The next morning, after I woke up, I had some breakfast before trying to decide what to do. I couldn't freeload off the Lan family forever. I needed to get some recognition. While I heard that Master Lan was rapidly recovering, nobody called me to the family meeting or whatever. Even Lan Bei Er had somewhat ghosted me, though I knew it was likelier that she was simply taking care of her dad now that he was up and conscious.
Who was I to interrupt the bonding time between parent and child?
So I decided to go look for information regarding the other major sects. Before I could leave, however, I caught sight of Hong Yao Yao. She dropped down silently next to me, still dressed in that white dress with pink and gold trims and a somewhat short skirt.
"If you're planning to impress the White Herb Sect, maybe it would be a good idea to try and get your hands on the True Fire," she suggested.
"True Fire?" That was right. When I went to the Crimson Forest about a day or two ago, I recalled running into that group of Foundation Establishment stage cultivators who mentioned the ruin and True Fire to me. "Has no one obtained it yet?"
"No, not yet. There are still people trying to get into the ruin, but I doubt they have succeeded in penetrating to the core of it yet. You still have a shot."
Hmm, interesting. Indeed, if I did acquire the True Fire, that would put me in good stead for becoming an alchemist. Having True Fire was a massive advantage in the process of refining spirit medicines and operating furnaces. Most alchemists would die to get it. Furthermore, alchemy could be learned, but the True Fire wasn't something that could be grown like cabbages.
"Good idea. What about you?"
"I have no interest in the True Fire. I don't want to be an alchemist. And my techniques don't benefit from it, so there's no point."
That was true. Hong Yao Yao appeared to have mastered charm and seduction techniques, so the True Fire wasn't very compatible with her current set of skills. To be fair, it didn't have anything to do with what I had learned so far, but if my goal was to gain the approval of the White Herb Sect, then getting it would go a long way toward achieving that.
"All right, then I'll set off then. Thanks."
"Good luck!" Hong Yao Yao giggled and waved her hand as she sent me off. "If you fail, you're welcome to cry on my bosom."
"Uh, no thanks."
I then left the Lan residence. Thankfully, the horseman with the heavenly carriage and kirins was willing to give me a ride.
"The whole of the Lan family owes you gratitude!" He said. "So don't be reserved. Whenever you need a ride, call me and I'll bring you to your destination! And don't forget to call me when you're done! I'll definitely bring you back to the mansion!"
He didn't exactly treat me as the Lan family's son-in-law, but he certainly was grateful to me, treating me like an insider. Or a family member. I guess I should be grateful for that at least. It appeared that the two morons from last night were an extreme minority. The majority of the servants were very thankful that I had saved their master.
The Lan family treated their servants well and were loved very much. I wasn't surprised. One of the reasons why I fell for Lan Bei Er was because of her kindness and purity.
So I ended up in the Crimson Forest again in less than two days. I wondered if I was fated to keep coming here over and over again. That would be weird.
After the chauffeur dropped me off at the front of the Crimson Forest and handed me the talisman to call upon him as usual, I ventured into the Crimson Forest. While bashing my way in, I kept an eye out for the ruin. I had done some homework before embarking on this quest, and I roughly knew where it was rumored to be located in.
My suspicions proved to be more concrete when I caught sight of fellow cultivators heading in the same direction. They tended to be the very desperate or very ambitious – given that we were risking our lives in the highly dangerous Crimson Forest populated by fire-type spirit beasts, only foolhardy people or those confident in their strength would venture inside. After all, even the other cultivators trying to court Lan Bei Er didn't dare to explore the forest in search of a Red Python. That was just how dangerous the place was.
Adjusting my glasses, I observed the competition. They were spread out and moving separately. Most of them were in groups, but there was a single guy who was operating solo, aloof from everyone else. He was a tall and lanky young man in blue and black robes. His red hair was spiky and somewhat gelled. He emanated a hostile aura that caused everyone else to stay far away from him. Despite his slightly handsome features, his slouched posture screamed lone wolf to me. I recognized the look in his eyes. He was a survivor, someone who had experienced quite a few ordeals and somehow managed to just barely pull through them.
He was definitely somebody to keep an eye on.
There was another pair who drew my attention. A young, rich kid in white, red and gold robes, shuffled uncomfortably as he scratched at his blond hair. Beside him was his bodyguard, a tall and sturdily built guy who towered over his charge. I couldn't see anything at all – his features were completely hidden beneath his hood. The guy was wearing a long, flowing coat despite the heat in the forest, covered from head to toe.
I had seen the like before – rich kids who wanted to go on an adventure and gain recognition so that their parents would recognize their strength. That would help seal their status as heir or some other high ranked position in their family hierarchy. Particularly rich kids who were way down in the line of succession eager to earn a relic or achievements in order to place them at an advantage over their older siblings, or to contribute to the family in exchange for acknowledgement and part of the inheritance. Enough to warrant a dedicated bodyguard.
It was the bodyguard who I was curious about. He emanated an air of mystery and I instinctively understood that he was strong. At least innate realm. If we were to fight, I wouldn't know who would win. Another rival to keep track of.
