Chapter 41: The Wind And Moon Cross The Rivers And Seas (Part 3)
At Yusheng Sect, Bai Chunsheng naturally remained unaware of what was happening. Ever since he returned from tracking Su Xiaojing, he had felt restless.
He wanted to recover quickly and leave Yan Yi, but his limited strength made it impossible. In this Shattered Stone Mortal Realm, Bai Chunsheng could easily act like a king, but he wasn’t content to stay here.
Bai Chunsheng wanted to return.
He pondered deeply, and the next morning, upon waking, a thought popped into his mind: pretend none of it ever happened. No matter what, he would proceed as before.
He didn’t know how to resolve the situation, so he resorted to rare self-deception.
According to his thoughts, not scolding or reprimanding Yan Yi was already a sign of his benevolence, and Yan Yi shouldn’t push his luck any further.
Bai Chunsheng huffed and puffed as he crawled out from under the covers. Given his vitality, the frost and cold wind were nothing to him, and he didn’t actually need the blanket. However, Bai Chunsheng liked the softness, so he stayed wrapped in it while sleeping.
Yan Yi had gotten up early, feeling excited all day. After staying up all night, he had returned to the abandoned mine he had visited the night before.
At this moment, he was sitting at the table, sipping tea. He saw Bai Chunsheng slowly crawl out, the soft, fluffy duck making small, wobbly jumps as he got off the bed. Yan Yi couldn’t resist walking over, and while Bai Chunsheng wasn’t paying attention, he gently stroked the soft feathers on Bai Chunsheng’s back.
Startled, Bai Chunsheng let out a panicked “quack.”
Yan Yi: “…”
Yan Yi said nothing, but his expression and gaze completely revealed what he was thinking.
Bai Chunsheng quickly transformed back into his human form, glaring at Yan Yi with fury.
Damn it, this shameless scoundrel was getting bolder by the day!
Yan Yi, thick-skinned as ever, interpreted Bai Chunsheng’s anger as shyness.
He naturally moved past the incident, saying, “I went back to the mine today. About five kilometers southeast of where Su Xiaojing and Mu Changzhou disappeared, there’s a slanted mine shaft.”
“They might have escaped through there.”
Yan Yi added, “Yesterday, we were both too distracted to pay attention to them, and they managed to slip away.”
Hearing this, Bai Chunsheng couldn’t help but seethe. He was already fuming over Yan Yi’s earlier touch on his back, turning his back to him in anger. Now, he wanted to turn around and point at Yan Yi, cursing him for his shamelessness.
But when he turned back, he saw Yan Yi’s smiling eyes.
Unbelievable.
He could still smile!
No, wait, Bai Chunsheng pondered. Could it be that Yan Yi was just waiting for him to bring up old grievances? Right now, Bai Chunsheng was at a slight disadvantage and would have to rely on Yan Jingqiu for quite some time.
Yan Jingqiu still believed he was Bai Chunsheng’s close confidant and ally. After what happened last night, Yan Jingqiu might even feel a bit guilty towards him. So, even when he woke up this morning, he only dared to gently stroke his fur.
Bai Chunsheng was startled. If this matter were openly discussed, he would completely lose the upper hand with Yan Jingqiu. From then on, he would have no choice but to be at Yan Jingqiu’s mercy.
That was close.
Bai Chunsheng thought to himself as he looked at Yan Yi’s face, which made people instinctively short of breath and blush just by seeing it. He took a deep breath.
He absolutely couldn’t fall for Yan Jingqiu’s tricks now.
Indeed, his decision this morning was correct. He would just have to endure this secret loss for now and settle the score later!
While Bai Chunsheng was deep in thought, he didn’t avert his gaze. Instead, Yan Yi felt that Bai Chunsheng’s unwavering eyes were filled with tender affection. His gaze grew deeper, and at the right moment, he looked away, focusing on the screen placed beside Bai Chunsheng’s bed, which was supposed to block Yan Yi’s view but was actually quite useless.
