Li Yan turned his head and looked at Gong Chenying strangely, saying with some uncertainty, "If... if you're talking about that silver ring hanging on... your body, then yes. But I only glanced at it before I went to treat your wound, so I forgot about it just now."
"So it is. You really did see the navel ring." Gong Chenying's seated, graceful body trembled uncontrollably.
"Sixth Senior Sister, is there a problem with that? I didn't even touch it. Don't tell me it's some family heirloom of yours. You can't blame me if anything is missing."
"A family heirloom? Something missing? As long as you've said it, that's enough. Then let's go." The light in Gong Chenying's eyes slowly returned to normal, and then she suddenly stood up. Her movement startled Li Yan, and he almost took a step back out of the cave.
"Why are you so jumpy? Did that pill mess with your head?" Li Yan blurted out. He was truly scared by Gong Chenying's sudden changes in attitude.
"Let's go. I'll tell you on the way." Gong Chenying's pretty face suddenly turned red, and then she bloomed with a shyness she had never shown before, like a hundred flowers in bloom. This was no longer the icy cold, eternally frozen beauty in Li Yan's mind.
Li Yan was greatly alarmed. 'There's something strange about Pingtu's pill! Could this be the legendary soul possession? Is there some demonic soul in the pill? This is no longer Sixth Senior Sister!' He quickly retreated toward the cave entrance, looking at Gong Chenying with a wary expression.
Gong Chenying, however, waved her jade-like hand. The two pieces of the long halberd in the corner of the cave were rolled back to her and put into her storage bag. A trace of pain flashed in her eyes. Then she went straight for Li Yan at the cave entrance. To Li Yan's disbelief, he was swept up by a great force and flew into the air, then quickly flew into the distance. But in the instant they flew out of the cave, the severed red sash on the ground was also silently collected by her.
"Senior Sister, Senior Sister, my formation flags, the formation flags!"
An anxious voice came from the distance. A gust of wind blew toward the large patch of grass and thorns at the cave entrance just now. Several formation flags flew out from the ground, turning into streaks of spiritual light as they flew toward the horizon. A cave entrance appeared there.
Half an hour later, with the mountain forest retreating below, Li Yan stood on a White Jade Skiff. This White Jade Skiff was not flying high, just skimming along the mountain ridge. They had already been away from the cave for nearly half an hour.
After leaving the cave, Gong Chenying had not immediately flown toward the center, because just as they had come out, a somewhat familiar Divine Sense had swept over. This had startled the two of them, and they had immediately hidden their auras and carefully moved forward. Although Gong Chenying's injuries had recovered, her spiritual power had only recovered by less than thirty percent. Even against an injured Wang Lang, she had no confidence. It was possible that it would end in mutual destruction again. If a Pseudo-Core Realm cultivator were pushed to the brink, Gong Chenying, with her insufficient spiritual power, had no confidence she could resist a final, desperate counterattack.
So, the two of them followed the pressing edge of the sky shadow, making a large detour. During this time, there were still occasional Divine Senses sweeping past in the distance, but they were basically all some distance from the sky shadow. No one would be so close to the dark shadow and use their Divine Sense to probe. If one was not careful, their Divine Sense could be swallowed by the giant sky shadow, and the injury to their Divine Sense would not be worth the loss. Now, the two of them were slowly advancing along the sky shadow. Gong Chenying was fully focused on meditating and recovering. When she had recovered to seventy or eighty percent, she could then advance rapidly. At that time, she would not be afraid of anyone she met here.
On the way just now, Gong Chenying had told Li Yan something with a flushed face. This matter still made Li Yan's head spin. He had not yet processed it and did not know how to handle it.
Gong Chenying clearly viewed this matter as extremely important, explaining it to Li Yan on the way. Although she did not go into detail, Li Yan understood, and he was extremely shocked.
