905: Chapter 906 The Enchanting Spiritual Spring

Xue Shushu was silent for a moment, seemingly digesting his words. Then, she suddenly asked a question that almost made Yao Delong choke:

"Then... Fellow Daoist Long, did you have a Dao Companion before?"

Yao Delong: "..." Inner thought: This girl asks too directly!

He coughed lightly, deciding to tell the truth: "Cough... This... I have had a few confidantes, but the Great Dao is long, and relationships come and go. None of them... have yet to become a Dao Companion."

Upon hearing this, Xue Shushu’s steps seemed to pause slightly, then immediately returned to normal. She did not press further, but Yao Delong keenly felt that the cool, distant aura around her seemed... to have softened by just a tiny bit? He couldn't tell if she was satisfied or something else.

The atmosphere once again fell into a subtle silence, but it seemed to possess a hint more... ineffable closeness than the previous awkwardness?

Yao Delong looked at her back and, as if possessed, spoke with a hint of jest, trying to ease the tension: "Speaking of which, Fellow Daoist Shushu, you have lived for so long... Haven't you had any pursuers?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted it; the question was too casual.

As expected, Xue Shushu stopped abruptly and turned around. Under the moonlight, her exquisitely beautiful and cold face carried a trace of thin anger and shyness. Her clear, sharp eyes glared at him: "You... You man! Why ask such a question! I... I barely have time to Cultivate, how could I bother with those boring people!"

Her tone was proud, and her cheeks were slightly flushed. This reaction did not resemble a Demon Empress who had lived for three thousand years at all! She was clearly like a young girl whose budding feelings had just been exposed!

Looking at her rare sight of shy anger, Yao Delong couldn't help but stare for a moment, then burst into hearty laughter: "Hahaha, I misspoke! Fellow Daoist Shushu is devoted to the Dao, pure and untainted, naturally disdaining these mundane affairs! I admire you, I admire you!"

"Hmph!" Seeing him laugh heartily, the shyness and anger in Xue Shushu's heart inexplicably dissipated a bit. Instead, she felt that this person... didn't seem as restrained as he appeared on the surface? She snorted lightly, turned around, and continued to lead the way, but her steps seemed lighter, and the corners of her mouth curved upward almost imperceptibly.

"We're here."

Xue Shushu's voice returned to its coldness as she stopped before a massive cliff face enveloped by countless profound and mysterious runes. She formed a hand seal and muttered an incantation. The cliff face shimmered with light, slowly splitting open a fissure just wide enough for one person to pass through. A dense, almost liquid-like pure Spiritual Qi, mixed with an indescribable vital life aura, rushed towards them like a tide!

The Heavenly Fox Spiritual Spring was right before them.

The interior of the Spiritual Spring was not an ordinary pool, but an independent Grotto-Heaven Small World filled with misty vapor. At the center was a pool of spring water emitting a soft white glow. The water was crystal clear, yet it seemed to contain the cosmos. Yao Delong was stunned by the pure energy and couldn't help but take a deep breath.

Xue Shushu explained: "The water of the Spiritual Spring is formed from the essence of heaven and earth and the pure Origin left behind after the seated deaths of successive Heavenly Fox experts. One must shed their outer garments and directly contact the spring water with their true body to absorb the essence within to the greatest extent."

After she finished speaking, a blush rose on her face again, and she turned her back. Yao Delong also flushed slightly, removed his outer robe, and stepped into the spring water. The instantaneous coolness and surging power that flooded him made him let out a comfortable sigh. Xue Shushu’s heart raced again upon hearing the sound of water and that soft sigh from behind him.

Yao Delong immersed himself in Cultivation, fully circulating the Sunset Glow Illuminating Yin-Yang Art to absorb the essence of the Spiritual Spring. However, perhaps the energy here was too compatible with his Cultivation Technique, or perhaps... the extremely Yin power accumulated in the spring over many years was too attractive?

The Yin-Yang Harmony System inside his body actually vibrated slightly at this moment, and a wisp of pure Great Sun True Fire Qi escaped uncontrollably! This supremely firm and masculine aura instantly shattered the balance of the Spiritual Spring and startled Xue Shushu, who was acting as his Protector nearby!

She sensed that pure, domineering, Yang energy that seemed capable of burning away all things, and her beautiful eyes were filled with shock! This was absolutely not the power of ordinary flames! She subconsciously moved closer to the edge of the spring, wanting to see more clearly.

"Ding! High-purity Pure Yin Elemental Physique detected approaching, energy attributes are highly compatible! host is advised to perform preliminary Yin-Yang Harmony, which can greatly enhance both parties' Physique and Origin power, accelerating the Spiritual Spring absorption efficiency!" Note: Dual Cultivation is not required; only physical contact is needed to guide energy circulation.

Yao Delong was startled awake by the System prompt. He saw Xue Shushu close at hand, her exquisitely beautiful face filled with shock and inquiry, and those clear eyes reflecting the spring water and his own image. His heart skipped a beat.

As if possessed, he reached out his hand, his voice slightly dry: "Fellow Daoist Shushu... the energy in this spring seems to have... some anomaly. If you don't mind... could I borrow a wisp of your Yin softness to help me guide it slightly?" This request was extremely abrupt, but the System was right; this was the most natural opportunity.

If it were anyone else making such a demand, Xue Shushu would have already stabbed them with her sword. But facing the mysterious man before her—one with powerful potential who was about to become her Dao Companion... She looked into Yao Delong's eyes, which now seemed exceptionally sincere and open. Feeling the comfortable and attractive Yang warmth emanating from his body, she hesitated for a moment, and actually placed her fair, jade-like hand gently onto the palm Yao Delong had extended!

The moment they made contact, both bodies jolted simultaneously! A stream of icy, pure energy like moonlit clear water instantly connected with a tyrannical True Essence, hot like a Great Sun furnace, through their palms!

There was no repulsion, no conflict; instead, it was like the Yin-Yang fish linking head to tail, instantly forming a perfect, smooth, self-sustaining micro-cycle! The collision of ice and fire brought an indescribable tingling, comfort, and a slight tremor at the Soul level! The essence of the Spiritual Spring was wildly drawn by this micro-cycle, rushing into both their bodies at an accelerated rate!

Both were stunned, forgetting to separate, forgetting to speak. They simply gazed at each other, feeling that strange mingling of energies as if it were destined to be this way from birth. The frost on Xue Shushu's face completely melted, leaving only shock and a wondrous palpitations she had never experienced before.

Yao Delong was also shaken by this pure energy fusion. Looking at Xue Shushu's side profile, which appeared even more sacred and moving under the reflection of the energy, for the first time, he felt a trace of genuine affection and tenderness for this "fiancée."

After an unknown amount of time, Yao Delong finally awoke as if from a dream. He withdrew his hand, feeling the surging power within his body and the lingering cool touch. Seeing Xue Shushu hastily shift her gaze, a teasing smile couldn't help but curve the corner of his mouth as he murmured softly: "Does this... count as a preview of 'Dual Cultivation' then?"

Xue Shushu, who had just regained some composure, was instantly reignited by his blunt and ambiguous teasing! She sharply turned her head, her beautiful eyes wide, glaring at Yao Delong with both shyness and anger. Her gaze seemed capable of killing, but paired with her face flushed with crimson, its lethality was nearly zero: "You... You scoundrel! Who wants to... with you...!"

She trailed off after saying "with you" for a long time, ultimately unable to finish the rest of the sentence. She could only glare fiercely at him and turn her head away, but the reddened roots of her ears hidden beneath her hair betrayed everything.