Watching Qin Jun and the others disappear into the distance, the demon beasts soon dispersed, and the beast tide thus dissolved.
"All right, everyone, you don't need to follow us anymore,"
Qin Jun suddenly stopped, turned around, and spoke. The reason he had remained silent until now was because he respected their shared status as members of the Human Clan.
When it came to people with whom he held no grudges, Qin Jun was still willing to lend a hand, especially since it hadn't put him at a disadvantage.
"May I know the young master's esteemed name? My name is Lan Ruoji, and I thank you for your rescue!"
An elegant young man came forward, clasped his fist, and said. Dressed in blue with a long sword at his waist and a sunny smile on his face, he easily evoked a sense of goodwill in others.
A weakling?
Your parents must have cherished you greatly to have given you this name!
"Qin Jun, it was but a minor effort," Qin Jun said while inwardly mocking as he waved his hand. He did not conceal his identity because his prior existence was considered a disgrace to the royal family. His stories were essentially sealed by the palace, and only a small number of people knew how decadent the Third Prince was.
"Young Master Qin, my name is Li Yu, and I come from the Burning Mountain Valley..."
"Young Master Qin, I am Wang Yuheng, from the Purple Light Sect..."
"My name is Miao Yidao, and I thank Young Master Qin for the rescue..."
Seeing Lan Ruoji lead the introductions, the other cultivators followed suit, each wishing to make Qin Jun's acquaintance.
Qin Jun waved his hand in impatience, "All right, you can leave now!"
A group of cultivators in the energy refining realm didn't interest him much, especially since he had already broken through to the Foundation Establishment realm. He was sincerely not interested in those cultivators weaker than him.
Moreover, two super experts of the Transforming Void Realm were standing by his side.
"Humph! These humans are always hunting the demon beasts in my territory; I really want to swallow them whole!"
It was only considering Qin Jun was also human that it did not end these vermin while they were running.
With a shake of his head and a smile, Qin Jun watched as Lan Ruoji and the other cultivators quickly dispersed, the terrifying presence of the demon king leaving them with spines chilled.
Humans and demon beasts were sworn enemies through the ages. Demon beasts ate humans to acquire the spiritual energy within their flesh and blood, which would accelerate their cultivation.
Humans capable of energy refining were collectively referred to as cultivators. They killed demon beasts to obtain spirit cores, which contained a lifetime's gathering of spiritual energy, not only aiding the cultivators' cultivation but also providing useful materials like skins, flesh, sinews, and bones for making artifacts and medicinal ingredients, among other things.
In short, humans and demon beasts were like fire and water, completely incompatible.
If not for the Mythology system, the Roaring Sky Dog would never have submitted to Qin Jun.
"Little junior sister, take good care of yourself."
Senior Sister Li whispered to Chang Qianqian, who replied with a smile, "Don't worry, Qin Jun has promised to protect me and escort me back to Xuanling Sect."
"Then I'm relieved," Senior Sister Li nodded and said, after which she glanced at Chang Hao and left.
Chang Hao was quite famous in Xuanling Sect, but now he looked extremely disheveled due to the Roaring Sky Dog, standing to one side with his head down, remaining silent throughout, though she suspected it had something to do with Qin Jun, she didn't dare to pry.
"All right, let's continue on our way!"
Glancing in the direction where Lan Ruoji and others had departed, Qin Jun clapped his hands and announced, and naturally, nobody objected.
"Roaring Sky Dog, what's the strongest demon beast among your subordinates?"
"There are three fourth-step beings, one of which is about to break through to the fifth step and take a human form."
"Oh? How about calling them to serve me?"
"That won't do, they hate humans."
"Tsk!"
Qin Jun chatted with the Roaring Sky Dog as they moved forward, with Daji and Chang Qianqian closely following, and Chang Hao bringing up the rear. The group headed towards the horizon.
The presence of the Roaring Sky Dog deterred other demon beasts from approaching as they journeyed.
While Qin Jun was excited, he also felt a bit regretful; he had hoped to gain experience by killing demon beasts, but with the Roaring Sky Dog around, that was no longer an option.
Fortunately, he had sounded out the Roaring Sky Dog's opinion: as long as he didn't kill the demon beasts that had been under its jurisdiction, it would be fine — after all, it was common for demon beasts to slaughter each other, a natural law where the weak served as food for the strong.
With the Roaring Sky Dog joining them, Chang Qianqian was extremely intrigued by it, constantly revolving around, and completely ignoring Chang Hao, once a kind and approachable senior brother, now reduced to insignificance in her eyes.
Chang Hao became exceedingly docile, no longer talking back to Qin Jun. When Qin Jun tasked him with fetching firewood and finding water sources, he complied without any complaints, clearly intimidated by the Roaring Sky Dog.
The journey was monotonous, so Qin Jun started training with Daji as his coach. Although he had the Mythology system, he understood how important real combat experience was. He not only wanted his subordinates to be invincible, but he also aspired to possess supreme power himself, finding comfort only in his own strength.
Thus began Qin Jun's rigorous training, with Chang Hao and Chang Qianqian as spectators. Both were astonished by Qin Jun's talent. His combat awareness was exceptional, rarely making the same mistake twice. Furthermore, with all eight extraordinary meridians unblocked after breaking through to the Foundation Establishment realm, he made significant progress every day.
Five days breezed by swiftly.
Finally, Qin Jun and his party saw a town. The vast and resource-rich Qianyue Kingdom had only one hundred thirty-seven cities, but many towns, which were quite distant from each other. If traveling on foot, it could take a long time to get from one to another. Qin Jun's group had extended a three-day journey to five due to their leisurely pace.
"Qingtan City? After passing through, we should be close to Xuanling Sect, right?" Qin Jun asked Chang Qianqian. His memory as the previous heir was mostly centered around the royal capital, and he didn't know much about the geography of the entire Qianyue Kingdom, barely recalling the names of the cities.
Chang Qianqian replied with a smile, "Yes, after Qingtan City, another day's walk will get us there."
Her time captured by Xiahou En had been nerve-wracking, but these days with Qin Jun had eased a lot of her stress. Qin Jun, hailing from Earth, would sometimes share jokes, making Chang Qianqian and Daji laugh a lot, which gradually increased her fondness for Qin Jun.
"We're almost there,"
Qin Jun murmured to himself, knowing that once he delivered Chang Qianqian back to Xuanling Sect, he would be rewarded and able to draw a new skill.
At present, aside from Desert Eagle, Qin Jun lacked offensive methods.
Cultivators fought using various spells and martial techniques; he couldn't possibly rely on hand-to-hand combat, could he?
The power of Desert Eagle was limited, too. Enemies with quick movements could easily evade bullets.
Therefore, Qin Jun was very eager to draw an incredible skill!
The group arrived at the city gates, where Qingtan City's walls stood seven to eight meters high, and the gates were five meters tall and four meters wide, bustling with traffic and lively activity.
Two rows of soldiers stood at the city gates, and when Qin Jun and the others got close, a soldier stopped them and said, "Four people plus one dog, ten copper coins."
Do you have to pay to enter a city?
Qin Jun frowned. There were no such rules in the Qianyue Kingdom, where at most one's identity would be checked.
Chang Qianqian was used to such things and promptly took out ten copper coins from her purse.
Just like that, the group entered Qingtan City. As soon as they did, Qin Jun was bumped into by a small figure.