I, a cultivator, have ended up in the world of tomb raiding.

This place is now quite far from Ping Mountain.

On one side is a towering, wide valley cliff, its face and walls covered with thick moss and covered with large ferns.

Amidst layers of greenery, numerous caves hidden by vines are faintly visible, their depths unknown and shrouded in darkness.

Western Hunan is full of caves, and there is a saying that "there is no mountain without a cave, and no cave without a cave".

The name Mengdong River originates from the cave dwelling custom of the Yi people.

The mountains have caves, the trees have hollows, the cliffs have caves, and there are even unfathomable underground caves, which are forbidden burial grounds for the ancestors of the local people throughout the ages.

These cliff caves, which are more than half a person high, are mostly places where local hanging coffins or urns for ashes are placed.

Li Yue sat cross-legged on a clean, dry stone, closed his eyes and regulated his breathing. At the same time, he summoned the panel in his mind and drew the surrounding yin energy into his body.

The surrounding yin energy was far less concentrated than inside Ping Mountain, but it was still a temporary solution.

Seeing that he was practicing his internal energy cultivation, Hong Guniang did not dare to disturb him. Instead, she walked to the nearby stream and washed her face and hands in the cool, shallow water.

She carefully combed her long hair, which had become disheveled from the journey, and retied it neatly.

Li Yue opened his eyes halfway through and glanced at her. Seeing that she tactfully left him some space, his eyes flickered slightly.

He then reached into his storage space and took out a herb.

The next instant, a strange flower, as red as flame and as fluffy as down, appeared in his palm.

Red-flowered orchids grow in cold, shady places, yet their medicinal properties are hot and potent, capable of neutralizing cold toxins and nourishing the soul.

This was perfectly suited to his current injuries to his soul.

He circulated his cultivation technique, slowly absorbing the pure Yin-attribute medicinal power within.

At the same time, a wisp of yin energy was separated and condensed outside the body into a light blue, semi-transparent light shield, which firmly protected the body.

When meditating to heal, it is crucial to avoid being interrupted by external forces. Even the slightest disturbance could cause the yin energy to flow in the opposite direction, worsening the injury. One must be extremely careful.

Time passed slowly, and only the rustling of leaves in the wind and the rushing sound of the stream remained in the forest.

Just then, a strange rustling sound suddenly came from the surrounding woods.

At first, only a few leaves swayed, accompanied by a few faint monkey cries.

But after a short while, the commotion grew louder and louder, with cries rising and falling.

Soon, even the caves on the adjacent cliff face began to emit noisy and chaotic creaking sounds.

It was clear that a large group of monkeys were leaping towards this side.

The noise was loud and jarring, and even Li Yue, who was focused on regulating his breathing, could hear it clearly, causing him to frown inwardly.

He wondered where all these mountain monkeys had suddenly appeared from, and why they had to cause trouble at this crucial moment.

But at this moment, he was in a critical stage of regulating his breathing. Yin energy was circulating and healing within his meridians, repairing the damage to his soul body on his shoulder.

Once interrupted, all previous efforts will be wasted, and one can only forcefully suppress one's mind and continue practicing.

Immediately afterwards, several pieces of gravel came flying through the air and hit the rocks beside him with a few "thuds".

Then several more light shields struck the outside of the body, rippling outwards like waves.

A sense of unease rose in Li Yue's heart. He guessed that the monkeys in the mountains were probably unruly and were provoking him recklessly.

He transmigrated here, having lost all his magical artifacts and formations.

It's infuriating to be bullied by these few savage beasts.

At this moment, the mountain ape's cries were sharp and piercing, sounding like both crying and laughing, and were extremely unpleasant to hear.

The protective light shield could only block physical attacks, but it couldn't block sound. The constant noise disturbed his peace of mind.

When cultivating, it is most important to avoid being restless and agitated. If you become disordered, the flow of energy in your body's meridians will suddenly become sluggish.

Li Yue's heart tightened, and he quickly suppressed his distracting thoughts and steadied his breathing.

