My ancestors were spiritual plant growers, so it's not surprising that I hunt demons every day,

In her previous life, Cui Ying knew that Seventh Master's weapon crafting was different from that of ordinary weapon crafters.

In his later years, this person had no fixed abode. Wherever he went, he would not only visit the famous weapon refiners in the area, but also exchange skills with them.

They would search far and wide for all kinds of rare and precious materials suitable for forging magical artifacts, and on a whim, they would even personally hunt down high-level demonic beasts, extract their essence, and seal it into the magical artifact as its spirit.

Of course, the current Seventh Master doesn't have such extraordinary abilities; at most, he can only extract the tendons and bones from ordinary demonic beasts to refine some kind of magical artifact.

Cui Ying thought for a moment, then instead of refusing outright, she asked with a smile, "Why don't you find another demon hunter or demon hunting team to take you along, Seventh Brother?"

Actually, she was also hesitant about whether to bring Seventh Master along.

In her past life, she was a notorious, bloodthirsty female sword cultivator. Due to her early experiences, she had always been a loner.

It's one thing to occasionally bring Zhu Chaoyun along these days, but there's a certain unspoken apprehension towards the still-unknown Seventh Master in front of him.

Seventh Master shook his head, somewhat melancholy: "Of course I've looked for them, but I can't afford high-level demon hunters, and ordinary demon hunters aren't even as good as me!"

"Last time I encountered a wild boar demon in the Phoenix Mountains. Damn it, I'm supposed to be a renowned demon hunter, but that guy ran faster than me! It was infuriating!"

At this point, a rare hint of anger appeared on the Seventh Master's handsome face, which made Cui Ying shake her head and chuckle.

"You should know that was my first time going into Phoenix Mountain Range to hunt demons with a team. Not only did we fail halfway through, but the spirit stones we hired were also wasted."

"If you are willing to help mediate and have my elders take me into the Phoenix Mountains to broaden my horizons, I will naturally pay the corresponding reward."

Cui Ying's biggest need when hunting demons in the Phoenix Mountains is not companions, but information about the habits and hiding places of those demons.

She was tempted, but still politely declined:

"The elder in the family is somewhat eccentric and used to being alone, which may disappoint Seventh Brother. Moreover, he has always only traveled around the outer perimeter of the Phoenix Mountain Range, and those demon wolves were just encountered by chance. If it weren't for the passing expert who came to his rescue, he would probably have perished on the spot."

After hearing Cui Ying's words, Seventh Master understood what she meant.

He nodded. Hunting demons was just a spur-of-the-moment thing for him, and there was no need to dwell on it any longer.

Before parting, Master Qi gave Cui Ying a map and an item that looked like an embroidery needle:

"I'll be staying here for a while. If you regret your decision, or if you'd like to buy other magical artifacts, feel free to come find me anytime! Prices are negotiable! Quality is absolutely guaranteed!"

"Also, this Flowing Shadow Needle was forged from scrap materials in my spare time. Although it's not a valuable magical artifact, it can be a great help if used skillfully. I hit it off with my young friend Cui at first sight, so I'll give it to you as a gift."

"Okay, thank you very much, Seventh Brother!"

"We'll see you later!"

"See you later!"

Cui Ying waved her hand and left Songlinfang Market without looking back, heading towards Shuangling Village.

-

The next morning, before dawn.

"Disciple Zhu Chaoyun, come quickly to see me!"

"Good heavens, who's playing tricks on us?!"

Zhu Chaoyun woke up groggily from the bed. He first cursed at the female voice that had entered his ears from nowhere, then jumped up as if he remembered something and ran outside in a panic.

It was pitch black outside, and apart from the occasional chirping of insects in the distance, everything was quiet.

"Sister Cui Ying~ Master~ Is that you?"

Although cultivators can see in the dark, their vision is somewhat obstructed.

Zhu Chaoyun went outside and searched everywhere but couldn't find a soul. He had no choice but to call out in a low voice, "Master, where are you?"

"Brother Chaoyun!"

"what!"

Suddenly, someone patted Zhu Chaoyun on the shoulder from behind. Startled, Zhu Chaoyun screamed and ran forward several steps.

