The very next moment.
Xiao Minghuang took a step, her figure flashing as she appeared before Ye Ruoshui.
"Your Highness..."
Before Ye Ruoshui could speak, she felt herself wrapped in a warm, soft embrace, and then darkness fell before her eyes.
A gentle, sweet kiss landed on the corner of her lips.
The kiss was not slow; it vanished in the blink of an eye.
As the warmth withdrew, the kiss came to an end as well.
Ye Ruoshui opened her eyes.
Before her was that peerlessly beautiful, unworldly face, touched with a hint of mischief. Xiao Minghuang blinked her enchanting peach-blossom eyes; her natural allure could shame the moon and put flowers to blush, stirring Ye Ruoshui's heart.
"Big sister is leaving first. Help big sister stop Wanqiu later, okay!"
Perhaps bewitched by that coquettish yet adorable smile, Ye Ruoshui nodded as if possessed.
Having received her answer, Xiao Minghuang casually patted Ye Ruoshui's little head. Her figure flashed, and she vanished.
No one knew how long passed.
Only then did Ye Ruoshui slowly come back to herself. Covering her burning cheeks with both hands, she murmured softly:
"Big sister..."
At about the same time.
Lin Wanqiu stepped out from behind the boulder.
That kiss had dealt her far too devastating a blow.
This was the first time in her life that someone had kissed the corner of her lips.
It was also the first time that someone she liked had kissed the corner of her lips.
In that instant, she forgot heaven and earth, and the boundaries of time and space blurred. She wanted only to drown forever in the happiness of that moment, turning an instant into eternity.
But it was merely an unrealistic illusion. She quickly awakened and understood.
"Your Highness really is... impossible to deal with!"
Lin Wanqiu gave a bitter smile. She was at a loss, yet though calamity might befall her, she was still willing to sink for the sake of a beauty.
Once she emerged from behind the boulder, she saw Ye Ruoshui standing there with her face covered, looking bashful and awkward.
Lin Wanqiu's mind raced, and she understood in an instant.
"Did Ruoshui see His Highness kiss me just now?"
If she had been some shallow, vulgar woman, she would most likely have strutted over to Ye Ruoshui and declared with utter disdain:
His Highness cares about me most. You are nothing but a mere maidservant, yet you dare covet your master? Why not piss in a puddle and look at yourself? Are you worthy?
But Lin Wanqiu was not such a crude woman. She knew that Ye Ruoshui was innocent and pure-hearted, that she sincerely cared for Xiao Minghuang. Such an adorable girl should not be hurt. Instead, she should be cherished and allowed to feel the beauty and kindness of the world.
Lin Wanqiu walked over to Ye Ruoshui's side, originally intending to say:
Don't lose heart. His Highness will definitely kiss you too someday.
But when the words reached her lips, she could not say them.
After all, kissing was an extremely private matter.
It was not something that could be casually spoken aloud. Whether it would comfort Ye Ruoshui was still unknown.
If it had the opposite effect, and Ye Ruoshui thought she had come to provoke her, that would be even more troublesome.
And so.
Lin Wanqiu stood beside Ye Ruoshui, her lovely brows tightly furrowed. She wanted to speak but stopped; she stopped, then wanted to speak again, repeating this countless times.
After calming down for a while, Ye Ruoshui gradually recovered. Then she saw Lin Wanqiu standing beside her, brows furrowed, her expression gloomy, looking as though she had a bellyful of words that she could not say.
Ye Ruoshui racked her brains and immediately thought of Xiao Minghuang kissing her just now.
Oh no! Did Miss Lin see big sister kiss me just now?!
In an instant, Ye Ruoshui's expression changed rapidly, clouds and sunshine flickering across her face.
When she thought of something as private as kissing big sister being witnessed by a third person, she felt embarrassed and shy.
But when she thought of Lin Wanqiu, who liked big sister too, she felt that it ought to have been shown to her.
Letting her see big sister kiss her with her own eyes would surely dispel any improper thoughts in her heart.
"She is nothing but some down-and-out country girl, and she dares covet my Highness!"
As she pondered.
Ye Ruoshui wanted to generously admit that Xiao Minghuang had kissed her just now, and take the chance to mention all the previous kisses as well, ruthlessly slapping Lin Wanqiu's face and making her give up in despair!
But on second thought.
"Miss Lin seems to like big sister very much. Wouldn't saying those things hurt her too badly?"
At that thought, Ye Ruoshui's little brows twisted together, and she hesitated again.
She knew that Lin Wanqiu had been born with blocked meridians and had lost her mother at a young age. In that regard, their experiences were the same.
Though she was the eldest daughter of the City Lord's Manor, she had suffered who knew how many sneers and mocking remarks.
Having grown to this age, although she appeared sunny and cheerful on the surface, she might actually harbor deep feelings of inferiority.
If Ye Ruoshui said such things, Lin Wanqiu would surely be heartbroken. In her despair, she might even seek her own death.
Thinking of this.
Ye Ruoshui decided to keep her mouth shut and never mention it, waiting for Lin Wanqiu to speak first.
Thus.
The two simply stood there, staring wide-eyed at each other. Neither said a single word.
While a Wooden Man Competition was being held outside the cave, Xiao Minghuang had already descended into the depths of the mine.
///}
"This spirit vein is over a hundred li deep and runs through several mountain ranges. If it is all mined out, the yield of spirit stones will probably reach several million!"
