Drunken Immortal Tower, Two Women Clash

Shi Teng used the Earth Escape Technique he had just obtained, brimming with excitement. Now he had another way to flee for his life.

If he couldn't win, he could run.

Bang!

He had barely traveled a few dozen miles when his head slammed into a huge slab of granite. A magnificent bump rose on his forehead, and dizziness swept through his brain.

"Fuck, I can run into this down here too!"

Shi Teng rubbed his swollen, reddened forehead and cursed under his breath. Apparently, this Earth Escape Technique wasn't all that great.

After resting for a while, he changed course and tunneled toward the mountain behind the Fire Emperor Palace.

There was a small pavilion there, the familiar spot where the two had agreed to meet.

Huo Ling'er hurried to the mountaintop with the newly hatched Primordial Vermilion Bird Chick, but even after waiting a long time, she saw no sign of Shi Teng.

Huo Ling'er puffed up her cheeks in annoyance. Maybe the brat had run into another beauty and couldn't tear himself away.

She was just about to go looking for Shi Teng and settle the score.

Shi Teng popped straight out of the ground, gulping down fresh air. "Whew, the surface really is better. I was suffocating down there!"

Seeing the huge lump on Shi Teng's forehead, Huo Ling'er couldn't help letting out a little laugh.

"Who did you fight this time? You've even grown a horn on your forehead!"

Shi Teng sighed softly. "Don't even mention it. I was counting on this Earth Shield Technique to save my life, but I ran into a slab of granite right after leaving the city!"

"Pfft!"

Another little laugh escaped Huo Ling'er, making her fair, rosy face look even more adorable.

For an instant, Shi Teng felt a wave of dizziness, as though he had caught sight of his first love.

He stepped forward and pinned Huo Ling'er against the wall in the corner.

Startled, Huo Ling'er flushed bright red at once. "Y-you, what are you trying to do?" she asked shyly.

Shi Teng froze for a moment, before he could speak.

The Primordial Vermilion Bird in Huo Ling'er's arms immediately spat out a mouthful of divine fire.

Shi Teng's entire body burst into flames.

Shi Teng jumped in fright. As he frantically put out the fire, he cursed at the Primordial Vermilion Bird. "You little thing! You're forgetting loyalty for a pretty face too? I'm the one who got you through a check-in!"

The Primordial Vermilion Bird paid no attention to Shi Teng. She would recognize the first person she saw upon opening her eyes as her parent.

That was why she was only close to Huo Ling'er.

Huo Ling'er ignored Shi Teng as well, giving a little snort. "Hmph, that's what you get for bullying me! You deserved it. Try that again, and I'll have the Primordial Vermilion Bird burn you to death!"

Shi Teng absorbed the last traces of divine fire on his body and grinned wickedly. "If she dares burn me again, I'll turn her into braised Vermilion Bird!"

"Don't you dare!" Huo Ling'er snapped.

"Heh, there's really nothing I, Shi Teng, wouldn't dare do," he teased. "If I can take her out, I can put her back too!"

Huo Ling'er paused. It did seem there really was nothing this brat wouldn't dare do.

At that, she hurriedly hugged the Primordial Vermilion Bird tightly to her chest.

"All right, all right. I'll just make sure she doesn't burn you again," Huo Ling'er said softly, forced to compromise.

Shi Teng nodded. "That's more like it!"

Shi Teng rubbed his still sore, swollen head, then glanced at the Primordial Vermilion Bird Chick in Huo Ling'er's arms again. A mischievous smile crept onto his lips.

"Huo Ling'er, I gave you a Primordial Vermilion Bird. For such a precious gift, shouldn't you give me something in return?"

Huo Ling'er's eyes shifted slightly. "Didn't my father already give you something?"

"What the Fire Emperor gave me was his reward. But the Primordial Vermilion Bird ended up in your hands, so surely you ought to give me something too!

"Otherwise, wouldn't you leave me bitterly disappointed?"

Huo Ling'er hesitated, a shy blush rising on her face again. She covered the Primordial Vermilion Bird's eyes with her soft, rosy hand. "Th-then, all right. Once. I'll only let you kiss me once!"

