The level-seven demonic beast's eyes flashed with murderous intent. It swung its claws, unleashing several ice blades, which Xu Zifan quickly dodged. He rolled on the ground, closing in on the beast and releasing a lightning cage that tightened around it. The level-seven demonic beast was enveloped in a layer of frost, which suddenly exploded, shattering the lightning cage. Xu Zifan immediately followed up by throwing out his Xuan Iron Fan, causing the demonic beast to leap away in a sorry state.
The cave was small, and there were unripe spiritual fruits nearby. They were all afraid of damaging the fruits and dared not use their full strength, fighting with restraint. Gradually, Xu Zifan lured it to the cave entrance and then jumped out to fight freely. The strength of a level seven demonic beast was extraordinary, comparable to Xu Zifan's cultivation level. Once this beast's cultivation advanced further, it would be able to transform into human form, which was why it was so concerned about the spiritual fruit.
For millennia, cultivators and the demon and monster races have been adversaries, locked in countless battles with heavy casualties on both sides. Their mere encounters are fraught with bloodlust and murderous intent. Xu Zifan, needing to rapidly increase his strength to complete his mission, fought with ruthless abandon. Moreover, encountering such a formidable opponent for the first time, Xu Zifan fought with exhilarating abandon!
Xu Zifan was struggling halfway through the fight when Shao Hua immediately acted as his all-around eyes and ears, scanning all the monster's movements, attack postures, and momentum, simulating a virtual monster, and deducing its next move from its every action to alert Xu Zifan. This data processing took less than a second; Xu Zifan received the information as if he were witnessing it himself, quickly gaining the upper hand.
The surrounding trees and rocks had been leveled. After the seventh-level demon beast's hind leg was broken, Xu Zifan pressed his advantage and finally killed it. The battle lasted for two hours. During this time, several groups of people heard the noise and ran over to hide and watch from a distance. Xu Zifan had to take a disguise pill when his back was to them. Now, the cloth covering his face was gone, his cloak was tattered, and he had many injuries, but at least his face was presentable and he wouldn't be recognized.
Xu Zifan took a breath and quickly stored the corpse of the level-seven demon beast into his spatial storage. Level-seven demon beasts are rare; their fur can be made into weapons or armor, their meat is delicious and contains a lot of spiritual energy, even better than top-grade spirit-replenishing pills, and their demon cores are even more precious. He must keep them for future alchemy. He doesn't plan to sell this harvest; rare things should be kept for his own use.
Entering the cave in front of others was out of the question, so Xu Zifan discreetly placed another protective barrier at the cave entrance while collecting the corpse. Then, he turned to leave as if nothing had happened. The onlookers immediately rushed over, shouting, "Wait!"
A man who seemed to be the leader of the group stepped forward and asked with an air of authority, "Sir, would you sell me the demon beast you just killed? My master needs a demon core like that to refine pills. I'll offer more spirit stones than the town does."
The female cultivator on the other side called out, "We arrived first, so we should sell it to us. This cultivator, you're probably going to sell it in town, right? Sell it to me, and you won't have to make another trip, how about it?"
Xu Zifan glanced at them. The senior brother leading the group was from the Thousand Swords Sect, and the female cultivator was from the Seeking Immortals Sect; both were at the Foundation Establishment stage. He shook his head. "Sorry, I have a use for them and don't plan to sell them. Farewell."
He had only taken a few steps when the female cultivator stopped him again. She asked reluctantly, "I'll offer double the price, will you sell it to me?"
Xu Zifan shook his head again, this time with a colder gaze. He released the pressure of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, and everyone's expression immediately changed. Some Qi Refining cultivators even broke out in a cold sweat, feeling an urge to kneel. Xu Zifan summoned his flying sword and soared into the air. The female cultivator felt deeply humiliated. How dare a rogue cultivator so disregard their Seeking Immortal Sect? She shouted at Xu Zifan, "Leave your name!"
Xu Zifan ignored them, flew to a place out of their sight, cut off their divine senses, and entered his spatial dimension to rest. There are always these inexplicable people who like to ask others' names. He prepared a fake name, but there's no need to tell everyone, is that crazy?
He used a cleaning spell to clean the corpse of the level-seven demon beast, carefully processing and storing its demon core and pelt. Looking at the things he had collected over this period, a smile appeared on his face. In this unfamiliar world, in a world where he was in a vulnerable position, these valuable items brought him a sense of security. He put away the jade box and other items, and began to cultivate in peace.
Two hours later, Shaohua reminded everyone: [It's already nighttime in the forest, and there's no one within 500 meters.]
Xu Zifan opened his eyes, changed into ordinary clothes, and left the space without his cloak. He scanned the area with his divine sense and found that the cave entrance was empty; most of the people had left, leaving only five resting around the campfire, but they were some distance from the entrance. He avoided them and entered the cave smoothly. This time, he placed a concealment array at the entrance, set up layers of barriers, and strengthened several defenses. Then, he sat beside a small tree, refining pills while waiting for the spiritual fruits to ripen.
Shaohua scanned the cave thoroughly, inside and out, several times, and said, "[There are many personal spatial treasures inside, containing spiritual springs, spiritual energy, medicinal fields, and even immortal caves with many grand halls and inheritances. If our space has fields and spiritual energy, we can transplant this sapling there, and it will bear many spiritual fruits in the future.]"
