Walking forward, through thorns and vines, Qinghe and Qirong moved slowly and steadily.
Stretching, Qinghe walked ahead, then turned around and leaned lazily against a big tree, saying to Qirong, "I originally thought you were someone who didn't like to meddle in other people's business, but after you saved those people just now, I have a new understanding of you."
Qi Rong smiled slightly, "I just don't want you to waste your spiritual energy by taking action. If you encounter danger, I'm afraid you won't be able to protect yourself."
He plucked a green leaf and held it to his eyes, looking at Qinghe through the holes in the leaf. "But with me here, no one will hurt you."
Qing glanced at him sideways, "Really? You don't want me to manage other men, do you? Admit it, it's your possessiveness that's causing this."
Having her little scheme exposed, Qi Rong lowered her eyes and chuckled silently.
Qing smiled smugly and was about to turn around and continue walking when something suddenly attacked from above. She reacted quickly, grabbing a spotted snake in her hand.
The snake was highly venomous, but unfortunately, Qinghe had its vital spot pinned down, preventing it from spitting out venom. It could only bulge its eyes and wag its tail.
Strangely enough, since entering the valley, they had encountered very few animals. This spotted snake was the second animal Qinghe had seen besides the cicada, making it a rare species.
With a slight exertion, the snake died. Qinghe tossed it to the ground with disdain and didn't look at it again.
She reached out to pull Qi Rong, but Qi Rong seemed to flinch away in disgust, a faint smile playing on her lips. She said, "It's dirty. I'm a germaphobe. Remember to wash your hands." With that, she turned and left without a trace.
Qinghe: "..."
The wheel of fortune turns; this saying is absolutely true.
Those who resigned themselves to their fate followed, thinking to themselves, "I'll just wash myself in any river."
Little did they know that after the two left, the tree that Qing had been leaning against began to move. Its branches trembled, and vines extended from all directions, clinging to the ground and completely covering the snake's corpse.
The veins surged and pulsed, draining the blood from the spotted snake in an instant. The vines retracted and hid, leaving only a dried snakeskin at the scene.
...
Annoying the cicadas' chirping, Li Jiang casually knocked one down, her furrowed brows relaxing for a moment.
With a slight twitch of their ears, they could hear the sound of the flowing river not far away. The group couldn't help but sigh, after walking for so long, they were finally no longer surrounded by green trees and plants.
Behind them, Chi Haoyu and Liu Yuntai whispered to each other.
"Cousin, let's not go with them. Don't forget our mission. If they steal the Heavenly Cicada, we'll suffer a huge loss."
Upon hearing this, Liu Yuntai was somewhat displeased. "Brother Li isn't that kind of person. Cousin, you'd better not say anything more."
"You've only known him for a short time, how do you know he's not that kind of person? As the saying goes, you can't judge a book by its cover. He may look honest and kind, but you never know what kind of person he really is!"
"cousin!"
Seeing Liu Yuntai's stern face, Chi Haoyu reluctantly shut his mouth.
After walking for about the time it takes to burn two incense sticks, we finally saw the river.
The air suddenly became much fresher, and Li Jiang couldn't help but relax her tense body and mind, taking a couple of breaths of fresh air.
Before he could exhale, he saw two figures walking along the shore. He quickly took two steps and walked up to them.
"Junior Sister, Young Master Qi, we've finally found you. Are you alright?"
Qinghe said, "It's alright, Senior Brother." She looked behind Li Jiang, "Why are there only the two of you? Where are Mu Dong and Shen Xun?"
Li Jiang shook her head, "I don't know either. I haven't seen them since we got separated."
Qinghe pondered upon hearing this, "Won't something bad happen?"
Li Jiang hesitated for a moment, "Probably not. With Shen Xun around, even if there are Yin Sha beasts or the like, they are no match for him."
Thinking about it, Qing felt a little relieved. Then she noticed Qi Rong staring intently at the river and asked, "Is there something wrong with the river?"
Qi Rong put her hand in front of Qing He and pushed her back. "There's a smell of blood, and it's fresh. Someone just died inside."
