Leaving Qingshan Town

The stars wheeled across the sky, the sun rose, and the moon set. The night soon passed. Beneath a blue sky and drifting white clouds, Xia Kong awoke in the farm space. Last night, he had dreamed a nightmare that had started out as something rather pleasant.

After years of companionship, he and Xiao Yi Xian had finally reached the point of marriage. They had just finished their wedding bows and were about to enter the bridal chamber when Ya Fei arrived with Yun Yun, Cai Lin, Qing Lin, Zi Yan, Han Yue... and others, all storming toward him with enormous scissors. He had been startled awake, his sweet dream turning into a nightmare.

Although there had not been many particularly steamy scenes, those simple, peaceful days together still left Xia Kong savoring the memory.

After a quick wash, Xia Kong went to the farm.

Of the thirty crops he had planted yesterday, all twenty level-one crops had ripened, including ten potato plants and ten cherry tomato plants. The level-two strawberries planted in the remaining ten plots still needed two more days to mature. These crops were not intended for sale. He still had a hundred thousand farm gold coins, enough to last him a long time. Naturally, he had specifically cultivated these level-one crops to nourish, improve, and strengthen Xiao Yi Xian's constitution, easing the pain she would suffer when activating her woeful poison body. His intentions were less than pure, yet he had certainly taken great pains.

After harvesting, he sowed the seeds again. Xia Kong could not help grumbling inwardly that this farm space was hardly intelligent. Not only did he have to sow and harvest everything himself, but even after all this time, it had not offered a single hint about how to obtain sacred water. He glanced helplessly at the zero beside the sacred water field, then left the farm space with a thought.

He had entered the farm space outside Xiao Yi Xian's door last night, so naturally, he emerged outside her door as well. This could be considered the farm space's only drawback.

The moment Xia Kong appeared, he ran into Xiao Yi Xian's maid, Li Fei, outside her room.

He reacted extremely quickly. Before Li Fei could cry out in alarm, his hand came down in a chop, lightly striking the back of her neck.

Li Fei felt a familiar wave of dizziness spread from the back of her head. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted once again.

In the original story, Mu Li would entice Li Fei into betraying Xiao Yi Xian, nearly plunging Xiao Yi Xian into an abyss beyond redemption. But that had not happened yet, and she would never have the opportunity in the future. Xia Kong did not want to stir up unnecessary trouble, so he had not taken any extra steps to dispose of Li Fei for Xiao Yi Xian. More importantly, he did not want this matter to plant a thorn in Xiao Yi Xian's heart. That would truly cost him more than he gained.

Yet despite how quickly Xia Kong struck, Li Fei still let out a few faint whimpers, drawing Xiao Yi Xian's attention to the disturbance outside.

Xia Kong's figure had circled through her mind all night, keeping her from sleeping properly. Hearing the noise outside her door, she immediately guessed that he had come as promised. Worried that her maid Li Fei might have offended Xia Kong and angered him, yet also afraid that he might not know his own strength, she hurried to open the door on unsteady feet.

At the sight of her maid lying in Xia Kong's arms, her fate unknown, the cold-blooded, ruthless image of Xia Kong she had imagined last night instantly resurfaced. Her heart tightened, and she hurriedly asked, "How is Li Fei?"

After just one night apart, Xiao Yi Xian had become this wary again. Xia Kong felt a little displeased and deliberately asked in a cold tone, "What, you don't trust my character? I already told you that without your permission, I wouldn't hurt your people. Naturally, I'll keep my word. I only knocked her unconscious. Just like last night, she'll wake up after some sleep."

"That's a relief."

In an instant, Xiao Yi Xian's expression returned to normal. Such unpredictable shifts in her emotions left Xia Kong unable to figure her out. Still, he could hardly keep up his stern expression, so he handed Li Fei to Xiao Yi Xian and let her settle the maid herself.

Xiao Yi Xian was already frail and weak, so it took considerable effort for her to lay Li Fei on the bed.

Xia Kong said nothing more, standing quietly to one side and watching. Only after she had settled Li Fei did he speak mildly.

"Are you ready? If you are, we'll leave now."

Xiao Yi Xian extended a slender finger toward the letter on the table, indicating that she had already written her farewell and was ready to leave the Myriad Medicine Pavilion. Yet her gaze still held a trace of reluctance as she looked at Li Fei. Her resolve to leave was not entirely firm.

In the original story, Li Fei had betrayed her first, allowing Xiao Yi Xian to leave the Myriad Medicine Pavilion without any lingering attachment. Now, however, Li Fei was still one of her few close friends, so she could hardly avoid worrying about her.

It had not happened, and there was no solid evidence proving that it inevitably would. Xia Kong could hardly expose it in advance. He could only reassure her softly, "After you leave, Li Fei will most likely take your place at the Myriad Medicine Pavilion. Who knows? She might have a better life. If you miss her, we can come back and visit after a while."

Xiao Yi Xian considered this quietly for a moment, then nodded earnestly. "Mm, you're right! Let's go, then!"

Although Xia Kong was curious about what she was thinking, since she had decided to go with him, he no longer pressed her for her reasons.

Thus, the two quietly left the Myriad Medicine Pavilion, leaving behind only the unconscious Li Fei and Xiao Yi Xian's handwritten letter of farewell and thanks, its contents unknown.

Just as Xia Kong had expected, Mr. Yao of the Myriad Medicine Pavilion flew into a rage when he learned that Xiao Yi Xian had left without saying goodbye. He nearly took his anger out on the unconscious Li Fei. Only his concern over the powerful expert mentioned in Xiao Yi Xian's letter, together with the letter of thanks itself, slowly quelled his fury. In the end, Li Fei, who had learned eighty percent of Xiao Yi Xian's medical skills, did indeed take her place as the Myriad Medicine Pavilion's employed physician.

But an imitation could never replace the real thing. No matter how closely Li Fei copied her, she was not Xiao Yi Xian herself. The Myriad Medicine Pavilion's reputation among the mercenaries inevitably began to slip, and its profits dwindled year after year.

Had Mr. Yao not produced the letter of thanks Xiao Yi Xian had left behind, quite a few fiercely loyal mercenaries whose lives she had saved would likely have torn his Myriad Medicine Pavilion apart.

Yet when news spread that Xiao Yi Xian had left Qingshan Town, the person most enraged was not Mr. Yao, but Mu Li, the young leader of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.

He had long regarded Xiao Yi Xian as something already in his pocket, a woman reserved for his pleasure alone. How could he watch the "swan" already at his lips fly away? He immediately posted a bounty to find her whereabouts. Even Xia Kong, whom he had met only once, earned his hatred and was added to the bounty list. For a time, the Wolf Head Mercenary Group threw all of Qingshan Town into a foul haze of chaos, leaving countless mercenaries furious but afraid to speak. Only when Xiao Yan arrived in Qingshan Town more than half a year later did the turmoil finally end.

Of course, all of that came later.

After leaving the Myriad Medicine Pavilion, Xia Kong first took Xiao Yi Xian around town to purchase plenty of supplies for the wilderness, especially all kinds of seasonings. Then the two left Qingshan Town and headed straight into the depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Xiao Yi Xian did not summon the first-rank Blue Eagle. Unable to determine whether she had already tamed him, Xia Kong did not bring him up.

Besides, walking through the deep, lush forest with Xiao Yi Xian, slowly closing the distance between them and deepening their bond, was a rather pleasant experience for Xia Kong.