A Mortal's Start in the Spirit Beast Mountain

Chapter 64 Steward Qin

"Hmm?" The Wind Fox tilted its head and glanced at him, its fluffy tail lightly sweeping the ground, clearly not understanding what he meant.

Luo Ming stepped forward, took the man's storage bag, carefully checked the man's body for any hidden items, and then burned him to ashes.

Perhaps it was because the cultivator's body contained a large amount of spiritual energy that the fire burned so fiercely. Moreover, the amount of different types of spiritual energy in the cultivator's body also affected the color of the flames. This was an experience he had summarized over the past year.

Although it's completely useless.

After doing all this, he flickered and transformed into a shadowy figure, rushing towards the cultivator camp behind him.

Over the past year, Luo Ming has completely adapted to the cruel environment of the battlefield. From being cautious at the first sign of trouble, he has grown into an experienced battlefield hunter and has become quite famous among the Foundation Establishment cultivators in Jingu Plain.

His fame did not stem from the astonishing number of cultivators he had killed, but from the fact that he had never been injured in the past year and always managed to escape unscathed.

If he hadn't been injured in a normal one-on-one fight, it wouldn't have been surprising, since you can always run away if you can't win. But whether it's a one-on-one duel or a melee with thousands of people, he always manages to escape unscathed, which makes people envious and curious.

Some time ago, he gradually made a name for himself in the surrounding area. If a demonic cultivator was alone, he would turn and run away as if he had seen a ghost, causing him to return empty-handed many times recently. He had thought of trying his luck in another area, but he didn't expect that the cultivators here also recognized him, which made Luo Ming somewhat depressed.

"Sigh, this is getting more and more difficult." He sighed softly, but his pace didn't slow down at all.

Half a day later, Luo Ming arrived at a heavily guarded cultivator camp. The place was shrouded in layers of restrictions, with shimmering light. Without a sect token and someone inside the formation to control and cooperate, anyone who tried to force their way in would be instantly pulverized by the violent power of the formation.

Luo Ming took out his sect token and, after verifying it at the camp gate guard post, headed straight for the residence of the Spirit Beast Mountain disciples deep within the camp. This place housed more than two hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators from Spirit Beast Mountain, basically half of the Foundation Establishment disciples. There were also three Core Formation cultivators, and Uncle Cao, who had brought him here, was also here.

"Senior Brother Luo!" The cultivators on the road saw Luo Ming enter and their eyes flashed with a hint of awe. They quickly stood up and took half a step to greet him.

Luo Ming's reputation has spread throughout the camp, and even the cultivators in charge of logistics have heard of him.

He nodded in acknowledgment, and just then, a slightly weak voice sounded from behind him.

"Junior Brother Luo?"

Luo Ming paused, turned around, and saw a middle-aged cultivator standing not far away. It was none other than Steward Qin, who was stationed at the main camp by the sect.

At this moment, Deacon Qin's face was as pale as paper, his lips were bloodless, and his clothes were slightly looser than usual, indicating that he had lost a lot of weight. His aura was also weak and disordered, completely lacking his usual composure and refinement.

"Senior Brother Qin." Luo Ming stepped forward, bowed slightly, and glanced at his pale face. He already understood what was going on—it must be an injury he sustained in the battle with the demonic cultivators half a month ago, which had not yet healed.

At that time, he was in great danger, as he was targeted by three late-stage Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators. If it weren't for his strong divine sense, which allowed him to detect their intentions in time and escape the encirclement, he might have ended up in the same situation.

Deacon Qin waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to be so polite. He slowly walked forward, looking Luo Ming up and down with a complicated expression. After a long while, he sighed heavily, his tone full of regret: "I really didn't expect that you would have undergone such a dramatic change in just a few years. Life is truly unpredictable."

After sighing, Deacon Qin glanced around at the cultivators coming and going, lowered his voice, and said earnestly, "There are too many people here, and I have a few private words I'd like to discuss with you. Would you mind coming into my cave to talk in detail?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Ming was somewhat surprised, but seeing that Deacon Qin's expression was solemn and seemed genuine, he nodded in agreement.

Deacon Qin nodded and said no more. Before long, they arrived at a simple cave dwelling. There was a simple concealment barrier around the cave dwelling. Deacon Qin raised his hand and brushed the barrier, gesturing for Luo Ming to enter.

After entering the cave, Steward Qin waved his hand to set up a soundproof barrier before slowly sitting down, his face even paler than outside. He gestured for Luo Ming to sit down, then picked up the spiritual tea on the table and took a sip, but couldn't hide the dryness in his throat, and couldn't help but cough twice.

"Brother Qin is not feeling well, why don't you rest more?" Luo Ming asked upon seeing this.

Deacon Qin waved his hand, a hint of desolation and urgency flashing in his eyes: "Rest is useless now. Last time, in the battle with the demonic cultivators, I used the secret technique of burning my source energy repeatedly in order to escape. Now my source energy is damaged, and my lifespan has been reduced by more than half. I'm afraid I won't be able to hold on for much longer."

These words were even more somber than his previous remarks outside the hall, and Luo Ming felt a chill run down his spine, unsure how to respond.

He could sense the despair in Deacon Qin's words. Damage to one's source is already a dead end for an ordinary cultivator, let alone when it also affects one's lifespan.

Deacon Qin remained silent for a moment, as if he had made his final decision. He looked intently at Luo Ming and said in a pleading tone, "Luo Ming, I have seen your character over the years. You can trust me with your life. I have a descendant named Qin Meng. You have met her a few times. She has already reached the late stage of Qi Refining. She has decent aptitude, but she is simple-minded and does not understand the dangers of the world."

"My biggest worry right now is her. Once I perish, she will surely have difficulty protecting herself in this chaotic world. I only hope that after I pass away, my junior brother can take care of her. Of course, I will not make things difficult for my junior brother. This storage bag contains most of my life savings. Leaving it to her would only bring trouble, so I will give it all to my junior brother."

After Qin finished speaking, he took out a storage bag from his waist and placed it on the table, quietly waiting for Luo Ming's reply.

He was immediately startled. The other party was clearly giving his last instructions. The scene when he had just transmigrated flashed through his mind. This person had taken good care of him when he was only at the Qi Refining stage. Back then, Deacon Qin was still full of vigor and carefree.

Unexpectedly, just a few years later, due to the invasion of the demonic path, things have become like this. He has to sacrifice almost all of his savings to ensure that his descendants can be taken care of. Due to insufficient strength and living in a chaotic world, only a very few people can rise up. Most of them are like Deacon Qin.

Luo Ming took a deep breath, raised his hand and pressed down on the storage bag on the table, slowly pushing it back to Deacon Qin. His eyes were clear and bright: "Please take this storage bag back for now. Taking care of Miss Qin Meng was simply my duty. There's no need for such a heavy reward. In this chaotic world, it's not easy for cultivators to survive. Mutual help is only right and proper."

Looking at Luo Ming's resolute expression, Deacon Qin's tense body suddenly relaxed, and a relieved smile finally appeared on his pale face. He raised his hand tremblingly, wanting to say something more, but only managed a choked sigh: "Good...good...with Junior Brother's words, I can die in peace."

Having said that, he pushed the storage bag forward again, his tone somewhat stubborn: "Junior brother, you must accept it. The things in this storage bag are nothing to me, but they are a source of trouble for Meng'er. For you, junior brother, they may give you more self-protection in this chaotic world and allow you to better take care of her. If you don't accept it, it means you are not truly willing to accept this entrustment."

Fifteen minutes later, Luo Ming returned to his residence, holding the storage bag that Senior Brother Qin had insisted on giving him, and quietly looked at it.