The night was as black as ink, and the night wind was chilling.
On the distant horizon, a row of verdant lights appeared – the eyes of beasts.
There were quite a few of them, moving rapidly towards them.
Ning Wenjing immediately straightened up. In the first instance, she took her bow and arrows from her storage bag, nocked an arrow, and drew her bow, gazing sternly into the distance.
Ji Mo took out a small slingshot from his embrace, loaded it with a small pebble. The seemingly ordinary slingshot’s talismans flickered, dao rhythm surged, and sacred energy erupted.
"A divine artifact!"
Ning Wenjing's heart churned with astonishment, suspecting that the small slingshot Ji Mo held was a legendary divine artifact.
Afterward, her expression became incredibly strange, because when she had saved Ji Mo before, he had wanted to repay her with this slingshot.
Had she missed out on a divine artifact?
Ning Wenjing felt a pang of regret, but quickly let it go.
With her strength, possessing a divine artifact would not be a good thing; it might even bring about a disaster of annihilation.
She looked at Ji Mo's profile, smiled sweetly, and thought that only this foolish boy would do something so silly as to give away a divine artifact.
"Huh, it doesn't seem to be a beast horde, but an adventure team."
Ji Mo's eyesight was extremely sharp, and he could clearly see the figures in the darkness.
There were demonic beasts, demon races, and quite a few humans, clearly an adventure team.
Then, he showed a strange expression.
Because almost all the humans had their faces blackened, looking like lumps of coal.
Ji Mo had disguised himself because he was afraid of being too handsome and being taken a fancy to by those old demonesses.
Could it be that these humans were also doing it for the same reason?
But upon closer inspection, these people were all old or ugly. There was no need to make themselves look unsightly. It was truly peculiar!
"Two individuals, we are from the Yu family of Qingxiu Mountain. We mean no harm."
As the other party approached, someone announced their origin, stating they meant no harm.
Ji Mo had never heard of the Yu family of Qingxiu Mountain. He looked at Ning Wenjing.
"The Yu family of Qingxiu Mountain is a prominent demon clan in the Western Regions. They have a good reputation and are very friendly towards humans."
Ning Wenjing explained. If they were indeed from the Yu family, they should not be enemies.
She subtly revealed a hint of disappointment. If it were another force, perhaps she could have witnessed the power of the divine artifact. She really wanted to know how destructive Ji Mo's attacks would be if he used a divine artifact.
"It's good that they are friendly towards humans."
Ji Mo was also a little nervous. The other party was numerous, and if they had malicious intent, their situation would be quite precarious.
He put down the slingshot, and the terrifying aura dissipated. The small slingshot returned to its ordinary appearance.
If Ning Wenjing hadn't seen it with her own eyes just now, she wouldn't have believed that such an inconspicuous little thing could be a divine artifact.
Her gaze then fell again on the pendant on Ji Mo's chest and the ring on his hand, feeling that these two items were also very likely divine artifacts.
Possessing divine artifacts all over oneself was enough to make one dizzy.
Afterward, her mood suddenly brightened, and the worries of the past few days were swept away.
With Ji Mo around, who would dare to harm the human race? Who could harm the human race? She didn't need to fear even if the sky fell.
It seemed that Emperor Bai's prophecy was indeed true: the savior had appeared, and the human race would usher in an era of light.
In the night, that group of people walked over.
There were over thirty demonic beasts and more than fifty demon race members. The humans were fewer, only a dozen or so, all with their faces painted black.
Upon seeing Ji Mo, those dozen or so human cultivators showed their white teeth and smiled broadly, expressing a sense of familiarity, as if they considered Ji Mo one of their own.
Looking at the opponent's lineup, Ning Wenjing couldn't help but feel a little alarmed. Nearly half of them were at the Emperor realm, and two of them exuded immortal spiritual energy, clearly being experts at the Mortal Immortal realm.
Most of those demonic beasts resembled pangolins or rodents, suitable for digging into mountains and earth. The Yu family's grand mobilization suggested they were after something big. Could they be digging for immortal spiritual artifacts?
