Chapter 8: Infiltrating the Monkey Forest

"Retreat!" Lin Shiming had already witnessed the strange speed of the yellow-haired Demon Monkey and couldn't help but warn Lin Shiqi.

His hand did not stop either, as he formed a hand gesture and the Green Spirit Sword instantly flew out from his Storage Bag, transforming into a giant sword three to four meters long, and slashing towards the yellow-haired Demon Monkey.

Following that, he gave a big wave of his hand, scattering a large number of Wood Vine Technique seeds. In addition to these, he also held several Fireball Talismans in his hand.

In comparison, Lin Shiqi seemed much more flustered, and in her haste, she only managed to summon her snow-white Spirit Sword.

This Demon Monkey was clearly slightly stronger than the one Lin Shiming had killed earlier.

With a fierce leap, it swung the hard wooden stick in its hand heavily, knocking both Spirit Swords flying in disarray.

Then, without stopping, it continued to smash its way forward.

"Wood Vine Technique! Rise!" Lin Shiming finished chanting the spell, and countless wood vines broke through the soil.

Transforming into serpent-like entities, they swarmed towards the Demon Monkey, entwining it.

These wood vines were different from the swords; they could not be sent flying just by a smack from the Demon Monkey.

On the contrary, the entire robust wooden stick was quickly entangled by the vines, infuriating the monstrously howling Demon Monkey.

"Release the attack Spirit Talismans!" Lin Shiming voiced a reminder to Lin Shiqi.

The second-rank, intermediate-grade Fireball Talisman in his hand was also fiercely thrown at the Demon Monkey.

Lin Shiming's Fireball hit the Demonic Monkey, which failed to evade in time, directly blackening its entire body and igniting flames upon it.

Lin Shiqi also recovered from her shock, unleashing a Wind Blade Talisman. Countless wind blades formed and tore through the air.

With a roar, the Demon Monkey, its green eyes finally filled with fear, flipped and leaped backwards, escaping towards the rear.

"Chase it!" Starting from fear, Lin Shiqi became somewhat excited. As a Qi Cultivation fourth-level cultivator, this was her first time facing a Demonic Beast, and she did not want to let this Demon Monkey escape.

"I'll go after it. You go protect Lin Shitao, and bring her and the Spirit Peach Tree back to Qingtao Mountain!" Lin Shiming directly stopped Lin Shiqi, but seeing her reluctance, he added:

"Third Sister, it's very likely there are more Demon Monkeys. Protecting Lin Tao and the Spirit Peach Tree is more important!"

The resolve in Lin Shiming's words also made Lin Shiqi calm down.

Indeed, Lin Tao's home was nearby, and she had the Spirit Peach Tree with her. It was truly more important to protect these things.

Seeing Lin Shiqi's understanding, Lin Shiming did not hesitate, and followed after the Demon Monkey.

This time, Lin Shiming did not use the sword for flying but instead cast a basic spell to lighten his body, following the Demon Monkey from a distance.

The Demon Monkey initially ran through the forest with extreme agility, disappearing into the distance in the blink of an eye, but after a while, it slowed down noticeably.

The fireball had hit it squarely, and its injuries were evidently taking their toll.

The trail of fresh blood it left became Lin Shiming's best tracking tool.

Lin Shiming did not pursue too closely. Ordinary beasts had a concept of herd, let alone a group of Demon Monkeys.

Of course, when tracking, Lin Shiming was far from being as calm as he appeared on the surface.

Although the system had given a prompt, this pursuit was undoubtedly extremely dangerous; venturing further might even lead him to the outskirts of the Qingyun Mountain Range.

Therefore, in his hands, he involuntarily held the two second-rank, superior-grade Spirit Talismans brought from the family.

With only Qi Cultivation at the fifth level, he would be no match for any Demonic Beast in the later stages of cultivation.

Hence, Lin Shiming could only hope that there were no late-stage Great Demon Monkeys among them, while at the same time preparing for the worst.

After tracking for most of the day, Lin Shiming arrived at the mouth of a valley.

Inside the valley, there were rows of Qingtao peach trees.

And among the Qingtao trees, Lin Shiming was thrilled to discover that there was a Spirit Peach Tree.

