Chapter 107: Intestine-Eating Fish
Hearing Li Yan’s question, Li Wuyi paused thoughtfully.
“This… isn’t easy to say. A fight depends not only on the opponent’s realm and strength, but also on timing, terrain, and even luck. For example…”
He pondered a moment longer before continuing.
“During a secret realm harvesting, I once encountered three monks from the Pure Land Sect alone. These three specialized in coordinated assault and encirclement techniques. Their chan meditation power was profound, and their bodies tough as leather and bark, extremely difficult for cultivators of the same realm to break through their defenses.
The three attacked me in unison. Despite several attempts, I couldn’t break free. Meanwhile, I unleashed no fewer than forty kinds of potent and illusionary poisons.
Though a few of these poisons took effect, these monks carried rare relics called Sarira Pearls, treasures only cultivators at Core Formation level or above possess. These relics not only held tremendous power but were also supreme anti-demonic and antidotal artifacts.
Such items are scarce and generally beyond the reach of Foundation Establishment cultivators, yet one of the three monks carried one. They took turns using the Sarira Pearls to detoxify during the fierce battle.
While these pearls couldn’t completely cleanse the poisons immediately, they prolonged the fight, preventing me from escaping. Later, during the intense combat, my right rib was struck by a monk’s staff, leaving half my body numb and powerless, escape seemed impossible.
However, the fight happened near a river where a strange beast lived, the Intestine-Eating Fish. These fish are under an inch long, like a school of minnows, with individual combat strength roughly at the third or fourth level of Qi Condensation.
But when they attack, they do so in thousands or even tens of thousands, preying on anything living near the water’s surface. Once they target something, thousands leap out of the water simultaneously, stabbing their sharp, needle-like mouths into the creature.
Their mouths are shaped like syringe tubes, sharp and pointed. Even Foundation Establishment cultivators without protective spiritual light would be pierced through flesh and bone by these creatures. This is their natural gift.
Once pierced, the fish suck strongly, drawing out flesh, blood, and even meridians bit by bit through their tubular mouths.
Because whatever is sucked in looks like a long intestine within the tube, these beasts are named ‘Intestine-Eating Fish.’
Thousands of them cling to a body. In less than a single breath, they scatter, leaving behind only a clean, crystal-clear skeleton, devoid of a single shred of flesh.”
As Li Yan listened, vivid images of the battle formed in his mind, mixed with horror at the thousands of fish jumping around him.
Li Wuyi’s voice remained calm and steady as if describing the most ordinary event.
“During our fight, the fish constantly tried to attack us, but both sides deliberately kept away from the river, so they never got a chance.
When my half-paralyzed body gave up hope of escape, I quickly moved toward the riverbank. The monks realized my intention and tried to stop me, but were half a step too late.
Unwilling to let me go, they followed. They believed their Foundation Establishment spiritual shield could easily fend off a temporary swarm of intestine-eating fish. In fact, it was true.
I was too weak to fight back, so I released ‘Lingxing Grass’ powder into the stream below and applied ‘River Willow’ herb on myself.
The first herb irritates low-level beasts, once they smell or inhale it, they lose reason and attack frenziedly. The second is an ancient willow bark with an extremely foul odor. Few creatures dare approach it. Even holding breath can’t prevent its scent from seeping through pores.
It makes the wearer emit a disgusting stench for a time, so most avoid carrying it, fearing that even a trace on themselves would make them a beacon in the dark, easily found by enemies.”
Li Wuyi continued slowly.
“At that moment, I had no other choice and wasn’t sure if the herbs would affect the intestine-eating fish.
If not, they would just kill me faster. After applying both herbs, I withdrew my protective aura to allow the ‘River Willow’ to spread more freely.
Then I plunged into the river.
Countless crazed intestine-eating fish, drawn by the scent of the ‘Lingxing Grass,’ surged upward, nearly knocking me back into the air.
Most of the fish leapt aside to avoid me and instead attacked the three monks chasing me…
After I submerged, many fish tried to attack me, but at the last moment, hesitation stopped them, and they scattered away.”
So, in the end, I swam away underwater, searching for a deeper area far from the intestine-eating fish. There, I barely managed to use a Water Escape Technique to hide for nearly ten days, until the scent on me gradually faded.
As for those three monks, their bodies had already been covered by the intestine-eating fish, and combined with the deadly poisons I had inflicted earlier, they were no longer able to use their Sarira Pearls to detoxify. Unable to rise into the air and escape, they fought on briefly before dying there.
