The thorn pierced straight through the metal glove.
The metal plate was punctured like paper, the thorn tip sinking into Little Frost’s palm, and blood immediately gushed out.
Little Frost hissed, yanking her hand back violently.
There was a hole in her palm, blood gushing out uncontrollably, flowing down through the gaps in her glove.
Mu Yingying’s face changed drastically, quickly tearing a strip of cloth to wrap it for her. “It pierced even your glove? Then who could possibly go down there?”
Gu Jiao’s expression was even uglier than theirs.
She hadn’t reached this point on her last visit and had no idea the path to the valley bottom was designed to be so deadly.
“If we can’t go down, we can’t get the best flowers.” Gu Jiao’s voice trembled, whether from fear or unwillingness. “The flowers at the valley bottom are of the highest quality, the Hundred Flowers Dew brewed from them is the most effective…”
“A dead person has no use for any dew.” Little Frost coldly interrupted her.
The old woman had been standing to the side watching. She waited until the argument between the few of them had subsided before speaking slowly.
“Going down like this is no good. You’d bleed dry before reaching the bottom.” As she spoke, she extended her own hand, palm facing up.
Several flower petals materialized in her palm.
They weren’t petals from the thorns, but an unseen, nearly transparent, thin layer, like colored glass or solidified water, refracting faint rainbow colors under the light in the valley.
The petals floated up, drifting slowly toward White Night and the others.
One landed on White Night’s main body, the bicycle. One landed on Little Frost’s still-bleeding palm. One landed on the back of Mu Yingying’s hand. One drifted toward Gu Jiao.
The moment the petal touched their skin, it melted like water, enveloping the entire hand and all ten fingers. A thin layer, weightless and without temperature, but feeling incredibly smooth to the touch.
The blood from Little Frost’s palm immediately stopped.
She looked down at her hand wrapped in the petal and tentatively reached toward the thorn that had just pierced her glove.
The thorn touched the petal’s surface and slid off, like a needle poking into water and being bounced back. The thorn tip left a shallow dent on the petal, which instantly smoothed out, leaving no trace.
Little Frost grabbed it again with seventy to eighty percent of her strength. The petal didn’t budge.
“That’ll do.” The old woman patted the dust off her hands. “With this layer protecting you, the thorns won’t pierce you. Climb down with peace of mind.”
White Night noticed a detail: the old woman’s own hands had no petals.
When she reached out to touch the thorns, those densely packed sharp spines actually bent away on their own, as if pushed aside by an invisible hand, clearing a small, flat foothold.
The thorns recognized her. No, more than recognized—they obeyed.
White Night noted this detail in her mind but didn’t voice it.
The group began climbing down along the cliff face. With the petal protection, the thorns couldn’t injure them.
Little Frost climbed at the front, scouting the path, with the bicycle tied directly to her back.
Mu Yingying stayed close to White Night’s frame, with Gu Jiao following closely behind.
The old woman was at the very back, or rather, she wasn’t exactly walking. Her hands rested casually on the thorns, her whole body hanging from the cliff wall with an ease that looked like she was out for a stroll.
The further down they went, the denser the flowers bloomed, and the richer the floral scent became.
That thick, almost tangible fragrance drilled into their nostrils, seeped into their lungs, making even their breath taste sweet.
White Night felt it. It wasn’t that the floral scent was making them dizzy; it was making them stronger.
Her Soul Body was noticeably brighter than before. The damaged areas of her Divine Soul felt as if gently pressed by a warm hand. The pain was receding, the cracks were mending.
It wasn’t an illusion. Her soul trauma was being repaired, nourished by the floral scent in this place.
Little Frost’s change was even more obvious.
Her climbing movements became more agile, her grip on the thorns grew stronger. The qi and blood within her body surged, as if a fire was burning inside her, more intense than the effect of the Physical Enhancement Potion she’d used before.
Mu Yingying was the same.
Her Perception became unprecedentedly sharp. The Smooth Gold Coin in her trouser pocket grew slightly warm.
Gu Jiao, needless to say.
The beehive on her back began to buzz, bees uncontrollably drilling out, frantically trying to gather nectar.
Gu Jiao climbed down while pressing the beehive lid, sweating profusely.
The floral scent was enhancing their strength. And it was real, immediate, tangible enhancement. The further down, the faster the enhancement.
White Night understood. She finally understood why those people, knowing the danger, still desperately rushed downward. It wasn’t because they were stupid or crazy. It was because the benefits were too real.
With every extra step, they could clearly feel themselves growing stronger. This feeling was more addictive than any illusion, more irresistible than any deception, because it simply wasn’t fake.
When they reached about one-third of the depth, White Night abruptly stopped.
