Holding You Will Keep Us Warm

"By the way, since so much of this grass is needed, why doesn't anyone in the Famous Sword Sect grow it? If it were cultivated on a large scale, there'd be no need to come here to pick it every time," Qin Yi said.

"Grow it?"

Gu Yiyi said, "Cultivated medicinal herbs are different. This place is special, so only herbs growing here have their full medicinal potency. If they're deliberately cultivated and raised on an estate, their potency doesn't even reach twenty percent."

So that was why.

Qin Yi suddenly recalled how, in his original world, traditional Chinese medicine had been suppressed by Western medicine, and how Chinese remedies really were often ineffective. The crux of the problem was actually the quality of the medicinal ingredients. Artificially cultivated with pesticides and chemical fertilizers, how could they compare with those growing wild in the mountains?

Even osmanthus blossoms were more fragrant in the wild. When the wind blew, their fragrance could drift for several li. Cultivated osmanthus planted along the roadside only ever gave off a faint fragrance when one leaned close.

"If it can't be cultivated, we'll just have to leave some behind to propagate. Like we did just now-leave some of its roots, and it'll keep growing afterward."

"But even if we found it this time, it won't help if someone else finds it next time. Besides, the Famous Sword Sect isn't the only sect that comes here looking for medicinal herbs. Other sects come too."

Hearing Gu Yiyi say this, Qin Yi couldn't help sighing.

There was nothing to be done about that.

Everyone came to gather herbs, but no one thought to leave any behind to propagate. Naturally, they would become harder and harder to find.

Over the next four hours, Qin Yi and Gu Yiyi split up, one searching the left side of the stream and the other the right. Even so, they only found a second stalk of [Thousand-Li Grass].

Before nightfall, Gu Yiyi chose a broad stone platform, then took out another object.

It was only the size of her palm, but after she blew on it, it began to grow.

Only when Qin Yi took a closer look did he discover that it was actually an enormous tortoise shell.

"We'll stay in here tonight."

The enlarged tortoise shell had an entrance like a door.

Inside, it was fairly spacious, measuring three or four square meters, with enough room for a double bed.

At the moment, however, there was only a soft bedroll inside.

"Qin Yi... you... you can make do here with me for the night."

"Junior Sister, you actually carry a little dormitory around with you. This thing is pretty nice," Qin Yi praised.

Gu Yiyi said proudly, "Of course. My father personally refined it for me. It's the shell of a Grotto-Heaven Divine Tortoise, and it's very rare. As long as we hide inside, there's no need to be afraid even if wild beasts attack."

"What about the others? Do they have similar things too?"

"That I don't know. Some might have something similar, but most people find somewhere to settle down in the forest themselves."

She was, after all, the Seventh Elder's own daughter. If she hadn't been fully equipped with treasures, he wouldn't have had the heart to let her go out on missions.

"We've worn ourselves out today. Let's rest early. Once it's light tomorrow, we'll have to keep searching."

After saying this to Qin Yi, she shifted her bedroll aside a little, leaving half the space for him.

Although she liked Qin Yi very much now, the tradition of maintaining boundaries between men and women still made her treat him with guestlike courtesy.

Qin Yi thought that with such a wonderful opportunity, if he didn't seize the chance to win Junior Sister Yiyi over, he would be squandering this perfect convergence of time and place.

Still, he showed no impatience before making his move.

At first, he was just as courteous, sitting beside Gu Yiyi without a word and meditating by himself.

And so, it became a little past nine that evening.

The nighttime temperature suddenly plummeted, and even the grotto-heaven inside the tortoise shell was affected, becoming somewhat chilly.

Gu Yiyi had a small quilt on her bedroll. Wrapped in it, she had no fear of the cold.

Qin Yi's situation was different.

But his cultivation realm was high, and he actually paid it no mind at all.

Gu Yiyi, however, had been tossing and turning, unable to sleep all evening. Worried that he was cold, she asked, "Qin Yi, are you cold?"

After searching for Thousand-Li Grass all day, she was physically exhausted, but because this was her first time sharing a room alone with a man, she couldn't stop her thoughts from running wild. The more they wandered, the more awake she became.

Qin Yi had been waiting for her to ask exactly that.

The instant he heard her words, Qin Yi burrowed over to her, then pulled her quilt over so they could share it.

Gu Yiyi's delicate body stiffened, her cheeks flushing crimson as she hurriedly half sat up. "You..."

She had meant to ask whether Qin Yi was cold so that, if he was, she could lend him part of her mat.

Who could have imagined that Qin Yi would simply come over and crawl under her quilt?

"It really does get a little cold in these mountains at night, Junior Sister."

"I..."

Now Gu Yiyi found it difficult to ask him to leave.

After a moment's hesitation, she could only blush and shift aside a little.

Seeing that her defenses were still so high, Qin Yi's thoughts raced, and he quickly came up with a plan.

Through the system, he imagined Wang Zhaojun's skills from Honor of Kings. The moment he finished picturing them,

he comprehended an entire martial technique cultivation method-[Ice and Snow's Splendor].

Having obtained this martial technique cultivation method, he immediately unleashed its third skill, [Winter Has Arrived], at the entrance to the tortoise-shell grotto-heaven!

The instant he unleashed the technique, enormous hailstones began falling outside the entrance.

A biting chill crept in through the entrance, instantly plunging the surrounding temperature below zero.

"Huh? Why is it snowing?" Gu Yiyi found it strange. On her previous missions, she had never seen heavy snow fall at night.

Wearing only a dress, she couldn't help shivering.

Five seconds later, the hail outside the tortoise-shell grotto-heaven stopped.

But how could Qin Yi give up easily before achieving his goal?

And so, the moment the thirty-five-second cooldown ended, he unleashed [Winter Has Arrived] again!

In this world, the skill had become a cultivation method.

Since it was a cultivation method, it was naturally different from a skill.

Once a skill had been cast, all its effects would disappear. But after a cultivation method was unleashed, the remaining ice and snow would stay on the ground.

Great quantities of ice and snow piled up, soon burying the entire tortoise-shell grotto-heaven.

Cold air streamed inside in great quantities. Gu Yiyi finally couldn't bear it anymore, her delicate body shivering constantly. Even after pulling the quilt over herself, she still felt terribly cold.

At that moment, Qin Yi seized his chance, reached out, and swept Gu Yiyi's soft, delicate body into his arms.

"Ah..."

Feeling his touch on her body, Gu Yiyi let out a nervous cry.

Then she instinctively tried to put some distance between them.

But Qin Yi naturally wouldn't let go. Instead, he held her even tighter. "Don't move. This way, we'll be much warmer."