Chapter 183
Chapter 183: Rong Shu Encounters Yu Ruan Ruan
Rong Shu and Wu Hua arrived at the Ice Lake.
The Ice Lake was a famed landmark of Wanderer’s City, and with the Pill Refining Conference about to open, the crowds were even thicker than usual. Tall pavilions ringed the lakeshore, each one rising like a sliver of frost toward the sky.
Rong Shu pointed to a nearby pavilion and said: “Senior Brother, let’s go up there.”
Wu Hua answered: “Alright.”
Whether entering the Ice Lake area or ascending a pavilion, each person had to pay two Spirit Stones. The fee was modest and mainly meant to keep some mortals away so the Ice Lake wouldn’t be overcrowded.
After paying two Spirit Stones each, Rong Shu and Wu Hua went up to the pavilion. Finding an empty spot, Rong Shu leaned against the railing and let her gaze sweep outward.
From this height they could look down over the whole Ice Lake and take in its wintry splendor at a glance.
Rong Shu breathed in and said: “The ice-aspected spiritual energy here really is thick.”
She felt the ice attribute within her body loosen and ease, as if soothed. Although she had never tested positive for an Ice Spiritual Root, she could clearly absorb ice aura; it made her wonder: [Could I have some kind of hidden Ice Spiritual Root?]
She studied the flow of people below and said: “Senior Brother, there are quite a few ice-path cultivators here. They must all be drawn by the Ice Lake.”
Wu Hua scanned the lake and replied: “The ice aura here is about twice as dense as outside. That may not sound like much, but it is more than enough to make ordinary cultivators yearn for this place.”
His eyes lingered on the water. Perhaps there was some ice-aspected heavenly material hidden beneath the lake.
Just then, Rong Shu’s sharp eyes picked out a familiar group moving along the shore. It was Yu Ruan Ruan and her companions.
Down below, Yu Ruan Ruan stared at the lake, excitement bright in her gaze as she said: “So this is the Ice Lake. The ice aura really is dense.”
Qin Yuan, who stood at her side, said: “Ruan Ruan, there is still some time before the Pill Refining Conference. You may as well stay here for a few days to improve your cultivation.”
Yu Ruan Ruan bobbed her head and said: “Mm, that’s what I was thinking too, Third Senior Brother. I just hope it won’t be too much trouble for you three to keep me company.”
Qin Yuan laughed and said: “Of course not. I doubt Second Senior Brother will find it troublesome either.”
Yu Ruan Ruan gazed at the Ice Lake, excitement flickering again and again in her eyes.
At that moment, a cool voice sounded in her mind as the System said: [There is a stroke of fortune here that belongs to Rong Shu. Beneath this lake lies an Eighth Grade Ice Crystal Glaze Lotus.]
The System continued: [As long as you obtain this Ice Crystal Glaze Lotus, it will not only improve your constitution but also increase your control over ice aura.]
Hearing such great benefits, Yu Ruan Ruan became even more determined. She must acquire that Ice Crystal Glaze Lotus.
Ever since she broke through to mid Foundation Establishment during the sect’s grand competition more than two years ago, her cultivation had not advanced an inch. Her reputation within the sect remained unchanged—she was still that prodigy girl. Even so, she was anxious.
She asked inwardly: [System, when will I be able to seize Jin Yu’s fortune? It has been two years already. Is it still impossible?]
The System answered: [Jin Yu’s capture progress has been lackluster. Two years and not even halfway. You would be better off changing tactics.]
Yu Ruan Ruan felt a twinge of regret and thought: [Give me a little more time. I have already crippled one, Yan Zi Mo. If I cripple Jin Yu as well, I may not be able to find another bearer of destiny.]
The System’s tone turned coldly persuasive: [What are you afraid of? You are the daughter of fortune, the protagonist of this world. You need do nothing and countless bearers of destiny will flock to you. Jin Yu is nothing. In the future you can have as many as you like.]
Yu Ruan Ruan’s heart settled at those words.
Qin Yuan gestured toward another vantage point and said: “Ruan Ruan, let’s head over there.”
Yu Ruan Ruan answered with a smile: “Alright, Third Senior Brother.”
Up on the pavilion, Rong Shu leaned forward and said: “Senior Brother, that’s Yu Ruan Ruan and the others.”
Her gaze fell on the man at the very back, and her expression sharpened with surprise as she said: “Senior Brother, isn’t that the Demonic Cultivator we ran into before?”
She pointed down toward Yun Wu Ya.
Wu Hua looked, and a chill flashed in his eyes as he said: “Mm. He is the one from Dragon Ridge Palace who led a crowd to bully you and the little fellow.”
