UGB Chapter 71 Casualties
Chapter 71 Casualties
For the next three days, the team headed north, traversing the outer areas of the Shifang Mountains.
The deeper they went over the places they passed through in those three days, the denser the traces of monsters became.
On the first day, the group was able to walk along a relatively flat path along the stream in the valley; on the second day, the mountain path suddenly became rugged and difficult to walk on, and in many places there was no path at all. They could only trek through the loose stones and vines with difficulty, one step deep and one step shallow.
By the third day, even the tiger demon's pace had slowed down, and it had to stop from time to time to determine its direction and avoid those dangerous places occupied by high-level demon beasts.
Even with sufficient caution, skirmishes are still unavoidable.
At noon on the first day, the group accidentally entered a swamp shrouded in mist.
A two-headed water lizard lurked in the swamp. When it burst from the mud, it instantly crushed a rogue cultivator who was leading the way. If Yao Ye hadn't promptly summoned a bronze mirror artifact to force the beast back, three or four more would likely have died.
Even Yao Ye's magical artifacts only forced him back, not killed him.
The two-headed water lizard sank into the depths of the swamp and never reappeared, as if it had never been there. The group dared not linger and practically tumbled and crawled across the swamp.
In this battle, one rogue cultivator was killed, and another outer disciple was splashed on the face by the venom of the water lizard. Half of his face festered and became infected. Although his companions temporarily suppressed the poison with an antidote pill, the injury was still shocking. He had to be helped by others to walk the rest of the way.
The following evening, as the group crossed a mountain ridge, they encountered a blue-feathered iron-winged eagle circling the summit.
The demonic bird had a wingspan of over five zhang (approximately 10 meters), and the gale it generated when it swooped down almost overturned people.
It targeted the wounded in the group, snatching away the outer disciple who was still recovering from poisoning with a single claw, then soared into the sky and disappeared into the clouds in an instant.
The outer disciple didn't even have time to utter a scream.
This is the first outer disciple to be lost on this trip.
Xue Zhen's face remained dark all night.
The situation was even worse on the third day.
In order to bypass a valley occupied by a late-stage Nascent Soul demon beast, the team had to traverse through the depths of a dense forest.
The dense forest was teeming with countless venomous insects and strange snakes. Though not demonic beasts, they were far more deadly than ordinary insects and snakes.
One of the outer disciples was bitten on the calf by a thin, jet-black snake while resting at night. In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, his entire body turned black and he died bleeding from all seven orifices. Even the antidote pills that Xue Zhen fed him were ineffective.
Another rogue cultivator was dragged into a clump of seemingly ordinary flower vines when the vines wrapped around his ankle.
All that could be heard was a sickeningly loud sound of flesh and bone being crushed, and then there was silence.
By the time Duan Heisi swung his knife and cut the flower vine, the man had already been shredded into a mangled mess of flesh and blood.
In just three days, two more lives were lost.
As the sunset painted the sky red once more on the fourth day, the group stopped by a mountain stream.
Chen Bai looked around and roughly counted the heads—
There were only five rogue cultivators left, making a total of six including himself; the number of outer disciples had decreased from ten at the start to seven, one of whom was still recovering from injuries, leaning against a rock with a sallow complexion and panting heavily.
The remaining total number of people is less than half of what it was at the start.
This was the result of Yao Ye repeatedly using magical artifacts.
The bronze mirror shone with spiritual light, a protective jade pendant could withstand an attack from the Azure Feather Iron-Winged Eagle, and a high-grade magic weapon, the jade sword…
If these things hadn't come into play at the crucial moment, the casualties would probably have doubled.
Everyone's faces were etched with exhaustion.
No one speaks.
The air was so heavy it felt like it had solidified.
Yao Ye sat on the tiger's back, playing with the bronze mirror artifact in his hand, his face expressionless.
However, the slight whitening of his knuckles as he held the mirror betrayed his turbulent emotions.
Xue Zhen stood beside him, carefully observing Yao Ye's expression, and cautiously said, "Senior Brother Yao, we will reach our destination in two more days."
"Once we obtain what's in that ruined mansion, this mission will be a great success."
Yao Ye did not respond.
Xue Zhen swallowed hard and tentatively asked, "As for the lost men..."
The Ten Directions Mountain Range is inherently extremely dangerous. Since an outer sect disciple died in the line of duty, the sect probably won't be too harsh on him.
"Won't you be too harsh?"
Yao Ye finally spoke, his voice as cold as ice: "There were twelve outer disciples when we set out, but now there are only seven left."
Nearly half of my assets have been lost. What kind of evaluation do you think the sect will give me?
Xue Zhen's lips moved, but he didn't dare to reply.
"As for whether that Foundation Establishment cultivator who passed away is still here, it remains unknown..."
Yao Ye flipped the bronze mirror over, flicked the surface with his fingertip, and produced a clear, melodious buzzing sound.
He suddenly chuckled, but there was a hint of self-deprecation in his laughter: "I originally thought that this mission would be a piece of cake, and I would get a top-notch evaluation, so that I would be qualified to compete for the position of true disciple in the second half of the year."
Now, things are even worse; they're worried about even maintaining a middle-to-upper-class status.
Xue Zhen's eyes flickered a few times.
He took a half step closer and lowered his voice, saying, "Senior brother, actually... there is a way."
Yao Ye glanced at him sideways.
Xue Zhen continued, "According to the route, the area we will be passing through in the next two days is the territory of several mid-stage Nascent Soul demon beasts."
If they continue marching in formation as before, the noise will be too great, and the probability of being detected by the monsters will be almost 100%.
If we were to confront them head-on, regardless of victory or defeat, there would inevitably be losses.
Yao Ye nodded: "So?"
"so--"
Xue Zhen's eyes turned cold, and he lowered his voice even further, "Why don't we let those rogue cultivators lure the demonic beasts away?"
Yao Ye remained silent for a moment.
Seeing his hesitation, Xue Zhen quickly added, "Anyway, these rogue cultivators were originally invited to scout the way and do odd jobs. Now that they have scouted most of the way, we outer disciples can walk the rest of the way on our own."
Their usefulness has reached its limit. Letting them lure away the monsters will reduce the pressure on us from the front, and also…”
He didn't finish his sentence, but gave Yao Ye a meaningful look.
Yao Ye remained silent for a moment, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.
His fingers rubbed back and forth along the edge of the bronze mirror, reflecting the flickering firelight.
After a long pause, he slowly nodded.
"You took care of it."
Yao Ye's voice was indifferent, as if he were merely giving a trivial instruction, "Don't make it too ugly. At least... leave a few to take back to the sect, so that you can explain it on the surface."
Xue Zhen's lips curled into a sinister smile as he nodded and replied, "Don't worry, Senior Brother, I know what I'm doing."
He turned around, his gaze passing over the campfire and landing on Chen Bai, who was leaning against a rock on the opposite hillside, resting with his eyes closed.
The firelight cast interplay of light and shadow on Xue Zhen's face, making his smile appear somewhat sinister.
He started walking slowly towards the direction where the rogue cultivators were gathered.