Unlucky Encounter

Gu Fuyou saw a swaying dark shadow beneath the rippling waves and realized that the thing entangling her must be the tail of a sea spirit beast.

Her hands were free, so she opened her storage bag, searching for a talisman that might be useful.

Suddenly, a wave several meters high surged ahead of the spirit beast. This was not a natural wave, but one created by a slash of sword energy, stirring up a massive snow wave.

Looking back, Gu Fuyou saw Zhong Michu rushing to her aid.

The spirit beast halted its escape and surfaced, revealing its form—a silver armored body with pincers sharper than blades

Gu Fuyou gasped, "A sea scorpion."

She immediately recoiled, distancing her body from the deadly tail.

The tail hook of the sea scorpion was highly venomous. For a cultivator of her level, if she accidentally got poisoned, within three hours, her whole body would turn purple and swell, the wound would fester, and she would die from qi exhaustion.

The very thought of such a gruesome death was unbearable.

Despite its fear of Zhong Michu, the sea scorpion seemed reluctant to release Gu Fuyou, considering her a delectable treat. It brandished its massive claw in a threatening manner, but its posture, with claws outstretched like a person crossing their arms, appeared more like a sign of submission.

As Gu Fuyou observed the movements of the sea scorpion's large claws, she suddenly remembered something she had read—sea scorpions are always found in pairs, male and female together. Having never seen one before, she wasn't sure if this was true.

Gu Fuyou always felt a trace of unease in her heart, and this unease soon became a reality.

From behind Zhong Michu, a white shadow surged from the water – the tail of another sea scorpion, aiming directly at Zhong Michu's back.

She saw a white shadow burst from the water behind Zhong Michu—it was the tail of another sea scorpion, its venomous hook aimed directly at Zhong Michu's back.

Indeed, there were two! The one entangling her was larger, likely the male, while the one attacking Zhong Michu was the female!

Panicking, Gu Fuyou shouted, "Zhong Michu, behind you!"

Zhong Michu remained unflustered, nimbly dodging aside as a water column rose from the sea, steadying her stance.

With her left hand controlling the sword, its light flashed, and Gengchen moved swiftly to Gu Fuyou's side. The blade spun, severing the dreaded poison hook before the male scorpion could even react. Her right hand lifted, and from the sea rose a gigantic hand formed of condensed water, gripping the lurking female scorpion.

The female scorpion could also be considered imposing and fiercely intimidating, but once caught by the water shaped hand, it froze, not daring to struggle at all, like a cat grabbed by the back of its neck.

Zhong Michu subdued her enemy with these two moves without a single strand of her hair being disturbed.

This was the first time Gu Fuyou had seen Zhong Michu truly exert her power in combat.

At that moment, to Gu Fuyou, Zhong Michu seemed like a celestial descended to Earth, unparalleled in beauty and might. Everything else paled in comparison.

Overwhelmed with excitement, Gu Fuyou felt her blood rush to her head, her body tingling with delight, her eyes sparkling. She forgot they were still in danger and cheered, "Senior Sister Zhong, that was amazing! You're incredible!"

Zhong Michu turned back to look at Gu Fuyou, her gaze carrying a complex mix of emotions. Gengchen, initially poised to sever another tail of the sea scorpion to rescue Gu Fuyou, suddenly paused.

In a split second of hesitation, the sea scorpion entangling Gu Fuyou, sensing it was overpowered, seized the opportunity to dive deeper into the ocean in an attempt to escape.

Zhong Michu, with fluid motion, summoned her sword, Gengchen, back to her side and dove into the water after it.

Underwater, she moved with a grace and speed unexpected for someone accustomed to land, easily outpacing the sea creature in its own territory.

In a flurry of panic, the sea scorpion swiftly cast Gu Fuyou to the left while it darted to the right, fervently seeking its last chance to escape.

Zhong Michu glided through the water with the grace of a fish, reaching Gu Fuyou effortlessly and in an instant.

The force of the sea scorpion's throw had sent Gu Fuyou tumbling, her head pointing downwards toward the seabed and her feet up towards the surface. Earlier, she had opened her storage bag in search of an escape talisman, only to see it now shut.

Now floating upside down, the talismans and spirit stones from her storage bag drifted around her, suspended in the water.

