Leaving

"A fifteen-year-old Seven-Star Dou Zhe. With your talent, you could become an extraordinary expert someday even if you weren't an alchemist. In fact, alchemy has already taken up quite a bit of time you could have spent cultivating..."

Seeing that Wu Bai still looked dissatisfied, Han Yue brought up his age.

He was only fifteen. She was seventeen this year and had only just advanced to Dou Shi.

Looking at it that way, of the three of them, she was the oldest and the most ordinary!

Even Han Xue, who was only ten, had already reached the Seventh Stage Dou Qi. Her talent was far better than her older sister's.

"But if you and I fought, I'd lose within ten moves. Age has never been something to boast about."

"...I suppose you're right."

Han Yue fell silent for a moment. She had never expected to hear something like that from this fifteen-year-old boy.

Wu Bai was being realistic. If a conflict broke out and turned into a fight to the death, who would care how old you were?

The younger you were, the less strength and experience you had built up, and the more likely you were to die.

On the Dou Qi Continent, the younger person didn't get a chance to come back to life after being killed.

Dead was dead.

Han Yue gathered herself and took Wu Bai through the streets, leisurely shopping for the things on their enrollment list.

Of the essentials—food, clothing, shelter, and travel—food and clothing were their main priorities.

Jia Nan Academy was on the Northwest Continent, where the cuisine differed considerably from that of the Central Plains. They could prepare some food that would keep for a long time and take it with them.

Clothes were less of a concern. There was no way an academy as large as Jia Nan Academy wouldn't have clothing shops nearby.

With so many students constantly sparring or carrying out assignments, clothes must get torn all the time. A clothing shop nearby could probably make quite a bit of money.

Still, Wu Bai had arrived at the Han Family with nothing but a small bundle on his back, and there hadn't been much in it. Besides, he was only fifteen and still growing. He needed several new sets of clothes every year.

Nearly a year had passed, and his old clothes no longer fit him very well.

And so the Han sisters became his advisers.

Two hours later, Wu Bai felt as though his body no longer belonged to him.

For the next two days, the three of them went out together each day to buy supplies.

Watching his disciple from the sidelines, the Yellow Springs Demon Saint could only sigh again and again.

The boy never took the initiative. He was too much of a gentleman, as if he had no interest in women at all.

"They're a pair of lovely sisters! Most men would fall over themselves trying to impress them. How is it that you hardly seem to see them as women?"

The older sister was cool and reserved; the younger was lively and adorable.

The Yellow Springs Demon Saint asked himself honestly: when he was young, he certainly wouldn't have acted like this block of wood.

That night, Wu Bai did not cultivate for once. Instead, he went to bed early to rest up for the long journey ahead.

"Little Bai, why don't you take the initiative? The way I see it, those two young ladies are interested in you too."

"I haven't thought that far, Teacher. Right now, all I want is to cultivate and grow stronger. As for romance, once I've brought you back to life, you can ask for their hands on my behalf."

"All right, all right, I'll remember that. But don't be too distant, boy. You can't let some other man steal those sisters away from you."

The Yellow Springs Demon Saint nodded with a smile, though he still wished his disciple would loosen up a little.

A fifteen-year-old boy ought to be full of youthful energy, with his first stirrings of romance—not so unnaturally mature.

Wu Bai nodded faintly and closed his eyes.

He had no desire to get tangled up in some damned love story right now.

If he married and had children someday, how could he be sure he wouldn't become a father like his biological father?

And if that was how it would turn out, wasn't choosing not to have children a kind of love too?

The night passed without incident.

By the time the sun had just risen, Wu Bai was ready to leave.

Well, everything was packed into his Storage Ring. He had nothing to carry.

A Storage Ring really did make life and travel convenient!

Wu Bai marveled at it inwardly as he stepped out of the courtyard.

He had not gone far when Han Yue's tall, slender figure came into view.

Their eyes met. Both paused for a moment, then turned toward the Han Family's plaza.

The enormous flying magical beast lay quietly in the plaza, waiting for the order to take off.

Little Han Xue pressed her lips together as she watched her kind big brother and her sister climb aboard.

She had only known him for two months, but that did not stop her from liking the kind big brother who treated her like a grown-up.

No matter how hard she waved her hand in farewell, it could not erase the fond memories etched deep in her mind.

"Squawk!"

Seconds later, the little black dot in the sky had blurred from sight.

Space Wormholes were a distinctive means of travel in the Central Plains. Unfortunately, Tianbei City had no such thing. They would have to ride a flying magical beast to a more prosperous city over ten thousand miles away.

Only there would they find a Space Wormhole connected to many major cities.

Wu Bai and Han Yue sat surrounded by five young members of the Han Family, who kept them well protected.

At the very front sat Han Yue's second and third uncles, two Dou Emperor experts escorting them to Jia Nan Academy over a million miles away.

Experts of the Dou Wang and Dou Emperor ranks might be everywhere in the Central Plains, but as long as they kept a low profile, stayed out of trouble, and focused on the journey, the two Dou Emperors could still keep them safe.

Several days later, once they entered a Space Wormhole, Wu Bai could clearly sense Han Yue's second and third uncles letting out long breaths of relief.

Then her second uncle took out a small boat no bigger than his palm.

The next instant, the boat swelled in the wind until it became a vessel more than ten meters long!

Everyone boarded in turn. As Han Yue's second uncle poured Dou Qi into the bow, the boat surged forward at a speed that defied all reason, racing through the silver Space Wormhole.

The strange sight filled the young travelers with curiosity. One by one, they stared wide-eyed at everything around them.

After a while, though, their excitement faded.

"The most dangerous part is behind us. There's almost no danger inside this Space Wormhole. You youngsters can go into the cabin."

Wu Bai readily followed Han Yue into the cabin.

It was true: there was little danger inside the Space Wormhole. They did not need to stay as tense as they had been on the road.

If they were truly "lucky" enough to encounter a spatial storm, well... whether Dou Zhe like them stayed alert would make no difference.

Of course, with the Yellow Springs Demon Saint watching over him, Wu Bai could survive, and Han Yue beside him could too.

As for the others, it was hard to say. After all, the legend of old was now only a soul.

Space Wormholes would never have become a common feature of the Central Plains if they were so dangerous. In the case of frequently used routes in particular, many experts managed and maintained them. Their safety was beyond doubt.

While they were still in the Central Plains, they would occasionally stop to rest.

But once they left the Central Plains, an immensely long journey lay ahead...