Full-Level Fierce Person
Chapter 123 - 100 Fireflies_2

Chapter 123: 100 Fireflies_2

From the edge of the forest, a massive basin appeared abruptly, creating an almost perfect circular outline.

The circular basin was enveloped in a thin layer of gray mist, ethereal and indistinct, shrouding it in an air of mystery.

Xigou woke up, stuck out his tongue, and yawned, asking, "So, is that the Third Level Restricted Area?"

Fang Zhixing nodded and said, "Yes, this is also known as the Firefly Restricted Area. It’s said that at night, thousands of fireflies light up, creating a stunningly beautiful scene."

Xigou looked carefully and suddenly directed his gaze towards a certain spot, pointing out, "Look, the campsite is over there."

Fang Zhixing saw it too.

Upon closer observation, one would notice that the campsite here was far larger than the one in the Black Wind Restricted Area.

This meant that more people came here to hunt than not.

"Everyone talks about how dangerous the Third Level Restricted Area is, yet the number of people venturing here is not small at all,"

Fang Zhixing mused.

Hearing this, Xigou chuckled and said, "Fortune favors the bold, right? What’s that saying again, ’the bigger the storm, the pricier the fish’!"

No longer hesitating, Fang Zhixing clamped his legs against the horse’s belly, and the white horse immediately plunged down the hill.

In no time, Fang Zhixing rode into the campsite.

It was still early, and the campsite was quiet, not many people moving about.

He first went to the inn, showed two identity tokens, then chose a top-class room and successfully checked in very smoothly.

Likewise, Fang Zhixing quickly settled his luggage, sat down to eat something to stave off hunger, and meanwhile, pulled out a map of the Firefly Restricted Area to study it carefully.

Xigou came over, looked at the map, and spoke, "What do you plan to do?"

Fang Zhixing replied, "There are three tasks: kill a Third Level Mutant Beast, gather Heavenly Slaughter Grass, and collect Yin Snake Blood.

I’ve already confirmed that the Yin Snake Blood is located at a place called ’Yinfeng Valley.’

The Heavenly Slaughter Grass is at a spot with an underground hot spring, though the specific location still needs to be investigated.

As for killing the Third Level Mutant Beast, we can leave that task for last."

Xigou thought this was fine and suggested, "Full Level Cheats only requires you to kill one Third Level Mutant Beast, but it doesn’t specify which one, so you can totally choose to hunt a relatively weaker one."

Fang Zhixing nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly.

After all, he was only a Great Python Realm, and in front of ferocious Third Level Mutant Beasts, he was undoubtedly like a rabbit facing a lion—measuring his own strength closely was essential.

Xigou then asked, "What about a guide? After all, you’ve never been to the Firefly Restricted Area and are unfamiliar with the area."

Fang Zhixing replied, "That’s simple."

He got up, opened the door, called over the inn’s server, gave him some reward money, and borrowed a wooden board.

Then, he wrote a notice and placed it outside the restaurant.

The notice was composed of text and drawings.

After all, many people cannot read, so only by drawing pictures can they understand.

Before they knew it, evening fell gradually.

The campsite gradually began to bustle.

One by one, hunting teams continuously emerged from the basin,

Some covered in mud, others drenched in blood, every face etched with sheer exhaustion.

Without worrying about appearances, they first headed for the restaurant to feed themselves, filling their bellies before anything else.

Soon, someone saw the notice and read aloud, "High pay for hiring a guide, must have been to Yinfeng Valley."

"Eh, Yinfeng Valley, huh? I seem to have never run in that direction."

"Hmm, I last went to Yinfeng Valley over six years ago, can’t quite remember the way now."

"Actually, I’m quite familiar with Yinfeng Valley. I passed by last month, just never went in to explore."

...

As expected, the pool of hunters was brimming with talent.

Fang Zhixing sat at the table, laid out ten shiny Gold Beans, showing full sincerity.

The people applying for the position were endless.

Fang Zhixing interviewed each one, asking them in detail how they reached Yinfeng Valley last time, what was there, etc.

Then, he summarized each person’s answers, cross-verifying the details with each other, thus selecting the person who knew Yinfeng Valley best.

"Uncle Lv, I’ll hire you,"

Fang Zhixing eventually chose a man in his forties named Lv Chuanyin.

Bizarrely, he was not a Martial Artist, just an ordinary Medicine Gatherer who made a living by collecting various exotic plants for sale.

It was hard to imagine how such an ordinary person dared to venture into the Third Level Restricted Area.

"The true experts are hidden among the common folk!" Fang Zhixing exclaimed in amazement.

Lv Chuanyin was very happy.

