Yuan Ming shifted the large rock from the cave entrance, utilized the Fur Cloak Skill to transform into a White Ape, and leaped out, quickly climbing a nearby tall tree.
Having spent nearly twenty continuous days inside the cave, breathing the fresh air outside invigorated his spirits and he felt remarkably clear and refreshed.
After taking a deep breath, Yuan Ming began to move from tree to tree, leaping towards the direction of the river he had noted earlier.
Although he had mastered the Fur Cloak Skill on his own, hunting wild beasts was not an easy task. He planned to catch some piranhas to satiate his hunger and restore some strength first.
When Yuan Ming reached a large tree not thirty yards from the river, he paused, concealed himself behind dense leaves, and peered through the gaps down to the water below.
He saw a half-man, half-tiger figure in the river, constantly splashing around. Each time it rose, he could vaguely see a fish in its mouth, which it swallowed before diving back into the water.
Yuan Ming recognized this person; it was Wulu. However, Lage, who had previously traveled with him, was nowhere to be seen.
"This guy has actually mastered the Fur Cloak Skill so quickly!" Yuan Ming felt somewhat surprised.
He had struggled hard to grasp the Blood Qi Skill and only managed to master the Fur Cloak Skill today with the help of the Nine Elements Technique. Like him, Wulu only had the Four Spirit Roots aptitude, yet he had succeeded already?
Yuan Ming did not reveal himself. He watched from afar as Wulu caught more than a dozen piranhas and then left before he jumped down from the tree and went to the riverside.
Like before, he painfully used his ape tail to hook about a dozen piranhas and wrapped them with a piece of bear skin before quickly moving away from the water's edge.
He returned to the cave and cooked the fish over a fire.
After devouring the dozen piranhas, some of which had black fish roe in their bellies that were highly nourishing, Yuan Ming felt his spirit significantly invigorated, and his strength began to recover.
After eating his fill, he wiped his mouth and pondered his next move.
Now, with only ten days left until the one-month deadline, he needed to collect five portions of Fierce Beast Essence Blood to exchange for the antidote. Although he could now utilize the Fur Cloak Skill on his own, his strength had not increased much compared to before. Hunting the Black Bear had been so difficult, let alone Fierce Beasts.
After considering for a moment, Yuan Ming decided to wait a little longer. He would spend a few days recuperating his body, continue accumulating some mana, and then hunt the Fierce Beasts.
Elder Hu Huo had told them that the stronger the mana, the greater the power of the Fur Cloak Skill. He understood the principle that sharpening the axe would not delay the work of cutting wood.
He sat down cross-legged, continued to practice the Nine Elements Technique, and inhaled the nature's spiritual energy.
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
As Yuan Ming was quietly channeling his energy inside the cave, a ray of golden sunrise shone through a crack in the rocks, and the crisp sound of birds calling also came from outside.
Yuan Ming opened his eyes, stopped cultivating, picked up a piece of cold roasted meat beside him, swallowed it down in a few bites, drank some water, and stood up to stretch his limbs.
By now, his skin radiated a crystalline luster from within, and the haggardness on his face had completely disappeared.
Elder Yu Hu had been right; the Nine Elements Technique was exceptional in strengthening and nourishing the body. With sufficient diet and the regulation by the Nine Elements Technique, his body had fully recovered.
And after five days of rigorous cultivation, his mana had also significantly increased, with a small reservoir of mana slowly circulating within his Dantian.
However, with only five days left until the one-month deadline, he must start hunting beasts now!
With this thought, Yuan Ming left the cave, formed a hand seal to perform the Fur Cloak Skill, and his white ape skin around his waist curled upwards, quickly revealing a White Ape in the forest.
The White Ape's physique seemed slightly more robust than before, and the strength in his movements had also increased a bit.
"Indeed, the stronger the mana, the greater the power of the Fur Cloak Skill!" Yuan Ming nodded slightly and sprinted towards the south.
After running for about half an hour, the forest abruptly ended, and a vast canyon appeared ahead.
The canyon was about two to three miles wide and stretched indefinitely in both directions, reaching as far as one could see.
Fog lingered inside the canyon, which seemed bottomless, like a natural moat separating the two sides.
"This must be the canyon Elder Hu Huo mentioned," Yuan Ming muttered to himself.
On the opposite side was also a dense forest, reportedly inhabited by the Fierce Beasts that he needed to kill for their blood.
But the fog-filled valley's depth was unknown, and it was unclear if Fierce Beasts lurked within.
He picked up a rock and threw it with all his strength into the canyon's mist. A few seconds later, he heard a faint sound of the rock hitting something.
Yuan Ming's expression relaxed slightly—it seemed the canyon was not too deep.
After hesitating slightly, Yuan Ming proceeded, finding a gentler slope and sliding down towards the bottom of the canyon, quickly reaching the floor.
The mist was thick here, limiting visibility to only a few yards. Beyond that, everything was engulfed in white fog.
Possibly due to the mist, the valley floor was damp, perpetually wet and only grew some moss, which contrasted sharply with the vibrant forest above.
