My experience of grinding in another world

Chapter 174 Prejudgment
Inside the mountainside camp.

Tu Shan carried a wild boar out of the woods and slammed it down in front of Chen Mu.

"Why didn't you run away?" Chen Mu looked at the two-meter-tall, muscular man with a puzzled expression.

"I'm afraid you might poison me. What if I die from the poison if you run away?" Tu Shan said earnestly.

Chen Mu: “…”

"You've enlightened me!" Chen Mu looked at Tu Shan with a sudden realization and gratitude: "It's better to leave some means of control."

Tu Shan: "..."

Chen Mu chuckled and ate his meat slowly and deliberately.

Don't be fooled by the burly man's quick surrender, as if he were truly under his control. He definitely has some unknown trump card up his sleeve.

The other party simply doesn't want to risk their life.

If Chen Mu had actually dared to stab the other man in the heart, this burly man would have smashed his head in.

Chen Mu also didn't want to risk his life. Thus, the two reached a delicate stalemate.

"How about I help you hunt and you cook for me?" Tu Shan said with a smile.

He just wanted to find a decent place to eat and sleep, and this campsite was just right.

"Not very good." Chen Mu shook his head. It's so comfortable staying at home.

“I can help you avoid unnecessary trouble, especially from aristocratic families.” Tu Shan pointed to the summit of Shouyang Mountain in the distance.

"If I can find this place, the people in that palace over there probably can too."

"My title of Demon Ape still carries considerable weight among aristocratic families," Tu Shan said confidently.

Chen Mu raised an eyebrow: "It's not impossible."

With Tu Shan's help to block out outside troubles, he can live in peace and seclusion for the next two or three months.

"Then it's settled!" Tu Shan chuckled.

"We've become friends through a misunderstanding, you could say." Tu Shan unceremoniously picked up a palm-sized piece of roasted meat from the grill and tossed it into his mouth: "Great cooking!"

He chewed heartily while sizing up Chen Mu.

He felt a deadly threat in just one exchange of blows, but the threat didn't come from the short sword; his opponent must have a backup plan!
This is a master whose strength is no less than his, but who is much younger!
Where did you come from?

Tu Shan asked curiously, "My name is Tu Shan, what's yours?"

"My name is Chengyi (诚意)," Chen Mu said nonsensically with a calm expression.

Tu Shan's face darkened immediately, and I almost believed him.

"I recognize sincerity!"

Chen Mu: “…”

Isn't that just awkward?

After thinking for a moment, Chen Mu said without changing his expression, "Sorry, I misspoke. My name is Chengming."

As if afraid that Tu Shan wouldn't believe him, he then earnestly explained, "Cheng Yi is my senior brother. We often exchange Taoist names for fun."

Tu Shan: "..."

You think I believe it or not?!

……

"What was that move just now? I could have caught it!" Tu Shan asked casually while eating meat.

He still doesn't understand it.

Chen Mu glanced at the other person, wondering why.

Just hold it in!
He brought up the gray wall and looked at the hidden sword displaying the limit indicator. He was immediately filled with a sense of accomplishment.

"The hidden dagger has reached its limit."

"I've gained another max-level skill, that's great!"

Just like the locking ability granted by the Throw Limit.

The hidden dagger also granted him the ability to anticipate events.

Using one's own perceptions as material, the subconscious mind automatically summarizes and analyzes them, then uses this to predict the opponent's actions and find their weaknesses.

“Nice ability.”

Similar to a throwing technique, the effectiveness of a lock-on depends on one's own strength and understanding of the opponent.

If the opponent is far beyond our comprehension, this ability becomes useless.

However, when playing against opponents of the same level, having the ability to anticipate moves almost guarantees an undefeated position.

"At least I don't have to study all sorts of fighting techniques anymore," Chen Mu thought happily.

He bought the secret manual for a few dozen taels of silver on the black market and has mastered it to this level. What more could he ask for? He felt like he could laugh himself awake in his sleep.

