92 Go to sleep
What, what, what!
Jiang Huai’s eyes were dim, looking at Bai Li in front of him. This time, her tone had a bit of an older sister’s demeanor, as if he were a pure young boy being teased by an older sister.
“Hurry and bathe, then go to sleep.” Jiang Huai said hurriedly.
“Accompany me for a swim.” Bai Li plunged into the lake again. Her snow-white and tender body swayed in the water. The lake was very clear. Jiang Huai helplessly followed her, playing with her in the lake for a while. Only then did Bai Li finally come ashore. Jiang Huai picked up the bath towel and wiped her body. After wiping her, Bai Li put on her nightgown. Jiang Huai put on his clothes one by one and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Good, Jiang Xiaohu, you’ve barely passed the test!
The two returned to the cave. A bonfire was lit in the cave, and their clothes were hung on a rack made of branches. Bai Li was wearing a white sling nightgown. The shoulder strap of the nightgown had slipped down to her shoulder again. She was too lazy to pull it up. She sat on a bluestone, her white and tender little feet raised, roasting by the bonfire, with a faint mist rising.
Jiang Huai, on the side, was counting the spirit stone tickets. So far, they had harvested 48,000 spirit stones from entering this cave. He counted out 24,000 tickets and handed them to Bai Li. Bai Li accepted them. Jiang Huai cautioned from the side, “Eat, drink, and buy some pretty dresses.”
“Mm-hmm.” Bai Li put away the spirit stone tickets. After her body had warmed up from the fire, she burrowed into the quilt. Jiang Huai roasted by the fire for a while longer before returning to the quilt. The quilt was warm now, and Bai Li still had the fragrance of bath flower dew on her body.
Bai Li leaned closer and gently hugged him. The two slept in each other’s arms, and the night passed without incident.
…
The next day.
It was raining continuously in the secret realm.
The world rules within the secret realm were basically the same as the outside world. It was normal for it to be sunny or rainy, but the sun and moon were illusory, constructed by the Ninth Realm Immortal Venerable in this small world. This rainy day was not a good omen.
When Jiang Huai woke up, Bai Li was flicking him with her fingertips.
Jiang Huai stared directly at her face until a hint of guilt appeared on Bai Li’s face. She stuck out her tongue innocently at Jiang Huai, “I was curious.”
“…” Jiang Huai got up helplessly. “Let’s go. We’ll spend another day in the second area, and then we’ll speed up to the first area.”
“Okay.” Bai Li and he ate their Breath Concealing Pills for the day. Bai Li used spiritual qi to block the rain falling around them and began to move through the dense forest in front of them.
The further they went, the more ferocious the ferocious beasts became. Jiang Huai seemed to vaguely sense a faint smell of blood in the rain. The ferocious beasts in the secret realm today were very savage. Some ferocious beasts were not even hunting for food but out of sheer bloodlust, hunting indiscriminately in the dense forest. When Jiang Huai passed by, he had already encountered two cultivators who had fallen into misfortune, their bodies gnawed to pieces.
Jiang Huai took the Storage Rings from their corpses, took the spirit stones, and dug a pit to bury them.
This was also a tacit agreement in the cultivation world. If one encountered a cultivator whose body was left in the wilderness, one could take their Storage Rings, but one should also bury them on the spot.
It was only then that he vaguely felt the cruelty of the path of cultivation. His path of cultivation had always been smooth sailing for so many years. These rogue cultivators were also devoted to seeking the Dao, but since they had no background and no astonishing talent, they could only gamble with their lives to stand out among thousands of cultivators.
Jiang Huai looked back at Bai Li. Bai Li’s eyes were still bright, as if she hadn’t been moved by anything, but Jiang Huai still felt a sense of inexplicable unease.
“Why are you staring at me?” Bai Li blinked innocently.
“No, I just thought it would be very dangerous for you to explore the secret realm alone when I’m not around.”
