The Siming Mountains were vast; more accurately, they formed an entire mountain range.
The name "Siming" referred to its four highest peaks: Qingming, Xiuming, Lingming, and Yueming.
Each of the four peaks boasted its own marvelous scenery, and in ages past, they had even been hailed as grotto-heavens and mystic realms.
The Siming range stretched for a thousand li from east to west and spanned three to four hundred li at its widest from north to south, straddling the border between Chunan and Chubei Commanderies. Natural resources of every kind abounded within the wilderness.
Over the past few decades, however, monsters and evil spirits had run rampant across the wilds for various reasons, forcing those who dwelt deep in the mountains to relocate.
Merchants and travelers mostly skirted the perimeter of the range, and even hunters rarely dared venture deep inside.
Canglong Temple was closest to Yueming Peak. Zhou Wuji had accompanied his master here many times and was quite familiar with the area.
Yueming Peak was quite intriguing. Its crags contained a peculiar mineral that glowed whenever moonlight bathed the mountain. Beneath a bright moon, more than half the peak shimmered with radiance, resembling a mountain of immortals.
At the eastern foot of Yueming Peak lay a pool so deep its bottom could not be seen, and within it lurked a colossal golden toad.
Zhou Wuji had once witnessed the creature ingesting and expelling lunar essence with his own eyes. The toad was as large as a cartwheel and covered in crimson warts. Crouched upon a massive boulder, it inhaled and exhaled facing the full moon, presenting a truly gruesome sight.
His master had told him the golden toad was a seventh-rank monster. Every wart on its body held virulent venom, and its sword-like tongue could shoot out two zhang away. On top of that, it could spit poisonous gas that induced all manner of hallucinations in living creatures.
They said a golden toad never dwells without treasure. According to his master's original plan, they were meant to let the toad grow for a few more years, hoping it might yield some rare treasure. Zhou Wuji, however, could not afford to wait. Killing monsters yielded Primordial Profound Essence, which would dramatically elevate his physical strength.
The greatest disparity between him and a seventh-rank martial artist lay at the physical level.
Using his own body as a baseline, he estimated that an ordinary seventh-rank martial artist's physical index reached three to four hundred.
Zhang Xinhu's physical strength was at least five hundred!
It was precisely due to their superlative physiques that martial artists could unite internal and external might to unleash thousands of jun of crushing force, possessing an unfathomably robust vitality.
By slaying monsters, Zhou Wuji could swiftly bolster his physical strength. As for demonic beasts and evil spirits he had no immediate use for, he could use the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment to convert them into yin spirits to weave the Five Yin Pouch.
When Zhou Wuji arrived at Yueming Peak, the sun was already slipping beneath the horizon.
He circled the deep pool and inspected the large boulder where the golden toad loved to crouch. The rock's surface was exceedingly smooth, stained with faint traces of ghastly green left behind by the creature—evidently venom dripping from its body and seeping into the stone.
Relying on his Yuheng star aperture, Zhou Wuji detected the creature's scent upon the bluestone: a pungent, sour-smelling odor of qi.
Sniffing a single whiff, Zhou Wuji's vision went slightly vacant. The surroundings seemed abruptly veiled behind a thin gauze, turning hazy and indistinct.
Realizing something was amiss, he knew even the scent left by the toad held hallucinatory properties.
Backing away several paces, Zhou Wuji cast the Pure Heart Divine Incantation upon himself.
Though his mastery level was not enough for instantaneous casting, it was more than sufficient. Forming the hand seal and chanting the spell, a spark of spiritual light radiated outward from within, sweeping across his entire body in an instant and thoroughly purging the toxic qi clouding his mind.
His spirits lifted, and he briskly moved away from the bluestone.
No wonder there were no frogs or insects anywhere in the vicinity; the venom exhaled by this beast had poisoned all small critters to death.
Zhou Wuji retreated into a grove of willows, situated a full hundred paces away from the massive bluestone.
Birds chirped and insects hummed in the grove, showing that no toxic qi lingered here.
Selecting a clean spot, Zhou Wuji donned his coir raincoat, swallowed an inedia pill, and quietly sat in meditation to guide the circulation of his true qi.
Generally speaking, one should not cultivate more than three times a day, as excessive refining of qi brought only harm.
Guiding his true qi through one hundred and eight heavenly cycles, the qi flowed through his entire body. Zhou Wuji felt completely refreshed and relaxed, the fatigue of traveling all day swept away entirely.
As darkness fell, the birds and insects in the grove fell silent.
Within the gloomy woods, specks of green light gradually drifted upward. Like fireflies, they floated aimlessly in every direction.
A cluster of green specks wandered through the woods and soon reached Zhou Wuji's side.
He clearly sensed the yin energy contained within the tiny green motes. They were likely little creatures such as deceased birds whose residual yin energy had lingered after death, nourished by the spiritual qi of this place, though devoid of any true intelligence.
Any man with robust vitality and blood would have no fear of such things. But frail women, children, or the elderly might be afflicted by the yin wind, inevitably falling ill.
