They didn't bother calculating directions; it was just a training exercise, so they went wherever they wanted.
After searching for several days, they didn't find any spirit veins or spirit stone mines, but they did find a lot of good medicinal herbs.
That evening, the four of them found a cliff top to rest on. The view from the top was quite nice, and Mo Bai suggested having a barbecue. Everyone agreed and took out their best ingredients.
After a flurry of activity, everything was ready, and everyone grilled and ate as they went.
As darkness fell, a bright moon rose slowly, its light gradually illuminating every corner.
Rong Jiaojiao suddenly stood up and looked into the distance. Her action startled everyone, who thought there was some danger and stood up to be on guard.
Rong Jiaojiao said, "Come on, there's something good!"
Mo Bai asked, puzzled, "What kind of good stuff is it? How come we don't know about it?"
Qing Xuanzi had already quickly packed up all the kitchen utensils, released his flying sword, and stepped onto the path, waiting for Rong Jiaojiao to lead the way.
Rong Jiaojiao herself didn't know what it was and couldn't answer him.
Even she herself was curious as to why the little secret realm hadn't sent any notifications about the presence of good treasures before nightfall.
Now, the little secret realm no longer evokes a sense of longing for these things, but it thoughtfully reminds Rong Jiaojiao of the good treasures she has.
She summoned her flying sword and asked Mo Bai, "Are you going or not?"
"Go, why not go?" He jumped directly onto Rong Jiaojiao's flying sword.
Rong Jiaojiao ruthlessly withdrew her flying sword, and Mo Bai almost fell off the cliff. As he released his own flying sword to fly back up, he shouted, "Rong Jiaojiao, are you trying to murder me?"
Seeing that Rong Jiaojiao and her apprentice had already flown far away on their swords, he quickly chased after them.
Mo Zhizhou also waved his hand and released a flying sword, silently following behind.
Rong Jiaojiao flew for a while following the prompts of the secret realm. In her vision, a faint blue light shimmered in the distant forest.
"Master, look!" she whispered, pointing to the blue light. "What treasure is there?"
Qing Xuanzi narrowed his eyes: "It's like the light emitted by some kind of spiritual plant."
Mo Bai had already caught up, his joking expression vanishing as he gripped the Blood Blade in his hand: "Be careful, there are bound to be demonic beasts guarding the area near rare and precious materials."
Little did he know that just as he drew his blood-stained blade, a cloud of black mist slowly formed a human shape at the very spot where they had fought just days before.
A pair of blood-red eyes stood out prominently on the black, blurry face. Its gaze was fixed on the direction where Rong Jiaojiao and the others were. In the next instant, it transformed into black mist and quickly chased after Rong Jiaojiao and the others.
Rong Jiaojiao and the others flew for a while longer, and the rainforest below gradually became sparser.
When they reached the sky above the light, they looked down and saw a low-lying area glowing with a faint blue light, which was particularly conspicuous in the night.
Zi Ling let out an excited growl and flew off in that direction without waiting for its master's command.
"Be careful, it might be a trap." Mo Bai gripped the hilt of his knife, but curiosity was also evident in his eyes.
Upon landing, the group discovered that it was a large swamp.
In the center of the swamp grew several crystal-clear mushrooms, their caps covered with silver spots, glowing faintly in the moonlight.
"Moonflower Mushroom!" Mo Zhizhou exclaimed in surprise, "This is truly a once-in-a-millennium opportunity!"
Qing Xuanzi hurriedly took out the jade slip to check: "According to the 'Illustrated Compendium of Spiritual Herbs,' the Moonflower Mushroom grows in deep mountain swamps and takes a hundred years to mature after absorbing the moon's essence. It can only be harvested after it has matured. If it is harvested in advance, it will have no effect."
Mo Bai added, "They only mature in seven days. If no one finds and picks them within seven days, they will immediately rot."
Rong Jiaojiao thought to herself: [No wonder the little secret realm only alerted me at night; it turns out the Moonflower Mushroom only releases its energy at night.]
She took out a complete set of herb-gathering tools and said, "I brought the Jade Knife and the Sandalwood Box."