It wasn’t that something was wrong with her body. On the contrary, her soul trauma had repaired by nearly twenty percent. Her entire Soul Body was as bright as if she’d just undergone Deep Maintenance.
What made her stop was something else. She found herself not wanting to stop.
Clearly, before setting out, she had discussed with her two aunties the need for extreme caution.
Yet at this moment, her mind was filled with thoughts of “just a little further down,” “just a little more of the floral scent,” “just a little more repair for the soul.”
Those thoughts weren’t forced in from the outside; they grew from within her own heart, constantly tempting her.
‘No, it’s my own greed sprouting, deceiving myself.’
‘I’m sinking into the quagmire of my own greed.’
White Night shuddered, her whole body turning cold.
“We should turn back.”
Her voice echoed on the cliff face, clearly reaching everyone’s ears.
Little Frost’s hand, reaching for the next hold at the very front, paused.
Hearing White Night’s words was like having a basin of cold water dumped over her head. She jolted awake. Just moments ago, her mind was filled with “strength is increasing,” “this feeling is too good,” “a little deeper.” She didn’t even know when she had started thinking that way.
Mu Yingying also came to her senses.
Hanging on the cliff wall, she took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.
The Smooth Gold Coin in her trouser pocket was burning painfully hot. That gambler’s intuition was screaming wildly. It was time to cash out.
Every gambler knows: the hand where you win the most is the hand when you should leave the table.
Only Gu Jiao didn’t stop.
She continued climbing down as if she hadn’t heard White Night, her speed even increasing.
The beehive on her back buzzed incessantly. More than half the bees had already emerged, frantically gathering nectar from the flowers around her.
“Sister Gu!” Mu Yingying grabbed the back of Gu Jiao’s collar.
Gu Jiao looked back at Mu Yingying.
There was no madness in those eyes, no loss of control. There was a clear, sober, unwilling desire.
“I know we should leave.” Gu Jiao’s voice was hoarse. “But let me gather just a little more, just a bit. The nectar from the deeper flowers is of better quality, the Hundred Flowers Dew brewed from it…”
“Enough.” Mu Yingying wasn’t in the mood for discussion, increasing the strength in her hand.
Slap!
Mu Yingying directly gave Gu Jiao a solid smack on the back of her head.
Gu Jiao looked at those brighter, more vibrant flowers deeper down.
For a moment, her whole body trembled.
After several seconds, she closed her eyes and let out a long sigh.
“Alright. Enough. Thank you.”
Gu Jiao’s head was still ringing from the smack, but she still thanked her. After all, the other had saved her.
Mu Yingying, meanwhile, smugly winked at White Night and Little Frost.
Her expression seemed to speak, saying, ‘See, we hit her, and she still has to thank us.’
Just as the group was about to turn around and climb back up, the old woman spoke.
She was hanging on the cliff wall next to White Night, one hand resting casually on the thorns.
The thorns obediently bent aside to make way for her, her posture as relaxed as leaning against her own doorframe to bask in the sun.
“No need to worry. Continue downward.”
White Night looked at her. “This floral scent—”
“I’ve got you covered.” The old woman interrupted her.
She looked into White Night’s eyes. Within those cloudy pupils, a gentle light flowed.
“I will protect you.” The old woman’s voice slowed down, word by word. “Just like you protected me before.”
White Night was stunned.
“Before?” she blurted out. “When did I ever protect you? I don’t even know you.”
The old woman didn’t explain.
She just smiled slightly. That smile was buried deep within her wrinkled face, its outline hard to make out clearly.
White Night always felt that smile hid something very heavy, so heavy it made her chest feel tight.
“You don’t remember. It’s fine.”
The old woman said this lightly.
“You’ll remember later.”
The old woman let go of the thorns on the cliff wall, her body drifting lightly downward a section before casually grabbing a lower vine.
Her movements were fluid.
White Night watched her retreating figure, utterly confused.
She truly did not know this old woman. Had never met her, never spoken to her, let alone anything about “protecting” her.
But when the old woman said those words, it didn’t sound like she was making up a story or trying to get close.
It sounded like she was stating a fact she herself was utterly convinced of.
Little Frost and Mu Yingying also heard this exchange.
The two exchanged a glance, seeing confusion in each other’s eyes.
There was definitely some unknown connection between this old woman and White Night.
But for now, she was indeed protecting White Night.
The petals on their hands were given by her. Without her, they wouldn’t even have been able to descend this cliff.
White Night hesitated for a good while before saying to Little Frost and Mu Yingying, “Continue downward. But the moment we feel something is wrong, we retreat immediately, no matter what she says.”
The two aunties nodded.
The group continued climbing along the cliff wall toward the deeper depths.