Chapter 13 Let's Set Off Together
Jiang Xiaoyi had never imagined that this disciple who came to her door would be so to her liking.
She thought her requirements for taking on apprentices were very simple: as long as the person was pleasing to the eye, mature, honest, generous, wealthy, clever, obedient, and hardworking. However, after searching for many years, she still couldn't find a suitable one.
Ji Mingran was poor and young at the time, no longer meeting the first standard. But the ancient corpse suddenly awakened, and the laws of nature changed, so she had no choice but to reluctantly accept and nurture it.
Later on, Ji Mingran became efficient at his work, earned a lot of money, and learned quickly. He never cried or made a fuss, and he never pried into other people's business.
It really puts her at ease.
As she originally envisioned, even the most obedient disciple would hesitate if she allowed her cultivation to stagnate. She would have to spend some time persuading him, and if that didn't work, she would secretly try to suppress him.
However, Ji Mingran's cultivation level was stuck at the Qi Induction stage, and he couldn't get past this hurdle no matter what.
She saved herself the trouble of explaining.
Even the most daring apprentice, upon hearing that they could gamble big with little and were practically risking their lives, would hesitate. She had already devised a plan: first, to coax and deceive to boost morale, and then to coerce and entice them.
We must achieve our goal no matter what.
Upon hearing the news, Ji Mingran simply nodded to indicate that she understood, and then continued to work as hard as an ox as usual.
He was even humming a tune as he left.
From beginning to end, she didn't need to worry about anything at all.
Silently watching Ji Mingran's departing figure, Jiang Xiaoyi patted the little ginseng beside her and sighed repeatedly, "Indeed, as expected of me, with such keen insight. Unlike you."
Xiao Can couldn't help but chuckle: "The boss is right."
The stars are dim tonight, and the streets are dark and gloomy.
The boy leaned against the wall with his head down, seemingly blending into the dark night as thick as ink.
He looked up.
The young girl stepped out of the door with a lantern.
The orange lamplight flickered and shone, stubbornly resisting the darkness, tearing open a corner to let out a hazy light.
"You've arrived." Ji Mingran stopped at the door, held the lantern out, and smiled brightly at him.
Like starlight illuminating the night sky.
Yu Tianxing's eyes flickered slightly as he stared at her intently. He slowly emerged from the shadows and walked towards her, a faint smile appearing on his frost-like, indifferent face. "Why are you so late today?"
Since she became a skilled technician, she rarely stayed out late at night.
Ji Mingran strode towards him, his body rising and falling slightly, as if he were walking on a ravine and was a little unsteady.
The two met in the middle of the road. Ji Mingran sniffed and said, "Boss Jiang is checking my homework and also telling me some news. If we delay any longer, it will be too late."
Ji Mingran carried a lantern to light the way ahead, and the two walked slowly, their eyes involuntarily falling on the person beside them.
The man was tall and slender, with a long sword at his waist. He had dark hair and wore black clothes, and under the candlelight, his black robes shimmered with a faint golden light.
The material is excellent.
But if she wasn't mistaken, Ji Mingran sniffed again.
The smell of blood was extremely faint, and its source was this person who appeared calm, composed, and dignified as a noble young master.
Arrows surged in from all directions, their target Yu Tianxing.
He stood still, his fingers twitching slightly as he drew his sword. Ji Mingran lunged forward at the same time, passing the lantern to Yu Tianxing's hand, and with a backhand stroke, deflected all the arrows.
Several men in black appeared silently from all around.
Yu Tianxing stood beside Ji Mingran, offering a lantern in front of him, the dim candlelight dispelling the darkness within the small space.
Ji Mingran swooped down.
Swords flashed, and corpses littered the ground.
"You've made great progress," Yu Tianxing said with a smile.
"One, two, three, four, five, six." Ji Mingran squatted on the ground and counted. "Sir, please remember to settle the bill."
It's less a sign of progress and more a sign of recovery.
His body was no longer as weak as when he first arrived, and he had barely recovered 10% of the skills he had acquired in his previous life.
