The golden grilled fish gave off a rich aroma. Its appearance alone was enough to catch the eye and whet one's appetite.
Yun Yun looked at the charred fish beside her, then at the grilled fish Xiao Yi Xian was offering her...
"Why was the difference between people so huge?"
Yun Yun ate the fish, crisp outside and tender within. Its fragrant, delicious taste was completely different from the fish she had grilled herself.
Xiao Yi Xian glanced at Yun Yun, who was eating with great relish beside her. Yun Yun's cooking skills truly were extraordinary.
As the sect leader of the Misty Cloud Sect, how could she possibly know how to cook?
It would be best if she never entered a kitchen again. It was perfectly normal for the strong to go without food or drink. Even a Dou Zhe could fast for a day, let alone a Dou Emperor.
Still, making her give up food entirely would be difficult. How could she abandon her appetite and the pleasures of taste?
Even cultivation wasn't supposed to be like that. The seven emotions and six desires were, after all, human instincts.
Freedom and ease, unrestrained and carefree, roaming between heaven and earth—that was true happiness!
She had been bound by rule after rule in her previous life. In this life, she had to experience what it felt like to be carefree.
Letting herself go, while never crossing her bottom line—that was her principle!
If a person did not even have a bottom line, that was truly terrifying...
"Mm!"
Honestly, Xiao Yi Xian found the fish she had grilled quite delicious too. Very nice... It would have been even better with some soup...
"Oh, right. I have a friend in the Misty Cloud Sect. I can introduce you so you can become a direct disciple. Would you like to go?" Yun Yun pursed her slightly oil-stained red lips and smiled.
Xiao Yi Xian froze at those words, then shook her head under Yun Yun's astonished gaze. "Thank you, but I think I'll pass."
Seeing Xiao Yi Xian actually refuse her goodwill, a clear flash of surprise crossed Yun Yun's pretty face. Her introduction had actually been rejected by the person involved?
This was the first time in all these years. At that moment, Yun Yun almost impulsively asked, "Do you know who I'm introducing you to?"
She had intended to bring Xiao Yi Xian to the Misty Cloud Sect to take her as a disciple, or have Yun Shan do so. Once their identities were revealed and combined with everything else, she had thought she could keep this prodigy. Who would have expected...
The impulse flashed through her heart and vanished. With Yun Yun's composure and status, she naturally would not ask such a question outright. She merely nodded slowly, carrying a faintly inscrutable air.
"After your injuries heal, are you still planning to look for the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King?" Tearing off the last piece of fish, Xiao Yi Xian asked somewhat indistinctly.
"Mm. I need to obtain the Purple Spirit Crystal." Yun Yun sighed softly.
"Do you need my help?" Xiao Yi Xian looked at Yun Yun seriously.
Yun Yun was momentarily stunned by Xiao Yi Xian's gaze, then smiled. "Yes. Next, you need to do this... then that..."
Listening to words much like those from the original story, Xiao Yi Xian merely smiled calmly. With her current strength, she was already countless times stronger than Xiao Yan had been back then.
During this time, the bond between Xiao Yi Xian and Yun Yun had risen sharply, and the conflict between Yun Yun and Xiao Yan had been resolved.
The course of the future had begun changing from this moment onward. Without Yun Yun and Xiao Yan's story, what would become of the Misty Cloud Sect in the end?
Xiao Yi Xian did not know, but she would do everything in her power to resolve every matter. She could never forget what a teacher from her previous life had once said:
"Everyone has their own fate, ordained by heaven!"
"Some are born kings, while others become bandits!"
"If the road beneath your feet is not one you chose yourself, then no one knows where the journey will end!"
Since she had transmigrated here, each small change had gradually blurred the future, steering it away from its destined course.
Since she had chosen this road, she would remain unwavering until death and keep walking forward. She wanted to see where this journey would end.
A few days later
Xiao Yi Xian opened her sleepy eyes. The instant she woke, she suddenly remembered something and turned her head.
Yun Yun sat cross-legged on the stone bed within the cave, her strange longsword laid flat across her legs.
Today, she had changed into a plain snow-white dress. The phoenix hair ornament that had once looked somewhat lazy atop her head had been gathered up once more, giving off a faint air of nobility. Her beautiful face was calm and elegant.
The faint weakness she had shown a few days ago had completely vanished, as though she were a phoenix reborn from nirvana.
As if sensing that Xiao Yi Xian had awakened, Yun Yun slowly opened her eyes as well. Her beautiful gaze swept over Xiao Yi Xian as she said lightly, "You're awake?"
It was still that familiar, crisp voice, but this time it carried a touch of coolness. Beneath her calm tone lay a trace of concern.
Her gaze passing over Yun Yun, Xiao Yi Xian slowly exhaled and tilted her head. "The seal has been broken?"
"Mm."
Yun Yun nodded faintly. Her figure shifted, and when she appeared again, she was already standing directly before Xiao Yi Xian.
Her beautiful eyes lowered to Xiao Yi Xian's face. With a faint smile, she said, "Let's go. I believe we'll succeed..."
With that, she turned and walked toward the cave entrance first, her elegant steps graceful and enchanting.
Xiao Yi Xian nodded and followed Yun Yun. Perhaps because she was a girl, Yun Yun's attitude toward her was far better than it had been toward Xiao Yan in the original story.
Maybe this was the so-called friendship between girls!
If it had been a man and a woman instead, perhaps it really would have... turned out like the original story.
Yun Yun led Xiao Yi Xian through the forest, avoiding the magical beasts roaming about everywhere.
Looking at Xiao Yi Xian beside her, dressed in a black robe with a worn Bronze Mask covering her face, Yun Yun asked in confusion, "Why are you dressed like that?"
There was no one around here, so why was Xiao Yi Xian dressed this way?
Seeing Yun Yun's puzzled expression, Xiao Yi Xian said calmly, "I'm afraid that if I run into the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King again, it'll come looking to settle the score with me."
Hearing that, Yun Yun felt somewhat embarrassed. Let alone sneaking around and doing such things, if Xiao Yi Xian encountered the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King alone...
She might really be in great danger...
Watching Yun Yun walk ahead, Xiao Yi Xian secretly sighed in relief. She could hardly say, "I'm afraid Xiao Yan will recognize me," could she?
She did not know whether Xiao Yan was still here either. A battle between Dou Emperors was extraordinarily exciting—what if he came over to watch?
What would she do then?
Better safe than sorry!
A streak of azure light flashed across the sky, then landed soundlessly atop a pile of scattered rocks.
After landing, Xiao Yi Xian reluctantly released Yun Yun's soft waist.
Her gaze swept toward the enormous mountain in the distance. At its peak, a huge cave entrance flickered in and out of sight behind the branches.
"Is that the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King's cave?" Standing behind a boulder, Xiao Yi Xian cautiously looked toward the mountaintop and asked softly.
"Mm." Yun Yun nodded slightly, her gaze slowly sweeping over the area around the cave. Her brows furrowed as she said, "The defenses around it have become much tighter. It seems that fellow has raised its guard."
"I'll do my best to kill or injure the high-level magical beasts near the entrance later. You should choose the best moment and secretly slip into the cave." Turning her head, Yun Yun gave Xiao Yi Xian a concerned reminder.
"Alright."
Xiao Yi Xian nodded to show that she understood. She did not believe that if even a Dou Shi in the original story could do it, she, a Da Dou Shi, could not.
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