185: Chapter 185 Miss Lin, it's so boring eating alone!

["Elder Shan, I wanted to..." You just wanted to open your mouth to explain a few things.]

[Elder Zhao Chengshan waved his hand, interrupting you with a chuckle, "I've lived for nearly a hundred years, what kind of people haven't I seen? Your eyes are clear, you have schemes in your heart, yet you don't resort to tricks or slacking off."]

[He turned around, his hands behind his back, looking at those lazy Spirit Beasts basking in the sun inside the beast shed, his tone calm: "The work in the Spirit Beast Garden is originally prepared for Guest Elders of the Early Stage Qi Condensation and Family juniors. Letting a Mid Qi Condensation Talisman master like you come every day to shovel dung and feed them is indeed using a sledgehammer to crack a nut."]

[You lowered your head: "Elder Shan has taken care of me greatly, and I have always kept it in my heart, but..."]

["Alright." Elder Zhao Chengshan turned his head and glared at you, but there was not the slightest bit of anger in the depths of his eyes, "What taking care of you or not? Every piece of work you've done in the Spirit Beast Garden is solid and real. Those Spirit Beasts are even more affectionate seeing you than seeing me. It's too late for this old man to take advantage of you, let alone take care of you?"]

[You were stunned for a moment, and couldn't help laughing.]

[Elder Zhao Chengshan fished out an old yellow Talisman paper from his sleeve and stuffed it into your hand: "This is a Grade 1 High Grade 'Godly Mobility Talisman', it's not worth many Spirit Stones. If you really run into a Yao Beast you can't handle, stick it on your legs and you can run faster than others."]

[You lowered your head to look at the yellow Talisman paper in your hand, an indescribable warmth welling up in your heart.]

["Elder Shan..."]

["Stop dawdling," "Whether it's feeding beasts in the Spirit Beast Garden or going to the Ten Thousand Mountains to slay demons, at the end of the day it's all working for the Zhao Family."]

[You grasped the Talisman in your hand whose residual warmth had not yet dissipated, took a deep look at this old man, and solemnly bowed in farewell once more.]

["Thank you, Elder Shan."]

[Elder Zhao Chengshan did not turn back, only waving his hand.]

[Three days later, at the Hour of Chen.]

[You arrived at the East Gate Plaza on time.]

[Twenty or so people had already gathered on the plaza, standing together in twos and threes and conversing in low voices. You glanced over; most of them were Cultivators between twenty and forty years old, with the lowest Qi fluctuation being at the fourth layer of Qi Condensation, and the majority having the fifth layer of Qi Condensation. Guest Elders formed the majority, interspersed with a few collateral descendants of the Zhao Family.]

[Your appearance immediately drew attention.]

[More than twenty gazes snapped over uniformly, some curious, some appraising, and some with unfathomable implications.]

[After all, your reputation in the Zhao Family was not small at all. Inferior Spiritual Root, Talisman master, plus that Face of yours that you couldn't conceal no matter how hard you tried—you couldn't keep a low profile even if you wanted to.]

[A few male Guest Elders huddled together, whispering to each other in lowered voices.]

["Is that her? That Lin Shuangwan?"]

["She's at the fourth layer of Qi Condensation? Wasn't it said she has an Inferior Spiritual Root? How long has it been and she's already at Mid Qi Condensation?"]

["Who knows? There are a bunch of Zhao Family descendants chasing after her, and even Elder Zhao Chengshan looks at her in a different light. You're telling me there's no trick behind this?"]

["Heh, you mean..."]

[You didn't look at them. You walked over to an old locust tree in the corner of the plaza, leaned against it and sat down, closing your eyes to meditate.]

[After about the time it takes to burn two sticks of incense, a sound of piercing through the air came from the east.]

[A young man wearing a cyan-gray robe landed on his flying sword in the center of the plaza, his robes rustling loudly in the wind. He had a tall figure and a square Face, with a resolute aura unique to the Zhao Family between his brows. His spiritual power fluctuations were steady and restrained—Late Stage Qi Condensation.]

[You recognized him.]

