Gradually, the little Celestial Fox slowed down, switching from a sprint to a cautious crawl, showing extreme vigilance.
Bao Gu dared not be careless, following closely behind the little Celestial Fox with utmost caution, fearing that one misstep would make her one of the many corpses.
She had calculated the casualties in the Taigu Ruins, and the high death toll sent chills down her spine.
From the moment they stepped into the Taigu Ruins, deaths and injuries began to occur.
At the entrance, all nine disciples of the Taiyin Sect were wiped out, and with Ning Cong, the casualties reached ten.
When they encountered the disguised Nan Yi and his group of seven, they killed two more.
Then, she and her senior sister were besieged.
Her senior sister sneaked out and killed an unknown number of people.
She used Nascent Soul realm talismans against the enemy, and due to their immense power, she wasn’t sure how many she had killed, but estimated at least several.
Adding the corpses they encountered along the way—some relatively intact, some just limbs and fragments—Bao Gu could only roughly estimate the number of dead and injured, which, even at the lowest count, was over thirty.
Adding up the casualties before and after, there were at least fifty.
The Taigu Ruins only issued four hundred Taigu tokens, allowing a total of four hundred people to enter.
In just two or three days, the death toll had reached over fifty, and this number was based on Bao Gu’s lowest estimate, not including deaths from fights and ambushes in places she hadn’t seen.
Bao Gu wondered if everyone entered the Taigu Ruins to seek treasure and opportunities or to meet their doom!
She didn’t want to die, so she could only be extremely cautious, ready to fight or flee at the slightest disturbance.
She thought her timid and cautious behavior would be mocked by the little Celestial Fox, but to her surprise, the little Celestial Fox was even more cautious.
Many times, when passing places she didn’t perceive as dangerous, the little Celestial Fox would deliberately avoid them, often showing inexplicable evasive actions.
She knew that animals had better hearing, vision, and danger perception than humans, and with the little Celestial Fox’s higher cultivation level and being a ninth-rank demon beast, she didn’t dare to doubt its actions, obediently following behind without stepping out of line.
After about half a day’s journey, Bao Gu and the little Celestial Fox arrived at a small river.
The little Celestial Fox suddenly darted into the overgrown rocks by the riverbank and hid.
Bao Gu followed closely, crouching beside the little Celestial Fox, minimizing her presence.
Her concealment artifact was always active, and she believed that as long as she didn’t make any noise, she wouldn’t be easily discovered.
She listened carefully to the surroundings and soon detected faint movements not far away.
She quickly sensed three late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, their clothes tattered and bodies covered in blood, staggering along the riverbank.
Bao Gu “saw” their unsteady steps and heavy breathing, with wounds still bleeding, indicating they were fleeing for their lives.
Otherwise, how could they neglect their injuries and not sit down to meditate and recover their strength and true qi?
They cautiously scanned their surroundings before heading towards the overgrown rocks where she was hiding.
Bao Gu quickly gathered her true qi and quietly gripped her Golden Core stage sword.
The three, supporting each other, walked to the rocks about two zhang away from her.
The most severely injured one collapsed to the ground, while the other two used rocks and wood to set up a simple concealment array.
It was clear they were at their wit’s end, unable to even produce low-grade spirit stones.
Bao Gu didn’t have the habit of kicking someone when they were down and didn’t want to attack them, but she was in a dilemma.
Should she go out or not?
If she went out, she would alarm the three, and whether to fight or not would be out of her control!
If she didn’t go out, squatting here would delay her search for her senior sister.
After a brief thought, she took out a Nascent Soul realm talisman from her storage bag, held her Golden Core stage sword, and leaped out from her hiding place, landing in front of the three.
The three, who had just sat down to heal, were startled before they could even warm their seats.
Two of them jumped up and retreated over a zhang.
The most severely injured one, having relaxed, didn’t even have the strength to stand.
Seeing Bao Gu, the three exclaimed, “Bao Gu!”
Bao Gu smiled and said, “What a coincidence, you three!”
She pointed to her previous hiding spot and said, “I was hiding there just now. We found hiding places so close, we could be considered neighbors, right? How about a chat between neighbors?”
The eldest, a man in his early twenties, said, “What do you want?”
He glanced at the Nascent Soul realm talisman in Bao Gu’s hand and the little Celestial Fox beside her, sighed, and dispersed his gathered energy, intending to give up resistance.
The youngest, a boy around sixteen with an eighth-rank Foundation Establishment cultivation, also withdrew his energy and sheathed his sword.
The boy lying on the ground, unable to stand, naturally stayed still.
Seeing their retreating posture, Bao Gu put away the Nascent Soul realm talisman and said, “You know I don’t like fighting. As a businesswoman, I value harmony.”
She noticed the youngest boy’s mouth twitch, seemingly in disagreement.
The eldest man nodded in agreement and said, “I’ve heard of that. What do you want to ask?”
Bao Gu asked, “Who are you?”
The eldest man replied, “We are from the Sima family, a branch family. Because of our good roots, we were favored by the elders and sent to the Taigu Ruins for training. I’m Sima Jun, and these are my cousins, Sima Yu and Sima Zhen.”
Hearing the name Sima, Bao Gu felt it was familiar.