In fact, he had originally planned to go to Yinfeng Valley to gather medicinal herbs; it was just along the way.

He never expected that he would also earn a hefty guide fee, truly a blessing from the heavens.

Fang Zhixing’s mind stirred, and he couldn’t help but ask, "Are there many medicine gatherers like you?"

"Many!"

Lv Chuanyin grinned, revealing yellowed teeth, one of the front teeth missing, making his speech somewhat slurred.

He sighed, "These days are getting harder by the day; without taking risks and working desperately, my whole family would starve to death."

Fang Zhixing understood and took the opportunity to ask, "Among you, has anyone ever gathered Heavenly Slaughter Grass?"

"Heavenly Slaughter Grass?"

Lv Chuanyin was surprised, "What, boss, you’re also looking to gather Heavenly Slaughter Grass?"

"Also?"

Fang Zhixing blinked and asked, "Who else is gathering Heavenly Slaughter Grass?"

Lv Chuanyin answered, "People from Seven Evils Manor have been aggressively searching for and purchasing Heavenly Slaughter Grass; I heard they cultivate the ’Seven Evil Palm’ and especially need the Heavenly Slaughter Grass for making medicine."

"Seven Evils Manor..."

Fang Zhixing had indeed heard of this Seven Evils Manor.

According to the divisions of power in Jianghu, below the sects are the factions.

And Seven Evils Manor falls in between the two, not quite on par with the top, but surpassing those below.

In terms of strength and territory, Seven Evils Manor is akin to a branch of the Iron Mountain Sect, slightly inferior to Iron Casting Hall.

Which means, in Seven Evils Manor, there must also be a powerful figure from Five Beasts Realm in residence.

Fang Zhixing couldn’t help but ask, "The people from Seven Evils Manor also came here?"

Lv Chuanyin nodded, "Yes, they were here a few days ago, even offering big money to hire medicine gatherers; I nearly joined their team."

Fang Zhixing expressed surprise, "Why didn’t you go?"

Lv Chuanyin lowered his voice, "I heard people say that once the people from Seven Evils Manor encounter a mutant beast attack within the restricted area, they immediately injure one or two medicine gatherers and feed them to the mutant beast to facilitate their escape."

Fang Zhixing quickly understood.

The night passed quickly.

The next morning, at the break of dawn.

Fang Zhixing donned a suit of armor, took Xigou with him, and led by Lv Chuanyin, entered the Firefly restricted area.

No sooner had they entered the basin when Fang Zhixing immediately noticed the temperature of the air growing hotter.

Outside it was the cold of winter, but inside the restricted area, it felt like a crisp autumn day, even a bit stuffy.

Looking around, ancient trees reached up to the sky, shading the sun completely.

Among the big trees, vines wrapped around each other, forming layers upon layers of a massive net; not a single beam of sunlight could penetrate it.

The air was filled with swirling gray mist, dense from afar but sparse up close.

The place was truly indescribable, difficult to articulate, filled everywhere with a chillingly terrifying and mysteriously unpredictable atmosphere, inciting fear as well as a desire to explore.

As they delved deeper, all kinds of ancient and peculiar trees came into view, a dazzling array to behold.

About two hours later, Fang Zhixing looked up and surprisingly saw a mountain with streams and waterfalls crisscrossing it.

Is this really the kind of terrain you’d find inside a basin?

Xigou was lively and curious, sniffing around here and there.

He had indeed grown; he could now easily tread through thorny ground, not like last time when he was too timid and could only perch on Fang Zhixing’s shoulder.

Lv Chuanyin also displayed the demeanor of an experienced hunter. Every time he reached a new area, the first thing he did was look for fresh dung and smear it on himself.

Moreover, he always found a safe route, avoiding those terrifying mutant beasts.

By the way, he also picked some herbs.

Once, a fierce bird suddenly swooped down from a large tree, shockingly a human-faced bird.

Fang Zhixing was already prepared for a fight, but unexpectedly, Lv Chuanyin suddenly blew a whistle, mimicking a bird call.

After a moment of hesitation, the human-faced bird flew away on its own.

Lv Chuanyin chuckled and said, "That human-faced bird is female, in her mating period. I mimicked the call of a male bird to lure her, but she didn’t like me and flew away."

"..."

Fang Zhixing and Xigou looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

Towards noon, they climbed over a mountain.

"We’re here!"

Lv Chuanyin pointed to a valley below the mountain, excitedly saying, "Down there is Yinfeng Valley; be careful, the cold winds in there are bone-chilling."

Fang Zhixing nodded, observing carefully. Indeed, it was a shadowy place, heavily cloaked in Yin energy.

His spirits lifted, and he began descending the mountain, quickly entering the valley.