By the time the bonfire burned into the latter half of the night, most of them were fast asleep.
Ma Hongjun's snores came rhythmically from beside the tree roots. Oscar rolled over and buried his face in his sleeping bag. Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing slept close together on the other side of the fire, their breaths even and deep.
Zhao Wuji leaned against the trunk of a thick old tree with his eyes closed, but Yun Tian knew he was not deeply asleep—his vigilance as a seven-ringed Soul Sage allowed him to sense every movement around him even while resting.
Tang San was not asleep either. He sat with his back against a tree, while Blue Silver Grass silently extended across half the surrounding grassland like an invisible warning perimeter.
Seeing that Yun Tian was still awake, he jerked his chin toward the bonfire, indicating that Xiao Wu had already fallen asleep.
Yun Tian nodded and walked over to sit beside Tang San, leaving a single step between them. The fire occasionally gave off a soft crackle, sparks flying into the air before quickly going out.
"Can't sleep?" Yun Tian asked.
"I was thinking about the changes in Blue Silver Grass's form." Tang San's voice was very soft, afraid of waking the others. "It really becomes more flexible after being condensed into strands, but its toughness decreases. It can easily be torn apart when facing strength-type opponents. I was wondering whether I could add another layer of densification while preserving its resilience."
"The relationship between density and toughness—you want the outer layer to be denser while the core stays more flexible?"
Tang San looked at him in surprise. "How did you know?"
"Just a guess." Yun Tian smiled. "When I traveled before, I read a few booklets on the