Jiang Huai finally pulled his quilt tight and fell asleep in the deep of the night.
In his dream, he once again saw the scene he had witnessed before: a snow-white fox girl under the moonlight, scarlet blood, a crazed laugh, tightly curled toes, and a convulsing, trembling body. When Jiang Huai woke from his dream once more, he opened his eyes, and the sky outside the window had already brightened.
The Fan Hua Secret Realm had not yet opened. Jiang Huai got up, wanting to bathe in the bathhouse and change into a new set of clothes. When he opened the door, he saw Su Qingyi practicing her sword in the courtyard.
Today, Su Qingyi was wearing a green Daoist Robe, not as alluring and charming as the Qipao from yesterday. Her jet-black hair was simply draped down her back, her snow-white fox ears were fluffy, and the hem of her Daoist Robe reached her ankles. She wore white embroidered shoes and white socks that covered her ankles, and her fox tail behind her was fluffy.
The moment their eyes met, Jiang Huai pretended to be indifferent, as if everything he had seen last night was just a nightmare and nothing had happened. Su Qingyi’s eyes remained as cold and aloof as ever, her demeanor as if nothing had happened.
“I’m going to bathe and change, and I’ll be back soon.”
Su Qingyi nodded gently.
Jiang Huai quickly changed his clothes and walked out of the courtyard. Su Qingyi was still practicing her sword, but when Jiang Huai looked at her, her sword energy seemed to have gained a bit more killing intent, as if hinting at something to Jiang Huai.
Jiang Huai was actually quite skilled at keeping secrets. He didn’t have a habit of courting death for no reason.
He took out the jerky and Spirit Fruit he had with him and ate a couple of bites for his breakfast. Su Qingyi stopped practicing her sword and said softly, “Follow me.”
Jiang Huai followed behind her, watching her fox tail sway behind her Daoist Robe. Su Qingyi had given him a very aloof impression before, at most she was charming in her figure. But after witnessing the scene last night, strange thoughts kept popping into Jiang Huai’s mind.
So he knocked himself hard on the head again.
The Fan Hua Secret Realm was outside the Imperial City in the Western Region, but not too far away. The two walked in silence at first. As they walked, Su Qingyi slowly began to speak, explaining the arrangements for the Fan Hua Secret Realm to Jiang Huai.
“The Fan Hua Secret Realm is divided into three areas. The First Area contains Demonic Beasts below the Fourth Realm, the Second Area contains Demonic Beasts between the Fourth and Sixth Realms, and the Third Area contains beasts above the Seventh Realm, including some Eighth Realm Demonic Beasts. These Demonic Beasts are almost all extremely ferocious and bloodthirsty, and our flesh and blood would be a novel taste to them. Therefore, you must be extremely careful in the Secret Realm and do not leave my side.”
Her expression was calm and serene, but her words were full of a sense of security. Jiang Huai was not opposed to relying on others, so he nodded very readily. Su Qingyi continued, “The Fan Hua Secret Realm will be open for a total of five days. We will explore the Second Area. If we cannot find the Snow Velvet Flower then, I will go to the Third Area alone to look for you.”
Jiang Huai was stunned for a moment, then softly said after a moment, “Together?”
Su Qingyi shook her head. “If we encounter danger, I have my own ways to escape. If you are by my side, it will only bring trouble.”
This could be roughly translated as, “Don’t be a drag and cause trouble.”
Jiang Huai hesitated for a moment, unable to think of a retort, and said, “Then if we can’t find it in the Second Area, let’s just forget it.”
Su Qingyi’s willingness to help him was clearly related to the letter of introduction from Jiang Zhi. Jiang Huai could not so easily accept Jiang Zhi’s favor and put Su Qingyi in danger for his own matters.
Su Qingyi was silent for a moment, then softly said, “We’ll talk about it when the time comes.”
The two stopped talking and walked to the outskirts of the Imperial City. Many Fox Clan cultivators were already waiting in the Fan Hua Secret Realm. Jiang Huai saw Su Qiang again. Su Qiang was responsible for assisting in the opening of the Fan Hua Secret Realm. Upon seeing Su Qingyi and Jiang Huai arrive, Su Qiang slowly spoke to the Fox Clan cultivators who were entering together, saying that the Human Clan cultivator in front of them was a distinguished guest of the Fox Clan, and that if they could offer assistance in the Secret Realm, they should help him as much as possible.
This remark made Jiang Huai feel overwhelmed with gratitude. The gazes of a group of fox girls fell upon Jiang Huai. At this moment, Jiang Huai felt as if he were standing in some kemonomimi party. The fox girls in front of him were all charming and beautiful. Although their appearances were not as stunning and alluring as Su Qingyi and Su Qiang, their figures were all very alluring, and they were dressed more revealingly than each other. They wore only small tops that wrapped their chests and hip-hugging skirts and pants. The porcelain-white skin made Jiang Huai’s eyes not know where to look.
After Su Qiang gave some more instructions regarding the Fan Hua Secret Realm, she finally opened it. Su Qingyi extended her hand to Jiang Huai. Jiang Huai gently held her slender, soft palm and was led by her into the vortex of the Secret Realm. Immediately, his vision turned dark. After a brief moment of dizziness, the two entered the Fan Hua Secret Realm.
…………………………
What met his eyes was a forest.
