Chapter Thirteen: Entering the Camp

“Fast!”
With a furious shout, a green net appeared above Six Ugly’s head!
It could not evade, for two reasons: first, the net was astonishingly swift, surpassing even Six Ugly’s limits; second, as it instinctively turned its head, it saw a human silhouette!
Looking closely, it was indeed a human, not a demon disguised in human form.
This was the first time since arriving in this world that Six Ugly had seen a member of the human race. In its confusion, it was almost dazed, never expecting to encounter living human traces here and now.
A young monk, his head gleaming, stood at the fore—in later terms, a Buddhist monk, but in this era called a Hu monk, or perhaps a Bhikkhu. Behind him were several others, all armed and vigilant.
“Gather!” The young Hu monk shouted again, and the green net binding Six Ugly instantly tightened, securing it firmly. Only then did the others enter, some surrounding it, others scattering to search the area. Gazing at the blood that covered the ground, not only the others but even the Hu monk’s expression changed.
“What does this mean?” Another Hu monk, his face pale, asked, “Could it be that the monsters we saw yesterday are all dead?”
“Master Mi Xing speaks truly—it should be so,” replied a warrior carrying a longbow and clad in leather armor. “From the amount of blood here, I’d reckon at least twenty monsters died, nothing less. It matches what we saw yesterday.”
The young Hu monk nodded slightly, saying, “Qi Bai School’s judgment is sound, I agree. What puzzles me is why there are no corpses. Even if beasts devoured them, there should be remains. Why is there only blood left?”
“Did they eat even the bones?” A third Hu monk surveyed the area, speculating, “Brother, have you forgotten? When monsters are famished, they eat flesh, skin, even bones, leaving almost nothing.”
But Mi Qing, the young Hu monk, shook his head, clearly unconvinced. “Even with twenty or thirty monkeys, how could so little remain?” He asked no further, but ordered, “Qi Bai School, send people to search the surroundings for any clues.”
The archer was Qi Yan. Hearing this, he wasted no time, loudly commanding, “You two and three, teams of ten—search the cave. If you find anything, shout at once! Go, go!”
“Yes, sir!”
The group dispersed, each searching along the cave. Even the Hu monks split up, four leaving, only a few remaining with the young monk and Qi Yan, gradually focusing their attention on Six Ugly...
Six Ugly rolled on the ground, never ceasing, but its strength did not cause much disturbance—just the frantic tumbling of a beast, nothing more.
From the first words spoken, it sensed the deep hatred and hostility these people had for monsters, and realized its predicament. After a brief attempt, it immediately made the most suitable move for a monster of the Speech Opening realm: it struggled. It could not let them sense danger, nor could it remain utterly motionless.
In this life, it was no longer human, but a monster—a demon in the eyes of all!
Even so, it had to survive as a demon would, by any means.
The green net could not be broken; it could only wait for them to release it. In this, its weak demon power was the best disguise.
After a short wait, the searchers returned, reporting similar findings from all sides: much blood remained, but very little flesh or viscera, not matching the quantity of blood.
Quietly watching the monster in the net, Mi Qing turned to Qi Yan, saying, “It seems that if we wish to know what happened, we must interrogate this demon.”

Qi Yan nodded. He stretched out his hand, and someone immediately handed him a bristle whip.
Unlike an ordinary horsewhip, this was woven from monster bristles, as hard as iron, often combined with cow sinew and iron strands—a perfect cord for binding demons.
With a sharp kick, he sent Six Ugly flying against the stone wall, and after it fell, a sandaled foot pinned its face to the ground, leaving only its eyes exposed.
“Speak. What happened here?” Qi Yan demanded.
Six Ugly only moaned, writhing desperately, but gave no response.
After repeating his question, Qi Yan stood upright and, without further words, lashed out with the whip.
“Crack!” The clear sound rang out as the whip tore bloody flesh from Six Ugly’s body.
After several lashes, Qi Yan asked again, receiving no reply. After two more rounds, Six Ugly’s skin was shredded, but it still remained silent.
Qi Yan was surprised, turning to Mi Qing, “Shall we continue?”
Mi Qing, too, was puzzled by Six Ugly’s reaction, wishing to continue the torture, but recalling tomorrow’s mission, he waved his hand, dispirited, “Enough. Leave it alive for now. Our priority is to continue searching for monsters.”
Qi Yan put away the whip and ordered the warriors to bind Six Ugly firmly.
When the green net was removed, Six Ugly did not react. Though its body was battered, it still had strength to resist, but it sensed the threat these people posed. Qi Yan it could barely contend with, but the bald Hu monks were all dangerous; not only could it not fight them, it could not even flee.
It could only wait...
Thus, bound, Six Ugly was dragged with the group across the chaotic Stone Ridge and Rotten Peach Valley, finding not a single monster. All the way, sand and wood chips pierced its flesh, pain deep in its bones, but still only wounds of the flesh.
Unexpectedly, when evening came, Hu monk Mi Qing returned once more—not for questioning, but for another bout of torture.
The whipping escalated to knife cuts and spear stabs; several even urinated on it, exhausting every form of torment. The interrogation had changed in nature—not to extract information, but because Six Ugly’s silence offended Mi Qing’s pride, and he tortured it to break its will.
Yet Six Ugly never yielded, infuriating him further, feeling insulted.
Dragged for a day, Six Ugly endured six brutal beatings, nearly killed when Mi Qing attempted to spear its head, only stopped by other monks fearing accountability if it died. They settled for a heavy kick to the skull, knocking it unconscious.
Even with a body equal to the Forming realm, Six Ugly was gravely wounded: half its ribs broken, two pierced the lungs, arms and legs fractured, unable to exert force, mind clouded, body covered in wounds, wood splinters embedded in many places.
If it were truly at the Speech Opening realm, it would not survive even this far.
Now, its only option was to endure. It dared not enter the World-in-the-Pot realm; these monks possessed treasures like the green net—who knew if they could drag it out of that sanctuary? If so, it would lose its last hope of survival.
This was its final lifeline; it would not risk it until the very last moment.