So, you ask what allowed me to win this time? It was terrain advantage, I happened to be near the intestine-eating fish; it was timing, I coincidentally had those two herbs on me; and most of all, it was luck. The predicted effects of both herbs proved true. Without any one of these conditions, I wouldn’t be here today.”
Li Yan fell silent. On the path of cultivation, anything could happen. Fate and fortune truly existed.
In fact, cultivators place great importance on fortune, with some specializing in its cultivation.
For example, the Confucian sects cultivate Haoran Zheng Qi, vast righteous energy born from long study of poetry and classic texts, producing great scholars whose energy can slay demons and ward off evil.
Buddhists rely on mental power, Daoists on willpower, none of these are ordinary spiritual energy but special forces, which in some respects surpass spiritual power.
Thus, when facing scholars, monks, or Daoists, one must not only guard against their cultivation techniques but also be wary of these special powers. Haoran Zhengqi Qi, mental force, and willpower strike in strange ways, making them difficult to detect with divine senses.
Li Yan understood Li Wuyi’s meaning: he was warning him to prepare mentally and never underestimate any opponent without absolute strength. Power alone does not guarantee everything. Even Li Wuyi couldn’t be certain who would ultimately survive the secret realm harvest.
He was also reminding him that in the Wheel of Life and Death, survival depends mostly on oneself, staying calm and using the environment wisely is the best chance.
Over the next nine days, Li Yan spent eight consolidating his cultivation. On the last day, all stopped training.
On the Tianxin Compass, though no one had emerged yet, the total number of light points was under eighty. Meanwhile, the three teams from the four sects had 111 Foundation Establishment cultivators and beasts returned.
This means that out of over three hundred cultivators and beasts originally entering, more than 150 had died, over 40 percent.
The early returnees had brought back numerous treasures and pills for their sects or races. These were handed to the leaders and recorded for rewards upon return.
No one dared hide any treasure here unless confident their storage device could fool these centuries-old monsters. Discovery meant losing not only credit for their efforts but possibly their lives.
At this time, the leading sect elders wore grim expressions. Though every fifteen years they endured this, these cultivators were the elite painstakingly trained by their sects.
They might not be the absolute top, but they formed the core force.
Despite heavy losses every time, no sect was willing to forgo this opportunity, as the rare materials and treasures found here were scarce or nonexistent outside.
Li Yan bowed his head. Aside from the seventeen cultivators from the Wraith Sect who had returned, only fifteen black dots remained on the Tianxin Compass. By counting the light points, he identified ten from the Grand Profound Sect, over twelve from the Pure Land Sect, and thirteen from the Ten-Step Court.
One of the three beast teams was devastated, with only five survivors, but the other two teams had high survival rates. The beasts held a slight home-ground advantage.
Outside the valley, silence among the four sects’ cultivators was almost eerie. From the beasts’ side came occasional roars, their eyes burning with furious hatred, as if ready to erupt into battle at any moment. Clearly, life-and-death grudges had been formed inside the valley.
Yet under the watchful eyes of the leading third-rank beasts and dozens of Core Formation elders, no fight broke out. In another place, such a situation would have descended into chaos long ago.
As time passed, tension and restlessness outside the valley grew. Everyone’s nerves were taut, all eyes fixed on the Tianxin Compass.
Evening approached, with less than half an hour left until the final moment. When time reached zero, the light points inside would automatically activate and all occupants would be transported out, no one could remain inside.
Everyone noticed that since noon, the colored light points on the Tianxin Compass stopped decreasing. Those inside must have known the exit was imminent and unanimously ceased fighting, instead focusing on gathering spiritual herbs and treasures.
At the final hour, brilliant lights flared above the valley entrance, shimmering like a meteor shower, casting colorful sparks down.
After each light vanished, a figure appeared. These figures, once clear, still wore expressions of utmost caution. Their spiritual shields remained intact. Only after confirming their surroundings did they relax with looks of relief.
Usually, they kept their shields until reaching their elders. Only then, being weary and cautious, did they lower their defenses.
Li Yan noticed that whether human or beast, every person who emerged showed tension and vigilance on their face. Even after recognizing familiar surroundings, no one displayed excitement.
Some were utterly exhausted, others stained with blood, many heavily injured and some unconscious, whether they’d held on until the last breath inside or been attacked moments before teleporting was unknown.
The teleportation was brief. Almost all light points appeared simultaneously above the valley entrance. Within ten breaths, the shimmering lights ceased.
At that moment, no one from any area looked toward other sects or races. Instead, they gathered with their own, some handing over storage bags, others receiving treatment, or speaking hurriedly with companions.
All Qi Condensation disciples stayed still, their gazes fixed on the elders, too respectful to approach or ask questions.
(Chapter End)