Translator: CinderTL
"Where is the Yin-Sinking Water? Do you need my help to retrieve it?" Song Wen asked.
"I don't need your help. I can handle this myself."
As Qi Luo spoke, a flicker of disdain flashed in her eyes.
What could a mere nascent soul cultivator possibly do to assist her?
Qi Luo flipped her hand and produced a jade bottle, handing it to Song Wen.
"Ye Hua, I was wrong to suspect you earlier and accidentally injured you. This is a Healing Pill; just one will fully restore your injuries."
"There's no need for such formality. It's just a minor wound. A few days of meditation will restore me completely," Song Wen replied with feigned modesty, yet his hand moved without hesitation to accept the jade bottle.
His divine sense probed the bottle, revealing ten high-quality Healing Pills within. Without hesitation, Song Wen stored them in his Storage Ring.
Then, with a struggle, he propped himself up, wrapped his arms around Qi Luo's waist, and buried his face against her chest.
"I've been thinking of you day and night for the past month. Give me another chance," he mumbled, his words muffled against her chest.
"But... your injuries?" Qi Luo recalled their previous encounter, her body softening slightly.
"To die beneath a peony blossom is a romantic fate, even in death."
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Qi Luo, her cheeks flushed, stepped down from the bed and glanced around the room, asking in surprise, "Ye Hua, where are my clothes?"
Song Wen lay sprawled on the bed, feigning exhaustion, too weary to even lift a finger. His weakened state seemed due to his already injured body and the depletion of his vital energy.
"After today, who knows when we'll meet again? I wanted something to remember you by," he murmured.
Qi Luo's lips twitched slightly, but she said nothing, retrieving a fresh set of clothes from her Storage Ring and dressing. She then strode toward the door.
Just as she pushed it open, she abruptly stopped and turned back. "I'll obtain the Yin-Sinking Water as soon as possible. When the time comes, I'll need you to contact Chi Pei."
"Serving you is my greatest pleasure. Whatever you ask, I will never refuse," Song Wen replied with unwavering conviction.
Qi Luo nodded in satisfaction. With a flicker of movement, she vanished without a trace.
Song Wen sat up abruptly, the feigned languor vanishing from his face, his eyes sharpening to a keen edge.
With a thought, several pitifully skimpy garments materialized in his hand—Qi Luo's clothes.
These were her personal items, imbued with her lingering scent, perfect for casting the Thousand Miles Breath Tracking Technique.
Song Wen formed a magic seal with his fingers, activating the residual aura on the clothing.
Suddenly, a wisp of azure smoke curled upward from the garments, hovering before him.
As Song Wen continued manipulating the seal, the smoke began to drift southward.
The smoke's subtle shift indicated that Qi Luo was nearby, likely within a short distance.
Considering that Veiled Moon Hall lay south of Cloudveil City, Song Wen surmised that Qi Luo had likely returned there.
He retrieved a transparent jade bottle, captured the smoke within, and waited quietly in his room.
About an hour later, the smoke began to change, twitching southwestward.
Song Wen rose, donned a black cloak, and left the small courtyard, exiting the inn.
He soared into the sky, following the direction indicated by the smoke.
After traveling several hundred thousand miles, Song Wen descended into a dense, verdant forest.
The smoke's angle suggested Qi Luo was now within ten thousand miles.
Fearing discovery, Song Wen abandoned flight and began moving swiftly through the dense undergrowth.
After another few thousand miles, Qi Luo was less than two thousand miles away.
Song Wen halted his escape light, opened his mouth, and spat out the Shadow King Gu. He sent the Gu flying toward Qi Luo's direction, extending his sensory range.
Instantly, everything within a two-thousand-mile radius flooded into Song Wen's mind.
Qi Luo stood suspended in mid-air, her gaze fixed on a cavernous pit in the ground directly before her.
The pit was deep and dark, filled with an overwhelmingly dense Yin and malevolent energy, as if it led straight to the Nine Nether Hell.