Moreover, the Spirit Peach Trees here have actually borne several unripe fruits.

"There's a Spirit Vein here!" Lin Shiming thought of a possibility, his heart thumping wildly.

In this world of immortal cultivation, if one wants to embark on the true path to immortality, they must pay attention to wealth, companionship, techniques, and land!

Wealth refers to possessions, Spirit Stones, and various treasures. Companionship encompasses a Dao Companion, family members, and even one's household or sect.

Technique means Cultivation Techniques and secret spells.

Land is the most special, and one might say, the most crucial element.

That is the land of Spirit Veins.

This is why cultivators distance themselves from mortals and establish clans and sects in high mountains and unusual valleys—it all depends on the presence and quality of Spirit Veins.

Atop Fangmu Mountain, the Lin Family has established their presence and thrived precisely because there is a Third Rank Intermediate Grade Spirit Vein on the mountain, which can amply supply cultivators with energy for their practice.

Even supporting three Foundation Establishment cultivators wouldn't be a problem.

But the Qingtao Mountain where Lin Shiming now resides has only a First Rank Inferior Grade Spirit Vein, which can barely support one or two cultivators practicing together.

Once the Spiritual Energy is insufficient, one has to absorb Spiritual Energy from Spirit Stones all the time to cultivate, which entails a huge consumption.

This is also why when Lin Houyuan and Lin Yuqing saw Lin Shiming's talent, they were reluctant to let him come here to stand guard.

The quality of a Spirit Vein also determines the growth cycle of Spiritual Objects; with an ample supply of Spiritual Energy, even a hundred-year-old Spiritual Medicine could achieve the same effects in just a few decades.

The Spirit Peaches in front of him had already matured, obviously earlier than the ones on Qingtao Mountain's Spirit Vein.

Lin Shiming suppressed his excitement, carefully absorbed the Spiritual Energy around him, and after circulating it in his body for half a Small Circulation, he finally confirmed that there was indeed a Spirit Vein here, and it was at least a Second Rank Intermediate Grade Spirit Vein.

The existence of a Spirit Vein also signifies the production of Spiritual Plants and objects, a bounty that could bring tremendous benefits to the entire Lin Family.

Lin Shiming gritted his teeth, forcing himself to calm down.

The hint given by the system was incredibly valuable, but at the same time, Lin Shiming found himself in an extremely dangerous situation.

It made him dare not slack off in the slightest.

Lin Shiming also hid in the tree, not daring to move around any longer, but used his Divine Sense to extensively scan the surroundings.

Of course, Lin Shiming was very cautious using his Divine Sense. Some powerful Demonic Beasts could sense Divine Sense, and although it was rare for Second Rank Demonic Beasts to have this sensitivity, Lin Shiming still didn't dare to gamble on it.

As his Divine Sense spread meter by meter, Lin Shiming's excitement grew stronger and stronger!

Spirit Peach Trees, lots of Spirit Peach Trees!

Lin Shiming was somewhat numb, and eventually, he even found an Intermediate Grade Second Rank Spirit Peach Tree.

One must know that an Intermediate Grade Second Rank Spirit Peach can be used to improve Cultivation Level, and serve as a precious ingredient for elixirs, each worth twenty or thirty Spirit Stones!

Far surpassing ordinary Second Rank Inferior Grade Spirit Peaches.

Of course, there were also several cold showers poured on Lin Shiming's head.

Lin Shiming found that almost every Spirit Peach Tree was guarded by a yellow-haired Demon Monkey.

And on that big Second Rank Intermediate Grade Spirit Peach Tree was an even larger Red-haired Demon Monkey with more formidable Spirit Might.

When Lin Shiming's Divine Sense covered it, he almost held his breath.

That was undoubtedly a Demonic Monkey at the peak of the Second Rank, with a kind of Spirit Might that Lin Shiming had only seen on his great grandfather, the Lin Family's Great Elder Lin Houqing, who practiced Body Cultivation.

Lin Shiming was already considering retreat, with no intention of trying to pick the peaches.

While Spirit Peaches are desirable, one must have their life to enjoy them. Lin Shiming had no doubt about the ferocity of these Demon Monkeys—if discovered by them, a gruesome death by being torn apart would be inevitable.