Journey to the West: Building a Celestial Empire Starting from Lion Camel Ridge

Ali woke up when the sun was halfway up the sky.

She curled up on the purification altar, her knees against her chest, her head nestled in her arms, sleeping soundly.

This might be the most comfortable she's been in four years, Chen Ping'an thought.

They didn't stretch themselves like a bowstring, nor did they constantly prick up their ears to listen for any strange noises.

With the deathly energy completely expelled, he fell into a truly comfortable sleep.

Chen Ping'an was leaning against the opposite wall; he had been awake for a while.

He examined the panel carefully, turning it over and over without making a sound.

This girl is so tired.

......

Ali opened her eyes, stared blankly at the ceiling for a moment, and then looked down at her left forearm.

Clean and tidy.

There were no dark lines, no chill, and even her complexion was a little better than yesterday.

It should be the trace amounts of spiritual energy that are being fed back from the purification of the spiritual platform that are at work.

Chen Ping'an had already explained the function of purifying the spirit platform to her, but he did not mention the system. He only said that it triggered some kind of mechanism and that it emerged from the ground.

That's too far-fetched, so Ali naturally didn't believe it.

However, the two had supported each other and had saved each other's lives, so their trust in each other had reached a new level. Chen Ping'an was unwilling to say more, and Ali did not ask any further questions.

Ali stared at her arm quietly for a long time before sitting up.

"Awake?" Chen Pingan asked.

"Um."

Are you hungry?

Ali paused for a second, then said, "Hungry."

---

The two sat in the dilapidated house and went over their current situation.

There are two demon crystals left.

The purification altar is functioning normally.

As for the barrier, it could hold out for another night if it didn't encounter the Blood Fiend Bone General from last night.

When a stronghold is upgraded, the barrier's durability will be restored, and its defense will increase by one level.

However, at least fifty demon crystals are required.

The food was the last bit of food left over from yesterday.

The two drank rainwater from an old jar, which barely filled their stomachs and was far from enough to satisfy their hunger.

"We need to go out and find something to eat."

Chen Ping'an concluded that the urgent need to eat should be addressed first: "Relying on luck by searching through the ruins is not reliable enough. We'll eventually find everything we need in the ruins."

"Where to?" Ali asked.

Chen Ping'an thought for a moment and said, "Go north, cross the sandbar, and go into the mountains."

Ali looked up at him, somewhat surprised: "In the mountains?"

"Ruins are dead zones, but the mountains are not."

Chen Pingan pointed to the north, "The deathly aura in the mountains is less intense than in the ruins. If there are any living creatures there, we might be able to eat them."

Ali didn't speak immediately, but lowered her head and thought for a while.

"There are bone demons in the mountains," she said. "The deathly aura seeps into the mountains from Lion Camel Ridge, and it gets stronger the deeper you go. There are also patrol teams of demons in the mountains."

"But there's prey," Chen Ping'an pondered. "We don't need to go deep into the mountains, just the edge. Are you familiar with the area?"

Ali was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Then let's go."

---

After crossing the sandbar, the ground changed from broken bricks and mud to yellow soil mixed with gravel, making it feel much more solid underfoot.

The concentration of death energy was indeed reduced to a lower level here.

It's not that it's not there, but rather that it feels like the morning mist hasn't completely dissipated, floating in the air, but it's much more comfortable to breathe in.

Occasionally, you can see truly living plants by the roadside.

Wild grass sprouted from the cracks in the rocks, its leaves a dark green, bearing traces of death, yet it was alive.

Ali carried a bow and arrows, while Chen Ping'an held a bone knife.

Chen Ping'an originally wanted to lead the way, but as Ali demonstrated the professionalism of a hunter, he quickly abandoned his foolish idea.

He walked behind, observing Ali's landing spot and carefully memorizing it.

Ali doesn't walk with tense muscles, ready to run at any moment, but rather with a steady gait—she carefully chooses the place where her feet land, avoiding pebbles and potential broken branches, keeping her body low, almost as tall as the surrounding bushes.

This is a true hunter.

Before actually launching an attack, they should conceal their movements as much as possible.

Once inside the forest at the foot of the mountain, the light dimmed considerably, as the tree canopy blocked out most of the sky.

