Ji Yun seemed rather unhappy; his handsome face with deep-set features wore a foul expression.
The gaze he directed at Yuan Shu carried a hint of irritation.
Seeing Yuan Shu looking at him, he turned his head away haughtily, crossing his arms with a cold snort.
Like a child throwing a tantrum.
Yuan Shu raised an eyebrow.
Did he summon these spirit cranes to block her path?
To be fair, for a guy who played with poisons to be able to organize so many spirit cranes into a formation at his command, he actually had some skill.
If he ever stopped being a poison master, he could make a living as a beast tamer!
Yuan Shu swept her gaze over the flock and spotted several familiar spirit cranes.
They were the ones that had flown her over Medicine Cloud Peak last time.
She had even promised them back then that she would give them sound healing cultivation when she had the time.
But now, under Ji Yun's orders, if she moved east, the flock moved east to block her path. If she moved west, the flock moved west.
It was obvious he didn't want her to go up the mountain!
After a brief moment of thought, Yuan Shu turned and plucked a leaf from a nearby tree, wiping it clean.
Then, she brought the leaf to her lips and began to blow.
The melodious tune of the Roosting Phoenix Melody drifted from her lips and the green leaf, echoing across the mountain gate and reaching the ears of all the spirit cranes.
Woven within the melody were faint traces of crimson spiritual energy.
The flock of spirit cranes, which had just been glaring at Yuan Shu with hostility, now looked like children gently soothed in their mother's embrace.
They lowered their competitive heads, swaying slowly to the music.
Up in the tree canopy, Ji Yun, who had just been full of indignation and waiting to watch Yuan Shu make a fool of herself, was so shocked by this sight that he stumbled and nearly fell out of the tree!
His eyes went wide.
No way! When he first tamed these spirit cranes, he had been chased and pecked more times than he could count.
In the end, it was only through a mix of the carrot and the stick, sheer persistence, and willpower that he managed to successfully tame the lead crane.
Why on earth was Yuan Shu able to make these spirit cranes bow their heads so easily?
Hey! Hey! Wake up, all of you! What are you doing drooping your heads like that? What do you look like? Feiyu, Feiyu, wake up!
Ji Yun shouted angrily in exasperation, trying to rouse the lethargic spirit cranes.
However, amidst a melody infused with sound healing techniques, his voice was automatically ignored by the birds.
They were deeply immersed in the healing tune, unable to extricate themselves.
They could feel the cultivation base within their bodies soaring rapidly. Their entire crane bodies felt light and incredibly comfortable.
This unprecedented, novel experience was not something Ji Yun could snap them out of with just a word or two.
By the time Yuan Shu finished her song, the spirit cranes that had been ready to attack her moments ago were completely wiped out.
One by one, they lay coiled on the ground with their eyes closed, evidently having already gone to meet the Duke of Zhou in their dreams.
Ji Yun was so shocked his eyes almost popped out of his head. It took him quite a while to recover from his astonishment.
Turning his head, he saw that Yuan Shu had already bypassed the flock and found a small path heading up the mountain.
Yuan Shu!
He called out loudly, immediately leaping down from the canopy and chasing after her.
Yuan Shu paused her steps and looked up at Ji Yun, who was blocking her way. Her expression was indifferent. Is there something you need?
Ji Yun replied, ...Can't I look for you if I don't need anything?
Heh. Yuan Shu chuckled softly, not bothering to expose his clumsy attempt at striking up a conversation, and stepped forward to continue on her way.
Ji Yun felt a surge of frustration. After what Yuan Shu had done to him that day, how could she remain so indifferent when seeing him now?
She had made him so distracted over the past two days that he couldn't even calm down enough to conduct his venomous insect breeding experiments.
He had made the spirit cranes wander around the foot of the mountain early on, and upon seeing her arrive, he had immediately and eagerly rushed over to intercept her.
To think that even after all this, Yuan Shu still gave him the cold shoulder?
