“You gave me such a precious gift, I can’t repay you.” Hua Jian rested her chin on both hands, looking melancholy. “It seems this little girl can only offer herself to you in return.”
Linglong reached out and gently flicked Hua Jian’s forehead.
“Who wants you to offer yourself?”
“I’m the Wanhua Saintess now, you know. Such a beautiful Wanhua Saintess offering herself can’t even repay the debt. Your appetite is too big, don’t you think?”
Hearing this, Linglong actually fell silent for a moment.
She remembered that she hadn’t let Hua Jian put on the Wanhua Saintess robes for her to see.
Although she disliked the clothes Wanhuagu prepared for Hua Jian, finding them too vulgar and seductive, she also wanted to see what Hua Jian looked like wearing them.
Criticism was necessary, but so was seeing. Ah, humans are truly contradictory creatures.
“Put on that outfit and let me see.”
“Which one… the Wanhua Saintess’s outfit?”
Huajian didn’t immediately realize which one Linglong meant.
After staring at Linglong for a long time and noticing her embarrassed expression, she finally guessed.
‘Who would’ve thought, Linglong, with your honest looks, you’re into this too!’
Huajian silently scorned Linglong’s perversion, but she considerately agreed to Linglong’s request and changed into the Saintess attire prepared for her by Wanhuagu.
As the dress went on, Huajian saw Linglong’s eyes go straight for a moment, but soon she shifted her attention to the fabric and details.
“Wanhuagu prepared this outfit for you—it’s extraordinary, even more exquisite and luxurious than the ceremonial robe I wear!”
Linglong gently ran her hand over Huajian’s clothes, her eyes wide. She had complaints about the design, but the craftsmanship and materials were flawless.
This was an incredibly precious Spiritual Garment, one that could probably still be worn even after Huajian advanced to Spirit Lord.
The blooming flowers formed from Spiritual Power on the surface could actually be touched.
When touched, they would dodge Linglong’s fingers on their own.
If Linglong pinched them a little harder, she could even pluck an entire flower from the dress.
It would bounce into her palm for her to examine and play with.
Once plucked, the Spiritual Power flowers would quickly wither from the outside in, turning into a cluster of colorful Spiritual Power particles.
They were also very beautiful…
Linglong couldn’t help wondering if Wanhuagu had put all their effort into the garment’s appearance and neglected to add any other effects.
The hem of the Spiritual Garment pushed the accumulation of materials to the extreme. Even Linglong had never seen such an exquisite hem.
Countless flowers bloomed on the small hem surface, constantly scattering translucent Spiritual Power petals downward.
And although the hem only covered Huajian’s knees, if you looked closely, you could see a layer of transparent Spiritual Power airflow extending from below the hem, completely protecting Huajian’s body.
This made Huajian’s lower body appear poorly protected, but in reality, it was protected just as well as her upper body.
“Prettier than the you in the painting,” Linglong murmured softly.
“The dress in the painting didn’t have that many special effects either.”
“The painter also made you uglier. She probably never truly saw you,” Linglong said, indicating that not only the dress was painted poorly—Huajian was also a victim.
But despite the dress’s splendor, Linglong still felt that the lower half was a bit plain and simple.
Pale thighs were certainly eye-catching, but they were too vulgar and didn’t match the gorgeous hem well.
She thought she should add some decorations to Huajian’s legs.
Something like body painting, to help Huajian blend better with the outfit.
“I don’t think that’s necessary. I won’t wear this dress often. Besides, I’m running away from Wanhuagu next year, so I definitely can’t keep wearing it…”
“Who says? It’s yours now. You can wear your own things whenever you want, can’t you?” Linglong snorted lightly, telling Huajian not to feel pressured. She should wear the dress whenever she wanted.
Wanhuagu abducted you for so long. Making you a Spiritual Garment as compensation—what’s wrong with that?
Could Huajian really bear to put away this dress, perhaps the only one of its kind in the world, and never wear it?
Thus questioned, Huajian started to think. Finally, she had to admit that the equipment was indeed tempting.
She would definitely keep wearing it after some modifications.
“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely help you figure it out!” Linglong promised Huajian with utmost seriousness that she would do her best to make Huajian even more beautiful.
“Wait, let me look at your leg shape first, and then test what the pigment looks like on your skin.”
