Immortality: Grinding Experience Starting as a Paper Craftsman

Chapter 114 Shifting the Blame East, the Fisherman Benefits

Inside Sunset Valley, dark red mist, like living tentacles, slowly undulates among the jagged rocks.

The deeper you go, the hotter the soil becomes.

The soles of the shoes made a soft sizzling sound when stepped on, as if stepping on a red-hot iron.

As you walk further away, the vegetation becomes sparse and gnarled.

Occasionally, one can see a few withered, blackened tree trunks, with pieces of flesh hanging from the branches that have not yet rotted, relics left behind by some unfortunate cultivator.

Gu Yan hunched his neck and followed closely behind Li Qingge by half a step.

His scarlet official robe was covered in mud and grime, with several tears at the chest revealing his white undergarment underneath, making him look utterly disheveled.

"Princess, this place is too eerie."

While wiping non-existent cold sweat from his forehead, Gu Yan muttered in a low voice, "I think I just saw that stone move. Did we stumble into some kind of monster's lair?"

Li Qingge did not turn around, but gripped the Autumn Water Sword in her hand even tighter.

A thin layer of frost surrounded her, keeping out the oppressive heat.

"Shut up."

She coldly uttered two words, her gaze sweeping across the surroundings like a hawk's: "Five miles ahead lies the Fire Phosphorus Swamp, the only way to the core area. Numerous demonic beasts dwell there. If you dare to shout again and disturb the horde, I will first behead you as a sacrifice to the flag."

Gu Yan immediately made a gesture of sewing his mouth shut, his gaze passing over everyone's shoulders and looking into the depths of the mist to his side and rear.

In his perception, the clone of the Blood Swordsman wearing a human skin mask was currently on the only road that the Flowing Cloud Sect's group could take.

……

Five miles away, at the entrance to a narrow valley.

Zhao Lingfeng was leading a large group of disciples from the Liuyun Sect, advancing in a grand and imposing manner.

Although he was arrogant, he was still a Foundation Establishment cultivator. With a casual swing of his Flowing Light Sword, he cleaved several ignorant first-tier demonic beasts in two.

"A bunch of ants, how dare they block my path?"

Zhao Lingfeng disgustedly wiped the blood off his sword, took out a silk handkerchief to wipe his hands, and then casually tossed it away.

Mo Qianji, standing beside him, warned with a grim expression, "Ling Feng, this is not a safe place to stay. The appearance of that Iron-Winged Demon Mantis was rather suspicious; there are probably even higher-level demonic beasts around."

"What are you afraid of?"

Zhao Lingfeng scoffed disdainfully, "With so many of us here, and you in charge, even if a third-tier demon beast came, it would only be delivering its demon core."

Just then, a dusty figure suddenly darted out from the pile of rocks on the side.

The figure appeared to be seriously injured, stumbling and falling as it ran, screaming in terror, "Help! Help! There's a monster!"

Zhao Lingfeng frowned, about to stop him.

The figure, however, seemed to have seen a savior and scrambled to the front of the Flowing Cloud Sect's group, clutching a red fruit that emitted a strange fragrance tightly in its hands.

"Is it you?"

Zhao Lingfeng recognized the man; he was the rogue cultivator who had sold the token to the Emerald Bamboo Sect in the camp earlier.

"Hand over the rest of the tokens!"

A murderous glint flashed in Zhao Lingfeng's eyes, and he placed his longsword directly against the neck of the rogue cultivator.

This rogue cultivator, who was actually Gu Yan's clone, the Blood Swordsman, completely ignored the sword at his neck and instead shoved the red fruit from his arms into Zhao Lingfeng's hand.

"Here you go! Take it all! Don't kill me!"

The Blood Swordsman's performance was incredibly realistic; the fear in his eyes was absolutely lifelike.

Zhao Lingfeng instinctively took the fruit.

The fruit was only the size of a fist, entirely red, with lava-like patterns flowing across its surface. As soon as you got close, a rich, sweet fragrance filled the air.

