Rain Lotus, who hadn't smiled much in four years, revealed an incomparably joyful smile for the first time.
Having just emerged from the water, Rain Lotus's clothes were soaked, and the surrounding cold caused them to freeze into ice, sticking stiffly to her body, making it difficult to walk.
Rain Lotus, however, didn't care about this. Holding three precious plants in one hand and a spirit tablet in the other, she swung her disheveled hair and strode towards Xie An.
Hearing the movement behind him, Xie An immediately turned around. Seeing it was Rain Lotus, a comforting and bright smile appeared on his lips.
He originally thought Rain Lotus would rush up and give him a friendly hug.
But… when Rain Lotus reached three meters away from Xie An, she suddenly stopped. Gazing at Xie An, she seemed a little embarrassed and awkward, so she stood in place, looking at Xie An and giggling foolishly.
Xie An thought he hadn't dressed properly and looked down.
Although his clothes were tattered and messy, nothing was exposed.
However… Xie An saw that his skin had become tighter and more toned. The lines on his skin were also more delicate and smooth. He no longer looked like a rough man of martial arts who had been exposed to the wind and sun for many years, but like a handsome and refined young man.
Xie An thought that perhaps it was because his temperament had changed so much that Rain Lotus felt awkward.
Xie An took the initiative to walk over and gave Rain Lotus a warm hug, "Rain Lotus, thank you."
This made Rain Lotus feel very warm in her heart. Her nose felt sour, and her eyes became hot. She felt that everything she had given in the past few years had meaning at this moment and became worthwhile.
After letting go, Rain Lotus wiped the corner of her eye and looked at Xie An in surprise, "Master doesn't look like he's in his fifties at all now, he's clearly a handsome young man in his early twenties."
Hearing this, Xie An felt very comfortable, but he was modest, "You're exaggerating, you're exaggerating."
"Not exaggerating at all, you should come to the water's edge and take a look." Rain Lotus no longer felt as awkward as before, and eagerly grabbed Xie An's arm and walked towards the water.
Using the light of the stalactites, Xie An saw his reflection in the water.
That face did look much younger.
It was delicate and vibrant, but it didn't look pampered, and still retained some heroic spirit.
Indeed, it was very good.
Rain Lotus's words were not exaggerated.
This made Xie An feel embarrassed to be modest, otherwise, he would be overdoing it.
"Well, Rain Lotus has a good eye."
Rain Lotus stood beside him, giggling.
After a long while, the two people stopped smiling.
Rain Lotus asked, "When I watched Master in closed-door cultivation before, there was an airflow rotating around your body. This is a sign of a seventh-level martial master releasing inner strength. Has Master reached the level of a seventh-level martial master?"
Four years ago, Rain Lotus judged that Xie An's strength was roughly equivalent to a second-level martial master. And she herself was about the same level.
In the past four years, Rain Lotus had been eating precious plants and diligently cultivating. She had only reached the level of a fifth-level martial master. Even with this progress, Rain Lotus felt unbelievable.
It should be that the precious plants had a very good effect.
You should know that the strongest local martial master in Qingwu County was previously only at the fourth-level martial master level. For example, Liu Chun and the like. If you had to say, only Old Master Tang was better.
Many people are stuck at the fourth-level martial master level for their entire lives.
It was already considered heaven-defying that Rain Lotus was able to spend four years to enter the fifth level of inner strength.
And Xie An had actually reached the seventh-level martial master level?
And he hadn't eaten many precious plants.
This made Rain Lotus feel very surprised.
Xie An thought for a moment and said, "I have never seen the level of a seventh-level martial master, but your estimate should be roughly correct."
When he said this, Xie An felt that he was being very modest.
Only Xie An himself knew what kind of changes had taken place in Xie An's body in the past four years.
Xie An's mental consciousness had just been freed from that Dao talisman and returned to reality.
At that time, Xie An had roughly sensed his body and data panel. It was just that he had been sitting for too long, and his whole body was numb. He hadn't had time to adapt further before he got up to move his hands and feet, and as a result, he happened to meet Rain Lotus landing.
【Level 1 Destiny has gained Growth】
【Current Fusion: 】
【Bright Jade Skill: Frost Descent 61/100】
【Remaining Years: 58】
Before the closed-door cultivation, Xie An's Bright Jade Skill had only been cultivated to the eleventh stage. Now, it had reached the eighteenth solar term: Frost Descent!
How terrifying?!
Xie An didn't dare to imagine what kind of terrifying power would erupt if he pushed his current Bright Jade Skill to the extreme…
Just the release of heat alone already made Xie An feel very magical: on the one hand, it greatly improved the range of his five senses. In the area covered by the release of heat, Xie An had opened a God's perspective, and he could even operate this part of the heat to produce various wonderful uses.
Xie An felt that he needed to find some time to test these wonderful uses properly.
In addition, Xie An felt that his punching power had reached a very abnormal level.
Speed, agility, vision… all had been essentially improved.
