Chapter 134: Cohabitation in the Cave
On a small mountain peak, Xiao Yan laid on his belly as his gaze continuously swept across the surroundings. Because of the Amethyst Winged Lion, the Magic Beasts in the Magic Beast Mountain range were much more agitated than usual. Luckily the medicine powders made by Yao Lao were very effective; although Magic Beast would occasionally appear, after they smelled the irritating smell, they all hurriedly left the area. Thus, during these two days, Xiao Yan and Yao Lao were never discovered
“Hey, with that woman by your side, you will always have trouble. Do you plan to continue this way?” Yao Lao floated out of the ring as he smiled and said.
“Heh heh, that is a Dou Huang level practitioner, if there’s a chance to make her owe me a favor, it can be counted as a long-term investment. What is this bit of danger compared to that?” Xiao Yan’s palm slapped away the branches blocking his route as he chuckled.
“More like you’re taking advantage of her weakest moment to……’ah ah’. This way, you would have a Dou Huang bodyguard, allowing you to do whatever you want in the Jia Ma Empire.” Yao Lao disrespectfully let out a suggestive laugh as he teased.
Rolling his eyes, Xiao Yan muttered, “I’d love to but if I did that, I’ll be the first one to be killed when she recovers.”
“Alright, out watch has ended, let’s return.” Once again surveying the now peaceful surroundings, Xiao Yan waved his hand, not bothering to argue with Yao Lao over this pointless topic. He leaped out from the pile of rocks before jumping down the small mountain peak, full of vigor.
Returning Yao Lao into the ring, Xiao Yan jogged and after a few minutes, he returned to the cool cave.
After entering the cave, he saw that the mysterious woman who was originally lying on the stone bed was now resting her cheek on her palms as she sat idly on a slab of rock. As she saw Xiao Yan return, she could not help but faintly smile and say, “You’ve returned.”
Xiao Yan smiled as he nodded in reply, carrying the mysterious heavy ruler. He walked closer and took out a few fat fish he had caught under the waterfall from the Storage Ring. He seated himself on the ground, lit a fire and casually asked “Are you better now?”
The mysterious woman slowly stood up, bringing waves of faint fragrance as she arrived at Xiao Yan’s side. Slightly knitting her black brows, she lightly sighed, “Flesh wounds are not a big problem but the Seal Technique will need at least a few days to undo.”
“Hide here for that period of time then, they should not be able to find this place.” Skewering the fish on tree sticks, Xiao Yan placed them on a rack over the flame and then turned his head to gaze upon the mysterious woman beside him.
Because the silk dress worn by the woman was already in tatters, she was currently wearing Xiao Yan’s black gown. When others wore it, the black looked somewhat heavy on them, yet, on her body, the fine curves on her exquisite figure added a mysterious charm to it. As she moved with lotus steps, a section of her jade, snow white calves were faintly discernable, a rather enchanting sight.
Gracefully seating herself, the beautiful eyes of the mysterious woman stared at Xiao Yan as he continuously sprinkled seasoning on the fish, smiling while she said, “You have guts. To dare to enter the inner area of the Magic Beast Mountain Range with the strength of a Dou Zhe.”
“No choice, I was chased inside.” Xiao Yan smiled, turning back his head to ask, “Right, what’s your name?”
“Yun Zhi.” The mysterious woman replied with a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eyes.
“Yao Yan.” From the jade bottle, Xiao Yan sprinkled some meticulously matched up seasoning as he casually answered. Yun Zhi? He had never heard news of the Jia Ma Empire having a Dou Huang of that name. Thinking about it, it was likely that she was hiding her true identity.
The woman who called herself Yun Zhi did not bother check the validity of Xiao Yan words. Although her power was now sealed, a youngster who only had the strength of a Dou Zhe was clearly of no danger to her.
This brief conversation slowly ended on that note. Having lost their topic, the two sunk into a silent atmosphere until Xiao Yan offered the barbeque fish in his hand to Yun Zhi while she lightly nodded her head gratefully.
