419: Chapter 419 The Shadow of the Cauldron Appears

The night wind brushed past, making the bamboo leaves rustle.

Ling Hao felt the body on his lap turn from soft to stiff, then relax again.

He didn't rush her, just waiting quietly.

After a long while, Shi Yunyu turned over and lay flat on Ling Hao's lap.

The original peaks naturally spread to the sides as she lay on her back, the bottoms slightly flattened, forming a full yet softly drooping curve.

She exhaled softly, her voice low and slow, "Supreme Baiyan... is my Young Miss."

"Young Miss?"

Ling Hao was startled, then inexplicably felt a sense of relief.

Shi Yunyu seemed to notice Ling Hao's reaction, the corners of her mouth curling slightly.

Was he jealous?

"Do you want to know about my past?"

Ling Hao nodded.

"Of course."

"I was originally a stalactite, born in a karst cave on the White Rock Holy Mountain, losing track of time."

"One day, Young Miss passed by. Seeing that I was born translucent, she enlightened me with a touch, granting me sentience. She taught me cultivation, taught me how to read people, and taught me the ways of the world..."

"..."

The night grew deeper. Moonlight like water spilled into the courtyard, onto the bamboo tips, and onto the two figures leaning quietly against each other.

In the distance, a low rumble came faintly from the direction of the Demon Forest.

"She taught you cultivation, taught you how to read people, and taught you daily life. You helped her establish the White Rock Holy Land and guarded this Foundation for her. You waited for her, for ten thousand years."

"You have the big picture—if the Erosion Beasts aren't eliminated, the Holy Land won't exist, and Young Miss will have nowhere to go when she returns. You also have your own selfish motives—you want to protect this place and wait for her return."

Ling Hao looked down at her,

"Is that so?"

"Mhm."

Ling Hao finally understood completely.

After a moment of silence, Ling Hao suddenly said:

"Your Young Miss... was she really at the Mahayana Stage? Can someone at the Mahayana Stage really enlighten a stubborn stone?"

Even with his cheats, he didn't have the power of enlightenment yet.

Shi Yunyu shook her head.

"Young Miss said she only gave me a slight push to speed up the transformation process. In fact, she didn't have the power of enlightenment either. It seems that before Young Miss arrived, I already had a faint sense of sentience."

Ling Hao said thoughtfully, "Then who on earth enlightened you?"

Shi Yunyu didn't answer. She didn't know either.

Just then, that rich milky fragrance suddenly grew a bit stronger.

Ling Hao looked down, his gaze sweeping across Shi Yunyu's chest.

At the chest of that moon-white silk robe, two faint wet marks were quietly spreading. The fabric absorbed the moisture, becoming translucent and clinging to her skin, outlining the vague shape of those full peaks.

Shi Yunyu noticed his gaze, and her face flushed instantly.

She instinctively wanted to raise her hand to cover herself, but when her fingertips touched the damp fabric, she pulled back as if burned.

"This is... Rock Milk."

Her voice was as thin as a mosquito's hum. "The higher the quality of the Heaven And Earth Treasures I consume and the higher my Realm, the better the Rock Milk. If Young Miss hadn't protected me back then, I'm afraid I would have long since become a 'human spirit field' for certain Sects."

Ling Hao looked away, gazing into the distance, his voice sounding a bit unnatural. "Cough, that's quite nice."

Shi Yunyu looked at the profile of his face, bit her lip, and said:

"That stone heart jade marrow is my Rock Milk. Did you... know all along? That time in the mountains, did you ask for it from me on purpose?"

Ling Hao scratched his head and laughed it off. "No, no, it was just because it tasted good. Really."

Shi Yunyu gave him a reproachful look, but the corners of her lips couldn't help but curve upward. "How come I never noticed you could lie before."

But her heart felt sweet.

She lowered her eyes, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly grabbed one of Ling Hao's hands hanging by his side and gently pressed it against her chest.

Ling Hao's body stiffened.

It was so soft it felt almost unreal. That fullness trembled slightly under his palm, like warm honey melting into his hand.

Through the thin silk robe, Ling Hao could feel the amazing elasticity and heavy weight, as well as the warmth and moisture seeping from deep within the fabric.