Confusion crossed Shi Teng's face. What was going on inside this girl's head?

Then he rapped his knuckles against Huo Ling'er's forehead.

"Ow!"

Huo Ling'er cried out, sounding a little angry. "What are you doing?"

"What are you doing?" Shi Teng asked. "By giving me something, I meant a treasure. What's a kiss supposed to do?"

At Shi Teng's words, Huo Ling'er's face flushed red again. She was so ashamed she almost wanted to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.

"Oh!"

Huo Ling'er gently stroked the Primordial Vermilion Bird's somewhat bare body.

Having only just hatched, she hadn't grown all her feathers yet. Anyone who didn't know better might have mistaken her for a chicken that had lost its plumage.

Huo Ling'er furrowed her brows in thought for a moment, then said, "I actually do have a treasure that suits you!"

With a slight movement of her right hand, a golden pill appeared in her fair, rosy palm.

"This is called a Golden Body Pill. It's for cultivators below the Inscription Realm, a treasure I obtained while training in the Heaven Mending Pavilion Secret Realm. It strengthens the flesh and temporarily grants an Indestructible Diamond Body!

"I'm a girl, so it isn't suitable for me. But with your thick skin and tough hide, it should be useful to you!"

Golden Body Pill!

Indestructible Diamond Body!

Shi Teng nodded slightly. It seemed perfectly suited to him. This would give him another means of staying alive in a fierce battle.

The two stayed on the mountaintop for a long time.

Shi Teng rubbed his belly. "Why do I feel so hungry?"

"Grrr..."

At those words, Huo Ling'er's stomach couldn't help rumbling too.

"Obviously! You sat there for two days, and everyone stayed with you for two days. How could we not be hungry?"

Shi Teng nodded, his face lighting up with delight. "Then let's hurry and replenish our energy!"

"Mm!"

The two left the mountaintop and went to the Drunken Immortal Tower, the largest restaurant in Vermilion Bird City.

As soon as he walked through the door, Shi Teng shouted, "Boss, the usual! Heavenly Number One, and one serving of every signature dish!"

Seeing Shi Teng and Huo Ling'er enter together, the owner hurried over to greet them.

The two had eaten here many times before, and they were generous with their money every time. Naturally, the owner recognized them.

"Please come in, honored guests," he said respectfully. "But the Heavenly Number One room has already been reserved!"

Shi Teng's brows twitched. "If Number One isn't available, give us Number Two. If Number Two isn't available, then Number Three!"

The owner shook his head slightly, wearing an apologetic smile. "I'm terribly sorry, but all three Heavenly private rooms are taken today!"

Shi Teng's brows twitched. "We always used to get Number One, or Number Two at worst. How come we can't even get Number Three today? Didn't we give you enough fire spirit stones before?"

The portly owner shook his head repeatedly. "Of course that's not the reason. You two are honored guests of our Drunken Immortal Tower. But Heavenly Number One, Number Two, and Number Three really have all been reserved today.

"I hear the distinguished guests in Number One are from the Chu Family of the Fire Kingdom.

"The distinguished guests in Number Two are even from the Heaven Mending Pavilion.

"We're only running a small business. We can't afford to offend such powerful factions, so please forgive us!"

Shi Teng nodded. They were just having a meal, after all. It made no difference where they ate; the ground-floor dining hall would do just as well.

"All right, then. Hurry up with our food. We're starving!"

"Of course, of course!"

Huo Ling'er and Shi Teng sat down in the ground-floor dining hall.

Most of the people on the ground floor were ordinary citizens, along with a few cultivators with low cultivation levels.

The private rooms upstairs were generally reserved for great clans and sects from other domains.

As the largest restaurant in Vermilion Bird City, the Drunken Immortal Pavilion certainly served its food quickly.

Before long, steaming dishes were brought to the table one after another.

Diced chicken with Longjing tea leaves, shrimp with water bamboo, stuffed steamed duck, rouge goose breast, buttery pine nut pastry rolls, bamboo shoots with chicken marrow, and wind-cured civet.

These recipes were said to have all been brought back from the Mystic Yellow Domain by powerful experts.