Chapter 35: The Toad in the Water

“Senior Brother, I forgot to bring mine.”

Li Meng looked at the Junior Sister beside him, momentarily speechless. He had no way of knowing if she was truly an Outer Disciple of the Joyous Union Sect or not. However, she clearly harbored no ill will toward him; when she had attacked earlier, he hadn’t sensed even a flicker of killing intent.

Li Meng reached out and ruffled the little Junior Sister’s head. “Alright then. Tell me, where do we need to go?”

Qi Wei’s eyes curved into crescents. This little old Senior Brother really wasn’t afraid of her constitution. Despite the head-pat, Qi Wei decided she could find it in her heart to forgive him. She wrapped her arms around Li Meng’s arm.

[+30 Affection] [+150 Sub-profession XP]

“No rush, Senior Brother. You’re looking for the spirit plants needed to refine the Dustfall Pill, right? I know where there’s some Mystic Emperor Grass.”

A flicker of surprise passed through Li Meng’s eyes. “Junior Sister, how do you know I’m looking for Mystic Emperor Grass?”

Qi Wei pursed her lips into a smile. “That’s a secret! Senior Brother, over there!” She extended a small finger, pointing toward the front left. Li Meng formed a single-handed seal, and his flying sword carried them swiftly away.

The next day, in the afternoon.

On a relatively low mountain peak, two figures, one large and one small, descended from the sky.

“Senior Brother, look over there! I didn’t lie to you!”

At the mountain’s summit stood a large tree. Growing upon it were over ten stalks of Mystic Emperor Grass, shimmering with a golden light. Although this mountain was short, its spiritual energy was far denser than that of the surrounding peaks. It was undoubtedly the grass he sought.

Li Meng stepped forward and waved his hand. The Mystic Emperor Grass on the tree snapped cleanly at the roots and flew toward him.

“ROAR!”

Just as the grass was about to be tucked into Li Meng’s storage pouch, a tremendous roar erupted from beyond the cliff face. A massive column of water exploded from the surface of the lake below. An enormous toad leaped from the depths, vaulting onto the hundred-meter peak.

BOOM!

The colossal toad demon beast landed heavily, kicking up a shockwave. Its gaping maw opened wide, and a long, sticky tongue shot toward Li Meng. Just as it was about to strike, Li Meng transformed into a streak of golden light and burrowed into the earth. An instant later, he reappeared beside Qi Wei.

“Junior Sister, let’s go!”

Li Meng grabbed her small hand. Pulling her along, he soared into the air and flew swiftly away on his sword.

Seeing its prey escape, the toad demon beast pushed off with its powerful legs. Its massive body shot forward like a loosed arrow, pouncing toward the fleeing pair. Li Meng formed a seal with his free hand, and a golden talisman flew from his pouch to attach itself to the flying sword. Their speed increased severalfold, and in the blink of an eye, they vanished beyond the horizon.

The toad’s pounce met only empty air. Its enormous body plummeted into the water with a loud BOOM, sending up another towering column of water. As ripples spread across the lake, the huge toad head emerged, its golden pupils staring in the direction where they had disappeared.

“CROAK!”

Elsewhere, above the mist-shrouded peaks, the two stood upon a single flying sword.

“Senior Brother, why did we run? It was just a second-grade demon beast!” Qi Wei pouted, looking dissatisfied. What was the point of bringing him all this way if they were just going to flee?

Li Meng looked down at her with an amused smile. “Junior Sister, you took me to find those spirit plants because you wanted to test my strength, didn’t you?”

Qi Wei lowered her head and tugged at his sleeve. “Senior Brother… the place I need to go is very dangerous. If you’re too weak… I won’t be able to protect you!”

Her meaning was clear. If her helper became a burden, it would only lead to trouble.

Li Meng reached out and flicked her forehead lightly. “Junior Sister, if you don’t trust your Senior Brother’s abilities, why come looking for me in the first place?”

Qi Wei pouted again, rubbing her forehead. “You’re literally the only person I know here! A drowning man will clutch at straws!”

Li Meng chuckled and formed another seal. A brilliant golden talisman flew from his pouch, circled them once, and settled onto Qi Wei’s back.

“For you, Junior Sister.”

His Junior Sister possessed a Lunar Body; achieving breakthroughs was inherently difficult for her. Cultivating a technique like the Plain Girl Reincarnation Art, which involved dispersing and re-cultivating her base, was likely an attempt to force a breakthrough. A second-grade Divine Firmament Spirit Gathering Talisman would accelerate that process perfectly.

“Senior Brother… what is this…?”

Qi Wei could feel the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth gathering around her. Her cultivation art automatically began to circulate.

A second-grade Divine Firmament Spirit Gathering Talisman?

Qi Wei stared blankly at him. That was a Divine Firmament Talisman! Even a ninth-grade Talisman Master would find it nearly impossible to inscribe one. If news of this got out, it would cause an uproar across the entire Tianlan Continent.

She tugged urgently at his sleeve. “Senior Brother! A Divine Firmament Talisman must not appear in Tianlan Continent!”

Li Meng narrowed his eyes and patted her head again. “Junior Sister… no one else will ever obtain a Divine Firmament Talisman from your Senior Brother.”

This Junior Sister clearly had serious backing. Now was the time to secure that connection. Trash had no right to latch onto powerful patrons; using a Divine Firmament Talisman as an opening gambit was more than appropriate.

Qi Wei’s eyes curved into crescents once more. Fine… she’d forgive the presumptuous head-patting just this once.

“Senior Brother… let’s go to Flame Domain Ridge next! To find Blood Flame Flowers and Blazing Sun Flowers!”

“Alright.”

The sword veered away, and they vanished beyond the horizon.

Seven days later. Flame Domain Ridge.

The land beneath them no longer looked like an ink-wash painting. Instead, it was a landscape of barren earth and rolling volcanic mountains.

“Senior Brother… you really are someone who plucks feathers from passing geese!” Qi Wei laughed, covering her mouth. Her Senior Brother was too much. A journey that should have taken three days had stretched to seven because he had swept clean every spirit plant in their vicinity. He hadn’t even spared those barely a hundred years old.

Li Meng chuckled heartily. “This Senior Brother is an Alchemist. Even mosquitoes have meat on them; we can’t let anything go to waste.”

Qi Wei hugged his arm tighter and leaned forward, peering at the vast landscape. “Senior Brother… head for that largest volcano over there. I remember there being Blood Flame Flowers and Blazing Sun Flowers near it.”

Li Meng looked toward the horizon. The volcano was colossal, its form visible from miles away. “Junior Sister… are you very familiar with the Scarlet Forbidden Ground?”

Qi Wei shook her little head. “Nope! This is my first time here, too! But I have a map my master gave me.”

A map? Understanding dawned on Li Meng. As for who her master was, he didn’t ask. As long as he maintained this relationship, he would eventually gain access to that powerful backer.

Two days later. Flame Mountain.

At its base lay an area covered in red, coral-like formations where accumulated lava had formed a molten lake. Fire-attribute spiritual energy allowed unique plants to thrive here. The two descended to the shore of the fiery lake.

“Senior Brother… these fire corals are also spirit plants, right?”

Li Meng swept his gaze across the dense clusters before replying: “Only fire corals over ten thousand years old hold any real value; the oldest of these barely reaches four thousand.”

“But then why did we stop here, Senior Brother?”

If the fire corals were worthless, why bother landing?