A magical journey of a sharp-tongued woman and a goofy man

Before the leader of the men in black could finish speaking, Ye Shuli's dagger was already at him.

A flash of cold light, and the leader of the men in black clutched his neck, his eyes wide with disbelief, before collapsing to the ground with a thud.

"Sister Li, you're awesome!" Jiang Ye whistled and gave a thumbs up.

After the battle, the two dragged their exhausted bodies back to the small valley.

Looking at the mountain of spirit crystals, Jiang Ye rubbed his hands excitedly: "Sister Li, we're rich now! With so many spirit crystals, we should be able to cultivate to the Spirit Venerable level!"

Ye Shuli, however, was not so optimistic; she felt that something was not right.

According to previous estimates, the number of spirit crystals should be even greater.

"Wait, it seems a bit short?" Ye Shuli frowned.

Jiang Ye didn't pay much attention at first, after all, he had just gone through a major battle, and he had never been good at such delicate work as counting.

"Sister Li, are you out of your mind from exhaustion? How are you going to count all these spirit crystals?"

Ye Shuli ignored Jiang Ye's teasing and squatted down to carefully examine the spirit crystal.

The more she looked, the more serious her expression became.

“It’s really less, and…” Ye Shuli pointed to several dull spirit crystals, “Look, the spiritual power in these spirit crystals seems to be draining away.”

Jiang Ye leaned closer to take a look and, just as Ye Shuli had said, the luster of some spirit crystals had dimmed considerably, and some had even turned into ordinary stones.

"What the heck? Spirit crystals can evaporate on their own?"

As the spirit crystals dwindled, the spiritual energy in the valley began to become disordered, and the originally docile animals became restless, emitting cries.

"Oh no! Sister Li, this place is very eerie!" Jiang Ye sensed a dangerous aura and subconsciously tightened his grip on the sword.

Ye Shuli's expression was solemn. She looked around and her gaze fell on a shadowy spot deep in the valley.

“Jiang Ye…” she lowered her voice.

"Ok?"

"Did you hear anything?"

"It sounds like... a rustling sound." Jiang Ye held his breath and listened intently. "It sounds a bit like a mouse gnawing on something, but not quite the same."

Ye Shuli's eyes flashed: "Don't alert them yet." She looked around, her gaze sharp as she scanned every corner of the valley like a scanner.

"Jiang Ye, give me your broken sword."

"Sister Li, this isn't a broken sword! This is a precious sword that can cut through iron like mud!" Jiang Ye complained, but still obediently handed over the sword.

Although he felt that Ye Shuli, a woman who was powerless, would be of little use to his sword, he would do as Sister Li instructed.

Ignoring Jiang Ye's complaints, Ye Shuli took the sword but did not draw it. Instead, she squatted down and gently brushed away the fallen leaves and pebbles on the ground with the hilt.

"Look, these tiny scratches, and this powdery stuff..."

"What the heck? Sister Li, don't tell me you can do the legendary 'land surveying and feng shui analysis'?" Jiang Ye was completely bewildered.

"Look at you! This is trace analysis, don't you understand?" Ye Shuli rolled her eyes at him. "Judging from these traces, the one who stole the spirit crystal was a small but very fast spiritual creature." She followed the traces all the way and finally stopped in front of a huge rock.

"It should be around here."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a gray shadow flashed past from a crevice in the rocks.

"There it is!" Jiang Ye reacted quickly, rushing forward and reaching out to grab it.

However, the little thing was even slipperier than a loach, and Jiang Ye missed his target, ending up with a mouthful of dust.

"Holy crap! What's that fast?!"

The little spirit beast was a fluffy ball, like a giant hamster. It was incredibly fast and could also spew out puffs of gray smoke.

Jiang Ye tried to capture it again, but his face was covered in smoke again, making him look like a painted face in a theatrical performance.

"Cough cough cough... Sister Li, this stuff smells awful when it farts!" Jiang Ye complained while coughing.

Ye Shuli looked at Jiang Ye, who was covered in dust and dirt, and her lips twitched slightly.

This guy not only messes up at crucial moments, but he's also so funny.

She looked around, her gaze settling on a few unremarkable herbs...

"Jiang Ye, go and pull up some of those red-leaved grasses for me." Although Jiang Ye didn't understand why, he obediently did as he was told, and happily pulled up a bunch of red-leaved grasses.

"Sister Li, what do you need this for? Are you going to make a nest for that rat demon?"

Ye Shuli ignored his complaints, took the herbs, and quickly began to rub them together, releasing a strange fragrance.

"This grass is called Sticky Grass. Its juice is very sticky. With the spiritual energy of the spirit crystal catalyzing it, that little thing will have no chance to escape." As she spoke, she smeared the rubbed Sticky Grass juice onto several stones and then placed them where the little spirit beast frequented.

"Sister Li, that was a brilliant move! You've got her wrapped around your little finger!" Jiang Ye was so impressed with Ye Shuli's ingenuity that he wanted to kneel down and sing "Conquer" on the spot.

Sure enough, the fluffy little spirit beast reappeared. It seemed to have no resistance to the scent of spirit crystals, sniffing the fragrance of the crystals all the way, and plunged headlong into the trap set by Ye Shuli.

"Squeak squeak squeak!" The little spirit beast struggled desperately, but the juice of the sticky grass, combined with the spiritual power, was like super glue, firmly sticking it to the stone.

"Haha! Got it!" Jiang Ye shouted excitedly, just like a cat that had caught a mouse.

Ye Shuli stepped forward and carefully observed the little spirit beast.

It looks like a giant hamster, all fluffy, with big, innocent-looking black eyes. It seems harmless, but it steals spirit crystals at an astonishing speed.

"So it's a Spirit-Eating Rat." Ye Shuli recognized the little creature at a glance.

"This kind of spirit beast lives by absorbing the spiritual energy of spirit crystals, no wonder our spirit crystals are decreasing."

They successfully retrieved the stolen spirit crystal, but then, a sudden change occurred.

"Who goes there?!" Jiang Ye shouted alertly.

Several figures suddenly emerged from the woods and surrounded them.

These people were dressed in different clothes, but their eyes all gleamed with greed. They were clearly rogue cultivators who had been attracted by the fluctuations of the spirit crystal.

"Heh heh, I didn't expect to run into such a good thing in this desolate wilderness." A burly man with a face full of scars licked his lips, his eyes darting back and forth between Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye with ill intent. "Hand over the spirit crystals obediently, and I might spare your lives!"

The other independent cultivators echoed this sentiment, their eyes filled with greed.

Jiang Ye gripped his sword tightly, shielding Ye Shuli behind him, his face full of vigilance.

"Trying to steal our spirit crystals? Dream on!"

Looking at the situation before her, Ye Shuli felt a sense of foreboding.

Although these rogue cultivators were not highly skilled, they were numerous and each of them looked like a hungry wolf, their eyes gleaming with ferocity.

Although she and Jiang Ye were quite strong, they were no match for four people, especially since they also had to protect the spirit crystal.

A fierce battle is about to break out.