……

September 25th, 642nd year of the Great Liang Dynasty. At the foot of the cliff on the east side of Shouyang Mountain, in a hidden crevice extending into the interior of the cliff.

Chen Mu was surrounded by black smoke and floated in mid-air about two meters above the sea.

One paper figure can only lift him half a meter off the ground. But two can make him float more than a meter. With five paper figures working together, he can even float five meters in mid-air!

"We can fly now!" Chen Mule thought to himself with delight.

Control the five ghosts to carry him, making him spin around and around in this narrow crevice.

Although its top speed is only about the same as a galloping horse, it is not as fast as him.

But... this is flying!

After spinning around for quite a while, Chen Mu had his fill of fun. Only then did he lower the altitude and hover about a meter above the sea surface.

At this moment, the once deep blue sea is now covered with a fluffy white expanse of drunken fish.

"I hope we don't actually attract the Dragon King of the Sea," Chen Mu thought with a chuckle.

The next moment, black smoke filled the sea.

"Five Ghosts Moving Mountains!"

Large numbers of sea fish disappeared instantly.

Inside the Five Ghosts Bag, a drop of cinnabar the size of a mung bean slowly condensed.

Feeling the struggle and resentment emanating from the five ghosts, Chen Mu tried his best to suppress the surging devouring desire in his mind.

In just three breaths, the sea returned to its deep blue color.

Chen Mu stopped the Five Ghosts Moving Mountain Spell, breathed a sigh of relief, and then stared at the black smoke with annoyance: "If it weren't for preparing food for you, would I have suffered like this?"

Sailing at sea, unsure of the situation, he had to prepare food for the Five Ghosts Bag in advance.

Zhaodianhong, a concentrated essence of the Three Treasures, is high in energy and doesn't take up much space. Just one drop is enough to sustain the Five Ghosts Bag for a long time.

……

Inside the mountainside camp.

"Do you know anything about things overseas?" Chen Mu subtly inquired during the meal.

Tu Shan had roamed the Liang Dynasty for decades, beating the powerful families to the point that they dared not speak out against him. He might even know some exclusive information.

"It's just a different place, nothing's different," Tu Shan said nonchalantly.

"This also means there are more subsequent cultivation methods."

"Might makes right everywhere."

Chen Mu nodded. This brute had a clear understanding of things.

“There are still some differences,” Tu Shan said after thinking for a moment.

"I've heard that some places are in complete chaos, with powerful individuals acting recklessly, and some even killing tens of thousands of people in the process of refining magical artifacts."

Chen Mu frowned. If he really went to this place where people's lives were treated like dirt, he might face disaster at any time.

"Isn't there a safe place?"

“Of course there is.” Tu Shan shrugged.

"Even though the Great Liang is in such chaos, the capital city remains peaceful."

“But we don’t have the Daoist bones, so we can’t go to very good places.” Tu Shan sneered.

"I heard that when we, the Jiapo, go there, we'll have to work for others first?" Chen Mu frowned slightly.

He doesn't mind being a laborer, but if he's assigned to a chaotic place, the job probably won't be easy.

"Yes, and we've been doing this for twenty years, all for nothing!" Tu Shan said, somewhat aggrieved.

He roamed freely in Daliang, but when he went overseas, he ended up working as a farmhand.

"It was all arranged before we boarded the ship; once we went, no one could escape."

Tu Shan narrowed his eyes, his fists clenching so tightly they cracked: "I wonder how tough my future employer is."

"You actually dare to make a move? I don't believe they don't have countermeasures?" Chen Mu scoffed.

"It's said that it needs to be stamped." Tu Shan scratched his head.

stamp?

"I guess it's some kind of magical artifact. The kind that marks people so they can be tracked even if they run away."

Chen Mu suddenly realized.

Isn't it similar to the Yin-taming strategy of finding the soul-fixing stake, or the water droplet copper piece sensing the heartless bell?

Is this some kind of ritual object version of a character?

Tsk tsk... Life overseas is tough.

(End of this chapter)