The two were teleported by the vortex to the edge of a river. The surrounding vegetation was lush, with ancient trees reaching for the sky. Su Qingyi had entered the Fan Hua Secret Realm before, so she said calmly, “This is the First Area, and there’s no need to explore it too much. We need to enter the Second Area within a day to avoid wasting unnecessary time.”
Jiang Huai nodded gently and then followed her, beginning to leap through the grass and trees. This was the fastest way to travel. Riding a sword was not suitable in the Secret Realm; the commotion caused by sword riding could easily attract a lot of trouble for the two of them.
However, even with this mode of travel, Jiang Huai and Su Qingyi encountered several waves of attacks from Ferocious Beasts along the way. Jiang Huai had ventured into many secret realms in the Eastern Region before. The secret realms in the Eastern Region also had many Ferocious Beasts, but most of them were not as ferocious as those in the Fan Hua Secret Realm. Even when injured by Su Qingyi’s sword, they were relentless. On the contrary, their blood made them more excited, and they would not rest until they died by Su Qingyi’s sword.
Along the way, Jiang Huai had no chance to make a move; his stamina was used entirely to keep up with Su Qingyi’s steps. They entered the Secret Realm at noon, and by dusk, the Ferocious Beasts that ambushed or actively sought to fight them along the way gradually became stronger. Su Qingyi slowed her pace and said softly, “Night is the hunting time for many Ferocious Beasts. Let’s find a cave to rest and proceed tomorrow.”
Jiang Huai nodded obediently. Su Qingyi quickly found a suitable cave by a waterfall. She cleared it a little with her sword and spiritual energy, and it became a relatively suitable resting place. Jiang Huai hunkered down by the cave wall, took out the dry rations and jerky he had prepared earlier, and started eating. Su Qingyi sat at the edge of the cave, concealing the cave entrance with vines. She sat cross-legged, quietly guarding the place.
“Do you want to eat something?” Jiang Huai asked cautiously.
Su Qingyi shook her head.
Jiang Huai had no choice but to lower his head and continue eating his own dinner. He always felt that the atmosphere at this moment was subtle. He felt like a baby being protected by Su Qingyi, which made him slightly unaccustomed.
“Eat until you’re full, then go to sleep early. I’ll stand guard. I’ll wake you up when it’s time to leave tomorrow morning.”
“Should we take turns guarding the night?”
“I have spiritual energy, so I can go five days without sleep.” Su Qingyi shook her head, refusing Jiang Huai’s good intentions. Her voice was full of authority, like a command, leaving Jiang Huai no room to refute. He had no choice but to quietly take out the bedding he had with him, wrap himself in the quilt, and close his eyes. The cave was very quiet, with the sound of spring water dripping through the cracks in the rocks.
Other than that, there was only the sound of their breathing.
Su Qingyi closed her eyes to rest, sensing every movement in the surroundings and recovering the spiritual energy consumed while killing Demonic Beasts during the day. She was long accustomed to tranquility and solitude and felt no discomfort. It was Jiang Huai who had trouble sleeping.
The more Jiang Huai told himself he should sleep obediently, the more he couldn’t sleep. He had expected this trip to the Fan Hua Secret Realm to be somewhat dangerous, but this journey was currently much easier than he had imagined. The dangers had been shared by others, which always made Jiang Huai feel a sense of unease he couldn’t quite explain.
Even though he said it was fine to rely on others, Jiang Huai felt a sense of guilt he couldn’t quite explain when he thought about troubling others.
Just as he was feeling restless, a ding-ding-ding sound suddenly rang in his ear.
【Stop pretending. I know you’re lonely and tossing and turning, unable to sleep. The scene you saw with Su Qingyi last night is still lingering in your mind. You’re curious about the fox girl in front of you. It’s time to unleash your superb flirting skills, melt the fox girl’s cold heart with a few words, and make her obediently snuggle into your arms, willing to offer herself to you.】
【Mission Objective: Obtain the breakthrough material for the sixth level of the Overlord Art from Su Qingyi.】
【Mission Reward: True Nine-tailed Fox Clan Bloodline x1, Experience Scroll x5.】
Here it comes again, this damn system.
Jiang Huai pulled the quilt over his head, pretending not to see the system prompt. Instead, he opened his System Backpack to check his current inventory. He had 12 advanced Experience Scrolls, which could temporarily raise his cultivation to the second level of Void Refinement. However, in the Fan Hua Secret Realm, where the Sixth Realm was prevalent, this could only be considered a life-saving resource, not enough to walk around freely.
He usually felt that cultivation didn’t matter, and he just wanted to muddle through his days, neither competing fiercely with others nor seeking power and admiration. He always felt that there would be plenty of time in the future, so he had never paid much attention to cultivation. Now, Jiang Huai felt a tiny bit of regret.
If only he had agreed to Bai Jin’s suggestion again that night before coming to the Fox Clan and used her first milk to break through to the sixth level of the Overlord Art, then with the sixth level of the Overlord Art and the second level of Void Refinement cultivation, he would have been able to fight even some low-level Seventh Realm Demonic Beasts. But unfortunately, he had refused because it felt awkward.
Previously, he had always restrained himself with the laws and customs of the Human Clan. These days in the Monster Clan, he seemed to have gradually understood some things. The laws and customs of the Human Clan had their merits, but the ideas of the Monster Clan were not entirely wrong. As long as the outcome was good, the process seemed to be less important. Instead, being indecisive and struggling would only torment oneself repeatedly and trap oneself.