Mo Zhizhou chuckled and said, "It seems you all know about the Moonflower Mushroom now."
"Wait a minute." Mo Bai suddenly stopped her. "Such rare and precious materials must be guarded by a demonic beast."
Rong Jiaojiao looked at Mo Bai speechlessly. She had already sensed danger, so how could she rashly go over there?
As soon as Mo Bai finished speaking, the swamp mud suddenly surged.
A giant, silver-scaled python, as thick as a water bucket, burst from the water, its head adorned with coral-like jade horns, and its cold, vertical pupils locked onto the crowd.
"It's the Moon Shadow Flood Dragon!" Mo Zhizhou's expression changed drastically. "It's already at the peak of the fifth rank, equivalent to a peak Celestial Master realm demon beast!"
The Moon Shadow Dragon and the Moonflower Mushroom complement each other. The Moon Shadow Dragon uses the moonlight drawn by the Moonflower Mushroom to cultivate, while the Moon Shadow Dragon protects the Moonflower Mushroom as it grows.
The giant python opened its mouth and spewed out a cold mist, freezing everything in its path.
Qing Xuanzi hurriedly parried with his newly acquired crimson flying sword, but the sword was instantly covered with a layer of white frost.
"Step back!"
Mo Bai drew his blood-stained knife and was about to step forward when Rong Jiaojiao stopped him.
"Wait!" She quickly took out a jade bottle from her Qiankun Ring. "This is a sleeping potion made from Drunken Dragon Grass. It might work."
Drunken Dragon Grass is a new medicinal herb that has appeared in the secret realm. She used an ancient recipe to make a drug that she named 'Drunken Dragon'. She hasn't tried it yet, but she'll test its power today.
Zi Ling suddenly bit the jade bottle and transformed into a bolt of purple lightning, rushing towards the giant python.
Just as it was about to be enveloped by the cold mist, it deftly flicked its tail and threw the jade bottle into the python's mouth.
"Bang!"
The powder in the bottle exploded, and the giant python's movements immediately slowed down.
But it quickly shook its head, its eyes flashing even more fiercely—clearly, the dosage was insufficient.
"Again!" Rong Jiaojiao threw out three more bottles, and everyone worked together to lock onto the python's head for a few breaths.
This time the medicine finally took effect, and the giant python gradually went limp.
"Hurry up and gather the herbs; their effects will only last for a maximum of fifteen minutes!"
Rong Jiaojiao immediately used her lightness technique to walk on water.
When she used the Cold Jade Knife to cut off the first Moonflower Mushroom, the mushroom cap suddenly burst out with dazzling silver light, illuminating the entire swamp as if it were daytime.
"Oh no!" Qing Xuanzi exclaimed, "The light will attract other demonic beasts."
Everyone was startled upon hearing this, but they dared not stop what they were doing.
Rong Jiaojiao quickly harvested all the mature Moonflower Mushrooms and put them into the sandalwood box. The silver light was immediately blocked, and the swamp fell into darkness again.
Mo Bai looked around warily and whispered, "We need to get out of here quickly."
Just then, a strange rustling sound came from afar, as if something was rapidly approaching them through the jungle.
Zi Ling's fur stood on end, and she let out a low roar into the darkness.
"It's too late," Mo Zhizhou said in a deep voice. "Something is coming."
Qing Xuanzi acted decisively, grabbing a handful of talismans.
The four quickly stood still and each took out their magical artifacts.
Rong Jiaojiao held a flying sword, with the Mo Bai Blood Blade held horizontally in front of her chest. Qing Xuanzi's crimson flying sword hovered beside her. Mo Zhizhou still wore that ancient bronze mirror, its surface gleaming with a faint golden light.
The rustling sound grew closer and closer. Suddenly, the surrounding trees shook violently, and a cloud of black mist surged in like a tide, instantly enveloping everyone.
Within the black mist, a pair of blood-red eyes stood out conspicuously; it was the same dark shadow that had sensed the aura of the Blood Blade earlier.
"It's a demon spirit!" Mo Zhizhou's expression changed drastically. "And it's at the peak of the Celestial Master realm. I didn't expect them to come after us."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com