“Alright… Huh?”
Slurp.
Scrape, scrape…
When Huajian and Linglong finished their time together and returned to the dining room Qian Feixue had mentioned, the two Qian sisters were already grilling meat beside a large stone slab.
The room was filled with the aroma of fat and seasonings, making everyone’s mouth water.
“You two spent over an hour together. Looks like you really had a lot to say.”
Qian Feixue flipped a slice of meat on the stone slab and gestured for them to come over.
“We waited for an hour and you didn’t come back, so Feixu and I started eating without you.”
Huajian didn’t mind. She was more curious about what meat Qian Feixue was grilling.
The aroma was really tempting.
“Lady Linglong, this is the tenderest meat from a Snow Velvet Deer. It’s refreshing and crisp. Please, have a taste.”
As soon as her little fan saw Linglong return, she immediately scurried over and began serving Linglong like a loyal attendant.
Faced with the enthusiastic little one, Linglong couldn’t bring herself to refuse.
She used Spiritual Power to take the slice of meat from Qian Feixu, put it in her mouth, and chewed a couple of times.
The taste was indeed different from any Spirit Beast meat she had eaten before.
Even though it was fully cooked, it still carried a cool, refreshing sensation, and the Spiritual Power contained within was quite impressive.
This probably came from a Spirit Beast in the Ling Wang Realm. Looking at the other ingredients on the table, they were all similar.
This meal could probably consume about a dozen Ling Wang Realm Spirit Beasts.
“This meat really is good. Pretty fresh,” Huajian said, sidling up to Qian Feixue and using vines to steal a few slices.
While stealing bites, she tilted her head to look at the unprepared meat slices.
They were full of Spiritual Power that hadn’t fully dissipated, meaning they had been taken from the Spirit Beast only a short time ago.
Eating them raw wouldn’t be much different from gnawing on the Spirit Beast directly.
“After all, we have to entertain honored guests from afar. Unfortunately, the Ling Emperor-level Spirit Beasts on the Ice Plain have been quite docile lately, or we would have used them to treat you.”
Qian Feixue chuckled twice, implying Linglong wasn’t lucky enough to eat better things.
Then she glanced at Huajian and pointed at a small wine cup beside her hand. “Can you drink?”
At the mention of alcohol, Huajian recalled the scene in Ascension City.
“Cough, I can handle a little bit, but just a little bit.”
This remark immediately made Qian Feixue’s eyes light up. As long as she could drink, quantity didn’t matter.
After all, once someone was drunk, they would leave on their own.
“Come, try the specialty Spirit Wine from our Northern Territory. I guarantee it’s different from the ones in the Central Continent.”
Qian Feixue hooked her arm around Huajian’s neck and flicked her finger.
A new small cup appeared in front of Huajian, containing a little less than half a cup of wine.
She was being cautious, in case Huajian was just putting up a brave front and was actually a lightweight.
But Huajian’s performance was better than she had expected. She drank the small cup of wine with ease.
“Hmm, this wine is quite strong…”
Okay, maybe not entirely easy.
But perhaps thanks to her improved physique after advancement, Huajian quickly recovered from the slight dizziness.
However, when Qian Feixue tried to refill her cup, she resolutely refused. She really didn’t like that intense taste.
As a “child,” she willingly went to sit at the kids’ table and drank juice with Qian Feixu.
But as soon as she got close, the poor girl quickly guarded her cup, insisting she wouldn’t share any of it with Huajian.
“I finally got to drink this! If you want some, order your own!”
“At home, she’s not usually allowed to drink this kind of juice. By the way, the wine you just had was made from these fruits.” Qian Feixue explained with a smile.
Spirit Wine was very common in the Northern Territory, but generally, children weren’t allowed to touch it.
For now, the juice Qian Feixu was drinking was a kind of borderline case—it had some flavor, but not much.
An ordinary person could drink several cups and maybe just get a little red in the face.
“Nice, let me have a taste.”
Huajian didn’t care about Qian Feixu’s protective stance. She extended a vine and inserted it into Qian Feixu’s cup, sucking out some juice.
Then she brought the juice-covered vine to her lips and gently sucked the juice into her mouth.
