I Just Wanted to Live, but I Somehow Became Better Than the Main Character

Chapter 80: Beast-Avoiding Incense

Ye Yong intended to give Mu Qingyin give Sparrow Silk Initial Feather Pen as the meeting gift, which, as the name suggests, was made from the feathers of a spiritual bird.

Sparrow Silk Birds were rare and naturally cautious. Newly hatched chicks would be at the Foundation Establishment Realm, and adult birds would be at the late stages of the Crystallization Realm. However, due to their timid nature, they usually avoided battles and prefer to flee when confronted.

Adult Sparrow Silk Birds were predominantly cinnabar red, while the baby birds were light blue. Their initial molted feathers were a beautiful mix of cinnabar red and light blue.

These birds live on cliffs about 10,000 meters deep within the Spirit Specter Mountain. They were quick to move at the slightest hint of danger and were very cautious. Their initial feathers molted rapidly, and the molted feathers decayed quickly from the wind. The feathers of Sparrow Silk Birds raised by humans were cinnabar red colored from birth due to environmental influences, lacking the natural beauty of wild feathers.

Few people knew about the initial feathers of Sparrow Silk Birds, and those who did were generally scholars and poets. Although wild initial feathers could fetch a good price, cultivators often prefer to gather more spiritual plants to earn money faster rather than spend time watching Sparrow Silk Birds molt. Consequently, these feathers were rarely available on the market, and scholars who wanted them would pay people just to watch the market and buy the feathers.

Ye Yong could buy these feathers directly from the system store for 10 transcend points, a trivial amount equivalent to a few Qi Gathering Pills. While it may seem pricey for a mere feather meant for collection, the store priced items based on functionality and rarity, and initial feathers were indeed rare.

Even though the feathers could be bought from the store, Ye Yong still made the effort to visit Spirit Specter Mountain to demonstrate his dedication to Mu Qingyin.

If he simply stayed in his mansion and presented the feather, it would seem weird and would lessen the significance of the gift. Therefore, he needed to go through the motions to make it appear as though he had made a special effort.

Ye Yong was prepared to either find the feathers or buy them if he couldn’t. He wouldn’t return empty-handed and thus would not incur a loss.

At 10,000 meters deep inside Spirit Specter Mountain, Golden Core Realm spiritual and specter beasts roamed, and even Crystallization Realm cultivators could fall victim if they were careless, let alone mere Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators.

Ye Yong, however, had purchased a high level beast-avoiding incense and applied it to himself. This produced a medicinal smell that, while a little pleasant to humans, was extremely pungent and unpleasant to the sensitive noses of spiritual and specter beasts.

It was akin to how people would subconsciously avoid shit when they see it on the road, and they would feel disgusted for the whole day if they stepped on it. However, some rare gourmets might break such restrictions in pursuit of gourmet experiences.

In other words, unless a spiritual or specter beast was particularly aggressive, had peculiar tastes, or was extremely hungry, they would generally avoid Ye Yong, who was emitting a strong shitty odor.

With a clear path and luck on his side not encountering any “gourmets”, Ye Yong reached the 10,000-meter mark and found several small peaks.

Hiding behind trees, Ye Yong searched for traces of the Sparrow Silk Birds. After less than a minute, he decided to use his trump card. He removed the Beast Avoidance Incense smell from himself, bought some food that Sparrow Silk Birds liked from the system store, and placed it on a conspicuous rock.

Soon, several birds resembling domestic chickens but more beautiful and larger in size arrived from an unknown location. They cautiously landed on high branches and began observing their surroundings.

Ye Yong restrained his presence and waited patiently. After about half an incense’s time, one bird couldn’t resist and flew over to take a piece of the food.

No danger occurred, so the other birds followed suit. With the food secured, the birds would now return to their nests to enjoy or feed their young.

Ye Yong had recently been practicing the Swimming Dragon Steps. With the aid of the idle system, he had achieved small success proficiency, with the experience bar halfway filled.

Using an earth grade movement technique to follow Crystallization Realm spiritual beasts was quite simple. Ye Yong quickly found their nest.

The Sparrow Silk Birds lived in groups but did not socialize much. The purpose of them living in groups was to have neighbors as potential decoys in case of danger, buying time for their escape.

After all, if they lived alone, a predator’s focus on them and their offspring would be disastrous. Having more neighbors nearby increased their chances of survival.

