Chapter 865: Ancient Forest of the Elephant King
Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
“The Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant is a level-six lower grade beast, while Celestial Divine Elephant is of the same level, but an upper grade beast. Are you sure you want to buy their blood?”
Li Min’s big round eyes stared at Zhang Ruochen curiously. She couldn’t understand why he needed the blood of such superior beasts.
Zhang Ruochen answered, “You have too many questions. Why don’t you tell me directly where to buy these two types of blood in Qingli County?”
Li Min pouted her tiny lips and thought for a moment, then shook her head and said, “I don’t think you can get it here. The moment the martial market had blood of level six beasts, they would be sold out immediately, to the top three ranked half-saint families. Moreover, the blood of the Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant and Celestial Divine Elephant is super rare. It is quite impossible to find them in the market in the first place. You should try finding them in the capital of the Yuan Mansion instead. There, you can buy anything you want, provided you have enough Spiritual Crystals.”
If Qingli County did not have the elephant blood Zhang Ruochen was looking for, he’d of course go to the capital city in the Yuan Mansion. But that would mean more time.
At least until after his visit to Pluto Sword Tomb. He could not wait any longer.
Li Min looked upwards for a moment, then shuddered at her own thought, swallowing back the words she was about to say.
Zhang Ruochen noticed her change in facial expression and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Li Min hesitated for a second, and said in the end, “If you are strong enough, there is another way.”
“What way?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Li Min replied, “The neighbouring county to Qingli is Thousand-Elephant County. Half of its territory is undeveloped forest, and it’s called the Ancient Forest of the Elephant King. It is said that there are more than 10 million herds of wild elephants inhabiting the ancient forest. Some say they have seen the footprints of a Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant.”
“Ten million?” Zhang Ruochen was shocked.
A typical adult elephant had a strength that was the same as a beginner mortal warrior of the Heavenly Realm. The more superior the species, the more powerful it would be.
There were so many residing in one county, if they lost control, the few neighbouring counties would not be able to take the impact the herding attacks would cause.
Li Min widened her eyes and said, “That was written in the book, why would I lie to you?”
“You have never been there?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Li Min shifted her gaze from him and mumbled, “I have never left Qingli County before, not to mention a place that is so far away.”
Zhang Ruochen could tell that this teenage girl standing in front of him obtained all her knowledge through books, and barely had any actual real life experience. Such a brilliant girl, yet innocent.
Zhang Ruochen asked, “How far is the Ancient Forest of the Elephant King from Qingli County?”
“53,700 miles.”
Her words were spat out as if she had been to the place herself.
Zhang Ruochen nodded lightly. He did the math. With his skills and the Shooting Star Invisible Cloak, he would be able to reach the Ancient Forest within a day, traveling at full speed.
Thus, he decided to hunt the Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant himself to get its blood.
Li Min saw the deep-in-thought look on Zhang Ruochen’s face. “Don’t tell me you are going to hunt a Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant?”
“Why not?” Zhang Ruochen looked back at her.
You are not capable of it, Li Min thought. She wanted to tell him but that would have hurt his ego. So she kept the thought to herself.
Once he experiences how powerful the Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant is, he will back down.
On the other hand, Li Min had always been curious about the outside world, especially the Ancient Forest that contained all species of elephant beasts, as well as other flora and fauna that could only be found there. She had heard of many adventures that took place in the forest – a place she had always wanted to experience.
But she was a Spiritual Power Monk, and unless she achieved level forty, she could not even defeat a mere mortal of strong physique, let alone go on an adventure by herself.
The forefathers in her family were very protective of her, and they would never allow her to go to the forest that contained so much danger.
Li Min bit her lip, then whispered, “Can I tag along?”
“No,” Zhang Ruochen answered with a definite tone.
The Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant was a strong, powerful beast, and the Ancient Forest was one dangerous place. Even with Zhang Ruochen’s skill, he had to be extra careful, so bringing her was a no-go.
Li Min came up with a sneaky thought. She asked, “If you bring me along, I will tell you the reason Wan Zhaoyi came to Yuan Mansion.” Zhang Ruochen raised an eyebrow and stared at her.