Qi Luo had clearly been waiting here for some time, a hint of impatience flickering across her face.
Suddenly, a thick, almost tangible mass of Yin Energy surged from the pit, within which a gaunt human figure flickered in and out of view.
"Fellow Daoist Qi Luo, what an honor to have you grace my humble ghost lair with your presence," the gaunt figure rasped. "It truly brightens this wretched place."
"Yuan Luo, you know me?" Qi Luo asked.
The gaunt cultivator, addressed as "Yuan Luo," replied, "Who in Cloudveil City hasn't heard of Fellow Daoist Qi Luo's renowned beauty and charm? What brings you here today?"
"I urgently need Yin-Sinking Water," Qi Luo stated. "I heard you possess some and came to discuss acquiring it."
"Rumor has it you're skilled in diplomacy and social maneuvering," Yuan Luo said, his voice tinged with displeasure. "It seems the rumors are true. Few know of my Yin-Sinking Water, yet you managed to uncover this secret." His tone grew darker, clearly displeased by Qi Luo's intrusion into his affairs. "However, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. I have my own uses for the Yin-Sinking Water and have no intention of selling it."
Qi Luo said, "Everything has its price. As long as the price is right, there's nothing in this world that can't be sold. Yuan Luo, name your price. I assure you, you won't be at a loss."
Yuan Luo replied, "Fellow Daoist, your words are bold. I doubt you possess what I require."
"How can you know if you don't try?" Qi Luo countered.
"The Void Union Primordial Breakthrough Pill!" Yuan Luo declared. "If you can produce this pill, I'll offer you the Yin-Sinking Water with both hands."
Qi Luo's expression darkened instantly.
The Void Union Primordial Breakthrough Pill was exceedingly rare. How could she possibly obtain it? Moreover, while the Yin-Sinking Water was rare, its value paled in comparison to the pill.
Yuan Luo's proposed exchange was clearly a mockery.
But the shadow of displeasure vanished as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by a bewitching smile.
As if on cue, a gentle breeze stirred, causing the hem of Qi Luo's skirt to flutter, revealing her slender, shapely legs.
"Fellow Daoist Yuan Luo," she purred, "I implore you to lend this humble woman your aid. I promise to repay you with the Yongquan Spring."
TL/N: In many Chinese xianxia / fantasy novels, the phrase "Yongquan Spring" (涌泉春, 涌泉泉, etc.) may be used poetically or playfully as a feminine charm / intimate offer, drawing on the literal word spring (泉) as a symbol of life-giving water.
The swirling Yin Energy surrounding Yuan Luo dissipated, revealing his form.
Simultaneously, the aura of his cultivation surged forth, revealing his late Divine Transformation stage cultivation—slightly higher than Qi Luo's mid-stage Divine Transformation.
Yuan Luo's body was as gaunt as firewood, as if only a layer of skin stretched over his bones.
His eyes were sunken deep, like those of a Fierce Ghost from hell, gleaming with a lecherous light.
His gaze swept over Qi Luo's curvaceous figure, and he let out a series of grotesque cackles.
"Yongquan...? Hahahaha... Fellow Daoist, you truly have a compassionate heart, willing to spend a night of passion with a man despised by both humans and ghosts."
Qi Luo gazed at Yuan Luo's hideous face without a trace of disgust, instead displaying a coy, reluctant shyness.
"Appearances are merely superficial. Fellow Daoist, your cultivation surpasses mine. How could this humble woman ever disrespect you?"
Yuan Luo's eyes locked onto Qi Luo, a cold smile gradually curving his lips as his voice turned icy.
"Qi Luo, spare me your coquettish act. This old man has no interest in a cheap whore like you."
The seductive expression on Qi Luo's face vanished instantly, replaced by fury.
"You dare mock me!"
"And what if I do?" Yuan Luo sneered. "Qi Luo, the Yin-Sinking Water will never be yours. If you know what's good for you, retreat now."
(End of the Chapter)
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