In addition, there's the swordsmanship taught by Professor Yu Tianxing.
Now she's very good at it.
In the third year of their relationship, Yu Tianxing would occasionally disappear for a period of time.
When he returned, he always wore a fine brocade robe and brought her a lot of medicine to treat her foot injury.
And several people who were chasing him.
According to him, he brought it specifically for her to practice with.
Anyway, he could clean up the mess, and he even brought her a lot of coffin business.
Ji Mingran thought it was great.
"Of course." The lantern landed beside her, and Yu Tianxing helped her up. "Let's go home."
Ji Mingran happily shared his recent experiences. Just as he was talking about Tianmen, the two of them returned to the front of the hut.
Her room was no longer as cramped as it used to be.
In the first year, Yu Tianxing spent his days going up the mountain to cut down trees and gradually expand the area.
Now the two each have their own bedroom, which is connected to the other.
As you push open the door, the aroma of food fills the room.
"As expected." Ji Mingran quickly sat down, beaming. "There's always something delicious to eat here."
The birds chirped excitedly.
It's unclear whether it truly understood the two people's purpose in raising it, because it hasn't grown at all over the years and still looks like a fledgling.
Fortunately, it didn't eat much, so the two continued to keep it.
The birds were mostly fed by Yu Tianxing. If he was going out for a while, he would prepare rice and water before leaving.
Ji Mingran was only responsible for adding some food and then going home to play.
“You always forget to eat when you’re busy.” Yu Tianxing picked up the bird nestled in the basket, placed it in his hands with his palms together, and sat down with her, looking at her: “I’ve found a new medicine, let’s try it after dinner.”
Just as Boss Jiang had predicted, and as Doctor Zhang diagnosed, Ji Mingran's foot injury had been delayed for too long, and the injury had worsened. Even the best medicine was of no use.
Her left leg was completely crippled.
Regarding this matter, the person involved was clearly more open-minded than the bystanders. Ji Mingran repeated what he had said countless times in the past: "Anyway, if I walk slowly, others won't notice anything. This injury won't have much of an impact. Besides, Boss Jiang also said that when I reach the Foundation Establishment stage, I will undergo a marrow cleansing and body transformation, and these old injuries will naturally heal. There's no need to go to such great lengths to find medicine for me."
Yu Tianxing stroked the baby bird's head without saying a word.
Ji Mingran decisively changed his mind: "Of course, it would be best if I could recover before I reach the Foundation Establishment stage. I will take the medicine immediately after I finish eating."
"Hmm." Yu Tianxing's lips curled up, remembering the topic Ji Mingran had interrupted, and continued, "You mentioned Tianmen earlier, and then what?"
Ji Mingran continued what he was about to say when he first started learning.
"Boss Jiang said that the Qiwang Mountain Heavenly Gate will open at the beginning of next month, and I must go there." To arrive on time, she needs to set off as soon as possible.
"Chirp!" A piercing, ear-piercing scream.
Yu Tianxing lowered his eyelashes, loosened his unconsciously clenched hands, and stroked the fledgling bird that had hurriedly poked its body out with its thumb. After a while, he said in a low, hoarse voice, "You are in the Qi Refining stage."
"This journey is fraught with peril, but my mind is made up. I'd like to take you with me, but there's no foolproof plan at the moment, and it might be risky. Would you be willing to come with me?"
The shadow that fell on the table collided with its own shadow because the owner leaned forward in a hurry.
Yu Tianxing's eyes flickered slightly.
Even so, she would not waver in her decision. If he did not go, then this would be the moment for them to part ways.
The palm loosened, revealing a small gap, and the fledgling seized the opportunity to hop onto the table. It hurriedly jumped outwards, and the fair, slender hands seemed to want to hold the fledgling, moving slightly in the direction the fledgling jumped. But halfway there, the hands suddenly changed their minds and stopped at a certain point.
With hands clasped together, palms down, they perfectly covered the two shadows.
