The Fire-tailed Scorpion was dead, yet Lin Feng continued to unleash four or five more violet lightning bolts, continuing its brutal desecration.
—He stopped only when his strength finally gave out, not because he realized the enemy was dead.
As Lin Feng tried to summon the next bolt, dizziness washed over him. His legs buckled, and he slumped to the ground.
Only then did his frenzy end. He stared blankly at the charred corpse ahead.
"..."
An eerie silence fell, thick and unnerving.
"Lin... Lin Feng, are you alright?"
Zheng Kai's voice finally pierced the stillness. Lin Feng jolted, looking up to see his four companions standing before him, their expressions a mix of concern and bewilderment.
"I'm... fine," Lin Feng managed, attempting to rise but finding his body limp. "Just drained my qi. I'll recover after resting."
He now realized how foolish he must have seemed. Glancing at the scorched scorpion corpse, then at the others, he awkwardly added, "Uh... this was my first demon beast hunt. I... overreacted. Sorry for the show."
In that moment of terror—after the scorpion's tail slammed into him—he'd been utterly paralyzed, certain he would die. Panic had overtaken him; he'd lashed out blindly, forgetting even his teammates. The ordeal felt more harrowing than his confrontation with Han Tie's group. Without experience facing beasts, such a near-fatal strike had left him floundering.
"Glad you're alright," Zheng Kai said, no trace of mockery in his voice. His eyes fixed on Lin Feng's chest, he sighed in relief. "You scared me half to death. That's a high-grade defensive artifact under there, isn't it? Thank the heavens..."
Lin Feng's outer robe was burnt away, revealing faint golden armor—the finest artifact he owned. Without it, the scorpion's strike would have pierced his heart. Even with protection, his chest throbbed dully from the impact, though the injury was minor.
Assured of Lin Feng's safety, Zheng Kai chuckled in amazement. "You truly never hunted before? Yet you volunteered to bait it? Reckless... Lucky you had armor—and all those Tier 2 talismans?"
Duanmu Rui and the others gaped. A high-grade artifact and multiple pristine Tier 2 talismans were luxuries few Qi Condensation cultivators could afford—unless, like Zheng Kai, they came from wealth.
"I'd prepared thoroughly for this hunt," Lin Feng deflected. He eyed the scorpion's remains. "Is it... dead?"
Zheng Kai shot the corpse a pitying look. "Extremely dead."
The scorpion had truly been unlucky. Certain of its kill, it had let its guard down—only to be pummeled into oblivion.
Duanmu Rui stepped forward, drawing a dagger to carve open the carcass. He extracted a reddish demon core, half the size of an egg, and handed it to Lin Feng.
"A core, as expected. But the rest is ruined..."
"Thank you," Lin Feng accepted it with a mix of delight and embarrassment. "Sorry about the materials..."
The scorpion's carapace, tail, and blood—valuable for crafting talismans—had been obliterated by ice and lightning. The core's worth barely offset the three spent talismans, leaving little profit.
But Lin Feng didn't care. Two talismans could be recharged with materials; only the ice-spike talisman, reduced to ash, was lost. His goal was achieved. Were he alone, he'd have eagerly pulled out that luminous artifact to restore it immediately.
...
Though Lin Feng had succeeded, the team's objective remained. This first kill was auspicious, but Crimson Rock Mountain held their true quarry. They'd planned to raid a nest, ensuring each member slew at least one mid-stage Fire-tailed Scorpion.
Lin Feng's qi reserves, shallow to begin with, soon replenished. Led by Zheng Kai, they pressed upward.
The mountain was vast, pathless. They chose a route and began climbing.
For mortals, the ascent would be lethal. But cultivators scaled it effortlessly—even Lin Feng at Qi Condensation Layer Six felt little strain after a hundred meters.
"There! A nest!"
Zheng Kai pointed excitedly toward a cliff face forty meters ahead. A two-meter-wide cave yawned there, guarded by a scorpion slightly smaller than Lin Feng's kill—basking in the sun, or keeping watch.
