Looking back now, the duo of Evie and the big tiger had never shown any intention to kill Leaf Gray from the start; the fight was initiated by Leaf Gray himself.

One could even say the reason they came after Leaf Gray was because he had intruded into the big tiger's territory and killed too many fierce beasts.

Their plan was probably to drive Leaf Gray away and, in the process, try to extort some benefits from him.

If Leaf Gray had been a cultivator with even a little common sense, their plan would have most likely succeeded.

But the situation had not developed as anticipated. Now, their scheme had backfired - instead of gaining any advantage, they found themselves cornered by Leaf Gray in the cave, trapped in a predicament with no easy way out.

For Leaf Gray, he didn't necessarily have to fight the tiger to the death. Although killing the tiger and eating its meat would bring him great benefits, if the cost was too high, the fight wouldn't be worthwhile.

However, he had already used one Fire Snake Talisman and was injured on his chest, so he naturally needed to seek some compensation from them.

A few storage bages couldn't satisfy Leaf Gray – they were all locked, who knew what was inside? Moreover, storage bages of low-level cultivators rarely contained good items; not everyone was as wealthy as him.

"You can take these storage bages to the Jade Market to find someone to open them. There are definitely good things inside," Evie said urgently.

"Jade Market?" Leaf Gray frowned.

"It's a market where rogue cultivators gather, only fifty miles from here. I can take you there."

"No need!" The reason he had stayed in this jungle was precisely because his cultivation was too low. In his plan, he would not leave this place until he reached the Spirit Creek realm.

Leaf Gray's stubborn resistance to all persuasion gave Evie a major headache. She pleaded, "Can't you just let us go? We already know we were wrong."

Leaf Gray said indifferently, "Mistakes require payment. My patience is limited. You'd better not waste words!"

Evie bared her small white teeth: "If we really fight, you won't come out unscathed either. I don't believe..."

"Oh?" Leaf Gray raised his hand and pulled out another handful of spirit talismans.

Evie instantly backed down. Looking at that handful of spirit talismans, she shrank her neck, realizing they had truly kicked an iron plate this time.

With so many spirit talismans at his disposal, the person before them must be an important disciple of some major sect. Facing someone like that, a few storage bages from low-level cultivators really couldn't tempt him.

As if she had made some decision, she sighed and spoke: "There is one more thing. I will go get it for you."

The big tiger seemed to understand her intention and immediately turned its head to growl at her.

Evie forced a smile, reached out and patted the big tiger's head: "Wait for me here. I'll be back as soon as possible. Don't conflict with him before I return."

The big tiger roared again. Evie straightened her face: "Be obedient!"

The big tiger had no choice but to lower its head.

Evie patted its head again, turned, and vanished into the rock wall.

Leaving Leaf Gray and the big tiger still in a standoff.

However, the earlier interaction between Evie and the big tiger made Leaf Gray understand that this demon beast probably understood human nature. Thinking about it, if it didn't, how could Evie cooperate with it to scare those low-level cultivators?

Time passed, and Leaf Gray's expression gradually became grave because the big tiger trapped in the cave was growing increasingly restless, pacing back and forth, occasionally looking up at Leaf Gray.

Leaf Gray sensed an spiritual power of danger, which made him even more vigilant.

This time Evie was gone for a long time. After roughly an hour, Evie suddenly appeared again, but her condition was clearly not right; her body had actually become somewhat translucent, giving a feeling of extreme weakness.

Leaf Gray frowned, unsure if the woman was pretending or truly injured, but his attention was quickly drawn to the object in Evie's hand.

It was a fruit, bright red in color, about the size of a baby's fist. As soon as Evie brought it in, the cave filled with a strange fragrance.

"What is this?" he asked. Although he didn't know what this fruit actually was, he instinctively felt it was definitely a good item.

Evie said weakly, "Barrier-Breaking Fruit."

"What is its use?" Leaf Gray asked again.

Evie was somewhat puzzled. Logically, an important disciple of a major sect like Leaf Gray shouldn't be unfamiliar with the name Barrier-Breaking Fruit. This thing was a valuable treasure for any Spirit Creek realm cultivator. However, as she wasn't in good condition and had no time for unnecessary talk, she explained: "Used to break through the barriers of spiritual apertures."

Hearing this, Leaf Gray's eyes lit up. He didn't know where Evie had found this fruit, but if what Evie said was true, then this item was extremely useful for him. He looked up and signaled to Evie: "Throw... bring it over!"

Evie shook her head: "I can give you the fruit, but you must swear a Providentia oath. Humbly invoke Providentia, pledge that after receiving the fruit, you will absolutely not harm us anymore."

Even weakened and almost fading, Evie hadn't forgotten their current predicament. If Leaf Gray took the fruit and still intended to harm them, the spirit and tiger pair would have no chance of leaving alive.

Leaf Gray didn't know what a Providentia oath was, but he had heard the phrase 'Humbly invoke Providentia' once before.

He roughly understood Evie's meaning and nodded: "Agreed!"

After pondering his wording slightly, Leaf Gray said: "I, Leaf Gray, cultivator of Tranquil Province, humbly invoke Providentia. If Evie gives the Barrier-Breaking Fruit to me, and provided they do not proactively provoke or harm me, I shall no longer make things difficult for Evie and Amber!"

He initially thought it was just a simple vow, but to his surprise, after his words fell, an invisible and mysterious force descended from the sky and slammed into the battle mark on the back of his hand.

The force caused him no harm, but it gave him a strange feeling: if he violated what he had just said, he would certainly come to no good end.

This discovery made Leaf Gray's heart shudder, and he immediately understood that in this world, oaths were not to be spoken lightly, especially Providentia oaths witnessed by invoking Providentia.

After Leaf Gray made the Providentia oath, Evie relaxed, floated in front of Leaf Gray, and handed the Barrier-Breaking Fruit to him.

"Are you injured?" Leaf Gray took the Barrier-Breaking Fruit and looked at Evie as he asked.

"Yes," Evie nodded, then turned to call Amber: "Amber, let's go."

The robust Amber walked out step by step, while Leaf Gray, holding his spirit talismans, retreated out of the cave.

A moment later, Amber emerged from the cave. Evie plunged into Amber's body and disappeared. The big tiger turned its head and roared at Leaf Gray, then, with a few leaps, vanished into the jungle.

Gazing in the direction where the big tiger disappeared, Leaf Gray pondered for a moment, then slowly shook his head. The experiences of the past half-day could be described as bizarre and kaleidoscopic for him, but fortunately, the final outcome was quite good.

Looking at the Barrier-Breaking Fruit in his hand, Leaf Gray's expression grew fervent. If this thing truly had the effect Evie claimed, then his achievement of the Spirit Creek realm was right before his eyes!