Although Xie An had never seen the terror of a seventh-level martial master, for some reason… Xie An had a strong confidence in his heart, feeling that he didn't need to take the seventh-level martial master seriously.
As for what it was really like, he would need to test it to find out.
Xie An came back to his senses, looked around, and asked curiously, "What about the woman in the shrine?"
Rain Lotus frowned: "When Master first entered closed-door cultivation, I guarded him for a day and didn't find anything unusual about that woman. Then I went into the water to dig for precious plants. When I landed again, that woman was gone… I was so scared at the time that I searched everywhere. But I couldn't find her. Later, I was careful every day. But four years have passed, and that woman has never appeared again. That shrine is a bit strange, and I didn't dare to go near it to check."
"Four years?"
Xie An was startled by this time.
He clearly felt that he had only stayed in front of that Dao talisman for a few days.
Rain Lotus said: "Yes, I later made a simple water clock to calculate the time. Although I didn't keep accurate time for the first period of time, the later time was accurate, and it has indeed been more than four years."
For an experienced Jianghu guest like Rain Lotus, it was very simple to make a simple water clock to calculate the time.
That is, water drips down drop by drop from a high place, forming over a long period of accumulation, and is used to keep time.
Many ordinary people use this device.
Although the accuracy is not particularly high, the usage scenario is wider than that of a sundial. After all, once it encounters cloudy or rainy days, the sundial will not work.
There is not much error in using a water clock to calculate the number of days.
Four years…
Although Xie An had psychological expectations, he was still filled with emotion when he really heard this number.
How many four years are there in a lifetime?
In front of the Dao talisman, it passed in a flash…
The unit of the Longevity Destiny is really too big, so be careful in the future.
Coming back to his senses, Xie An opened his five senses and began to look for traces of that woman.
Rain Lotus also followed him, looking around, and said, "I checked before, and there were no footprints left around. It felt like that woman disappeared out of thin air."
After searching, Xie An didn't find any traces either, so he muttered curiously, "In this world, is there really a way to make people disappear out of thin air?"
Rain Lotus shook her head, "I have only seen Miss take a hundred meters in one step, but that is only speed. Disappearing out of thin air… I have never heard of it."
Xie An nodded.
If the other party was truly so terrifying, why didn't they kill me and Yu He?
Even if Yu He and Xie An had the sword paper left behind by Su Yuqing, it wouldn't be enough to withstand it.
Something's not right…
After thinking it over, Xie An finally focused his gaze on the shrine. "You said you hadn't checked the shrine before?"
Yu He nodded in agreement.
"I'll go take a look."
Intuition told Xie An that the disappearance of that old woman Jin… was likely related to the shrine.
It's possible that there's a way out inside the shrine.
Moreover, Xie An had used his Qi perception to examine the shrine and found nothing unusual.
It should be safe.
Even so, Xie An still drew the Demon Suppressing Blade, cautiously guarding against any unexpected situations that might arise. Yu He followed closely behind with a dagger.
After approaching the shrine, Xie An saw several tubes inserted into it, filled with a layer of white liquid that emanated a bone-chilling cold.
Even with Xie An's current cultivation, he felt the biting chill.
When Xie An's Demon Suppressing Blade came into contact with the white liquid, the blade actually froze. Startled, Xie An quickly moved the blade away.
This was a treasured blade that only the Chief of the Demon Suppressing Prefecture could wield. If it were damaged by the cold… that would be a great pity.
"Yu He, do you know what this white liquid is?"
Yu He leaned closer to take a closer look. "I'm not too sure, but I've seen it in books… After some martial arts grandmasters die, a liquid called Ice Marrow is injected into their bodies, along with certain secret techniques, to prevent the corpse from decaying. It can even make the corpse look as vibrant as a living person. I estimate that the reason why this woman's corpse has been so well-preserved is due to this Ice Marrow."
Ice Marrow…
Xie An felt that his knowledge was still lacking.
This world of the Great Qian is truly full of wonders.
Once he left this place, he would have to study hard and broaden his horizons.
Just relying on the Liver-Nourishing Skill was clearly not enough. After all, he lived in this world of the Great Qian. If he didn't understand the various wondrous methods of this world, he would suffer a great loss sooner or later.
Previously, Xie An was in a developmental stage, and the level he was exposed to was very low, so it was understandable that he didn't know many things.
Now that he had reached the eighteenth level of the Bright Jade Skill, comparable to Li Changchun before winter a hundred years ago, even if he couldn't compare to a martial arts grandmaster, killing a seventh-level martial artist wouldn't be a problem.
Then he should properly understand the secrets of this world.
Only then could he go far and steadily.
Xie An felt that this Ice Marrow was a good thing, so he took off his coat and wrapped up the tubes. Only then did he stick his head into the shrine to look.
The shrine was made of wood that Xie An had never seen before.
It was said that some mystical wood could prevent corpses from decaying for hundreds or thousands of years, but as for whether that was true… Xie An didn't know.
