“Put me down!”
“Did you hear me, you ungrateful disciple? Put me down!”
“I’m going to… I’m going to expel you from the sect!”
“Don’t… don’t struggle so violently~ slow down~”
Yue Yingying struggled fiercely on Ling Xiaodong’s back, their bodies pressed together in a way that made her feel both embarrassed and angry, especially since her legs were still wrapped around his waist.
After sprinting through the forest at full speed for several hours, even Ling Xiaodong was starting to feel a bit exhausted.
Fortunately, the place with the densest Yang Qi was just ahead.
Without Yue Yingying pointing out the direction, Ling Xiaodong could see the intense, blazing Yang Qi emanating from the mountain peak through his Eye-Opening Curse.
On the way closer to the mountain, he saw many golden flowers—these were Chiyang Flowers, only found where Yang Qi was extremely dense. The deeper they went, the denser the flowers became, forming a vast sea of gold.
At the foot of the mountain, hidden beneath the flowers, was a massive cave.
Dark and deep, with no clue as to where it led, yet a steady flow of Yang Qi was slowly leaking out from within.
Ling Xiaodong asked, “Master, is this the place?”
“Mm.”
Yue Yingying rested her chin on Ling Xiaodong’s shoulder, humming softly.
Ling Xiaodong gently set her down from his back, but unexpectedly, Yue Yingying’s legs went weak and she couldn’t even stand. Alarmed, Ling Xiaodong hurried to support her arm.
“Are you alright?” he asked with concern.
“Get lost!”
Yue Yingying pushed him away irritably and turned her head, refusing to look at him. All he could see was the redness at the base of her ears.
Was it really necessary?
Ling Xiaodong helplessly rubbed his lower back and wiped the sweat from his hands on some nearby tree bark.
Draped in flowing white clothes, Yue Yingying rested for quite some time, finally calming her emotions and letting the flush on her face fade.
She stared at Ling Xiaodong expressionlessly, no longer afraid of his bare form, and pointed toward the cave, speaking coldly:
“Let’s go!”
Though it was just a hill, the cave descended steadily downward.
Inside, it was warm and humid, pitch black with no hint of light, and a strange, indescribable stench filled the air.
Surprisingly, the ground was smooth—no protruding stones, fallen branches, or weeds—and Yue Yingying was able to walk barefoot.
As they ventured deeper, they discovered the cave branched out in all directions. Each chamber was over three meters high and wide, rounded in shape.
The stone walls were smooth all around, as if the entire cave had been artificially carved.
The master and disciple searched through the many openings, following the densest Yang Qi deeper and deeper.
The temperature rose steadily, and the humidity and stench grew more intense.
Yue Yingying frowned, covering her nose with one hand and complaining:
“What’s that smell?”
They didn’t know how long they walked, but after emerging from a tunnel, suddenly their surroundings opened up.
A huge underground cavern spread out before them.
The ceiling was dotted with stalactites hanging down like pillars, and below flowed a slowly moving underground river—likely the source of the moisture.
What caught their attention most was the enormous fruit in the center of the cavern.
Its leaves bloomed like a flower bud, and among the green foliage sat a bright crimson fruit the size of a cuju ball, shaped like a pomegranate.
This fruit emitted a faint red glow in the dim cavern, and waves of heat radiated from it.
It was clearly the origin of all the Yang Qi in the cave.
“Crimson Fruit!”
Yue Yingying’s eyes widened as she gazed at the glowing fruit in the center, marveling:
“This must be over a thousand years old!”
“Isn’t it supposed to be the Xuanyang Grass?”
Ling Xiaodong looked disappointed and turned to leave.
Yue Yingying grabbed his hand and turned him back, flashing a mischievous smile.
“My obedient disciple, Master wants it—go fetch it for me.”
Her voice was soft and coaxing, almost making Ling Xiaodong agree on the spot.
But reason prevailed in the end.
Ling Xiaodong spoke quietly, “Such a treasure must be guarded by fierce beasts.”
Yue Yingying crossed her hands on her hips, naturally replying:
“Of course I know, why else would I send you?”
Ling Xiaodong looked at her helplessly. Recently, Master had been cooking, refining pills, and tending to Xiao Yan’s illness—all so reliable—he almost forgot that normally Yue Yingying was unreasonable and prone to setting traps for her disciple.
“Alright, wait here. I’ll get it for you.”
With that, he quietly moved toward the Crimson Fruit.
Although he wasn’t afraid of any beasts, it was best to avoid trouble in the Ten-Thousand Mountains when possible. He planned to grab the fruit and run immediately.
Just as he reached out to touch the Crimson Fruit, a sudden roar shook the cavern violently.
A massive crimson serpent, about three meters thick, raised its head from the underground river. Its two enormous bright eyes, lantern-sized, locked firmly onto the uninvited guests.
Its hard scales scraped against the ground, grinding the stones like soft tofu, leaving a smooth trail as it slithered forward.
Ling Xiaodong sighed, just as he thought!
“That’s a Red Practice Snake! Don’t strike the seventh segment, aim for the twelfth! The venom sac is useful too, don’t damage it!”
Yue Yingying calmly directed from behind.
Ever since hearing from Ye Yiyun about Ling Xiaodong’s feats overpowering a Grandmaster, she had decided to put her disciple’s talents to better use—just sending him on errands was such a waste.
Sure enough, the moment had arrived.
Besides, with her as an Eight Trigram Mirror cultivator guarding the rear, taking down a big Red Practice Snake was no trouble at all.
Ling Xiaodong didn’t disappoint. After only a few exchanges with the giant serpent, he stomped through the tough scales and crushed the venom sac at the twelfth segment.
“Go take out the venom sac! I’ll get the Crimson Fruit.”
Yue Yingying’s face lit up with joy as she happily ran toward the millennium-old Crimson Fruit, still reminding Ling Xiaodong to do the dirty work.
Ling Xiaodong crouched on the huge corpse of the Red Practice Snake, using his bare hands to pry open the scales and search inside.
“Is this the venom sac?”
He pulled out a translucent sac filled with a pale pink liquid.
“Pink venom? How rare.”
Ling Xiaodong gently shook the sac, making the liquid swirl inside.
But the sac’s membrane seemed too thin to withstand the motion and tore open, drenching Ling Xiaodong in pale pink fluid.
Yue Yingying used her secret method to extract the essence of the Crimson Fruit, sealing the medicinal power within her acupoints with a delicate technique.
When she finished, she turned to find her disciple still standing there idly, doing nothing.
“Hey! What are you doing? Did you get the venom sac or not?”
Yue Yingying patted his shoulder, but Ling Xiaodong didn’t turn around, still standing in a daze.
She pouted, “What’s wrong? Are you mad? It’s just some work I asked you to do.”
Only then did Ling Xiaodong slowly turn his head.
His chest was terrifyingly red, his eyes bloodshot, and his gaze toward Yue Yingying full of desire, his breathing heavy like an old ox panting.
Yue Yingying was startled by his appearance, then noticed the sac still dripping wet in his hands, with a small amount of the pink venom left inside.
Her pupils constricted in horror as she exclaimed:
“Lewd sac!”