Chapter 91: Blood Vine

Chapter 91: Blood Vine

Outside Hundred Flowers City.

Deep within the rolling mountains.

Lush and green.

Ling Yi wore mountain climbing gear and moved agilely through the dense forest.

“To the left front…”

“A bit further, about a hundred meters or so.”

“Yes, yes, right here, just this spot…”

“Mmm, dig!”

The Enchantress was giving commands.

Ling Yi pulled a multi-purpose engineering shovel from his Storage Artifact made of Starstone and started digging forcefully at the spot.

“Dig three chi first,” the Enchantress said.

Ling Yi huffed and puffed, digging one meter.

“Dig another chi and a half,” the Enchantress continued to instruct.

Ling Yi kept huffing and puffing, digging another chi and a half.

“Another…”

“…”

After digging down more than two meters deep in one go, Ling Yi finally saw a striking bright red appear within the soft, dark soil.

Something resembling a blood vessel was exposed a section; upon closer look, it seemed as if blood was flowing inside.

It was quite miraculous.

Blood Vine!

A miraculous plant that grows deep within the earth.

Normal vines cling to large trees, but the Blood Vine was the opposite.

Its roots were usually near the surface in shallow soil, then it grew continuously downward, attaching itself to the roots and stems of those large trees.

It did not do anything else—just one word: Suck!

For experienced people, judging whether a place had Blood Vine mostly required only observing the state of the towering trees to make a basic determination.

If a towering tree, healthy and free from illness or disaster, should have been thriving but suddenly became somewhat wilted or even completely dried up, then nine times out of ten, it was because its roots and stems deep in the earth were entangled by Blood Vine!

Blood Vine was extremely overbearing.

Once it targeted a tree, no matter how thick or tall, it would not take long before the tree was completely drained of nutrients and turned into a withered tree.

If it were only like this, Blood Vine could not be called a miraculous plant, and it might have long been dug to extinction.

Its most miraculous aspect was that it could run!

And like an intelligent creature, it would actively avoid danger, its escape route was bizarre, and its whereabouts were unpredictable!

If it sensed danger in advance, it might not show its head again for many years in a row.

It would choose to bury itself deep in a safe place and wait quietly for an opportunity.

As an extremely important but not strictly necessary material for tempering the Fourth-Order Golden Body, Blood Vine had always been a top-grade medicinal herb coveted by many large Sects and Ancient Sects.

Saying it was extremely important was because the Golden Body tempered with it and without it were completely different!

Saying it was not strictly necessary meant that without this thing, it did not hinder successfully forging a Golden Body.

Because it was so hard to obtain, even in some top Cultivation World sects, there were very few disciples who could use Blood Vine to temper their Golden Body.

This thing would run at the slightest sign of trouble, hiding for several years at a time.

In the vast mountains, one could not possibly dig open every inch of land, right?

This was exactly why someone like Ling Yi, a complete novice in the Cultivation World, had no idea of Blood Vine’s true value.

If someone from a Sect were commanded by the Enchantress like this and then dug up Blood Vine so easily, they would definitely be shocked speechless.

It was even possible they might kneel on the spot and call her Daddy!

Because this ability was really a bit too abnormal!

But for Ling Yi, the Enchantress had too many miraculous operations.

Finding some medicinal herbs was just basic operation to him; he could not even be bothered to shout “666.”

And the Enchantress did not think much of it either.

Although she liked to boast, she did not boast about everything.

For example, digging up Blood Vine, in her eyes, probably was not worth showing off; it was about the same as an auntie digging wild vegetables in the countryside during spring.

So she did not even mention it.

As a section of the vine was exposed to the air, the Blood Vine, sensing danger, immediately started shrinking back into the soil slowly, like an earthworm…

If the Enchantress had not explicitly told him that Blood Vine was a plant, Ling Yi would have really thought it was some kind of animal.

While exclaiming at its wonder, he worked with full vigor, swinging the engineering shovel to continue digging.

Not long after, a larger deep pit appeared there.

The Blood Vine did not run slowly, but it could not withstand the diligent Golden Body little bee digging frantically…

A Blood Vine over ten meters long was completely dug out.

At the bottom of the pit, it looked like a large earthworm, also a bit like a very thin snake, writhing and squirming, constantly trying to escape.

