Chapter 50 - Forest Adventure

[Hmm?]I woke up groggily, feeling something pulling at my hand. I rubbed my eyes and opened them, but it was still dark outside, so I created a small light above my head to see what was happening. I came face to face with a big lizard, for sure a meter tall and at least three long, chewing on my hand with its razor-sharp teeth. How did I know they were razor-sharp? Because my entire sleeve was completely shredded, and the cuts were clean.I groaned in annoyance and slapped it with my left hand, forcing it to release me. The lizard shook its head and hissed at me, flaring of circular layer of skin around its neck as it slowly moved back.[Go away, shoo!] I sleepily demanded and flicked my hand, creating a gale. The lizard was pushed back further but didn't attempt to escape. It just stared at me with its stupid little black eyes.I slightly narrowed my eyes and mentally punched. Soul Smite went out, and instantly the lizard collapsed to the ground. It then shook its head a few seconds later and stood back up, disappearing into the darkness as if the devil was after it.I just yawned and turned around, bringing my hands under my head as a pillow. My right hand was completely fine. Barely a scratch from the beast.Scales of the Earth and Turtle Breathing Technique worked wonders in combination, making my skin invulnerable to the beast of the lower Realms. Even if I didn't use Qi to enhance my defense, I felt quite safe in the forest. And before I knew it, I fell back asleep.***Going on a hunt out in the wild, even if it was still on the Sect's territory for more than a couple of days, had to be announced in advance. If you didn't and you were gone for more than three days and the Sect noticed, they would consider you having abandoned the Sect or presume you dead.So I announced my departure for up to a week, which was the limit, before going on a little solo adventure to the southwest. The Sect's mountain range was to the north and stretched for hundreds of kilometers to the west, so I couldn't go there.And while I could go east for a bit and then north as I lived on the eastern edge of the mountain range, that was the direction of the Brilliant Sword Sect. There, somewhere in the east. And if there was one thing I wanted to stay as far away as possible from, it would be that damned Brilliant Sword Sect. I didn't want to take even the slightest chance of being discovered or recognized.So I went the exact opposite way. I ran for a full day, leaving my home far behind. I trained in the Hunting Tiger technique for quite a bit on the way, achieving great results in my newfound mobility. Like a speeding car on a highway, I galloped through the forest, dodging trees and bushes like an absolute expert. Except when I didn't.It happened more than once that I underestimated the strength of the soil underneath my feet and went sliding or tumbling on the floor until I hit a tree, or eventually came to a stop on my own.Long Dong was having a field day, laughing at my mistakes. He appeared to be having great fun, but I just ignored him.It was the dawn of a new day. I slowly stretched my limbs and stood up. Having nearly forgotten the night encounter, I only remembered after seeing some white marks on my right hand. I smirked in silence. The low-level wild beasts were unable to hurt me even in my sleep. Besides, it was not like I was a nice snack. I was all muscle, bone, and sinew. There was barely any fat to be found on my body, which was bad actually. It meant I couldn't go many days without food.[Hey, think I'm far enough away for flight?] I asked the old ghost."Ah? Ye, sure… But you better be careful, if anyone notices you, it will be trouble."I grinned and my feet soundlessly lifted off the ground. There was a powerful gust of air, and I was already above the forest, looking toward the horizon in the distance where the sun was already shining in the sky."Beautiful, isn't it?"[It's okay. Much better than the gloomy forest floor.] It was late summer and the air was nicely warm and fresh. I closed my eyes and just slowly breathed in while basking in the sun. it was so nice, so relaxing. I almost didn't want to move from the spot and just relax in the sky as the warm wind blew across my face.But, unfortunately, I forgot the skies weren't empty, even though they appeared so at a first glance.[Ah!] Something impacted my upper back and I could feel a sharp pain spreading from it. My eyes snapped open and I flicked my left hand behind me, blasting whatever was there off of me.I spun around, but there was nothing there. I frantically looked around and saw something shimmering in the sky, quickly moving around me.[Damn it, it's those things again!] The invisible sky piranhas. I completely forgot about them. And there wasn't just one, I saw many more of them quickly approaching, so I pushed any thoughts of battle to the back of my mind and quickly descended to the safety of the forest."Oh, hey! Wraiths! Haven't seen those in a while!"[Wraiths?] I slowly landed on the floor and took off my tunic to check on my wound."Oh, yeah… I almost thought they were exterminated since I didn't see any, but clearly, they are still around. Good to know."[Wait, you were expecting them and didn't say anything?!] I was honestly pissed. What good was this old pervert if he couldn't even warn me of dangers?"What? You are never going to learn anything if you don't experience it yourself, although looking at your body, it seems it wasn't the first time you met them… Maybe you need more repetition."I just rolled my eyes and took a piece of cloth to wipe away the blood. It wasn't too bad really. My hardened skin seemed to block most of the bite."You are quite quickly gathering scars, aren't you? What are you, like 15 years old? That's quite the collection."I knew his compliments were laced with sarcasm and he was mocking me, but I really couldn't care less.