As Gu Fuyou reached out to grab the talismans, a sudden force enveloped her waist. For a moment, she feared the sea scorpion had returned.

But the force righted her, allowing her to see clearly that it was not the sea scorpion but Zhong Michu who had grasped her waist.

In the briefest of moments, a sensation overwhelmed Gu Fuyou, and before she could fully comprehend, she found herself and Zhong Michu both floating upside-down again in the water.

Only moments before, they had been upright, nearly touching the muddy seabed.

Now, not only were they floating in the sea without sight of the seabed, but they were also inverted, surrounded by a tranquil and eerie blue, silent, with nothing but the floating talismans nearby.

Looking into the distance, the blue deepened, swallowed by darkness. This lifeless place bore no resemblance to the shallow sea scenery they had left behind; it was more akin to the deep sea.

Gu Fuyou blew a couple of bubbles and gestured to Zhong Michu.

It was a teleportation formation; they had unwittingly stood on one.

Unluckily, her storage bag had been open, and the spirit stones had fallen out, activating the formation and bringing them here.

Now, they were unsure where they had been transported.

Gu Fuyou thought that this place couldn't be too terrible. Despite her own bad luck, she believed the heavens wouldn't be so cruel to someone as favored as Zhong Michu.

Lost in thought, she was soon snapped back to reality when Zhong Michu grabbed her arm, repositioned her, and then summoned her spiritual power to ascend to the surface.

After bursting through the sea surface, Zhong Michu lifted her sleeve, and Gengchen transformed into a streak of sword light, carrying them to the shore.

Once on land, they realized they were no longer near the cliffs they remembered. While the coastline still had a beach, beyond it lay an endless desert, where the golden sands seemed to meld with the horizon.

It appeared that stepping into the teleportation formation had transported them to another part of the sea, but not the same region.

Gu Fuyou collapsed onto the ground, coughing repeatedly; they had emerged too hastily and she had choked on some water.

After catching her breath, she opened her hand, revealing the wet talisman she had managed to grab.

The soaked talisman was now damaged and rendered useless. The rest of her talismans and the spirit stones, along with the precious medicines in her storage bag, had sunk to the ocean floor. All that remained in her bag was a piece of meat and a cherished sword embryo.

Despondently, Gu Fuyou lay on the ground, her vibrant colors seemingly drained, her spirit appearing grey and defeated.

She had spent three whole months crafting those talismans!

Ancient texts had always called the runes on talismans 'the language of the gods,' claiming they had the power to suppress evil and expel demons. In reality, these talismans were merely vessels for spells and formations, a type of magical instrument.

In order to conserve spiritual energy and for convenience, cultivators developed talismans as magical instruments, storing various spells and formations within them. When used, these talismans do not consume any spiritual energy but simply invoke their attributes to manifest their power.

The activation of these talismans simply required spoken words, emphasizing the power of language. In ancient times, this phenomenon was termed "Yan Ling" or "Spirit of the Word."

In short, talismans are useful, but they also have disadvantages: they can only be used once, are easily damaged, and are extremely vulnerable to water, which invariably ruins them.

Zhong Michu brushed off her clothes, appearing as if not a single drop of water clung to her, clean and neat after swimming around in the sea.

She noticed the expression on Gu Fuyou's face and saw her still sitting on the ground without getting up. Hesitating for a moment, she asked, "Are you hurt?"

Gu Fuyou, looking as if the soul had been drained from her, clutched the ruined talisman, murmuring with a sense of loss, "My talismans… haha, I spent over three months crafting them…"

Day and night, she had worked tirelessly to make her journey into Xian Luo a bit easier, and to be able to help Si Miao and Gu Huaiyou.

Zhong Michu glanced at the scattered talismans on the ground. Even in their damaged state, the inscriptions were faintly visible. Although not an expert in artifact crafting or formations, she was knowledgeable enough to recognize their significance.

While these talismans were single-use, seeing the quantity made it evident that crafting them was no easy feat. Their destruction was indeed a pity.

Moreover, some of the talismans were particularly rare, and to think that they were crafted in just three months left Zhong Michu quite surprised.