“The taste is indeed good—sweet but not cloying, with a naturally cool sensation…”
Compared to her evaluation of the juice, everyone present was more interested in how she drank it.
An ordinary person trying to steal Qian Feixu’s juice would grab the cup or the straw, right?
A more skilled person would use Spiritual Power to draw the juice out of the cup.
But Huajian’s method of using a vine as a straw was truly eye-opening. It was surprising to see a Wood Elemental cultivator use such a trick.
“Sister Huajian, that’s quite impressive.”
“Haha, it’s my unique secret technique!” Huajian wasn’t shy. She accepted Qian Feixue’s praise with her hands on her hips.
Then Linglong exposed her.
“You’re becoming less and less human.”
“Less human” here wasn’t an insult, but a pure description. Compared to four years ago, Huajian was now far more adept at things ordinary humans couldn’t do.
She had even turned such actions into instinct.
For instance, she had also used vines to steal meat just now.
“For us, not being human isn’t a bad thing, right? You don’t exactly look human now either.”
When outside, Linglong used a disguise, but after entering here, she had dropped the act and returned to her Little Dragon Girl form.
So Huajian’s remark was accurate. Among the four present, Linglong was clearly the least human.
At least Huajian still looked human—no horns on her head, no tail behind her.
“Huh?” Qian Feixu looked at Linglong, then at Huajian.
She knew Linglong wasn’t purely human—after all, “Half-Dragon Saintess” was one of Linglong’s titles—but she had no idea about Huajian’s race.
No one had ever mentioned it, so she assumed Huajian was human.
But… Huajian wasn’t actually human?
“I used to be human, but then I fused with a Spiritual Flower. Now I probably can’t be considered human anymore.” Huajian didn’t reveal her true identity.
Instead, she used a lie that blurred the truth.
Though it wasn’t really a lie—wasn’t she telling the truth about fusing with an Illusory Dream Flower?
As she spoke, Huajian raised her right hand and, before the three of them, transformed her hand directly into a bouquet covered in colorful flowers.
This startled Qian Feixu. To her, this scene was utterly bizarre.
Someone who looked human doing such things was even more terrifying.
Who would have thought the Wanhua Saintess was actually a flower!
“So when I first met her back then, it was like we regretted not meeting earlier—love at first sight.”
Huajian reverted her hand to normal and pointed at Linglong as she began rambling nonsense.
“We were both Spirit Items living in the Human Clan’s world. It’s only natural for us to like and support each other, right?”
“Unfortunately, fate had other plans. Wanhuagu forcibly took me away, and she could only watch helplessly as I was captured. It was really…”
“You’re trying to trick me again!” This time, Qian Feixu was not going to fall for it. Not a single word from Huajian was trustworthy.
But this time, her alertness was misplaced.
After declaring she wouldn’t believe Huajian, she heard her idol softly hum in agreement.
“Huh?”
Qian Feixu turned to Linglong in disbelief. What did that “hum” mean? Was Lady Saintess actually agreeing with this bad woman?
She still clung to a shred of hope, but the next moment, Linglong shattered it completely.
“She’s not lying this time.”
Qian Feixu’s eyes went wide. Suddenly, the juice in her hand lost its sweetness, the grilled meat on the stone slab lost its fragrance, and even her idol, so close to her, seemed a stranger.
Her idol was really being taken away by a bad woman!
Why? Why did she have to experience this?!
“Accept reality. Linglong and I are true love. Besides, tell me, in what way am I not good enough for her?”
Huajian patted Qian Feixu’s shoulder with a vine, offering some comfort.
Qian Feixu immediately looked up, tears in her eyes, glaring at Huajian. “You… you’re a bad woman!”
“If a woman isn’t bad, a woman won’t love her. She likes me just the way I am—full of mischief.”
“You’ve done so many bad things! How could the Saintess possibly like you!”
Linglong spoke up to explain for Huajian: “Those things were not Huajian’s doing. Wanhuagu wanted to use them to keep her from going anywhere else.”
Qian Feixu had nothing left to say. The two reasons she couldn’t accept Huajian and Linglong being close were gone.
When she looked at other aspects, Huajian truly was a match for Linglong.
Both were prodigies, equally matched in appearance. Now that Huajian had become the Wanhuagu Saintess, there was no gap in status either.
Seeing it this way, it really did seem like a perfect match.