Tearing off a small piece of fish meat, Yun Zhi’s red lips slightly wiggled. The graceful posture in which she slowly ate caused Xiao Yan to feel inferior at his unmannered style of eating.
“You are an Alchemist?” Yun Zhi’s gaze swept over the small jade bottles to Xiao Yan’s side, a sense of astonishment in her voice.
“Uh, Physician……” Xiao Yan swallowed the food in his mouth, choosing to hide the fact that he was an Alchemist. He did not feel that revealing his identity was a sensible idea.
“Oh.” Slightly inclining her head in understanding. the astonishment in Yun Zhi’s eyes gradually faded away. Although there wasn’t much of a difference between how the two professions were named, between an Alchemist and a Physician, the difference in status was like heaven and earth.
“I have a friend who is an Alchemist. After I complete my mission here, if you’re willing, I can introduce you to him in Jia Ma Empire.” Yun Zhi pursed her slightly oily red lips as she said that.
At these words, Xiao Yan was slightly shocked, though soon after, he shook his head, inciting a stunned look from Yun Zhi, “Thank you, but I think I should still forget about it, I already have a teacher.”
Hearing Xiao Yan unexpectedly declining her goodwill, astonishment flashed across Yun Zhi’s good-looking face. Her personal introduction was actually refused? This was the first time in so many years that she had encountered such a thing. At this time, Yun Zhi only just managed to hold back the question on the tip of her tongue – Do you even know who I am introducing you to?
However this urge only flashed across her mind before dissipating. Given Yun Zhi’s self-control and dignity, naturally she would not ask this kind of question on the spot. Instead, she slowly nodded her head, somewhat bewildered.
“Once your wounds are healed, do you still plan on fighting the Amethyst Winged Lion?” As he tore off the last piece of fish meat, Xiao Yan carelessly inquired with a mouth full of food.
“En, I need to obtain the Amethyst Spirit Crystal.” Yun Zhi let out a light sigh as she answered.
Xiao Yan shook his head; having watched the fight between her and the Amethyst Winged Lion, he evidently thought that Yun Zhi’s chances of success were not high.
“The difference between its strength and mine is not large, it’s just that I did not expect that it actually knew the Sealing Technique. My previous loss was because I was unable to defend myself against that technique, in our next battle, my Extreme Wind: Meteor Kill will not necessarily lose to it.” As she saw the look on Xiao Yan’s face, Yun Zhi’s black eyebrows slightly knitted together as she explained, faintly unsatisfied.
“That move is indeed very strong,” Xiao Yan did not doubt the might of the light ray that had cut in half the hardest horns of the Amethyst Winged Lion. Yet when clashing with the Amethyst Seal, Xiao Yan did not know who would come out on top.
Having finished the barbequed fish in his hands, Xiao Yan stood up and stretched his back. He then called to Yun Zhi before seating himself cross-legged on a stone slab to one side. His hands formed into a training seal and he gradually closed his eyes.
As she gazed at the Xiao Yan who had started training, Yun Zhi also stood up and proceeded to wash her now oily jade-like hands before coming to the front of Xiao Yan. Her clever eyes sized up the Xiao Yan as he was in the midst of training. A moment later, her black eyebrows wrinkled as she softly muttered, “How is it the lowest level of Huang Qi Methods? This guy’s teacher seems to be a super stingy person, can it be that he does not know the meaning a good Qi Method for a new practitioner?”
Gently sighing as she shook her head, within Yun Zhi’s heart, though she had yet to meet Yao Lao, he had already been demoted to a teacher who ruins his students.
“After completing my task, I will help him out. Such a good sapling should not be trampled on.” Yun Zhi shook her head as she also sat herself down and closing her eyes, she gradually started to work on dissolving the Amethyst Seal in her body.
