“Caw, caw…”
A completely black xuanniao circled in the air a few times before calling out and drifting lightly down onto the small table in the Guest Elder Court.
Beneath a tree swaying gently in the breeze, Yuan Shu was reclining with her eyes closed, resting. Hearing the noise, she slowly opened her eyes.
The xuanniao hopped over and rubbed against the back of Yuan Shu’s hand, which rested on the arm of the lounge chair.
Its glossy black eyes were filled with an almost humanlike eagerness to please.
The corners of Yuan Shu’s lips curved upward. She stroked its head. “You’re here?”
As if answering her, the xuanniao cawed twice. When Yuan Shu reached out, it placed a sealed letter in her palm.
The moment she opened it, the sealed letter transformed into a dark beam of light and sank into her mind.
After reading its contents, Yuan Shu narrowed her eyes slightly.
Then she slowly raised her head and looked toward the dim sky in the distance, murmuring, “Is it about to begin?”
“Caw, caw.” The xuanniao called twice more before placing a pitch-black jade token into Yuan Shu’s hand. “Your master gave this to you.”
Yuan Shu smiled and casually took two spirit fruits from the divine tree space before tossing them over.
The xuanniao hurriedly leaped up to catch them. Flapping its wings happily, it gradually flew away.
Not long after the xuanniao left the Guest Elder Court, a surging, invisible energy suddenly erupted from the direction of the Scarlet Sun Hall in the distance.
The energy was searing and scorching. Without a doubt, it was pure fire-element energy!
Yuan Shu raised an eyebrow, seemingly sensing something. She lifted a finger and flicked it lightly, causing the Red Lotus Purifying Flame to appear in her palm.
The instant it appeared, its tiny fiery-red body began drifting uncontrollably toward the Scarlet Sun Hall.
The Red Lotus Purifying Flame had long since formed a connection with the Scarlet Sun Flame in the Scarlet Sun Hall. The powerful fluctuation of fire-element energy just now had clearly come from the Scarlet Sun Flame.
Quite obviously, something had happened to the Medicine Cloud Peak’s treasured spiritual flame!
The Red Lotus Purifying Flame sensed it as well. It twisted frantically around Yuan Shu’s fingertip, making a “whoosh, whoosh” sound as it tried to rush toward the Scarlet Sun Hall.
Seeing this, Yuan Shu frowned slightly and gently flicked it. “What are you panicking for? I’ll take you there.”
Only then did the Red Lotus Purifying Flame seem to understand her. It obediently circled around the tip of Yuan Shu’s index finger.
…
“Fire! There’s a fire! Everyone, hurry and put it out!”
The moment Yuan Shu stepped through the gates of the Scarlet Sun Hall, she heard a young disciple shouting anxiously from ahead.
In an instant, the area around the Scarlet Sun Hall became a hub of activity. Nearly every disciple with a water-element spiritual root had been brought to the entrance.
One after another, they activated the water spiritual roots within their bodies, spraying water toward the burning building.
But the flames were unusual. No matter how much water they poured over them, the fire seemed completely unafraid of water and continued to burn fiercely!
Thick black smoke billowed from the loft, while flames soared into the sky.
“This… This isn’t ordinary mortal fire. It can’t be put out with water? But Peak Master Yao is still inside the loft! What are we supposed to do?”
Elder Hai was frantic. His cloudy old eyes were filled with alarm as he stared at the loft being devoured by the flames, his body trembling faintly from tension.
Yuan Shu approached just in time to hear these words. Her expression tightened as she grabbed him and asked, “Elder Hai, what did you just say? Yao Qianci is inside the burning loft?”
Elder Hai froze. Upon seeing that it was Yuan Shu, he hurriedly explained, “That’s right. The loft contains the rare spirit medicines collected from the Death Demon Forest during this recent period!”
“When Peak Master Yao saw the fire, he was afraid the medicines would be damaged, so he rushed into the loft without a second thought. He still hasn’t come out!”
Yuan Shu furrowed her brows. The fire had started under suspicious circumstances. It was not ordinary mortal flame; rather, it seemed to have been caused by an excessive concentration of the Scarlet Sun Flame’s fire-element energy.
