Chapter 35

This guy must have encountered a group of bubble rats.

When Du Qingxi saw Duanmuzhe, she almost couldn’t believe her eyes. He looked as if he had been soaked in a dye vat, with his hair, skin, and once snow-white clothes all covered in a ghastly green liquid, making him look like an ugly toad demon.

If not for seeing it with her own eyes, it would be hard to imagine that this person was the elegant and handsome Duanmuzhe in white robes.

A gust of wind blew, and a nauseating stench instantly filled every corner of the space.

"How disgusting." Song Lin, overwhelmed by the stench in the air, covered his nose and retreated step by step.

"Is he in any danger?" Du Qingxi frowned and asked.

Chen Xi shook his head: "No, just a bit smelly."

Ugh~

Du Qingxi was almost overwhelmed by the stench and immediately left the area without hesitation, saying, "Duanmu, quickly change your clothes and leave here."

"You... How can you do this!"

Duanmuzhe opened his eyes wide, looking at Du Qingxi and Song Lin who were leaving far away, his voice filled with deep sorrow, like a forsaken woman.

"Master Duanmu, I warned you earlier, but you didn’t listen... Sigh, you should quickly change your clothes, it really stinks." Chen Xi shook his head and also turned to leave.

Duanmuzhe, as if struck by lightning, stood there in a daze for a moment, then let out a low, agonized growl.

Chen Xi, you did this on purpose, on purpose!

I will definitely kill you!

Duanmuzhe, enraged, took deep breaths, but the stench from his own body almost made him faint. He was filled with rage, hating Chen Xi to the core.

When Duanmuzhe reappeared, he had already restored his elegant white robes, but his face was as dark as water, his gaze on Chen Xi filled with a desire to kill.

"It seems I have offended this guy deeply, but as long as Du Qingxi is here, he probably won’t dare to harm me in secret."

Chen Xi shook his head, ignoring Duanmuzhe’s gaze, and turned to walk forward.

On the way, Duanmuzhe was silent. Under Chen Xi’s lead, no further incidents occurred.

Du Qingxi followed behind, her surprise growing. They encountered powerful beast demons several times, but Chen Xi, as if with foresight, led the group to carefully avoid them, each time without any danger.

She had to admit that she had underestimated Chen Xi, as even she occasionally found it difficult to detect those extremely stealthy beast demons.

In Duanmuzhe’s mind, Chen Xi’s familiarity with the surroundings made him even more convinced that everything before was a deliberate attempt by Chen Xi to embarrass him. His hatred for Chen Xi had reached a point where it was hard to reconcile, and if not for Du Qingxi, he would have killed Chen Xi at the first opportunity.

As dawn approached, Chen Xi and the others finally crossed the forest, which served as a natural barrier, and entered the Southern Barbarian Forbidden Zone, appearing before a vast lake.

This boundless lake was called Lingkong Lake, which Chen Xi naturally recognized. The first innate realm great demon he had killed, a two-thousand-year-old dual-headed purple rhinoceros, had been dwelling in the center of the lake.

At the moment, no fewer than tens of thousands of cultivators had gathered by Lingkong Lake, the area filled with a dense crowd, the noise of conversations rising and falling, creating a lively scene.

"Is the entrance to the Southern Barbarian Nether Region on Lingkong Lake?" Chen Xi looked at the distant crowd, feeling somewhat surprised.

"You don’t know?" Du Qingxi seemed even more surprised than Chen Xi.

Chen Xi shook his head: "I have never participated in the Southern Barbarian Nether Region trial and have never paid attention to such information."

"Hah, as a descendant of Songyan City, you haven’t even participated in the Southern Barbarian Nether Region trial? You must be doing really poorly." Duanmuzhe interjected, his tone filled with strong disdain.

Chen Xi glanced at him and said coolly, "Though I haven’t entered the Southern Barbarian Nether Region, I know how to navigate the Southern Barbarian forests."

Knowing how to navigate the Southern Barbarian forests...

Duanmuzhe was taken aback, recalling the ice-tailed venomous bees and bubble rats they had encountered, feeling as if someone had ripped open a wound in his heart. His face instantly turned extremely dark, and he said, word by word, "I hope your mouth and cultivation are equally powerful, and you don’t die in the Southern Barbarian Nether Region."

This statement was equivalent to a complete breakdown of relations with Chen Xi.

Du Qingxi frowned and looked at the two, saying coldly, "Enough! If you continue like this in the Southern Barbarian Nether Region, leave now!"

Duanmuzhe pursed his lips and fell silent, clearly afraid that Du Qingxi would really kick him out.

Chen Xi, who was eager to leave, hesitated when he saw Du Qingxi’s icy expression, remembering the three-year contract he had signed with her.

The group quickened their pace, and after about ten minutes, they appeared on an open space by Lingkong Lake.