“Gu gu!” Little Hamster pried free one of Rong Shu’s fingers and, upon spotting Yun Wu Ya below, chirped in recognition.
Rong Shu frowned and said: “How strange. A Demonic Cultivator walking with disciples of Heaven’s Evolution Sect and chatting like old friends?”
Wu Hua said: “Unless Yu Ruan Ruan and the others do not know his identity. Demonic cultivators have planted many moles within the righteous sects. This one may have only just infiltrated Heaven’s Evolution Sect.”
He studied Yun Wu Ya again and found the sight more and more displeasing. He said: “This person must be eliminated.”
Rong Shu tugged at his sleeve and said: “Senior Brother, why not wait. If he managed to infiltrate Heaven’s Evolution Sect, there must be an inside contact. We might be able to follow the vine to the gourd and catch the mole behind him.”
Wu Hua smiled and said: “It is good that you can think this way. But my identity is special. It is not my place to interfere without cause in struggles between factions. Catching moles is not something I should manage.”
Rong Shu blinked and said: “Then why did you say he must be eliminated?”
Wu Hua replied without a trace of guilt: “Because he bullied my little junior sister.”
Last time, because Yun Wu Ya might be the grand-disciple of Ancestor Yun Xie, Wu Hua had shown mercy for the ancestor’s sake. This time, Yun Wu Ya had the poor luck to run into Wu Hua again, and the name of Ancestor Yun Xie would not earn him clemency a second time.
Wu Hua said simply: “Standing up for my little junior sister is not meddling. It is my duty.”
Warmth flickered in Rong Shu’s heart at that, yet she also felt a touch of curiosity. Why did Senior Brother call her “little junior sister”? That “little” carried a meaning quite different from an ordinary “junior sister.”
She wondered: [Could it be that the disciples of Heart’s Reflection Academy are all older? I’m young, so when I go there I will definitely be the youngest junior sister, and that is why Senior Brother calls me that?] Even to herself, the reasoning felt a bit far-fetched.
No matter what, she could feel Senior Brother Wu Hua’s sincerity toward her. That much could not be faked.
Rong Shu stroked Little Hamster’s soft head and said: “Senior Brother, let’s spare him for now. Even if he is a Demonic Cultivator, killing him in Wanderer’s City will cause an uproar and might affect the Pill Refining Conference.”
Wu Hua nodded and said: “You are not wrong. We will leave him his life for the moment.”
His gaze drifted away from Yun Wu Ya. Since Yu Ruan Ruan and her group were at the Ice Lake, neither Rong Shu nor Wu Hua cared to linger. They slipped away quietly.
After a short turn through the city, Rong Shu and Wu Hua returned to their inn.
Rong Shu saw Wu Hua about to enter his room and called softly: “Senior Brother.”
She hesitated and said: “About my breaking through in the middle of the street, I…”
Wu Hua cut in gently: “Little junior sister, it is late. You should rest.”
Rong Shu was stunned and only managed an: “Ah?”
Wu Hua raised his hand and lightly tapped her forehead with a knuckle as he said: “Everyone has secrets. That is normal. While hiding everything is not good, telling everything is not necessarily wise either. What matters most when dealing with others is a meeting of hearts and a harmony of aims, with each leaving room for the other, not how many secrets you share.”
Rong Shu’s hand paused where it rubbed her brow. She already understood what Wu Hua meant to say.
“Senior Brother…”
She looked up at him, eyes wide and expectant. Wu Hua sighed, helpless and fond, and said: “If someone trusts you, then even if you keep a bellyful of secrets, they will not distance themselves over trifles. If someone despises you, then even if you bare your heart without reservation, you still cannot change a narrow view. Do you understand?”
After Rong Shu’s street-side breakthrough, he had noticed how the little lass kept hesitating, wanting to speak but holding back. He had thought she might be wrestling with something weighty; he had not expected it to be only this.
As for what secrets Rong Shu hid, Wu Hua had no intention of digging. He only knew that she was the little lass he had set his heart on to protect, his future little junior sister. That was enough.
Rong Shu suddenly smiled, lowered the hand at her brow, and said: “Senior Brother, good night.”
Wu Hua inclined his head and said: “Wanderer’s City is large. We can go out for another stroll tomorrow.”
Rong Shu brightened and said: “Alright.”
Back in her room, Rong Shu first set Little Hamster on the bed, then took off her shoes and sat cross-legged.
