Chapter 274: It’s a Ford. It’s an Acrobatic US Air Force Squadron. It’s a ...
Benton wasn’t too worried about leaving the kids behind at the mouth of the valley. If it were just Yang Xiu or Jin LiJuan, he’d have been a bit concerned, but Yang Ru and Kang Lin had good heads on their shoulders. Besides, the four Foundation Establishment cultivators plus Ganzou represented a nice little fighting force, definitely head and shoulders above anything his spiritual sense had detected short of the mountain.
Speaking of that particular detection ability, however, he frowned as he turned his attention to the rapidly approaching peak. Normally, he was well pleased with his ability in that regard as it allowed him to determine more information at greater range than most cultivators. In his current circumstances, however, there was a problem.
The entire mountain lit up like a Christmas tree, showing qi everywhere. Just about everything from trees to rocks to water to the very air was saturated, so much so that it was difficult to determine details. That issue was going to make separating the wheat from the chaff nearly impossible.
Though he’d somewhat expected that result from his previous times being in the area, he had hoped that advancing to Nascent Soul might have given him an extra level of discernment.
No such luck.
There was one thing that stood out as he drew close—a cave near the highest peak. He sensed Thunder qi inside and a lot of it, coming from a living source. If he had to guess, he would have to say that the cavity housed a beast higher in cultivation than him.
Benton sighed. Confronting such a creature wasn’t ideal. He really had no desire to fight, and he had no moral authority to barge in making demands. After all, he was the interloper on the mountain, intruding on the beast’s area.
Not only did he not want to face the beast due to ethical concerns, but his recent experience had taught him to be wary of entities at a higher realm than him. He found it quite tempting to simply turn back. The auction hadn’t even taken place yet. Maybe he’d find everything he needed there.
No need to disturb a beast at the equivalent of the Nihility realm.
The problem was that every instinct Benton had told him that such a creature wasn’t just a threat to him but to his sect and to the entire region. As a sect leader, it wasn’t something he could ignore.
He sighed. Sometimes, it really sucked to be an adult.
Not wanting to spook whatever was inside, Benton descended slowly toward the cave. The entrance was large, over fifteen feet high and half again as wide. He waited for a moment after he touched down, giving whatever was inside plenty of time to get used to his presence, and when he started forward, he moved at a slow, consistent pace.