Cultivation Starting from Choosing Augments

Chapter 305 - 173: Securing the Flowing Cloud Dew, Comprehending the Yin-Yang Profound Mechanism

Xiao Chen diligently memorized the route they had taken. That way, if something unexpected were to happen, he wouldn’t be trapped here.

The second Golden Core Demon Beast was a Black-eyed Bear.

It usually liked to come out to forage after 2:45 AM and would return to its lair to sleep after sunrise.

Following Song Jingyi’s instructions, the three of them would find a marsh or a patch of sand to bury themselves in before sunset each day.

They wouldn’t climb out to continue their journey until after 7:00 AM the next day, once the sun was shining brightly.

The last Golden Core Demon Beast was a Purple Crystal Python.

Thanks to its enormous size, the tracks it left on the ground were easy to spot.

"Fortunately, the intelligence we have is accurate."

Song Jingyi relaxed slightly. "The Purple Crystal Python likes to hide in forests. As long as we steer clear of densely wooded areas, we should be fine."

"We’ll travel each day at Noon and hide on a mountaintop the rest of the time."

Xiao Chen asked, "Is our travel window really that short?"

If they only traveled for two hours a day, it would likely take them ten days just to cover this short stretch of road.

Song Jingyi explained in a low voice, "The Purple Crystal Python is active during the day as well, though typically for shorter periods. The problem is, a Golden Core Demon Beast is just too fast."

"If we wait for it to make a move before we hide, we’ll likely be too late."

The bottom line was, they could only travel at Noon; morning and evening were too fraught with danger.

’Oh well. Safety first.’

Since they were only traveling at Noon each day, Xiao Chen found himself with a rare stretch of leisure time.

In the days prior, he had already studied the Yin-Yang Unity Contract, contemplating its meaning dozens of times.

Fortunately, aside from the Heart Method, he also had the Yin Yang Fish Compass and the Wind and Thunder Dual Swords to aid his contemplation.

As it happened...

Perhaps it was due to his concentrated meditation, or the fact that his days and nights had been reversed, or maybe it was because these items were all related to begin with.

In any case, after ten days, by studying them in conjunction with his Heart Method, he had actually begun to vaguely sense a sliver of the Yin-Yang Profound Mechanism.

Unfortunately, it was like gazing at the moon’s reflection in the water or looking at flowers through a fog—he could never see it clearly, left with only an ambiguous, paradoxical feeling.

Xiao Chen felt he was just one opportunity away—one final catalyst to pierce that last paper-thin barrier.

All in all, this period of quiet reflection over the past ten days had benefited him immensely.

This kind of insight into the Dao, if he could truly grasp even the smallest sliver of it, would be useful to him in any Realm he might reach in the future.

"Xiao, Qi, we’re most likely safe now."

Song Jingyi announced this conservative conclusion only after casting his Magic three times.

They were currently atop a small hill, overlooking a modest valley below.

According to the intelligence provided by the Qiu Family, the Earth-Storage Spirit Turtles lived in the valley below.

This valley was located at the edge of the Purple Crystal Python’s territory. According to Song Jingyi’s analysis, it was highly unlikely to be the territory of any other Golden Core Demon Beast either.

In other words, even if they caused a small commotion, it probably wouldn’t be a major issue.

According to the plan, they were supposed to set up an Array at the valley entrance and use bait to lure the two male turtles out.

Then, Xiao Chen was to sneak into the valley and find a way to get the Spirit Turtle Eggs.

However, at this most critical step, something went wrong.

Before the three of them could even act, they saw no fewer than four male turtles emerge below, crawling toward a small river at the mouth of the valley to feed.

More importantly, one of the male turtles had two horns on its head.

It was a Mutated Spirit Turtle!

Generally speaking, such a Mutated Demon Beast would gain additional hereditary abilities based on the purity of its bloodline.

Furthermore, these abilities would grow stronger as its Realm advanced.

A Spirit Turtle like the one below, having already entered its mature stage, possessed Combat Power on par with a Fake Pill Cultivator.

After all, not only did the creature have an Inner Core inside it, but it was a natural one.

Seeing this, Song Jingyi and Qi Xingwen were stunned.

The two exchanged a look, then both turned to Xiao Chen.

The difficulty of distracting two male turtles versus four was on a completely different level.

The current situation was clearly beyond their capabilities and had not been part of the original plan.

Now, all they could do was look to their leader, Xiao Chen, and see what his next move would be.

It would be a real shame to give up after all the trouble it took to get here.

But frankly, this was the Qiu Family’s intelligence failure, and neither of them was eager to risk their lives for it.

However, Xiao Chen just turned to Song Jingyi and asked, "What’s the biggest disturbance we can risk making here?"