Zhou Wuji raised his hand to trigger the Golden Light Incantation. At the level of consummate mastery, he could cast the spell almost instantaneously.
A sweep of golden light unfurled, and the specks of green rapidly melted away within its brilliance.
The gusts of yin wind stirring the woods dispersed along with them.
Zhou Wuji felt the air turn considerably fresher, free of the stifling, oppressive heaviness from before.
Ordinarily, the spiritual nature of frail living beings vanished immediately upon death, including that of humans. The geography of the Siming Mountains was rather unique, gathering spiritual qi together to nourish the spirits of living creatures while also spawning all manner of demons, monsters, and ghosts.
Having dealt with the minor nuisance, Zhou Wuji waited peacefully for the crescent moon to rise.
Ingesting and expelling lunar essence was a golden toad's daily cultivation; it could not wait for a full moon every single time.
Taking advantage of the remaining time, Zhou Wuji mentally rehearsed his plan of action.
According to his master, the golden toad suffered from flawed vision: it could not see stationary objects, but the faster something moved, the clearer it saw.
Furthermore, when the toad breathed in and out lunar essence, it naturally released toxic qi over a radius of roughly ten zhang.
Zhou Wuji had inspected the ground earlier and could estimate the approximate range of the toxic vapor from the faint green stains left behind.
Therefore, he only needed to stroll forward slowly while the golden toad was engrossed in absorbing lunar essence, holding his breath as soon as he reached the zone of toxic qi.
Then, he would use the Golden Light Incantation to stun it.
Though such a monster possessed a tough, sturdy body, it lacked any orthodox method to temper its spirit. Its innate spirituality was feeble, making it vulnerable to the Golden Light Incantation.
Even in the worst-case scenario where the toad lashed out with its tongue, his coir raincoat would suffice to protect him.
As for the creature's toxic vapor, it posed virtually no threat to him and could be disregarded.
Zhou Wuji repeatedly rehearsed the battle. Dull-witted though monsters were, he could afford no carelessness.
He still possessed three Northern Culmen Heavenly Dipper Divine Talismans; if things went awry, using just one would be enough to safeguard himself.
The new moon rose, casting faint moonlight onto the deep pool.
The water rippled violently as an immense golden toad leapt from the depths of the pool. With practiced familiarity, it bounded onto the enormous bluestone, crouching there facing the moonlight as its throat pumped and its belly heaved in steady rhythm.
Zhou Wuji channeled his Six Yang Dharma Eyes, and the dim world instantly became exceptionally bright and clear.
Through the Six Yang Dharma Eyes, he could see the spiritual qi the toad was inhaling and exhaling, along with the swirling layers of toxic qi rippling around its body.
Zhou Wuji slowly rose to his feet, walking toward the golden toad one deliberate step at a time.
The toad could not see stationary objects. Though his strides were slow, it should still be able to perceive him. However, engrossed in drawing upon lunar essence, it might not pay heed to a figure creeping forward so gradually.
With eyes set high on its brow, it enjoyed a wide field of vision, yet lacked depth perception—its vision was essentially flat.
Horses and rabbits exhibited this trait distinctly. Monster though it was, the golden toad could not alter the natural structure of its eyes.
Of course, even if it did spot him, it mattered little. What mattered was closing the distance.
The golden toad remained entirely unresponsive. Zhou Wuji came to a halt three zhang from the bluestone.
The air here was already thick with a misty, faint toxic vapor, naturally forming a protective barrier that kept other living beings at bay.
Holding his breath, Zhou Wuji silently chanted the incantation, his hand forming a seal within his sleeve. He slowly raised his palm, and a brilliant burst of golden light flared from his hand, shining squarely upon the golden toad as it inhaled and exhaled the lunar essence.
The dazzling golden light carried the formidable power to subdue all spiritual consciousness, striking directly at the monster.
The toad's rhythmic breathing seized up, its stable flow of qi disrupted, and the surrounding toxic vapor churned violently.
Watching these shifts clearly through his Six Yang Dharma Eyes, Zhou Wuji flicked his hand without the slightest hesitation. Two White Brow Needles shot straight into the creature's bulging eyes.
Given the golden toad's immense size, tiny needles would normally struggle to inflict a fatal blow. But Zhou Wuji's strike was utterly ruthless, piercing straight through the eyeballs and penetrating deep into its brain.
The true qi detonating from the spinning White Brow Needles blew the toad's eyeballs to pieces.
Its spirit and soul dazed by the golden light, the golden toad opened its gaping maw and let out a frantic, agonized croak.
Never in its life had it encountered such an assault; it reacted purely on instinct.
In battle, that was the most disastrous reaction possible. Seeing his opening, Zhou Wuji charged forward at full speed, drawing his sword to strike.
His figure swept past the monster in a flash. The Seven Stars Sword in his grasp slashed down viciously right between its eyes.
The blade cleaved through the toad's head and carved straight down its back to the very end, nearly splitting the creature in two.
This strike was as swift as it was deadly. The golden toad perished on the spot, its four limbs still twitching uncontrollably...
Chapter 39