Strongest Scammer: Scamming The World, One Death At A Time-Chapter 665: Coming Across Humans

Han Yu had only brought a few thousand crystals. Too many pills could deplete them faster than he liked. And converting spirit Qi into Blood Qi, then Moon Blood Qi, was a slow and painful process. He was not going to risk that in the middle of the Inner Ring.

For two days, Han Yu stayed hidden in the cave. He meditated, circulated Qi, ate roasted bear meat, and restored his strength methodically. By the morning of the third day, he could twist his torso without sharp stabs of pain. His ribs felt solid once more.

He rolled his shoulders and smiled faintly.

"This is acceptable."

He left the cave and resumed his journey.

This time he avoided as many beasts as he could. On flat ground where he could escape easily, he ran around the weaker ones. When he felt a Peak Core Condensation realm presence from afar, he immediately altered his route and disappeared long before it noticed him.

He refused to deal with another creature as durable as the grizzly.

Two more weeks passed like that.

The terrain changed gradually. The oppressive atmosphere of the Inner Ring thinned. The Ice Qi in the air dropped. The winds lost their sharpness, and the mountains here no longer radiated constant killing intent.

Han Yu finally stepped into familiar territory again. He had crossed out of the Inner Ring.

He continued cautiously. Only when he sensed no strong presence for several hours did he relax slightly. He still kept his spirit sense extended as much as the environment allowed.

Five days later, as he crossed through a forested slope, something unusual caught his eye.

"Smoke?"

A thin pillar of it rose between the trees, drifting lazily into the air.

Han Yu frowned. Smoke meant fire. Fire meant humans. But no one lived in the Harrow Mountains. At least no permanent settlement existed. Hunters sometimes built temporary lodges, but the chance of one being in good condition and occupied was rare.

Han Yu moved quietly, staying low as he approached. After nearly an hour of weaving between trees and over rocks, he spotted the source.

A clearing.

Three wooden lodges stood arranged in a triangle formation. The roofs were slanted to allow snow to fall off easily. A shallow stream ran along the right side, half frozen but still flowing. Animal bones and old tools lay scattered around, showing that these lodges had been used in the past and abandoned multiple times.

But now, someone had reclaimed them.

One lodge had smoke rising from its chimney. The snow around it had melted slightly from the warmth inside. Footprints were visible around all three structures.

Han Yu crouched behind a boulder and extended his spirit sense toward the lodges.

Ten people.

All cultivators.

'Nine Qi refining realm. One Early Core Condensation realm.' Han Yu narrowed his eyes.

A group this size was unusual. Normally hunters traveled in groups of three or four, not ten. And the Core Condensation realm cultivator was especially suspicious. It was far too convenient of a placement.

He scanned their Qi signatures one more time, searching for unique fluctuations. None matched Zhao Liumen's style of tracking or surveillance, but the possibility could not be dismissed outright. They might not be government disciples, but they could easily be rogue cultivators, mercenaries, or bandits who targeted travelers.

He watched as faint silhouettes moved inside the lodge.

Someone laughed.

Someone else coughed heavily.

Someone hummed faintly while preparing food.

It seemed like an ordinary resting group, but Han Yu knew better than to assume anything was harmless in the Harrow Mountains.

He retreated slightly, found a higher vantage point up a tree, and continued observing them from afar.

"Ten cultivators," he whispered. "A Core Condensation realm leader. And they're deep in the Middle Ring. They are either very experienced or very desperate."

His eyes sharpened as he noticed a faint detail.

Their clothes.

They did not match.

Some wore thick leather coats used by hunters. Others wore robes with frayed hems indicating they once belonged to a clan. The Core Condensation realm cultivator wore no uniform at all, only plain cloth armor reinforced with beast hide.

A mismatched group.

Not a clan. Not a Hunter group. Not a merchant caravan.

"A gathering of wanderers? Maybe." But something felt off.

Han Yu tapped his halberd hilt lightly, weighing the risks.

Should he approach them?

Should he observe longer?

Should he move around them and avoid entirely?

The Harrow Mountains were not a place where one could be careless. Especially not after surviving a wyvern and a grizzly.

Han Yu exhaled slowly, his breath fading in the cold air.

He would need to decide soon. The smoke was already attracting beasts. He sensed a Frost Hill Wolf pack about two hundred meters away, drawn by the smell of cooked meat.

Han Yu narrowed his eyes.

Everything here was a risk.

But some risks offered information.

And information, in this place, meant survival.

Han Yu remained crouched on the tree branch, watching the faint cloud of snow rising in the distance where the Frost Hill Wolves ran. Five hundred meters away. Close enough to smell meat. Too close for the group to react in time if they kept arguing inside their lodge.

He clicked his tongue.

"Idiots," he muttered.

Any prepared hunting party would set up a beast warding formation or at least a scent dispelling talisman when cooking meat in the Middle Ring. Even novice hunters knew that. These people were either careless, inexperienced, or too poor to afford talismans.

Though it could also be that they had intended to set one up but forgot.

"Probably just forgot." He quickly concluded it was the last option. They seemed sloppy.

The wolves were getting closer. At this pace, they would reach the clearing in a minute or two.

Han Yu sighed and began walking toward the lodge. He slowly released a mild ripple of spirit Qi, making sure they sensed him long before he approached. He had no intention of startling them and getting attacked by paranoid cultivators.