!"
...
At home.
"Sister, what are you doing?"
The little girl curled up under the covers, only her fluffy white head visible, her nose red from the cold.
Zhiwei instinctively hid her hands behind her back, expressionless: "N-nothing."
The little girl squinted her phoenix eyes: "Sister, you must be hiding something tasty; you don’t want to give Qing Jun!"
She puffed up her cheeks and turned her head, showing only her side face.
Zhiwei couldn’t bear to see Qing Jun unhappy.
"It’s just... an ice block."
Zhiwei hesitated for a moment, revealing the snow cat she had been hiding behind her back to Qing Jun.
The little girl couldn’t help but curl her lips slightly, turning her head to look, her small face freezing:
"Eh? Just a cat made of snow, and it’s melting."
It’s melting.
Zhiwei bit her lip, looking down at the melting snow cat:
"No matter, if it melts, it melts."
The white furred ball curled under the covers, its expression gradually cooling:
"Sister, is this... something he molded for you?"
"Mm."
Zhiwei had just answered, her body suddenly stiffening.
The eyes under her bangs stared intently at Qing Jun, meeting her scarlet pupils.
"Qing Jun, you..."
"Lu Zhiwei, have you ever seen a dog?"
"..."
"It’s the kind that, even if beaten to a pulp by its master, will forget all its pain for a moldy bone."
The black-haired ball clasped the snow cat tightly, her face growing paler.
"So, are you a dog?"
The white-haired ball’s tone was aggressively pressing, ignoring the black-haired ball’s dignity.
A mocking smile hung on her lips.
"No..."
Accompanied by a crunching sound, the snow cat got crushed into a pile of ice shards.
Zhiwei stared blankly at the ice shards in her hand, silent and speechless.
Just then, the courtyard gate was pushed open.
A man’s voice came in, full of energy:
"My disciples, your master has returned!"