Chapter 269: Chapter 61: A Duos’ Trip to Kuocang Mountain
Yangzhou, Kuocang Mountain.
Shi Liuli walked joyfully through the mountain paths, sometimes touching the bushes growing wildly around her, sometimes running to the edge of a cliff to look down.
Probably because she was born on an island and seldom visited the mainland, she had a special fondness for the scenery of the mountains.
However, such an attitude that clearly indicated she was out for a leisurely stroll made Luo Yan couldn’t help but complain internally.
What happened to exploring the secret realm? Even if she wanted to have fun, at least she could pretend otherwise!
If it were so, he wouldn’t be worried… but he feared that Miss Shi’s penchant for play might cause them to miss the “optimal time to get trapped,” leading to trouble if he couldn’t get back in time to call for reinforcements.
He must strictly control the timing without Shi Liuli noticing.
“The Daoist temple is just ahead,” Luo Yan said.
“I want to stay there!” Shi Liuli immediately responded.
“Senior Sister.”
“Hmm?”
“Are we here to explore the secret realm, or are we here for a trip?” Luo Yan asked weakly.
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Shi Liuli pondered for a moment, then said:
“Junior Brother.”
“Hmm?”
“When you came here before, did you find the secret realm?”
“That I did not…” Luo Yan dragged out his words.
“And have you ever stayed in the Daoist temple?”
“I haven’t…”
“Then how do you know that staying in the Daoist temple for a few days won’t help us find the entrance to the secret realm?” Shi Liuli asked with a smile, her eyes squinting.
Luo Yan: ………..
That’s a slippery slope argument, isn’t it!
Of course, he also couldn’t say at this moment that the entrance mechanism had nothing to do with staying in the Daoist temple, otherwise he would be asked to “provide evidence”.
Therefore, Luo Yan could only pretend to be troubled and finally, grudgingly said:
“It’s possible, but Senior Sister must not linger here too long. Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain to our master!”
“All right.” Shi Liuli then revealed a “there’s nothing I can do about you” expression, further irritating Luo Yan.
The two entered the Daoist temple and requested to stay overnight with three old Daoist priests.
In that era, it was very common to go deep into the mountains for leisure and then stay overnight in Buddhist temples or Daoist temples, after all, they could contribute to the temples’ income.
The three old Daoist priests happily agreed and even brought out the temple’s treasured tea leaves to entertain the two guests.
On a cold winter’s day, brewing tea on a stove in the courtyard and warming hands by the fire was an interesting activity… Luo Yan was thinking precisely that when he saw Shi Liuli, with tongs in hand, excitedly stuffing firewood into the stove.
“Why don’t you use a fire control magical treasure?” Luo Yan asked curiously. “Don’t you have that Divine Fire Lamp?”
“I didn’t bring it.” Shi Liuli answered with unassailable confidence.
When the water in the kettle was boiling, Miss Shi picked up the kettle and brewed tea for the two of them.
Then she performed a technique—she clasped her hands together, chanted “Stellar water essence, reflect Beiming’s depths”, and cold starlight flowed out of her palms like a ribbon, falling into the tea, causing the rising wisps of steam to instantly dissipate.
“What’s this?” Luo Yan asked again.
“It’s a new Daoist magic I’ve been practicing,” Shi Liuli said with a smile, her eyes squinting. “It’s called ‘Right Six Yuan Fall Stellar Essence Talisman.’ How about it, impressive, right?”
“Is it a derivative Daoist Magic of your Qi Refining Technique?” Luo Yan asked.
“Mm.”
The “Five Latitudes Heavenly Secret Record” was the cultivation technique Miss Shi had acquired from her trip to the Pavilion. According to Elder Shi Ding’s appraisal, it was supposed to be a rare Qi Refining Technique that utilized the Stellar Force to assist with breathing exercises, so it wasn’t surprising that there would be derivative Daoist Magics.