There were several other groups, young disciples from minor sects who mingled together nervously and stared around as they searched for the ruin. Most of them were desperate people who had lost everything and were staking whatever little resources they had left in order to get a relic or ability to lift them out of whatever predicaments they had found themselves in. For example, a sect on the verge of disbanding, or to clear a debt.
I followed behind, keeping a respectful distance. I wasn't able to keep pace with the guy with red spiky hair – he was unbelievably fast – but most of the other groups didn't seem like they have the stamina or tenacity to keep going. More than a few groups dropped out as the journey went on, a few turning around and leaving the forest. A few actually died to the fire-type spirit beasts that infested here, once again illustrating the danger of the Crimson Forest.
"Stop monkeying around," I complained and beheaded a fiery ape that swung toward me, leaping from vine to vine. Its fists had ignited, but before it could throw a punch, my sword had found its neck. Leaving its headless corpse to topple behind me, I brushed past the dangling vines that the fiery ape had rode upon to move forward.
By now, the dozens of groups had thinned out to just over twenty groups. But I was beginning to make out my destination. Right past the dense cluster of trees with leaves dyed red from the saturated yang qi, I could make out a valley. Waving my hands to bash and shove through the thick foliage, I stumbled into the open, panting and perspiring.
When I raised my head to survey the surroundings, the first thing I noticed was lots of mountains. Jagged peaks soared up into the skies, cutting through clouds. Greenery ringed brown and gray slopes, plants growing ruggedly along the sides of the fierce mountains. Already I could spot cultivators climbing in the distance, their bodies shrunken to the size of ants when I studied their figures from afar.
They could use their flying swords to scale the mountains, but those who did were swiped from the air by gouts of flame or flying wyverns that breathed fire. I watched one swordsman scream and plummet to his death when he was slashed by a winged wyvern, his body catching fire and turning into a comet. Even from the distance, I could hear his agonized shriek and I shuddered involuntarily. I was glad I didn't ask the chauffeur to bring me here by flying carriage.
"Hmm…"
I noticed that all of the cultivators were climbing a single mountain, ignoring the rest that clustered around it. Of course it was the tallest mountain, though the height wasn't the reason why the cultivators had chosen to climb it.
It was the single blaze of fire that burned ferociously at the tip, a beacon of flame that flickered and swayed with a life of its own.
The True Fire.
Wiping the sweat from my face and cleaning my glasses on a dry spot of my otherwise drenched robes, I exhaled and began making my way toward that particular mountain. I felt a sense of foreboding, but pushed it away. My goal was just right in front of me. I couldn't give up now.
As if they felt similarly, the other groups of cultivators also pushed through, covering the last stretch of ground to get to the mountain. I ignored them. This wasn't a race. It was wiser to conserve some strength, for I knew that there would be spirit beasts and monsters waiting for us along the mountainous paths.
Halfway across the valley, I paused. Even though it was hard to see past the tall grass that stretched above me, I could sense movement. And it wasn't from my fellow human cultivators.
"Fire raptors."
A person from my previous world might have mistaken the term for a gunship of the Adeptus Astartes in the 41st millennium, but I wasn't referring to that kind of fire raptor. It would be great if it existed in this world, though. I could make use of its twin Avenger bolt cannons and wing-mounted missiles. They would devastate the winged wyverns for sure.
Rather, the fire raptors in this cultivator world were lizard-like creatures with sickle-shaped claws on their talons. Standing on two legs and covered in red feathers, they were akin to the man-sized Deinonychus, but with the ability to breathe fire. They were extremely cunning and lethal.
Around me, cultivators were being pulled under, ambushed by the fire raptors and slaughtered before they could make a sound. Their companions didn't even realize they were gone until it was too late and they were cut down and dragged away.
I wasn't going to make the same mistake.
Turning around, I swung my sword and sliced off the fire raptor's head before it could take a bite out of me. Then I stepped to the side, avoiding the hook-shaped claw on a second fire raptor's talon before it could eviscerate me. It spun about, its tail straight up to maintain its balance, and flames erupted from its jaws.
I vanished into the shadows and appeared behind the stunned fire raptor, running through its spine with my sword. It writhed and collapsed. I was surprised that Shadow Strike worked – while the fire raptor was cunning, deadly and agile, it was pretty fragile. It didn't have the same armored scales that the Red Python or salamanders possessed.
That made things easier.
Holding my sword out, I waited for another ambush, but I sensed the pack of fire raptors backing away.
"Clever boys," I muttered under my breath. The fire raptors were cunning enough to realize when they were outmatched and retreat. Fine then. If they didn't bother me, then I wasn't going to pursue them. I had more important things to do than to hunt spirit beasts.
The rest of the journey was without incident, thankfully. I continued to trample through the tall grass, and while I kept an eye out for the patiently watching fire raptors, none of them made any move to attack. They turned tail and disappeared into the tall grass silently, leaving no trace of their presence.
Wise choice.
Pushing past the last strands of tall grass, I finally emerged into the open once again. Stretching my head back, I studied the highest mountain, the thick cone of flame still blazing brightly at its peak.
Taking a deep breath, I began to climb.