“Danger and opportunity coexist. In the end, who can truly become a Tenth Realm Immortal Venerable and live as long as heaven and earth? It’s better to die in a secret realm than to be a tool for breeding little snakes in the Snake Clan. I’m not afraid.” Bai Li’s tone was quite carefree, and then she smiled, “I’m not afraid, what are you afraid of?”
“Worrying.”
“How can a grown man be so indecisive? If you were in our Monster Clan, not many girls would like you. Most girls in our Monster Clan like dominant personalities.”
“…” Jiang Huai was speechless. Looking at the smile on Bai Li’s lips, he also chuckled.
The two walked through the dense forest for another day with the help of the Breath Concealing Pills. They had encountered a particularly precious Heavenly rank spirit medicine, the Ink Mulberry Flower, but the guardian of the Ink Mulberry Flower was a Fourth Level Transcendant Fire Demon Lion. Jiang Huai calculated the risk in his heart and gave up. He had to save his remaining fifty percent soul power for the Dragon Blood Spirit Flower later.
He was never greedy, and Bai Li listened to him. The two continued to move forward and reached the boundary line near the First Area. The weather in the First Area was different from the Second Area. At this moment, it was snowing heavily in the First Area. The valleys in front of them were covered with heavy snow, and snowflakes covered everything. Jiang Huai and Bai Li found a cave to serve as their resting place for the night.
Jiang Huai lit a bonfire, and Bai Li stood by the side. The black qipao on her body was lifted to her waist. Her fingertips were hooking the black stockings at her waist, pulling them down to her thighs. She sat on the bluestone and took off her stockings, then said innocently to Jiang Huai, “I need to change into new ones.”
So Jiang Huai gave her another pair of brand new ones. However, compared to the previous pair, these were light gray and slightly oily, and silkier. Bai Li put them on again, lifted her calf, and slightly spread her toes. Looking at the socks that wrapped her white and tender little feet, the corners of her lips curved slightly.
“I’ve discovered something,” Bai Li suddenly said.
“Discovered what?”
“You’re a pervert who likes girls’ little feet.” Bai Li blinked innocently. “You just peeked, I saw it.”
? Fishing for evidence
The corner of Jiang Huai’s eye twitched slightly. “I just glanced at it.”
“Feeling guilty, hahahaha.” Bai Li laughed so hard she couldn’t straighten her waist, her white and tender little feet swinging non-stop. Jiang Huai helplessly leaned into the quilt, covered himself with the small quilt, and prepared to sleep soundly. Bai Li came over and burrowed into the quilt, but this time her thighs also came over to clip his waist, rubbing against his waist. Jiang Huai lowered his head, sniffing the faint fragrance on her body. “Why do you feel like you’re getting restless?”
“Not really.” Bai Li thought seriously. “I just suddenly want to be closer to you.”
“Why?”
“Maybe because what you said during the day seems reasonable. What if I die in some secret realm next time? We’ll never see each other again.”
“Don’t say that.” Jiang Huai extended a finger and gently blocked her lips. Bai Li bit his fingertip lightly. “I was just saying, so I want to get closer. I like your scent.”
“Mm?”
“It’s not entirely that. It’s just that I feel at ease by your side. Maybe it’s because you’re too powerful and know a bit about everything. By your side, I don’t have to think about many things, and I feel very at ease.” Bai Li’s cheek rested on his chest. Jiang Huai hesitated for a moment, then gently hugged her back and patted her softly. “Sleep well.”
Bai Li didn’t say anything else. She closed her eyes and soon fell asleep.
…
The next day.
There were only three days left in the secret realm. Jiang Huai and Bai Li prepared to enter the First Area for exploration.
In the First Area, there were already ferocious beasts that could detect their presence. Most high-level ferocious beasts had strong territorial awareness. Once they detected a strange creature intruding into their territory, they might become enraged. They would first try to drive them away with roars and warnings. If the warning was useless, they would leave their nests and tear the intruders to shreds.
