Chapter 59: Treasure Hunt in the Cave
Xiao Yan had his own considerations. Qingshan Town was merely a small town, its overall strength nowhere near that of Wu Tan City.
Who was he? The Little Clan Leader of the Xiao Clan, the biggest clan in Wu Tan City! The first-year genius of Jia Nan Academy! A Low Di Class Soul Envoy of the Hall of Souls!!
Would he allow himself to be threatened?
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
When Little Fairy Doctor felt Xiao Yan pull out a strand of her hair, she became so angry that tears began to swirl in her eyes!
What kind of man are you! Actually pulling a girl's hair!
"You! Just you wait!"
The black flames instantly incinerated the strand of hair into nothingness with a whooshing sound. Xiao Yan coolly threatened, "Don't wait, if you want to stall for time waiting for someone to come save you, I'll burn your clothes to ashes right now and see how you call for help then."
A wisp of black flames danced on his fingertips, seemingly ready to burn the pale blue hem of her skirt to ashes the moment she uttered a single word of dissent.
"You are shameless! Despicable! A beast!"
"Aye, aye, everything you say is correct. Now tell me, what's down the cliff that's worth you coming all this way under the pretense of collecting medicinal ingredients?" Xiao Yan's tone was tinged with cold indifference, completely disregarding her outrage.
Little Fairy Doctor could only sigh when she saw that Xiao Yan was completely unyielding. Finally unable to hold on any longer, she had no choice but to reluctantly surrender.
"Let go, I can share the things down there with you. But I'm telling you, it's fifty-fifty. If you try to hog it all, I swear I'll fight you to the death!"
"Don't worry, I'm not that kind of person."
Xiao Yan smiled faintly and loosened his restraint. With his current strength combined with the Nihility Devouring Flame, Little Fairy Doctor had absolutely no chance of resisting.
"There's a cave down below, likely the remnants left behind by a powerful individual." The pair approached the cliff, their eyes simultaneously falling upon a rather peculiar sheer rock face, and true enough, a jet-black cave was concealed by vegetation.
"There is indeed a cave."
Little Fairy Doctor glanced at the cloaked Xiao Yan and asked, "Why are you wearing this black cloak? Can you even see the path clearly like this?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan also placed his Soul Robe into his storage ring, revealing a refined appearance. Although he did not possess a strikingly handsome appearance, as the Little Clan Head of the Xiao Clan, he had been raised in a position of privilege and naturally possessed a distinct aura.
Little Fairy Doctor was also slightly startled. She had not expected Xiao Yan, this despicable villain, to be quite good-looking.
"Done staring? If you've had your fill, let's go down and check out the cave."
Little Fairy Doctor gave Xiao Yan a dismissive look before shooking her head. "We've been out for a while. If we don't return soon, that guy Mu Li will start to suspect something. Our herb gathering team will spend the night in the Magic Beast Mountain Range. Let's come back tonight."
Xiao Yan furrowed his brow. Although he was not afraid of any Mu Li or Wolf Head Mercenary Company, after thinking about it for a while, he felt that he should indeed keep a low profile and accepted her suggestion.
If Little Fairy Doctor were to return and have the mercenaries attack him, he would have no choice but to resort to ruthless measures.
Little Fairy Doctor naturally had no idea of the flurry of thoughts that had gone through Xiao Yan's mind in that brief moment. She curiously asked, "Your name?"
"Xiao Yan."
…
In the deep silence of the night, after sensing that Little Fairy Doctor had stealthily left her tent, Xiao Yan donned his Soul Robe and followed closely behind her. It had to be said that this Soul Robe was truly perfect for sneaking around at night.
Seeing Little Fairy Doctor dressed in a tight black outfit that accentuated her figure, Xiao Yan chuckled and commented, "Black suits you well too."
"Hehe, thanks." Little Fairy Doctor automatically ignored Xiao Yan's insinuations.
"How do we get down?"
Little Fairy Doctor pulled out a rope and waved it, "How else? We'll use this rope. Here, you go down first to scout the area."
Xiao Yan took the rope, looked at Little Fairy Doctor who was now wearing a gentle, expectant smile, and said, "I'd rather not, I'm afraid someone might cut the rope."
