Birth

Chapter 10: Emerging into the World

This place was surrounded by towering mountains, a valley nestled in their midst. The sides facing the valley were steep, jagged cliffs that looked as if they had been carved by a blade. It was nearly impossible to reach the valley floor from the cliffs above; the only exit was a subterranean cavern at the front of the valley. A small stream flowed out from here, and by following its riverbed upward and passing through a narrow hole that could only accommodate one person at a time, one would arrive at the valley where Xia Xue resided.

From the outside, the place already possessed the air of a secluded paradise, and once inside, that feeling only intensified. The valley floor was a flat expanse of over thirty zhang, lush with green grass, clusters of vibrant flowers, and fluttering butterflies. In the center stood four small wooden huts arranged in a row, with the small stream flowing past them. A row of weeping willows had been planted along the bank. If a poet were to visit this place and witness such scenery, they might find their inspiration surging, perhaps even churning out a masterpiece destined to be passed down through the ages. Chu Xiaotian, however, felt nothing of the sort. Following the stream upward to the north, there was a small pool about three zhang square, into which a waterfall, roughly a zhang wide, cascaded from the mountain peak, splashing up a vast mist of water.

"What a magnificent place! This truly is a treasure land, like a paradise hidden from the world," Chu Xiaotian exclaimed loudly, his face full of wonder as he gazed at the valley before him.

In the world he had lived in before, such a place existed only in legends. To have this be the very first thing he saw upon arriving here made him truly marvel at what a wonderful world this was.

"Of course! I discovered this place when I was a child. No one else knows about it. There are little silver fish in that pool, and I grew up eating them," Xia Xue said, lifting her small chin and smiling with a face full of pride after hearing Chu Xiaotian's words.

"Little Xue, you're truly amazing to have found such a wonderful place. I've decided, I'll follow you from now on. I'm sure I'll be living the high life..." Chu Xiaotian gave Xia Xue a thumbs-up and showered her with more praise.

From their previous conversations, he knew that Xia Xue was an orphan. From the time she was old enough to understand things until she met her master, she had lived entirely alone for ten whole years, starting when she was only five. For a five-year-old girl to survive on her own was, it must be said, a truly remarkable feat. Of course, the greatest credit belonged to this valley. Had it not provided her with a shelter to avoid the ravages of wild beasts, and had the pool not contained those silver fish to fill her belly, she might have long since starved to death in the mountains or become a beast's dinner.

"Hee hee, you're funny, but following me won't bring you any benefits. Of these four rooms, the middle one is my alchemy room. To the left of the alchemy room is the kitchen, and to the right is my bedroom. You can take the one to the left of the kitchen. Remember, don't you dare sneak in without my permission! My cultivation is higher than yours, and I'm an alchemist—in a one-on-one fight, you're no match for me," Xia Xue said, amused by Chu Xiaotian's words. She covered her mouth to giggle, then pointed to the four wooden houses in the center of the valley.

She wasn't boasting, either. While her strength had been completely overwhelmed when facing a pack of wolves, in a one-on-one fight, Chu Xiaotian—a guy who knew nothing and possessed only brute force—really was no match for her.

"Now, Little Xue, what kind of person do you take me for? How could I ever do something like that?" Chu Xiaotian looked aggrieved, as if he had been wronged in the worst way possible. Of course, whether he actually had such thoughts or not, only he knew.

"Hee hee, my master said that all men are like this. Don't bother arguing; the more you argue, the guiltier you look," Xia Xue said, looking at Chu Xiaotian with a radiant smile. The glint in her eyes left Chu Xiaotian too frustrated to speak.

He could only sheepishly rub his nose and fall silent. Xia Xue didn't know what else to say either, and the two fell into a silence, their eyes scanning aimlessly. However, this silence didn't last long before it was broken by the sound of Chu Xiaotian's stomach. The rumbling noise made Xia Xue cover her mouth and giggle again.

"Uh, I'll go get something to eat." Chu Xiaotian's skin wasn't exactly thick; his face flushed slightly, and after dropping that line, he bolted toward the pool at the north end of the valley like a flash.

According to Xia Xue, there were fish in there. He had been eating wild fruit for so many days that his mouth had gone completely bland. Now that there was fish to eat, he would have to be short-circuited to go looking for wild fruit instead.

The fish in the pool weren't very large, only about half a foot long. In about a quarter of an hour, Chu Xiaotian had caught seven. After cleaning them and removing the innards, he fashioned a wooden rack, set the fish over it, and began to roast them by the side of the pool.