Someone with a slightly weaker nerve could easily be scared by it.

But this thing had no attacking power; it was just a miraculous plant.

Ling Yi picked it up, coiled it around and around on his wrist, wrapping it into a bundle, and casually tossed it into the Storage Artifact.

If people from those Sects saw this behavior, they would definitely be heartbroken to the point of madness.

They would curse, calling him an ignorant brant who dared to waste such a treasure so recklessly!

No one treated a top-grade medicinal herb like this!

But both Ling Yi and the Enchantress thought this was perfectly natural.

If not stored like this, should they burn incense, bathe, and enshrine it?

After obtaining the Blood Vine, the materials for the preliminary Golden Body tempering were finally completely gathered.

Actually, those taken from the Heaven’s Gate Sect’s Treasure Vault earlier would have worked too; although Blood Vine was good, it was ultimately not a necessity for tempering the Golden Body.

It was just that the Enchantress was a perfectionist; missing something made her feel uncomfortable.

And she was absolutely certain: the Golden Body tempered with Blood Vine and without it were completely on different levels!

During the descent from the mountain, Ling Yi casually fished a few golden scaled fish from a stream.

By the time he returned home, it was already past nine in the evening.

Qin Jiuyue had long left. The room she stayed in was piled with a large heap of alcohol, which made Ling Yi speechless and he could not help but frown.

But thinking he probably would not live here much longer, and that female alcoholic was busy anyway, she probably would not come often, right?

Ling Yi planned to handle the fish first. After dinner, he would start the Golden Body tempering.

According to the Enchantress, the Medicinal Bath with Blood Vine and without Blood Vine had a very significant difference.

“This Blood Vine should last about three months. After three months, reaching the third or fourth level of Golden Body shouldn’t be a problem.”

Three to four months… to the third or fourth level of Golden Body!

That kind of cultivation speed would scare people to death if word got out.

Ling Yi also felt it was unbelievable.

But he didn’t want to show it.

Otherwise, the Enchantress would definitely mock him.

While he was cooking fish, the doorbell rang. He thought it was Qin Jiuyue coming over for drinks again. He checked the video intercom and saw it was actually that little fox spirit!

He opened the door and invited Hu Xiaoxian in with some helplessness. “Why are you here again?”

Besides, this little fox spirit used to come and go without a trace. In just one day, how did she start following rules and using the door?

Ling Yi found it a bit strange.

Hu Xiaoxian peeked furtively behind her, slipped into the courtyard, and bowed to Ling Yi with a panicked look. “Young Master Ling, someone is chasing me. Please let me hide here. I will repay you in the future!”

Seeing Hu Xiaoxian’s genuinely terrified expression, Ling Yi was stunned.

“Someone is chasing you?”

Hu Xiaoxian nodded pitifully. “An old dog. Its damn nose is too sharp. I don’t know how it found me.”

She looked at Ling Yi, her eyes pleading. “Please, just let me hide here. If it can’t find me, it won’t stay long.”

An old dog?

Ling Yi remembered the old dog demon he once saw in the Chaos Zone, but he found it hard to believe.

This little fox spirit looked soft and cute, but she was no gentle little animal. She was a genuine Dao Enlightenment Master!

He didn’t know how many heavens she had reached, but she was definitely not some weak, fragile little thing.

How could a strong person like her be easily chased?

“What she says is true. Someone is indeed looking for her. Some of my Divine Sense left in the city sensed a very strong murderous intent. However, this little fox isn’t telling the whole truth. It’s up to you. Help her if you want, or chase her away if you don’t. She wouldn’t even dare bare her fangs at you,” the Enchantress said coolly in Ling Yi’s mind.

“Wait, I don’t quite understand. If there really is a Dao-Entry Grade dog demon chasing her, is she safe just by coming here?” Ling Yi asked.

“Of course,” the Enchantress said matter-of-factly. “With me here, which of those messy creatures would dare come?”

Tsk… As if the one who said to run if you can’t win wasn’t you.

Realizing it was the Enchantress’s presence that made this little fox spirit feel safe here, Ling Yi understood he had to put on an act again. He looked at her and said, “Alright, you can hide here then.”