Coupled with the fact that he mentioned they were from a branch family, she sensed something was off.
She recalled that one of the seven people Nan Yi killed was named “Sima,” whose head was cut off by her senior sister.
Someone had called out “Sima” while holding him.
She asked, “What is your relationship with the Sima who was beheaded by my senior sister near the Taigu Ruins entrance?”
Sima Jun replied, “He was also my cousin, the youngest son of the family head.”
Bao Gu silently gasped.
Killing the Sima family head’s son seemed to have created a great enmity with the Sima family.
But since he was a concubine’s son, his status might not be high.
Judging by Sima Jun’s tone, it was clear they were not on the same side as the family head.
She asked, “How many sons does your family head have?”
Sima Jun replied, “One.”
Bao Gu’s mouth twitched slightly and asked, “What about daughters?”
“One.”
“She didn’t come to the Taigu Ruins?”
Sima Jun seemed surprised by Bao Gu’s question and said, “The young master is already a Nascent Soul realm expert. How could she enter the Taigu Ruins?”
Bao Gu thought, “Even the family head’s daughter is in the Nascent Soul realm?”
Then she remembered that her master was the head of the Xuantian Sect, and her Little Martial Aunt and senior uncles were all in the Nascent Soul realm, with some even in the God Transformation Stage.
She felt relieved.
No matter the realm, as long as they weren’t in the Taigu Ruins, it wouldn’t be her fight!
She asked, “Who injured you? Have you seen my senior sister?”
Sima Jun replied, “We were injured while fighting for a newly unearthed spiritual treasure. It was a chaotic battle, so it’s hard to say who injured whom. As for the fiery… Immortal Yu Mi, we have seen her.”
Bao Gu quickly asked, “Where is she?”
Sima Jun replied, “You can find her towards the Blazing Ridge.”
Bao Gu asked, “Was she alright when you saw her? What was she like?”
The youngest boy sneered and said, “I’ve never seen anyone better off than her!”
Bao Gu asked, “What do you mean?”
The youngest boy glared at Bao Gu and said, “She was holding a spiritual treasure that could clash head-on with a God Transformation stage divine weapon in one hand and a wine gourd filled with monkey wine in the other…”
Bao Gu felt a strange sense of resentment in his gaze.
She sold monkey wine, so what if she gave her beloved senior sister a few gourds?
Who did it bother?
Bao Gu asked, “What’s wrong with my senior sister holding a wine gourd filled with monkey wine?”
She noticed the three of them looking at her in silence.
Bao Gu asked, “What’s the matter?”
Sima Jun exclaimed, “Over a dozen Golden Core stage cultivators were fighting for that spiritual treasure. She fought in and out, holding a sword in one hand and a wine gourd in the other. Whenever she got injured or ran out of true qi, she would take a sip of wine or pop a few healing pills, and her wounds and true qi would instantly recover to their best state. The top young talents of Xuan Yue Ancient City in recent years were almost wiped out by her! Wasn’t she supposed to be chasing Nan Yi? Why was she fighting for treasures? My Vermilion Bird Feather—” He stopped mid-sentence, took a deep breath, and suppressed his emotions.
As a branch family member, obtaining a Nascent Soul realm treasure was not easy, and now it was gone!
He blamed himself for being greedy and trying to take advantage of the situation from the shadows.
Now, he was lucky to escape with his life.
Suddenly, the Celestial Fox let out a sharp cry, then leaped into the air, making several jumps towards the sky.
The three looked up and saw a fiery figure riding a high-quality flying sword in the sky, their faces turning even paler.
Bao Gu looked up and saw a fiery figure flying overhead.
She excitedly shouted, “Senior sister, senior sister—” She jumped and waved her arms!
The figure in the sky had already flown past Bao Gu but turned around and headed straight for her.
Yu Mi, engulfed in flames, held a Lihuo sword in her right hand and a fifth-rank monkey wine gourd in her left, glaring at Bao Gu and said, “Don’t you have a flying sword?”
Bao Gu scratched her head and said, “I was so happy to see you that I forgot to use it.”
Yu Mi scolded, “Idiot!”
She glanced at the three injured people behind Bao Gu and said, “Follow me!”
Then she flew ahead.
Bao Gu quickly mounted her flying sword to follow.
The little Celestial Fox jumped onto Bao Gu’s flying sword, scratching her skirt and even trying to grab her sleeve.
Bao Gu, afraid of losing Yu Mi, shouted at the little Celestial Fox, “Stop it!”
The little Celestial Fox suddenly spoke, “Treasure!”
Yu Mi, who was flying ahead, suddenly stopped and shouted, “Where?”
Her eyes lit up.
The little Celestial Fox turned and ran towards where it had found the big snake.
Bao Gu was shocked to see the little Celestial Fox speaking!
She called out to Yu Mi, “Senior sister, were you chasing Nan Yi? Or have you already caught him?”
Yu Mi replied, “Not yet!”
She hesitated, looking at the little Celestial Fox running ahead, gritted her teeth, and chased after it.
Bao Gu shouted, “Senior sister, you’re not chasing Nan Yi?”
She thought, “Senior sister, how can you be so obsessed with treasure that you forget about cleaning up the sect!”
