I Can Devour Spirits

Duan Rong and her team of four dined in the wind and slept in the dew within Changling Mountain.

Although they studied the map before entering the mountain and chose the path closest to the sect entrance to start their journey,

in early spring, thick fog often envelops the mountain, causing them to frequently lose their way at the branching paths.

Three days passed with such back-and-forth wandering, and they still hadn’t reached the sect entrance.

Ximen Kankan sat on a large green stone, gasping for air while carefully examining the map in his hand.

Xiao Yu supported Shen Mizi as they sat a short distance away.

Xiao Yu said, ”What’s the matter with you two? How many times have we taken the wrong path? Holding a map for half a day and can’t even figure out the way?”

Ximen Kankan ignored Xiao Yu, frowned at the map, focused.

Shen Mizi chimed in, ”Kankan, you directed us those few times we went wrong. Make sure you see clearly before pointing. When you point randomly, our legs are going to break from walking.”

As she complained, Shen Mizi kept massaging her calves.

Xiao Yu added, ”Exactly.”

The two of them, singing in unison, instantly annoyed Ximen Kankan. He tossed the map aside and said, ”You have so many opinions, why don’t you take a look?”

Shen Mizi looked down and continued to massage her legs, while Xiao Yu turned her face away, pretending to be interested in the scenery.

They were indeed the worst with directions.

In truth, they just had issues with Ximen Kankan because all the wrong paths were pointed out by him on this trip.

Duan Rong patted Ximen Kankan’s shoulder and said, ”Kankan, ignore them. Keep at it. I trust you.”

Ximen Kankan’s expression relaxed when he saw Duan Rong say this and he continued to look at the map.

Xiao Yu and Shen Mizi were puzzled, but Duan Rong knew very well that despite the thick fog in the mountains, the reason they managed to avoid getting completely lost was due to Ximen Kankan.

Xiao Yu and Shen Mizi were correct; it was Ximen Kankan who pointed out the wrong paths those few times.

But Duan Rong only asked Ximen Kankan when he couldn’t determine which path to take, usually when the fog was dense and several peaks loomed ahead like a maze.

To Xiao Yu and Shen Mizi, Ximen Kankan had wrongly directed them four times, causing them to go back and forth.

But to Duan Rong, Ximen Kankan was only wrong four times and right thirteen times, with nearly an eighty percent accuracy!

With such thick fog and numerous peaks, it’s nearly impossible to decide where to go.

Yet Ximen Kankan can spot clues by comparing the foggy mountain silhouettes to map details!

He’s definitely a genius!

At that moment, Duan Rong also realized the reason why Ximen Kankan was so successful in the casino wasn’t due to mere luck.

Ximen Kankan stood up, gazing at the misty peaks, his sight suddenly fixated in a certain direction. He checked the map again, smiled, and said, ”Duan Rong, we’re almost there.”

Duan Rong looked doubtful and asked, ”Really?”

He knew the map indicated they were close to the sect entrance, but given these winding mountains, he wasn’t sure if they could head straight there from what appeared to be a short distance away.

Ximen Kankan nodded and pointed to a spot on the map, saying, ”Yes. Just pass over this small hill and then go down from here.”

Duan Rong looked at the spot Ximen had indicated and showed an uncertain expression but still said, ”Oh, then let’s go.”

Duan Rong and Ximen Kankan started walking towards a certain hill in the mist, followed closely by Xiao Yu and Shen Mizi, who had gotten up from the big stone.

Shen Mizi whispered to Xiao Yu, ”Sister Xiao, my legs hurt, and I can barely walk anymore. Should we wait here for them? Maybe they’ll come back soon anyway.”

Xiao Yu said, ”Let’s go. My legs hurt too. They’ll stop hurting after we walk a bit longer.”

Shen Mizi sighed and looked at Ximen Kankan a short distance ahead, asking, ”Kankan, are you sure it’s the right path this time?”

Ximen Kankan replied, ”Definitely correct.”

Ximen Kankan was always so confident.

Xiao Yu said, ”If he’s wrong again, he won’t get any dried food at lunch.”

Upon hearing Xiao Yu’s words, Ximen Kankan immediately pulled a long face.

When they entered the mountain, they bought some cakes and dried meat, but they hadn’t expected to be traveling for three days without reaching the sect entrance.

From midday on the second day, Xiao Yu gathered all their cakes and dried meat and started rationing them out.

Quite strangely, while traversing the mountain, they often heard the sounds of tiger roars and gibbon cries but encountered not a single wild beast on their way.

Actually, this was related to the Taiyi Sect’s restrictions.

Ordinary people cannot enter the mountain, so almost everyone who can traverse the Changling Mountain Range is a Martial Artist.

Over the centuries, the beasts in the mountain learned to fear these hairless two-legged creatures, fleeing as soon as they detected human scent. Coupled with the early spring mist and low visibility, hence the group hadn’t seen any wild beasts along their way.

They jumped off a small hill, leaping along the green stones and landed into the valley below.

Upon entering the valley, they were delighted to find stone steps neatly arranged beneath their feet.

All along their journey, they had been walking rough, natural mountain paths. Seeing such obvious man-made carvings for the first time indicated they were close to the sect entrance.

Duan Rong patted Ximen Kankan’s shoulder and said, ”You boy, you have sharp eyes!”

From the hills they jumped down to the middle of the valley, clearly taking a shortcut, and Ximen Kankan could lead them on a shortcut through the dense mist; his eyes truly are keen.