Only sparse light leaked through the gaps in the leaves, falling to the ground and casting dappled patterns of light.

Ali stopped in front of a fallen, dead tree, squatted down, gently brushed aside the dead leaves with her fingers, and glanced at the marks on the ground.

"Hare," she whispered, "three, in no more than two hours."

Chen Ping'an didn't ask Ali how she made her judgment; he trusted Ali's expertise.

"That direction."

She raised her chin and pointed to a patch of low bushes on the left.

Chen Ping'an nodded and quietly followed.

Ali stopped by the bushes, drew her bow, nocked an arrow, and held her breath.

The woods were eerily quiet; there wasn't even a breeze.

Then, a sharp arrow silently pierced the sky.

A short sound came from deep within the bushes, followed by two stomping sounds, and then it stopped.

Ali got up, walked straight into the bushes, bent down, picked up a gray-brown wild rabbit, shook it deftly, and hung it on her belt.

Chen Ping'an followed and glanced at the wild rabbit.

The arrow struck the side of the neck cleanly and precisely, without any signs of struggle or excess blood—the location was so accurate that not a single ounce of force was wasted.

Chen Pingan couldn't help but give a thumbs up.

"sharp."

Ali raised her head and smiled, "Of course."

"The shelter is your territory, but this is mine."

"There are two more."

Ali turned and walked deeper into the woods without looking back. "That arrow was quiet; it didn't scare anyone away. Hurry."

After the threat of death was completely eliminated, the girl finally saw hope for survival.

No longer as lifeless as before, his expressions have become more varied.

---

Two more swift and decisive arrows.

In less than half an hour, all three wild rabbits were hanging on Ali's waist.

The second one was behind a leeward pile of rocks. Ali circled around halfway and approached from the sidewind, making no sound with each step.

Chen Ping'an followed behind her, feeling as if the withered branches under his feet didn't exist when her feet touched the ground.

The third one was the hardest to catch; it was hiding under a fallen tree, with only half an ear showing. Ali lay down and waited for a full quarter of an hour until the rabbit lowered its guard and moved forward a few steps before firing the arrow.

Three arrows, three arrows, none of them missed.

"How long have you been learning to archery?" Chen Ping'an asked.

"It started when I could string a bow," Ali thought for a moment, "around seven or eight years old, my dad taught me."

"Is your father a hunter?"

"It used to be."

Ali didn't continue, and Chen Ping'an didn't ask any more questions.

---

They led the three wild rabbits through the barrier and returned to the dilapidated house.

Chen Ping'an took out the earthenware jar that had been filled with water last night, filled it with rainwater, and placed it on the table of the purification altar.

Then the two of them worked separately.

Ali was in charge of dissecting the prey, while Chen Ping'an was in charge of starting the fire.

"You can break down your prey?"

Chen Ping'an expressed his doubts.

"If the hunter doesn't decompose the prey, does he expect the prey to decompose on its own?" Ali didn't even look up.

These words left Chen Ping'an speechless.

He went out to collect dry branches, and a minute later he returned to find Ali already skinning a rabbit with a bone knife. Her movements were fluid and pleasing to the eye.

As Chen Ping'an watched her methodically handle the prey, his feeling that "this partner was the right choice" intensified.

......

Chen Pingan threw in the dry branches and took charge of keeping the fire burning.

The flames were carefully hidden in the corner of the dilapidated house; they weren't big, but they were enough to roast something.

The rabbit was placed on the shelf, and its rich, fatty aroma slowly wafted out.

Chen Pingan picked up the earthenware jar and looked at the water inside—it was clear and no longer had that fishy, ​​cold, and deathly odor.

He took a small sip.

Clean and slightly sweet.

This is truly clean water.

Chen Ping'an was overjoyed and looked at Ali, "The death aura in the water is gone."

Ali looked up from the roasting rabbit, glanced at the earthenware pot, and showed no surprise.

"I saw it coming a long time ago. It's normal to purify the water while the purification altar is there."

Chen Pingan was taken aback: "You thought of it but didn't say anything?"

You'll find out yourself.

Chen Ping'an didn't respond to that, and continued drinking water with his head down.