Upon approaching, Chen Xi found that most of the cultivators were gathered in small groups, holding weapons, and looking alert. Clearly, in this dangerous Southern Barbarian Forbidden Zone, though they were competitors, to prevent powerful beast demons from attacking, everyone had gathered together.

After all, the Southern Barbarian Nether Region had not yet appeared, and it wasn’t time to fight over the evil pearls.

The appearance of Chen Xi’s group drew the attention of most of the surrounding people. The reason was simple: Duanmuzhe, standing there in his elegant white robes, was like a flag. Any cultivator who had been in Longyuan City would recognize this well-mannered young man as Duanmuzhe, the outstanding young talent of the Duanmu family.

"Ah, it’s Master Duanmu!"

"Ah, Master Duanmu is here too!"

"Master Duanmu, I didn’t expect to see you here!"

...

On the way, greetings to Duanmuzhe were constant. The initial hostile gazes towards Chen Xi’s group retreated, as the Duanmu family’s reputation was so great that ordinary cultivators didn’t dare to provoke them.

At this moment, Duanmuzhe’s face again showed his usual smile, a mix of pride and restraint. With his shining aura, the four of them easily found a prime spot.

Seeing this, Chen Xi couldn’t help but marvel at the power of reputation. The ancient families that had survived to this day indeed weren’t just famous for nothing.

After being praised by the surrounding crowd, Duanmuzhe’s mood seemed to improve. He glanced at Chen Xi, who was sitting on the ground, and frowned, "Hey, you’re a terrible cook. Haven’t you seen that we’ve been walking all night?"

Chen Xi ignored him and looked at Du Qingxi, "Do you need to eat something?"

Du Qingxi thought for a moment and nodded. When they left the forest, she had a black veil on her head that could block the probing of divine souls, hiding her face and making it impossible to see her expression.

Chen Xi then got up, took out some ingredients from his storage ring, and started a spirit fire to cook.

This storage ring was given to him by Du Qingxi when they left Qingxi Tavern. It had a space of about a hundred meters, with piles of ingredients like small mountains. If they were frugal, it would be enough for several people to eat for two to three years.

Chen Xi ignoring him didn’t bother Duanmuzhe at all. Making Chen Xi cook in front of everyone had already achieved his goal.

He wanted everyone to know that Chen Xi was just a lowly cook following him, not a friend on equal terms as he appeared.

Seeing Chen Xi start to cook, Duanmuzhe couldn’t help but look forward to it. He thought Chen Xi must be feeling very uncomfortable right now.

However, to Duanmuzhe’s disappointment, though the surrounding gazes were often surprised, puzzled, enlightened, and contemptuous, Chen Xi’s expression remained unchanged from beginning to end.

Soon, a pot of hundred-precious porridge, made from a mix of over a hundred spiritual fruits and grains, was ready. The inviting aroma, mixed with the fresh scent of fruit wood, wafted through the air.

Gurgle~ Gurgle~

The sound of stomachs growling rose from the crowd. Most of the cultivators here were at the innate realm and couldn’t survive without food like the Purple Mansion cultivators. They had brought dry rations, but the fresh aroma of the porridge made their mouths water.

"Master Duanmu is truly extraordinary, even bringing a spirit chef on his journey. Such a quality of life is truly enviable."

"Indeed, just from the aroma of the porridge, one can tell that the young man must be at least a two-leaf spirit chef!"

...

Hearing this, Duanmuzhe felt even more pleased, taking a white napkin and covering his legs, then ordering, "Serve me a bowl of porridge."

Chen Xi, holding a bowl of porridge, replied indistinctly, "It’s gone."

Indeed, it was gone. He had served a bowl to Du Qingxi, a bowl to himself, and a large bowl to Song Lin, who seemed to have been reborn as a hungry ghost. The pot was scraped clean.

Duanmuzhe looked at the napkin on his legs and the empty pot, his expression changing dramatically, a spectacle in itself.

"Hmm, this porridge is delicious, with a unique flavor that doesn’t fall short of my family’s chief spirit chef." Song Lin drank the porridge in large gulps, looking intoxicated and satisfied, occasionally making a loud slurping sound.

"This porridge must be a creation of his own, with a sweet and soft texture, distinct from the norm, and the spiritual energy is condensed and pure, indeed excellent." Du Qingxi nodded in agreement.

Seeing that the two had no intention of supporting him and were instead enjoying the taste of the hundred-precious porridge, Duanmuzhe’s face turned even darker.

"Hey! That’s..."

At this moment, the crowd became restless, all gazes turning to the distant area.

Du Qingxi looked up, then收回目光，平静地说：“原来是苏家那丫头，我就知道她不会错过这次的机缘。”

苏家？

陈汐心中陡然巨震，霍然抬头。

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(Note: The last part of the original text was cut off, so the translation ends here as well.)

收回目光，平静地说：“原来是苏家那丫头，我就知道她不会错过这次的机缘。”

苏家？

陈汐心中陡然巨震，霍然抬头。