Yuchi was stroking his chin with one hand and the furry pelt of a young deer with the other, sitting contentedly alone in an empty spot, leisurely contemplating.

"And we’re already at the fifth level of the Golden Core Stage here, aren’t we?"

Indeed, once the Ascension Gate reaches the third stage, the disciples’ cultivation speed becomes increasingly terrifying. Even cultivators with only a First-Grade Spirit Root far surpass those with higher grade ones in cultivation speed, due to the unlimited supply of elixirs, Blessed Lands, Secret Manual Techniques, and more. As long as the disciples have even a smidgen of desire to cultivate, they can achieve remarkable prowess.

At three o’clock, tea time... Yuchi thought as he blew on the tea, watching ripples form and then downing the tea in one gulp.

"Mmm!"

The tea from Cuncha City was truly sharp and invigorating. It was the most carefree tea I’ve ever drunk in such a long time. I could even smell the bark of the tea trees covering the mountains and fields. In the past, I would never have been willing to drink such high-quality tea myself, but now that I have it, I enjoy it.

Not to mention, it was a gift from Yaoyao.

The little deer sniffed at the scent of the tea and couldn’t help but lean closer to Yuchi, looking at him with wide, innocent eyes, full of anticipation.

"You’re such a good dear..." Yuchi’s inner romantic side surfaced: "What, do you want to drink some tea too?"

The little deer’s wet nose twitched, and it lowered its neck, seemingly understanding what Yuchi was saying.

"If you want to drink tea, just say so. Why be so polite with me? Anyway, this tea was something I snagged for free, so I don’t mind at all."

Yuchi poured a cup of tea for the little deer, holding the teacup in both hands, looking every bit the good guy.

The little deer seemed touched, licking the tea with its eyes closed... Yuchi watched its expression expectantly, "Doesn’t it taste great, dear girl? Drink my tea, and you’ll be my deer, haha."

The little deer: "..."

And then it spat out the tea leaves, looking utterly disdainful, as Yuchi’s face turned black with embarrassment. The deer gestured with its eyes for Yuchi to follow it.

Yuchi: "What is it? Found some treasure?"

He began to have some expectations. Isn’t it always like this in stories? A cultivator survives in the wild and then encounters unusual things, and if they show goodwill to the animals, the local creatures often lead them to some local specialties to take back.

What could it be this time?!

Yuchi was quite eager.

So the little deer leisurely walked ahead with its eyes closed, and Yuchi tidied up the teaware and followed it. He wasn’t sure which wooded mountains he had entered until he saw a large pit in front of him, and he became thoroughly confused.

"A dead person?"

Indeed.

The little deer led Yuchi to a mountain hollow, and not far away, there was a half-zhang deep bowl-shaped depression, with a corpse in the center of the depression.

The person had been dead for many years; their skin and other parts had completely rotted away, leaving only bare bones. Maggots and ants had picked the flesh clean, leaving empty dark blue clothing spread on the ground, alongside a storage ring and a broken knife.

Yuchi clasped his hands together and prayed briefly for the deceased. He could guess what happened: probably two cultivators fought, and this one fell from the heavens, breaking its thigh bone to a single one and leaving only one arm bone.

He probably couldn’t fight back and got killed by the other. In professional terms among cultivators, he was "slain."

The little deer: "..."

This young man’s thought process is really something else.

Yuchi was somewhat moved. It seems the little deer does have a spiritual nature. Perhaps it saw the miserable end of this cultivator and wanted me to help him rest in peace and take his storage ring as burial expenses... Yuchi nodded gratefully at the little deer: "I understand!"

The little deer also looked tearful.

It then kicked a bone to Yuchi’s side.

Then it fetched another bone from the grass nearby, took one itself, and left one for Yuchi before laying on the grass to chew on the bones with its large teeth.

Then.

Silence.

Yuchi stared blankly at the thigh bone rolling before him, watching the little deer with its innocent and carefree demeanor. What the... was it bringing me here for some wild game?

No way, refuse wild game, starting with me again.

Seeing Yuchi not eat, the little deer had no choice. It grabbed the large bone and moved to Yuchi’s side, giving him its large bone, and then took the unwanted one, laying not far away nibbling slowly, making those bone-crunching sounds. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Crunch crunch.

Yuchi was practically drooling.

Then he tossed the large bone in his hand: "Even the deer knows how to share! But this isn’t right; something’s off here, ancestor, you better leave now. This part of the plot is really off!"