Tonight's push for rankings needs everyone's help, o(∩_∩)o... Let every post receive the 'Essence' mark! －－－－－－－－－－－ Ye Qin secretly estimated the value in his heart.

That small grass with a single drop of dew on its leaf might be worth about one Silver Leaf. This value was enough to make him risk the attempt, potentially making the next few days much easier for him. Ye Qin quickly turned his head to survey the surrounding sky and found several eagles circling in the distant azure, entirely unaware of his presence.

He couldn't help but rejoice; dropping just two or three zhang lower would place him on that protruding rock ledge. He loosened the thin rope around his waist. Gripping the thick rope with both hands, he began to descend slowly.

In just a short while, Ye Qin had one foot planted on the rock. He first plucked the common medicinal herbs nearby and placed them into the small herb basket hanging at his waist. Then, he shuffled toward the edge of the rock, preparing to harvest that single dew-kissed grass.

So close now, gazing upon the small herb. A strange sensation bloomed in Ye Qin's heart. This small grass seemed imbued with some mysterious spiritual energy, evoking an irrepressible sense of wonder within him.

He chuckled inwardly, quickly shaking off the fanciful thoughts clouding his mind, and concentrated on digging up the herb. Harvesting such a rare little grass required extreme caution. Since he didn't know its medicinal properties, he couldn't be certain whether its most valuable part was the leaf, the stem, or the root.

Therefore, he prepared to take the entire plant, root and clump of soil included. Skillfully, Ye Qin drew a small herb-collecting knife secured to the binding on his right leg. With meticulous care, he began digging the mud away from the base of the small grass, inch by painstaking inch, avoiding damage to its fragile root system.

To his surprise, the stem and leaves of this small grass were only about the size of his little finger. However, the roots extended nearly half a chi long. It took a full fifteen minutes to excavate it entirely, root and soil intact.

Chirp—! A sharp eagle cry echoed from the sky behind him. Ye Qin startled at the sound, a sudden wave of foreboding washing over him.

He had been too absorbed in digging the herb, taking too long, and had completely forgotten this was an eagle's nest. He barely turned his head when a grey shadow lunged from mid-air, accompanied by a fierce gust of wind. Without hesitation, Ye Qin flipped his wrist.

He brought the herb knife backhanded and thrust it fiercely toward the grey silhouette. Pfft. The shadow couldn't evade it.

Unsure where it was struck, it let out a piercing shriek and plummeted off the cliff, taking Ye Qin's herb knife with it, falling into the deep, unseen mountain gorge below. Ye Qin gasped in pain, nearly tearing his mouth open. The grey shadow, in its death throes, beat its wings violently, sending a shockwave that nearly fractured his entire right forearm.

Several deep bloody gashes, carved by sharp talons, crisscrossed his arm. Enduring the throbbing pain in his right hand, he dared not delay. With his left hand, he snatched the small green grass and shoved it into the herb basket at his waist.

He then prepared to immediately start climbing back up. There were several eagle nests here; this was not the only grey eagle. He needed to leave quickly.

The temporary scream of that grey eagle had alerted the surrounding grey eagles. The sky filled with fierce cries as several grey shadows dove rapidly toward his position. At this juncture, Ye Qin held no illusions and had no time for regret.

He knew it was impossible to climb back to the summit while under siege by a flock of grey eagles. He was cornered, facing a certain death; he had to turn and fight—it would be them or him. Steel settling in his heart, he leaned back against the rock face, standing firmly on the protruding ledge, securing himself tightly with the thick rope.

He drew his last weapon—a small, somewhat dulled woodcutting axe hanging from his lower back. He faced the grey eagles squarely. Internally, Ye Qin silently circulated the Qi-Gathering and Spirit-Condensing technique.

The faint breath generated from his Dantian flowed through his right forearm, dispelling much of the searing pain there. This internal art not only granted him formidable physical recuperative abilities but also sharpened his vision and agility, making him many times stronger than before. Though he had never learned any powerful offensive martial moves, he was exceptionally proficient in the most basic actions of chopping, stabbing, and slicing.