[When you were previously helping Young Patriarch Zhao Zhanyuan peddle things at the market, this person had also come to buy Talismans. Young Patriarch Zhao Zhanyuan called him "Elder Eldest Cousin".]

["Zhao Zhanyuan." You confirmed his identity in your heart.]

[After Zhao Zhanyuan landed, his gaze swept around the people present, and then he cupped his fists and spoke: "Everyone, I am Zhao Zhanyuan, the leader for this mission, at the eighth layer of Qi Condensation. Everyone here should have read the mission description, but I will briefly reiterate a few precautions."]

[His voice was not loud, but everyone present heard it clearly.]

["First, our goal for this trip is to search for the traces of the Red-Scaled Python, not to hunt it. The Red-Scaled Python is a Grade 1 Perfection Yao Beast, and its cultivation is equivalent to the Peak of the ninth layer of Qi Condensation. No one here can deal with it alone. If you discover its traces, notify me immediately and do not act on your own."]

["Second, although the outer periphery of the Ten Thousand Mountains is not as perilous as the depths, the number of Grade 1 High Grade Yao Beasts is not small. When advancing, form groups of three to five people, do not act alone, and maintain a distance of no more than a hundred zhang between each other."]

["Third, I am responsible for everyone's safety, and similarly, everyone must also be responsible for their own safety. If you encounter a situation that you truly cannot handle, immediately cast a signal Talisman to ask for help. All of you have received the standard-issue signal Talismans issued by the Zhao Family; those who haven't received one, tell me now."]

[He looked around, but no one spoke.]

["Very well, let's set off."]

[The team proceeded south along the east bank of Qingyang Lake. After taking the official road out of the Zhao Family's sphere of influence, they turned onto a path leading to the Ten Thousand Mountains. Zhao Zhanyuan led the way in front, maintaining a speed neither too fast nor too slow to take care of the few people with lower cultivation in the team.]

[The first day passed safely without incident.]

[On the evening of the second day, you camped by a stream to rest. The stream water was crystal clear, and both banks were overgrown with bushes. After Zhao Zhanyuan set up a simple early-warning Formation, he flew off alone on his flying sword ahead to scout the path.]

[You found a large rock by the stream to sit on, took out your dry rations, and munched on them silently.]

[Several footsteps approached from behind.]

["Fairy Lin, how boring is it to eat alone."]

[You opened your eyes to see that tall and thin male Cultivator with triangular eyes, bringing along two other male Guest Elders of the fourth and fifth layers of Qi Condensation, wearing what he thought was a dashing smile as he walked straight up in front of you.]

["Fairy Lin, this humble one is Qian Peng, with a cultivation of the sixth layer of Qi Condensation." The triangular-eyed male Cultivator cupped his fists, but his gaze roamed extremely audaciously over your chest and slender waist, which were outlined tightly by your martial attire. "The depths of these mountains are fraught with danger; I think everyone should look out for one another..."]

[Your gaze turned cold.]

[Seeing that you turned around as if to leave, Qian Peng reached out to block you: "Hey, Fairy Lin, don't be so distant..."]

[You stopped your steps, lowered your head to look at the arm he was blocking in front of you, and stared expressionlessly into his eyes.]

["Take your hand back."]

[Qian Peng met your gaze, and his smile froze slightly for a moment. He didn't know why, but in those cold and detached eyes, he saw a sense of oppression that completely mismatched a fourth-layer Qi Condensation cultivation.]

[He sheepishly pulled back his arm and gave two dry laughs: "Fine, fine, fine. Since Fairy Lin is busy, we'll talk another day."]

[You paid them no more mind and walked straight away.]

[The three of them watched you walk far away.]

[Qian Peng's smile vanished the moment you turned around, his expression turning gloomy. Zhou Da leaned closer and lowered his voice to say: "Brother Peng, isn't she giving us way too little Face?"]

[Ma Ping also crowded over, licking his lips with a wretched smile at the corners of his mouth: "She really is alluring enough, that figure—tsk tsk, it's just a pity her temper is too big."]

[...]

[Wait, there should be another chapter or two, I'll try to finish them directly, let's go all out! By the way, asking for a good review and power-up for love!]