[You should have seen my previous body. There wasn't a patch of skin left without a scar, and I was even missing a hand. Not to mention all my broken bones…] I said, reminiscing on my past.The old ghost didn't answer, so I just cleaned out my wound in silence. It was a bit of a pain in the ass since I couldn't see it, but I felt it just fine. It stung like a bitch though. But, after a few healing spells the bleeding stopped, so I threw back my clothes when he finally reacted."You are lying! Previous body?! You are just messing with me, right? Impossible, you are just a kid, there is no way you could…" Long Dong descended into silence once more. Contemplating his life, most likely."No… It all makes sense! I knew there had to be an explanation for why you knew so much. No way a simple village kid could know so much about magic! You are like me, right? An old Soul in a new body, right? How did you do it? I can't detect a trace of decay from you… Or, is it that ability, absorbing the Souls of others? How old are you really?! Centuries?! Millennia?! Please, please tell me how you did it! Tell me, how could you escape the cycle?!"[Haha…] I just laughed at that ridiculous assumption and went on my merry way. [Wouldn't you like to know, hmm?] My demeanor suddenly changed to one of a confident old monster that lived many lifetimes. And I think it had an immediate effect."Yes! Please, I'll do anything!"[Knowledge… is a valuable resource, wouldn't you say?] I spoke mysteriously. I was honestly having too much fun with the old ghost. He mocked me? Well, I knew how to play dirty too!"Yes, the most valuable of them all! I'll- I'll tell you everything, everything you want to know!"I almost wanted to laugh out loud and tell him it was all a prank, but it was honestly crazy how desperate he seemed. Was slowly dying really that bad? Yes, yes it was, apparently.[Not now. Now is not the time. I need to reach the Golden Core Realm first, remember?] I gave a mocking grin, almost as if this was all a game for me and I was throwing the mud back in his face. Demanding to reach the Golden Core Realm of an old monster? Just to learn the scraps? The anxiety was bound to eat at him slowly until I decided to tell him it was all just a joke and I had no clue of any special secrets. But that could wait. Let him suffer a bit."Yes…" The old ghost answered dispiritedly and remained quiet for the next few hours.***I was just carving up some kind of small deer creature when he finally figured it out."Hey, wait a minute! You were just messing with me, weren't you?! No way you are really that old. Why would you need my knowledge if that was the case?"[You are right… I might have to reconsider since you don't seem all that bright.] I said. [It seems like that century of solitude really made a number on you, huh?]"So you really aren't…?"[My Soul is less than 20 years old. And you should probably know if I'm telling the truth, right?]"Damn it!"Clearly, he could tell if I was lying. And I was not, so he began sulking once more."I knew escaping death is impossible… This cursed world giving me false hopes, I hate it!"[Hmm, yeah, well… You'll just have to accept it I guess. Everyone dies eventually.]I began cooking the meat I just cleaned up by creating a fire above my hand and holding the meat above it in the other. My own flames couldn't hurt me, or at least the tiny ones couldn't. The big blaze could probably singe my hairs a bit."Yeah, you are right… It's just that… It's been such a long time..."[Hmm…] We didn't speak anymore and I just prepared my lunch in silence. Luckily I remembered to purchase salt before setting off, but I had no spices, so the meal was relatively simple.Qi slowly cycled through my body, giving me inexhaustible energy so I could travel the entire day and not be physically tired at the end. Though it was still mentally draining, and I had to sleep eventually.But with the help of the Turtle Breathing Technique, I could hide my presence and avoid any unwanted attention from the beasts of the forest. Though they could do just the same, and they were even better at it than me in that regard.For example, the monkey 10 meters away that I stared at. It was looking back at me while showing exactly zero Aura. Actually, never mind, it was an ape, I think. It had no tail.Standing on its back legs it came to about my shoulders, and we just stared at each other, not moving. It wasn't showing any aggression, but I didn't know if that would last. Since I didn't know its exact strength, I was wary. I knew some apes were really strong compared to humans, but that was back on Earth. I had no clue how things were here.The ape casually looked around, taking a wobbly step forward. That was good. At least it didn't seem too stable walking on two feet."Oho!" It suddenly said. I believe it was curious about me but didn't exactly want to get too close. I looked around the place, and I could see we were at the edge of a small clearing. Some tiny trees were growing there, about two to three meters in height. Relatively tiny compared to the massive Ironbarks all around them, but that didn't seem to bother them as they still had enough sunlight.I also noticed some tiny yellow fruits on those trees. There were only a few of them on each tree, most of them not much bigger than a cherry. Some of them were still partially green, so I wondered if maybe there were a few more that I just couldn't see."Uho! Uho!" The ape shouted suddenly as I took a step closer to the trees. It was telling me to stay away, I could understand that much. Perhaps it was guarding the place for someone else? I looked at it, and it was showing me its teeth in a clear sign of aggression.That's when I noticed movement in my periphery. I turned my head swiftly and saw a bunch more apes coming closer all around me, jumping from branch to branch and looking down at me from the safety of their trees."Huh… What are Mountain Apes doing here? Their land should be much further north."I looked at them again and noticed something that should have been obvious at the start. Their fur. It was light gray and at some spots white, as well as quite thick. It shouldn't be something for forest animals to evolve in, they stood out way too much.[You think they are going to be a problem? Should I back off?]