"You... how could that be? Don't judge others by your own standards." Little Fairy Doctor looked away with a flicker of guilt. She had indeed harbored such thoughts before.
Seeing the guilty look on Little Fairy Doctor's face, Xiao Yan threw one end of the rope toward a nearby large tree and tied it sharply. Then he wrapped his left arm around her slender waist and pulled her into his embrace.
The feeling of the willowy waist being gently held made him involuntarily compare her to Xun Er in his heart.
"Rascal! What are you trying to do?"
"Hold on tight."
Under the stunned expression of Little Fairy Doctor, Xiao Yan grabbed the rope with his right hand and jumped straight off the cliff with a push of his feet.
Such an adrenaline-pumping bungee jump with no safety precautions was something Little Doctor had never experienced before. She suddenly plunged headfirst into Xiao Yan's chest, too scared to look down. If they fell, they would undoubtedly be turned into pulp!
Xiao Yan's right hand gripped the rope tightly, controlling the speed of their descent amidst the rustling sound.
In a short time, he held onto the rope and landed in a cave halfway down the cliff. Glancing down at Little Fairy Doctor who was still clinging to him, he teased, "If you keep holding on like this, it'll be daylight soon."
!!!
The startled Little Fairy Doctor looked around and then back at Xiao Yan, who acted as if nothing had happened, and exclaimed in astonishment, "Your hands are made of steel?"
Xiao Yan couldn't help but laugh when he heard her words. For him who had cultivated Octane Blast to a major level of mastery, this was nothing but child's play. The rigorous training of Octane Blast had hardened his body to be as hard as steel; otherwise, rather than killing his opponents, he would have broken his own arms first.
He already resembled a humanoid magical beast in the eyes of Little Fairy Doctor.
Xiao Yan took out a torch from his storage ring with a rustling sound. The Nihility Devouring Flame had one drawback: it absorbed all light, making it useless as a light source.
Hiss! Suddenly, a snake chirping sound echoed from the cave, where a massive Cliff Snake was coiled up. It glared at Xiao Yan and Little Fairy Doctor with a pair of vicious triangular eyes.
"A Cliff Snake? What are we going to do? It's a peak Rank 1 magical beast that usually requires several Dou Practitioners to handle!" Little Fairy Doctor's delicate body trembled slightly. She had heard of this type of magical beast; every encounter with it had resulted in the deaths of many mercenaries, making it a particularly formidable opponent.
Xiao Yan shrugged nonchalantly and said, "What can we do but make a cold dish out of it?"
No sooner had he spoken than the Cliff Snake, as if understanding his words, hissed angrily and lunged at him with its gaping maw wide open. Its sharp fangs gleamed with a sinister glow as it sought to swallow him whole.
Xiao Yan wrapped his right arm around Little Fairy Doctor's slender waist and, as if dancing, narrowly dodged the attack by a hair's breadth. After that, he applied the principle of using minimal force for maximum effect with a gentle tug and pushed the Cliff Snake off the cliff.
The movement was fluid and seamless, executed in one smooth motion.
With a wave of his sleeves, a snake's life was taken away.
Little Fairy Doctor had not yet recovered from the shock, and she even forgot that Xiao Yan had his arm around her waist. "How can you dodge so well?!"
Xiao Yan gently pinched her waist. She jumped away like a startled kitten and glared at him.
"Stop asking so many questions, let's go inside," Xiao Yan smiled and took the lead into the cave.
Little Fairy Doctor hesitated for a moment as she looked into the pitch-black interior of the cave. Then, stamping her feet and gritting her teeth, she followed.
The cave was very deep, with a faint chill permeating the surroundings. In the quiet passage, only the faint footsteps of the two could be heard.
The dark environment around her made Little Fairy Doctor involuntarily hug her arms. She looked up at Xiao Yan walking slowly in front, hesitated slightly, then quickened her pace to follow closely behind him. In this kind of environment, only the young man in front of her could give her a little more sense of security.
Just as she really could not stand this silent darkness that could drive people crazy, the young man in front of her suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"Ah!" With a scream, her body failed to stop in time. She ended up colliding with Xiao Yan's back, intimately pressed against it due to the momentum.
The close contact made her pretty face blush as she took a sharp step back and said in annoyance, "What are you doing?"
"The path has ended."