Xu Zifan was instantly amused. [Shaohua, how come you're so funny? You're even more of a hamster than me! I'm just collecting things, and you're even planting fruit trees! Those things in novels might not exist; they weren't in the original owner's memories. Don't believe them too much.]
[Shaohua: Are none of those things true?]
Xu Zifan was amazed by his system for the first time. [Of course it's not real; it's all made up by the author. Even in novels, only the protagonist has such an overpowered ability; no one else has ever heard of it.]
[Shaohua: But according to past understanding, wasn't the cultivation world itself a figment of imagination? Yet we are now in the cultivation world. Also, I must remind you, I am the...]
"Tong" is an overpowered existence in some novels, so I believe nothing is impossible. Even if it doesn't exist in this world, it might exist in future worlds.
Xu Zifan was stunned. After thinking about it seriously for a moment, he actually felt that what it said made a lot of sense! He had been too stupid to understand the system before, so should he have any expectations for the portable cave dwelling now?
Bang!
Xu Zifan coughed twice, then waved his hand to summon a wisp of wind that swept away the black smoke. He looked regretfully at the pile of black ash in the alchemy furnace. He'd been so preoccupied with his thoughts that the furnace had exploded! Luckily, the furnace was of decent quality and wasn't damaged much. He cleaned the furnace, took out some herbs, and continued refining pills. He said to Shaohua, "Anyway, I can live here for a long time. As long as I'm careful not to get killed, I can travel all over the place to find good things. Maybe I can become a peddler and make money selling things from different regions, haha."
While Xu Zifan was refining the pills, Shaohua kept watch and browsed the world. It didn't understand these worlds, so it learned about each one by reading novels and books about that world to help Xu Zifan as much as possible. They guarded the spiritual fruit and didn't go out again, and no one else noticed what was happening, so it was quite peaceful.
Three days later, at noon, the spirit fruit suddenly overflowed with spiritual energy. Xu Zifan immediately looked up and saw that the fruit was on the verge of ripening. He quickly put everything away, put on his cloak, gripped his black iron fan, and warily watched the cave entrance. The fragrance of the spirit fruit could no longer be contained and spread far and wide. The people and beasts in the forest noticed the anomaly and rushed in this direction.
They found the entrance to the cave but couldn't enter. Realizing their treasure had been discovered beforehand, they hurriedly attacked the barrier, attempting to break in. Xu Zifan frowned, looking at the spirit fruit. He raised his hand and set up two more barriers. Just as the last barrier was about to be breached, the spirit fruit ripened, its fragrance spreading for miles around. Xu Zifan moved with lightning speed, grabbing the spirit fruit and entering the space!
Shao Hua could scan a radius of 500 meters around where he entered the space, so Xu Zifan saw the people outside on the virtual screen inside the space. They broke through the barrier and saw only a bare sapling, unremarkable, and the fragrance of the spiritual fruit was fading. They were all shocked, their eyes widening. There should have been spiritual fruit and a person inside, where did they go?!
They searched the entire cave inch by inch. Many demonic beasts pushed their way in, only to flee again when they found nothing. This commotion broke the sapling, crushing its branches and leaves. The cave entrance was crowded with people, all armed and guarding it, afraid that anyone hiding inside would escape. Everyone wanted such an amazing treasure; the sapling had grown naturally, not planted by humans, and whoever found it could keep it. They continued their search relentlessly.
A moment later, all the independent cultivators within a hundred miles arrived, and sects and families also sent cultivators of considerable strength to investigate. Xu Zifan couldn't possibly leave anytime soon. Looking at the mouthwateringly fragrant spiritual fruit in his hand, he asked in surprise, "[What exactly is this? Why is it making such a racket as soon as it ripens? Can I eat it directly?]"
He sat cross-legged on the ground, chin in hand, toying with the crystal-clear spiritual fruit. A feeling of profound unease washed over him; he had such a treasure, yet he didn't know whether to eat it directly or use it for alchemy. The most terrifying thing was that he didn't know the fruit's expiration date! What if it spoiled after being stored in the jade box? Wouldn't that be a complete waste?
He hesitated for a moment, glancing at the several demonic beasts in the corner cage, who were now restless and eager, drawn by the spiritual fruit. He said, "[That beast was definitely going to swallow it whole, so... I'll just eat it too. Even if it's not as potent as a pill, it's better than wasting it because I don't know how to preserve it.]"
After making his decision, he took a bite of the spiritual fruit. The fruit melted in his mouth, far superior to the spiritual spring water he had drunk before. The feeling of exhilaration from head to toe made him quickly finish the rest of the fruit. He felt even more blissful than if he had taken drugs, as if he were experiencing the ultimate pleasure in life. But before he could fully enjoy it, excruciating pain struck his entire body, as if all his bones, flesh, and meridians had been shattered and reassembled!
Xu Zifan writhed on the ground in agony, screaming in pain. Shao Hua, shocked yet calm, comforted him, "[Monitoring your body data, Zifan, your cells are undergoing rapid metabolism; your condition is like a marrow cleansing and bone-strengthening process. You must persevere. The spiritual fruit that a level seven demon beast so desperately wants must be something valuable. Hang in there!]"
Xu Zifan's consciousness became increasingly blurred, and only the repeated "Hold on" in his mind sustained his last bit of will.