Ji Mo's gaze fell upon the young girl leading the group.
The girl was extremely beautiful, with skin like snow, a face like congealed fat, eyebrows like ink dots, and fiery red lips. A pure white short skirt accentuated her delicate curves to the fullest, and her long, slender legs were crystal white and captivating.
She was clearly not human. Two fluffy rabbit ears protruded from her black hair, occasionally twitching.
"Such beautiful long legs, it's a shame they're not wearing black stockings."
Ji Mo offered a sincere critique. This simpleton seemed to have a certain fixation on black stockings.
Seeing Ji Mo staring at the other girl's legs, Ning Wenjing immediately felt a bit jealous. She was certain her own legs were better than this woman's, though she didn't know what black stockings were. She resolved to find some and wear them for Ji Mo later, to show this big liar what truly long legs were.
"Human, stare any longer, and I'll dig your eyeballs out."
Beside the girl, a male demon stared fiercely at Ji Mo, his eyes spewing with jealousy.
He was a wolf demon. Although he had transformed into human form, the characteristics of the wolf race were still very obvious. His appearance was more akin to a werewolf.
Ning Wenjing had told Ji Mo that when demon races transformed into human form, if they still retained their racial characteristics, it was either due to their aesthetic preferences or because they were racial purists. These demon races often considered their bloodline noble and looked down upon humans.
Clearly, this wolf demon was likely of the second type.
Ji Mo's gaze was clear, without any lewd thoughts. He ignored the wolf demon's words and seriously said to the girl, "Miss, your legs are too pale. I think it's an illness. How about I give you a couple of acupuncture treatments?"
This statement immediately caused a stir.
Even Ning Wenjing felt that Ji Mo might be trying to take advantage of the situation. Otherwise, why would he conclude that the other party was ill and offer to give acupuncture treatments upon their first meeting?
"Are you looking for death?"
The wolf demon bared his teeth, his eyes flashing with ferocity, wishing he could tear Ji Mo to shreds.
The girl, however, was completely different. Her eyes showed surprise. She knew her own physical condition. Her legs had felt sore and weak for the past few days, but she couldn't find the reason.
She had some faith in Ji Mo's words, but she couldn't let Ji Mo treat her.
They were strangers; who knew what his intentions were? She had to be cautious.
"Young Master Lang Jing, please don't be upset. It's nothing."
The girl spoke, her voice as soft as water, making anyone listening feel soothed.
"Little Huan, how is it nothing? This lowly human is clearly teasing you. I promised Uncle Yu that I would take good care of you and would never let this scoundrel off."
The wolf demon, known as Lang Jing, said. He had always considered Yu Xiaohuan his exclusive property, and his intense jealousy wouldn't allow any other man to look at her.
Ji Mo daring to glance at her a few times meant he could never be let off.
"Enough. I also have half human blood. Am I also lowly?"
Yu Xiaohuan showed displeasure. Her father was a demon, but her mother was human. She flowed with half human blood and naturally couldn't stand others belittling humans.
Those dozen or so human cultivators also glared at Lang Jing with indignant expressions.
But a grizzled old wolf demon with reddish-brown fur beside Lang Jing swept his gaze over them coldly. These people immediately restrained their anger, daring to be angry but not to speak.
This old wolf demon had a cultivation of the third level of the Mortal Immortal realm; no one could afford to offend him.
Lang Jing, being reprimanded in public, felt his face lose some color. However, he endured it, forced a smile, and said, "Little Huan, I misspoke. Don't be angry with your brother."
Then, he spoke a string of sweet nothings, finally appeasing Yu Xiaohuan.
Yu Xiaohuan did not put on airs. She chatted with Ji Mo and Ning Wenjing for a while. Upon learning that Ning Wenjing was from the Ning clan, she became even more overjoyed and cordially pulled her aside for a private conversation.
Ji Mo was left out in the cold, but he didn't mind. He walked towards those dozen or so human cultivators, wanting to discuss whether there was some unspeakable secret behind their blackened faces.