Medusa Chased Ye Xiu for a Thousand Miles

Early the next morning, just as the sky began to lighten.

In the Snake-People Temple, Medusa slowly opened her eyes. Her soul had now fully merged.

She lay there, staring at the stone ceiling, dazed for several seconds.

Then she sat up and looked down at herself.

She was wearing clothes, though she had no idea who had put them on her. She was clean from head to toe.

But a lingering sensation remained, one she could still savor.

Medusa froze.

She remembered everything that had happened last night. She couldn't forget it even if she tried.

Medusa took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and tried to calm herself.

But the sensation was too vivid. Even as she sat there, her body was still burning slightly.

"Ye—Xiu—"

She gritted her teeth and forced the two words out through them.

Boom!

A huge hole blasted open in the roof of the temple.

Medusa shot into the sky. Hovering in midair, she unleashed the full force of her Dou Zong aura, shaking the entire Snake-People Tribe.

She stood in the sky and swept her soul force over the surrounding area.

Nobody.

That brat wasn't there.

She descended, landing in front of the little courtyard.

The courtyard was empty. There wasn't a soul in sight.

Medusa walked into the courtyard and opened the door. There was no one inside, either. The bed was neatly made, and a jade bottle sat on the table, with a piece of paper underneath it.

She picked up the paper and glanced at it.

There was only one line:

"Agreement fulfilled. Farewell. Ye Xiu."

After reading it, Medusa clutched the paper and stood there without moving for a long time.

After a while, she turned to look outside.

A Snake-People guard stood at the entrance, head bowed and trembling.

"When did he leave?" Medusa asked.

The guard stammered, "Y-Your Majesty, that human left before dawn. He said, he said his agreement with Your Majesty had been fulfilled, and asked me to pass on that he wouldn't impose on you any longer..."

Medusa said nothing.

The courtyard was so quiet it was unnerving.

The guard knelt on the ground, hardly daring to breathe.

After a long while, Medusa suddenly raised her hand.

Boom!

The little courtyard exploded into rubble, sending broken stones flying in every direction.

The guard flattened himself against the ground, trembling all over, his face pale.

Medusa stood amid the ruins, her expression blank.

"Which way did he go?" she asked.

The guard hurriedly pointed. "Th-that way. He went east."

Medusa nodded.

East.

There were only two nearby places to the east of the Tagor Desert: Stone Desert City and Mo City.

That man couldn't have gotten far.

Medusa rose into the air. With a single step, she crossed hundreds of meters.

She was a Dou Zong now. She didn't need wings at all; walking through the air was as easy as walking on the ground.

She followed the direction the guard had pointed and raced east in pursuit, moving incredibly fast!

Meanwhile.

Ye Xiu was flying through the sky, heading toward Mo City.

After settling Medusa in last night, he had thought it over for a long while and decided he'd better get out of there early.

He couldn't predict how that woman would react when she woke up.

By rights, she was the one who had thrown herself at him, so she was the one in the wrong. But she was Queen Medusa, and she was used to being proud. What if she felt humiliated and insisted on settling the score with him?

Although he was a Seven-Star Dou Huang now and might not necessarily lose if they fought, making a big deal of this wouldn't be good for either of them.

Better to leave first and talk after she had calmed down.

Thinking this, Ye Xiu continued flying east.

After flying for who knew how long, he spotted the walls of Mo City in the distance.

He landed outside the city, put away his Dou Qi Wings, and walked inside.

The streets were busy as ever, full of mercenaries, vendors, and travelers, all milling about in a noisy crowd. Ye Xiu followed the street to the inn and pushed open the door.

The door to the room on the second floor was closed.

He knocked.

A familiar voice came from inside. "Who is it?"

"It's me."

The door swung open at once.

Xiao Yi Xian stood in the doorway, wearing a white dress with her hair tied up. Her cheeks were rosy. When she saw Ye Xiu, her eyes lit up.

"Master!"

Ye Xiu nodded, went inside, and sat down in a chair.

Xiao Yi Xian followed him over and stood beside him, her eyes fixed on him.

"Master, you're back! Why were you gone so long? Didn't you say you'd be back in ten days or half a month? It's been a month and a half! I thought something had happened to you!"

Ye Xiu smiled. "Something unexpected came up and delayed me for a few days."

Xiao Yi Xian looked him over, then suddenly paused.

"Master, have you gotten stronger again? I feel like... you seem different from before."

Ye Xiu nodded. "Not bad. I made a little breakthrough."

A little?

Xiao Yi Xian's mouth twitched.

Though she couldn't see through Ye Xiu's cultivation, she knew what she was sensing. The last time they parted, his aura had been strong, but still within the range she could understand. Now, just standing beside him left her feeling a little short of breath.

But she didn't ask more. There were things about her master she shouldn't pry into.

"Master, are you hungry? Should I get you something to eat?"

Ye Xiu waved a hand. "No need. Let's see how your cultivation is coming along first."

Xiao Yi Xian grinned, stepped back, and circulated her cultivation method.

A wisp of pale gray Poison Dou Qi emerged from her and swirled around her. It was much denser and steadier than it had been a month ago.

Ye Xiu nodded. "Three-Star Dou Practitioner? Not bad."

Xiao Yi Xian dispelled her Dou Qi and came closer. "Master, I've been working really hard this past month! I've been saving the pills you left me, and I've also been practicing that Green Python Poison Palm scroll. I haven't mastered it yet, but I can use it now!"

Seeing her like that, Ye Xiu couldn't help smiling. "All right, all right. I know you've been working hard."

Xiao Yi Xian grinned and sat down beside him.

"Master, now that you're back, you won't leave me all alone and go off by yourself again so soon, will you?"

Ye Xiu smiled and shook his head. "No. We'll get ready and set off for Jia Ma Holy City tomorrow."

Xiao Yi Xian's eyes lit up. "That's great! By the way, Master, did you find that Heavenly Flame when you went to the Snake-People Tribe?"

Ye Xiu nodded and held out his hand, palm up.

Pfft.

A blue flame rose from his palm, dancing in the air.

Xiao Yi Xian stared at the flame, her mouth slowly falling open.

It didn't look very large, but its heat was so intense that her face felt hot even from a meter away. The air around the flame was visibly distorted.

"Master, is this... a Heavenly Flame?"

Ye Xiu nodded, closed his fist, and drew the flame back into his body.

Xiao Yi Xian stared at his hand for a long moment, then looked up at him, her eyes full of admiration.

"Master, you're amazing! I've heard that nobody can tame a Heavenly Flame, but you actually did it!"

Ye Xiu smiled. "I was just lucky."

Xiao Yi Xian shook her head. "It wasn't luck! You're just amazing, Master!"

Ye Xiu didn't respond. He stood up, walked to the window, and looked outside.

Xiao Yi Xian came over and stood beside him.

"Master, what are you looking at?"

"Nothing. Just looking around."

Xiao Yi Xian tilted her head at him, then suddenly asked, "Master, did something happen when you went to the Snake-People Tribe? When you came back just now, you seemed to keep looking behind you."

Ye Xiu paused and turned to look at her. Had this little girl been watching out the window to see when he'd return, only pretending she hadn't noticed him come back?

Xiao Yi Xian blinked, looking completely innocent.

Ye Xiu was silent for a moment, then said, "Nothing major. I just had a little... incident with the Snake-People there."

"An incident?"

"Yeah." Ye Xiu nodded. "It's not something I can explain in just a few words."

Xiao Yi Xian nodded as though she understood, and didn't press him any further.