She then turned her attention to Gu Fuyou, who looked utterly devastated, as if she wished the earth would swallow her. Feeling guilty, Zhong Michu mused that had she acted more decisively, Gu Fuyou wouldn't have fallen into the ocean, and her talismans would be intact.

After a moment of contemplation, Zhong Michu carefully said, "Don't worry. I made a promise to you, and I will not go back on my word."

Gu Fuyou did not respond, and after a moment of silence, Zhong Michu added, "I'm familiar with the spells on these talismans. If you need to use them, let me do it."

Gu Fuyou looked up at her, her face pale from the cold seawater, the tip of her nose slightly red, her eyes irritated and rimmed with red, making them appear watery.

She was slightly dazed, partly because she hadn't recovered from the shock of the talismans being destroyed, and partly because she didn't quite understand the meaning of Zhong Michu's sudden offer.

Zhong Michu, intending to comfort Gu Fuyou and seeing her reaction, thought that perhaps Gu Fuyou doubted her sincerity.

Thus, she didn't say much more, simply waved her sleeve, creating a breeze from nowhere. This was controlling the wind: the wind whipped up the sand, howling as it formed a small tornado and moved deeper into the desert.

Zhong Michu then twisted her wrist and lifted a flame in her palm. This was controlling fire: with a gentle toss, it exploded brilliantly, like a fiery lotus, scorching the sand beside it black.

Zhong Michu then chose a few of the spells from Gu Fuyou's ruined talismans and demonstrated them.

Finally, Zhong Michu lightly tapped her finger, and a bolt of purple lightning exploded behind Gu Fuyou, startling her back to her senses.

This was the spell from the talisman Gu Fuyou held in her hand. The talisman for summoning lightning was difficult to refine, especially for a cultivator of Gu Fuyou's level.

Only then did Gu Fuyou realize that Zhong Michu was trying to comfort her. Was she actually comforting her?

Indeed, Gu Fuyou had visited the Gushen Peak more than a dozen times and felt that Zhong Michu was not difficult to get along with. Although Zhong Michu was typically aloof and unapproachable, she never troubled anyone.

But when Zhong Michu chose to ignore someone, she really could be terse—speaking no more than necessary and ignoring others when possible.

Now, seeing her taking the effort to comfort her was indeed surprising.

Gu Fuyou hadn't had time to fully appreciate this surprise when she belatedly noticed something else. She shifted to look at the scorched pit created by the lightning, and asked in astonishment, "Did you just summon lightning?"

Zhong Michu simply replied, "Yes."

Gu Fuyou stared at her in disbelief, "You don't have a mutated thunder spirit root, and normally, mastering such a technique would require reaching the Nascent Soul stage in your cultivation. How could you possibly…"

How could you know thunder techniques!

Seeing her unspoken question, Zhong Michu answered, "It came naturally."

"Naturally…" Gu Fuyou replied with a stiff smile.

She had used countless spirit stones and beast cores, and blown up her furnace multiple times, spending over a month to craft just one lightning summoning talisman. Meanwhile, Zhong Michu merely flicked her finger and summoned a bolt of lightning.

It was a level of talent far beyond the ordinary, and Gu Fuyou couldn't help but feel envious.

Zhong Michu's casual remark of "naturally" made Gu Fuyou's teeth itch with irritation.

Swept up in the realization of the immense divide between their abilities, a wave of discouragement washed over Gu Fuyou. But in a sudden burst of emotion, she lunged at Zhong Michu, hugging her tightly around the legs, exclaiming, "Ahhh! I don't care, you're all mine now!"

Caught off guard, the typically composed Zhong Michu blurted out, "What are you doing?!"

After a brief struggle, Gu Fuyou released her.

After this brief commotion, Gu Fuyou seemed to push the issue of the talismans out of her mind, rejuvenated. She stood up, straightened her clothes, and looked around. The sea on one side, the desert on the other, both stretched endlessly.

At this point, Gu Fuyou just wanted to find her way back to the barren forest, but after two teleportations, she was completely disoriented.

These formations were all one-way, concerned only with arrival and not return, making it nearly impossible to go back the way they came. Moreover, while the spiritual energy here was dense, it flowed very slowly, likely meaning there were no transport-type formations available.

Right now, they could only move forward, taking things one step at a time.