Xiao Minghuang ventured deeper into the mine, sensing the heaven-and-earth spiritual energy around her as she murmured softly.
Spirit stones formed when heaven-and-earth spiritual energy grew rich to a certain degree, settled out, and clung to soil or rock. As time passed, the rock and soil became wrapped in spiritual energy and underwent a qualitative transformation, becoming spirit stones.
Unprocessed spirit stones had no fixed color. Whichever of the five-element spiritual energies influenced them most deeply determined their corresponding five-element color.
Most of the spirit stones Xiao Minghuang saw within the vein were yellowish-brown. Clearly, they had been more deeply influenced by earth spiritual energy, while also mixed with the other four kinds of spiritual energy. They contained quite a few impurities as well, so their colors were uneven and rather ugly.
After spirit stones were mined, they still had to be refined and processed. Once the impurities were removed and the five-element spiritual energies were balanced, the stones gradually became pure and translucent.
Spirit stones processed through these steps were the standard spirit stones used on the market.
High-grade spirit stones were already as effective as some medicinal pills, or even more so.
Some special spirit stones were comparable to high-grade medicinal pills. They existed only in legends, and no one had ever seen them.
Recalling Ye Ruoshui's explanation, Xiao Minghuang continued deeper into the spirit vein.
She remembered that high-grade spirit stones could serve as the main ingredient when refining pills, and were extremely effective in improving cultivation and restoring spiritual power.
"If I can find high-grade spirit stones in this spirit vein, that would be wonderful indeed."
Xiao Minghuang thought to herself.
The Witch in the Mysterious World
[I Am the Conqueror of Bad Women] [I Am Not a Bad Woman] [Bad Women Are All Big Sisters] The decaying poetic chapter of the new mysterious era turned a new page with the awakening of Miss Yanie Xunos, a mage who had crossed over from Blue Star.
An unknown existence destroyed magical civilization, while mad whispers lingered without end. We, insignificant and lowly beings, pursued truth with fragile senses. How pitiful.
The dawn of the gods, the dusk of mankind, the rulers of the spirit world, gods beyond the world.
There are ten shackles upon mortals. Can one truly obtain real freedom after opening them all?
Two treasures: a longsword and a medicinal pill
In the dark, damp depths of the mine, Xiao Minghuang followed the Destiny Compass's guidance all the way downward.
As she went deeper, the space around her became increasingly narrow, until she could only press sideways against the wall to advance.
With her back against the icy rock wall, Xiao Minghuang wound her way forward and sighed softly:
"Good thing it's me. If Ruoshui had come, she would definitely get stuck here and be unable to go any farther."
At last, Xiao Minghuang stopped before an ordinary-looking rock wall.
Her eyes shone like stars, piercing the darkness. She could see that there was no path ahead.
Yet the Destiny Compass's needle still pointed toward the rock wall before her.
"Could there be another mystery behind this rock wall?"
Xiao Minghuang guessed that there might be another world hidden behind it.
She raised her palm and pressed it gently against the rock wall. With a thought, she circulated her spiritual power, which suddenly surged forth!
Rumble!!!
Under the impact of spiritual power, the rock wall split apart and crumbled like collapsing earth.
With a gentle wave of her hand, Xiao Minghuang stilled the flying dust, and the sight behind the rock wall entered her eyes.
It was a narrow cave, only a little over one zhang in size.
At the deepest part of the cave stood a protruding platform. Upon it sat a dust-covered skeleton cross-legged, as though it had been dead for countless years.
The instant she saw the skeleton, a heart-palpitating pressure spread out, as if she were facing an invincible supreme expert.
But that feeling lasted only an instant before disappearing.
"You may have been powerful in life, but in the end, dust returns to dust and earth to earth..."
Xiao Minghuang's eyes flickered as she murmured, then walked forward.
She did not touch it immediately. Instead, she took out several spirit stones to test it. Only after confirming that nothing unusual happened did she approach the skeleton.
The skeleton was grayish-white from head to toe and completely naked. After being worn away by countless years, its clothes had presumably long turned to ashes.
"Time buries all, yet these bones remain undying. I truly wonder what cultivation this skeleton possessed in life..."
Xiao Minghuang sighed. She had only just entered the path of cultivation, and all she could feel was the vigor of youth and the spirit of forging ahead without hesitation.
As for concepts such as lifespan and immortality, she had no feeling for them at all.
She shook her head slightly, clearing these stray thoughts from her mind. Then she raised her hand, circulated her spiritual power to wrap around her palm, and gently reached out to touch the skeleton.
The instant her palm touched the skeleton.
Crash!
The grayish-white bones shattered at once, breaking into grayish-white fragments all over the ground.
The sudden event startled Xiao Minghuang. She retreated swiftly, then, after realizing that no change had occurred, turned back and returned to the remains...
Or rather, the bone fragments.
"It seems you were not powerful enough..."
Xiao Minghuang murmured softly. Stepping closer, she discovered three items amid the pile of grayish-white bone fragments.
The first and most eye-catching was a longsword, about three chi long, its surface covered in dust.
Xiao Minghuang picked up the longsword and blew gently. The dust scattered, revealing the blade.
The longsword was entirely azure, exquisitely forged and incomparably ornate. A faint azure glow flowed along its blade, emitting an extremely profound aura.
Xiao Minghuang held the sword in her hand and gave it a light swing, immediately feeling a sense of lightness arise within her.
Before you continue