Right now, all I want to do is complete this full cycle as quickly as possible and then deal with these monkeys.

But after the first stone fell, no more pebbles hit his light shield.

It was as if someone had shielded him from all the attacks.

Li Yue felt slightly surprised, but he had no time to think about it. He focused his mind on absorbing all the Yin energy and the medicinal power of the Crimson Orchid into his body.

The scorching medicinal power and the gentle yin energy intertwined and flowed within the meridians, repeatedly soothing the wound on the shoulder inflicted by the corpse puppet.

The tearing, piercing pain originating from the depths of the soul was fading at a visible speed.

After a short while, he slowly finished his practice and opened his eyes.

The Yin energy in my body is circulating smoothly and without obstruction, and the heaviness and stinging pain in my shoulders have dissipated.

Only a barely perceptible tingling or numbness remained; the injury had essentially healed.

Li Yue looked up and saw a beautiful figure standing steadily in front of him, holding a long staff and wielding it to swat away stones flying from all directions.

Red Girl displayed her Moon Gate lightness skill to the fullest, her figure nimble and agile.

They twirled and leaped through the dense rain of stones, their movements light and agile, yet they still couldn't escape getting covered in dust and mud.

Li Yue noticed that the long stick in her hand was not used to brute force to chop down the rocks, but rather to gently deflect and guide them along with the momentum of the stones coming from the side.

The tip of the stick moved nimbly, like the moon's shadow brushing against the stone. Each strike landed perfectly on the side of the stone, silently deflecting the flying rocks and swatting them away one by one.

Throughout the entire process, only the soft rustling of clothes could be heard, and there was no clash of metal.

Several rocks flew at the same time, but none of them managed to get close to him.

Li Yue stood up, listened to the sounds and pinpointed the locations of the monkey troop almost instantly.

Looking into the distance, one could see a dozen or twenty mountain apes huddled together in the trees and caves, baring their teeth and constantly throwing stones at each other.

These monkeys did not conceal their bodies.

Seemingly certain that they couldn't do anything to him, he arrogantly swaggered among the vines and branches, squeaking and yelling.

Li Yue could discern the general emotions of these beasts.

These beastly roars, laced with ferocious threats, grew ever louder with each crescendo.

The noise was harsh and jarring, filled with blatant hostility; the emotion was clear—it was an attempt to drive them away.

Earlier, Li Yue had heard from Miao Renxiang that the monkeys in the White Ape Cave of Ping Mountain were known for their cunning and unruly nature.

They often intercept lone pedestrians, robbing them of food and valuables, and even taking their lives.

They would even imitate people by wearing the stolen clothes and parade around the mountains, making them a menace to the area around Ping Mountain.

After surviving a landslide and falling off a cliff, he and the girl were covered in dust and looked disheveled. In the eyes of these monkeys, they were outsiders who could be bullied at will.

These were just undeveloped beasts, and Li Yue didn't want to bother with them too much.

But their repeated provocations and harassment are truly outrageous.

If he lets it go easily, he will be unable to calm his anger, which is not in line with his style of handling things.

With a thought, Li Yue secretly released a faint wisp of Yin energy, which spread outwards, summoning the centipedes and venomous insects lurking in the Ping Mountain area.

He once devoured the inner core of a six-winged centipede, and caused a great commotion when he stirred up the Yin energy of Ping Mountain.

In the eyes of the poisonous insects in the mountains, he was no longer an ordinary human, but rather an existence akin to an insect king.

The venomous insects reacted extremely quickly to his scent, even in the sweltering heat of midday.

A group of poisonous insects still quickly crawled out from the cold cracks in the rocks and under the tree roots, responding to the call.

Li Yue did not expose them to the scorching sun, but instead ordered them to maneuver around and harass the monkey troop.

The monkeys, who had been so arrogant, were about to throw even bigger stones at them.

The next moment, chaos broke out within the monkey troop.

In an instant, sharp, mournful screams of monkeys echoed from the surrounding woods, their cries filled with extreme terror.