Meeting an old friend (6)
Ye Yingying didn't sleep all night. As dawn broke, Zhao Yuxiao came up and called out, "Miss Ying'er, are you awake?"
Ye Yingying happily pushed open the door and greeted Zhao Yuxiao: "Good morning, Young Hero Zhao."
"Good morning, Miss Ying'er. I couldn't find anyone in the shop anywhere, so I went to the kitchen and got some food myself. Come down and have some too."
"Alright, thank you for your trouble, Young Hero Zhao~"
"You're too kind! But..." Zhao Yuxiao leaned closer and whispered to Ye Yingying, "Miss Ying'er, could you please ask the senior to come down too? I just knocked on his door, but he ignored me..."
Ye Yingying asked in confusion, "Given your level of cultivation, you shouldn't need to eat, right?"
"Hey, Senior didn't fast, he just ate less. The main thing is, I saw he was down all night, so I specially brewed some of his favorite tea. He usually feels better after drinking tea, and if he eats some snacks, he might be happy."
Although Yuan Yanqiu remained silent, Zhao Yuxiao knew how frustrated he had been last night. After all these years, this was the first time he had found the true Azure Nether Flame, and after working on it for most of the day, the flame had vanished without a trace. What people fear most is not the absence of hope, but the feeling that hope is so close, within reach, yet slips through their fingers by some twist of fate, impossible to grasp—how regrettable and disheartening!
Ye Yingying knew Zhao Yuxiao meant well, but she was still a little embarrassed: "But, I've only known Senior Yun for a few days. He won't even talk to you, so how could he talk to me?"
“Sigh, this senior is cold on the outside but warm on the inside. He may not say it, but he cares about you. Since he saved you, he'll naturally be willing to listen to your request.” Zhao Yuxiao lowered his voice further, “Unlike me, I'm always the one who has to listen to him…”
The implication was that Yun Yanqiu wouldn't listen to him. Ye Yingying understood, and since she couldn't refuse any longer, she reluctantly accepted the task: "Then I'll give it a try."
So, under Zhao Yuxiao's encouraging gaze, Ye Yingying knocked on Yun Yanqiu's door and gently called out, "Senior, you must be tired from running around yesterday. Young Master Zhao has prepared some of your favorite tea. Would you like to come down and have a few sips to change your mood?"
"..."
The people in the room remained silent. Ye Yingying assumed her persuasion had failed, shrugged, and prepared to turn and leave. Just then, Yun Yanqiu's voice came from inside the room: "Did Zhao Yuxiao send you?"
Ye Yingying quickly explained, "We were both very worried about you and hope you'll feel better soon."
Yun Yanqiu didn't reply, and there was another period of silence. Ye Yingying felt that there was really no hope this time. But the door creaked open, and a deep voice sounded above Ye Yingying: "Let's go."
The voice was extremely close to Ye Yingying, so close that it seemed as if Yun Yanqiu was whispering in her ear. Yun Yanqiu had a unique and light fragrance, a scent that resembled the pines and cypresses of an ancient snow-capped mountain, long-lasting and refreshing, causing her to tremble involuntarily and her heart to race.
Suddenly, a series of erotic images flashed through Ye Yingying's mind. In these images, she was tightly embracing Yun Yanqiu's waist and back, a teasing thought stirring within her. She gently breathed into his ear, then triumphantly watched as his porcelain-white skin flushed a bright pink. The teased man, unwilling to give up, ran a hand through her hair to hold her head still, turning his head to whisper in her ear with a hint of annoyance and helplessness. What did he say? Ye Yingying tried hard to recall, but the words were all blurry, and the subsequent images were also indistinct.
"What's wrong?" Yun Yanqiu asked, puzzled, when he saw Ye Yingying standing motionless in front of his door.
"It's nothing." Ye Yingying snapped out of her daze and quickly stepped aside to let Yun Yanqiu pass. If Yun Yanqiu had looked down at that moment, he would have noticed how obviously red Ye Yingying's ears were, hidden under her hair. Fortunately, neither Yun Yanqiu nor Zhao Yuxiao noticed her slight change and walked downstairs ahead of her.
After Ye Yingying came downstairs and sat down, Zhao Yuxiao warmly served her a steamed bun: "Here, Miss Ying'er, you haven't started fasting yet, eat more!"
Yun Yanqiu remained silent, simply sitting there quietly enjoying his tea, his icy expression softening somewhat.
Seeing this, Zhao Yuxiao was overjoyed and quickly poured another cup for Ye Yingying: "Miss Ying'er, you should try some too."
Ye Yingying took the tea, blew on it, and took a small sip. The tea had a smooth and pleasant taste, with a subtle sweetness from the spring water; it was indeed a good tea. Ye Yingying smacked her lips and couldn't help but praise, "This tea is excellent."
"Miss Ying'er has excellent taste. This is a unique tea from Ganzhou." Zhao Yuxiao's eyes lit up, seemingly with some surprise.
To be honest, Ye Yingying wasn't particularly interested in tea in the past, but she learned that Yun Yanqiu liked to drink tea when she was in the Xuanming Realm. So, in order to get closer to him, she started to learn about tea and gradually gained some knowledge.
But Ye Yingying only gave a vague answer, saying, "Young hero, you flatter me. I haven't had much good tea in this remote place, so I can't say I have any taste. But this tea is refreshing and very much to my liking."