Otherwise, he would have long perished in some nameless, forgotten ravine in the mountains. Four or five grey eagles swooped down on him. In nearly an instant, Ye Qin had perfectly mapped their gliding trajectories in the air.

Two of them flew the fastest, closing the distance to less than thirty paces, while the three behind were slightly slower. Defeat them one by one! This was the thought that flashed through his mind without a moment's hesitation.

Just as the two grey eagles reached him, Ye Qin seized the moment, bringing the woodcutting axe down in a fierce horizontal swing before him. Splat, crunch! The two grey eagles were cleaved in half by his single swing and fell from the cliff.

However, he was slammed violently against the rock wall by the fierce head-on impact of the two eagles. His entire body felt as though it had been struck by two massive hammers—the impact several times harder than his Senior Brother's punch. A mouthful of blood surged up, spraying out.

One foot buckled, forcing him onto one knee on the rock, his mind reeling in a daze. If not for the rope securing him, he would have surely tumbled over the edge into the chasm. The remaining three grey eagles, witnessing their comrades perish in the blink of an eye, were stunned into silence, letting out cries of grief and desolate sorrow as they circled overhead.

Their eyes were bloodshot, filled with rage and impatience, glaring at the culprit who had invaded their nest and killed their kin. In a few breaths, Ye Qin managed to regain his breath. His eyes were bloodshot, and a bone-chilling murderous intent flashed within his gaze.

Holding the woodcutting axe with one hand, he stood in a tense standoff with the three grey eagles. Before the age of ten, Ye Qin had accompanied his father into the deep mountains to hunt numerous times, learning a simple, profound truth there: only the fiercest beasts survive in the wilderness; those who turn to flee meet only death. Three years ago, while drifting in the wilds with Da Niu, he had fearlessly fought off a greedy old wild dog in the dead of night.

Now, at fourteen, his physique was countless times stronger than before—why would he fear these three grey eagles? However, the violent impact had left Ye Qin nearly rigid. If these three eagles had pressed their frenzied attack now, he would surely have been instantly shredded into countless fragments by their powerful iron claws.

But the three grey eagles were intimidated by the ferocity he displayed and failed to seize the opportunity to strike. The trio dared not advance, merely circling outside the eagle nest. Ye Qin dared not climb either, unwilling to expose his back to the eagles.

He seized the moment, kneeling on the protruding rock, silently circulating his internal art, soothing the stiffened tendons and muscles, regaining his capacity to fight. The standoff lasted for several hours. The sun gradually dipped below the horizon, and a biting cold wind began to sweep across the cliff face.

The three grey eagles finally lost their patience, issuing another cry of bitter sorrow. Realizing they could not overcome this intruder who had occupied their lair, they flapped their grey wings once and turned, flying toward the distant peaks. Ye Qin finally let out a long sigh of relief, releasing his tight grip on the woodcutting axe and returning it to his lower back.

He wiped the dried blood from the corner of his mouth. Looking over his body, he noted no fewer than seven or eight fresh scratch marks from the eagle talons, already stiffened by the wind. He managed a wry smile.

Damn beasts, I nearly died here today. I risked my young life just to collect that rare little grass. I wonder if it was truly worth it.

Ye Qin had taken control of this area of the eagle nests and driven away all the grey eagles. He was temporarily safe. He sat cross-legged on the rock for a short while to recover enough strength before preparing to climb to the summit before dark.

As his tension eased, his nose involuntarily caught the stench of decaying nest material. Remembering how close those few grey eagles had brought him to death, Ye Qin’s anger flared. He reached out and dug up several of the nearby nests, intending to destroy them.

To his surprise, one of the nests contained a single grey egg. "Huh, this egg looks a bit strange, dull grey. Well, I was just worrying about having nothing good to eat tonight; this will make a fine appetizer." He casually tucked the egg into the small herb basket at his waist.