Li Jing quickly found a small and discreet inn. He didn't need a luxurious place since he will spend the whole night cultivating.
He thought that by choosing a small inn he would avoid the usual arrogant young masters and their problems but he was wrong. As soon as he entered it, he saw a beautiful and frail girl about sixteen years old, violently beating three muscular men.
"You three are not welcome in our inn anymore!" She yelled at the three men on the ground.
The three men quickly stood up and left the inn with a horrified expression as if a monster was chasing them.
Li Jing who attended the whole scene was speechless. This girl wasn't even a cultivator but she beat these men rather easily.
The man behind the counter who appeared to be the innkeeper looked at the girl and sighed.
"Yun'er, If you keep chasing our customers, soon no one will want to come to our inn…" He said.
"But father, did you see how they looked at me? These perverts deserved this beating!" She said.
The innkeeper didn't reply and let out a long sigh. He suddenly noticed Li Jing and smiled at him.
"Welcome young man, I'm sorry that you had to witness this. Are you here to book a room or for dinner?" He asked.
Li Jing walked towards the counter to answer the man. At least, he was now sure that there was no one else in the inn so he won't be disturbed overnight.
"I want to book a room for the night, please." He said.
"A room costs two-fifths of a Spirit Stone per night. For three-fifths of a Spirit Stone, dinner and breakfast are also included." Explained the innkeeper.
Li Jing pondered for a moment. It has been a long time since he ate any food, he usually relied on his Food Replacement Pills and he couldn't eat his variant Demonic Beast in his clan or in public. Therefore, he decided that he will eat real food for once.
"I will take a room with the meals included." He said while taking out a Spirit Stone and placing it on the counter before adding: "I left my horse outside the inn, can you please take care of it."
"Of course. You can sit at the table of your choice, my daughter will bring you dinner soon." Said the innkeeper with a large smile.
Since the inn was small, there were only five wooden tables. Li Jing chose the one on the far left and sat, waiting to be served.
A few minutes later, the girl brought him a warm bowl of noodles with pork.
"Thank you." He said, making sure to not look at her since she didn't seem to like it.
The girl didn't say anything and returned to her occupations while Li Jing started to eat his noodles. For him, it seemed like forever since the last time he ate noodles, so he took his time to appreciate them. Thankfully, they were very good.
A moment later, the girl came back and looked intently at Li Jing.
"Is there a problem?" He asked.
"You don't look like a pervert." She said.
"Huh? Thanks... I guess?" He said.
"So, are you in the city to participate in the tournament organized by the City Lord Wang Sheng? You seem young enough to participate." She asked.
"A tournament?"
"You really didn't hear about it? The City Lord organizes a tournament in four days to celebrate the wedding of his son. I heard that the prize will be an inestimable Body Strengthening Pill! Many people come to town to participate. However, there is an age restriction, only those between fourteen and eighteen years old can participate." She explained.
Li Jing thought about it for a moment and realized that this tournament was not mentioned in the web novel because Teng Fen will not come to the Green Jade City before a week.
"I see. It seems interesting, I will probably participate." He said, smiling.
The Body Strengthening Pill was very rare and its effect was amazing, Li Jing will not refuse a way to become stronger. Since this tournament will take place in four days, it left him enough time to get his pet and come back here…
"Then why are you in this city if you didn't even hear about the tournament?" She asked.
"Personal business." Answered Li Jing.
Hearing this, the girl looked annoyed but she didn't insist and walked away…
Once Li Jing finished eating his noodles, the innkeeper was already back from taking care of his horse so he asked him to show him his room.
He followed the man to his room that was located on the first floor of the inn and asked him not to be disturbed until the next morning.
The room was pretty basic: a bed, a desk with a chair, and a small dresser, but it was more than enough for Li Jing.
He sat cross-legged on the floor and started cultivating for the whole night.
…
The next morning, Li Jing stopped cultivating early and prepared to leave the inn.
After a quick breakfast, a bowl of rice porridge, he bade farewell to the innkeeper and his daughter and walked outside the inn towards his horse. Then, he took out his map and studied it.
According to the map, he had to follow the north direction from this city to reach the Relentless Mountain and he should be there before nightfall if he didn't stop on the way.
Li Jing mounted his horse and started his journey.
…
The sun has just started to set when he finally arrived. The journey had been uneventful but it was mainly because very few people dared to take the road leading to the Relentless Mountain.
From his position, Li Jing looked up and could see it: the Relentless Mountain. The mountain rose on the horizon and was so huge that its peak seemed to pierce the sky.
The base of the mountain was covered in a thick forest that had to be crossed to find the path to the bandits' hidden hideout.
Because this mountain was inhabited by many bandits, there were no villages or camps nearby. Therefore, Li Jing had no choice but to leave his horse at its base.
After giving it some food, he attached it to a tree and entered the forest to start searching for a shelter. The nights in this world were very dark and in a forest, it was even worse…