Ordinary water could not extinguish such a spiritual flame—not even slow its burning in the slightest.
Clearly, rescuing someone with that method was impossible.
Moreover, Yao Qianci had a wood spiritual root. Surrounded by spiritual flames, his strength would be greatly weakened.
He probably would not be able to hold on much longer!
“I’m going in to take a look.” Yuan Shu did not hesitate. After giving a brief explanation, she stepped inside.
“Wait, Guest Elder Yuan! This fire is strange. You can’t—”
Elder Hai was startled and hurried forward to stop her.
At that moment, it was as though a section of the loft surrounded by spiritual flames had collapsed. A massive wave of spiritual fire suddenly surged upward.
Along with it came a terrifying burst of powerful spiritual energy, sending Elder Hai stumbling to the ground.
When he looked up, he saw Yuan Shu stepping into the sea of flames without the slightest hesitation.
His heart leaped into his throat, and he stared wide-eyed at her back as she entered the loft.
“Guest Elder Yuan!”
The other elders of the Scarlet Sun Hall finally reacted and rushed forward as well.
Peak Master Yao’s life was certainly important, but Guest Elder Yuan’s role was irreplaceable too!
During her time at Medicine Cloud Peak, how many ancient medicinal formulas had she deciphered?
Even Peak Master Yao had praised her repeatedly and treated her with more warmth than anyone else.
If anything happened to her, the consequences would be unimaginable!
However, Yuan Shu had moved too quickly. The blazing fire seemed entirely unworthy of her concern.
In the blink of an eye, she had disappeared through the hall’s entrance.
Not far from the loft, Mo Shoudan, dressed in a black alchemist’s robe and harboring a grudge against Yuan Shu, stared intently at her back as she entered the sea of flames. He let out a cold laugh.
“Walking straight into a trap. She’s asking for death!”
Ever since he had been forced to surrender his elder token, Mo Shoudan’s position at Medicine Cloud Peak had fallen sharply.
Without his status as an elder, any random alchemist at Medicine Cloud Peak could stand on equal footing with him. He was no longer the illustrious “Elder Mo” of the past.
Mo Shoudan hated the other Medicine Cloud Peak disciples who had kicked him while he was down—and Yuan Shu most of all. He placed the blame for everything that had happened on them.
He had finally found a chance to take revenge today, only for Yuan Shu to appear as well.
What a wonderfully unexpected turn of events!
…
At the same time, inside the loft, Yuan Shu moved quickly through the flames with a defensive barrier of Red Lotus Purifying Flame surrounding her as she searched.
Before long, she spotted someone collapsed on the floor deep within the loft.
“Cough, cough, cough…”
The thick smoke made Yao Qianci cough incessantly.
As long as he could still cough, it meant he was alive!
Yuan Shu called out, “Yao Qianci!”
Hearing her voice, Yao Qianci slowly raised his head from the corner.
His handsome, gentle face was dusted with soot. Somehow, it gave him a fragile, almost broken beauty.
Yuan Shu’s eyes lit up, and she hurried forward. Only then did she see what Yao Qianci was doing.
Dozens of rare medicinal plants of various kinds had been placed in front of him.
Affected by the fire-element energy in the loft, the plants’ leaves had shriveled and their petals had curled inward, as though they might wither completely at any moment.
But looking more closely, Yuan Shu saw countless fine green strands of wood-element energy flowing from Yao Qianci’s hands.
Those nourishing strands were connected to every single spirit plant, supplying them with the wood-element energy they needed to survive!
Yuan Shu did not know how long he had been holding on, but his face was deathly pale, and his eyes looked slightly unfocused.
He squinted at her for a long moment before seeming to recognize her.
“Shushu?”
“It’s me. How are you?”
Yuan Shu stepped forward and brushed aside the disheveled hair at his temple. Only then did the thin lips hidden beneath his hair come into view.
At the sight, her heart jolted.
Yao Qianci’s originally beautiful, slender lips had turned a bluish-black, as though he had been poisoned!
