My Misfortune Crushed Instances

Song Yuanhua felt a bit of a headache.

He forgot one thing: the Demon Race on this island is isolated from the world and doesn’t speak the same language as him.

"It’s strange that even Mr. Zuo didn’t think of this."

When he saw the Demon Race residing in the Divine Wood Forest, he originally intended to chop off a few heads to intimidate these natives, but their enthusiasm made him a bit embarrassed to act.

What pleased him even more was that, despite the language barrier, these demons warmly entertained him and even brought out some good wine.

The fine wine buried under the trees by the monkeys was unexpectedly tempting.

So he got drunk in the forest for two days. If not for his ongoing mission, it might have been even longer.

Now, after giving himself two hard slaps, he finally gritted his teeth and left the former Royal Court of the Yangli Race, carrying a large gourd filled with the Demon Race’s strong liquor.

If the language were clear, he would surely ask the demons in the forest if they had any enemies, and if they did, he would conveniently help them chop off their enemies’ heads.

Song Yuanhua had a map in his hand, something he found in the central area’s Demon Race settlement, which they generously gave to him.

"This island is quite large... Where should I go to find that worldly treasure?"

"The soothsayer said, ’Against the water,’ it should be this big river, and I need to trace it to find its source."

Although he hadn’t yet seen the island’s only great river, he already had a rough idea, as tracing that river upstream would lead to the southwestern part of Nuanyang State.

Song Yuanhua chose not to use the Escape Technique to travel but intended to leave this forest first.

He checked the map and confirmed the route. Just outside was a mountain, marked with Demon Race text that he couldn’t understand; it read: Yangfeng Mountain.

.....

No matter what he thought before, Zhu Wen now believed in those lavish outsiders.

Li Rui stood alone among more than a hundred sand thieves’ corpses, with fewer than a handful left alive, and that was because he deliberately left a few for questioning.

If it were a hundred comparable Secret Realm operatives, he might be a little cautious, but the strength of these sand thieves was not worrisome.

Charging through this group of Demon Race, using the speed of the Shenxiao Thunderbolt Heart Scripture and the trickery of Thunderbolt Flash, he was almost unscathed. Even if there were injuries, just relying on the Blood Leech wrapped around him was enough to keep him alive.

"Come over here."

Li Rui casually called out, and all the temporarily surviving sand thieves crawled over to kneel before him.

"There’s a legend that Nuanyang State has a treasure that needs arcane gold coins to be opened. Do you know it?"

Yuan Erliang loved this part, as he could flaunt before those much stronger Demon Race.

Li Rui didn’t expect to get an answer from this group of Demon Race, but the result was beyond expectation.

These previously arrogant sand thieves prostrated themselves, crying and begging incessantly.

"Spare us, Grandpa, spare us. The treasure has appeared, right in Flowing Sand Gorge."

"Right now, all the heroes... oh no, bandits of the desert are fighting over it at the gorge’s edge."

Li Rui’s eyes widened: "Are you telling the truth?"

The sand thieves, who had just slightly lifted themselves up straightened, were so frightened that they lay back down.

"Every word is true, if false, let us be buried under the quicksand."

"Grandpa, please see clearly, we were driven to the outskirts because we couldn’t compete with those powerful forces."

Li Rui waved for his companions to come over and explained the situation.

Cheng Mingyue nudged Zhu Wen, who was secretly glancing at Li Rui: "Speak up, are they telling the truth?"

Lao San the footed demon was startled and hurriedly said: "Flowing Sand Gorge is indeed deep in the desert, the terrain is dangerous, and it got its name from being surrounded by quicksand."

Li Rui nodded and turned back to the group of sand thieves.

"How many associates do you have in the city?"

"None, Grandpa. When we raid, we all come out; how can there be anyone left in the city?"

Li Rui said, "Then go into the city and bring all your hoarded treasures and water supplies."

He wasn’t afraid of these Demon Race taking the opportunity to escape. The strength gap was too vast, and they would die if they ran; he believed these sand thieves understood that.

Soon, boxes of dried salted meat and water bags were brought out.

To the sand thieves’ surprise, Li Rui did not take everything. He only had his strongmen pack the portion consumed since departure, leaving the rest for these few sand thieves.

But as for the treasures, they couldn’t escape; he had to take some trophies, and what couldn’t be used was packed away.

"From now on, it’s all yours."

Li Rui said one more thing to the overjoyed Zhu Wen.

"Now, you can get lost."

A few sand thieves could hardly believe their ears; according to their habits, captured travelers had no chance of survival.

Li Rui wasn’t showing great kindness; it was just that these few Demon Race provided him with the information he wanted, which he felt was sufficient to exchange for their small lives. Any solitary sand thieves were not a threat.

After the sand thieves left, he asked Zhu Wen, "Is Flowing Sand Gorge far from here?"

Lao San the footed demon’s shoulders trembled; he dared not hesitate for a moment and quickly said, "At our previous pace, barring unexpected circumstances, it would take no less than two and a half days, maybe longer."

"Then let’s move."

Li Rui called out, and the group continued their journey.

Cheng Mingyue stretched lazily and said, "The supply problem should be solved now; we don’t have to dig up mice from the sand to eat anymore."

"Why?" Li Rui asked.

"Didn’t you hear them say that many sand thieves are gathering at some gorge? We can just rob them," Cheng Mingyue casually proposed the strategy of sustaining the war by war.

Li Rui chuckled heartily: "Makes sense."

Zhu Wen watched from the side, secretly observing; though he couldn’t understand their conversation, their relaxed demeanor and tone showed they didn’t take the recent information to heart.

Recalling those fierce sand thieves made his heart race. To survive in the entirely desertified Nuanyang State, none were mere average creatures, stronger than the Demon Race he had just encountered.

But then he remembered Li Rui’s earlier assurance and calmed down immediately.

With such strong personalities as protection, what is there to fear? At the very least, the situation was much better than initially anticipated.

After this night, Lao San the footed demon went even more above and beyond in performing his duties, as he now understood that his safety was tied to these faraway guests.

Unexpectedly to Zhu Wen, it wasn’t just their strength but also the speed of the mighty one that stunned him.

Once he became accustomed to the desert terrain and mastered the more efficient way of moving on the sand, his speed increased, reducing what was expected to be two and a half days of travel to just two days.

This was despite encountering two groups of sand thieves on the way.

Of course, for a regular person, meeting roadblocks would be unfortunate, but for Li Rui and the others, it was merely a mobile supply station.

With the sand thieves’ generous contributions, they never ran short on food or water and safely arrived in front of the Flowing Sand Canyon.

Standing on a hilltop, Li Rui looked afar at the temporary camps opposite.

"It’s so lively?"