"Okay." Yu Tianxing raised his eyes, his dark pupils completely concealing his intense emotions, and whispered:
"At the beginning of next month, in Minghua County of Qiwang Mountain, I intend to raise an army, and you can accompany me."
The two of them spent the whole night cleaning; to be precise, it was Yu Tianxing who spent the whole night cleaning.
He carefully packed up his valuables, sorted and packed rice, flour, meat, and changes of clothes, and even found horses in the middle of the night. Before leaving, he made sure to close the doors of the hut tightly and lock the wooden gate to the courtyard.
His gaze lingered on the cottage for a moment, then he lowered his eyes and gently stroked the restless bird in his palm before turning around and helping Ji Mingran, who had been waiting for a long time, onto his horse.
Ji Mingran shared a horse with Yu Tianxing. In her previous life, she had driven armored vehicles and piloted fighter jets, but she had never learned to ride a horse.
In her haste to leave, she first went to the funerary goods shop to say goodbye. When she couldn't find Xiaoshen, Boss Jiang was half-awake and looked confused. He rummaged through his clothes for a while and finally pulled out a small brocade pouch, which he tossed to her.
"It's quite heavy," said Boss Jiang, "that's the monthly allowance."
"Go on, don't see me again." Boss Jiang yawned and waved goodbye.
Is this also a blessing for her trip?
Ji Mingran bowed, "Over the years, I have been fortunate to receive your care, Boss. Are you really not coming with me?"
"The time isn't right yet," Boss Jiang said curtly before kicking her out, closing the door, and going to sleep.
The horses that Yu Tianxing brought were tall and strong, and extremely fast, galloping all the way.
In the first few days, there were many travelers on the road, and occasionally a few cultivators would pass by in a hurry.
Two days later, he encountered more and more cultivators, some flying in the sky, some flashing on the road... It was the first time Ji Mingran had ever felt that the cultivation world was so teeming with people.
After ten days of travel, Mount Qiwang was finally visible in the distance.
The Qiwang Mountains stretch for dozens of miles, with sixteen prefectures scattered around them. Qiwang Mountain is located in the center of the mountain range, and Minghua Prefecture, which Yu Tianxing was heading to, is located at the foot of the mountain. To go up the mountain, one must enter the city.
There were quite a few people heading to Qiwang Mountain.
Ji Ming lit a fire at night, and four or five people followed the light to find him.
Ji Mingran looked up and was stunned by the scene before him.
What a strange bearded team this is.
The leader was tall and sturdy, his face completely obscured by a large, messy black beard, revealing only a pair of bright black eyes, and he looked like a brown bear.
Standing beside him was a tall, thin man with shrewd eyes and handsome features. A long beard, tied into a ponytail, hung from his chin. Unlike the big beard, his long goatee was clearly well-groomed, smooth and flowing.
Behind them stood four or five men, all with different colored beards.
"Hey little sister, can I borrow a light?" The bearded man's voice was loud and clear. Glancing out of the corner of his eye at Yu Tianxing, who was holding a baby bird, he said, "Little brother, that bird isn't even enough to fill your teeth. We hunted a few rabbits today, little brother, can I borrow a light from you, little sister? We'll share some with you?"
Yu Tianxing simply lowered his head to tease the fledgling's head, his expression remaining indifferent, seemingly unaware of the bearded man's voice.
The atmosphere was silent and awkward.
The tall man with the goatee standing next to the bearded man was very perceptive and tried to smooth things over, saying, "Senior brother, please don't speak nonsense. This fledgling bird has been carefully cared for and is not food. Senior brother, please forgive your rudeness."
The bearded man awkwardly scratched his head, stammering, "This...this..."
The man with the goat beard turned to Ji Mingran, who looked more approachable, and said, “We don’t know how to start a fire, and we want to conserve our spiritual energy, so we would like to ask you two to help us cook. If you don’t mind, we would like to ask you to try our senior brother’s cooking skills. His barbecue is absolutely amazing.”
They walked silently, their breaths deep and drawn out; they were not ordinary martial artists, but cultivators.
Ji Mingran smiled and held up two fingers: "Of course, I want two."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
