The morning mist had yet to lift.
The damp scent of grass and trees still hung in the forest.
Lin Chen had just emerged from the woods when Yan Feixue's voice reached him.
She had changed into a short tunic and was looking him up and down, somewhat astonished.
"You really broke through?"
Lin Chen's aura was smooth and contained, with nothing leaking out, so Yan Feixue could sense nothing. That very fact made it all the more unusual.
Lin Chen looked up and smiled.
"I got lucky and made some progress in my cultivation. Sorry to have kept you waiting, Miss Yan. Let's set off."
Lucky?
Who was he trying to fool?
Yan Feixue raised a brow but asked no more. She sped eastward, and Lin Chen followed close behind.
Along the way, they came across other opportunities, as well as warriors fighting fiercely over them.
But whenever the two passed by, those warriors calmed down. The prize had already been swept away in passing, so there was no reason left to fight.
And so, a day slipped by.
The terrain ahead gradually sloped downward, and the air grew damp.
Yan Feixue suddenly halted. Lin Chen stopped with her and looked where she pointed.
At the far end of their view, a lake came into sight.
Its waters were deep jade-green, its surface still as a vast emerald set among the mountains.
"That's Jadewater Lake," Yan Feixue said quietly.
"The guardian demon beast lives in the lake and lies dormant most of the time. The moment it senses an outsider approaching, it wakes. Last time, I only scouted from a distance, yet I still alerted it. If I hadn't been quick with my escape technique, I might not have gotten away."
"Do you know what kind of demon beast