After a moment's scrutiny, Zheng Kai whispered, "A small nest. No second-grade beasts. Perfect for us."
Lin Feng, inexperienced, asked earnestly, "So we can handle it? What's the plan?"
"Easily, if we're careful," Zheng Kai nodded. "Stay together. Even multiple scorpions won't overwhelm us. Kill the sentry first, then storm the cave!"
He drew a machete-like blade, offering it to Lin Feng. "Fists are too risky. Use this."
Lin Feng hesitated, then smiled. "Thanks, Brother Zheng. I have my own."
Reaching into his robe, he retrieved his spatial ring. With a flick of his wrist, a high-grade longsword appeared.
"You... have a spatial ring?!"
Zheng Kai's eyes bulged. Duanmu Rui and the others stared in disbelief. Spatial rings were rare even among Foundation Establishment cultivators; for an unknown mid-Qi Condensation rogue to possess one was staggering.
"I stumbled upon it," Lin Feng explained. "I kept it hidden earlier. Hope you understand."
"Heh. You're full of surprises, Lin Feng," Zheng Kai chuckled, brushing it off. "Caution is wise. Now—let's move! I'll take point this time!"
He sheathed the machete, drawing a silver longsword instead. With a sharp nod to the group, he burst forward like the wind!
Zheng Kai moved faster than the scorpion Lin Feng had faced. He cleared the hundred meters in leaps. The sentry barely registered the threat before Zheng Kai's sword thrust at its head!
Screech!
The scorpion lunged, flaming tail stabbing toward Zheng Kai's skull—a mutual kill poised to unfold.
But Zheng Kai sidestepped effortlessly. His blade sliced a deep gash across the scorpion's head.
Screeeech!
Before it could retaliate, Zheng Kai drove his sword through its skull, pinning it to the ground. It thrashed wildly, shrieking, then fell still.
—A first-grade eighth-tier beast, slain in under ten seconds.
"Incredible..."
Lin Feng watched Zheng Kai retrieve the corpse into his spatial ring, then wave them forward. A pang of envy stirred within him.
...
Zheng Kai led, Duanmu Rui and Qin Ye flanking, while Lin Feng and Lu Cheng—the weakest—brought up the rear. They formed a wedge and entered the cave.
As predicted, it was a small, first-grade nest. The first three scorpions, mere mid-stage beasts, fell swiftly. Deeper inside, two late-stage scorpions emerged, but teamwork dispatched them with ease.
A hundred meters in, the tunnel widened into a cavern of stalactites, spanning a hundred meters. There, they confronted a pack of five.
Among them: two ninth-tier, one eighth-tier, two seventh-tier, and a sixth-tier—matching their own team's rough hierarchy. Lin Feng initially worried, but tension eased quickly. The mindless beasts attacked wildly, while the humans coordinated seamlessly, artifacts amplifying their advantage.
They picked off the scorpions one by one, shielding against the pack while focusing fire. Soon, all five lay dead.
Screech!
As the final scorpion fell to Duanmu Rui's spear, silence reclaimed the cavern.
Zheng Kai collected the corpses into his ring for later division. The group rested.
"So, Lin Feng," Zheng Kai grinned, nudging him. "Thrilling?"
"Thrilling?!" Excitement still coursed through Lin Feng. "This is insane!" It felt like a dungeon raid from Earth's games—yet infinitely more visceral.
"Heh. You handled yourself better than my first time here," Zheng Kai admitted. "I hid behind my father the whole time. Though..." He winked. "Your panic earlier? That was classic first-timer material!"
Lin Feng flushed, scratching his head as the others laughed.
After more banter and rest, Zheng Kai checked a clock-like artifact. "Dusk approaches. Camping here is risky. Let's leave before dark—we've done well. Agreed?"
"Agreed," Lin Feng nodded. His goal achieved; further risk was unnecessary. Duanmu Rui and the others assented—their haul would yield useful spirit stones.
Ready to depart, they rose...
When—
KREEEEE!!!
A piercing shriek tore through the cavern, freezing them all.