The following few days were rather uneventful.
However, one thing worth mentioning was that the compensation Li Qingci provided indeed matched her promise. One was a high-quality Yunling Dan; the other was a recuperation treatment performed by her and several other Soul Domain experts. The effects of the recuperation were quite good. When Wu Yan left the room feeling refreshed, her soul was much more stable than before. At the very least, she could once again use her soul to attack.
Before leaving, Lin Wan’er came specifically to see Wu Yan off.
“So you’re leaving today?”
“Yeah.” Wu Yan nodded. During her time in Medicine King Valley, aside from the investigation, what she had done most was test medicines for Lin Wan’er. Just seeing Lin Wan’er made an involuntary mix of sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty tastes rise in Wu Yan’s mouth.
Seeing Wu Yan nod, Lin Wan’er couldn’t help but droop her head in disappointment. “Sigh, I still had so many medicines I wanted you to try, and now you’re leaving.”
Even Wu Yan couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her mouth slightly upon hearing Lin Wan’er’s words.
Ji Xuerou noticed Wu Yan’s helplessness and deliberately inserted herself into their conversation. “Daoist Lin, if there’s nothing else, we’ll be going back now. Wu Yan still has classes to attend when she returns.” With that, Ji Xuerou took Wu Yan’s hand and led her toward the Spirit Boat.
“Wait!” Lin Wan’er struck a pose as if begging a fellow cultivator to stay, loudly stopping the two of them. Then she rushed up to Wu Yan, pulled out a large cloth pouch, and shoved it into Wu Yan’s arms. “Senior Sister Wu, take this back! It’s a gift from me!”
“Thank you for your kindness, Wan’er.” Wu Yan stored the cloth pouch into her Storage Bag and sincerely thanked Lin Wan’er. Weighing the pouch in her hand, Wu Yan already had a guess about its contents.
On the Spirit Boat, Xia Lingshuang’s calm voice sounded out. “That should be enough for farewells.”
“Well then, we’ll be off. Goodbye, Wan’er.”
Xia Lingshuang had spoken, so Lin Wan’er could only watch the Spirit Boat sail into the distance.
“What’s wrong, little Wan’er? Can’t bear to part with them? Or with her?” A light laugh sounded by her ear. Unbeknownst to her, Ning Xiyan had come to her side.
“Ning Jie.” Faced with Ning Xiyan, Lin Wan’er lacked the good temper she had shown Wu Yan. “Did you do something?”
“Oh?” Ning Xiyan deliberately looked confused. “What are you talking about, little Wan’er? I don’t understand.”
“Whatever you plan to do, Ning Jie, don’t set your sights on her.” Lin Wan’er’s tone was very calm, but Ning Xiyan knew Lin Wan’er well. This was a sign she was angry.
But Ning Xiyan didn’t back down either. A red mist rose up, surrounding the two of them. “And what if I insist?”
“I will make you regret it.”
This was the first time Ning Xiyan had seen Lin Wan’er look so serious. Even when she was a child and Ning Xiyan had taken her favorite toy, she hadn’t worn such an expression.
The red mist dissipated, and a smile reappeared on Ning Xiyan’s face. “Aiya, I’m just teasing you~ Since little Wan’er has said so, of course I won’t touch her~ Besides, I never had my sights set on her in the first place~”
That’s what she said, but whether it was true or false, only she herself knew.
Inside the Spirit Boat.
“How is your soul feeling?” Xia Lingshuang asked.
“It’s already a lot better.” Wu Yan answered. Xia Lingshuang’s concern gave Wu Yan a flattered feeling, much like the feeling she had when she heard her say, “Who allowed you to touch my disciple?”
“That’s good.”
In the past, conversations with Wu Yan had either been filled with preconceptions or guarded reluctance. So, now that she had the chance to speak normally with Wu Yan, she actually felt a sense of helplessness.
“Oh, right.” After a moment of silence, something suddenly occurred to Xia Lingshuang. She took out a strangely shaped spirit plant and handed it to Wu Yan. “This is compensation from Valley Lord Li.”
The spiritual power emanating from this spirit plant was exceptionally vast. Its tip was divided into four petals, each with a different shape. The tail end bore root-like tendrils that, even though they had lost their soil bed, still wriggled.
“Oh? Now this is a good thing!” Wu Yan, knowledgeable and experienced, recognized it at a glance. “Four Spirit Grass. It has tenacious vitality and immense spiritual power. It’s a good thing that can help a Golden Core stage cultivator condense a perfect Nascent Soul!”
In her previous life, Wu Yan had searched the world over for a Four Spirit Grass before advancing to the Nascent Soul stage, but she had never found one. She never expected Medicine King Valley to have such a treasure.
“With this, you’ll have an easier time when it’s your turn to advance to the Nascent Soul stage!”
Knowing how precious this item was, Wu Yan didn’t take it lightly. After receiving it, she sincerely thanked Xia Lingshuang. “Thank you, Master.”
“Don’t thank me. You earned it through your own strength.”
After Wu Yan left Xia Lingshuang’s room, Ji Xuerou, who had been waiting outside for a long time, immediately came to her side.
“So? Elder Xia didn’t give you a hard time, did she?”
Wu Yan shook her head and replied softly, “No.”
“That’s good, then.”
The return journey was the same as the journey there. Perhaps because they had suffered two major defeats at the hands of Wu Yan, the Demonic Cultivators did not make any rash moves, even upon hearing the news of Wu Yan’s group returning to the sect.
After dinner, as Wu Yan sat at her desk admiring the night scenery outside the window, Wu Yan couldn’t help but ask the question that had been bugging her. “Hey, you dead wood. Why are you so fixated on that Ouroboros symbol?”
Just the promise from Ning Xiyan that she would tell her about that Ouroboros symbol was enough to make this dead wood risk her life.
“It might be related to you.” Wu Yan did not hide it. She dropped the bombshell right from the start.
“Related to Benzuo? Don’t be ridiculous! Benzuo has never even seen this thing before!” Wu Yan’s pair of red eyes were wide open, her expression clearly saying, ‘Don’t talk nonsense.’
“It’s the truth.” Wu Yan picked up a brush and drew on a piece of white paper: a giant snake, shaped like the figure eight, with its head and tail connected.
Wu Yan could never forget it. When she was exploring Wu Yan’s memories, there had been a gargantuan creature hidden in the depths of her Conscious Starry Sky, its full form impossible to see clearly. Wu Yan had reason to suspect that it was even related to Wu Yan’s rebirth.
“Believe it or not.” Wu Yan rolled up the piece of white paper, dropped it by the desk, and turned around to go to sleep.
The next day, as the first rays of dawn appeared, Wu Yan heard a commotion ringing in her ears.
“Elder Xia and the others are back!”
“And Senior Sister is here too!”
“Sigh, too bad Sister Lin didn’t come back.”
Wu Yan dressed and went out onto the deck. Unbeknownst to her, they had already arrived back at the Piaomiao Sect. Familiar scenery, familiar sounds. Though she had only been gone for less than half a month, it still gave Wu Yan an unreal feeling, as if an age had passed.
She had truly experienced too many things on this trip. First, the Demonic Cultivator attack, then the undercover investigation, and finally the Demonic Cultivator invasion. She could feel that, in some way, she was inextricably linked to this group of Demonic Cultivators.
But for now, she just wanted to put aside those trivial matters and peacefully return to her room for a good rest.
“Let’s go.” The sunlight shone on her brilliant golden hair, making it exceptionally dazzling.
“Yeah.”