"This is... the Crimson Flame Fruit?"

Mo Qianji's pupils constricted sharply, and he exclaimed in alarm, "Be careful! This is a companion spirit fruit used to lure high-level fire-type demonic beasts! Once picked, all fire-type demonic beasts within a hundred miles will go berserk!"

Before he could finish speaking...

"roar!!!"

A deafening roar erupted from the direction from which the Blood Swordsman had run out.

Immediately afterwards, the earth began to tremble violently.

The once peaceful pile of rubble suddenly exploded, and dozens of giant wolves engulfed in flames rushed out like a flood bursting its banks.

Each of these giant wolves was the size of a buffalo, with exposed fangs, bloodshot eyes, and rocks that melted instantly wherever their four paws trod.

These giant wolves were none other than the peak second-tier demonic beasts, the Fiery Demon Wolves.

At the very back of the wolf pack, a wolf king, as large as a small mountain and with wings on its back, was staring intently at the vermilion fruit in Zhao Lingfeng's hand.

"You bastard! You dare to betray me!"

Zhao Lingfeng's face turned deathly pale instantly. He wanted to throw it away but couldn't bear to part with such a rare and precious treasure.

"Thank you so much, Young Master Zhao, for protecting me! I'll take my leave now!"

The Blood Swordsman let out a strange cry, and a cloud of blood mist suddenly erupted from his body.

That was the shadow of a withered tree, its essence and blood burned away.

Using this explosive force, along with the Shadow Escape Talisman he had prepared beforehand, his figure instantly became illusory, like a ghost burrowing into the ground, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Zhao Lingfeng, holding the vermilion fruit and looking completely bewildered, was left alone to face the enraged wolf pack.

"Awooo!!!"

At the Wolf King's command, dozens of demonic wolves, filled with boundless rage, pounced on the Flowing Cloud Sect's troops.

……

What was that sound?

Li Qingge, who was walking, suddenly stopped and looked back.

The sky there was dyed a deeper, darker red, with faint flames shooting into the sky. Heart-wrenching screams and roars of beasts mingled together and carried on the wind.

"It seems someone has disturbed a monster's lair."

Gu Yan huddled within the protective circle of the black-armored guards, muttering to himself with schadenfreude, "Judging from the noise, this monster is quite large. I wonder which unlucky fellow it is, tsk tsk tsk."

Li Qingge frowned, ignoring Gu Yan's nagging, and said in a deep voice, "Full speed ahead! While those monsters are distracted, we need to get through the Fire Phosphorus Swamp as quickly as possible!"

This is indeed a wise choice.

But Gu Yan clearly wouldn't let things end so easily.

If the goal is to muddy the waters, then this isn't muddy enough.

His perspective had already shifted; the world of paper had arrived.

In his eyes, the violent fire elemental fluctuations in the distance were rapidly moving towards him.

That was the result of the Blood Swordsman's clone guiding things underground.

He used earth-遁术 (earth-遁术 is a technique that allows one to escape through the earth) and secretly sprinkled a kind of powder called "妖引粉" (demon-attracting powder) along the way, luring some of the crazed demon wolves towards this side.

"Princess! Watch your step!"

Gu Yan suddenly shouted and pointed to the swamp in front of him.

The once calm surface of the swamp suddenly began to bulge with huge bubbles.

"Glug... Glug..."

As the bubbles burst, a nauseating sulfurous smell wafted out.

"Splash!"

Mud splashed.

Thick, dark red tentacles suddenly emerged from the depths of the swamp, lashing out like whips at the black-armored guards at the front.

"It's Earthfire Vine! Defense!"

The commander of the black-armored guards reacted extremely quickly, wielding his long spear to create a black light curtain.

"Slap! Slap! Slap!"

The tentacles slammed against the light screen, producing a dull thud and sending sparks flying.

But this is just the beginning.

As the Earth Fire Vine awakened, the entire swamp seemed to boil.

Countless tiny, palm-sized, bright red poisonous toads leaped out of the mud. They puffed out their cheeks and sprayed streams of purplish-black venom at the crowd.

