The flying insect was unremarkable but quite capable. Leading the way through the wind and snow, the disciples soon spotted a cave emitting smoke. Waves of mouth-watering meat aroma wafted over—even cultivators who spurned mortal pleasures couldn't help salivating.
"Heh! Someone really has a death wish, daring to eat spirit rhinoceros meat."
The man in green waved his disciples away and strode into the cave.
At a single glance, he saw the ragged beggar was nothing but a mortal. Only such a person would fail to recognize a monster and eat it recklessly.
Seeing the visitor, Ren Yi tore a large chunk of meat from the fire rack and held it out: "Brother, we meet by fate—take it, don't be polite!"
He still had plenty left; at worst, he could drag more of the giant monster's meat over later.
"Hmph!" With a flick of his hand, the man in green sent the monster meat in Ren Yi's hand flying into the bonfire.
Ren Yi scrambled to fish it out, secretly muttering: "Barbarian! If you don't want it, why waste food?"
His kindness had been thrown back in his face, making him furious. But seeing the sword at the man's waist, he chose to be polite and didn't dare argue further.
The man in green had no idea what he was thinking—and wouldn't have cared if he did.
Glancing at the remaining monster meat on the rack, he smiled coldly: "Heh, enjoying your meal quite a lot, you stinking beggar. Savor your last supper to the fullest! Hahaha..."
Too lazy to trouble a dying man, the man in green laughed and left. They were in a race against time for the competition—why waste time dirtying their hands?
"Crazy fool!"
Unaware of the danger, Ren Yi blew the cinders off the monster meat and gorged himself. From time to time, he fed some chewed meat to the weak Ren Xiong.
Prolonged hunger and cold had tested the unweaned cub, but fortunately, despite being young and weak with insufficient bite force, it could still eat—there was hope for it yet.
It had been ages since either of them had eaten meat so recklessly, and before they knew it, they'd finished the two huge monster legs.
He felt an indescribable warmth spreading through his body. Hugging Ren Xiong, Ren Yi lay contentedly beside the bonfire and soon fell asleep.
Sparks flew, and though a few landed on him, they failed to wake him. The cub, too, slept soundly and deeply.
Snow fell relentlessly outside the cave, while inside, warmth filled the air—as if time had stopped.
Suddenly, an abrupt female voice echoed in the cave: "You useless fool! All you do is eat—why don't you eat yourself to death!"
Someone kicked Ren Yi, putting out the burning corner of his clothes. He'd come perilously close to being set on fire.
The kick pulled no punches; a normal person would have rolled on the ground in agony. But Ren Yi lay motionless like an unconscious corpse.
The speaker was no stranger—it was the transparent girl who'd been gone for a long time. To be precise, she hadn't left; she'd just stayed in the brocade bag's world, unwilling to come out.
She'd pondered for a long time inside: what tricks had the Artifact God Yu Guang played on the brocade bag when forging it?
Why couldn't her spiritual consciousness be extinguished, and why was her physical body perfectly preserved? Why was she solid inside while Ren Yi was an illusion? And why did their states reverse when leaving the bag?
At this moment, no one could answer her questions. The only thing she wanted to know was: could she return to her physical body, and could she live like a normal person again?
For this, she neglected everything else, staying focused inside the brocade bag. Even when she sensed Ren Yi being hunted by a bozi cat and narrowly escaping death, she hadn't paid it any mind.
But just now, as she'd figured out how to reattach her spiritual consciousness, a sudden intense palpitations jolted her awake. It felt as if something was draining her life force, giving her the illusion that she might vanish into thin air at any moment.
The feeling was so strong that she didn't have time to think. Hurriedly escaping from the brocade bag, she rushed to check what was happening.
What she saw filled her with anger—the dirty, stinking man was lying spread-eagled on the ground, sleeping soundly.
Kicking him once failed to wake him. A sinking feeling hit her, and she quickly leaned down to check his breath and pulse.
His breathing was barely perceptible, and his neck was cold with no pulse—he looked exactly like a corpse.
"Slap! Slap!" She slapped him twice hard. "You fool! Wake up! Get up!"
In just this short time, she felt her life force drop another notch. If this continued, her spiritual consciousness would vanish before she could return to her body.
"Lucky you, you useless wretch. Without me, you'd be dead for sure!"
After all, she'd once been a Divine King. Though fallen from her throne, she had immense knowledge. Earlier, she'd looted all the treasures from her own corpse inside the brocade bag.
From low-grade to immortal-grade elixirs, magical artifacts, and talismans—she had everything. Her master had been invincible across the Three Thousand Worlds, seizing countless cultivation resources and doting on her excessively!
How powerful was she? She had free access to her master's treasure vault. To have her was to possess the finest treasures in all heavens.
But in the eyes of others, she was just a little follower beside her master—low in cultivation, chatterbox-like, and as noisy as a sparrow. Many cultivators looked down on her and secretly mocked her, giving her the nickname "Ma Xian Gu" (Fairy Ma).
Not only could she cure Ren Yi's mild poisoning—she had countless ways to save him even if he were at death's door.
Such was the fate of mortals—cheap and insignificant. A single immortal treasure could easily rewrite their destiny. For high-level cultivators, however, it would be far more difficult, requiring a staggering amount of heavenly materials and earthly treasures beyond what ordinary cultivators could afford.
After examining Ren Yi's condition, she sharply scratched his fingertip with her nail. A stream of dark purple blood gushed out.
Then she pulled out a small green porcelain bottle, poured out a green pill the size of a candy, pried open his mouth, and forced it down.
Without him swallowing, the pill dissolved on its own, as if it had a mind of its own.
Though comatose, Ren Yi wasn't an insentient log. At first, he'd truly enjoyed the warm feeling, his entire body relaxing completely.
But afterward, he drifted into a strange dream, unable to wake up.