Having entered Crimson Sun Mountain, Chen Xiaoming looked at the night sky to gauge the time.
'Around 4 AM, I'd say.'
The sun hadn't risen yet. The mountain path was dark, but he didn't stop walking.
He actually hurried even more.
Crack!
He pushed forward, cutting through the overgrown vegetation with his pudao.
'Phew. Even though I take this path every day, it grows like this.'
This was the route Chen Xiaoming usually took. Yet despite that, there was no trace of anyone having passed through.
It was because of Crimson Sun Mountain's vigorous vitality.
Even ordinary weeds grew endlessly. They'd shoot up taller than him at the drop of a hat.
Crimson Sun Mountain, a spirit mountain, refused to allow traces of human presence to remain.
As sweat dripped from the arduous climb.
Rustle.
Goosebumps rose at the faint sound of leaves brushing. His wariness shot up at the unnatural noise.
Gulp...
He focused all his nerves and heightened his senses.
He kept sniffing the air, watching for any musky beast smell.
How much time had passed? His shoulder muscles grew stiff, but the surroundings remained quiet.
Clench!
He gripped the pudao in his hand and lowered his stance. Ready to react at any moment.
'Hmm...?'
But no matter how long it had been, the mountain path stayed silent. That chilling sensation from earlier felt like it had been his imagination.
Chen Xiaoming frowned after remaining on guard for a while.
Concentration was a limited resource. There was nothing good about dragging this out.
The moment he hesitated then carefully took a step.
Whoosh!
With a chilling sound cutting through the air, a blurry afterimage flew at him like an arrow.
"Hup?!"
His reflexively swung pudao hit something.
Thud! With a heavy sound, the thing that fell to the ground hissed and made beast noises.
Chen Xiaoming's eyes grew serious.
He'd definitely slashed it with his sharp pudao, but not a drop of blood splattered. Instead, he felt a heavy resistance like he'd struck a rock.
It meant the opponent's hide was incredibly tough.
'A Twin-horned Snake!'
Under the moonlight, he saw a blurry shape along with a triangular snake head. It was a venomous snake called a Twin-horned Snake, known for its deadly poison.
His heart pounded with tension.
If he hadn't reacted luckily just now, he would've at least been grazed by those venomous fangs, and that would've been the end.
'I almost died.'
Twin-horned Snakes weren't ordinary beasts. If you got hit by their venom, even a beast the size of an ox couldn't last three breaths.
Shhhk!
He could see the tongue licking the air and the fangs glistening with venom.
"Hmph!"
He glared murderously at the thing circling around him like it was stalking prey.
He couldn't back down even one step.
If he lost in momentum, it was over. If he didn't want to die, he had to fight!
How long did he face off, gripping his pudao tightly?
Slither.
The tension released. The Twin-horned Snake that had been watching for an opportunity gave up and disappeared into the darkness.
He massaged his tired shoulder muscles and felt newfound admiration.
'It's my own body, but it's amazing.'
Twin-horned Snakes were fast as arrows. To react to that speed was incredible.
Even though it was an ordinary person's body that had never learned martial arts, it was sturdy and quick. His senses were sharp enough to detect numerous dangers.
'Well, I guess if I couldn't do this much, I'd have died already.'
Without this kind of body, he wouldn't have survived three years on Crimson Sun Mountain.
He stretched while taking deep breaths, loosening his tense muscles. He was skilled at it. He'd experienced this kind of thing countless times over the past three years, so naturally.
Just as he was about to leave after resting enough.
'...What's this mound of dirt?'
He saw traces of something dug up on the ground. He carefully approached and examined it, his eyes widening.
"Huh?"
He could faintly see colorful plant fragments between the dirt.
Chen Xiaoming's eyes grew wide as he used his pudao to dig through the earth. After rummaging for a while, he cheered.
'Three-Colored Grass!'
Deep in the pit, he found two stalks of Three-Colored Grass with their roots half cut off.
Someone had probably discovered a patch of Three-Colored Grass and dropped a few stalks while harvesting.
For Chen Xiaoming, it was great luck.
'No wonder. I was wondering why a Twin-horned Snake was here.'
He habitually scanned his surroundings and quickly harvested them.
The leaves were torn and the roots damaged, so he wouldn't get full price, but they were still Three-Colored Grass.
They were worth at least 8 spirit stone fragments.
He carefully stored them in the bundle he'd brought and nodded with satisfaction.
He couldn't help but feel good—he'd taken another step toward his goal.
'If I sell this Three-Colored Grass for 8 spirit stone fragments, I'll have 108 fragments total. I just need to gather two more!'
He calmed his pounding heart and left. The sun hadn't risen yet, so there was still much to do.
As time passed and the sun was about to rise faintly.
'Found it!'
Chen Xiaoming's eyes lit up upon discovering a massive tree.
A thick giant tree over 20 meters tall. It was so huge that looking up at its top would give you a sore neck.
He'd named it the 'Dew Tree,' and it was Chen Xiaoming's little treasure.
He'd luckily found it half a year ago, and it was his main source of income.
If there was anything special about this tree, it was that its leaves were larger than five palms put together.
The leaves were plush and thick enough to use as cushions.
"Shhhh."
He steadied his breathing and quietly approached. He didn't forget to watch his surroundings.
Three broken branches hung down right at eye level. He carefully examined the blue-green leaves at the branch tips.
'As expected! There's more today!'
He could see transparent dew the size of an adult's fist beaded in the center of the leaves.
As the size suggested, it wasn't ordinary dew. It was mystical water with special properties, brimming with spirit qi.
A subtle fragrance wafted from the water droplets reflecting the moonlight.
It was a refreshing scent that cleared right down to his chest.
The feeling of wanting to get intoxicated without a care!
This dew had many uses. It could be used to manufacture elixirs or for cultivation.
Since it was valuable to cultivators, he could naturally sell it to get spirit stone fragments.
He took out the gourd bottle he'd brought and held it to the dew.
Trickle.
He carefully collected it without spilling. He harvested a total of three transparent droplets.
'This much should be worth 1 spirit stone fragment.'
Splash!
He shook the gourd bottle happily and sealed it.
He nodded with satisfaction and glanced upward.
The Dew Tree was incredibly large. Naturally, there were far more than three leaves. The higher you went, the more lush the foliage.
'...There must be dew up there too.'
But it was pie in the sky. Even the low ones were at least 5 meters high, so there was no way to harvest the dew.
Half a year ago when he first found the Dew Tree, he'd almost died trying to climb the trunk.
'I almost died from a bite by a tiny poisonous insect. I was bedridden for three days.'
He withdrew quietly without being greedy.
He left to find other trees with beaded dew or spirit herbs.
He had to hurry because the dew containing spirit qi would all dry up once the sun rose.
'If I can just find one more spirit stone fragment's worth...!'