Si Yan’s facial muscles twitched twice. He squeezed his fist threateningly and said, “Hehe, you actually dare to wear that for me to see? If you do that in front of your Junior Sister, your master will beat you so hard you won’t be able to get out of bed for half a month!”
Bai Lan quickly wrapped the clothes back up, sat down solemnly, and replied, “I shall obey my Master’s command.”
Bai Lan was clearly wary; after all, the previous lesson was still fresh in his memory.
But Si Yan still felt uneasy. He stepped forward, snatched the bundle of clothes from Bai Lan’s hands, wrapped it in a surge of Stellar Qi, and tossed it far away.
“Honored Master, I sewed those myself. They are clothes I like very much,” Bai Lan said unwillingly.
“If you dare go back and pick them up, believe it or not, I’ll spank you in front of your Junior Sister!”
Under the threat of Si Yan’s nearly terrifying gaze, Bai Lan had no choice but to give up.
As for Su Tao’er, she hadn’t been present because she had gone to the spring to wash her hands. She assumed the two were just playing around and that they simply had a good relationship, so she didn’t pay it much mind.
Once they finished their meal, Bai Lan packed away the utensils, and Si Yan’s group continued their descent.
They actually encountered quite a few herb gatherers along the way. At first, there was little interaction as everyone minded their own business. However, as Si Yan and his group continued to go deeper, someone spoke up to warn them, “Friends, you mustn’t go any further! Up ahead is the Bottomless Abyss; it’s a place of death. You can’t go forward!”
Si Yan and the veiled Bai Lan both gave their thanks, claiming they knew what they were doing and would not go too deep.
Although Si Yan had been here before, he had never gone this deep. It was only because the records stated the medicinal herbs he needed to collect grew in such a place that he had come.
Many cracks had appeared on the ground, along with half-man-sized caves. Nothing could be seen at the bottom; it was pitch black, and there was no telling how deep they went.
The Phantom Sea had once been the seabed, so its geological features were different from the outside world. Even Si Yan was a bit unsure.
Some cracks and holes were hidden beneath vegetation and soft soil. If one accidentally stepped into one and fell, the consequences would be unimaginable. Considering that Su Tao’er’s cultivation was still low, Si Yan activated his Magic Power to support her body from behind, reducing her effective weight.
A master’s concern was quite necessary.
At least Si Yan believed that building a bond with his disciples was the top priority.
Of course, when the three other fellows were learning their crafts, they had been pushed to their limits by Si Yan’s harshness.
By now, there were no more herb gatherers around them. The empty, dark space contained only the three of them.
Here, even those long-legged strange fish no longer existed. They seemed to be avoiding something, as they stopped appearing beyond a certain area.
Si Yan paused and realized there was no road ahead.
In front of them was a massive, natural cave!
Not only was it enormous, but it was also incredibly dark.
Si Yan rubbed his chin and said thoughtfully, “It should be around this area, right?”
He looked around and saw several split waterfalls above, constantly flowing into the abyss, making a *splash splash* sound.
After a moment, he smiled and said, “Found it. So it was over there.”
With that, Si Yan gestured to Bai Lan. “Lan’er, see that? Go and fetch it.”
Si Yan was naturally lazy. If there was something his disciple could do, he would never do it himself. Even when it came to fighting, if his disciple could take the field, he would never waste a shred of Magic Power or condense a single bit of Stellar Qi.
Obeying the order, Bai Lan leaped into the air. Stepping through the void, he landed on a spring that extended out over the abyss.
As Bai Lan plucked the item from below, Su Tao’er realized what it was.
It was a flame! A flame growing within that cold spring!
It burned slowly, blooming even while submerged in water.
“This is the Water-Fire Flower,” Si Yan explained. “It only grows in cold springs that do not freeze, and its environmental requirements are very high. Someone once collected one here, so I came to try my luck. Clearly, today isn’t looking too bad.”
The Water-Fire Flower absorbed the essence of the earth’s veins. It existed not only in cold springs but also in the deep sea, though the difficulty and trouble of harvesting it were very high.
Even in Si Yan’s eyes, this was considered a decent medicinal herb.
Bai Lan used an Array Technique to seal the Water-Fire Flower and returned to Si Yan’s side.
Si Yan took it and examined it. “Though this Water-Fire Flower hasn’t grown for many years, it’s about enough to be used for refining medicine.”
However, just then, a sound suddenly came from in front of the three of them.
Su Tao’er didn’t understand and thought there might be a strange fish in the grass.
But Si Yan and Bai Lan glanced at each other, both smiling harmlessly.
“Pavilion Master Si, I didn’t expect that you, like me, would come for this Water-Fire Flower.”
As the voice rang out, Feng Shangfang, who had met Si Yan’s group the previous day, appeared ahead with Luo Qingping and several others.
“Haha, Miss Su, we meet again!” Luo Qingping laughed. “Well? How have you considered it? Are you going to become Luo’s little Junior Sister?”