Chapter 237: This Meal is Poisonous

Chapter 245: This food is poisoned...

"Who are you?" Immortal Fairy looked warily at the four newcomers. All four were at a higher cultivation stage than her, all being at the Golden Core stage.

Lu Chang's smile widened. The four of them frequently roamed the dense forest. Ostensibly, they, like others, fought demonic beasts and gathered natural treasures. In reality, they were demonic beasts themselves, secretly murdering people to steal their belongings, taking their storage rings, thoroughly looting them, and then trading with humans who dealt in illicit goods to gain high profits.

Originally, they had come to discuss their next plan with the lake's owner, but unexpectedly encountered a young girl here. She was at the late Foundation Establishment stage, looked sweet and innocent, was disheveled, and barefoot. She was likely a young lady from some noble family who had come for training and gotten separated from her guards. This was a common occurrence, as the vast dense forest couldn't possibly have only Golden Core cultivators as its highest-ranked inhabitants. As far as they knew, there was an elephant demon of the Nascent Soul stage nearby, possessing terrifying power.

Lu Chang, being less experienced, couldn't identify what Immortal Fairy was wearing, but he was certain the material was incredibly valuable. A young lady from a noble family, out for training, was bound to carry many precious items. They weren't afraid if her family eventually came after them; this was the dense forest, where life and death were decided by fate. Who could guarantee that no accidents would occur during training? At worst, they could simply shift the blame onto other humans, as humans themselves committed such acts quite frequently. Moreover, this little girl was even cooking here, clearly an artless and easily deceived person.

Lu Chang mentally reviewed all possible scenarios, ensuring there was no danger before he emerged to kindly inquire about Immortal Fairy's origins. "We are cultivators who came to the lake to collect medicinal herbs. We didn't expect to meet a young lady like you here. This place is very dangerous; Golden Core stage demonic beasts lurk here, and even we don't dare to stay long."

Immortal Fairy recalled the lake's owner, whom she had casually punched to death earlier. He was weak and posed no threat. She shook her head, "Dangerous? No, it's not."

"Then you haven't encountered one yet. Where are your elders? This place is very dangerous!""He went to challenge a Golden Core demonic beast. I felt bored, so I ran out... Oh, no, he's not my elder!" Immortal Fairy instinctively responded to Lu Chang's words, then quickly corrected the logical inconsistency when she realized her mistake. Lu Yang was merely a junior; she was the senior.

Lu Chang and the other three exchanged glances, convinced that the little girl had secretly run away. "Fish King, are you here?" Lu Chang secretly communicated with the lake's owner using his spiritual sense, wanting to ask about the girl's situation and whether they should cooperate to pull off a heist. "Not here?" Lu Chang called out several times with his spiritual sense, but received no response from the Fish King. Had he transformed and gone ashore to seek prey elsewhere? If so, then the Fish King could only blame his bad luck; the four of them would exclusively enjoy this unexpected fortune.

"Are you looking for fish?" Immortal Fairy's words startled Lu Chang. He was communicating with the lake's owner using his spiritual sense; how could an outsider detect it?

"Then let's eat. It's freshly made." Immortal True Flame incinerated the branches into ash, then used the residual heat to warm the beggar's fish. Immortal Fairy dug out a large lump of mud from the ashes, cracked open the outer layer of mud, and peeled away the middle layer of lotus leaves. A rich, fragrant aroma wafted through the air, making Lu Chang and the other three take a deep breath. They had survived in the wilderness for so long, but this was the first time they had smelled such delicious food. Was this the true essence of a great family? Even their wilderness meals were different from what they were used to.

"Eat up, this is the fish you were looking for." Immortal Fairy's words were a bit nonsensical. Although she was an immortal chef, an immortal chef was still a chef. Chefs most enjoyed having guests eat their dishes. Therefore, Immortal Fairy generously shared the freshly made beggar's fish with the four. Seeing that the little girl seemed artless, the four didn't think she would poison them, and the beggar's fish truly smelled delicious. They decided to finish this meal before sending the little girl on her way, planning to be a bit gentler.

All four found large rocks and sat around together, enjoying the meal. Lu Chang took out chopsticks from his storage ring and gently picked up a piece. Unexpectedly, the fish meat was so tender that it crumbled with slight pressure. Helpless, he adjusted his strength and carefully picked up another piece. The fish melted in his mouth, feeling like a mouthful of water that slipped down his throat before he could even taste anything.

Immortal Fairy picked up two small twigs, rinsed them in the lake, and used them as chopsticks. She carefully picked up a piece, put it in her mouth, and savored it. "Mm, delicious."

"Speaking of which, why do you demonic beasts transform into human form?" Immortal Fairy suddenly asked. "Don't they say that demonic beast form is more efficient for moving around in the dense forest?"

The four instantly rose to their feet, looking down at Immortal Fairy and staring intently. "You knew we were demonic beasts?!""Of course I did, I've known for a while.""Then why did you show no reaction at all?""Why should I react?"

Just as Lu Chang was about to commend her bravery, he felt the fish meat that had slid into his stomach transform from water into fire, burning within his abdomen. It felt as if his meridians were severed, leaving him utterly powerless, and large beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Thump—Lu Chang collapsed, writhing on the ground, clutching his stomach. The other three were in the same state, fallen to the ground, staring incredulously at the seemingly harmless Immortal Fairy. All four reverted to their original forms: Lu Chang was a fox, and the other three were a hedgehog, a snake, and a large lynx.

Immortal Fairy noticed the fish meat's significant toxicity, even capable of eroding Lu Yang's wood doppelganger. If this continued, she would soon have to return to Lu Yang's side. She secretly activated her Immortal Dao Fruit to dispel the poison from the fish meat.

"What kind of fish is this?! How did you poison it!" Lu Chang's eyes widened. He tried to divert Immortal Fairy's attention while secretly circulating his cultivation to resist the poison. She had seen through their disguise, yet pretended nothing was amiss, even inviting them to eat and then poisoning their food. What a cunning person!

"It's the Fish King you were looking for. It tried to eat me, so I ate it," Immortal Fairy said innocently. "Weren't you looking for it? It's a bad demonic beast, so don't look for it anymore." Immortal Fairy wrinkled her small nose, displeased by the Fish King's insolence. In ancient times, no demonic beast would have dared to act this way towards her; it would have been an act of extreme disrespect, punishable by self-immolation.

"The Fish King is a pufferfish, isn't it?!" Lu Chang was aghast. The Fish King, the owner of this lake, was a pufferfish at the peak of the late Golden Core stage, whose entire body was highly poisonous! Most importantly, how could this little girl, only at the late Foundation Establishment stage, possibly defeat the Fish King?

"Go, kill her! She ate the fish meat and is fine, so she must have an antidote on her!" Lu Chang and the other three temporarily suppressed the pufferfish poison with their cultivation and launched a furious attack. "And her storage ring, let's take it too!" Four Golden Core cultivators ambushing one Foundation Establishment cultivator—he refused to believe this little girl could still win.

"So you're all bad demonic beasts, just like the big fish!" Immortal Fairy was very displeased with the four's attitude. She had been about to cure their poison, but unexpectedly, these four wanted to kill her.