CHAPTER 345: CHAPTER 345 MIST CLOUD HUNTER

Bai Yunqi was quite unconvinced and was about to follow up, but hesitated.

If there’s really danger, following rashly would only burden the Venerable Family, wouldn’t that be more embarrassing?

"First, follow the Venerable Family’s orders to bring back any spices and herbs we can find nearby. We’ll have a good talk once he returns!" He looked determinedly at the cloud cluster that seemed to drift leisurely but had actually floated far away, and snorted coldly, "We have to let the Venerable Family know that a Family Immortal is not used like this!"

[There is a 100% probability of a Water Spirit Pearl about five meters inside the cloud.]

[Water Spirit Pearl: A specialty within the Mist Cloud, formed by the condensation of Spiritual Energy. It can be refined and absorbed directly, with effects similar to Spirit Stones. In Cloud City, it can be used as specific currency for transactions, and when condensed to a certain extent, it can transform qualitatively into a Magical Treasure for wearing.]

Jiang Yuan intended to observe closely, hoping the system would identify more information for a better understanding. Unexpectedly, as he approached the cloud cluster, his passive skill Earth Mirror Book was triggered, and a golden glow flickered deep within the snowy Mist Cloud, enticing him to harvest.

He glanced at the Earth Spirit Pearl bestowed by the old dragon, thinking it might be possible to harvest a "handicraft" of the same series. Since the system didn’t indicate any threats, he decided to go in and have a look.

After all, if things went wrong, he had many skills ready to escape at any time, ensuring his safety.

It must be said that although passive skills like Earth Mirror Book and Foreknowledge Technique can’t be triggered voluntarily, once a situation arises, they are never ambiguous. In the face of a cloud cluster that the system only gives a simple, general assessment of, the Earth Mirror Book immediately discovered specific treasures inside, giving Jiang Yuan the thrill of a hack.

"Hmm? It’s actually moving... being carried by the cloud?!" Diving headfirst into the cloud felt peculiar, as if he was inside a super thick fog, surrounded by whiteness everywhere. However, when he looked down, he found himself stepping on the white cloud, vaguely seeing it swiftly passing over the grass below.

In essence, once you enter the Mist Cloud, it’s like stepping onto the Flying Nimbus, and wherever it drifts, it takes you along.

"Interesting, if only I could tame and shape a cloud into a Flying Nimbus!" Jiang Yuan mused spontaneously, but as he reached out to catch the wind, the wisps of white cloud dispersed, and his fingertips felt slightly moist, akin to grasping the moisture blown from a humidifier.

Taking a few quick steps deeper into the cloud, his view narrowed further, and even the ground beneath turned into cotton candy-like clouds, obscuring the swiftly passing grassland.

"Wow!" Just when he was feeling a bit disoriented, he suddenly noticed a light blue, walnut-sized pearl "wrapped" within the white cloud to his upper right, emitting a soft, bright glow and standing out strikingly against the cloud.

The system identified it as an ordinary-quality Water Spirit Pearl!

He stepped forward and grabbed it in his hand, feeling cool, moist, and elastic, somewhat like the texture of a water baby’s skin.

Just after storing it in his Storage Bag, another one appeared diagonally below!

Jiang Yuan felt like he was picking fruit, weaving through the vast white cloud, searching "up and down" to "harvest" the ready-to-pick Water Spirit Pearls. However, it was clear that the Water Spirit Pearls in this cloud cluster had not been condensed long enough to transform from quantity into quality, becoming a wearable Magical Treasure.

This was all free money!

"No wonder the harvesting garden is so popular; the satisfaction of such harvests is indeed thrilling." He regretted once again that the system didn’t have a recording function; capturing this would have been so interesting.

After picking over thirty Water Spirit Pearls in one go, there was nothing but limitless white around him, with no other objects in sight. However, the Mist Cloud cluster was still drifting, and Jiang Yuan opened the map, hoping to find a direction to leave this cloud cluster and return home to share the new finds with everyone.

And then he saw a bright spot flashing very close ahead to his left—someone else was in the cloud!

"Huff! Huff!"

Whether it was psychological or the other party was getting closer, after discovering the light spot, he vaguely heard somewhat heavy breathing.

What to do? Use the Teleportation Scroll to go home right away?

Or see who it is?

