Almost the instant Yuan Shu sat down, Leng Shuxue, standing atop the Ascension Platform, sensed her presence.
He raised his head and looked in her direction.
Yuan Shu was slightly taken aback when Leng Shuxue lifted a hand. Threads of golden light gathered in his palm, slowly forming a golden begonia.
Then he flicked a finger.
The begonia vanished from before Leng Shuxue.
The next moment, Yuan Shu felt something appear in her palm.
She raised her hand and saw a golden begonia slowly blooming there.
In an instant, the Spirit-Bathing light condensed within the flower flowed through her palm and sank into her meridians and flesh.
The spiritual power within her surged and roiled, rising steadily!
This was… the purest Spirit-Bathing power produced during Divine Transformation!
Yuan Shu’s eyes widened slightly. She abruptly looked up at Leng Shuxue.
Their gazes met. His elegant, otherworldly eyes blinked lightly at her.
He knew Yuan Shu disliked drawing attention to herself, so he had been exceedingly discreet. Even Ji Yun sitting beside her had noticed nothing.
“Pfft.”
Yuan Shu laughed. Was this the special favor of a dao companion?
The corners of Leng Shuxue’s lips slowly curved upward. When the handsome, otherworldly man smiled, it was like snow and ice melting beneath the warmth of spring.
Only after seeing Yuan Shu accept his gift did Leng Shuxue gather his thoughts and turn his attention back to his breakthrough.
Beneath the shade of a tree not far away, Su Lingxi looked up and spotted Yuan Shu sitting in the distance.
If it weren’t for Yuan Shu, how could Shen Qi have rejected her advances? And how else would she have been forced to spend the night with a brown ape…?
At the thought, Su Lingxi’s brows drew together, and killing intent surged in the depths of her eyes.
As though she had thought of something, she carefully took a small glass bottle from her robes. After removing the stopper, she released a centipede no larger than a finger.
Then, she secretly pointed toward Yuan Shu with her spiritual power.
“Go on, little thing. Bite that person once, and I’ll give you a beast-spirit pill tonight!”
She lowered her voice, speaking so softly that only she and the spirit centipede could hear.
The centipede had been purchased yesterday after she asked Senior Brother Jiao to visit Medicine Cloud Peak. She had heard that it was personally raised by the Young Poison Master there and possessed an extremely potent venom.
The previous night, she had even soaked the little creature in the Hehuan Sect’s alluring incense.
At this moment, its venomous jaws contained not only a deadly toxin but also the alluring incense!
If it bit someone, even if the victim did not die from the poison, they would certainly make a spectacle of themselves!
Su Lingxi had always wanted revenge against Yuan Shu. But ever since Yuan Shu went to Medicine Cloud Peak, she had rarely had the chance to see her and had been unable to find an opportunity.
Today, with so many people around, even if something happened to Yuan Shu, no one would suspect her. It was the perfect chance.
If Yuan Shu were affected by the alluring incense and did something embarrassing in front of everyone, that would be even more entertaining!
Excitement colored Su Lingxi’s face as she prodded the centipede with a small stick, urging it to hurry.
The centipede circled the stick twice before silently slipping into the grass.
Below the Ascension Platform, most of the ground was covered in ordinary green grass.
Everyone sat on the ground, quietly cultivating. Not a single person noticed the venomous insect crawling soundlessly near the grass and tree roots.
Yuan Shu had also tasted the benefits of the golden Spirit-Bathing light. And with Leng Shuxue favoring her, she received more of it than anyone else. The spiritual power within her continued to grow stronger.
Just sitting here for a short while was equivalent to several months of ordinary cultivation!
No wonder so many people had hurried over the moment they heard that someone was undergoing Divine Transformation.
The centipede followed the grass roots until it reached the area nearby, accurately locating Yuan Shu among the crowd.
It was just about to crawl beneath her robes and bite her when two long, powerful fingers pressed down on its head first.