It was snowing heavily in the First Area. Their bodies were hidden in the snow. They hadn’t encountered any terrifying ferocious beasts along the way. However, Jiang Huai vaguely saw a Winter Snow Lotus on a distant mountain.
The Winter Snow Lotus grew in cold ponds and was a rootless spirit flower. It could survive simply by being near the water of the cold pond. The flower fragrance it released had the effect of calming the mind and soothing the soul.
“I want to pick that flower.” Jiang Huai stopped and gazed at the Winter Snow Lotus from afar, speaking softly.
“Okay.” Bai Li nodded. Jiang Huai began to carefully observe the traces on the rocks around the Winter Snow Lotus, trying to infer what kind of ferocious beast was guarding it. However, the heavy snow covered everything. After a moment of hesitation, Jiang Huai said softly, “You retreat to the Second Area first and find a safe place. I’ll steal it and come find you. We’ll contact each other with the Sound Transmission Jade later.”
Bai Li was stunned. She tilted her head and looked at him with some dissatisfaction.
“No, I plan to use Mirror Flower to create a soul domain around me to conceal my aura. I’ll run away after picking it. You run further away, and I’ll come find you later.”
“Okay.” Bai Li nodded gently. She knew Jiang Huai’s personality well, so she didn’t ask any more questions. She turned and slowly walked away. Jiang Huai began to climb the rock face. He wrapped himself in soul power, almost completely erasing his aura. When he reached the mountaintop, he saw the Winter Snow Lotus growing in the cold pond, and also saw a ten-meter-long white giant python coiled by the cold pond and under the mountain rock.
The giant python seemed to be hibernating.
This giant python was at least at the Fifth Level Transcendent cultivation. Fortunately, it was asleep. Jiang Huai tiptoed closer, pushed the Mirror Flower domain to its limit, and reached out. The moment he touched the Winter Snow Lotus, he put it into his System Backpack. Jiang Huai didn’t even dare to look back. In an instant, he unleashed all his speed and left. Just as he reached the foot of the mountain, he looked up and saw that the giant python had woken up and was swarming around like crazy, looking for its Winter Snow Lotus.
But the Winter Snow Lotus was in his Storage Backpack, and not the slightest aura leaked out. Jiang Huai quietly influenced the giant python’s perception with Mirror Flower and slipped away quickly. After half an hour, his strength was completely depleted. He contacted Bai Li with the Sound Transmission Jade. Bai Li had found a cave in the Second Area. The white python hadn’t sensed Jiang Huai’s aura and was rummaging around in its territory without leaving the First Area. They should be completely safe now.
Jiang Huai stumbled into the cave. Bai Li was sitting on a bluestone, resting her chin on her hand and looking at him.
“Did you get it?”
“I got it. The guardian was a giant python, and it hasn’t found me yet, hahahaha.” Jiang Huai was sweating profusely. His head was throbbing. He had consumed a lot of soul power in the past few days, first from drawing talismans, then from deterring the grey-clothed cultivator, and now by using Mirror Flower to steal the lotus. He had consumed seventy percent of his soul power, and it would take at least a month to replenish it slowly.
Seeing Jiang Huai smiling so happily, Bai Li’s lips curved slightly. She picked up a handkerchief and seriously wiped the sweat from Jiang Huai’s forehead. “You look very tired.”
“My soul power has been greatly depleted, and it recovers slowly. I only have thirty percent left, so I have to use it sparingly.” Jiang Huai said softly. Bai Li gently pinched his face and said softly, “Then you should sleep for a while?”
“Okay.”
They were already far away from the giant python, and with the Breath Concealing Pills, it shouldn’t chase them anymore. Bai Li gently patted her thigh and said softly, “Come.”
“Aren’t you going to sleep?”
“I’m not sleepy.” Bai Li looked at him innocently, so Jiang Huai put his head on her lap with peace of mind.