"Ah!" Just as Jiang Yuan was indecisive, a skinny silhouette about two meters tall appeared in the left-front cloud, looking slender and tall like a utility pole. Evidently, the other party also discovered Jiang Yuan, exclaiming in a shocked and panicky voice: "Wh-who are you? I’m a Mist Cloud hunter, and you?"

[Song Zhi: Ghost-faced rat Demon Cultivator, low-level Gathering Spirit Realm monster, resident of Cloud City. Cultivates Earth Element Yellow Tier low-level cultivation technique, skilled in Earth Escape, occupation: Mist Cloud hunter]

"I’m also a cultivator pursuing the Mist Cloud," Jiang Yuan hadn’t yet clearly seen the opponent’s appearance when the system prompt popped up.

Song Zhi tensed up, sniffed with his long nose, and didn’t notice any aggressive intention from Jiang Yuan. Then he politely clasped his hands and said, "Apologies, fellow Daoist, I didn’t know this Mist Cloud had a master and intruded rashly. I apologize sincerely; I’ll leave right away."

Jiang Yuan was a bit nervous initially, but upon hearing the other’s polite demeanor and that he was a resident of Cloud City, he thought it was a good chance to gather some information!

So he hurriedly called out, "There’s nothing valuable in this Mist Cloud. Could you spare a moment to talk, fellow Daoist?"

"About what?" Song Zhi’s stomach growled with hunger, making him reluctant to waste time.

He hadn’t had any gains for two whole days and was anxiously looking for a Mist Cloud to search thoroughly; with his luck, if he could obtain some treasure, he could easily get through the hot summer.

"I’m new here, unfamiliar with the place, and wish to inquire about the situation in Cloud City." Jiang Yuan casually handed over a few Spirit Stones, "I don’t mean to waste your time unnecessarily; it would be great if you could assist, fellow Daoist."

Spirit Stones!

Song Zhi’s eyes lit up, wanting to reach out but hesitated, then extended his hand in a gesture of invitation, "Then please follow me out of this Mist Cloud first, as staying here might lead us who knows where."

Jiang Yuan was already prepared with skills; if something went wrong, he could throw out a Black Flame Storm, even if it couldn’t deliver a Critical Strike, it would ensure the opponent suffered significantly.

Piling up his Attack Power to this point, it was easy to handle a Gathering Spirit Realm Demon Cultivator, just one realm higher than the Foundation Establishment Realm!

The opponent indeed had just barged in, and following the direction he came, they hadn’t walked far before the surrounding cloud gradually thinned, eventually leaving the Mist Cloud entirely.

At this time, looking back, he found that the cloud cluster had drifted to the southeast direction of the grassland. The map still didn’t show the grassland’s edge, but unknowingly their distance from the courtyard had increased significantly, and even the bustling Cloud City was now a barely visible "light band" in the distance.

"Greetings, fellow Daoist. My surname is Song, and my name is Zhi." The tall and thin Song Zhi made a bow, eagerly eyeing the brilliant Spirit Stones in Jiang Yuan’s hand, pondering that with these few Spirit Stones, he could buy some rice and flour, and have a couple of hearty meals!

Unable to sense the aura from Jiang Yuan, he guessed that either Jiang Yuan’s realm was much higher, allowing him to hide his presence; or he was carrying a Magical Treasure capable of concealing his aura, either of which made Jiang Yuan someone he couldn’t afford to provoke.

Moreover, Jiang Yuan had evidently mastered the Transformation Technique excellently, as not a trace of his original form was left in his disguised human form, so he must be very pleased with his appearance...

"Song Daoist, my surname is Jiang, as in ginger." As Song Zhi assessed Jiang Yuan, he too discreetly observed the other.

Xiao Bai once mentioned that many Demon Cultivators prefer to retain some ancestral traits in their human form, such as Xiao Bai keeping red ridged horns; Hu Zhile occasionally keeping fluffy fox ears and a tail; and Yun Mo openly keeping dashing feathers, often too lazy to transform into a human.

Yet right before him, Song Zhi was clearly a rat-type Demon Cultivator, with a skinny figure and a face closely resembling a rodent’s, complete with round little eyes, a pointed nose and mouth, large round ears, and hands retaining the form of sharp rodent claws.

"Jiang Dao You, with your generosity, why risk danger as a Mist Cloud Hunter?" Song Zhi, aiming to make friends while eyeing the Spirit Stones, sighed and said, "It’s not a good job, it’s quite dangerous! You’re new here, you might have been deceived."