Initially, the two had a choice: they could head towards the sea or move into the desert.

But since Gu Fuyou was human, not fish, she couldn't just walk on water. Although the desert wasn't ideal, at least she could walk there, so she felt more secure on land and chose to head towards the desert.

Zhong Michu, having been abruptly embraced twice, had her face flush with embarrassment, which faded to a stony expression as she no longer spoke to Gu Fuyou or acknowledged her decision.

As Gu Fuyou prepared to walk, Zhong Michu summoned her sword, Gengchen, and they proceeded deeper into the desert.

They traveled for an unknown amount of time, and still, the desert seemed endless.

Sand and wind obscured their vision, the world around them a dull yellow haze.

Gu Fuyou thought about asking Zhong Michu to come down so they could walk for a while. Given the unpredictable dangers within this Xian Luo, and considering that Zhong Michu was their primary force, she needed to conserve her spiritual energy for emergencies.

But before she could voice this thought, Gengchen suddenly plummeted downward as if pulled by something on the ground.

Caught off guard, Gu Fuyou almost fell, but in a panic, she clung to Zhong Michu's waist from behind.

Unable to control Gengchen and distracted by Gu's embrace, the sword slipped from under them. As it threatened to be consumed by the sandy ground, Zhong Michu summoned it back, and Gengchen transformed into a beam of light, returning to her sleeve.

Without the sword, they fell from the sky. Zhong Michu conjured wind to cushion their descent, preventing them from a harsh landing.

Still shaken, Gu Fuyou brushed her chest and asked, "What just happened?"

Zhong Michu stared coldly at her for a while. Gu Fuyou suddenly remembered that Zhong Michu wasn't accustomed to overly affectionate gestures. In the short time she had been with her, Gu Fuyou had already hugged her legs and waist. She felt fortunate that she wasn't a man, or her fate might have been rather grim.

Embarrassed by her gaze, Gu Fuyou mumbled, "I almost fell, so I…"

Zhong Michu withdrew her gaze and slowly explained, "It seems there's a magnet underground that pulled the sword down."

"So, what do we do now?"

"The magnetic force is strong, and Gengchen is frightened. We can't use the sword to fly anymore."

Gu Fuyou was surprisingly okay with this: "If we can't use the sword, then we can't. I actually wanted to suggest walking anyway, so this works out."

She spoke casually, unconcerned about the inability to fly. Zhong Michu didn't comment further, and from then on, they continued on foot.

But Gu Fuyou hadn't anticipated that the magnetic field underground was extensive. Despite walking for a long time, they were still unable to use the sword.

Time within Xian Luo did not align with the outside world, where days and nights alternate. Here, the sun might not set for several days, or the stars might dominate the sky for equally long periods.

Though she wasn't sure exactly how many days they had walked, Gu Fuyou felt it must have been at least five.

By now, she was famished and exhausted.

Zhong Michu, being akin to a demi-immortal who doesn't require grain to sustain her energy, was unaffected. But Gu Fuyou, still mortal flesh, albeit stronger than an average person, still felt hunger and fatigue.

Unfortunately, Gu Fuyou's stored food and magical artifacts had previously fallen into another part of the sea.

With no food, Gu Fuyou grew dizzy from hunger. She looked up at the sky, where the sun blazed through a haze of yellow dust, and felt a wave of dizziness so intense that she collapsed to the ground.

Hearing the commotion, Zhong Michu, who had been walking ahead, turned and called out, "Gu Fuyou?"

As Zhong Michu approached, Gu Fuyou lifted her head and saw Zhong Michu's hand extended towards her. The hand was as delicate and creamy as sheep's milk cheese. Given that Zhong Michu possessed a water spirit root, her entire being radiated a refreshing, moist aura.

Blinded by her hunger, Gu Fuyou's gaze fixated on that hand. Her mind wandered to the sweet lotus roots in Xiaoyao City, which were crispy and fragrant with each bite, and to the pear-flavored dairy desserts from Yinxue Pavilion, bursting with creamy goodness.

In a moment of sheer impulse and overpowering hunger.

Gu Fuyou bit into Zhong Michu's hand.

Zhong Michu: "…"

Gu Fuyou: "…"