The small town is called Black Tiger Town and is backed by Black Tiger Ridge. Therefore, the people coming and going in this town are mostly martial artists who are training in Black Tiger Ridge, including family warriors and hunters. In the southeast direction of Black Tiger Ridge are the Huangdao Sect and Qingyun Sect. Disciples from these two major sects also come in and out of this town. At this time, after half a day's journey, Lu Ren, Qin Yu, and the others finally arrived at Black Tiger Town.
"Come and take a look! Just collected these Shadow Cat Demon Cores from Black Tiger Ridge, essential materials for crafting symbols, one for 10,000 copper coins!"
"First-grade Ling Grass, Gathering Ling Grass, eight thousand copper coins per plant, a bundle of ten plants for only sixty thousand copper coins!"
....
Before even entering Black Tiger Town, Lu Ren heard the shouting from inside. As he walked in, he saw various stalls on both sides of the street, with pedestrians coming and going, stopping at the stalls to bargain. The bustling scene was quite lively.
"So, this is the world of martial arts!" Lu Ren exclaimed. Before coming here, he had gathered information about Black Tiger Ridge from "The Rules for Disciples." The most described aspect was the demonic beasts, which are categorized based on their strength into different levels such as First Tier, Second Tier, Third Tier, Fourth Tier, and so on. Each tier is further classified as low-level, mid-level, and high-level. A First Tier demonic beast corresponds to a martial artist in the Awakening Realm.
Creatures like Shadow Cats, first-tier low-level demonic beasts, are commonly seen in Black Tiger Ridge. As long as you slay them and extract the demonic core from their bodies, you can sell it for ten thousand copper coins. For ordinary people, ten thousand copper coins may be a considerable sum, but for martial artists, it's just a trivial matter to kill a demonic beast.
"Yuer, I didn't expect to see you here in Black Tiger Town. Do you want to team up?" A group of four people approached them.
The leader of the group was a young man of seventeen or eighteen, dressed in fancy clothes. Although his appearance was ordinary, he always looked at others with disdain, especially when he glanced at Lu Ren and the others, his face full of contempt.
"No need," Qin Yu replied, preparing to walk past the young man.
Seeing Qin Yu completely ignoring him, the young man became visibly angry and said, "Qin Yu, what are you so proud of? Sooner or later, you will be mine, Ding Hai's woman!"
Walking behind Qin Yu, Lu Ren heard the young man's words and couldn't help but ask, "Senior Brother Wang Teng, who is Ding Hai?"
Wang Teng whispered, "Ding Hai is an outer disciple of the Huangdao Sect. He has opened six spiritual orifices. It is said that he and Senior Sister Qin Yu are from the same city. The Ding family, seeing Senior Sister Qin Yu's exceptional talent, intends to match Ding Hai with her!"
"I see," Lu Ren nodded.
However, Wang Teng seemed a bit indignant and said, "But, what kind of person is Ding Hai? He dares to think of marrying Senior Sister Qin Yu. Which one of us three is not better than him?"
"Wang Teng Senior Brother, please don't include me in that," Lu Ren waved his hand.
"Junior Brother Lu Ren, you must not underestimate yourself. Although you may have inferior bloodline, you are the only disciple accepted by the Princess Saint. Your status as a disciple is noble," Wang Teng said.
"Wang Teng, if you don't want to undergo training, you can return to the sect now," Qin Yu said coldly.
Wang Teng covered his mouth and dared not say more.
Shortly after, Lu Ren and Qin Yu, along with their team of four, passed through Black Tiger Town and entered Black Tiger Ridge.
Black Tiger Ridge was filled with towering ancient trees, dozens of feet high. Each tree's diameter was so thick that it took three people to surround it.
Underneath the ancient trees, various vines twisted around thickets, and faintly, the roars of demonic beasts could be heard.
Upon hearing these roars, Lu Ren's expression became serious.
"On the other hand, Wang Teng and Zhang Sheng's expressions were unusually relaxed, not at all like they were here for training or tasks, but more like they were sightseeing.
"Lu Ren, relax, with Qin Yu Senior Sister here, we are absolutely safe!" Zhang Sheng said leisurely.
Roar!
Suddenly, a giant tiger, its body resembling granite, charged towards Lu Ren and Qin Yu's group. The tiger glared angrily at the four of them, its mouth still covered in blood, with a human arm still being chewed on.
The tiger's gray-white eyes stared fiercely at Lu Ren and his group, emanating a chilling hostility.
"This is the Granite Tiger!" Lu Ren blurted out, looking shocked.
