Beast Taming: I Have an Immortal Mansion-Chapter 105 - 103: Attacked in the Wild (Part 2)

In Fang Qingyuan’s experience, wherever there was an auction, trouble was sure to follow.

His identity as a disciple of the Beast Taming Sect usually offered some protection, but if this place truly descended into chaos, no identity would be of any use.

For the next ten days, Fang Qingyuan returned to the third floor of the Celestial Wings Building to set up his stall and sell his goods. This time, he chose not to bring Jinbao, leaving both Jinbao and Yinbao at the inn.

Because of the trouble Jinbao had attracted before, Fang Qingyuan didn’t want any more unexpected complications.

In recent days, Cliff City seemed much more restless than before. The Cultivators in the desert, perhaps due to the weather, were generally short-tempered and would resort to fighting at the slightest disagreement.

Fang Qingyuan didn’t feel it much inside the Celestial Wings Building, but on his way back, he witnessed two separate clashes between Cultivators.

One side’s aura had a strong Demonic Dao flavor, while the other side consisted of disciples from a Confucian Family.

It seemed that because of the upcoming auction in Cliff City, disciples from various surrounding sects had all come to join the excitement.

Fang Qingyuan used to have a misconception. He thought that in this world, mortals were numerous and Cultivators were few, so not many Cultivators would gather in one place unless it was for war. He usually didn’t see many Cultivators in his daily life.

But now he understood. To the Cultivators of this world, vast wildernesses spanning thousands of miles were nothing. Especially when there was excitement to be had, treasures to be seen, and bargains to be found, all sorts of characters from far and wide would make their appearance.

The number of Cultivators in Cliff City had now surpassed a thousand and was continuously growing, looking to break two thousand soon. As a result, Cliff City’s original Cultivator Guard was stretched thin.

Those with old grudges and grievances couldn’t help but clash when they met. And those who sought to fish in troubled waters or pull chestnuts out of the fire also began to make their moves.

The current unrest was nothing. Fang Qingyuan had just heard news that a trading team, which had arrived yesterday for the auction, was robbed outside the city.

This group of robbers was incredibly powerful, with no fewer than ten Foundation Establishment Cultivators among them. Many members of the trading team were severely injured, and a large number of the treasures they were bringing to the auction were lost.

As soon as this news broke, the city dispatched men to investigate. Consequently, the security within the city visibly deteriorated even further.

It was against this backdrop that Fang Qingyuan persisted in setting up his stall. However, he had made up his mind. If the situation in the city didn’t improve in another two days, he wouldn’t wait for the Red Dog Trading Team. He would find another team willing to leave and get away from this whirlpool as soon as possible.

Perhaps in the eyes of Cliff City’s upper echelon, these were just trivial matters. But in Fang Qingyuan’s eyes, with his insufficient cultivation, he couldn’t afford to be caught in such minor turmoil. The only logical choice was to leave early.

Perhaps waiting to leave with the Red Dog Trading Team would be safer, but Fang Qingyuan felt that once the auction officially began, the leader of the Red Dog Trading Team wouldn’t have the spare energy to look after anyone else.

’Besides, to the people of the Red Dog Trading Team, I’m just an outsider. At a critical moment, they won’t make any great sacrifices for me. It’s better not to rely on them.’

「Two days passed in a flash.」

Fang Qingyuan sat in his room, his expression calm. He had already packed everything and was about to head out to meet up with the trading team he had contacted the day before yesterday, preparing to leave the city first.

Yinbao was also traveling light, with no cargo on its back. At this critical juncture, Fang Qingyuan couldn’t be bothered about arousing others’ curiosity. He had moved all his goods into the Immortal Mansion Space, freeing up Yinbao.

This had an added benefit: with no goods on its back, Yinbao would attract fewer greedy stares.

Feeling it was time, Fang Qingyuan waved his hand. A small Array Disc flew out from a hidden spot and into his palm, and he promptly stored it in his storage bag. At the same time, the dozens of Scorpion-tailed Poison Bees he had released earlier all flew back to him. He collected them in a jade box and tucked it into his robes.

With that done, Fang Qingyuan, along with Jinbao, climbed onto Yinbao’s back. The man and his two beasts slowly rose into the air and headed in a certain direction.

Flying was normally forbidden within the city, but with the city guard overwhelmed, no one was bothering to enforce the rule.

After flying for a short while, Fang Qingyuan arrived at the meeting point. Forty or fifty Cultivators had already gathered there. These were people who were unwilling to stay in the city any longer but didn’t dare to leave alone, so they had banded together for mutual support.

Fang Qingyuan blended into the crowd and quietly found a corner to wait in. He scanned his surroundings and noticed that the cultivation levels of the Cultivators around him were generally not high.

Many were at the Early-stage of Qi Cultivation, with few at the Mid-stage and even fewer at the Late-stage.

After another quarter of an hour, when the number of people had grown to nearly sixty, an Early-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator raised a banner and took the lead, flying toward the city gate.

Seeing this, the others quickly followed. For a moment, a multitude of colorful Escape Lights flashed, creating quite a spectacle.

Fang Qingyuan quietly followed at the back. However, Yinbao’s massive size made it stand out among the group of bedraggled Cultivators, no matter how much he tried to be inconspicuous.

Fortunately, the city hadn’t descended into complete chaos yet, so Fang Qingyuan and the others passed through the city gate safely and without incident.

Outside the city, everyone’s expressions grew more tense. Their destination was the Chewing Fire Tribe, about a hundred miles away, which was the closest desert oasis to Cliff City.

Once they reached the Chewing Fire Tribe, they could rest and regroup. From there, they could decide whether to continue on or stay.

But now, having left the protection of Cliff City, everyone grew even more nervous. The surrounding wind and sand howled, sounding like the approach of malevolent spirits.

The group of several dozen Cultivators, some walking and some flying, stretched out into a long line. Fang Qingyuan felt relatively safe in the middle of the formation, but then someone suddenly shouted:

"Sand bandits are here!"

The entire group instantly scattered, each person fleeing in a different direction. In the blink of an eye, Fang Qingyuan was left exposed.

With no time to think, Fang Qingyuan instinctively chose a direction and fled. He was already regretting his decision. ’I shouldn’t have left the city so rashly. Maybe waiting for the Red Dog Trading Team would have been safer after all.’

’But regrets are useless now. I’d hoped for safety in numbers, but this group scattered without even seeing the enemy. They’re worse than a disorderly mob.’ 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Fortunately, they were now less than thirty miles from the Chewing Fire Tribe. At Yinbao’s top speed, they could reach it in just a quarter of an hour.

Fang Qingyuan tried to comfort himself with this thought, but his face darkened as two figures rapidly closed in from behind. Sensing the speed of the Cultivators pursuing him, he gritted his teeth and had Yinbao dive toward the ground.

Yinbao dove like a bolt of lightning. Just as it neared the ground, the thick sand suddenly rippled like water, and the man and his two beasts plunged inside.

By the time the two pursuers arrived at the spot, there was no trace of Fang Qingyuan and his beasts, only the endless, swirling sand.

Fang Qingyuan and his two Spirit Beasts were now hiding two hundred and fifty feet underground. He could feel his Spiritual Power draining away like a burst dam. He quickly took out a Middle-grade Spirit Stone and began absorbing its Spiritual Power to replenish the energy consumed by the Earth Escape Technique.