Zhu Zhuqing Drinks the Water of Life, Reaches Rank 29

Zhu Zhuqing had a dream.

In it, she stood within a boundless forest.

Ancient trees towered into the sky, their branches and leaves blotting out the sun. Mottled light filtered through the canopy, while the air was filled with the fresh fragrance of grass and wood.

Barefoot, she stepped across the soft grass, walking forward one step at a time.

As she walked, a massive ancient tree appeared ahead of her.

It soared into the clouds, its trunk so thick that dozens of people would be needed to encircle it. Its crown was like an enormous umbrella, covering half the sky.

Most miraculous of all, the entire tree emitted a soft green glow, as though it had been carved from jade.

Every leaf shone, and every branch seemed to breathe.

Zhu Zhuqing stood before the ancient tree and looked up at it, an indescribable emotion suddenly rising in her heart.

Warmth.

Security.

As though she had returned to her mother's embrace.

Without realizing it, she reached out, wanting to touch the ancient tree's trunk.

The instant her fingertips touched the bark, a warm liquid flowed into her throat.

She was drinking water.

Someone was feeding her water.

The water was sweet, carrying a faint fragrance of grass and wood. It flowed down her throat into her stomach, then transformed into a warm current that surged through her limbs and bones.

It felt so comfortable.

As though she were soaking in a hot spring.

Or lying beneath the spring sunshine.

All her exhaustion, aches, and hidden ailments gradually faded away within that warm current.

Her body was becoming lighter.

Her Soul Power was becoming fuller.

Her entire being seemed to have been cleansed anew.

Zhu Zhuqing slowly opened her eyes.

The first thing she saw was a sharply defined face.

Sword-like brows, starry eyes, a high nose bridge, thin lips pressed together, and a jawline as sharp as if cut by a blade.

He sat on the edge of the bed, holding a celadon cup in one hand while the other supported her shoulder, allowing her to lean against his chest.

Their eyes met.

Zhu Zhuqing froze.

Gu Linyuan froze as well.

The two stared at each other for a full three seconds.

"You're awake."

Gu Linyuan spoke first, his voice calm and natural.

Yet his hand was still resting on Zhu Zhuqing's shoulder.

And she was still leaning against him.

Zhu Zhuqing's mind exploded with a buzz.

She abruptly sat upright, her cheeks flushing visibly red, the blush spreading from her neck all the way to the tips of her ears.

"I... I..."

"Where is this?"

Zhu Zhuqing's voice was flustered, nothing like her usual cool and composed self.

"You passed out."

Gu Linyuan placed the celadon cup on the small table beside the bed, his tone even.

"You sucked the poisoned blood out for me on the Soul Fighting Platform and got poisoned yourself. So I brought you back."

Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a moment, seemingly trying hard to remember.

Then she recalled it.

The Soul Fighting Platform, Tang San's sneak attack, Long Yuan being poisoned, and her sucking out the poisoned blood. She remembered nothing after that.

"This is... your room?"

Zhu Zhuqing looked around, her voice very quiet.

The room was small and simply furnished. One bed, one table, one chair, and one wardrobe.

The air held a faint scent that belonged to a young man.

Zhu Zhuqing's face reddened even further.

She was sitting on Gu Linyuan's bed.

Covered by his blanket.

Resting on his pillow.

His scent was all over the blanket and pillow.

"Ah!"

Coming back to her senses, her entire body stiffened. Her heart pounded wildly, as though it might leap out of her chest.

It was her first time entering the room of a boy her own age. It was very different from what she had imagined.

Clean, tidy, and filled with a warm feeling.

"You... um... when you took me away, did no one stop you? And how are your injuries?"

She lowered her head, not daring to look at Gu Linyuan.

Her hands clutched the edge of the blanket tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white.

"There was someone shamelessly trying to stop me from taking you away. But he was just a coward. I scared him a little, and he didn't dare say anything else. As for my injuries, I was never seriously hurt to begin with."

"That guy seemed pretty close to you. Don't tell me he's your boyfriend?"

Gu Linyuan watched Zhu Zhuqing's helpless appearance, the corner of his lips curving slightly upward.

"No, no, no. He isn't my boyfriend. Do I look like someone with such terrible taste?"

Zhu Zhuqing hurriedly denied it.

