Chapter 64 – The horse is gone

There was always something off about the disciples from Divine Sword Peak, but given his duties, the steward couldn't stop them from renting the demon horses.

However, he couldn't help but remind them with some trepidation, "You can rent the demon horses, but you mustn't mistreat them. Situations like not giving them water absolutely cannot happen."

"Alright, alright, just hurry up and register us," the disciples from Divine Sword Peak nodded repeatedly. They were only thinking about completing their task quickly. Lunch was probably out of the question, but if they hurried, they might make it for dinner.

Faced with their urging, the steward's mouth twitched. Damn it, as if they wouldn't.

Earlier, he had roughly counted and found that over three hundred of the demon horses rented out yesterday had returned dehydrated and exhausted. They would definitely need a few days to recover.

After registering and paying the sect points, the disciples hurried to the stables to choose their horses.

But as the Divine Sword Peak disciples approached, the demon horses inexplicably backed away.

Seeing the disciples, the horses trembled slightly, as if facing a group of demons.

Some disciples even found that once they mounted the horses, the creatures refused to move, unwilling to leave the stables no matter what.

"Hey, steward, what's wrong with these horses? They won't move at all."

It wasn't just one or two; most of the horses rented out yesterday were behaving this way.

As the steward arrived, the demon horses looked at him pitifully, as if pleading for help.

"Um... it seems they don't want to go out with you."

His mouth twitched uncontrollably, utterly frustrated. Damn it, what kind of people are these that even demon horses disdain them?

Hearing this, the disciples weren't having it. They glared at the horses beneath them, their voices calm but chillingly cold.

"Listen, I'm in a hurry. If you dare delay my meal, I'll kill you, got it?"

Unconsciously, a murderous aura emanated from them, and sensing this, the steward panicked.

"What are you trying to do? You can't harm these demon horses."

What the steward didn't expect was that as soon as the disciples finished speaking, the previously immovable horses suddenly bolted out of the stables like the wind, quickly disappearing from sight.

"Damn it..."

Watching this unfold, the steward cursed through gritted teeth. Are you kidding me? They wouldn't budge a moment ago.

If the demon horses could speak, they would surely retort, it's not about moving or not; if I miss a meal, I'm dead. That murderous aura was no joke.

The instincts of demon beasts are much sharper than those of humans, and their perception of killing intent is likewise. So, the demon horses were certain that the disciples from Divine Sword Peak were not joking.

If they dared delay their meal, they were as good as dead, so they chose to comply, not out of cowardice.

They continued to gallop, and to save time on drinking water, many disciples even shared their water pouches with the horses, letting them drink while running.

Drinking is allowed, but stopping is not an option; I'm really pressed for time.

After the Divine Sword Peak disciples left, disciples from other peaks gradually arrived at the stables, most of whom hadn't rented horses the day before.

"Steward, are there any demon horses today?"

Faced with their inquiries, the steward's expression turned grim.

"Still none."

"Still none? Why?"

"The Divine Sword Peak people came earlier."

Hearing this, the disciples were momentarily stunned, then their faces darkened. Just then, one disciple noticed the remaining hundreds of demon horses in the stables and complained.

"Aren't there still some here?"

"These horses can't be ridden; they need a few days to recover."

Led by the steward, the disciples approached and found that the hundreds of horses were all listless and weak.

"How did this happen?"

It's known that Dao Yi Sect takes meticulous care of the demon horses, and such a situation has never occurred before.

Under the disciples' questioning, the steward had no choice but to recount the events, revealing that it was again the Divine Sword Peak disciples.

Someone couldn't help but curse angrily.

"A bunch of beasts."

"They won't even spare the horses."

With no low-tier demon horses left at the stables, they had to opt for high-tier ones. However, most disciples either didn't have enough sect points or lacked the cultivation level to handle high-tier demon horses.

In the end, someone suggested renting horses from Sanyuan City instead.

This suggestion immediately gained the approval of many disciples.

But when they inquired in Sanyuan City, damn it, there were no horses there either.

"Where are the horses? How can a business this large not have a few low-tier demon horses?"

Completely exasperated, some asked in frustration.

Facing the Dao Yi Sect disciples, the shopkeeper dared not offend them and could only smile wryly.

"Didn't a large group of your Dao Yi Sect disciples come to rent horses yesterday? All our low-tier demon horses were rented out. Not just us, but the other shops in Yiyuan City also rented out all their low-tier demon horses."

"Do you know which peak's disciples they were?"

"Divine Sword Peak."

"Again them..."

Upon learning it was once more the Divine Sword Peak disciples, everyone ground their teeth, clenched their fists, and trembled with anger.

The sect's stables were empty, and the surrounding three cities' horses were also gone, all without exception due to the Divine Sword Peak disciples.

What are they trying to do? Is the entire Divine Sword Peak going out at the same time?

Since the inexplicable destruction of Black Tiger Abyss, Divine Sword Peak has become increasingly unreasonable.

First, they took on all the tasks from the Task Hall, one after another, and now they've rented all the low-tier horses around the sect.

One disciple couldn't help but shout to the sky in anger.

"This is too much! I, Li Qiang, will never share the same sky with Divine Sword Peak!"

Hearing this disciple's roar, the shopkeeper beside him was bewildered. How did fellow sect brothers end up vowing not to coexist?

Unaware of the other peaks' disciples' plight, after breakfast and resting for an hour, Ye Changqing got up and headed to the Main Peak Task Hall.

He hadn't completed this month's mandatory task yet, so Ye Changqing planned to check out the Task Hall.

He made his way to the Task Hall and began selecting from the one-star tasks.

"Let's pick something close by and simple."

He calculated silently and soon chose a task to slay an evil spirit.

It wasn't far from Dao Yi Sect, and the evil spirit wasn't strong, merely a Greyheart Ghost, equivalent to a human cultivator in the Qi Perception Realm.

"This one will do."

He accepted the task and registered with the steward.

During the process, the steward in the Task Hall asked curiously.

"Are you a disciple of Divine Sword Peak?"

"Yes, is there a problem?"

"No."

Then Ye Changqing heard the steward murmur softly.

"A Divine Sword Peak disciple taking just one task, how rare."