Chapter 56: The Secret of Mutation!

Chapter 56: The Secret of Mutation!

In a swift motion, Jiang Wanqing, wielding her sword, flew to Ling Feng's side. With a horizontal sweep, she forced the demon to retreat several steps. Anxiously, she inquired, "Ling Feng, how are you?"

"I'm alright," Ling Feng replied, his breathing somewhat erratic. He hadn't anticipated encountering such a formidable demon on the outskirts of Luofeng Canyon.

In terms of strength alone, he surpassed any Qi Formation realm martial artist. Even with Jiang Wanqing's assistance, achieving a decisive outcome proved challenging.

However, her intervention did grant Ling Feng a momentary respite.

Regaining composure, he carefully inserted several golden needles to close off specific acupoints on his body, countering the dizziness induced by significant blood loss.

Clang, clang, clang!

The rhythmic clang of metal echoed as Jiang Wanqing swiftly exchanged blows with the demon in a series of more than ten sword clashes. As Ling Feng foresaw, despite Jiang Wanqing being a martial artist at the first stage of the Pulse Formation realm, her strength was undeniably overshadowed by the demon.

Without her masterful footwork and somewhat developed swordsmanship, and given the significant injuries sustained by the demon, she would not be able to endure more than a few exchanges before succumbing.

Capitalizing on Jiang Wanqing's engagement with the creature, Ling Feng took a moment to ingest some pills that rejuvenated true qi, allowing him to catch his breath before swiftly joining the fray. "I'll take the offensive; you assist from the side," he instructed.

Biting her lip, Jiang Wanqing couldn't believe she, at the Pulse Formation Realm, had fallen to the point of providing assistance from the sidelines for someone in the Qi Formation Realm.

However, she clearly understood that Ling Feng could engage in a prolonged battle with such a formidable monster. This implied that Ling Feng's true strength had already surpassed her own, a martial artist at the first level of the Pulse Formation Realm!

What a monster!

Ling Feng, having restored a portion of his true qi, once again became spirited. The long sword in his hand regained its original sharpness, and his sword qi swept through, enveloping the demon.

This underscored the advantage that humans held over the demon race—demons lacked the ability to utilize refining pills.

"Onslaught of Endless Falling Leaves"

With a low shout, Ling Feng unleashed a technique acquired from the Falling Leaves Sword Technique he had received from the Broken Sword Elder of the Liuyun Sword Sect. Having observed Di Jingtian demonstrate the move and carefully studied the sword manual, Ling Feng swiftly mastered this particular sword art.

While the potency of the Falling Leaves Sword Technique fell slightly short compared to the Starshatter Sword Technique, it demanded a relatively lower consumption of true qi.

Boom!

An ambiance reminiscent of autumn winds and falling leaves manifested, carrying an incredibly ferocious sword qi. Majestic and overwhelming, it surged forward.

Surrounding temperatures seemed to drop, carrying the chilly essence of deep autumn, a sensation even noticed by Jiang Wanqing.

Jiang Wanqing blinked her bright eyes. "I also find it strange, but it's not uncommon for demonic beasts to undergo mutations and become demons."

"You're mistaken," Ling Feng calmly corrected. "If I'm not wrong, this was originally a first-tier demonic beast, a red-tailed fox. Even among first-tier demonic beasts, it's considered a very low-level existence. They wouldn't mutate without reason. Generally, only powerful predators that have the chance to devour more human flesh and blood—strong demonic beasts—have the opportunity to undergo mutation. However, the probability of such mutation remains extremely rare."

"To think that a mere red-tailed fox could mutate into a demon, there must be a profound secret hidden within this!"

"Are you suggesting that this red-tailed fox obtained some valuable items?" Jiang Wanqing exclaimed.

"Highly possible!" Ling Feng pursed his lips. "It could be a treasure or perhaps a spiritual object. I faintly sense that there might be some rare treasures in this area."

Jiang Wanqing's eyelids twitched. An object capable of causing a red-tailed fox to mutate into a demon indeed qualified as a rare treasure.

Ling Feng thoroughly searched the fox's corpse, even dissecting its stomach, but aside from some food remnants, he found nothing.

"Ugh..."

Jiang Wanqing watched as Ling Feng extracted items from the stomach of the red-tailed fox one by one. Her complexion turned pale, and she almost vomited her bitter bile.

"Ugh..." She forced herself to control the nausea. "You... take your time searching. I'll head back first."

Jiang Wanqing understood that if it weren't for Ling Feng, she might not have survived. Even if Ling Feng found anything valuable, it was his spoils of war, and there was no need to share with anyone.

"There's nothing, absolutely nothing."

Ling Feng searched the entire body of the red-tailed fox, but found nothing substantial. In the end, he could only retrieve its demonic core, a meager gain.

"It seems like this creature might have either digested the items or hidden some treasures in its den."

Ling Feng observed, arching an eyebrow. "Well, what's mine is mine, and what isn't, can't be forced..."

Suddenly, a recollection struck him - in the food remnants he had extracted earlier, there seemed to be a particular fruit: Autumn Dew Fruit!

This type of Autumn Dew Fruit should be recorded on Li Liang's map; it only grew in a river valley to the southwest of the Luofeng Canyon.

That area was highly likely to be the den of the red-tailed fox.

"Near the southwest river valley..."

Ling Feng's lips curled into a smirk as he realized that the location coincided with the team's route. Soon when they approached the area, paying a bit more attention could lead to unexpected gains.