Wu Yan had lost count of how many times she had fallen unconscious. All she knew was that whenever she tried to prevent something from happening, she would sink into a long, peaceful sleep.
“Up already?”
A cool voice sounded in her ear, rousing her from her chaotic thoughts. Wu Yan opened her eyes groggily and found herself lying in bed. Ji Xuerou sat on the edge of the bed, her arms crossed, her Glazed Pupils reflecting Wu Yan’s slightly pale face.
“Have we arrived at Medicine King Valley?”
The room’s decor was different from that on the Spirit Boat, and Ji Xuerou looked to be in quite good condition. Ji Xuerou helped her sit up on the bed.
“Mm-hmm.” She nodded and picked up a bowl of medicinal broth from the bedside table, which exuded a delicate gardenia fragrance.
“How many days?”
“A day and a half.”
The conversation between her and Ji Xuerou was natural, as if it were meant to be. Ji Xuerou scooped up a spoonful of the medicinal broth, blew on it, and brought it to Wu Yan’s lips. “The Medicine King Valley Master specially prepared this medicinal broth for you. Want to try it?”
The spoon pressed against Wu Yan’s lips, and the sweet medicinal broth flowed into her mouth through the gap. Ji Xuerou’s attitude was quite firm, and since Wu Yan couldn’t muster any strength at the moment, she had no choice but to open her mouth and let Ji Xuerou feed her.
“So, how is she?” After finishing the medicinal broth, Wu Yan wiped her lips and asked about her whereabouts.
The porcelain bowl clinked against the tray. Then Ji Xuerou spoke up: “How should I put it? We beat her half to death. Elder Xia killed one of the Three Corpses and heavily wounded another. The remaining one escaped by some unknown means.”
Wu Yan nodded in acknowledgment. The death of an Incarnation would bring backlash, and cultivating a new Incarnation would take time. This attack could be said to have severely depleted her vitality.
“That last move of yours was amazing.” Ji Xuerou brought the topic back to Wu Yan, referring to the Ferry of the Styx she had used at the end. “I’m not as good as you.”
Ji Xuerou’s words sounded quite modest, but from Wu Yan’s understanding of her over the past month or so, she was serious. Faced with Ji Xuerou’s praise, Wu Yan didn’t decline. “You can do it too.”
Ji Xuerou naturally understood what Wu Yan meant. The atmosphere fell into silence for a moment, but this had become a norm in their daily interactions. So Ji Xuerou quickly continued the topic: “Elder Xia is in the Reception Hall, and Daoist Lin has gone to report to the Medicine King Valley Master.”
The medicinal broth took effect quickly. Wu Yan felt a warm current surge through her body, and then she got out of bed and put on her clothes.
“Mm, how is your body, Xuerou?”
“My body is fine.” Ji Xuerou naturally turned around, giving Wu Yan some privacy. “It was just caused by excessive Spiritual Root strain. Taking some pills and resting for a day should help.”
After the rustling sounds, Wu Yan finished putting on the light green robe kindly gifted by Medicine King Valley, and Ji Xuerou happened to turn around. Though they had only been together for a little over a month, their rapport was like that of decades-old friends.
“It suits you.”
Wu Yan’s appearance was already beautiful, her ink-black waist-length hair complementing her cool temperament. The robe’s cuffs and collar were adorned with delicate silver threads, and the main body was woven from top-quality dyed silk. Under the occasional light that streamed in, it made her look even more ethereal and otherworldly.
For some reason, the sight before her made Ji Xuerou’s heartbeat unconsciously quicken, and a strange emotion welled up in her heart.
‘Strange, what is this feeling?’ Ji Xuerou placed her right hand on her chest, trying to calm the turmoil inside.
“Xuerou, what’s wrong?” Seeing that Ji Xuerou’s condition was unusual, Wu Yan leaned in to check on her, but Ji Xuerou actually took two steps back when she saw Wu Yan approaching.
The faint fragrance of lilies wafted from Wu Yan. Ji Xuerou only said, “I have something to do, I’ll take my leave,” and then left.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
A disdainful clicking sound rang out after Ji Xuerou left. Wu Yan (Inner) appeared beside Wu Yan, still dressed in a red gown. “Someone sure is popular.”