Shi Yunyu's face was so red it looked like it would drip blood, but her voice forced a sense of calm:

"I'm just... testing for Shi Qingxuan whether her Dao Companion's hands are warm enough, so she doesn't feel uncomfortable in the future."

Ling Hao looked down at her. Her face was tilted up, and although she was blushing furiously, her gaze insisted on meeting his.

Their eyes met.

Ling Hao slowly lowered his head.

Shi Yunyu closed her eyes.

The moment their lips met, her whole body went limp.

Ling Hao's palm tightened slightly, feeling that soft mass overflowing between his fingers. The milky fragrance grew even stronger.

Shi Yunyu's hands had climbed to the back of his head at some point, her fingertips sliding into his hair, pressing gently.

Not far away in the courtyard, Yue Xinxi leaned in the shadow of a pillar. Watching this scene, she curled her lip and turned to leave.

"Boom!!!"

A world-shaking roar came from deep within the Ten Thousand Miasma Demon Forest!

Ling Hao and Shi Yunyu both jolted, their lips parting as they looked in that direction together.

They saw a massive shadow of a cauldron soaring into the sky ten thousand miles away!

The cauldron's shadow was as majestic as a mountain, greenish-gray all over, its body carved with layered patterns of mountains and rivers.

Peaks gathered like crowds, rivers flowed like belts, and clouds swirled among them. The cauldron's ears towered like opposing peaks, and its legs were as steady as the Foundation of the earth. The surface of the cauldron was mottled and variegated, covered with traces of time's erosion, yet it still radiated a heavy aura that suppressed all ages.

The rock cauldron!

At this moment, the shadow of the cauldron was slowly rising, dyeing half the sky greenish-gray, as if the entire world was trembling slightly under its pressure.

...

To the west of the Demon Forest.

Liu Ruyan, in a fiery red dress, kicked a dead branch at her feet and gritted her teeth:

"What kind of path are you leading? We've been walking for half a month, and we haven't even seen a shadow of the rock cauldron!"

Ji Xuanming's face was gloomy, but he didn't dare to argue.

Over the past half month, they had encountered countless Erosion Beasts, from the Nascent Soul to Void Tempering and Undergoing Tribulation stages, and even once ran into a Mahayana Stage Erosion Beast.

He gradually realized that this "Master's" strength wasn't as terrifying as he had imagined. Liu Ruyan indeed had unique insights into the Dao Principle of Illusions, but those Erosion Beasts had no sentience at all, and illusions had negligible effects on them.

Every time they were in danger, he was the one who faced it head-on.

He began to doubt—could the two of them really defeat those three Erosion Beast Old Ancestors at the sixth level of the Mahayana Stage?

Not to mention defeating them, at the very least, could they avoid them and successfully take control of the rock cauldron?

Back then, he had really lost his head!!!

Ji Xuanming asked in a low voice.

"Can we really take control of the rock cauldron?"

Liu Ruyan glanced at him:

"I have my ways."

Ji Xuanming became even more suspicious.

Could it be... that she's using me as bait so she can take control of the rock cauldron herself?

His life was in her hands, but fortune is found in risk. If he were to get there first...

"Which way?" Liu Ruyan asked.

Ji Xuanming raised his hand and pointed in a direction.

Just as he finished speaking, a massive shadow of a cauldron soared into the sky on the distant horizon!

Liu Ruyan and Ji Xuanming looked up simultaneously, their pupils contracting.

The direction of that cauldron's shadow wasn't far from where Ji Xuanming had pointed.

But it was only "not far." If they continued in his direction, the deviation would only grow larger.

Liu Ruyan gave Ji Xuanming a cold glance. "Head toward the cauldron's shadow."

Ji Xuanming didn't dare to speak and followed behind her with his head lowered.

The two were about to set off when Liu Ruyan suddenly stopped and abruptly turned her head toward a dark thicket.

"Who is it?! Come out!"

Ji Xuanming also became alert instantly, his spiritual power surging as his gaze swept across the thicket like lightning.

The thicket was silent, with only the rustling of the night wind through the branches.

Liu Ruyan stared in that direction for a long time, her brow slowly relaxing, her eyes flickering as she said, "It's nothing, I was just being too sensitive."

The two of them flickered and disappeared into the night.