Qiu Yunru didn't dare eat the buns in the market. It was too crowded. Ever since that day he'd almost been eaten by that demon Mo, he had worn Mo's red mask over his face, so as to not be recognized. He had started to get a little fond of it. Even though it was exceedingly ugly to look at, it was well-painted, and among thousands of other masks in this realm, he didn't feel so ugly.
He had also begun to go in public by his old name, Wang Zhi. It was best to never be recognized while down here. Even as a Golden Core cultivator, he was no match for a city of demons. Thus, both his face and his name had become hidden.
Qiu Yunru strolled out to the edge of the city and made his way into a nearby forest of Spike Fruit Trees, eventually settling against a large grey trunk and finally pulling off his mask to eat. It was awfully uncomfortable to wear, but what could he do? He'd have to try his hand at making adjustments some point soon. If he could get his hands on some string, and maybe a carving knife...
Qiu Yunru paused, the bun steaming in his hand. He swallowed the savory meat.
There was the smell of blood in the air.
Not only that--he closed his eyes, stuffing the baozi back into the bag and rolling it up quickly. That was...
The smell of human blood!
If he was any less of a cultivator, he wouldn't have been able to notice the faint scent of spiritual qi floating in the air. Quickly, he yanked his mask back on and stood. He didn't pull any poison out of his bag. If there was an injured human nearby, wouldn't that be a bit too intimidating?
He had indeed bartered for a sword at a demon market a few towns ago. It was nothing compared to his lost blade, but it would have to do. At the very least, it was pleasing to look at--obsidian and glittering in light, it had a good sheen. Demon craftmanship could truly be beautiful!
Upon turning the corner, he saw what it was:
Sitting against a tree trunk hunched over like a punctured sack of rice was, indeed, a human. Qiu Yunru quickly hurried over. They were in quite a bad state, blood pooling around them in the dirt and creating puddles of mud. They barely even seemed conscious!
He crouched down, taking their pulse and checking their eyes. It was a male cultivator. Judging by his spiritual aura, he was of Golden Core cultivation level as well. However, his body was badly damaged. It seemed he had been gored by some kind of horned creature. Qiu Yunru shuddered to think of it. Perhaps it had been a giant boar, or some kind of rhinoceros. It could even be a goat. He remembered seeing something about four-horned goats in DLC advertisements, able to both ram and bore...
He had soon stripped the person and bandaged him up as best as he could, plugging his wounds with various disinfectants and healing herbs. Quickly, he got to mixing a substance that could replenish one's blood supply. He would need some sugar crystals, and a bit of some Iron Clover leaves, then to boil it all together in some water...
As soon as he raised the concoction to the person's pale lips and began to pour, however, that person suddenly woke up.
The person's eyes shot open, and he coughed on the mixture, nearly choking. Qiu Yunru swore internally and smacked him on the back a few times until he was breathing again. That person scrambled backwards, staring at him with wide eyes filled with suspicion.
"Who are you?" He called out hoarsely, clutching at his bandaged chest. "What are you feeding me?"
Qiu Yunru realized with horror that he had put his mask on again just earlier and hadn't taken it off. He must look like a demon! Quickly, he pulled it off and sighed, holding his hands up in surrender.
"I'm a human! I was feeding you a Blood Replenishment Tincture. You're really low on blood!"
The person narrowed his eyes. "A human? How did you get here?"
I'd like to know the same! Qiu yunru thought miserably. And how to get out, please and thank you!
Aloud, he smiled apologetically and said: "I'm not quite sure. I was in the Mortal Realm one second, and the Demon Realm the next. What about you? Do you...happen to know a way out?"
To be truthful, he was immensely curious about this how this person had gotten here. All this past week, he'd seen nor sensed not one other human. After scrolling through his game menu update notifications, he had found that, indeed, no DLC's had been released recently, and so he'd though the Demon Realm would still be inaccessible to all humans. However, now there was another human here! What's more, this human wasn't Nascent Soul, but instead Golden Core, meaning he hadn't used a portal to transport himself here! If that was the case, perhaps there was a way back and forth between realms?
Seeing as he needed allies and felt bad, Qiu Yunru would of course have saved this person's life even if he didn't have a way of escaping. However, if there was a way to escape without begging a demon lord to provide a portal...it would make his life so much easier!