After searching for a while, he didn't find anything else unusual.
There were no secret passages or mechanisms.
This made Yu He feel very disappointed.
Although Xie An had come out of seclusion, how to leave this place was still a problem. Moreover, the treasured plant had already been eaten…
Thinking that she would still be trapped here, Yu He couldn't help but feel sad.
Xie An was older and had a better mindset, so he comforted her, "Don't be discouraged. This woman was able to leave, so there must be a secret passage. I'll sit down and take a look."
Xie An imitated the old woman Jin and sat cross-legged inside the shrine.
It was quite comfortable…
After sitting for a while, Xie An activated his Qi perception.
Suddenly, he felt the board beneath his buttocks shaking slightly.
Huh?
Xie An immediately knocked on the bottom board with his hand.
Judging by the sound… it was hollow.
Yu He came over and knocked on the bottom board a few times, overjoyed, "Is it hollow underneath?"
Xie An deeply agreed, feeling that there must be some kind of mechanism here. After groping for a long time without finding it, he used his knife to split open the bottom board. As expected, a passage was revealed below.
There was also a slight breeze blowing out of the passage. This meant that the passage led to the outside.
"Master, we can go out!" Yu He grabbed Xie An's arm, revealing a joyful smile, her eyes wet.
After being trapped in this place for a full four years, even a martial artist like Yu He couldn't keep her composure.
Xie An breathed a sigh of relief, "It seems we're lucky. Hurry up and tidy up, let's go out through the secret passage."
The two immediately tidied up a bit.
There were no outsiders here, so it didn't matter if they looked a little scruffy. Now that they had the opportunity to go out and see people, they still had to pay a little attention.
Yu He simply tied her long hair into a bun and helped Xie An tie his hair. Xie An could also tie his hair, but he wasn't as skilled as Yu He.
Yu He's hairstyle was still better.
Since there were no clothes to change into, they could only go out wearing their tattered clothes.
"Pack up the two spirit tablets and take them with us."
Xie An always felt that these two spirit tablets were strange, able to resist the extremely cold air under the cold pool. Moreover, the identities of the old woman Jin and Chen Gong on the spirit tablets were strange, and Xie An felt that he needed to take them out and ask about them.
Yu He happily agreed.
When packing the spirit tablets, Xie An suddenly thought of something, "Wait, I'll go down and take a look at the treasured plant. If possible, I'll dig up the treasured plant and take it with us."
Yu He nodded fiercely, "Master is still thoughtful. Although the main stem of this treasured plant has been eaten, the roots are still there. If we can take it outside and cultivate it, it will be a great treasure."
No sooner said than done.
Although Xie An's strength had greatly increased, he still held a spirit tablet for safety's sake before diving underwater.
The cold pool was about thirty meters deep, and the light at the bottom was very poor. Fortunately, Xie An had excellent eyesight and could barely see the condition of the treasured plant.
Most of the roots and stems had been dug up and eaten by Yu He, but the main root was still there.
Only a large stump remained.
Could a lotus grow like this?
It looked like a mutated lotus monster.
However, Xie An "saw" with his Qi perception that there was still an extremely powerful life essence aura lingering inside the stump. It was much purer and richer than the blood lotus root that Xie An had seen before.
"What a powerful life essence aura. It's estimated that the lotus was able to transform into this because of the life essence within. Moreover, the fact that this treasured plant can grow in such a harsh, extremely cold environment is probably also related to this aura."
A rare good thing.
He would take it out first and find an expert to ask about the variety of the treasured plant and the various matters that needed attention during cultivation. He would see if he could cultivate it.
With this in mind, Xie An no longer hesitated. He landed on the ground with both feet, stepping on the silt, and then tied the spirit tablet to his back with his belt, freeing his hands to grip the roots.
Resolutely, he exerted force.
The roots were deeply embedded in the silt, making it extremely difficult to pull them out.
Lu Zhishen uprooting the weeping willow in Water Margin was only on the ground. Moreover, that willow tree was far smaller than this root.
After the initial exertion of force failed, Xie An immediately activated the Bright Jade Skill.
Eleventh level, twelfth level…
By the time he reached the thirteenth level, the heat in Xie An's body was already rushing like a river, driving his body to operate at high speed, and he had actually unleashed an unprecedented force.
This shocked Xie An.
"Sure enough, the later stages of the Bright Jade Skill are more and more powerful. Such divine power at just the thirteenth level…"
Xie An couldn't help but want to test the peak power of operating the eighteenth level, but it was inconvenient here underwater. He chose to be cautious, feeling that the Bright Jade Skill at the thirteenth level was already enough to pull out the roots.
Rise!
His hands, exerting force again.
Whoosh!
As the silt shook and bubbles surged, the huge stump was uprooted by Xie An.
Xie An sighed in his heart at the wondrousness of the Bright Jade Skill, then pulled the stump to the surface.
He left the stump on the shore and simply washed his face. "Yu He, let's go, let's get out."