"Damn it!"

Li Qingge's expression changed, and she brandished her longsword, the icy sword energy transforming into an ice wall that blocked the venom flying everywhere.

"Sizzle sizzle..."

Chapter 114 of this book: Shifting the Blame Eastward, the Fisherman Benefits with a Surprising Surprise. Click here to unlock now.

The venom corroded the ice wall, sending up plumes of white smoke.

Ahead, there were poisonous vines and toads blocking the way; behind, a pack of wolves was closing in.

The situation instantly became critical.

"Gu Changsheng! Stop playing dead! Throw away all the fire grenades you're carrying!"

While maintaining the ice wall, Li Qingge shouted at Gu Yanli, who was hiding behind it.

"Huh? Oh! Okay, okay!"

Gu Yan frantically pulled out a handful of dark, round balls from his pocket.

This is a Fire Thunder, a hand grenade from the cultivation world.

"Get out of here!"

Gu Yan did not throw the fire grenades at the demonic vines and poisonous toads. Instead, he seemed to have accidentally thrown the handful of fire grenades to the other side of the swamp.

There, it was a small, seemingly ordinary mound.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The firework exploded, sending flames soaring into the sky.

The small mound was blown open, revealing a huge cave inside.

The next moment, an aura several times more terrifying than the previous wolf king emanated from the cave.

"hiss!!!"

A sharp screech pierced the eardrums.

A two-headed fire python, as thick as a bucket and covered in dark gold scales, slowly swam out of the cave.

One of its heads was engulfed in flames, while the other spewed out black smoke.

A peak-level Tier 3 demonic beast, a two-headed fire serpent!

This is the true overlord of this swamp.

Gu Yan's seemingly foolish act of detonating the bomb directly woke everyone up from their afternoon nap.

"Gu Changsheng! Look what you've done!"

Li Qingge was so angry she almost spat out blood.

Originally, we only needed to deal with some demonic vines and poisonous toads, but now, we've blasted out the demon king here!

"This humble official...this humble official didn't mean it..."

Gu Yan looked innocent, his legs trembling, but he was secretly overjoyed.

The moment the two-headed fire serpent appeared, the demonic vines and poisonous toads that had been attacking the group seemed to have encountered their natural enemy, retreating back into the swamp and disappearing without a trace.

This illustrates the strict hierarchy among monsters.

The scene suddenly fell silent.

Only the enormous two-headed fire serpent remained, its two heads raised high, its two cold, vertical pupils fixed on the group of humans who had disturbed its peaceful slumber.

"Prepare for war!"

Li Qingge took a deep breath, knowing that running away now would only hasten her death.

She swallowed a pill, and her spiritual power erupted. The faint phantom of an ice phoenix appeared behind her.

"Black-armored guards, form the Dragon-Trapping Formation!"

The hundred black-armored guards quickly changed formation, surrounding Li Qingge in the middle. All of their spiritual power gathered in one place and poured into the long halberd of the main formation.

The war is about to start.

However, at that moment...

Suddenly, a group of disheveled figures rushed out from the mist behind them.

It was Zhao Lingfeng and the remnants of the Liuyun Sect.

They had been chased by wolves all the way, losing many disciples in the process. When they finally saw people ahead, they rushed over without thinking.

"The Prince's people are ahead! Quick! Meet up with them!"

Mo Qianji shouted, a cunning glint in his eyes.

As long as the wolf pack is lured to the Prince's Mansion and they share some of the pressure, the Flowing Cloud Sect can catch its breath.

But when they broke through the fog and saw what was in front of them, everyone stopped in their tracks.

Directly in front of them, a huge two-headed fire serpent was opening its blood-red maw, dripping foul-smelling saliva at them.

A giant snake lies in front, and a pack of wolves lurks behind.

It's truly a case of escaping one wolf's den only to fall into another.

"Senior Brother Zhao, what a coincidence!"