Relieved, Yuan Ming sighed; such a desolate place was unlikely to support vicious beasts.
He cautiously moved forward, marking the ground at each step to prevent losing his way.
He soon crossed the bottom of the canyon and reached the mountain wall on the opposite side.
The White Ape was not only good at climbing trees but also faced little difficulty climbing cliffs, and Yuan Ming quickly scaled the cliffside to reach the forest on the opposite bank.
Upon entering this place, he immediately sensed a slight change in the surroundings. The trees here were taller and denser, the nature's spiritual energy seemed richer, but the swirling mountain wind carried a bone-chilling coolness. Even through the White Ape Skin, all his body hair stood on end.
Yuan Ming raised his eyebrows and muttered that this forest really was rather strange.
He leapt onto a tree and headed deep into the dense forest. He hadn't gone far when he stopped, walking slowly along the edge of the canyon, carefully searching for traces of Fierce Beasts.
After all, he wasn't yet clear on just how powerful the Fierce Beasts were, so it seemed prudent to stay near the canyon, where he could jump in to escape if overwhelmed.
As he proceeded, the surroundings were silent save for the occasional bird call in the distance.
This dead silence made Yuan Ming's mouth dry and his palms slightly sweaty.
He wiped his palms and was about to continue, when a strange cry came from the jungle ahead, sharp and piercing, akin to a baby's cry.
Yuan Ming's body shuddered, and he hurriedly stopped, hiding behind a thick clump of leaves and looking towards the source of the noise, though he could see nothing.
Just then, another roar sounded, very different from the previous shriek.
His eyebrows twitched, and he slowed his pace as much as possible, making no noise.
It didn't take long for Yuan Ming to reach the source of the two roars.
Peering through the gaps in the leaves, he looked down.
The source of the shrill cries was a peculiar beast standing half a zhang tall, with a head like a rat and a torso covered in thick, yellow, short fur. Its spine was even covered with a shell-like armor, clearly extremely tough at a glance.
"Armadillo?" Yuan Ming guessed silently, although armadillos weren't usually this large.
The yellow armadillo's two green bean-sized eyes shone with a fierce light, looking towards the bushes ahead where two green foxes were crouching.
These foxes had fur of a jade-green hue, with eyes to match, vastly different from ordinary foxes, a zhang long and three feet high. Their sleek bodies suggested they were built for speed.
The Green Fox's jade green eyes stared at the yellow armadillo, growling ceaselessly.
The ferocity in the eyes of all three beasts intensified, and they soon burst forward, clashing fiercely with one another.
Yuan Ming watched intently; these three creatures were bizarre looking and large, likely Fierce Beasts, and it was a good opportunity to see their capabilities.
After observing for a moment, his expression grew increasingly grave.
Neither the yellow armadillo nor the green foxes' combat abilities were anything like he had anticipated.
The Green Fox, as he had guessed, was a type of agile Fierce Beast, moving twice as fast as ordinary foxes or wolves, with ferocious bites and sharp claws.
The yellow armadillo was even more formidable: its claws were like black iron hooks that could easily leave deep marks on stone, and the yellow armor on its back was exceptionally sturdy, the claws of the two Green Foxes only leaving white marks upon it.
The battle quickly became clearer, with the yellow armadillo facing two opponents but still having the upper hand. The two Green Foxes were being increasingly wounded, their blood staining their fur red.
After a fierce fight, the two Green Foxes could no longer withstand it and turned to flee.
The yellow armadillo didn't pursue but roared a few times and burrowed into the bushes nearby.
Yuan Ming's eyes sparkled, and his body flitted through the trees, chasing after the two Green Foxes.
The Green Foxes were already injured, making them easy prey!
The two Green Foxes were seriously hurt, and one of them had injured its hind leg, slowing it down considerably. Yuan Ming quickly caught up with it.
The fox behind seemed to sense something amiss. It was the one with the injured leg. It turned its head to look back but saw nothing.
By then, Yuan Ming was already above the Green Fox. He pushed off a tree, swooping down like a hawk hunting prey.
The Green Fox was startled and hurriedly dodged to the side, but the leg injury slowed its movements considerably, and Yuan Ming pinned it to the ground.
The fox, panicked and angry, bit towards Yuan Ming's arm, but Yuan Ming reacted faster, pressing his knee down hard on the fox's spine.
The intense pain shot straight to the bone, causing the Green Fox to cry out in agony, its head involuntarily lifting.
Yuan Ming's thick, ape-like arms then wrapped around the Green Fox's neck, overlapping like two nooses, immobilizing its head instantly.
The other Green Fox, sensing what was happening, immediately turned and dashed over.
Yuan Ming glared and shouted, pushing the power of his Fur Cloak Skill to the extreme. His arm muscles writhed and swelled, thickening instantly, and he twisted sharply.
With a "crack," he twisted the limping Green Fox's throat bone, tilting its head askew.
At that moment, a foul, musty wind struck from behind—it was the other Green Fox launching itself at him.
Yuan Ming hurriedly rolled aside, but his shoulder was still struck by the fox's claws, carving several gashes into the tough Ape Skin, with blood bursting forth.