Chapter 409: Chapter 407: Dark Humor The Hidden Valley is a large depression filled with rare herbs and various shrubs and trees. The lush vegetation creates a thriving natural ecosystem, with strange insects of all colors and shapes visible at any time. Kang the Fourth handed each of the three a specially-made medicine pouch. Though it smelled unpleasant, it protected them from any poisonous insect attacks along the way. Lou Yi nodded secretly. This Kang the Fourth, despite being a bit shady, indeed had some skills. The three of them walked deeper into the valley, where the vegetation grew thicker, reaching chest height with towering trees, and the insect sounds became even more piercing. Suddenly, Lou Yi caught a whiff of something sinister and called out to his companions, "Hold on, it seems something’s ahead." "What? I don’t see anything," Kang the Fourth said in confusion. Then, a massive shadow emerged in front of them. It was seven or eight meters long, covered in brown-black glossy fur, with two white fangs beside its lips. ’Huff!’ A stream of yellow, foul-smelling saliva dripped down, its eyes gleaming with ferocious red light... Seeing this shadow, Kang the Fourth’s face turned pale. "Red eyes, fangs, a white spot on the chest—it’s a Bear Demon over two hundred years old. Its strength is no joke!" "We should scatter and flee. This bear is too fierce; even a regular Immortal Master would run for their life upon meeting it!" Kang the Fourth and his disciples were terrified, urging Lou Yi to escape. But this foreign nobleman, Lou Yi, boldly approached the Bear Demon. "Excuse me?" Kang the Fourth and his disciples: ??? Bear Demon: "Roar???" Lou Yi, feeling mischievous, addressed it in an imperfect foreign language from his past life. This action left not only Kang the Fourth and his disciples bewildered but also stunned the Bear Demon. "Roar!!" Seeing the human in front of it unafraid, the Bear Demon roared angrily. "What, it not only wants to eat our flesh but also enslave our souls for five hundred years after death before letting us go?" Lou Yi seemed to understand the Bear Demon’s language and grew furiously angry, "You’re too greedy! Do you take us for easy targets? Swindler, swindler!" With that, Lou Yi slapped it hard. ’Whoosh!’ A sharp sound of the air being cut was heard. The massive Bear Demon was knocked off balance by the small palm and rolled over twice on the ground. "Roar!!" The Bear Demon’s fur stood up like steel needles, watching Lou Yi warily and roaring threateningly. "What, reducing it to three hundred years? Not happening!" Lou Yi slapped again, disorienting the Bear Demon while Kang the Fourth’s eyes twitched. "This beast is too cunning, deserves a good beating!" Lou Yi explained to Kang the Fourth and his disciples. "I’ll give you one more chance. What, now down to two hundred years?" Another slap from Lou Yi sent the Bear Demon scurrying, crashing into towering trees behind while howling. "So, you like to extort?" Kang the Fourth and his disciples stood there dumbfounded. Niu Dasha laughed and said, "Didn’t expect Young Master Liu could really communicate with the bear." ’Smack!’ As soon as he spoke, Kang the Fourth smacked him on the forehead. Then, Kang the Fourth put on a flattering smile to Lou Yi, "Young Master Liu, I admit I was shortsighted earlier. How about this, for this task, I’ll give you a discount, only taking three hundred pieces of silver?" "No way, we can’t go back on our word." As Lou Yi spoke, he stepped on the Bear Demon’s chest. ’Crunch!’ The sound of ribs breaking was heard clearly, causing Kang the Fourth to break out in a cold sweat. "I volunteer, I volunteer!" Kang the Fourth shouted hastily. Finally, Lou Yi punched the Bear Demon’s neck, ending its wretched life. "We abide by our contract; let’s not talk about discounts any further, Mr. Kang." Lou Yi laughed, showing bright white teeth. But in Kang the Fourth’s eyes, he only saw Lou Yi’s teeth flashing with cold light, and his own neck felt inexplicably uncomfortable. The rest of the journey was unusually quiet for Kang the Fourth, who no longer scolded his disciple, only focusing on seeking the askaleep’s presence. After the Bear Demon’s tragic death, The valley’s strange creatures seemed to know Lou Yi’s group was not to be trifled with and no longer harassed them. "Strange, I distinctly remember seeing an askaleep here... Askaleeps like coldness and water. This place is indeed cool, with water pools, perfectly suited for them..." Kang the Fourth searched for a long time without finding a trace of the askaleep, causing his expression to become awkward. "It’s getting late, let’s resume tomorrow." Lou Yi suggested. Understanding the situation, he did not urge them on. "Within three days, I swear, I will find the askaleep for Young Master Liu. Otherwise, I’ll take half the silver!" Kang the Fourth vowed. "I believe in your abilities, Mr. Kang." Lou Yi laughed. On the way back to the inn, Lou Yi, being cautious, placed a listening talisman in Kang the Fourth’s house. The talisman was acquired from the hands of the Yellow Springs Sect followers. As its name implies, it has eavesdropping capabilities, consisting of two parts: a parent and child talisman—the parent can hear sounds transmitted by the child talisman. Lou Yi merely took precautions, but to his surprise, it actually picked up activity at night. "Kang the Fourth, about that guy who asked you about the askaleep. Bring him to the old banyan tree in the Hidden Valley tomorrow. We’ll give him a warm welcome." "No, no, if I did that, my fifty-plus years of good reputation would be ruined." "Kang the Fourth, don’t refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. If you don’t comply, that foolish disciple of yours will be visiting your grave next year!" "You guys can’t harm people! We won’t agree to it!" That was Niu Dasha’s excited voice. Suddenly sounds of punching and kicking and Niu Dasha’s cries of anguish were heard. Lou Yi had no desire to test human nature and vanished from the inn in an instant. Moments later, he appeared in front of Kang the Fourth’s courtyard. The sight made Lou Yi’s eyes narrow slightly. Kind-hearted and simple, Niu Dasha was being brutally beaten by several fierce black-clad men, blood trickling from his mouth. Meanwhile, half-white-haired and slender Kang the Fourth was being held down by two hefty men, his face full of anger. "Kang the Fourth, I’m giving you one last chance!" A middle-aged man leading the group sneered. Lou Yi was surprised when he saw the man. Big nose, high forehead, dark skin—wasn’t this Chen Ye, the relative of a member of the Four Seas Association he was looking for? He saw Chen Ye snap his fingers. The associate beside him lifted a black iron rod, which suddenly glowed red, ’hissing’ with white smoke rising. Unexpectedly, he was a cultivator as well. "Looks like you won’t learn unless given a hard lesson..." Before he could finish, the hot iron rod, advancing with white smoke, was halted by Lou Yi’s palm, making Chen Ye’s pupils contract. "What did you say?" With a flick of his fingers, the iron rod instantly turned around, piercing the associate’s chest, causing continuous screams. "Fire burn!" Chen Ye, alarmed, channeled his spiritual power intending to cast a spell, only to be hit with the hot rod on his face. "Burn, you damn it!" "Ah!!" Chen Ye’s face was scorched black, and he screamed his heart out. Lou Yi was too lazy to argue with these small fry. His fingers strummed the air lightly. White pillars of air, visible to the naked eye, formed instantly and shot forward with ’whizzing’, knocking out all the henchmen before him. Kang the Fourth swallowed nonstop, while Niu Dasha’s eyes shone with admiration. Then, Lou Yi began the Soul Search on each one. Once finished, each henchman foamed at the mouth—survival seemed unlikely and even if they did, they’d be no smarter than fools. ’As expected, they’re from the Wang Family, persistent as a ghost.’ ’At Pan City near Yi City, the Wang Family established a branch mansion, secretly growing their clan members over the years; they came from there...’ ’The Wang Family has been investigating me, trying to unearth my origins?’ Lou Yi’s expression turned grim. ...