"Trust, my ass. You've been chasing me all this way and led the entire monkey horde straight to me—what kind of trust is that? If you want me to trust you, then turn around and run the other way. Maybe then I'll believe you."
Yi Tianxing sneered coldly, his tone icy.This was classic scapegoating, plain as day. Did that fool think he was blind? Trust? What a joke.
"You keep following me, don't blame me for what happens next."
Yi Tianxing barked again, voice sharp as a blade.
"Please, fellow Daoist! Don't abandon me! I have a great fortune for you! I swear I'm not trying to harm you! I have treasure—real treasure!"Mister Hongye shouted, eyes glowing with excitement, clearly still determined to chase Yi Tianxing no matter what.
"What treasure?"
The chaotic chase across the treetops had already drawn the attention of other cultivators in the forest below. A Western mage suddenly appeared on a branch, right between Yi Tianxing and Mister Hongye. His eyes instantly widened as he saw the furious horde of monkeys charging right behind.
He'd only come up to check what was going on, never expecting to stumble into a deathtrap.
"Damn it!!"
Realizing what was happening, the mage cursed and immediately turned to flee in another direction. He could already hear the ground shaking below—clearly, the monkey horde had spread both above and below. Nowhere was safe. The only option was to run.
"Help! Fellow Daoist, save me!" Mister Hongye's eyes lit up again when he saw another cultivator—Western or not, still human—and he immediately called out for help. But seeing the mage turn to flee, Hongye suddenly flicked his wrist and hurled a pebble at him.
From the moment he saw the mage to the moment he struck—it took less than a breath.
A lightning-fast ambush.
"Bastard!!"
The mage sensed danger. The pebble carried true energy—if he ignored it, it would definitely hurt. A magical shield flared into being, and the pebble shattered against it with a crisp crack. The shield dimmed, and the mage momentarily staggered.
That tiny hesitation was enough. A gust of wind blew past. Mister Hongye flashed by the mage, even flashing him a smile as he went: "Thanks, fellow Daoist."
Then he was gone, as if riding the wind.
By the time the mage regained his footing, it was too late. A red-eyed monkey horde was upon him.
"Bastard! Damn you! If I see you again, you're dead!"
The mage roared, but there was no time for rage—he had to survive. He waved his staff furiously, casting spell after spell. Fireballs, ice shards, wind blades—like he had no concern for mana cost—rained down in a storm of destruction.
But he was smart. He didn't target the red-furred monkey leader, clearly the most dangerous one. Instead, he blasted one of the regular monkeys into shreds amid howling screams and flames.
ROAR!!
The red-furred monkey saw it happen and went into a rage. It raised its massive club, now glowing like burning fire, and brought it crashing down on the mage's head.
No magical shields or defenses could stop it. Everything crumbled.The sheer power behind that swing was utterly overwhelming.
CRACK!!
With a wet, splitting sound, the mage's head shattered like a ripe watermelon.Gone. His body dissolved into motes of light.
His strength had meant nothing before that monstrous beast.
The monkey horde barely paused before charging onward again, eyes blood-red with fury, fixed on Mister Hongye.
"Fellow Daoist! Wait, please!" Glancing behind and seeing the mage crushed like an insect, Mister Hongye was terrified. He surged forward, speed increasing, still chasing Yi Tianxing.
"Die."
Yi Tianxing didn't hesitate. His lips twitched in irritation. Without a word, he turned and hurled a throwing spear at Mister Hongye.
It tore through the air like a meteor.Their distance was barely a breath. The spear appeared before Hongye in an instant.
"No! Fellow Daoist, you're too unfriendly! Fine! Here's a gift for you!" Panicking, Mister Hongye suddenly teleported to the side. In the same motion, he pulled the pack off his back and threw it straight at Yi Tianxing.
The throw was precise—the bag flew in a straight line, right at him.
ROAR!!
The monkey horde roared even louder, their gazes locked onto that bundle with unrestrained fury.
"This… so that's what he stole from them? No wonder they're so enraged. If this pack is what triggered all this, it must be something extraordinary.He tossed it to me? Then it's mine now. Trying to shift the blame? You'll only dig your own grave."
Yi Tianxing's eyes flashed. He instantly guessed the truth—this was what Mister Hongye had stolen from the monkeys. And now that the horde was already after him, what harm was there in taking it?
Without hesitation, he caught the bundle and immediately stashed it in his Spirit Pearl Space.Smooth, practiced motion—gone in an instant.
"Damn, a storage artifact?!"
Mister Hongye's jaw dropped. He slapped his thigh in frustration.To instantly make such a large package disappear, it could only be a storage item—like a spatial pouch.
And he didn't have one. If he had, he wouldn't have been running for his life this whole time.How had he run into someone carrying such rare gear?!
"This is bad! The monkeys were following the scent. Now that it's in a storage pouch, they can't smell it anymore. That's… really bad."
Mister Hongye's face turned pale.
Yi Tianxing, meanwhile, bolted ahead with all his speed. Then, without pause, he leaped down from the canopy.
Once on the ground, he pulled out his military shovel and started digging like mad. The excavated soil was tossed straight into his dimensional bag. His arms moved so fast, they left afterimages in the air.
In moments, he dug a deep pit and jumped inside.Then, with a thought, he dumped the soil back in from his space pouch and buried himself.
All of this happened in mere seconds.
Yi Tianxing vanished—completely gone from sight.
BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!!
A thunderous stampede passed overhead.None of the beasts noticed the freshly disturbed earth. They kept charging forward, eyes bloodshot.
"No! Not me! The item's gone! You're chasing the wrong guy!"
"Fellow Daoist! You scammed me!!"
Mister Hongye's screams echoed farther and farther away. Clearly, now that the scent was gone, he'd become the monkeys' main target.
Even buried underground, Yi Tianxing could hear the howling, filled with regret and despair.
If there were a regret pill, Mister Hongye would have swallowed it in a heartbeat.Throwing that pack away might've sealed his fate—meat bun fed to a dog. No way to get it back.
Yi Tianxing didn't climb out right away.He focused on his Spirit Pearl Space, inspecting the contents of the bundle.
"Gourds? So many of them?"
Opening the pack, he found dozens of large gourds.
Though buried underground, Yi Tianxing had left space to move. He pulled one gourd out, popped the cork, and immediately—
A thick aroma of wine hit him.Fragrant, fruity, natural—rich and intoxicating.
He could feel every cell in his body reacting, his gourmet cells trembling with desire.
Not just food, but drink too.And this wine stirred them more than anything Lei He had ever made.
Gulp.
Even Yi Tianxing couldn't help but swallow his saliva.
"This is… Monkey Wine. Legendary spirit liquor."
He could feel dense spiritual energy in the scent.Considering Mister Hongye was chased by wine-making monkeys, and these gourds contained spiritual wine, there was no doubt—
This was the fabled Monkey Wine, a legendary delicacy.
The gourd was hefty—probably held two to three pounds of the stuff.