Chapter 293 - The Infernal Vortex (1/2)
Qingluan and Ziyun’er had returned. Xiao Chen walked to them. Word of the massacre had reached his ears, although the scale of news had grown faster than what he had imagined. “I’ll be taking the Leopard Cat Spirit with me into the Violet Illusory Lands. So be careful out here for the next few days.”
The night’s breeze brushed gently that night as he sat beside the unconscious Zhiluan. A sudden rustle came from outside, and Xiao Chen’s Divine Sense throbbed. He sprang up, booming loudly, “WHO GOES THERE!”
The door creaked open slowly. Basking in the placid glow of the moonlight was a gentle-looking little girl in a red dress. Her hands were held behind her back as she giggled, “I’m relieved to find you well, Handsome. I was so worried for you when I heard you went missing…”
Xiao Chen’s forehead creased as he recognized Yu Linglong, the young woman who was one of the Devil’s Practice whom he last met at Canglan City. “Why are you here?” he asked icily.
Yu Linglong gave another impish chuckle that would have looked adorable if not for her background. She peered inside. “I heard that a friend of yours is hurt. So here I am. I might have ways to help you.” She took a step and walked past him into his room.
But Xiao Chen quickly stopped her with an arm. “I’m sure I’ll be able to manage just fine. There’s no need to trouble yourself with my business. Please see yourself out,” Xiao Chen growled.
Yu Linglong grumbled through pouted lips, “Argh… There’s no need to be so cold every time we meet…”
Xiao Chen snorted and shot a frosty glare at her. “Leave this place at once. I do not care what reasons you have for being here or what all of you of the Devils’ sects intend to. Just leave!”
“You’ve misunderstood me, Handsome… I only wish to…”
“Leave. We are on the grounds of the League’s citadel. A simple yelp from me and this place will be swarming with men who can’t wait to arrest you! GO NOW!”
“Humph!” Yu Linglong stomped angrily. She cast a quick spell with a hand seal and vanished under the veil of the moon’s lethargic luminescence.
Xiao Chen waited until the last of her was gone, before he wiped away cold sweat with the back of his hand. “What was she thinking?” He almost cursed, “This is the League’s citadel!” She might not have ulterior motives for wanting to approach him, but Xiao Chen knew he could ill suffer being seen with her, not especially with him being the talk of the city now.
It did not take long for Qingluan and Ziyun’er to come knocking. “Has there been anyone here, Master?”
“It’s fine. Go back to rest,” Xiao Chen shook his head.
The next morning, Xiao Chen cradled the comatose Zhiluan in his arms as he walked towards the cave entrance. Furtive murmurs and hushed whispers followed in his wake as much as the number of hands pointed at him behind his back, he realized. Word of the massacre and his supposed association with the incident must have covered every inch of the city by now.
The pair of Elders of the League charged with manning the entrance saw him carrying Zhiluan. They could instantly see that it was in fact an Immortal Lingzhi in the form of a cat, although they did nothing to stop him, merely hoping that he would cause no troubles here.
Once inside, he was immediately surrounded by Yu Yifeng and the others who pelted him with questions. Xiao Chen merely shook his head and sighed, disentangling himself from his friends and moved alone to the spring 1500 meters to the north of the great oak tree.
When he got there, there were many other students of magic meditating in silence. But they kept themselves well away from the water.
There was a little island in the center of the pond with a flowering tree growing handsomely. Xiao Chen stepped into the water and slowly waded to the island, much to the chagrin of the others who merely watched with displeasure, while a few yelled derisively at him.
Hardly eager to antagonize anyone, Xiao Chen carefully placed Zhiluan under the tree and waded back to land, where he sat away from the spring and began meditating himself.
Before long, Yu Yifeng and the others came by to look. They sat down in silence to accompany him. Despite being able to absorb the rich natural Spiritual Qi around him, Zhiluan’s injuries were simply too grievous for them to notice any recovery.
It was in the evenings when Xiao Chen opened his eyes. He could sit still no more. Despite the abundance of Spiritual Qi in the area, Zhiluan would need a more powerful source of spiritual energies for him to heal lest his condition worsens and he would return back to his ordinary plant form.
Realizing the need for a place with a greater concentration of Spiritual Qi, he remembered the patch of forest guarded by magical barriers. He recalled the extraordinarily fertile Spiritual Qi in the area that would have easily dwarfed the supply of this spring.
But Yu Yifeng instantly knew what he was thinking of doing. “Don’t even think about it,” he pressed with a hushed voice, “The magical barriers there are a sign that the place is off-limits.”
Xiao Chen’s forehead curdled as he slumped into deep thought. But in the end, he decided that he would go nevertheless. Zhiluan would never be able to recover in time before their twenty days are up if he were to allow him to recuperate here. Moreover, he had long been intrigued by the barriers himself. “Why were enchantments guarding the area which has the strongest supply of Spiritual Qi? It’s strange.”