When he returned to the rocky valley, night had fallen. A faint, bloody smell mingled with the Chaos Airflow—the trace left behind by the Chaos Giant Bear. Moonlight spilled through sparse clouds, illuminating the wreckage on the ground: the bear's footprints, the collapsed rocks, and... the trampled Three-Leaf Golden Ganoderma.
The Three-Leaf Golden Ganoderma had long since lost its former vitality. Its three golden leaves were crushed and tattered, and its roots had snapped, scattered across the dirt. But perhaps because Innate Spirit Grass was so resilient, a few relatively intact leaf fragments still held a faint golden glow, with a trace of life barely detectable within them.
"There's still hope!" Su Qingyan's eyes lit up. She hurried over, carefully brushed away the dirt, and picked up the fragments. She counted four in all: two relatively intact, while the other two were reduced to less than half their original size and had even fainter traces of life.
Lin Yue walked over too. As he looked at the fragments in Su Qingyan's hand, his thoughts stirred. Even in fragments, the Three-Leaf Golden Ganoderma was still Innate Spirit Grass, and the energy it contained far surpassed that of ordinary Chaos Energy chunks. If he could refine it, it would greatly benefit his cultivation—especially since he had only recently broken through and needed resources to consolidate his realm.
"These fragments..." Lin Yue had just begun to speak when Su Qingyan tucked the two more intact ones into her clothes, leaving only the two smaller fragments in her hand.
"These two are mine." Her tone was cold, as though the understanding they had shown while fighting side by side in the valley had never existed. "If you hadn't insisted on fighting me for it, I would've gotten the whole spirit herb. You're lucky there are any fragments left for you at all."
Lin Yue furrowed his brows, anger surging up inside him. "Su Qingyan, can't you be reasonable? If I hadn't drawn the bear away just now, it would've probably slapped you to death. You wouldn't have had the chance to pick up any of these fragments!"
"So what?" Su Qingyan looked up at him, a hint of mockery in her eyes. "If you hadn't tried to snatch the spirit herb first, the bear wouldn't have been drawn here. When you get down to it, this is your fault."
"What a load of nonsense!" Lin Yue laughed in disbelief, furious. "The spirit herb was unclaimed. Whoever got to it first could have it. What did I take from you? Besides, I did my share in the fight against the bear. Why do you get the good pieces and leave me with scraps?"
"Because I found it first!" Su Qingyan stood her ground, flames flaring around her once more. "I told you, the spirit herb was mine to begin with. Leaving you two fragments is already more than you deserve, considering we worked together just now."
Looking at the stubbornness in her eyes, Lin Yue gradually quelled his anger, replaced by a sense of helplessness. He understood now: Su Qingyan simply didn't care about reason. In her eyes, anything she laid eyes on first had to belong to her.
"If that's how it is, there's nothing left to discuss." Lin Yue couldn't be bothered to argue anymore. He reached out to take the two small fragments from Su Qingyan's hand. "Then these two are mine. That's fair, isn't it?"
"Don't you dare!" Su Qingyan abruptly stepped back and shielded the fragments against her chest. The flames around her blazed even higher. "I told you, they're mine!"
"Su Qingyan, don't push it!" Lin Yue's patience had run out too. The Chaos Airflow in his dantian began to circulate. "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have gotten even one fragment. So what's wrong with giving me two? Or do you think I'm an easy target?"
"So what if I do?" Su Qingyan's temper flared as well. She had already been resentful that Lin Yue had taken one of the leaves, and now that he was trying to take more, her fury burned even hotter. "If you've got the guts, come and take them. Let's see if you can get them out of my hands!"
The two faced off again, tension thick in the air, as though they might start fighting at any moment. Beneath the moonlight, Lin Yue's Chaos Energy collided with Su Qingyan's flames, sending ripples surging through the air.
Just then, a gust of wind swept by, stirring the dust on the ground and dispelling some of their anger. Lin Yue looked at Su Qingyan's tense profile and suddenly found the whole thing ridiculous. Was it really worth fighting again over a few fragments? They had just survived a battle to the death, and neither of them had recovered much energy. If they fought again, they would likely both end up injured, with nothing to gain.
He took a deep breath and suppressed his anger. "Forget it. I don't want to fight again either. How about we split them evenly? You take one of the more intact fragments, I'll take the other, and we each take one of the two smaller ones. That's fair, isn't it?"
Su Qingyan froze, clearly not expecting Lin Yue to back down so suddenly. She looked at him, a complicated glint in her eyes, as though weighing the pros and cons. After a moment, she snorted. "At least you know what's good for you." With that, she took one of the more intact fragments from her clothes and tossed it to Lin Yue.
Lin Yue caught it and felt the faint trace of life still lingering in the fragment. He felt a little more at ease. He put it away, then picked up one of the smaller fragments. "Then I'll take this one too."
Su Qingyan said nothing. She tucked the remaining small fragment into her clothes, turned, and started to leave.
"Wait," Lin Yue called suddenly.
Su Qingyan stopped and looked back at him, a hint of wariness in her eyes. "What else?"
Lin Yue looked at her and considered for a moment. "These fragments still have some life in them, but most of their energy has dissipated. Refining them directly probably won't be very effective. I know a method that can preserve as much of the spirit herb's energy as possible. Do you want to hear it?"
A look of surprise flashed through Su Qingyan's eyes. She clearly hadn't expected Lin Yue to share the method with her. After hesitating, she nodded. "Go ahead."
"It's simple," Lin Yue said. "When refining it, don't rush to absorb it. First, merge the life force in the fragment with your own energy. Think of it like steeping tea in warm water—let it brew slowly, allowing the energy to seep into your dantian bit by bit. That's how you absorb as much as possible. If you rush, you'll only waste the energy."
This was an idea he had come up with while recovering his energy just now, drawing on his insights from the Dao Rhyme Fragment. It was a simple method, but it embodied the principle of taking things step by step.
Su Qingyan pondered his words. She cultivated the Flame Law and had always pursued explosive power; she was used to refining resources quickly, precisely, and ruthlessly. She had never considered taking her time. But she also knew Lin Yue wasn't lying to her. Energy in Chaos was inherently violent, and trying to absorb it in a rush could indeed lead to waste or even damage her meridians.
"Thanks," she murmured, her voice so soft the wind nearly carried it away. Then she turned and vanished into the night as a streak of red.
Lin Yue watched her leave and smiled before turning toward the cave. Beneath the moonlight, his figure gradually disappeared into the Chaos Airflow, leaving only the wreckage in the rocky valley, bearing witness to their fight and cooperation.
By the time he returned to the cave, it was already deep into the night. Pangu was still seated on the massive boulder, eyes closed as he rested, like a statue unchanged since time immemorial.
Lin Yue quietly walked over to Pangu and briefly recounted what had happened that day. At the end, he took out the relatively intact fragment of the Three-Leaf Golden Ganoderma. "Senior, this fragment still has some life in it. Would you like to refine it?"
Pangu slowly opened his eyes, glanced at the fragment, then at Lin Yue, and shook his head to indicate that Lin Yue should keep it.
Lin Yue didn't press him. He put the fragment away, sat cross-legged beside Pangu, and began circulating his cultivation technique to recover his energy. Moonlight streamed through a gap in the cave ceiling, falling on the two of them and outlining their tranquil figures.
He knew that today's events were only the beginning. In this perilous Chaos, he and Su Qingyan would likely cross paths many more times. And that tiny fragment of spirit herb might well become the reason they met again.
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