From the effects of this technique, it appeared to be some sort of cultivation technique with a cold attribute… Yet, having Miss Shi use it to cool her tea was quite in line with her character.
Luo Yan, clasping the slightly chilled teacup, took a sip and found that the temperature was just right—it wasn’t too cold.
With a touch of languor in his demeanor, he watched Shi Liuli sitting across from him, comfortably cradling her cup of tea. The slight movement of her throat revealed the delicate and slender beauty of her neck.
Lowering his gaze, though, was a tad disappointing. However, considering her naïve and childlike personality, her figure was probably normal.
“What are you looking at!” Shi Liuli suddenly became aware of his regretful gaze and slammed her palm onto the stone table, causing the stove to shudder. A beautiful hint of annoyance surfaced on her pretty face.
“Your outfit looks quite nice today, Senior Sister,” Luo Yan replied indifferently, calmly retracting his gaze.
“Really?” Shi Liuli immediately dissolved her angry expression, stared at her clothes for a long while, and showed a pleased look suggesting, “You do have an eye for beauty.”
Like Penglai, Kunlun, and Shushan, the sect had its own official Daoist robes, but most disciples did not like to wear them.
Miss Shi was the most extravagant, with probably hundreds of dresses in the Heavenly Craft Workshop—she theoretically could go through the entire year without repeating an outfit.
But whether it was her master or her fellow senior brothers and sisters, they were all very serious about cultivating and did not pay attention to the beauty of clothing… Now, being complimented by Luo Yan, she immediately felt a sense of camaraderie as if “only my junior brother understands me.”
“So, do you think my outfit today looks better, or did yesterday’s?” Miss Shi asked smugly.
Luo Yan: ???????
This question stumped him completely! After all, yesterday for Miss Shi was the day before, but for Luo Yan… There were several months in between, including seeking Qiu Changtian, Ling Yunpo, and Wei Dongliu!
Curse it! If she asked me this question tomorrow, how could I not have an answer?
“Ah Jing, help me!” Seeing Shi Liuli’s increasingly suspicious face, Luo Yan hurriedly sought help from his accompanying elder sister figure.
The Kunlun Mirror was silent for a moment, sighed, and then projected the image of the previous day in Luo Yan’s timeline before his eyes.
“Today’s is better!” Luo Yan immediately pretended to ponder and then replied, “Today’s dress has a more ethereal and celestial air, while yesterday’s was too heavy; it seemed to hide your beauty, Senior Sister.”
“Right?” Shi Liuli beamed with joy, “That dress yesterday was picked by Father, and I knew he has no aesthetic sense!”
“Your master still picks your clothes for you?” Luo Yan asked, astonished.
“He always complains that the clothes I wear aren’t sober enough,” Shi Liuli said with a huff, “What do you think, Junior Brother?”
“Not at all,” Luo Yan affirmed, staring at the fair skin below her neck, quickly adding his opinion.
With no low neckline or V-collar, where does the idea of immodesty come from? The master, no, the Nascent Soul Elder, with a lifespan of a thousand years, truly is an old fuddy-duddy… Plus, being an overprotective father on top of that, he’s doubly conservative.
Thinking of this, Luo Yan felt a bit uneasy.
Leading Miss Shi out like this, won’t I incur the master’s displeasure?
Sigh, I also have the elder’s best interests at heart; he’ll understand my good intentions after he realizes I’ve helped him avoid disaster, right?
After finishing their tea, the two went out for a walk.
They strolled leisurely to Ruan Lang Pavilion, where Shi Liuli stared at the inscriptions on the rocky cliff and asked:
“Is it here?”
“That’s right. According to the records, Yang Yin got drunk here and stumbled into the secret realm,” Luo Yan replied.
“Hmm.” Miss Shi continued to look at the inscriptions and suddenly asked, “Do you think the entrance to the secret realm could be behind this cliff?”
Luo Yan was startled, only to hear Shi Liuli continue:
“Why don’t we just strike it with Daoist Magic and see?”