In "Disciple's Rules", there was an introduction about the Granite Tiger. It was a high-level first-order demonic beast, with a body as hard as granite, boasting incredible defense. Its strength rivaled that of a martial artist who had unlocked seven spiritual apertures.
However, even martial artists who had unlocked seven spiritual apertures would not dare to confront the Granite Tiger head-on.
"Lu Ren, it's just a Granite Tiger, no need to be so surprised," Qin Yu said.
Wang Teng patted Lu Ren on the shoulder, signaling for him to relax. However, Lu Ren remained very nervous. This was his first direct encounter with a demonic beast in this world, which was several times more fierce than ordinary animals.
Roar!
The Granite Tiger roared again and leaped towards Qin Yu. Its sharp claws sliced through the air, creating a series of sonic booms as it aggressively swiped at her.
The attack was incredibly formidable.
Qin Yu shifted her steps sideways, slightly leaning in one direction, skillfully evading the Granite Tiger's leap. The Granite Tiger's strike missed, hitting a tree and breaking it in half.
However, Qin Yu's feet moved gracefully like butterflies among flowers as she swiftly approached the Granite Tiger. A powerful punch aimed at its abdomen.
Boom!
Seemingly delicate, the punch was filled with dominant force, instantly piercing through the Granite Tiger's abdomen.
Roar!
The Granite Tiger let out a sorrowful cry, then collapsed heavily to the ground, whimpering and struggling.
After a moment, the Granite Tiger went motionless, already beyond death.
At that moment, a massive blood hole appeared in the Granite Tiger's abdomen, with blood continuously flowing out.
"What a powerful punch and remarkable agility," Lu Ren exclaimed.
"Qin Yu has perfected the Diamond Fist, a superior-tier human-level skill, and has also mastered the Star Shadow Step to perfection. Naturally, she is formidable!" Wang Teng remarked nonchalantly.
"If I were to face the Granite Tiger alone, I should also be able to kill it. If my Spirit Cat Step is perfected, perhaps I could even compete with Senior Sister Qin Yu!" Lu Ren pondered silently.
However, this time, Senior Sister Qin Yu probably wouldn't give them a chance to take action, and he wasn't eager to do so either.
Their main purpose this time was to broaden their horizons and experience the power of demonic beasts.
After dealing with the Granite Tiger, Wang Teng immediately rushed over, took out a dagger, and dug out a fist-sized crystal from its head, resembling granite.
This was the demonic beast's demon core, which could fetch at least ten thousand copper coins.
Without doing anything else, the three of them had already earned two thousand five hundred copper coins.
Qin Yu, after clearing the battlefield, said, "My task this time is to search for a second-tier spiritual herb on the outskirts of Black Tiger Ridge. During the search, we will encounter many first-tier demonic beasts. But rest assured, with me here, those beasts won't be able to harm you. Let's continue forward!"
After speaking, Qin Yu continued ahead, with Lu Ren and the others following behind.
Along the way, Lu Ren, Qin Yu, and the others encountered many first-tier demonic beasts, such as the swift Gale Wolves and the powerful Diamond Apes. However, these beasts couldn't withstand more than three moves against Qin Yu.
For three days and nights, the four of them searched the outskirts of Black Tiger Ridge, slaying nearly twenty demonic beasts.
On the fourth day, Qin Yu finally spotted a lush green spiritual herb under an ancient tree. The herb resembled a small lantern, emitting a faint fragrance.
"Finally found it!" Qin Yu's eyes gleamed with excitement. With this Hundred Aperture Grass, perhaps she could successfully open her eighth spiritual orifice.
However, when she picked the Hundred Aperture Grass, Qin Yu discovered that her palm was being invaded by a green toxin.
"Why would the Hundred Aperture Grass be poisonous?" Qin Yu's face changed.
"Sister, what's wrong?" Lu Ren asked, stepping forward.
"I've been poisoned. Someone must want to harm me!" Qin Yu frowned, trying to activate the qi from her seven spiritual orifices to expel the toxin from her palm. However, she found that the toxin was spreading faster and faster.
"Haha, of course it was me!"
At that moment, a mocking laughter came from afar, as four figures emerged from the distant jungle. It was Ding Hai and his three companions.
Ding Hai approached Qin Yu, a wicked smile on his face, and said, "Qin Yu, I knew you came to Black Tiger Ridge to pick the Hundred Aperture Grass. I just sprinkled a bit of poison on it. Don't worry, this poison won't harm your body, it will only make you weak. Kekeke!"