97 Yan Zhen is Scared
With lingering apprehension, Yan Zhen and Long Ying spent half a day in the cave.
When Long Ying finally reverted back to her loli form, Yan Zhen breathed a sigh of relief. He extended his Spiritual Perception, scanning the volcano crater to see if any members of the top ten societies were still waiting.
He found only the Black Horn society members remaining, so he decided to wait a bit longer.
After all, with Long Ying back in her loli form, he felt no pressure being around her. He even patted her head as a reward.
After another half day, the Black Horn members also left.
Everyone was racing against time to cultivate. They couldn’t afford to waste any more time waiting for one Fire Spirit Crystal.
“They’re all gone. Let’s go too.”
“Okay~”
Yan Zhen enveloped himself in the Great Crimson Skyfire and jumped into the lava pool first. Long Ying circulated her power and followed closely behind.
Soon, they emerged from the lava pool. Looking up at the wide crater opening, they leaped out simultaneously, landing on the edge, lava dripping from their bodies.
Yan Zhen took out his communication talisman, first sending a message to the two girls letting them know he was safe, then he flew down the mountain with Long Ying.
He extended his Spiritual Perception, scanning a radius of nearly a thousand meters, carefully avoiding the members of the top ten societies, and successfully returned to the foothills, arriving back at the Yang Essence Pool they had occupied earlier.
However, the large pool, over ten meters in diameter, was nowhere to be seen.
Yan Zhen extended his Spiritual Perception again and found the area enveloped in a layer of Light Mystic Power. He immediately understood it was a Light Concealment Barrier created by Zi Xunyi.
Huangfu Wenqing had mentioned in her message that some annoying people had come to bother them, so they must have set this up.
As he thought this, the Light Concealment Barrier suddenly dissipated, and Zi Xunyi and Huangfu Wenqing emerged.
“You’re back.”
“Yan Zhen!”
Huangfu Wenqing rushed over and looked him up and down. “Are you alright?”
Yan Zhen smiled faintly. “Not only am I alright, but I also advanced. I’m a six-star Mystic Master now, just like you, Wenqing.”
Huangfu Wenqing’s lips curled upwards. “I reached seven-star yesterday.”
Ah, this…
Zi Xunyi looked at Long Ying. “Little Long Ying, how are you?”
Facing Zi Xunyi, Long Ying felt a bit guilty, but she figured that since Sister Xunyi hadn’t exposed her reborn identity, she must approve of her staying close to Yan Zhen in her loli form.
—Sister Xunyi is so nice! I wonder if Sister Cai Lian is reborn too? In my past life, Sister Cai Lian knew, hee hee~
“I’m fine. I even drank some delicious spirit milk.”
“That’s good.” Zi Xunyi didn’t ask about the spirit milk, her gaze shifting to Yan Zhen. Seeing him unharmed, she felt relieved. “Don’t be so reckless next time. The top ten societies are saying they’ll find the person who stole the crystal, and some suspect it was you.”
Yan Zhen grinned. “Doesn’t matter. I got what I wanted. Once I forge my sword, whoever comes looking for trouble will be crawling away.”
Zi Xunyi was curious. She hadn’t seen Yan Zhen’s greatsword yet. “What sword?”
“A sword forged from the Gold and Silver Fire Extreme Flame.” Yan Zhen was also looking forward to it. “You’ll see it soon—anyway, how’s your cultivation going?”
Both women indicated they were almost done.
“In that case, let’s leave then.”
The four agreed and left the Yang Polar Secret Realm together, half a day earlier than planned, but it still cost 500 points.
After swiping their cards, the elder on duty let them pass.
Stepping out of the Yang Polar Secret Realm, the cool air felt strange after the intense heat.
They were all still wearing summer clothes.
The four quickly returned to their residences.
Yan Zhen and Long Ying went back to the Grand Elder’s building, while Huangfu Wenqing surprisingly followed Zi Xunyi back to the cliffside building.
Zi Xunyi frowned. “Why are you following me?”
Huangfu Wenqing chuckled. “Didn’t you tell me to stay here? I’m just taking you up on your offer.”
“So you decided to be my servant?” Zi Xunyi retorted. “If you’re not clumsy, I might consider keeping you.”
“Don’t even think about it.” Huangfu Wenqing snorted. “But, as payment for staying here, I’ll do some cleaning.”
Ignoring whether Zi Xunyi agreed or not, she went up to the guest room on the third floor and closed the door.
Zi Xunyi immediately understood Huangfu Wenqing’s plan. It was closer to where Yan Zhen lived, and she could also monitor her and Yan Zhen.
Although she could kick her out, Zi Xunyi wasn’t that petty. Besides, she would soon be with Yan Zhen anyway—
“Ahem.”
Zi Xunyi composed herself, returned to her room, closed the door, and decided to take a long bath.
Back at the Grand Elder’s building, Yan Zhen and Long Ying first reported to Grand Elder Yu Yan, mainly showing off their cultivation progress.
“Six-star Mystic Master?” Grand Elder Yu Yan was surprised. Yan Zhen had just advanced to five-star a few days ago, and now he had advanced again. “Advancing too quickly isn’t necessarily a good thing. You need to properly temper your Mystic Power.”
Yan Zhen nodded. “Don’t worry, Grand Elder—ahem, Great Aunt. I plan to enter seclusion and consolidate my cultivation.”
“Good, that’s the right mindset.” Grand Elder Yu Yan was pleased with his attitude. “Xuan’er isn’t out of seclusion yet. I’ll inform you when she is.”
“Thank you, Great Aunt. Then I’ll go back now.”
“Go ahead.”
They returned to their room.
According to the script, after returning from the Yang Polar Secret Realm, Yan Zhen was supposed to bathe Long Ying. But thinking of her mature form, he felt it was inappropriate and told her to wash herself.
Then Long Ying would pad over to the bathroom, try to turn the faucet, break it, get soaked, come out pouting, and stare at him until he gave in.
Yan Zhen, amused and exasperated, would then take care of her.
The problem was, this Long Ying seemed to be reborn, not really a child.
“…”
Unsure what to do, Yan Zhen decided to follow the script anyway. Following the script was always the safest bet.
“Long Ying, go take a bath first. I’ll take you out for some delicious food afterward.”
“Zhenzhen, are you going to bathe together?”
“You go first.”
“Oh.”
Long Ying didn’t argue, took one of Yan Zhen’s shirts and a pair of his stretchable elephant-print boxer briefs from the wardrobe, and ran to the bathroom.
A moment later, a loud bang was heard, and water splashed out from the bathroom, soaking the floor. Long Ying emerged, soaking wet, blinked her large, innocent eyes, and said, “I broke it. What now?”
“…”
—That look in her eyes… it’s not the look of someone who accidentally broke something. It’s the look of someone whose scheme succeeded.
Yan Zhen felt a chill run down his spine but said, trying to sound calm, “Wait here. I’ll fix the faucet first.”
Long Ying’s eyes sparkled, and she nodded obediently.
“Okay~”
—No!
The word flashed through Yan Zhen’s mind, and he felt awkward again. He hadn’t reacted like this before. He must be too nervous.
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