Chapter 11: Stars Over Wolfback Mountain

By the time the last echoes of the battle faded into the mountains, the sun had already begun to set—casting the sky in a blend of gold and crimson.

The Four-Eyed Monkey's corpse still radiated heat as Tian Jue stood beside it, his clothes dusted in blood, his expression calm.

After tending to the young girl's wound with a quick salve and bandage, he began harvesting the beast.

"Don't forget the blood essence," the girl said suddenly, her voice soft but clear.

Tian Jue paused. "Blood essence?"

She nodded, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "A beast like this—one with a special-grade bloodline—has blood essence that can strengthen the physique. Some rare ones can even evolve the cultivator's body entirely."

Tian Jue narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

"In my past life, those kinds of essence were incredibly rare… but this world might be richer than I thought."

He extracted the core and began to draw the warm, pulsing essence-rich blood into jade vials, being careful not to contaminate it.

Once finished, the girl finally introduced herself. "My name is Xian Feichang."

Tian Jue blinked. "That sounds like a man's name."

She giggled. "That's because I'm the firstborn child of the Xian family. My grandfather insisted I carry a strong name to match strong expectations."

He smirked at her energy. "You don't seem to mind."

"I don't," she said proudly, "I'm already at the ninth layer of Qi Refinement, after all."

Then she tilted her head. "You're in Foundation Realm already, aren't you?"

Tian Jue only smiled and shook his head.

Her eyes widened. "Wait—you're still in Qi Refinement?"

He nodded.

She looked almost dejected. "Talented people really do leave the rest of us behind, huh…"

Tian Jue's gaze drifted toward the glowing edge of the forest, then returned to her.

"Maybe," he said, "but in the end… it's not the most talented who always survive."

She blinked.

"Some people are born with overwhelming power. But power attracts enemies. And if they're not cautious, they fall even faster."

Her expression softened.

Then she smiled—an honest, warm smile.

"I like talking to people like you," she said. "Smart. Thoughtful."

The forest quieted as dusk deepened.

"I'm going to check out that monkey's territory," Tian Jue said, nodding toward the deeper brush. "There might be more herbs nearby."

Xian Feichang stood up, brushing her robes. "I should head back. I already finished what I came here for… then that thing found me."

She hesitated, then reached into her sleeve and pulled out a small jade token, marked with an elegant emblem of a phoenix in flight.

"If you're ever in Long City, come find me. Use this."

Tian Jue accepted the token silently.

She turned and waved as she jogged back into the forest. "Don't die before we talk again, okay?"

He watched her silhouette disappear among the trees.

"To reach ninth layer at eight… She must be a rare genius of her family. A phoenix born to pressure."

Tian Jue moved deeper into the monkey's territory.

As expected, the beast had hoarded several spiritual herbs—he found two more needed for his Marrow Tempering cycle, bringing his total to five out of seven.

Satisfied, he made his way to the creature's cave.

Inside, the air was damp and rich with qi. As he lit a small flame to illuminate the space, his eyes were drawn upward—to the ceiling.

There, nestled in the stone, white stalactites dripped a shimmering, milky liquid into a shallow pool below.

He stepped closer, heart quickening.

"Could it be…?"

He knelt by the pool and scooped a small taste.

Clarity flooded his mind. The buzzing left from the monkey's roar—the ringing in his spiritual nerves—vanished instantly.

"It's real. This is Spirit Nourishment Milk… rare even in high realms."

He carefully bottled half the pool using his storage flasks, the rest left undisturbed.

"With this… I can accelerate the unlocking of my spiritual sense. Maybe even stabilize it in days."

That night, Tian Jue gathered dry wood, lit a controlled fire, and sat beneath the open cave mouth.

He grilled strips of beast meat over the flame, boiling some into a dark stew while the rest smoked gently.

Above him, the stars shimmered, clearer than he'd seen in years—maybe clearer than he ever had in two lifetimes.

He took a bite of the meat, savoring the rich qi-laced flavor.

The wind was calm.

The sky was wide.

And for the first time in a long time… he allowed himself to rest.

To be continued…