Chapter 26: Training on the Mountain

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“Little Golden Silk, keep an eye on this man and see whether he is the master of this place—and whether he will come back. He’s a truly wicked man,” Wen Yue instructed.

She did not have time to watch him every day. She needed to cultivate, as well as observe the various crops she had planted only a few days earlier.

Looking at the six acres of fields she had filled to the brim with crops, she felt immensely satisfied. After working so hard for so long, she had finally finished planting everything. Things would not be so exhausting from now on. At the very least, she would not need to clear away the weeds.

The spirit-rice field had to be watered once every three days, while the other crops needed watering once every ten days. As for the weeds, she simply pulled them out whenever she spotted them, so there was no need to set aside special time for weeding.

Wen Yue spent the rest of her time practicing spells. She practiced the Golden Needle Technique and Object Manipulation Technique the most. She also learned several other spells, though she had only managed to master them at a basic level.

At the same time, she learned a simple footwork technique called Cloudstride. Its defining traits were lightness and speed. Perhaps because Wen Yue was still young, she found it fairly easy to learn.

In the open space outside the house, she could turn once and cover a considerable distance, then sidestep and move several more yards. It seemed unsuitable for traveling, but it would be perfect for evading enemies in battle—or dodging animals.

Nearly half a month passed, yet the old black man next door still showed no sign of appearing. Wen Yue could not wait any longer, so she decided to make a trip up the mountain.

“Little Golden Silk, I’m going up the mountain. Are you coming?”

She had been here for more than a month, yet she had never ventured outside.

“Which mountain?” Little Golden Silk had grown bored as well.

“The mountain here, of course. Where else would two little rookies like us go?”

Wen Yue wanted to go everywhere, but her strength simply did not allow it.

“When?” Its little voice was filled with excitement. Clearly, Little Golden Silk still had the heart of a child.

“Can you come now?”

“Wait for me. I’ll be there right away.”

Less than two minutes later, it rushed inside and leaped onto Wen Yue’s arm, transforming into a tiny yellow flower perched on her shoulder.

“Let’s go!”

“You’re in such a hurry?”

“Clinging to the treetops every day is boring.”

“We’re going hunting in the mountains today.”

“How do we hunt?” Little Golden Silk had never seen anyone hunt before. Of course, Wen Yue had never hunted either.

The two little rookies officially set off for the mountain.

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This mountain was not very large, and there were probably no spirit beasts here. Ordinary cultivators seeking experience would not usually come to a place like this. Wen Yue did not mind. The main reason was that, in both her previous and present lives, she had never even killed a chicken. She simply lacked the courage. This trip was primarily meant to help her build up her nerve—a fact she had not even told Little Golden Silk.

Although the mountain was close to the Heavenly Demon Sect’s fields, hardly anyone would likely come here to hunt. As for mortals, there were practically none within the Heavenly Demon Sect’s territory. Thus, the place was unexpectedly deserted.

There were an astonishing number of small animals, and they were hardly afraid of people at all. It was the perfect place for Wen Yue to practice.

A gray rabbit came hopping to Wen Yue’s feet. It was clearly an ordinary rabbit. Wen Yue cast Object Manipulation, and a stone dropped from above onto the rabbit’s head. Her command of the technique had improved—the stone weighed at least twenty pounds.

Wen Yue did not bother with the dead rabbit. Ordinary prey like this could not be eaten at present, so she simply left it there. Some other animal would drag it away before long.

“Little Golden Silk, come down. You need to practice too.”

“Practice what?” Little Golden Silk still did not understand what was going on.

“Practice hunting and fighting. Practice your combat skills.”

“There’s no need, is there? These animals would die from a single lash of my stem. If I’m going to practice, find me a spirit beast.”

Little Golden Silk looked down on these ordinary creatures.

“All right, then. If we run into a spirit beast, I’ll call you. I asked you to come out so we could practice coordinating with each other.”

“Then, Master, let’s go farther up the mountain. There will probably be spirit beasts higher up.”

They were still at the foot of the mountain.

“No rush. I still want to practice my Object Manipulation.”

“Have you not already practiced it thoroughly?”

“I have, but I have an idea.”

“What idea?”

“This is what I’m thinking. In the past, when people practiced Object Manipulation, they used it to strike their enemies. But I want to manipulate the enemy itself—an enemy that can run. I don’t know whether it will work, so I’ll practice on ordinary beasts first.”

Wen Yue had conceived this idea when she first began practicing the technique.

“I don’t understand it either. In that case, Master, you should practice on ordinary beasts first.”

“I’ve even wondered what it would feel like if I used Object Manipulation to pull out some part of its body.”

Wen Yue thought that if the target were a person, they would probably be scared to death.

But when she said this to Little Golden Silk, the result was quite different.

“Quickly hide yourself so you don’t let her succeed again.”

“Are you not afraid? You’d be missing pieces of your body.”

“Then I’ll be missing them. They’ll grow back anyway.”

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“Huh?” Why was that different from what she had imagined? Then again, Little Golden Silk was a plant. As long as even a small portion of its body remained, it could quickly grow back.

“I’m not talking to you anymore. I’m going to practice.”

Just then, a squirrel was leaping playfully among the treetops. Wen Yue cast Object Manipulation, and the squirrel appeared in front of her. It stared blankly for two seconds before suddenly coming to its senses and scampering away. Wen Yue paid it no attention.

“Looks like it really works. But that was only a small ordinary beast. I need to try it several more times.”

“Master, you can definitely do it.” Little Golden Silk had now mastered the art of flattery.

The two of them walked along while practicing Object Manipulation. Everything became a target: flowers, grasses, trees, and small animals were all easily brought under Wen Yue’s control. Large animals, however, were much more difficult.

This time, they encountered an enormous wild boar. Wen Yue wanted to use Object Manipulation to throw it down the mountain, but the boar was not cooperative in the least. A tug-of-war developed between them.

Wen Yue cast the spell, and the wild boar was dragged two yards toward the edge of the mountain. Sensing danger, it ran back toward the interior. Wen Yue naturally refused to give up. She cast the spell again, and the boar was dragged back to the edge of the cliff. Yet the beast still refused to submit and struggled desperately toward safety.

After several rounds of this, even Little Golden Silk could not bear to watch anymore.

“Master, do you need help?”

“No. I’m only using Object Manipulation on it. If I used any other method, it would have died long ago. Why would I still be struggling with it now?”

The wild boar had stirred Wen Yue’s competitive spirit.

She cast Object Manipulation once more, but this time she changed her target. She was no longer trying to control the entire boar, only its ear. The moment the spell took effect, the wild boar began squealing miserably.

Then it took advantage of Wen Yue’s distraction and ran away.

“Master, it escaped.”

“Let it go. Will there be any shortage of wild boars on this mountain? I’m wondering whether I should practice some other spells first and use them in conjunction with Object Manipulation.”

“What should you combine it with? Can it really be used that way?”

“Who knows? Let’s try it. First, I’ll condense an ordinary golden blade, cut off its ear, and then use Object Manipulation to bring it over.”

“That’s far too troublesome. Why not just finish it with the golden blade?” Little Golden Silk was not optimistic at all.

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