Gong Chenying was actually not from the Desolate Moon Continent, but from the distant Wind God Continent. Li Yan had only heard of this place in texts; he knew nothing else about it. The place where Gong Chenying was born was the Tianli Clan of the Wind God Continent. That was a powerful race that ruled almost the entire southern region of the Wind God Continent. This race also had heaven-defying cultivation methods, but their cultivation style was different from cultivators. What they cultivated were Shamanic Arts. The cultivation process was bizarre and sinister. Many of their cultivation arts and divine arts were unorthodox, focusing on being tricky, sinister, and poisonous. Their shamans were so powerful that even human Nascent Soul Old Ancestors could not face them directly. Above them were even more terrifying existences, the great sacrificial priests.
Besides the headache-inducing, bizarre Shamanic Arts, the Tianli Clan also had a supreme yang and supreme hard body refining art. This body refining art was an extremely mysterious cultivation method within the clan. Only a very small number of people in the clan could cultivate it. The name of the art was "Qiongqi Purgatory." It was said that when one reached a high level, one could overturn mountains and seas with a wave of a hand, and even easily destroy a boundless continent. The toughness of their physical body reached an unbelievable level. When one cultivated to the intermediate level, they could withstand the magical treasures of cultivators with their bare bodies. So, there were even some of the most core members of the clan who did not cultivate Shamanic Arts but focused solely on training their bodies.
Gong Chenying did not go into detail about her situation in the clan, only saying that when she was ten, she was brought here by an ancestor of the Malevolent Spirit Sect who was traveling the various realms, and then she became a disciple under Wei Zhongran. The Tianli Clan was an ancient race with extremely strict clan rules and customs. A week after a girl was born, a navel ring would be pierced on her navel. This had been passed down from generation to generation since ancient times, symbolizing the Tianli Clan's belief in the perfection and unity of love. This navel ring could only be seen by the groom on their wedding night, and in her entire life, only her lover would ever see it. Even her parents would avoid it after their daughter turned six and would protect this part of her body strictly.
In the future, at any time, if it were seen by a man other than her lover, she would be considered unchaste and unclean. So, Gong Chenying had always been covered in long clothes when she was out, and she also used a red instrument refined by her clan, similar to a spirit treasure, to firmly bind her lower abdomen. Even when she was cultivating her physical body, she would at most only expose her limbs.
If an unmarried woman's navel ring was seen for the first time by a man not related by blood, regardless of the man's age or how many wives he had, the Tianli Clan woman must marry him, and the man had to personally admit to having seen the navel ring. If the man saw it but denied it, the woman would consider herself to have lost her chastity. This idea was continuously instilled in them from a young age and was deeply rooted in the hearts of the women of the Tianli Clan. So, usually, women who encountered this situation and were not acknowledged would choose to commit suicide to protect their purity.
After hearing these words, Li Yan was drenched in sweat. One was for the sorrow he felt for the incomprehensible clan rules of this race; the other was that he finally understood the origin of the deathly aura on Gong Chenying at that time. No wonder Gong Chenying had been so persistent, repeatedly asking him despite a young girl's shyness. She needed him to say it himself. If he had left in the end, she would have surely committed suicide. Wouldn't he have indirectly killed this Sixth Senior Sister?
Gong Chenying said no more about the other matters, just silently moving forward along the way.
Li Yan was currently standing at the front of the White Jade Skiff, watching the scenery fly backward, feeling troubled. He knew that Gong Chenying was waiting for him to speak. But for some reason, after learning these things about Gong Chenying, the first thing that flashed through his mind was the pretty figure in white with a ponytail.
He was in the prime of his youth. It was impossible to say that he had no thoughts about matters between men and women. Li Yan was not a saint. At his age, in the village, it was already time to discuss marriage. It was just that these past few years, he had been constantly thinking of his parents and relatives. So, even when he was alone with Zhao Min, he would only chat about past life in the Mortal Realm, suppressing his other thoughts.
His impression of Gong Chenying was neither good nor bad. It was still at the level of the person that Third Senior Brother was bitterly pursuing. Suddenly, she had become someone related to him. It had come too suddenly. Li Yan's mind was a blank.