Qinghe looked at the babbling water, its surface crystal clear.
"Is something behind the scenes manipulating things?"
Qi Rong said, "Most likely."
"Could it be underwater?"
“It’s possible.” Qi Rong looked at her. “Do you want to go down and take a look?” Her tone was as relaxed as if she were going on a trip.
"Great! A day trip underwater, and it's free! I'd be missing out if I didn't go."
The two were so engrossed in discussing their trip that they completely ignored the presence of certain other people.
Li Jiang coughed lightly and said, "Junior sister, let me introduce you. This is Young Master Liu Yuntai, whom you met when we entered the valley. Young Master Liu, this is my junior sister, Qinghe."
Qinghe nodded slightly and said, "It's an honor to meet you, Young Master Liu." After saying that, he continued to be lost in thought and did not speak again.
Liu Yuntai was gentle and polite, and didn't react much. Chi Haoyu, on the other hand, was a bit too calm and said slowly, "Miss is truly stunning. Such beauty is so rare that it's no exaggeration to say that she is one in a million."
Qinghe said expressionlessly, "Everyone knows how beautiful I am; you don't need to say it out loud."
Chi Haoyu was momentarily speechless, but composed himself and continued, "May I ask how old you are, young lady? Do you enjoy listening to music? I can play the xiao (vertical flute), may I play a tune for you?"
Qinghe said calmly, “Eighty years old, smooth on the outside but despicable on the inside. You’re not interested in music, but you’re only interested in killing. You just killed two people a couple of days ago, but it wasn’t enough. How about I use you to try it out?”
She promptly put on a cold, sinister expression, which startled Chi Haoyu. Embarrassed and terrified, he hurriedly shut his mouth.
Qinghe wasn't very interested in this despicable person, so he turned around and walked back to Qirong's side, intending to go into the water with him to find out what was going on.
Li Jiang and Liu Yuntai also noticed the unusual nature of the river. Moreover, they hadn't seen a single rare treasure along the way, so they suspected that something was hidden underwater and wanted to go down into the water to take a look.
Qi Rong walked at the forefront, and with a sweep of her long sleeves, the originally calm river began to surge from its center. With a slight exertion, a gap opened from the middle, the gap being deep and leading straight to the bottom of the water.
Reaching out to embrace Qinghe's waist, the two leaped into the water together, followed closely by Li Jiang, and then Liu Yuntai.
Looking at the bottomless passage, Chi Haoyu was a little scared. "Cousin, I... I won't go down. Be careful if you encounter any danger. I'll wait for you here."
Considering his cousin's cultivation level and courage, Liu Yuntai said, "Alright, I'll have the Shadow Guards stay behind to protect you."
"Okay, okay, don't worry, with them protecting me, I'll be fine. You go quickly, don't let those people get there first."
Liu Yuntai sighed and then jumped into the water.
As they fell deeper, the stench of blood grew stronger, mixed with poisonous gas. Everyone held their breath to avoid being poisoned.
The underwater world was unexpectedly deep and secluded, and the view became more and more open as you went down. The space was exceptionally wide, and the surrounding stone walls were covered with thick moss, emitting a heavy smell of decay. Strange patterns were carved on them, with twisted lines whose meaning was unknown.
“It’s the mountain spirit,” Qi Rong said.
Qing asked in confusion, "Mountain spirits? So many?"
Qi Rong explained to her, "A vast mountain will give birth to countless mountain spirits to protect all species within it. Mountain spirits are holy and radiant, surviving by absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. However, for some reason, they can become frenzied and bloodthirsty, and may even unconsciously devour their companions to strengthen themselves, until they become ugly monsters."
"The spirits of the dead mountains will become part of the mountain and attach themselves to the stone walls, seemingly eternal, but in reality, their souls have perished, unless..."
Qinghe: "Unless what?"
"Unless the mountain spirit that devoured its companions is killed and the spirits it absorbed are released, the dead mountain spirit will be resurrected a hundred years later."
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