Leaving the Valley

Time left no trace in the mountains. Though he had a lovely woman for company, more than half a month still passed in the flick of a finger.

Xu Qingtong took out his Trial Jade Token and checked the tasks again, then counted the days. Once he confirmed everything, he knew he would have to leave tomorrow.

At the thought of leaving tomorrow, an inexplicable melancholy suddenly rose in his heart. He felt both eager to go and reluctant to leave.

To keep their departure from the valley tomorrow from drawing too much attention, Xu Qingtong needed to make some preparations. He let Dongfang Hui know, then went out with Xiao Qi.

Xu Qingtong reached a stretch of mountain forest. After checking that nothing nearby seemed unusual, he said to Xiao Qi, "Xiao Qi, I'm leaving tomorrow. Do you plan to stay here, or come out with me?"

Without hesitation, Xiao Qi sent Xu Qingtong a mental message, expressing a wish to follow him.

Xu Qingtong continued, "Since you want to follow me, I'll put you inside the Seven-Star Bracelet now. Don't resist. Once you're inside, send me a message right away if you feel any discomfort."

Seeing that Xiao Qi had no objections, Xu Qingtong willed it, and drew Xiao Qi into the Seven-Star Bracelet.

With Xiao Qi settled, Xu Qingtong dug up some dirt, broke off a few branches, and pulled up some grass before returning to the Mountain Cave.

Dongfang Hui looked at the pile of things on the ground, puzzled. "Qingtong, did you bring all this back to play house?"

Xu Qingtong did not answer her. Instead, he asked, "Sister Dongfang, if we go out looking like this and the Three Great Sects question us, what should we say?"

"Are we supposed to tell them we killed a few people, picked up their Storage Bags, then found a cave to hide in until we teleported out today?"

Xu Qingtong's question caught Dongfang Hui off guard, leaving her at a loss for an answer. She really had not considered so much before. Fortunately, Xu Qingtong had brought it up.

Otherwise, if the Three Great Sects questioned her after she teleported out, she would probably let something slip.

Like a child who had done something wrong, she stared pitifully at Xu Qingtong, waiting for him to continue.

Xu Qingtong picked up some mud and smeared it over his face and body as he said, "This morning, we encountered three second-rank Howling Wind Wolves in a forest. We couldn't defeat the Demon Beasts, so we had to fight as we retreated!"

As he spoke, he picked up a branch and dragged it across his clothes, tearing them into tatters. "We fled for an hour, finally reaching a cliff. With nowhere left to retreat, we had no choice but to crush our Jade Tokens and teleport out."

Watching Xu Qingtong's movements and listening to him talk to himself, Dongfang Hui understood at once. This was the story he had devised for their departure.

She could not help admiring him. This young man, three or four years younger than her, was no less meticulous or quick-witted than a seasoned old hand of fifty or sixty!

Seeing that Xu Qingtong was almost finished, Dongfang Hui walked over to him and said, "Qingtong, you have an eye for detail. Help me get ready too!"

Xu Qingtong grabbed some mud and smeared it over Dongfang Hui's feet and the hem of her skirt. Then he picked up some flowers and grass, crushed them in his hands, and rubbed them over her elbows, knees, and bottom.

When he rubbed her bottom, her body visibly stiffened. She clenched it tight, not daring to move.

Xu Qingtong then used a branch to tear Dongfang Hui's clothes as well. Only then did he look over the beauty before him in satisfaction. "Mm, now you look like you've been fleeing for your life!"

Dongfang Hui rolled her eyes at him and chided, "This was your rotten idea in the first place!"

The two went over the entire sequence from beginning to end again, agreeing on how to answer the relevant questions.

If any questions fell outside their expectations, they would brush them off with answers such as "I forgot," "I don't know," or "I can't remember."

Once they had worked everything out and were about to rest, Dongfang Hui seemed to remember something and looked toward the cave entrance.

"Qingtong, where did Xiao Qi go?" Dongfang Hui asked.

"I sent Xiao Qi away! I thought, since we're leaving tomorrow and can't take Xiao Qi with us, I should let Xiao Qi go ahead of time to spare us the sadness of parting tomorrow."

"What a pity neither of us has a Spirit Beast Bag. Otherwise, we could have brought Xiao Qi out with us," Dongfang Hui said regretfully.

Something stirred in Xu Qingtong's mind at her words. "Sister Dongfang, what is a Spirit Beast Bag?"

Dongfang Hui said, "A Spirit Beast Bag is used to keep spirit beasts. It's much like a Storage Bag, but a Storage Bag can only hold inanimate things, while a Spirit Beast Bag can hold living creatures."

Xu Qingtong nodded, committing that to memory. The two then settled down to rest.

Though Xu Qingtong appeared to be resting with his eyes closed, he was not idle. First, he sent his Divine Sense into the Seven-Star Bracelet and saw Xiao Qi lying on the hillside.

When his Divine Sense swept over Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi seemed to sense it, spread both wings, and sprang up with a flutter, looking around.

Then a mental message entered Xu Qingtong's mind: "Master, is that you?"

Xu Qingtong gave an affirmative hum and sent back, "Xiao Qi, do you feel any discomfort here?"

Xiao Qi hurriedly replied, "None. This place is very good, much better than outside. It just isn't brimming with life. Master, you should bring in more spirit herbs in the future."

"All right! I'll remember that. We'll be leaving tomorrow. Are you certain you have no parents or siblings here? Are you sure you want to come with me?"

Xiao Qi nodded decisively, expressing a wish to go with him. Xu Qingtong told Xiao Qi to call him if anything came up, then withdrew his Divine Sense.

Early the next morning, Xu Qingtong and Dongfang Hui woke at the same time. They exchanged smiles and both rose to their feet.

Xu Qingtong said, "Sister Dongfang, get ready. We're leaving now!"

Dongfang Hui was puzzled. "What else do we need to prepare? Didn't we get everything ready yesterday?"

Xu Qingtong chuckled. "Silly girl! You've supposedly been chased into such a sorry state by Demon Beasts, yet your face isn't flushed, your heart isn't racing, and your magic power is full. Not even a ghost would believe that!"

Hearing this, Dongfang Hui admired Xu Qingtong's meticulous thinking even more. But when she heard him call her a silly girl, she could not help asking bashfully, "Then what should we do?"

Xu Qingtong did not answer. His hands flashed through spell gestures, sending fireballs one after another into the cave's stone walls.

Dongfang Hui understood at once and followed his example, firing off water arrows in rapid succession.

The two unleashed their spells inside the cave, stopping only after they had used up more than half their Spiritual Power. Xu Qingtong said, "Sister Dongfang, crush your Jade Token and go out first. I'll be right behind you."

Dongfang Hui nodded, took out her Jade Token, and squeezed hard. A white light flashed, and she vanished from the spot.

A short while later, Xu Qingtong also crushed his Jade Token and teleported out of the valley.

Seeing Xu Qingtong emerge, Dongfang Hui hurried over, concern written all over her face. "Brother Qingtong, are you all right?"

Xu Qingtong feigned nervousness as he said, "Sister Dongfang, those three Howling Wind Wolves were so fast. I almost didn't make it back!"

Mu Ze, who was guarding the valley entrance, saw that the people emerging were not from his own sect and said impatiently, "Now that you're out, don't block the exit. Watch where you're standing and wait off to the side."