What did she mean by this?
Toss him aside after using him?
The more Ji Yun thought about it, the angrier he got. With a spin, he once again blocked Yuan Shu's path.
Yuan Shu pursed her lips, looking expressionlessly at the man obstructing her way. A hint of impatience welled up in her indifferent eyes.
She didn't particularly like this foul-tempered poison master; that day had merely been a matter of absolute necessity.
Having consumed her Acacia Fruit, Ji Yun's strength should have also increased. He would probably break through to the Nascent Soul stage before long.
He didn't lose out on the deal.
What exactly do you want? Yuan Shu's tone was impatient, her brows slightly furrowed.
That cold attitude instantly made Ji Yun's heart run ice-cold.
Tossed aside after being used. She was really just tossing him aside after using him!
Even though that day, Yuan Shu... she had been so overbearing, completely ignoring his resistance as she forcefully pinned him down.
And now, she was lifting her skirts and refusing to acknowledge what happened, even treating him with such impatience?
Ji Yun's eyes, which were staring intently at Yuan Shu, grew red. He gritted his teeth tightly, his fingers already reaching for the medicinal powder hidden within the silver ornaments at his waist.
Yuan Shu instinctively retreated backward, not letting out a slight sigh of relief until she was ten meters away.
Ji Yun, don't try anything stupid.
Yuan Shu felt a headache coming on.
She had to admit, with Ji Yun covered in poisons, even she had to deal with him carefully.
Being targeted by such a poison master was not a good thing.
Ji Yun pressed his lips together tightly. Seeing Yuan Shu avoiding him like he was a venomous snake or scorpion, his already chilled heart grew even colder.
This woman was simply heartless!
She truly didn't care about him.
Was what happened that day as trivial and commonplace to her as eating and drinking?
But that was clearly his first time, his primal yang!
Why, why was she so indifferent?
He remembered his master's teachings: you must fight for what you want. Regardless of whether the other party is willing, as long as you are willing, that's all that matters!
If Yuan Shu wasn't willing to take responsibility for him, then... then wouldn't it be fine if he took responsibility for her?
He had slept with her, so she was his woman!
With this thought in mind, Ji Yun was suddenly enlightened, and even his eyes lit up a bit.
Hey, don't come any closer!
Yuan Shu frowned as she watched Ji Yun approaching her, taking steps backward.
She didn't care about the spirit cranes, but Ji Yun had too many poisons and venomous things on him. It wouldn't be good if she got drugged.
Although she had some knowledge of poisons and medicinal plants, many poisons couldn't be cured with a single herb.
What if this guy went crazy and threw all his poisons at her at once?
As soon as Yuan Shu spoke, the Ji Yun opposite her unexpectedly stopped moving.
Just as Yuan Shu thought he was going to give up, a slight stinging pain came from her ankle.
Hiss.
Yuan Shu drew in a sharp breath, pulling up her pant leg to glance down.
A small cyan-grey bug had just fallen from her ankle to the ground, disappearing into the dead branches and rotting leaves.
Yuan Shu recognized the little bug at a glance. It was a neurotoxic insect whose venom could quickly strip a person of their mobility.
Sure enough, just as the thought arose, Yuan Shu found her hands and feet starting to go numb.
A faint, lingering stinging pain emanated from her muscles.
She had been careless!
She had been so focused on guarding against Ji Yun making a move that she hadn't noticed there were venomous bugs he had raised in this forest!
The toxicity of this kind of bug depended on the types of poisonous plants it was fed.
Even Yuan Shu couldn't cure the poison without knowing what kind of poisonous plants Ji Yun had used to feed the bug!
Damn it!
Yuan Shu cursed under her breath, turning around to run as fast as she could. But before she could take more than two steps, her legs gave out.
No wonder even the sect leader of the Falling Immortal Sect had been poisoned by him.
If this guy wanted to kill someone, probably few could escape his grasp!