“Thank you, thank you so much!” The fear on Hu Xiaoxian’s face finally eased a little. She let out a long breath and patted her chest. “That scared me to death!”

Then she sniffed the air. “Huh? What’s that smell? It’s so fragrant! How can it be this fragrant?”

Ling Yi: “…”

She’s a foodie!

Twenty minutes later.

Hu Xiaoxian patted her full belly contentedly, blinked, glanced at the few clean fish bones in front of her, and gave Ling Yi an embarrassed, shy smile.

“Oh my, I’m so sorry. It was just too delicious. I couldn’t control myself. I’ve never eaten fish this tasty before! Where did you buy it? I’ll go buy more some other day…”

Some other day?

Do you plan to stay here?

Ling Yi looked at her, then at the lone fish bone in front of himself, and said expressionlessly, “I caught it in the mountains. You can’t buy it.”

Fortunately, the little fox spirit didn’t drink, or Ling Yi would really start doubting his life.

With Hu Xiaoxian’s disruption, the evening plan for the Medicinal Bath to temper his Golden Body was ruined.

Ling Yi simply sat in the living room and chatted with Hu Xiaoxian.

In the past, his understanding of the Demi-Human Race and the Cultivation World was very one-sided.

He had no channels or ways to learn. Over the years, his Adoptive Father rarely brought up related topics.

For things like Spatial Rifts and Beast Tides, he basically could only learn from official channels.

But information from official channels was usually like a massive peak in the ocean—what everyone could see was just the small island above the water…

Hu Xiaoxian was also very curious about Ling Yi. With her level, she was almost certain there was no one else around this house.

But that mysterious feeling arose as soon as she got close here!

That was why when she was being targeted, the first safe place she thought of was here.

So, she was very puzzled by the seemingly very basic, very simple questions Ling Yi asked.

Logically, a genius like Ling Yi, who also had people from Sects around him, how could he not even know some of the most fundamental things?

Or was it that this guy was actually an ancient great master reincarnated, idly teasing her for fun?

He was just teasing her, right?

Hu Xiaoxian’s imagination ran wild, and unknowingly, her attitude toward Ling Yi became more and more respectful and awed.

So the scene of their conversation became somewhat funny.

Ling Yi was asking her for guidance; she should be the teacher, and Ling Yi the student.

But gradually, even Ling Yi noticed Hu Xiaoxian’s attitude toward him becoming increasingly polite, even a bit nervous… Why?

“Are you nervous?” He looked at Hu Xiaoxian somewhat speechlessly. The difference from their first meeting was really too big, making one wonder if it was a different fox.

“I… Heh, no, I’m not nervous. I’m just fine, I guess.”

Hu Xiaoxian also scolded herself inwardly for being useless. Even if he really was a great master reincarnated or possessing someone, it was no big deal. He wouldn’t eat her.

Fox meat doesn’t taste good!

But knowing was one thing; nervousness was like holding in pee… the more you hold it, the more you think about it.

Ling Yi couldn’t help but ask the Enchantress, “Are you playing tricks?”

Sure enough, the Enchantress chuckled coldly. “This little fox isn’t very honest. If I don’t scare her, she won’t know who’s in charge! Now if you ask again, I guarantee she’ll tell you everything. Like why she’s being chased—there’s definitely another reason here. Although I haven’t recovered much, I have a feeling something is about to happen.”

Ling Yi thought for a moment, then looked up at Hu Xiaoxian and said, “You seemed quite at ease in front of me before. I think that was fine.”

As he spoke, the Enchantress also withdrew her pressure on Hu Xiaoxian.

That intense, urgent feeling of nervousness suddenly vanished, making Hu Xiaoxian even more convinced of her guess.

This was indeed a formidable person hiding his power, teasing her all along!

She gave Ling Yi a flirtatious, sidelong glance and said softly, “Young Master is so powerful. How could a little fox like me dare to be at ease in front of you?”

“So, tell me, why are you really being chased?”

Ling Yi asked, seeming casual.

The little fox hesitated. Her watery, peach-blossom-like eyes looked at Ling Yi, seeming somewhat conflicted.

Ling Yi didn’t press her, just looked at her calmly.

Hu Xiaoxian sighed and said softly, “A Beast Tide is coming.”