After Xiao Yi Xian, It Was Qing Lin's Turn

The sun was already high in the sky, and the rear courtyard of the Yuan Treasure Pavilion was brightly lit.

Holding Xiao Yi Xian's hand, Lu Yuan passed through the moon gate and came to the separate little courtyard where Qing Lin lived.

Qing Lin had not gone out this time. She was busy at the stone table in the courtyard, setting out several plates of steaming side dishes.

Hearing footsteps at the entrance, Qing Lin turned to look. Her gaze fell on their joined hands, and a flicker of envy crossed her eyes before she greeted them cheerfully. "Young master, Sister Xiao Yi Xian, I was just about to call you over."

She envied Lu Yuan holding Xiao Yi Xian's hand, though she had experienced such things earlier and more often than Xiao Yi Xian.

A few days ago, Lu Yuan had even agreed to let her warm his bed and rested for a while with her in his arms.

What she truly envied was how quickly the two of them were advancing in cultivation.

They could improve their cultivation simply by eating poison, their strength growing by the day.

Xiao Yi Xian had already reached the threshold of becoming a Dou Shi, while the young master had gone from a cripple to a Seven-Star Dou Zhe in just over a month.

Her own cultivation talent was quite good, and compared with others, her progress could be called lightning-fast. But compared with Lu Yuan and Xiao Yi Xian, it was nothing.

She often wondered what would happen in a few years, when the young master's cultivation was higher and he had more capable people around him. By then, her strength would no longer be worth mentioning.

When that time came, let alone continuing to protect Lu Yuan, she would not even be qualified to stay by the young master's side as a maid.

"Qing Lin, your cooking keeps getting better."

Lu Yuan seemed not to notice Qing Lin's mood. He led Xiao Yi Xian to sit at the stone table, picked up his chopsticks, and began tasting the food.

"I'm glad you like it, young master. I'll work even harder at learning." Qing Lin's eyes immediately curved into a smile.

The future had yet to come. Why should she worry that the sky was falling?

Rather than puzzling over that cultivation method, she would rather study how to make a few more good dishes for the young master and do what a maid ought to do.

The three chatted in a relaxed atmosphere. Once they had eaten and drunk their fill, Lu Yuan said to Xiao Yi Xian, "Call Xiao Lan over. We'll bring Aunt Qing along too. It's time to set out for the Magical Beast Mountain Range and help Qing Lin awaken her talent."

"Awaken my talent!?" Qing Lin's lovely eyes widened. "Young master, what talent do I have?"

"It's hard to say right now. It's only a guess." Lu Yuan reached out and patted Qing Lin's head. "If I'm right, Qing Lin, your talent is even better than Xiao Yi Xian's."

"Really!?" Qing Lin's heart began to pound.

Never mind being better than Xiao Yi Xian; she would be perfectly content if she were even close.

That meant she would always be qualified to stand by Lu Yuan's side and would not have to leave one day.

"Mm, we'll know once we test it." Lu Yuan knew it was true, of course.

He had been far closer to Qing Lin than to Xiao Yi Xian, and for longer.

He had already completed an intermediate copy with Xiao Yi Xian, so he could naturally have done the same with Qing Lin long ago.

But Qing Lin had yet to awaken her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, and he could not bear to waste the opportunity.

Adding the Heavenly Snake Great Emperor Bloodline would not be of much use at present to someone like him, who possessed the Woeful Poison Body.

"Then I'll call Xiao Lan." Xiao Yi Xian walked to the middle of the courtyard, looked up, and gave a clear whistle.

Before long, a tiny blue dot appeared in the sky and grew at astonishing speed. Soon it became a blur streaking through the clouds, diving toward the ground as the tremendous wind pressure whipped up a gale.

An eagle-shaped magical beast, blue all over, stood in the open space, rubbing its head against Xiao Yi Xian's face. Its gaze was sharp, and its wings were like iron.

"Xiao Lan, eat and drink your fill before we set out." Lu Yuan had long since become familiar with Xiao Lan. He took some magical beast meat he had prepared earlier from his Storage Ring and tossed it over.

