Chapter 63: Chapter 61: Joining the Team After entering the private room, Ji An began assessing the strength of the team opposite. Chu River and another slightly chubby cultivator with the surname Tian were at the Eighth-Layer Qi Refining, while the other two were at the Ninth-Layer Qi Refining, their realms were not low. Their every movement carried a faint hint of evil qi, and occasionally a trace of fierceness would flash in their eyes, indicating they had hunted many demon beasts. ’Not bad, the team looks quite fierce, let’s see what we can gain by following them for two months.’ He thought to himself, encountering a reliable team wasn’t easy, and if it weren’t for Zhang Yuanshan’s relationship with Chu River, such a team wouldn’t even consider accepting him. Hearing the female cultivator’s words, Ji An smiled warmly and said: "My talisman-making skills are pretty good, and I spend all the crystal stones I earn on pills to improve my cultivation. Such achievement doesn’t warrant Senior Sister’s praise. It’s the real flair of us cultivators when fellow brothers wield swords to slay demons." If there were any other ways, who would want to fight and kill every day, risking their lives to earn crystal stones! Chen Moxuan shook his head secretly, when he first joined the sect, he entered the Artifact Refining Hall for three years without much achievement; with the family’s connections, he got into the Pill Cauldron Hall and after three years of alchemy, he could only refine some Yellow Bud Pill and Fasting Pill, suffering losses when his touch was off. The family’s support for him decreased sharply, unwilling to accept this, he entered the Demon Hunting Squad at the Sixth-Layer Qi Refining and fortunately had some talent for magical combat, gradually improving his situation. Over the years, he had been with more than twenty teammates, how many were buried in the wilderness? Not many Talisman Makers have magical combat experience, but Spirit Farmers with such experience he had not seen any. If someone was content being a Spirit Farmer, what they racked their brains over the most every day was planting techniques. Silly enough to want to experience demon beast hunting? Chen Moxuan’s voice lowered, eyes cold as he said: "Junior Brother, the demon hunting profession isn’t easy to mix in." Unexpected situations always occur during demon hunts, no one knows which comes first—tomorrow or accidents. As the team leader, he is responsible for the safety of the entire team. This demon hunt is a test, if he can’t meet his standards, even if it means offending Zhang Yuanshan, he won’t allow him to remain in the team. The room quieted down. "I’m here to earn crystal stones, not just for survival. Hunting demons and collecting herbs, to quickly earn crystal stones and exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill, that’s my goal." "Exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill? You’re ambitious!" Chen Moxuan chuckled softly, inwardly disdainful. Demon beasts don’t foolishly stand on open ground waiting for humans to encircle and kill, sometimes you even encounter Foundation Establishment Stage demon beasts that have evaded the sect’s great cultivators’ detection. "The dangers of demon hunting, Junior Brother Chu often mentioned to me. If Junior Brother Ji can’t keep up during our squad’s first two missions, I’ll send him back to the sect to focus on talisman making and planting," Zhang Yuanshan said. After sweeping the Mo Ya Mountain for several years, the easy meat nearby was gone, the remaining demon beasts were not easy prey. He well understood Chen Moxuan’s concerns, to gain good harvests the team must not have weak links, every team member must play a positive role. Jiang Qiuyue spoke to lighten the mood, gently saying: "Let’s not just talk, everyone drink and eat." The atmosphere relaxed, the table regained its previous liveliness. After the meal, Zhang Yuanshan glanced around, saying: "Everyone, for the time being, I won’t be taking any orders for artifact crafting and repairs. I feel my internal magical power is nearing perfection, my clan uncle ordered me to drop all affairs and go into seclusion to refine my magical power in preparation for the Foundation Establishment." Chu River’s eyes flashed with envy, laughing loudly: "Next time we meet, we’ll be calling Senior Brother, Junior Martial Uncle Zhang." Preparing for the Foundation Establishment means he’s ready with a Foundation Establishment Pill. Everyone’s eyes were full of envy, many were far from exchanging a Foundation Establishment Pill. Sect disciples all understood, Foundation Establishment is the true entry to cultivation. No matter how talented in the Qi Refining Stage, without Foundation Establishment, they couldn’t compare to a senior Foundation Establishment cultivator. "I’ll take your good wishes, when I come out of seclusion, we’ll drink together again." Zhang Yuanshan stood up, smiling: "I’ll be off, you likely still have matters to discuss, fare well, until next time." "Farewell, Senior Brother." They saw Zhang Yuanshan off, then returned to sit down in the room. "Junior Brother Ji, I’ve hunted demons for years, been through many life and death situations, if I offended you earlier, please don’t mind." Chen Moxuan pointed to a scar on his brow, continuing: "This scar is from a year ago, it was my closest brush with death, if I had been any slower at the time, I’d have had my head pierced. The situation was slightly different when Junior Brother Chu joined the team, now to gain rewards requires greater risks." Junior Brother Ji might as well share your assessment, how do you estimate your combat power?" Understanding the team’s overall strength is essential for making targeted plans. "I understand your concerns, Senior Brother, the team can’t afford to have dead weight. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦 I’m most lacking in hands-on experience. In terms of magic techniques, I’ve focused on Geng Metal Finger and Water Curtain Technique, which fortunately cover both offense and defense. Regarding magical artifacts, I own a middle-grade defensive magical artifact, and a lower-grade attack magical artifact." With that, Ji An left his seat and demonstrated his subtle control over the Stone Turtle Shield. The twelve pieces of turtle shell glittering with earth-colored spirit light danced in the air, dazzling those present. Among experts seated, they all applauded in unison. What a great sandbag... Chen Moxuan half-heartedly relieved, smiled: "Junior Brother wields magical artifacts with such skill, with this capability, our team’s strength has greatly increased." The demon hunting squad had clear divisions of labor, responsibilities included provoking demon beasts, defending, trapping the enemy, and the main attack. Doing so maximized efficiency in hunting demon beasts. Now adding someone with a middle-grade defensive magical artifact, they could try challenging those previously feared tough targets after enough tempering. "What’s Junior Brother’s attack magical artifact?" Ji An put away the Stone Turtle Shield, a dark iron seal about a foot square floated in front of him. "This artifact is potent, when used against large demon beasts if it strikes solidly, it can take half its life." "This artifact is indeed good, in the future there’ll be someone to share the attack pressure with me." Chu River laughed, he had chosen a hammer-shaped magical artifact, targeting large demon beasts in the squad. "I’ve always wondered, why does everyone prefer sword- and blade-type magical artifacts?" Ji An was puzzled; for dealing with large, thick-skinned demon beasts, blunt weapons should be the first choice, even if unwieldy in magical power consumption, shouldn’t everyone have one. Chen Moxuan coughed, saying: "Many times, our enemies are not just demon beasts, heavy artifacts are not flexible to wield, often losing the initiative." "Understood." Ji An took a deep breath, whether in this life or the previous one, he hadn’t experienced the brutal human-on-human slaughter he would inevitably face in the future. "I also have a beast, a Fifth-Layer Qi Refining Spirit-Seeking Rat." A golden-brown demon beast was brought out by him, lacking excess spirit stones to purchase a Spirit Pet Bag, he had to sew a cloth bag to carry the rat.