Chapter 397: Patrol
In the following days, Bai Mo heard more news.
A small city at the foot of Celestial Barrier Mountain was attacked by Demon Beasts, and half its walls collapsed.
A horde of Demon Beasts saw the flesh and blood within, drooling greedily.
Just as a massacre was about to unfold, the City Lord led a group of Cultivators to stop the Demon Beasts, even at the cost of damaging their own foundations.
Another town was nearly wiped out by Demon Beasts.
Fortunately, some common folk gathering herbs in the mountains discovered them early. They raced down the mountain to sound the alarm, allowing for an early evacuation that averted the disaster.
Those who live off the mountain have their ways of dealing with it.
However, the Demon Beasts were already showing signs of spreading. If this continued, a major disaster was inevitable.
The people of that town still haven’t dared to return home, because the Demon Beasts have not yet been slain.
’Looks like the sect’s patrol teams are inevitable.’
Bai Mo muttered, opening his cauldron and taking out five gleaming yellow Pills.
The Pills looked great, their entire bodies glowing.
With a casual rub, four of them crumbled into dust on the spot.
Only one survived the test.
Opening the door of his Mi Mountain residence to air it out, Bai Mo waved his sleeves a few times, clearing the lingering black smoke from the room.
The wind carried the black smoke outside, where it quickly dissipated.
Bai Mo cleared his throat and called out, then casually brewed himself a pot of tea.
Ah Er came scurrying down the mountain in a flash.
Seeing the several black smudges on Bai Mo’s face, it was slightly alarmed and hurried forward to help pour the tea.
Having followed Bai Mo for so long, it knew he was usually calm and composed when performing Alchemy.
When had it ever seen Bai Mo in such a sorry state?
The brown tea flowed slowly from the spout, steaming.
Seeing it being so sensible, Bai Mo felt quite pleased.
He placed the single remaining Pill on the table and pushed it in front of Ah Er.
"Eat it."
CLINK!
Ah Er’s hand trembled as it set down the teapot. It scrambled back two steps in terror, its eyes instantly welling up with tears.
It knew how this Pill had come into being.
For the past few days, black smoke had been billowing out of Mi Mountain, even reaching the Black Prison and drawing numerous curses.
Ah Er hadn’t even dared to stay in the residence, sleeping on the mountain instead.
’How could a Pill refined in such an environment possibly be any good?’
Seeing this, Bai Mo was rather displeased.
"What are you afraid of? Don’t I know my own Alchemy?"
"Eat it, and in a few days I’ll take you out of the sect for a look around..."
He really had no intention of killing Ah Er. After all, it was a Spirit Beast he’d raised for a long time. He just wanted to observe the reaction after taking the Pill.
He had already tried the previous version of this Pill. The taste was mediocre and its effects were weak.
’I know what I’m doing.’
Listening to Bai Mo, Ah Er exchanged several more glances with him before timidly grabbing the Pill and tossing it into its mouth.
"Don’t chew! Swallow it whole!"
Ah Er did as it was told. With a curl of its tongue, the Pill slid down into its stomach.
Bai Mo then began to guide it.
"Calm down and try to sense the Pill in your stomach..."
Ah Er, confused but compliant, mobilized the qi and blood in its body. With a few contractions of its stomach muscles, it immediately located the Pill.
’It’s warm. It really doesn’t seem like a bad thing. I’ll just focus my attention on it...’
PFFT!
A jet of water suddenly shot out from Ah Er’s mouth.
Bai Mo, his expression unchanged, blocked it with the teapot lid.
Immediately after, Ah Er’s body went rigid.
Its fur emitted a golden light and stood straight on end, dyed a golden color, before it fell over with a THUD.
Bai Mo sighed.
He stepped forward and touched it. The fur was indeed like golden needles, sharp enough to hurt his hand.
He turned his head and met Ah Er’s tear-filled gaze.
"You’re not going to die. What’s there to be afraid of?"
Bai Mo reached out and pressed its stomach, releasing a burst of Spiritual Qi from his palm.