Ye Yong was fortunate to find several nests of Sparrow Silk Birds, each with at most of two chicks, with light blue feathers tinged with some cinnabar red. It was almost time for them to molt, but it would likely be another half-month before they actually entered the molting stage.

Without the system, obtaining such a gift for Mu Qingyin would be difficult for Ye Yong. But since he had the system, he could have easily visited the mountain, enjoyed the scenery, and returned without even getting close to the nests, if not for the fact that he was followed.

Unfortunately, with someone following him, he had to complete the act thoroughly to avoid leaving suspicions.

Thus, Ye Yong reapplied the beast avoiding incense.

…

Chirp chirp! One Sparrow Silk Bird on a cliff, feeding its young, suddenly called out to its neighbors. It was basically asking, “Do you smell some shitty smell?”

The others tilted their heads and soon replied: “Indeed, there is.”

Chirp chirp chirp! At this moment, one bird spotted Ye Yong, who was slowly ascending in a flying artifact. Why is this human’s smell so terrifying!? Don’t come any closer! It will cost us our lives!

The Sparrow Silk Birds immediately panicked, ignoring Ye Yong’s cultivation. They fled with their young, leaving behind a lot of feathers.

Ye Yong easily approached the nest, searched around, then took out the initial feathers bought from the system store, pretending to have found them in the nest. He examined them carefully, nodded in satisfaction, and prepared to leave.

However, before he could return to the ground, several flying artifacts ascended, and multiple Crystallization Realm cultivators appeared.

“You brat! What’s the meaning of scaring birds away!? We’ve been waiting here for days! How dare you mess up our plans! Did you just get those initial feathers? Hand them over and scram!” The leader, a burly man in the late stages of the Crystallization Realm, barked angrily.

“Boss, we can’t tell that kid’s cultivation level, and he doesn’t look like a minor rogue cultivator… It’s better not to cause trouble with him,” one of the subordinates advised.

The angry leader observed Ye Yong’s attire and demeanor. Mmm. Indeed, he looks like someone from a wealthy family and not a rogue cultivator. The leader cleared his throat: “Uh, my tone earlier was a bit harsh. May I ask who you are?”

“Disciple of the Heavenly Luo Sect,” Ye Yong replied without giving his name, as many people had heard of it by now.

“So, you are from the Heavenly Luo Sect! My apologies!”

Ye Yong felt quite frustrated. What was supposed to be a cliché background character confrontation + face slapping scene was ruined by the villain aura, canceling the event.

If he were the male lead, a thrilling chase and dramatic counterattack would have unfolded.

With a silent sigh, Ye Yong took out several mid-grade spirit stones: “Scaring away the Sparrow Silk Birds was an unintended mistake. Please accept this as compensation.”

Since the leader had no intention of causing trouble for him, Ye Yong also wanted to avoid creating conflict and opted for a peaceful resolution.

“Ah…” The leader received the spirit stones from Ye Yong’s spiritual power.

The weight of the spirit stones was reassuring.

“May I ask your name?” The leader, though greedy, didn’t dare to make trouble for someone who could easily bring out mid game spirit stones.

“My name is insignificant. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave.” With no one obstructing him, Ye Yong quickly descended to the ground. Despite having the beast-avoiding incense, he avoided flying back due to its conspicuousness, which could increase its chances of encountering gourmets.

The earlier shouting from those men in the sky was an idiotic move.

While dealing with Crystallization Realm spiritual or specter beasts were manageable, encountering a Golden Core Realm beast was a different story. Ye Yong didn’t want to look horrible escaping in front of the guardian the sect had sent to protect him.

After leaving the 10,000-meter mark, Ye Yong returned to the 8,000-meter range.

“Ying.” Suddenly, Ye Yong heard a sound. It sounded like a high-pitched whine of a dog in pain or distress. Curious, Ye Yong carefully followed the sound and found a snow-white fox trapped in a hunting trap.

In the cultivation world, these traps release non-lethal toxins once they catch their prey, causing them to gradually lose their strength.

The snow-white fox had its hind leg caught, blood staining its fur. It looked at Ye Yong with fear and distress, and it found Ye Yong’s smell unbearable.

With the toxins spreading in its body, the added stench made the white fox nearly faint.

And now, the human was approaching, which was disastrous for him

“Don’t come any closer!” The white fox continued to whimper.