Chapter 208

"Phew... Baby, so this is what you meant by having a way to get up there?"

The Ghost Doctor climbed the mountain, panting heavily, his heavy wooden shoes making a gurgling sound as he took each step.

Moreover, because the stones in the stream were covered with moss, they were extremely slippery when walking on them. One moment the Ghost Doctor was talking to Fan Xiaoxiao and the others, and the next moment he stepped on a large, wet, slippery rock.

"Eh eh eh!"

The Ghost Doctor frantically waved his arms to steady himself, but luckily, Little Black, who had followed behind him, caught him and prevented him from falling.

"Old man, be careful! Didn't Xiao Niangzi give you a stick before you left? Why didn't you use the stick to test the way first?"

"You make it sound so easy. This stick is stuck in a bed of loose stones. How am I supposed to know where I can go and where I can't?"

"Huff...huff, old man. That's right, that's right, you have to walk on the loose stones so you won't fall."

Fan Xiaoxiao struggled to keep up with the two. She was already weak, and climbing mountains in the snow was difficult enough for her, let alone walking in a stream like this.

Moreover, due to the snowfall over the past two days, a thin layer of ice had formed on the stream. Before taking each step, they had to poke the ice with a stick. If they could poke it open, they would do so. If they couldn't poke it open, but it didn't look very solid, they would try to avoid it.

Using this method, the three of them walked and stopped for more than half an hour without getting very far. Looking back, they could still vaguely see the roof of their house at the foot of the mountain.

"Lady Xiao, can you still hold on?"

Xiao Hei glanced at the panting Fan Xiaoxiao with some concern. He and the Ghost Doctor were both martial artists, but this young lady Fan was different.

Although she was much more resolute than the average girl, she was still just a young girl at heart.

The stream was difficult to cross and icy; it was obvious that Fan Xiaoxiao couldn't handle it.

But when the latter heard his question, he simply shook his head awkwardly and with difficulty.

"I'm fine. I'm wearing thick clothes. Let's hurry up and go."

"Then...then shall we not go ashore?"

Xiao Hei was still worried: "We've only just arrived here, so I doubt those Imperial Guards would have chased us all the way here. Although you just said that this stream leads to the road to Tianshan, I'm afraid you won't be able to hold on at this rate."

Despite saying that, Fan Xiaoxiao still shook her head: "No, the reason we're using the stream is to avoid being discovered by those people. And since we've come this far, we can't give up here."

Fan Xiaoxiao tugged at the rabbit fur around her neck, then at the wolf fur draped over her body, revealing a flushed face.

"Besides, I'm not that cold. My mother and sister wrapped me up in several layers inside my wooden bucket shoes, so I'm fine. Let's hurry up the mountain, or we'll have to wait until it gets dark, then the road will really be difficult to walk on."

"Okay... alright."

Xiao Hei was firmly opposed by Fan Xiaoxiao both times he proposed it, and in the end he had no choice but to give up his idea.

The three walked in silence for a long distance, unaware that, fortunately, it was because of Fan Xiaoxiao's insistence, that they managed to escape a disaster.

Shortly after they went up the mountain, the stream below the mountain froze over again with a thin layer of ice, and the group of people guarding the eastern side of Tianshan came down to the stream to fetch water.

"Hey, you, look around! See if anyone's come up the mountain from here!"

The leader sat on his horse, squeezed his legs against the horse's belly, and randomly selected a soldier.

The latter saluted, put down his water bag, and began to search the area. He returned quite some time later.

"Report! There are no signs of human activity ahead!"

The soldier spoke with certainty, and the man on horseback nodded, then spurred his horse and rode back the way it came.

"Since there's nothing unusual, hurry up! Stop dawdling..."

Above the Tianshan Mountains...

Fan Xiaoxiao and the others finally found the way Sang Yuer had mentioned that day after a great deal of effort. She was panting heavily, her hands resting on her knees. Although it was still snowing, a thin layer of sweat had formed on her forehead.

"Ha...ha, finally...finally, we've found the way. Let's...let's hurry up."

Fan Xiaoxiao casually wiped the sweat from her forehead, caught her breath, and then slowly made her way up the mountain, leaning on a wooden stick.

Xiao Hei and the Ghost Doctor walked in front of her and behind her, respectively, afraid that she would faint from exhaustion.

Fortunately, Fan Xiaoxiao lived up to expectations. During the remaining hour of the journey, she simply covered her head and walked without ever complaining of being tired.

Although they were a bit slow, the three of them managed to reach the summit of Tianshan Mountain before sunset.

"Hmm! Isn't this the woman from down the mountain? What are you doing here?!"

When they entered the second gate of Tianshan Mountain, the disciples at the gate were startled by the sudden appearance of Fan Xiaoxiao and her group.

"Don't ask so many questions, take me to see the Heavenly Venerable, I have urgent business with him!"

It was almost dark by then, and everything around was shrouded in a grayish-blue hue. Fan Xiaoxiao sat in the gatehouse beside the mountain gate, the light from the brazier in front of her casting flickering shadows on her face.

She had already changed out of the clothes she wore when she went up the mountain. After taking off her shoes, she realized that her feet were red and swollen from the cold.

She felt her feet were burning hot when she went up the mountain, but now she thinks she was probably getting frostbite.

Fan Xiaoxiao looked down at her foot, which was swollen like a steamed bun, shook her head, and gave a bitter smile.

"This time I've really made a huge sacrifice..."

The door to the gatehouse was pushed open from the outside, and Fan Xiaoxiao was startled, not having time to put her shoes on.

"What sacrifices were significant?"

The Celestial Venerable stroked his beard and walked in.

Fan Xiaoxiao hurriedly put her shoes back on and gave an awkward laugh: "N-nothing...it's nothing."

The Celestial Venerable looked at her suspiciously, but ultimately didn't ask anything. He took a stool and sat down next to Fan Xiaoxiao.

"I just heard from my disciple that the lady came to see me urgently. What is it?"

When it came to business, Fan Xiaoxiao's face became serious. She explained both of her purposes for coming to the Ghost Doctor.

After listening, the latter remained silent for a long time. Finally, he stroked his beard and said, "Getting yeast flowers is no problem; I have plenty of them. But you said… Renle arrested all the townspeople of Tianshan Town…"

The Celestial Venerable frowned, seemingly also feeling a bit troubled by this matter.

Fan Xiaoxiao took a sip of hot tea, and the warm tea flowed down her throat and into her stomach, finally warming her up a bit.

The Celestial Venerable stood up and paced back and forth in the gatehouse twice.

"Wait here for a while, I'll have my disciple bring the things over. You can rest on Mount Tian tonight. I have to go and take care of some important matters, so I won't stay any longer."

After saying this, the Celestial Venerable hurriedly left.

Fan Xiaoxiao's lips twitched. It was hard to believe that this energetic old man was actually a well-known figure in the martial arts world.

A little while later, the door was pushed open again.

"Miss Xiao? Master sent me to deliver something to you."

The boy at the door smiled slightly, revealing two canine teeth.

Fan Xiaoxiao's brow twitched. She hadn't expected the visitor to be—Sang Yu'er!

(End of this chapter)