She wanted to draw a clear line between herself and Dai Mubai, and even more so, she did not want Gu Linyuan to misunderstand because of him.

The Zhu Zhuqing who was usually frosty and indifferent to everyone now looked like a startled kitten, curled up beneath the blanket with the tips of her ears bright red, unbearably adorable.

"That's true. I didn't think your taste could be that bad." Gu Linyuan smiled.

In the original story, Zhu Zhuqing had ultimately still ended up with Dai Mubai.

But now, it seemed that in this life, she would not walk that same old path.

"Drink this."

Gu Linyuan picked up the celadon cup and held it out to Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing raised her head and looked at the cup of water.

The water was crystal clear, as though it were spring water flowing through a mountain stream. Yet a faint green radiance glimmered around the rim, and a sweet fragrance of grass and wood wafted toward her.

Just one breath of it made every pore on her body seem to relax.

"What is this?" she asked.

"You'll know once you drink it," Gu Linyuan said.

Zhu Zhuqing glanced at him without asking further questions. She took the cup in both hands, lowered her head, and gently took a sip.

The instant the water entered her mouth, her eyes widened sharply.

Sweet and cool, it carried a dense aura of life. It flowed down her throat into her stomach, then transformed into a warm current that spread through her entire body.

Wherever that current passed, every cell rejoiced and every inch of her meridians relaxed.

She could feel her body changing.

It was not an earthshaking transformation, but a gentle cleansing, like spring rain nourishing all things in silence.

The hidden injuries accumulated through years of cultivation, strained muscles, worn joints, and faintly aching meridians all gradually healed and were restored beneath the washing of that warm current.

Her body seemed to have been reforged.

Light, clear, and brimming with strength.

After finishing it, she set down the cup, closed her eyes, and felt the power surging within her.

Her Soul Power raced through her meridians like rivers flowing into the sea.

Rank 28.

Rank 29.

In only a few breaths, her cultivation had risen two ranks in a row.

Zhu Zhuqing abruptly opened her eyes, her beautiful gaze filled with shock.

"What did I drink?"

Even her voice had changed pitch.

Since meeting her, this was the first time Gu Linyuan had seen such an expression on her face.

Looking at her eyes, slightly widened in shock, and her cheeks, faintly flushed with excitement, Gu Linyuan suddenly felt something strange stir in his heart.

As though a feather had lightly brushed across the tip of his heart.

It tickled.

"Of course, it's some kind of priceless treasure. But I can't tell you exactly what it is, so you won't feel pressured." He smiled and said it casually.

Zhu Zhuqing stared at him for quite a while, as though judging whether he was brushing her off.

Then she took a deep breath and calmed herself.

"How much does it cost? I'll pay you back someday."

She asked, her voice calm again, but her tone earnest.

Yet there was a hint of caution in the way she looked at Gu Linyuan.

She knew this had to be a treasure even more valuable than the paw of a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear. It could cleanse one's body and repair hidden ailments.

She had wanted to suck out the poison to save him because she owed Gu Linyuan a favor, but she did not want to owe him anything. If Gu Linyuan had died, she would never have been able to repay that debt, and that would have been more unbearable to her than death.

"Pfft."

Gu Linyuan could not help laughing.

When he smiled, his pitch-black eyes curved slightly, like crescent moons.

He looked very handsome.

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze lingered on his face for a moment before quickly shifting away.

Her heart skipped another beat.

As the child of the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction, Gu Linyuan was the sort whose looks became more captivating the longer one looked at him. If she kept staring at him, it would be easy to get lost in him.

"This is a priceless treasure."

"My mother left it to me. It may look like your cultivation only rose by two ranks, but this cup of water improved your aptitude and will make your future path of cultivation smoother."

"If it were put up for auction, it would fetch at least three to five million Gold Soul Coins."

Gu Linyuan leaned back in his chair with his arms folded, smiling at her.

Zhu Zhuqing fell silent.

She truly could not afford it.

A precious liquid that could raise someone two ranks in a row and eliminate all hidden ailments was something not only she could not afford; probably very few people on the entire continent could.

"I didn't expect it to be something your mother left you. Doesn't that mean I've squandered your treasure?"

Zhu Zhuqing felt even more embarrassed.