When he was young, Chu Xiaotian often went into the mountains to hunt sparrows and the like with a slingshot to roast and eat, so roasting fish was naturally not a difficult task for him. Before long, waves of enticing aroma drifted from the fish on the rack, making both of them swallow their saliva uncontrollably. After sprinkling on various seasonings he had gotten from Xia Xue, the two began to enjoy the feast. These fish tasted far better than any fish Chu Xiaotian had ever eaten before; the meat was sweet, delicate, and tender, and every bite filled his mouth with the fragrance of the fish.

Chu Xiaotian devoured his food like a wolf; he didn't even know how many bites it took before a half-foot-long fish had vanished into his stomach. As for Xia Xue, she had always eaten fish as soup and had never tried roasting it. Eating such delicious roasted fish for the first time, she naturally showered Chu Xiaotian with praise, making him nearly float with pride.

Of the seven fish Chu Xiaotian caught, he wolfed down five, while Xia Xue, having a small appetite, stopped after two. After finishing this, his first grand feast since arriving in this world, Chu Xiaotian wiped his mouth, stretched, and lay down on the ground to chat with Xia Xue. Most of their conversation revolved around matters of this world.

Xia Xue was happy to answer any questions from the "savage" who had saved her life after coming out of the deep mountains, allowing Chu Xiaotian to learn a great deal about this world. Time flew by, and before they knew it, the sky began to grow dim. Nightfall would soon be upon them. After Chu Xiaotian roasted a few more fish for dinner, he found an excuse to leave the valley. Xia Xue also retreated into her own room to begin her cultivation. This was something she did every day; she spent her days gathering herbs or practicing alchemy, and once night fell, she would cultivate the techniques her master had taught her.

At dawn the next day, Xia Xue woke from her sleep. Before she even opened her eyes, she smelled the aroma of roasted meat. Smiling slightly, she walked out of her room and, sure enough, saw Chu Xiaotian sitting where they had roasted fish the day before, roasting a rabbit. This rabbit was one Chu Xiaotian had killed with a club that morning, not one of the ones he had drained of blood the night before. Xia Xue had asked him about his disappearance the previous night, but he had brushed it off with a casual excuse, and she hadn't pressed him further.

The two finished their rabbit meat and tidied up the area before walking out of the valley toward the edge of the forest. Xia Xue had run out of herbs for her alchemy and had originally planned to go gather some over the next couple of days, but the battle against the wolf pack the day before had left her with significant injuries. Although she had used medicinal pills to prevent any serious consequences, she wouldn't be able to go into the mountains to gather herbs for the next two days.

Therefore, Xia Xue decided to take Chu Xiaotian to a nearby town to broaden his horizons and, incidentally, to see if there was anywhere he could learn cultivation techniques. The valley where Xia Xue lived was only half an hour away from the nearest town, called Greenwood Town. According to Xia Xue, there was a Mad Blade Martial Hall in the town, and the hall master was a powerhouse named Ba Dao, who was at the peak of the Pulse-Opening Realm and just one step away from entering the Sea-Opening Realm. If Chu Xiaotian could get into the Mad Blade Martial Hall, he wouldn't have to worry about cultivation techniques.

One was a stunning beauty in flowing white robes, while the other was a man dressed in animal skins with messy hair and stubble—no matter how you looked at it, they were a classic "Beauty and the Beast" combination. The moment they stepped into Greenwood Town, they immediately attracted countless gazes.

"Hey, isn't that Miss Xia Xue? Doesn't she always keep to herself? When did she end up with a savage following her?"

"A handsome and dashing man like me asked to follow Miss Xia before, and she wouldn't have it, but now she lets a savage-like kid follow her? That's just too infuriating!"

"That guy doesn't look like anyone capable at all. I really don't know why Miss Xia would let him follow her."

"..."

Their appearance not only attracted a sea of gazes but also sparked a flurry of whispers all around. At the same time, it proved that Xia Xue was quite popular in this small town. Aside from her stunning beauty, another important reason was her status as an alchemist. Being an alchemist on this continent was a symbol of nobility, and it was destined that many would follow her. Although Xia Xue was only a first-tier alchemist, she was still someone capable of refining medicinal pills, and as long as it was a pill—no matter the tier—it was revered on this continent. Many people had previously tried to follow her with all sorts of motives, only to be rejected.

Now, seeing that Xia Xue was actually accompanied by a savage-like guy who didn't look like a powerhouse at all, these people felt quite unbalanced.