“Wu Yan (Inner), what did you mean when you said that Ji Xuerou from your previous life could do it?” Wu Yan had always been bothered by what Wu Yan (Inner) said about Ji Xuerou’s previous life. According to her, she had seen Ji Xuerou’s technique of Multiple Spiritual Power Coexistence in that life. “Could this method of boosting strength cause irreversible damage to her body?”
“You blockhead, do you have to care about that person in front of me? Do you even have me in your eyes? You—” Wu Yan (Inner)’s voice rose, her words full of anger. “Do you know that the enmity between her and me is almost as great as the enmity between me and Shen Qingzhou, that little white-eyed wolf?! And you still dare to care about her in front of me! You—”
Before Wu Yan (Inner) could finish, Wu Yan interrupted her: “Yan, she is my friend.” Her tone was quite gentle, like an adult coaxing a child.
Wu Yan (Inner) fell silent, not only because of Wu Yan’s words “she is my friend,” but more importantly—this was the first time Wu Yan had called her “Yan” instead of “Wu Yan (Inner).”
“Even so, she’s your friend. Then what am I to you?”
“You are the most important person to me.” Wu Yan’s tone was solemn, and her words made Wu Yan (Inner)’s heart race.
A look of surprise froze on Wu Yan (Inner)’s face. Now she couldn’t even get angry anymore. Could such words really come from Wu Yan, that blockhead who often ignored her and was always bustling about whenever her junior sister, master, or friends had problems? This really was a miracle—the blockhead had finally wised up.
“Hey, blockhead, have you been possessed?”
“No, I’m telling the truth. At least you should know that I never lie to you.”
This was indeed true. The blockhead had angered her and scolded her, but she had never deceived her.
“Hmph, then you have to promise me one condition.” Wu Yan (Inner)’s voice turned sullen.
“What condition?”
“In the future, you must fulfill one wish of mine.”
“It can’t be against heaven or reason.”
“Hmph, I haven’t fallen that low.” Wu Yan (Inner) snorted coldly and began to answer Wu Yan’s question.
“When I fought her in my previous life, her cultivation was at the peak of the Soul Transformation Stage. At that time, she could accommodate six types of spiritual power simultaneously. If I hadn’t just stepped into the Body Integration Stage and had superior skills, I would have been killed by her. Ji Xuerou’s upper limit is far beyond this. With her current Golden Core Stage cultivation, her upper limit would be accommodating three types of spiritual power at once.”
“So, Xuerou’s body won’t have any hidden ailments?”
“You underestimate that big light bulb.” Wu Yan (Inner) waved her hand and curled her lip. “Why do you think so many people regard her as a child of Heaven, a reincarnation of the Heavenly Dao? Just one of the Glazed Pupils or the Glass Sword Heart alone is a miracle that an ordinary person could never achieve in nine lifetimes, let alone someone who possesses both!”
“According to the information I got from those Daoist priests I captured later, if the big light bulb’s cultivation reaches Body Integration, she would be able to absorb eight types of spiritual power simultaneously. By then, even an immortal descending to the mortal world might not be able to defeat her. But I think those Daoist priests are talking nonsense. If she were really that powerful, why would they have sent her to fight me back then? They could have just kept her hidden.”
“Eight types of spiritual power?”
“Right, metal, wood, water, fire, earth, lightning, light, and one type of spiritual power they themselves didn’t know about.”
“They themselves didn’t know?”
“That’s right. Anyway, until that big light bulb went missing and her whereabouts became unknown, no one ever found that eighth type of spiritual power they talked about.”
Originally, she had only wanted to ask about the hidden ailment caused by overdrawing spiritual power, but suddenly she had obtained a major secret about Ji Xuerou, which was quite surprising. Since she had confirmed that Ji Xuerou was indeed fine, she was relieved.
Wu Yan took out a nearly transparent thread from her Storage Bag. It was the Medicine King Valley’s unique tool, the Pulling Thread.
Next, she would have to investigate whether there were Demon Sect spies within Medicine King Valley.