When he came to his senses and prepared to defend himself, the person who had attacked him spoke up: "Brother Chaoyun, why are you running?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Zhu Chaoyun patted his chest and realized, "Master, do you know that people can scare each other to death?"

Cui Ying ignored the boy's nonsensical nickname and stepped out of the shadows, letting the pure white moonlight shine on her cheeks.

"Go back and get dressed quickly, we're heading into the Phoenix Mountains right away!"

Zhu Chaoyun stood there dumbfounded, looking up at the sky and saying, "Did I hear that right, Master? It's only a quarter past Yin hour, and it's still a long way from dawn!"

"What? You've only been a disciple for two days, and I can't even order you around anymore?!"

The reason Cui Ying got up so early today was because she had spent all her spirit stones yesterday, so after a hurried night of cultivation, she couldn't wait to earn more spirit stones.

"No, Master, don't rush me. I'll go back and pack it right away, okay?"

Just as Zhu Chaoyun returned, Cui Ying took out a handful of spirit stones from her storage bag:

"Wait, I sold the demon wolf pelt yesterday. We're master and disciple, so let's keep our accounts straight. We agreed that you'd get half and I'd get half. Here's your share."

Upon seeing the glittering spirit stones, Zhu Chaoyun's last trace of complaint vanished instantly. Without any pretense, she accepted the spirit stones, too lazy to even count them, and stuffed them directly into her bosom.

"Hehe, thank you so much, Master. You're like a second parent to me. But, I behaved so badly that day, isn't it a bit too much to get so many spirit stones?"

He was overjoyed when he was given so many spirit stones last time.

Two days ago, he had only infused the Cold Light Crossbow with some magic power in the mountains, and his master had given him pills and taught him incantations. Now he had received so many spirit stones, which made him feel a little guilty.

Cui Ying shook her head and urged, "Take the spirit stones I'm giving you. Don't forget you're not alone. Wanqiu's spirit bone quality is quite good, and she's reached the age where she should be cultivating. Also, you need to find a way to improve your cultivation as soon as possible."

If she remembered correctly, Zhu Wanqiu should be a fifth-grade spiritual bone, but her physique was somewhat special, requiring her to cultivate special Xuan Yin type techniques, which is the kind of furnace physique that high-level cultivators like to cultivate.

It was precisely because of this that Zhu Chaoyun protected his younger sister Zhu Wanqiu very closely and had long since begun saving spirit stones to select a suitable cultivation technique for her.

Otherwise, with Zhu Wanqiu's talent, it wouldn't be too difficult for him to become a disciple of a third-rate sect.

"This~"

Zhu Chaoyun hesitated for a moment, then shook her head stubbornly:

“We siblings are deeply grateful for Master’s kindness. But you put in a lot of effort when killing those demon wolves. And Ta Xue, it should be the three of us who share the spoils. How about this, I’ll take sixty, and you can use the rest to buy Ta Xue some nice things as a reward.”

After saying that, he immediately counted out a handful of spirit stones and handed them over.

"You've been dawdling with me for so long over such a small amount of spirit stones."

Cui Ying waved her hand impatiently and shoved the cold-light crossbow she had borrowed along the way into his arms:

"Hurry up and pack your things. Remember to tell Wanqiu so she won't be worried when she wakes up in the morning and can't find you."

"Row!"

Zhu Chaoyun grinned and nodded vigorously: "Then I'll hide the spirit stones first."

"Go!"

Faced with the boy's fussiness, Cui Ying endured it all, and thankfully she didn't kill him with her sword.

As the two walked towards Songcui Cliff under the cover of night, Cui Ying took out two oily steamed buns from her bundle and gave them to him.

"Try it, my mother made it herself yesterday morning."

Zhu Chaoyun immediately took the cake and took a bite, exclaiming in surprise, "It's actually venison floss cake! Master, your aunt is so good to you!"

Seeing how ravenously he devoured his food, Cui Yingzhen felt that if she gave him a handful of poison one day, Zhu Chaoyun would eat it without hesitation.

So, Cui Ying curled her lip in disgust: "Eat slowly, be careful not to choke!"

"It's so fragrant!"

"Is there anything else? I was so focused on meditation last night that I didn't eat dinner, and I'm starving right now."