With just a slight tremor, the Pill Ah Er had swallowed instantly shattered into pieces, completely pulverized.
The golden yellow light covering its body slowly receded, and its fur softened.
"There, you’ll be fine. Drink a lot of water for the next few days to flush out the Pill fragments. It’s nothing serious."
Ah Er jumped up and moved around a bit. Feeling that it was indeed fine, it finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Aah-erh!"
It made a few gestures.
Bai Mo replied casually, "Don’t worry. I won’t go back on my word about taking you out."
...
Two days later, the orders from the Foreign Affairs Hall arrived, just as expected.
The disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall who came to notify him was all smiles.
"Junior Brother, you happen to be free, and since Brother Li hasn’t fully recovered from his injuries, we’re letting him stay behind to watch over the mountain."
"You’ll be coming out with us on a trip first, Junior Brother."
"Alright." Bai Mo’s agreement was crisp.
"Do you need time to pack?"
"No need. I’m already prepared."
Beside him, Ah Er was also packed and ready to go, having already gathered its belongings.
...
「Half a month later.」
The Foreign Affairs Hall’s Flying Ship tore through the sky.
"Junior Brother Bai, you’re responsible for patrolling the line between Black Mountain City and Dagu Town."
"This area is quite remote. If you’re short on anything, make sure to communicate with fellow disciples nearby and ask for their support."
The Foreign Affairs Hall disciple piloting the Flying Ship didn’t spare any Spiritual Qi, rushing to deliver everyone to their posts.
Bai Mo acknowledged the order.
Taking Ah Er with him, he bid farewell to the other disciples on the Flying Ship and leaped to the ground.
The Flying Ship once again tore through the air and vanished in the blink of an eye.
There was no one around.
The Flying Ship hadn’t dropped Bai Mo in an inhabited area, merely bringing him close.
As far as the eye could see, there were rolling hills before and behind him. To his right was Celestial Barrier Mountain, like an insurmountable barrier.
Bai Mo gazed into the mountain’s depths. He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but Celestial Barrier Mountain seemed even more gloomy and terrifying now.
Ah Er immediately hid by Bai Mo’s feet, its gaze toward the deep mountains filled with fear.
It had grown up in the sect and had never been to the outside world before.
"Let’s go."
Releasing his own Flying Ship, Bai Mo took a deep breath, pulled out a map, and spread it open.
The brocade pouch that held the Flying Ship was something he had specially purchased in the last few days, costing him a full seven thousand Spirit Stones.
However, besides the Flying Ship, the space inside was more than ample—almost the size of a normal room—so it was worth it.
"Comparing my position, I’m closer to Dagu Town now, only a three-day journey."
"I’ll head there first."
Ah Er trotted a few steps and hopped onto the Flying Ship.
With his decision made, Bai Mo had the Flying Ship rise slowly, not very fast.
His gaze swept around, checking for any movement, as he gave a verbal warning.
"Keep your eyes peeled. If something really does pop out, we might both end up dead here."
Hearing this, Ah Er shivered, and the last bit of novelty it felt from leaving the sect gates vanished into thin air.
It took out a Pill and tossed it into its mouth.
As the Pill’s medicinal power spread, a puff of hot air shot from its nostrils, and its eyes became sharp and bright as it scanned its surroundings.
Judging by its posture, it seemed to be taking this even more seriously than Bai Mo.
"Sigh, if only I could have been assigned to the Immortal Arrival City area."
Bai Mo sighed, looking at the unchanging, desolate scenery before and behind him.
Unfortunately, Immortal Arrival City not only had disciples standing guard, but its Demon Hunting Teams were also extremely formidable.
Forget sending people to patrol there; even the areas around Immortal Arrival City had been completely cornered by the locals.
To make a good impression on the major sect, those guys in the Demon Hunting Teams were all thumping their chests, guaranteeing that not a single Demon Beast would slip by.
The result of their efforts was Bai Mo being sent to this place where even birds don’t shit.
The nearest populated areas were just Dagu Town, Black Mountain City, and the two villages in between.
"But I’ve heard the people here make a living from herbs. That might be worth looking into..."