Looking at his expression, Li Min knew it had worked. She added further, “The Ancient Forest of the Elephant King is huge, and to locate the Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant is like finding a needle in haystack. I know how to identify its footprint and where to find it. You will need my help on this.”
Zhang Ruochen gave it a thought, then said, “Alright, just once, you can tag along.”
Li Min was on cloud nine, knowing that she had managed to convince Zhang Ruochen.
She was not afraid of the danger. In her eyes, Zhang Ruochen would back down the moment he stepped in the outer ring of the forest. There, it wouldn’t be as dangerous as in the deep woods.
Everything would still be exciting for her though, as it was only a trip to the outer ring of the Ancient Forest. When she got back, she could probably exaggerate the adventure a little, and write about it all in her journal.
“You may tell me now,” Zhang Ruochen said.
Li Min lifted her head to meet his questioning gaze, then shook her head frantically. “No way. I will only tell you after you have brought me to the Forest. What if you bail on the deal?”
“Is my credibility that bad?” Zhang Ruochen found her reply amusing. Thereafter, he channelled his Holy Qi and directed it to wrap around Li Min. He didn’t even bother to argue back.
The bundle of Holy Qi carried Li Min flying towards Zhang Ruochen, where he caught her around her waist.
The next second, she felt her head spinning intensely. When she opened her eyes, she found herself above the ground, flying in the air.
The lighting below on the ground was fading, and it got dimmer and dimmer, and finally it wasn’t visible anymore.
“Am I… flying?”
Li min had ridden on a griffin before back in the city, but only for a short while at a very low altitude. It was very exciting for her and she had been wanting to experience flying again.
The flight she was on now was totally different from the one on a griffin. Zhang Ruochen’s speed was multiple times faster, making it even more exciting.
It wasn’t until this moment that Li Min realized she had underestimated Zhang Ruochen. A typical Fish-Dragon monk would never be able to fly at this speed.
Is he really going to hunt a Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant?
The thought of it was scary, but she was thrilled and excited by it.
Zhang Ruochen, on the other hand, was observing Li Min and her change of expression. She was well-mannered and reserved from the outside, but on the inside she was passionate and curious about the outside world.
Only sixteen, yet her Spiritual Power is already at level 30. Her talent with Spiritual Power is admirable. If she had been born in an affluent family and been given the exposure she’d receive, she would probably have achieved level 35 already.
Somehow, between Li Min and the Saint Lady, Zhang Ruochen saw some resemblance.
Her tribe does not appreciate her talent well enough. If they did, Li Min would have become the next Saint Lady, Zhang Ruochen sighed
Li Min had clearly forgotten that the man that was flying with her was the ‘pervert.’
She could not stop staring at the mountains and rivers underneath her, fascinated by the beauty of nature.
They flew for one whole night, and finally arrived just before sunrise.
When they landed, Li Min stumbled for a bit before regaining her balance to stand on ground. She said, while staring in admiration at Zhang Ruochen, “The book says, flying depletes Holy Qi rapidly. Even a half-saint will not be able to fly for more than ten thousand miles without resting. Zhang Ruochen, what level are you at now? How have you managed to cultivate this much Holy Qi?”
She was a very inquisitive teen. Whenever she had any question, she would blurt it out right away.
“Why does it matter anyways? So, tell me, where have the footprint of Silver Moon Dragon-Elephant appeared?” Zhang Ruochen replied.
His attitude annoyed her.
But, considering the fact that he had brought her here, she did not argue and told him the whereabouts of the footprints.
The journey to hunt for a level-six beast was something more exciting.
They flew for another four hours into the heart of the forest. At last, they arrived at the area Li Min mentioned.
It was a valley surrounded by hills of steep slopes and bottomless cliffs full of poisonous plants. Compared to the outer ring, this place was clearly desolate with no sign of living beast.
This could only mean one thing: this area was guarded by a superior beast.
Its powerful aura made the other beasts stay away from its territory.