novelhk 556. Take the bamboo heart and go.
556. Take the bamboo heart and go.
Lei Jingxiao nodded, and he and Xiao Yan attacked almost simultaneously, their soul power probing the two nine-sectioned green bamboos. In the blink of an eye, they completely understood why Xiong Zhan didn't care about these herbs at all.
After their soul power entered, the sixty-four ancient bronze seals sensed the intrusion. Instantly, they spun like stars, their runes weaving into a dense net, and a vast soul pressure rolled in like a tidal wave. Lei Jingxiao grunted, veins bulging on his forehead. His soul power, at the early stage of the Spirit Realm, was violently shaken by the rune array. He gritted his teeth and separated a thin strand of soul power to try to entangle the bamboo body, but it was twisted and shattered inch by inch by the power of the runes.
The protective force is too strong. The soul power of monsters is far inferior to that of humans. You can't force this thing!
"How could it have increased so much? I don't believe it!" Lei Jingxiao roared, the lightning patterns on his palms flickering faintly but unable to activate his battle qi. He could only rely on his brute soul power to fight head-on.
The giant soul hand was bound by the rune chains. Just as he was about to forcefully unleash his power, Cao Ying's charming laughter suddenly came from behind: "Young Master Lei, if you insist on using force, you might ruin the spiritual medicine."
With a light tap of her slender finger, a seemingly tiny but exceptionally resilient wisp of soul slithered into the gaps of the rune array like a snake. After reaching the center, the wisp of soul spread out, transforming into dozens of invisible, transparent threads that wrapped around the heart of the green bamboo, gently pulling it up with a soft force.
Seeing this, Lei Jingxiao breathed a sigh of relief, handed the task over to Cao Ying, and temporarily withdrew his soul power.
Cao Ying's soul power was extremely resilient. She quickly took out the Nine-Section Green Bamboo from the center of the talisman array and tossed it into the air. Lei Jingxiao roared and his remaining soul power transformed into a giant hand to catch the spiritual medicine. After feeling the warmth of the Nine-Section Green Bamboo in his palm, Lei Jingxiao finally felt relieved.
Lei Jingxiao then gave Cao Ying a grateful look; without her help, he really wouldn't have been able to get this thing.
Meanwhile, Xiao Yan steadily pulled another, even thicker, nine-sectioned green bamboo out of the oppressive range of the rune array. Throughout, he maintained the same speed, neither too fast nor too slow, to protect this rare herb to the greatest extent possible.
After acquiring the two herbs, several people gathered at the summit. These individuals, who had arrived so quickly, were all quite powerful. Seeing the hundreds of herbs in the herb garden, they were all envious and eager, only wary of Xiao Yan and Cao Ying's formidable strength.
Of course, what puzzled everyone even more was: how did Cao Ying and Xiao Yan end up together?
Since the Cao family sided with the Spirit Clan, Cao Ying has always appeared as an adversary of the Pill Tower. Meanwhile, Xiao Yan, during his attempt to break into the Heavenly Talent Ranking, was undoubtedly a member of the Pill Tower.
The two of them appeared together on the mountaintop, and they clearly did not belong to opposing sides. So, did Cao Ying return to the Pill Tower, or did Xiao Yan join the Spirit Clan?
Despite their confusion, as alchemists, their primary concern was naturally the herbs. One of the seventh-grade high-level alchemists mustered his courage and asked Xiao Yan, "Young Master Xiao Yan, Miss Cao, what's going on here? Where are the guardian magical beasts?"
"The guardian beast wants to coexist peacefully with us. As long as we don't disturb it, it won't bother with these herbs," Xiao Yan replied politely.
Upon receiving Xiao Yan's answer, all the alchemists present felt their hearts race. Over a hundred high-grade herbs—what kind of value was that?
"And these..."
Xiao Yan had no interest in arguing with these people, and casually said, "Please make yourselves at home."
"Thank you, thank you." After receiving Xiao Yan's consent, everyone could not suppress their covetousness, and they gathered their soul power to probe the medicinal herbs they valued most.
However, the rune array was not so lenient with Xiao Yan. The oppressive force of equality for all beings continued to pour down, suppressing the soul power of these people. Several people were red-faced from the pressure of the restriction, knowing that they were powerless, but they couldn't bear to give up when they saw the quietly waiting herbs.
"Big brother, what should we say?" Lei Jingxiao looked at the crowd, also somewhat eager to try. He hadn't had enough fun just now, and now he wanted to try breaking through the barrier again.
Xiao Yan glanced at him and said calmly, "Now that we have the two herbs, let's put everything else aside for now and go meet up with Junior Sister Wei Jiangyuan first."
What Xiao Yan truly cared about were the two thousand-year-old Nine-section Green Bamboos in his possession; he had already collected quite a few other herbs. More importantly, none of these people had reached the Spirit Realm Soul stage. Even Lei Jingxiao couldn't break through this rune array, so for these people to take even one or two of the herbs would be extremely difficult. He didn't think they could succeed; he could simply come back later. Wushan wouldn't magically disappear.
After figuring everything out, Xiao Yan simply greeted Cao Ying and Lei Jingxiao, and the three of them went down the mountain together.
"Miss Cao Ying, I really have to thank you for your help earlier." On the way down the mountain, Xiao Yan said to Cao Ying with a hint of gratitude. He had witnessed Lei Jingxiao taking the Nine-Section Green Bamboo Heart. Lei Jingxiao still had significant problems with soul control, and Cao Ying's willingness to help had indeed saved him a lot of trouble.
"Mr. Xiao Yan, you flatter me. It was nothing at all." Cao Ying brushed a strand of hair from her forehead and said matter-of-factly, "Ying'er sincerely hopes that you can obtain the Nine-Section Green Bamboo Heart. It would be more worthwhile than trading with Ling Zhuo."
Although he had already fallen out with the Spirit Clan, Xiao Yan didn't actually harbor any ill will towards Cao Ying or Dan Chen. After all, their backgrounds had been manipulated, and they were now being blackmailed by Ling Zhuo because of it.
After speaking with Wei Jiangyuan and Yao Qingyu, he learned that Cao Ying had helped them during the pursuit. Xiao Yan always repays kindness with kindness and avenges wrongs, so he was definitely willing to help Cao Ying.
"Has Miss Cao Ying ever considered leaving the Spirit Clan and returning to the Pill Tower?"
Upon hearing this, a hint of melancholy flashed in Cao Ying's usually smiling, foxy eyes. She gave a faint laugh and said, "Some things are simply a matter of fate, and it's not something I can decide whether I want to or not."
Xiao Yan chuckled lightly, "Many things require having an idea first before you can actually do them, don't you think?"
Upon hearing this, Cao Ying's eyes regained their original luster, and she nodded: "Mr. Xiao Yan is indeed right. Then I hope I will be lucky enough to reach the day when I can control my own destiny and regain my freedom."
Xiao Yan wasn't stupid; Cao Ying had already made her point, and he understood perfectly well. No one likes to be controlled, especially not a genius like Cao Ying in alchemy. However, all these beautiful prospects depended on resolving the Spirit Clan issue.