Xiao Lan did not stand on ceremony and eagerly feasted, quickly making short work of the meat with her hard beak. Once full, she let out a satisfied sound.

"Let's go."

Lu Yuan called Zhang Qingqing over, and the four of them climbed onto Xiao Lan's back.

"Let's go, Xiao Lan."

Xiao Yi Xian had told Lu Yuan about a secret base she had in the Magical Beast Mountain Range. They would stop there first.

Xiao Lan spread her wings and swept silently into the sky. Like a streak of blue light across the heavens, she flew toward the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Sitting high on the Blue Eagle's back and gazing into the distance, Lu Yuan felt the biting wind. He looked down over layer upon layer of dense forest and exposed green rock faces, occasionally spotting streams winding through the mountains.

"If only I could fly on my own someday," Lu Yuan said with a sigh. "The view from up high is wonderful."

"You'd have to break through to Dou Wang at least, wouldn't you?" Xiao Yi Xian chimed in.

"Judging purely by cultivation, that's true." Lu Yuan nodded slightly. "But with a Flying Dou Technique or a secret flight technique, such as Heavenly Flames Wings, you can do it at the Da Dou Shi level."

"I'm afraid getting something like that would be no easier than breaking through to Dou Wang." A look of remembrance flashed in Zhang Qingqing's eyes.

If they were in the Zhang Clan, with the young lady's status...

"We're here."

Several hours later, Xiao Yi Xian suddenly spoke.

Xiao Lan abruptly folded her wings and glided deep into the mountains.

After they passed through a mist-shrouded mountain pass, the view suddenly opened up. Below them lay a circular valley, surrounded by cliffs as sheer as if they had been cut with blades and hewn with axes. The valley floor was lush and green, and a clear stream flowed from a crack in the rock.

The Blue Eagle landed in an open space in the valley. A small wooden house stood not far away.

"This is a fine place indeed, a paradise apart from the world." Zhang Qingqing looked around and praised it. "Miss Xiao Yi Xian, how did you find such a wonderful place?"

"It was luck, too." Xiao Yi Xian smiled faintly and recounted what had happened.

In short, she had happened to save Xiao Lan when she was young and injured. From then on, the Blue Eagle had become her friend, and the two could be considered master and pet.

Whenever she had the chance, she would sneak out of Qingshan Town and ride Xiao Lan outside the Magical Beast Mountain Range, looking down over it. That was how she had discovered both the cave she explored with Xiao Yan and this valley.

"Xiao Yi Xian's good fortune is our good fortune. From now on, we're the owners of this valley." Lu Yuan raised both hands and took a deep breath, then turned to Zhang Qingqing. "Aunt Qing, have Xiao Lan take you around the area next. Could you catch me a tier-three snake-shaped magical beast? That shouldn't be difficult, should it?"

"A Third-Order Magical Beast is equivalent to a human Da Dou Shi." Zhang Qingqing drew a long sword and made a few motions with it. "But don't worry, Xiao Yuan," she said confidently. "It's a small matter for your Aunt Qing."

A strange look flashed in Lu Yuan's eyes. He nodded. "Then sorry for the trouble, Aunt Qing."

Zhang Qingqing rode off on Xiao Lan.

Two hours later, when the sky had already darkened, she returned on Xiao Lan's back.

Also on Xiao Lan's back was a golden-yellow snake-shaped magical beast with horns on its head.

It was a Third-Order Magical Beast, an Earth-Splitting Rock Python.

Bang.

Zhang Qingqing kicked the unconscious Earth-Splitting Rock Python, which bore numerous sword wounds, off the Blue Eagle's back, then lightly jumped down herself.

"Xiao Yuan, fortunately, I didn't let you down."

Overall, she seemed none the worse for wear, though her breathing and hair were a little disheveled.

"Thank you, Aunt Qing. Get some rest. We'll restrain this Earth-Splitting Rock Python in a little while."

"Qing Lin, get ready to wear the eagle down."

Blue Eagle: "Aw?"

"That came out wrong." Lu Yuan laughed and corrected himself. "Wear the snake down!"