Chapter 7: A Hidden Threat

Amidst the continuous mountains, Su Che felt he might be lost. After all, he had been revived using someone else’s body, and the fragmented memories he inherited had gaps. Coincidentally, the route he had taken to get there was one of those gaps—there was no memory of it at all. Moreover, after being pushed off a cliff, all his belongings were stolen, leaving him only in tattered clothes. He was utterly penniless, even the map of the Blood Veil Mountains had been taken away.

The guy who had schemed against Su Che’s predecessor wasn’t only cruel but also meticulous, leaving no trace whatsoever that could prove Su Che’s identity. Fortunately, he still had basic knowledge of surviving in the wild and knew how to determine directions. Following a general course, Su Che began climbing toward the location of the Tianxuan Sect.

He might take many unnecessary detours, but there would eventually be a day when he could escape. Now that he had reached the first level of Qi cultivation, he wasn’t afraid of ordinary wild beasts. Even if he unlucky enough encountered a demonic beast, he could simply avoid it—smart demonic beasts wouldn’t chase someone unnecessarily.

That’s what it should be… But Su Che wasn’t entirely sure.

After climbing another peak, he looked into the distance, hoping to see the plains beyond…

Huh?

There were no plains in sight, but instead, he saw a very unexpected scene.

“What’s going on?” Su Che wondered. “Has my fate changed completely since I was reborn? It’s only been a few days—why do I keep running into accidents?”

In the valley below, two white figures lay motionless. From the obvious signs, it was clear that a fight had taken place there.

Having reached the first level of Qi cultivation, Su Che’s vision had greatly improved—so much so that it could be compared to an eagle’s eye. By the time he reached halfway up the mountain, he could already recognize the two people lying on the ground. It was the man and woman who had looked down on him a few days ago—Senior Bai Ji and Sister Yun Lan!

They were motionless, seemingly dead.

At halfway up the mountain, Su Che stopped moving and hid behind a large tree, observing carefully.

It wasn’t cowardice—it was necessary caution. After all, those two—senior and junior—were far stronger than him. As outer sect disciples of the Tianxuan Sect, they likely had magic weapons or combat talismans. Yet even so, they were dead. If he, who was so fragile, didn’t be careful, he would be as foolish as a pig.

After patiently investigating for a long time, Su Che finally confirmed it was safe before continuing down the mountain. Still being extremely cautious, he slowly made his way to where the two bodies lay. Yes, they were indeed dead—dead for quite some time. Based on his experience as a detective, their deaths must have occurred yesterday afternoon. Most of Bai Ji’s injuries didn’t seem to be caused by humans but rather by a monster, yet the fatal wound was inflicted by a sharp weapon piercing his head. As for the woman, Yun Lan, she died quickly from a single sword strike to the throat; her expression showed surprise, suggesting she was killed by someone she knew—a stranger she hadn’t expected. Combining the experiences from his two lives with the mindset of a detective solving cases, Su Che quickly formed a series of images in his mind: The three of them had stolen the carcass of the Red-Backed Bear in the valley. Likely because there was still space left in their Qi Bag or because their mission from their sect wasn’t completed, they continued to wander around the Blood Curtain Mountains. Yesterday afternoon, right here, they encountered a powerful monster. Whether the monster wanted to devour them or they wanted to hunt it, the result of the three-versus-one battle was that the monster was killed but managed to seriously injure Bai Ji before dying. Next, that ordinary-looking guy took advantage of the situation for some reason, killing Yun Lan with a single sword strike while she was unprepared, and also finishing off the severely injured Bai Ji. Afterward, he took Bai Ji and Yun Lan’s Qi Bags, and of course, didn’t forget to take the monster’s carcass as well. “This guy is very skillful at hiding his true abilities. He’s been following Bai Ji for who knows how long…” Su Che thought to himself. Such people were the most dangerous—usually unassuming, avoiding conflict, and completely unnoticed. But once the time came, they would act without hesitation. He had actually caught one of this kind of criminal in the Stone Mining Town before. After figuring this out, Su Che didn’t relax. He carefully examined the scene and found a few drops of blood in a crack in the rocks a few dozen feet away. “The magical tools used by cultivators aren’t ordinary iron; they can’t get bloodstains after killing someone…” Su Che analyzed silently. “These drops of blood must have been left when that guy healed himself on the spot.” “And there are also footprints—his injuries are serious!” Su Che was secretly pleased. With his own strength, he wouldn’t even leave footprints when walking. For cultivators, moving silently without leaving traces in snow was a trivial skill. The fact that he left footprints meant he was in a difficult situation and, to conserve energy, couldn’t even maintain even the slightest effort required for such skills.

Following the trail, a few dozen steps further on, another small patch of blood was discovered. The blood was black and emitted a strong foul smell. “He’s also been poisoned severely!” Su Che became even more certain that the guy was critically injured and in a desperate situation. “The mantis hunts the cicada, while the oriole waits in the shadows. It seems I have every reason to play the oriole now.” Chase! Following the clues, Su Che thanked his mentor in his heart once again: “Thank you, master, for teaching me such excellent skills as a detective. I never expected that these skills would still be useful on my path of cultivation.” The mountain path was treacherous, but it posed no challenge to a cultivator. Soon, Su Che found a suspicious area. Between two mountains lay a pile of rocks, likely caused by countless floods. The huge rocks were stacked unevenly, creating many gaps that resembled irregular natural stone houses. Choosing one of them and blocking the entrance with a few smaller rocks would provide a relatively safe and private space. Although he couldn’t see the guy, Su Che was sure he must be hiding in one of those gaps, recovering from his injuries. He would have chosen the same place if he were in his position. Su Che searched slowly around the pile of rocks, always keeping a safe distance. After all, the other man was also a disciple of a legitimate sect, with unpredictable methods of killing and fighting. Even though he was injured, he was not someone Su Che, who had just reached the first level of cultivation, could confront head-on. Not missing any clue, after half an hour, Su Che finally determined where he was hiding. The interior space of that stone cave was roughly the size of a normal bedroom. Through the several feet wide entrance, he could faintly see the figure of the man sitting against the rock wall, recovering from his injuries. “It seems he’s truly at his wits’ end. His energy has been completely depleted; he doesn’t even have the strength to move rocks to block the entrance.” Su Che felt excited inwardly, gaining more confidence in his plan to reap the benefits by playing the oriole. To be honest, this approach was somewhat despicable—not because of what had happened in the valley earlier, but to get hold of those Qi Bags in his possession. At least three Qi Bags—who knows how much wealth they contained! The path of cultivation is also a perilous journey against the heavens. The rule is simple: compete with heaven, compete with the earth, compete with others, and strive to gain even a little more resources. Only by doing so can one hope to break through cultivation barriers and reach higher levels. This is a basic truth understood by every cultivator.

Compassion, kindness, and humility are indeed praiseworthy virtues, but in the realm of cultivation, they mean you will lose many opportunities, blessings, and resources, and may even lose your life prematurely… The previous soul in this body is the best example of that. Su Che was resolute in his mind; he had long understood all this and would not experience any conflict or struggle. It boils down to one simple word: competition!