Yan Yi deliberately changed the subject, “Shall we go take another look today?”
Of course, they had to. Bai Chunsheng replied, “It’s good to have another look. If what Su Xiaojing said is true, that abandoned mine might be the very one he entered.” Even if Su Xiaojing had no connection to the demons, Bai Chunsheng still needed to check it out.
Although Shen Yuying hadn’t made any moves in recent days, Bai Chunsheng still felt a sense of unease.
The two of them returned to the mine based on their memory from the previous day. The entire Tian Nan City was already enveloped in a grayish-white fog, with some embers glowing red within it. Bai Chunsheng wrinkled his nose, catching a scent he couldn’t quite identify.
Bai Chunsheng initially intended to take the lead and descend into the cave first. However, he suspiciously glanced at Yan Yi, wary of Yan Yi taking advantage of an unguarded moment to strike at him. So, he cautiously said, “You go first.”
Bai Chunsheng added, “Keep your distance from me!”
Yan Yi gave a cold laugh, clearly unconvinced, “Fine.”
The soil on both sides of the mine tunnel was initially soft and damp. As they descended further, the upper walls became hard and grayish-white, while the lower soil remained soft. It seemed to contain some salt minerals, emitting a faint glow in the dim mine.
The ground was covered in scattered footprints of varying depths, likely left by Su Xiaojing.
As they ventured deeper into the mine, a sense of oppression seemed to grow. Bai Chunsheng couldn’t help but touch his neck, feeling as if a thin string had been gently looped around it.
Of course, Bai Chunsheng knew it was impossible for someone to actually put a string around his neck.
The passage was eerily quiet. The sound of moisture rising from the soil, condensing upon hitting the hard stone walls, and then dripping down was clearly audible to both of them.
Rationally, Bai Chunsheng knew there shouldn’t be any danger here, yet his intuition, like an antenna suddenly raised, was warning him not to proceed any further.
He instinctively moved closer to Yan Yi, feeling much better when near him. As he edged toward Yan Yi, hoping to stay close, Yan Yi, noticing Bai Chunsheng’s attempt to sneak closer, silently sped up his pace in retaliation.
—Didn’t he say to keep a distance?
Hypocrite.
Bai Chunsheng quickly forgot the warning his intuition had given him about danger. His competitive spirit surged, and Yan Yi wasn’t one to back down either.
Neither of them used any spiritual power or techniques; in the end, it was like a couple of ordinary children chasing each other through the mine in a playful race.
Yan Yi came to a halt at a node along the vein, where the faint gray-white light illuminated the entire mine clearly. It appeared that the mine had once collapsed, and remnants of magical energy could be seen on the rock walls above.
As soon as Yan Yi stopped, Bai Chunsheng hurriedly overtook him, triumphantly declaring, “I won.”
Before Yan Yi could respond, Bai Chunsheng was already celebrating his victory. There was no need to look; Yan Yi knew Bai Chunsheng’s eyes must be sparkling with excitement.
Yan Yi found Bai Chunsheng’s earnestness endearing and straightforward. Initially, he thought Bai Chunsheng resembled a clear, pure spring, but over time, he realized this description was too simplistic. Bai Chunsheng was more like a mountain stream formed from melted ice crystals—clear and vibrant.
After basking in his triumph for a while, Bai Chunsheng recalled the earlier, inexplicable anxiety that had driven him to approach Yan Yi, feeling a bit guilty about it.
Yet, given their momentum, why stop now? It seemed pointless to halt without reason. “Why did you suddenly stop here?”
This abandoned mine was vast and almost entirely hollowed out, with branching paths every few steps. If a large-scale battle were to erupt here, the entire mountain might collapse.
Yan Yi pointed to the magically reinforced earthen walls above. “We’ve reached a significant depth. If Su Xiaojing got lost and couldn’t find his way out, he might have tunneled his way through from here.”
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