Ye Yingying's words were a mixture of truth and falsehood, making it impossible for anyone to find fault with them.
“I see. Senior Yun also likes this tea. He has a cup every time he comes to Lingyun Alliance. However, this tea is a bit too weak for me. I prefer Yuan Dian tea from Jinzhou, which is mellow and rich.” Zhao Yuxiao shared his tea-tasting experience, then suddenly remembered something. “Hey, I’m going to Jinzhou sometime soon. I can bring you some tea.”
"There's no need to trouble you, young hero," Ye Yingying politely declined. "I'm not used to strong-flavored tea, and it would be a waste of your kindness."
"Oh, no trouble at all. I'm used to it. Besides, you've just escaped the clutches of evil, you've been reborn. You've survived a great calamity, so this tea is my congratulatory gift." Zhao Yuxiao was quite generous. "Or do you have any particular favorite tea? I came across some on the way, I can bring you some."
"Hmm..." Ye Yingying was somewhat tempted. A name unconsciously surfaced in her mind, and she blurted out, "Emerald Snow Tea."
"Emerald Snow Tea?" Zhao Yuxiao stroked his chin, intrigued. "I've never heard of that before."
Unexpectedly, even someone of Zhao Yuxiao's status had never heard of this tea. Ye Yingying's heart skipped a beat, worried that she had inadvertently given herself away. So she quickly added, "I don't quite remember if it's this name either. I just happened to drink it once at a clinic, so I have some impression of it."
"Hmm...maybe it's tea from the Northern Continent. It's a vast and sparsely populated place, and there are always some hidden gems that outsiders don't know about." Zhao Yuxiao was eager to try it out. "I've wanted to go to the Northern Continent for a long time! I'll go there and have a look after I finish what I'm doing."
Young Master Zhao truly embodies the spirit of youthful fearlessness. The Northern Continent is covered in ice and snow year-round, bitterly cold and sparsely populated. The birds and beasts living in this snow-covered land are all fierce and brutal. Ordinary outside cultivators who enter here often become prey for wild beasts, either because they are unfamiliar with the terrain or because their cultivation is insufficient.
Perhaps only a scion of a powerful family like Zhao Yuxiao could describe a trip fraught with constant danger as a leisurely vacation. Ye Yingying couldn't help but sigh. Back when she traveled alone, her greatest fear was the towering mountains of the north. If she were left in those desolate wildernesses, she truly had no confidence in surviving the various ferocious beasts that infested them. If it weren't for the Xuanming Realm of Yunyanqiu being located in the Northern Continent, she probably would never have gone to that hellish place.
"Speaking of which, what are your plans for the future, Miss Ying'er?" Zhao Yuxiao asked.
"Me?" Ye Yingying took a sip of tea. "I'm going to find medicinal herbs that can cure my eye disease. I was fortunate to have the help of two people this time, and I escaped unharmed. But if I can regain my sight, I'll have more opportunities to protect myself."
Blindness is indeed a significant disadvantage for cultivators. Take this demonic cultivator's disguise, for example. Although he was exposed at the time due to his clumsy attempt, there's no guarantee that a more powerful and skilled opponent won't come knocking in the future, exploiting this weakness to lure him into danger. Not to mention, if he were to encounter the Ghost Calculator later, his blindness would only become a point of attack for him. Not everyone in the cultivation world acts like a paragon of virtue like the Lingyun Alliance; employing various methods is commonplace in training.
"Hmm... medicinal herbs for treating eye diseases." Zhao Yuxiao pondered for a moment, realizing that he didn't seem to have such knowledge.
At this moment, Yun Yanqiu, who had been silent all along, took the initiative to speak: "There is a treasure in the Secret Sea of the Western Continent called Mermaid's Tears. This item can cure all diseases in the world, and your eye disease is no exception."
Yun Yanqiu slowly picked up his teacup and took a sip: "The Secret Sea of Xizhou is not far from here. If you want to go, I can accompany you on the trip."
Ye Yingying wondered if she had misheard. Yun Yanqiu would actually ask to travel with her?
"Senior, aren't you still searching for the Azure Nether True Fire? Wouldn't it be a delay if you came with me?"
“It’s alright,” Yun Yanqiu said. “The Mermaid’s Tears come from the Mermaid Clan deep in the Secret Sea. They rarely interact with people on land, yet they are the overlords of that sea. If you go alone, you may never return.”
Yun Yanqiu's words were true; the Merfolk were indeed a mysterious race. Records about them on land were extremely scarce. Most people only knew that they lived deep in the Secret Sea of the Western Continent and could produce many rare and precious things.
Once upon a time, there was a monk who loved to wander and wrote a book, recording all the interesting things he did on his travels to various continents. The book was once very popular among young monks, and people talked about the strange and wonderful stories described in it. When talking about the Western Continent, he wrote: "In the Secret Sea there are mermaids who sing at night on the sea, and their tears can cure all diseases."
A treasure that can cure all diseases certainly sounds tempting. In the past, influenced by the descriptions in the book, cultivators, driven by greed, flocked to the Secret Sea in search of the legendary mermaid tears. But each time, only a few returned from a ship full of people; the vast majority perished at the bottom of the sea, becoming bait for fish. Over time, people began to avoid mermaids, and when they went to the Secret Sea, they mainly ate spirit fish.
Now Yun Yanqiu has offered to go with him to find the mermaids...
Ye Yingying, who had originally intended to part ways, hesitated for a moment.
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