Gu Yan, hiding behind the black-armored guards, poked his head out and waved with a grin: "Looks like we're really destined to meet, even in such a desperate situation."

Zhao Lingfeng looked at the two-headed fire serpent radiating terrifying pressure, then at the pack of wolves chasing behind him. His face turned from white to green, then from green to purple.

"Gu Changsheng...I..."

Before he could utter a single curse, the two-headed serpent moved.

It clearly regarded both groups as intruders.

"call!"

The head, engulfed in flames, suddenly opened, and a thick pillar of fire shot out.

The pillar of fire wasn't aimed at Li Qingge, but rather at the Liuyun Sect members who had just rushed over.

Because Zhao Lingfeng still had the aura of that Crimson Flame Fruit in his hand!

For the two-headed fire serpent, the scent of the vermilion fruit was more tempting than fresh meat.

"Damn it! It's coming at me!"

Zhao Lingfeng was so frightened that he threw the extremely precious Vermilion Fruit towards Li Qingge without thinking.

"Princess! This treasure is for you!"

This tactic of shifting blame eastward was executed flawlessly.

Li Qingge's face turned cold as she looked at the flying vermilion fruit.

If you do that, you will become the target of public criticism.

If we don't accept it, the Vermilion Fruit will inevitably smash to pieces upon landing, not only wasting its preciousness but also causing the activated medicinal power to drive the demon beast even more mad.

At this critical moment.

A dark shadow swept past from the side like a ghost.

Gu Yan suddenly burst out of the formation, and amidst the gasps of the crowd, he fell to the ground in an extremely undignified manner.

With his lunge, he managed to catch the vermilion fruit steadily with his wide sleeves.

Using the momentum, he rolled on the ground, skillfully avoiding the venomous smoke spewed by the two-headed fire serpent.

As Gu Yan rolled around, he quickly affixed a spirit-sealing talisman to the Vermilion Fruit to block its aura, and then swiftly stuffed it into his storage bag.

Immediately afterwards, he took out a similar-looking, easily popped stink bomb and threw it back towards the Flowing Cloud Sect.

"Senior Brother Zhao! Your things are too valuable, I can't accept them, please return them to me!"

"Snapped!"

The stink bomb exploded in front of Zhao Lingfeng.

A fishy, ​​pungent smell, a hundred times stronger than the one from the vermilion fruit, enveloped Zhao Lingfeng's entire body.

That was the secretion of the mother wolf, a special delicacy made by Gu Yan.

The pack of Fiery Wolves, who were still hesitating about which side to attack, turned bloodshot and purple upon smelling this scent.

"Aww!!!"

The wolf king let out an excited roar and led the pack to ignore the two-headed fire serpent and pounce on Zhao Lingfeng.

The two-headed fire serpent, having lost the aura of the Vermilion Fruit and enraged by the wolves' provocation, spewed black smoke from its other head and joined the melee.

In an instant, the scene descended into complete chaos.

The wolf pack tore at the disciples of the Flowing Cloud Sect, the disciples of the Flowing Cloud Sect attacked the Two-Headed Flame Serpent, and the Two-Headed Flame Serpent attacked everyone indiscriminately.

And on the edge of the battlefield.

Li Qingge, accompanied by the black-armored guards, stared in disbelief at the scene.

What was originally a sure-fire death trap for them was instantly resolved because of Gu Yan's few seemingly ridiculous actions?

"Quick! Now!"

Li Qingge was also a decisive person, without the slightest hesitation.

"Stick to the edge of the swamp and go around it!"

The black-armored guards moved swiftly, slipping away quietly from the edge of the battlefield.

Gu Yan got up from the ground, patted the dirt off his body, and took one last look at Zhao Lingfeng, who was being attacked by wolves and giant snakes and was complaining bitterly. A cold smile, barely perceptible, appeared on his lips.

"Senior Brother Zhao, take your time. I won't keep you company."

He turned around and caught up with the group.

In his sleeve, a paper figure the size of a palm was being quietly swallowed by the fire essence accompanying the two-headed flaming serpent.