Xu Yang looked at the dozen or so people who had decided to follow him, somewhat surprised.
He had originally thought that everyone would leave, but unexpectedly, there were still some who dared to risk their lives by following him.
"What exactly is your cultivation level? Why are you hiding it?" At that moment, one person stepped forward with a puzzled expression and asked.
Xu Yang turned to look at the speaker—a chubby man at the late Golden Core stage.
In this group, such cultivation could be considered quite strong.
Of course, in Xu Yang's eyes, they were all insignificant.
"Oh, I'm not hiding anything. I really am at the Qi Refining stage," Xu Yang replied.
The chubby man gave Xu Yang an odd look but didn't say anything further.
As they ventured deeper into the forest, Xu Yang encountered many spiritual herbs. A thousand years ago, these herbs would have been considered priceless treasures. Now, they were nothing more than common weeds.
At first, Xu Yang showed some interest in picking the herbs. However, as their abundance became evident, his enthusiasm waned entirely.
After gathering a sufficient quantity, he resumed his journey forward.
"If you come across these herbs, collect them for me. Bring me fifty of these herbs, and I'll give you pills to enhance your cultivation," Xu Yang said, holding up a freshly picked herb for the other Golden Core cultivators to see.
The reason Xu Yang allowed these Golden Core cultivators to follow him was to have them help him gather spiritual herbs.
Now was the time for them to prove their usefulness.
The Golden Core cultivators stared at Xu Yang in confusion. To them, the herb Xu Yang held was far too ordinary.
They had seen countless patches of such plants along the way. In fact, they thought of it as nothing more than a common weed.
"Hey, you must be joking, right? This herb has no value whatsoever. Why are you even picking it up?" one person asked.
Xu Yang glanced at him. "Just because it's useless in your hands doesn't mean it's useless in mine. Trust me, as long as you collect them for me, I'll make sure you get the pills I promised."
Though still skeptical, they were about to argue further when a sudden sound of something cutting through the air reached their ears.
Xu Yang looked up and saw a young woman covered in wounds, fleeing in panic. Surprisingly, she was at the Nascent Soul stage.
Chasing closely behind her were two old Nascent Soul-stage cultivators with vicious grins on their faces.
"Help me!" the young woman called out desperately as her eyes lit up at the sight of Xu Yang ahead.
Xu Yang calmly turned his head away, pretending he hadn't seen anything. It wasn't his business to meddle in other people's affairs.
"Sir, please help me!" the young woman cried as she stumbled toward Xu Yang. Just as she reached his side, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
Xu Yang stared in disbelief at the unconscious young woman now lying next to him.
Of all places to faint, why did she have to faint right next to him? This was a bit troublesome.
With a sigh, Xu Yang rubbed his temples, stepped back two paces, and addressed the two Nascent Soul-stage cultivators.
"What is this... I don't know anything. Do whatever you want." Xu Yang said as he turned around, ready to leave.
The group of Golden Core cultivators behind him were already scared out of their wits when they saw two Nascent Soul cultivators appear ahead.
Now, seeing that Xu Yang didn't care about the woman lying on the ground, they immediately concluded that Xu Yang couldn't afford to provoke those two Nascent Soul cultivators—neither could they.
So, they either scattered like birds and beasts or froze in place, wearing awkward smiles, trying to please.
"Who are you?" one of the Nascent Soul cultivators asked, stepping forward with a fierce expression.
Although Xu Yang had made concessions, it didn't mean they could ignore him. On the contrary, they started to cause trouble for him.
"Who I am is none of your business. All you need to know is that, before I get angry, you'd better leave!" Xu Yang's tone turned cold. He had backed off because he felt this wasn't his problem and didn't want to stir up trouble, but he wasn't afraid of these people.
The two Nascent Soul cultivators exchanged a glance, and suddenly, a surge of spiritual energy quickly gathered in their hands, shooting toward Xu Yang's forehead with incredible speed.
"Sorry, but since you've seen what you shouldn't have, hell is where you belong."
Before the words even left their mouths, their fists were only about an inch from Xu Yang's head.
"Sigh, some people always enjoy courting death. I already said I could pretend I didn't see anything. Why do you still have to bring this upon yourselves?" Xu Yang sighed inwardly, his hand swiping out, gripping the wrists of the two Nascent Soul cultivators tightly.
The two Nascent Soul cultivators were instantly unable to move a muscle.
They were both horrified, and just as they were about to speak, Xu Yang exerted more force, and with a crack, their wrists snapped simultaneously.
"Ah..." The two Nascent Soul cultivators screamed in agony.
Boom...
A tremendous surge of spiritual energy rushed into their meridians, rampaging and destroying everything in its path. The two Nascent Soul cultivators spat out blood, their meridians torn apart, and they died on the spot.
Even their Nascent Souls couldn't escape. They were shattered instantly.
"I already said I don't want to get involved in your matters. Why did you still come after me?" Xu Yang looked at the two Nascent Soul cultivators lying on the ground, coldly smiling.
The Golden Core cultivators who had been preparing to flee earlier, upon seeing the two dead Nascent Soul cultivators, stood frozen with their mouths agape, wide enough to fit an egg.
"Wow, he's incredible, right? They were Nascent Soul cultivators, and they died just like that."
"Yeah, it's unbelievable," they murmured, their eyes filled with admiration as they looked at Xu Yang.
Xu Yang glanced down at the woman on the ground. At this moment, he finally noticed just how beautiful she was—not only was her face stunning, but her figure was also fiery hot.
However, the woman's injuries were severe—her internal organs were displaced, and blood was continuously flowing from her wounds, her face pale.
"Damn, she's poisoned too? That's brutal." Xu Yang examined her carefully, unable to stop himself from speaking out.
This woman's condition was critical—she wouldn't last much longer.
But since Xu Yang was here, he wasn't going to let that happen.
He took out a vial of spiritual medicine and poured it into her mouth.
The woman's wounds began to heal at a visible speed.
One minute later, the woman slowly woke up.
"What happened to those two?" she asked, her injuries fully healed, though she still appeared weak.