Taking advantage of a moment when no one paid attention, Six Ugly moved its thoughts, refining all the monster corpses stored within its World-in-the-Pot realm into body-tempering elixirs.
After a full day of torment, at last, it survived until the group's return to a vast encampment.
The camp was strangely constructed; from a distance, Six Ugly could sense nothing human—no sounds. But crossing a certain threshold, its senses suddenly filled with all the camp’s activity: voices, scents, blood, everything. The boundary was like an invisible veil, isolating the inside from the outside.
Mi Qing led the monks away, while Qi Yan and his men dragged Six Ugly deep into the camp. After passing through a wooden wall, they entered an area of diverse prisons: some containing monsters, some holding cubs, each different. Other cages held fully formed monsters chained to bronze pillars, blades piercing their bodies, iron chains locking them fast.
Beside these stood wooden racks, hung with dried meat, pelts, and tails—all from monsters, judging by the scent. Everywhere Six Ugly looked, there were countless pieces. Within the cages and on the ground, fragments of flesh and bone littered everywhere; blood had soaked the earth to a reddish brown. Nearby, a mountain of bones lay piled, white and chilling to behold.
Trying to observe further, it was dragged into a nearby wooden house.
There, it saw a room filled with monster corpses. Two massive tree stumps served as tables, topped with neatly sliced meat strips. Three or four fat, oily men sat nearby, wiping sweat from their blood-spattered bodies. Two gaunt men squatted, collecting discarded meat scraps and organs into baskets, carrying them to the prisons as feed.
The sight was horrifying; Six Ugly almost retreated into the World-in-the-Pot realm, but just then heard a fat man's question: “Hey, what’s the point of dragging this demon here while it’s still alive?”
Another laughed, “Are we to chop it up? If so, I thank you—haven’t tasted fresh blood in ages…”
“Out with you! If you want fresh blood, join us hunting monsters. Don’t target these,” one of Qi Yan’s men replied. “The School has ordered this demon be given to the apothecary—not for your bloody cravings.”
“Exactly! This is our hard-earned food and money. Behave, or you’ll taste my fist!” The sergeant barked, scaring the three cooks into nervous laughter and compliance.
Six Ugly breathed a little easier, then was dragged further inside. As the door opened, it heard feeble screams from within. Moving ahead, it entered another yard, with wooden racks hung with organs taken from monsters, drying for medicine. The floor was lined with treated cowhide, already collecting some items.
After passing through this yard, the screams grew louder—still weak, but hoarse and dry.
The air was thick with blood, though here it was cleaner; the floor stains had been washed. Nearby, bottles and jars were stacked, and in the open stood a horizontal post where a fully formed monster was bound spread-eagle, three people working on it, the screams coming from its mouth.
“What’s happening?” Seeing them enter, a browless man in his forties asked. On seeing Qi Yan, he immediately dropped his tools and approached, smiling, “You could have sent someone; no need for School to come in person. It’s too much honor for us.”
This browless man, surnamed Yang, named Wen, was a physician employed by Uncle Baili—renowned for his skills, often tending injuries for the warriors. Qi Yan, not bothering with courtesy, smiled, “This demon was badly beaten today, may not last. We brought it for your attention; after all, it’s hard-won for the brothers. Please do your best to save it, lest we lose this prize.”
“Oh dear, not the best timing. School, look—” Yang Wen turned, letting Qi Yan see the two men behind him working. He smiled, “We’ve been working on this rabbit demon for almost an hour, just about to begin. If you brought it now, you might have to wait a bit.”
Qi Yan understood the priorities, nodding, “No matter—finish your main task first. This demon just needs your best effort, and I’ll thank you on behalf of the brothers.”
“Of course, of course.”
Qi Yan and his men bound Six Ugly to a pillar, securely and tightly. Only then did it notice how methodical these people were—cautious, disciplined, nothing like a rabble. Since its life was safe for now, it need not risk anything, but would wait to recover after taking the elixir, then seek a chance.