After listening to Gong Chenying's calm narration, Li Yan knew that if he did not admit it, then according to Gong Chenying's character and the clan rules of that Tianli Clan, the consequences were without a doubt. For a time, Li Yan was caught in a dilemma.
Although Li Yan's gaze was fixed on the front of the White Jade Skiff, he could clearly feel the increasingly unstable aura of the jade-like person behind him. She was clearly unable to fully devote herself to cultivation and recovery.
'Third Senior Brother, I really didn't know it would turn out like this. And also...' Li Yan slowly and forcefully pushed the image of the girl in white from his mind. He gave a bitter laugh and turned his head. It was as if he were being forced. In the village, for someone like him to be able to find a wife was like a pie falling from the sky. His third brother had never found a wife, and it wasn't just because of his limp. Although Li Yan had walked the path of immortality, in his bones, he was still a person who abided by the three cardinal guides and five constant virtues.
"Sixth Senior Sister, I don't know your clan's rules, but what's seen is seen. I want to go home and see my parents after I reach Foundation Establishment. If you are willing, could you send me back then? After all, even at Foundation Establishment, it won't be long, and the journey is long and filled with demonic beasts."
Li Yan spoke calmly, but there was a warmth in his eyes. Since he was admitting it, he couldn't pretend to be reluctant.
Gong Chenying had been waiting, sitting cross-legged at the back of the White Jade Skiff. It seemed there was no expression on her face, as if what had happened before had never happened. But in fact, her heart was also filled with bitterness. She had long since put aside her cultivation and recovery. The man in her heart was definitely not of Li Yan's cultivation level. Although Li Yan also made her feel somewhat incredible, it was far from enough. Besides, if she were to return to the Tianli Clan in the future, with Li Yan's cultivation...
She was naturally stubborn. The man in her heart, of course, had to be stronger than her. She usually paid extreme attention to protecting her navel ring. Not to mention that that red protective gear was no less than a high-grade spirit treasure. But she had never expected things to happen so suddenly. Like all Tianli Clan women, she was someone who abided by her ancestral teachings in her bones. At the same time, she was also apprehensive, but she didn't show it on her face. It was just that Li Yan had been silent all along, and Gong Chenying's heart was sinking.
'What if he doesn't agree? I heard he is very close to Min'er, as if they have mutual affection. If that's the case, after I get out of the secret realm this time, I will find a place to bury myself.'
Just as her mind was in turmoil, she suddenly saw Li Yan turn his head and smile at her. Her heart was instantly relieved.
She bit her lower lip and said in a voice so low it was almost inaudible, "I will accompany you back then." Although her voice was soft, Li Yan heard it clearly. He was stunned for a moment, then nodded silently.
For the rest of the time, the two of them did not speak again. In this silent atmosphere, after Li Yan's response, Gong Chenying actually calmed down. Her heart was bitter. 'If he and Min'er are really in love, what am I? How can I face Min'er again? But I cannot die before I fulfill my wish. Father, have you been well all these years?'
As Gong Chenying thought, a look of reminiscence appeared on her face again, and slowly, her gaze became firm.
'If you two are really in love, Min'er, I'm sorry. After I fulfill my wish, I will... disappear... If not, then this is how it has to be... Late-stage Golden Core, I will reach it!'
Gong Chenying bit her lower lip, her heart filled with infinite bitterness. Her relationship with Zhao Min was extraordinary. She didn't know what Li Yan's relationship with Zhao Min was, but if Zhao Min's heart truly belonged to him, then what was she? If there were no feelings between the two of them, she would accept her fate. As for Third Senior Brother Yun Chunqu, although she knew his feelings, she had never had the thought of spending her life with him.
After secretly making a decision, she felt a lot more relaxed and slowly sank into a meditative state.
Li Yan had been staring straight ahead. He didn't know what he was thinking. It was just very chaotic, very chaotic...