Demon Sword Sect’s Undercover
Chapter 557 - 557 556 Immortal Creature Wishing Everyone a Healthy New Year

557: Chapter 556: Immortal Creature [Wishing Everyone a Healthy New Year] 557: Chapter 556: Immortal Creature [Wishing Everyone a Healthy New Year] “Thunder Fire Refining Golden Body” was an unexpected gain, but he still had a small flaw in his swordsmanship to address, how to solve the Sword Spirit issue when in the Flying Sword State.

Should he divide his Divine Thought and project part of himself as the Sword Spirit?

Or should he forge another Flying Sword?

Whichever way, there was no solution in sight.

He had realized that it would likely be difficult to solve this problem in the Tongtian Realm, because without reaching the Golden Core, the spiritual power in his Upper Dantian was not enough to support such an improvement.

He could only seek an answer through cultivation, and if one considers that it’s not always possible to resolve all problems at lower levels of personal cultivation, then such a flaw didn’t seem so unacceptable.

Hou Niao followed the camel caravan plodding through the desert, and after more than ten days, they approached a water source.

The caravan’s route wasn’t a straight line, which differed greatly from the understanding of people from the interior; those people subconsciously assumed that since the desert was flat, traveling in a straight line was natural.

However, in reality, mortals traversed the desert by navigating the distribution of water sources.

It might be a small oasis, a waterhole, or a hidden well that could provide essential water for people and camels, something they couldn’t possibly carry in full, for if they did, they wouldn’t be able to carry anything else.

The caravan lead by Sha Jia found such a waterhole, not very large, about a dozen zhang in diameter, nestled among the sand dunes as if it could disappear at any moment.

“This waterhole is seasonal, appearing in spring and summer and disappearing in autumn and winter.

Thus, our trade route changes with the seasons; in fact, there are quite a few such waterholes in the Kneecap Desert, but they are very transient, perhaps disappearing after a few years and then popping up somewhere else, only to vanish again after a few more years…”

Hou Niao nodded, “So, these are the results of the rainy season, not because there’s groundwater here?”

Sha Jia cracked a wide grin, “Exactly so, the desert’s rainy season is a joke to those from the interior, but it still yields something.

Here is just the edge of the desert, far from being deep inside it…”

Hou Niao watched as the caravan dismounted their camels a hundred zhang away from the waterhole and picked up bows and blades, “Is there danger near the waterhole?”

Sha Jia was cautious, “Yes, a waterhole is a life source for all nearby creatures.

It’s crucial for humans and just as much for those creatures.

Various creatures in this vicinity will flock here, including all sorts of poisonous insects, sand wolves, sand foxes, and sand eagles.

But most importantly, undead creatures don’t rely on water sources, yet they know that ambushing humans by waterholes is the most effective strategy.”

After a pause, he made his request, “Although it’s unlikely, should an accident happen, I’d ask for Daoist Master’s extra help.”

Hou Niao waved his hand, “There’s no need to mention it.

Since we’re in the same team, naturally we share our fortunes and misfortunes, and this is also why I’m here.”

His Divine Sense was constantly monitoring the vicinity of the waterhole, and for the time being, he hadn’t spotted anything unusual.

As for the undead creatures of the desert, he knew little and didn’t expect to get much useful information from these mortals.

They didn’t understand the perspective of cultivators and couldn’t view problems from the standpoint of a cultivator.

Buried beneath, he could sense the number of poisonous insects had significantly increased, and on the other end of the waterhole a few sand wolves lay, growling lowly in their throats even upon seeing humans, instead of leaving.

There were no issues within a few hundred zhang around the waterhole, and that was regarding the surface.

Just as most dangers in the ocean come from below the surface, in the desert, most threats come from below the sand.

Sha Jia commanded the group to split into two teams, one stayed behind while the other led the camels to the water’s edge to drink and refill the shrinking water bags.

Even though this task had been done a thousand times, they all proceeded with utmost care, not daring to be negligent.

Hou Niao didn’t go to the waterhole; instead, he stayed put to better look after everyone.

Sha Shi stood next to him, holding a bow and arrow taller than himself—for boys from the northwest, the bow and arrow were their only toys from childhood.

This kid was rather relaxed, “Uncle Niao, this isn’t that serious.

Most of the time, it’s safe, just like when we came here.

There are few undead creatures to the south of Loulan City, but north of Loulan, it’s hard to say.

Those adventurers say that encountering undead creatures is quite common.”

Hou Niao smiled, “Don’t the cultivators in Loulan City ever come out to protect the caravans?”

Sha Shi was quite open-minded about it, “How could they cover everything?

There are different teams coming and going every day, both inside and outside the border.

The Daoist masters’ duty is to patrol, and they mainly focus north of Loulan City to track large groups of undead creatures.

As for the occasional one or two, it’s all down to luck.”

“How many cultivators are there in Loulan City?”

Sha Shi scratched his head, “I don’t know the exact number.

Qi Refiners live in their own district, ordinary people can’t enter; but there are several hundred Spirit Masters, most of them travel with those adventurer teams heading north.”

…Sha Jia and four or five others brought a dozen camels to drink at the waterhole, confronting several sand wolves across the way.

Neither side acted rashly, as it seemed they both found the other troublesome.

In the desert, apart from being fierce, one must also learn to coexist; these creatures could not be killed off completely, nor could one claim the precious waterhole for oneself.

Suddenly, a camel, in a fit of panic, broke free of its reins and bolted.

Following that, the entire herd began to scatter; animals often have sharper instincts than humans.

The instant they ran off, three dark figures emerged from the sand to attack Sha Jia and his men.

These desert dwellers were not entirely unprepared.

When the camels scattered, no one tried to control them; they would not go far and would stop to observe after a safe distance.

What mattered more was dealing with potential threats from undead creatures that might emerge from the sands.

The five men quickly formed a circle as three dark figures burst from the sand, appearing like giant insects, their bodies incomplete, without flesh, supported only by skeletons, yet the red gleam in their eyes conveyed their ferocity.

Aside from slaughter, they harbored no other emotions.

With Sha Jia and his men swinging their knives and two others shooting arrows, the arrows sparked against the skeletons, having no effect; it was clear that unless hitting vital points, mortals were hard-pressed to deal lethal damage.

Lashing out with huge bone claws, Sha Jia’s group kept retreating, the situation growing dire.

Hou Niao grabbed the impulsive Sha Shi, and commanded in a deep voice, “Don’t go over there; leave that side to me.

Your most important duty is to keep this place secure.”