She murmured to herself: “Other than the Qingjue Six Spirit Flower that I still haven’t obtained, the other thirty-seven medicinal materials are all ready. Some of them I can pre-grind and process.”
She counted her schedule: “There are still a few days until the end of the month. I can take the third-grade certification then, and I will qualify to exchange for third-grade pill formulas at the Alchemist Sub-Guild.”
Her thoughts turned wary: “I need to keep an eye on the Yun Wu Ya who is with Yu Ruan Ruan. I do not know why he came to Wanderer’s City. Surely it is not just to accompany Yu Ruan Ruan. He must have some unspeakable secret.”
She felt the pressure of her current realm and said: “Lately my Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation is getting hard to suppress. After the Pill Refining Conference, once my foundation is steady, I can stop suppressing it and consider a breakthrough.”
With that, she flicked her sleeve and released the Wind Spirit and Fire Spirit. The two little spirits popped out and immediately hid—one behind her back, one behind her head—too guilty to meet her eyes.
She had already scolded them earlier. There was no need to do it again. So she softened her tone and said: “Next time, at least give me a heads-up, alright?”
“Wu!”
“Hou hou!”
The Wind Spirit and Fire Spirit nodded frantically in promise.
Rong Shu’s stern little face relaxed into a smile as she said: “Tell me, how did you two manage it?”
She laid out the situation: “My current outward cultivation at the fifth level of Qi Refining is the Wind-Fire Spiritual Root you two revealed. It seems the metal, wood, water, earth, and thunder aspects are still at early Foundation Establishment.”
“Wu wu!”
“Hou hou!”
The two little spirits chattered away. The Fire Spirit planted tiny hands on its hips as if gathering strength, and the Wind Spirit circled it, cheering it on.
Little Hamster, busy munching seeds on the bed, found its gaze drawn to the Fire Spirit.
In the next instant, the Fire Spirit spread its little hands, then waved them with dramatic vigor. Its expressions were vivid and proud, and the flame that streamed from its head like flowing hair shot up with a whoosh, almost high enough to scorch the ceiling.
Rong Shu and Little Hamster stared, then exchanged a glance.
Rong Shu’s eyes asked: [Did you understand that?]
Little Hamster’s cheeks bulged as it answered: [Gu. Not at all.]
Rong Shu blinked back: [What a coincidence. Me neither.]
“Stop, stop,” Rong Shu said as she held up a hand to halt their antics. “I will ask questions, and you only need to nod or shake your heads.”
She asked clearly: “Can you help me freely control the cultivation level I reveal to others?”
The Wind Spirit and Fire Spirit traded a look, chattered a few seconds, then nodded in unison.
Relief eased Rong Shu’s expression.
She asked again: “You are the Wind Spirit and Fire Spirit, so you can control only the wind and fire portions of my cultivation, not the others. Right?”
Both little spirits nodded.
“Then why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“Wu?” The Wind Spirit tilted its head in puzzlement.
“Hou!” The Fire Spirit put its hands on its hips and shot Rong Shu a look of faint disdain.
Rong Shu blinked at them. A moment later she realized she had asked a silly question. She had never actually asked them; she had simply kept puzzling on her own.
She coughed lightly and said: “If you help me control the revealed cultivation level, how long can you maintain it? Are there any side effects for you or for me?”
Both little spirits shook their heads. The Fire Spirit chattered again, clearly offended at having its abilities underestimated.
“No, no,” Rong Shu said quickly, smoothing its pride. “You did great this time. I will give you a bottle of pills in a bit.”
“Hou!”
At the mention of pills, the warmth in the Fire Spirit’s two little “eyes” surged, and its pique vanished.
The faux pills she had refined in the secret realm were gone, but Rong Shu could make new pills in other flavors and let the Fire Spirit “eat” to its heart’s content. Since they were refined from herbs rich in fire-aspected aura, feeding them to the Fire Spirit would not harm Rong Shu herself.
“Be good, all of you. I am starting cultivation,” Rong Shu said to her three little cuties, then settled into meditation.
[Senior Brother is right. I do need to cultivate diligently. I have to raise my ice-path cultivation. I have to reach Golden Core as soon as possible.]
The next day, Rong Shu went out to buy herbs. The Fire Spirit still preferred the taste of the old faux pills, but she lacked the ingredients on hand, so she had to purchase more. Wu Hua had nothing pressing to do and accompanied her.
After they finished their purchases at the Alchemist Sub-Guild and stepped back onto the street, they happened to run into Yun Wu Ya again. This time he was alone, without Yu Ruan Ruan and the other two.
Rong Shu and Wu Hua exchanged a glance, then quietly followed him.