Sensing something strange, Yuan Shu opened her eyes and saw Ji Yun holding a centipede in his hand, his brows furrowed as he examined it closely.
“Where did this venomous insect come from?”
Yuan Shu leaned over to take a look. Realizing that the insect resembled the ones Ji Yun usually raised, she turned to him.
“I raised it, but I wasn’t the one who sent it here.”
Ji Yun casually stroked the centipede’s head.
The centipede, which had been struggling fiercely only moments before, immediately became docile. It rubbed its body against Ji Yun’s fingertip, looking utterly obedient and eager to please.
“It was coming for you,” Ji Yun said slowly.
If he had not been especially sensitive to poisons and noticed something unusual nearby, Yuan Shu might really have been bitten.
Yuan Shu raised a brow. Coming for her? Who had sent it?
Just then, she suddenly caught a familiar scent at the tip of her nose. It was coming from the centipede in front of her.
The distinctive alluring incense of the Hehuan Sect!
A scene she had witnessed in Su Lingxi’s room suddenly flashed through her mind.
Su Lingxi cultivated the Hehuan Sect’s Withered Wood Energy-Draining Art. This alluring incense came from the same source as her cultivation technique!
Yuan Shu abruptly turned her head and scanned the disciples from Azure Cloud Peak. Sure enough, she spotted Su Lingxi among them.
Although Su Lingxi had hidden herself within the crowd, Yuan Shu knew her too well. She could still recognize her from her clothing.
So it really was her!
Yuan Shu stared at the centipede for a moment, then suddenly smiled and asked Ji Yun, “Can you make it go back and secretly bite its master?”
Ji Yun raised a brow. Realizing what she meant, he gave a confident snort.
“Of course I can!”
Was there any venomous insect in the world he could not control? Especially when this particular insect had come from his own hands.
If even he could not handle it, who could?
Yuan Shu’s lips curved upward. She took a porcelain bottle from her robes.
“Before you let it go, smear some of this on it.”
The alluring incense Su Lingxi had used was far too weak. If Yuan Shu wanted to watch a good show, she naturally had to add something extra.
No one understood alluring incense better than she did!
After applying the contents of the porcelain bottle, Ji Yun released a ripple of spiritual power from his fingertip and communicated with the centipede for a moment. He then stroked it twice on the head before placing it on the ground.
The little creature quickly identified its direction, slipped into the grass, and disappeared.
…
Su Lingxi had hidden herself behind the tall figure of a senior brother and was secretly watching the area where Yuan Shu sat.
She was beginning to grow anxious. The distance was so short—could the centipede have gotten lost?
Why had there still been no reaction from Yuan Shu’s side?
Just as she was thinking this, a sharp pain suddenly stabbed her ankle. She sucked in a breath and hurriedly lifted her skirt.
A familiar-looking centipede tumbled onto the ground, then disappeared into the grass.
Su Lingxi’s expression changed.
Was this the same centipede she had released earlier?
Why was it here? And why had it suddenly bitten her?
Panic seized Su Lingxi. Remembering the poison in the centipede, she scrambled to her feet and hurriedly searched for the antidote.
“Su Lingxi? She’s the one who tried to harm you?”
Following Yuan Shu’s gaze, Ji Yun saw Su Lingxi leaving the crowd in a panic. His brows furrowed.
“You know her?” Yuan Shu raised a brow.
Ji Yun nodded. “I previously sold her some controlling medicines through someone else. The dosage was fairly strong. Do you have a grudge against her? Then I won’t sell her anything next time!”
“No need.” Yuan Shu smiled casually.
“Why refuse spirit stones when they’re being offered to you? However, next time you sell her medicine, you can add something else to it. For example… bitter lotus seeds.”
Ji Yun raised a brow. “That stuff… isn’t it used to suppress lascivious spiritual energy? What would you add it for?”
Yuan Shu smiled, a spark of interest rising in her eyes.
“Why, for fun, of course.”
