Chapter 137: Chapter 137: Return from the Secret Realm, Li Shangxian

"It should... should be enough..."

Chen Mo thought about it. For him alone, slaughtering two or three pigs, a sheep or two, plus seven or eight chickens a year would definitely be enough to eat.

Not to mention, he also had several Storage Rings full of Cyan Leaf Orchids, Yellow Spirit Grass Flowers, and Giant Bone Spirit Rice, which was comparable to Profound Soaring Spirit Rice.

Hong Yan gulped. After roughly touring his assets, she gained a new understanding of Chen Mo.

"Perhaps, he is just someone who loves planting and loves life," she thought.

"Let’s go."

The two returned to the house, passing through the reception room and the backyard, eventually stopping at an empty room Chen Mo had just cleared out. Having lived here for nearly two years, various useful and useless items were piled up in several rooms. Now, only this room was somewhat spacious.

After entering the room, Hong Yan walked to a spot slightly left of the center and took out two Zither Stands and Ancient Zithers from her Storage Ring.

She stood close to Chen Mo, their bodies almost touching, and guided him hand in hand. She even held his fingers, teaching him the correct angle and force to pluck the zither strings. In the past, Hong Yan always taught the other Female Performers this way, so she didn’t feel there was anything inappropriate right now.

As for Chen Mo? His mind was entirely focused on the musical score, completely oblivious to their breaths mingling as they leaned close to each other.

Time flew by. An hour seemed to pass in the blink of an eye.

Chen Mo moved his hands away from the zither strings, shook his slightly sore fingers, and let out a long breath. As they pulled apart, Hong Yan’s face flushed, and she suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Hong!" Chen Mo stood up and cupped his hands.

"Don’t mention it!"

"Shall I walk you back?"

Seeing Chen Mo about to pick up the zither, Hong Yan waved her hand and said, "Just leave the two zithers here."

"That works!"

The two walked out of the room. Originally, Chen Mo planned to walk her to the door, but Hong Yan suddenly stopped. She glanced at the fallen leaves piling up like a mountain in the courtyard and said softly, "Should I help you clean this up?"

"Huh?"

Only then did Chen Mo realize that having lived alone for so long, and spending the vast majority of his time cultivating and farming, he simply had no time to tidy up the house. Fallen leaves and dust were everywhere.

"Then I will have to trouble you, Fellow Daoist!" He didn’t decline.

Hong Yan smiled shyly and formed a hand seal. She swept up the sky full of fallen leaves, rolling them bigger and bigger until they finally formed a massive sphere that flew out of the courtyard.

After finishing this, she wasn’t in a hurry to leave. Instead, she asked, "Shall I help you clean the other rooms as well?"

Chen Mo stared into her eyes, finding them modest yet sincere. Obviously, she was someone who thoroughly understood the ways of the world!

He nodded and stood in the courtyard with his hands behind his back. Having received permission, Hong Yan went from room to room, sweeping away the accumulated dust for Chen Mo, washing the dishes, and neatly organizing various items. She kept busy like this until dark before finally finishing.

Returning to the courtyard, Hong Yan dusted off her long hair, brushed her slightly soiled cuffs, and said with a charming smile, "It’s so dirty, truly so dirty. From now on, I’ll come help you clean up once every half month."

"Then I will have to trouble you, Fellow Daoist Hong."

Chen Mo turned a blind eye to her shyness and charm, merely giving a polite reply.

It was already dark. To ensure Hong Yan’s safety, Chen Mo used his Sword Control Technique to escort her back to the Fragrance Pavilion before returning home.

At night, the Fragrance Pavilion was bustling and packed with guests. The moment Hong Yan stepped into the building, a few Female Performers surrounded her, gossiping all at once.

"Sister Hong, Sister Hong, how was it? How many rounds did you two go for in two hours?"

"Sister Hong, how’s his combat power? Is he a match for you?"

"Sister Hong, Sister Hong..."

The chatter among Female Performers was always this direct and vulgar.

Of course, Hong Yan knew very well in her heart that during today’s zither lesson, she had been thoroughly dominated by him. First, it was the show of strength with the Spiritual Birds, followed by the intimidation of the Flying Sword. The more casually Chen Mo acted, the more terrified she became!

Clearly, he was warning her, and even more so, testing her! If she proved unsuitable, this sworn brother of the Pavilion Master could make her disappear from this world at any time.

Although Hong Yan was a bit anxious, she was, after all, quite experienced. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have proposed to clean his house. By doing so, while she might not have fought him to a draw, it could at least be considered a counterattack.

"I think you all better stop wagging your tongues!" Hong Yan glared at the surrounding Female Cultivators in mock anger, but who knew, they only laughed even louder.

Winter passed, and spring arrived. Another month went by, and the foot of Purple Cloud Peak gradually regained a trace of vitality.

At this moment of revival for all things, at the intersection of Purple Cloud Peak and Yellow Cloud Peak, a ragged Yi Tingsheng crawled out of a hole barely large enough for a person!

If it weren’t for his Bone Shrinking Divine Technique, it would have been impossible to enter this place!

As Yi Tingsheng crawled out, he kept cursing under his breath, "What a loss, what a loss! Fifteen taels of Spiritual Sand for travel expenses isn’t nearly enough! My Magic Robe, my Magic Robe!"

He was filled with endless regret right now. He had finally managed to cut through the vines, carve out a path, and successfully pluck the seeds produced by the Golden Flower! Why did he have to wander deeper in as if possessed?

By taking that walk... well, perfect! Before he could take a few steps, the vines he had chopped down seemed to come alive, chasing and attacking him. If he hadn’t escaped fast enough, he probably would have died in there!

Yi Tingsheng opened his Storage Ring and glanced at a small bag of husked seeds inside, muttering to himself, "This amount should easily sell for five Low Grade Spirit Stones!"

However, after thinking about it, he added, "If they bargain, I can sell it for two stones.

"Let’s go with one! One stone isn’t a small amount either."

While he was lying by the hole mumbling, a figure suddenly tore through the air ahead. Terrified, he hurriedly cast his Bone Shrinking Technique again and crawled back into the dog hole. And the moment he entered, the hole instantly shrank, eventually disappearing completely.

The next instant, Li Shangxian, clad in a Daoist Robe, arrived in a flash. He stood at the spot where Yi Tingsheng had vanished, unable to help but frown. Having just emerged from the Secret Realm, he had clearly sensed someone’s aura, so why was it gone now?

Li Shangxian searched the surroundings for a while but couldn’t find any entrance. In the end, he gave up.

"Forget it! Returning to Purple Cloud Peak is more important right now!"

He summoned his Long Sword and tore through the air. His speed was more than twice as fast as it was three years ago! During his journey in the Secret Realm, although he braved immense danger, what did that danger count for compared to his harvest?

On the way, Li Shangxian pondered, "I wonder if the other six Qi Refining Ninth Layer cultivators who entered with me have made it out?

"I also wonder if they’ve broken through."

From the very moment they entered the Secret Realm, the disciples of Purple Cloud Peak had been separated. And he—Li Shangxian—had been trapped in a bamboo forest for three whole years!

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