During the few days that Yun Zhi was breaking the seal, because of Xiao Yan’s excellent hospitality, the relationship between two gradually grew more familiar and perhaps because of the existence of the seal, now, whenever Yun Zhi spoke with Xiao Yan, the noble tone, that was analogous to that of a person who had live in a high position for a long time, had gradually weakened. This caused Xiao Yan to become slightly more carefree, after all what he disliked that arrogant and prideful tone.
Life in the cave together continued in tranquility for two days. However, on the third day, it was broken by the sudden arrival of a wolf’s howl.
Just after finishing lunch in the cave, Xiao Yan’s complexion suddenly changed when he heard a wolf howls from somewhere nearby outside the cave. Hastily standing up, he exchanged a glance with Yun Zhi while his brows tightly knitted together.
“How could we have been found?” Xiao Yan paced about, thinking. Everyday his body was sprayed with a medicine powder that could mask his scent; Magic Beasts could not possibly tail him to this location.
With his brows tightly knitted together, Xiao Yan suddenly cast his sight towards the apologetic look on Yun Zhi’s face. Slightly stunned, a thought crossed his mind, he forced out a smile as he asked, “You can’t be telling me that you went out today?”
Gazing at the look on Xiao Yan’s face, Yun Zhi’s good-looking face flushed scarlet with regret. With an embarrassed voice, she softly admitted, “Sorry, I……left to take a bath today.”
Xiao Yan was somewhat speechless at these words, he let out a sigh as he tightened the mysterious heavy ruler on his back. Clenching his teeth, he instructed Yun Zhi, “You stay here, don’t try anything funny, I will go out to lure the Magic Beast away.”
“You……your strength……it would be better to let me go.” Gazing at Xiao Yan as he turned around with the intention of going out, the regret in Yun Zhi’s heart grew even deeper as she hastily stood up and said.
“You better stay here without moving!” Xiao Yan suddenly stopped and turned his head, shouting out in a low voice, “If you go out, you will only attract more Magic Beasts!”
At Xiao Yan’s sudden outburst, Yun Zhi was slightly shocked and scared. As she foolishly looked towards the former, her brain suddenly could not process what had happened, did……did this guy actually yell at her?
“Don’t take another step out of the cave or else we will both die here!”
At this time, Xiao Yan did not have the mood to care that the woman behind him was a Dou Huang practitioner; after saying that sentence in a severe tone, he quickly rushed out of the cave.
Yun Zhi stood on the spot as she watched the back of the youngster disappear from her sight and out of the cave. Her jade-like hands absent-mindedly swayed before her as if unable to decide what was the appropriate expression for this situation. A long time later, she finally snapped out of it and stamped her feet, annoyed, “Such a tender age, yet so merciless when he’s angry, to think that I had planned to help you. Since you like to act brave and show off, then go settle it yourself.”
Though she said these words, Yun Zhi still took a few steps forward to gaze at the bright cave entrance but remembering Xiao Yan’s warning, she could not help but stop in her step, a trace of worry on her brow.
Not long after Xiao Yan left, Yun Zhi heard the wolf howls intensify and soon, the wolf howls gradually grew further away, yet the youngster had still yet to return.
Once again waiting for a period of time, Yun Zhi finally lost her patience and gritting her teeth, she flicked her jade-like hands as the bizarre sword shot out while icily declaring, “Amethyst Winged Lion, you bastard. If anything happens to Yao Yan, I will definitely make sure your entire mountain range is flipped over!”
As she said these words, Yun Zhi moved to rush out of the cave. However, at this time, a figure suddenly stumbled in from outside the cave.
“Yao Yan? Are you alright?” Seeing the figure, Yun Zhi’s good-looking face burst into happiness as she ran forward to inquire about his well-being.
“Miss, please don’t go out anymore. If more Magic Beasts comes, I will really die.” Covered in blood, Xiao Yan let out a bitter smile as his vision turned black and his body fell to the ground.
In the moment when he fell, Xiao Yan could vaguely feel that he seemed to have fallen into a soft and warm embrace……