Chapter 247: Chapter 247: Discovering Jade Heart Orchid
"Miss, there must be something worthwhile over there. Let’s take a look,"
the Ye Family’s herbalist suggested, unable to resist the temptation.
A herbalist’s income is proportionate to the number of herbs he gathers. He would not dare to take such a risk originally, but with a martially skilled Shi Xiaole, what was there to fear?
If his opponent could take down a first-rank Xuan Qi expert with ease, how many rivals could there possibly be in this Silver Snowfield?
Ye Yiyi turned to look at Shi Xiaole.
"Let’s go."
Shi Xiaole saw no reason to refuse and was eager to see what herbs would emerge.
Without delay, the group set towards the hill to their south. The hills on either side were not too high, and with everyone trained in martial arts, they reached the vicinity within a quarter of an hour.
The Silver Snowfield saw harsh weather, with occasional minor earthquakes and even avalanches. According to the Ye Family’s herbalist, the little vale before them had been formed not long ago.
"This is, the Silver Guard Whisker."
The herbalist plucked a silver root shaped like a ginseng from the snow, a look of immense delight spreading across his face.
Silver Guard Whisker was much more precious than ginseng and was graded according to age. This specimen was at least a few hundred years old - had the hill not split open, it would have remained buried deep underground.
As they journeyed, the herbalist discovered many more herbs, over sixty percent of which were extremely rare. The Ye Family members were overjoyed and hurriedly stored their findings in their prepared boxes, categorizing them into different sections.
Suddenly, the snowstorm raged, growling like a savage beast.
"We should leave," Shi Xiaole said, calm as always. What use was a trove of treasures if he couldn’t find the Jade Heart Orchid?
Upon witnessing the rapid change in weather, the rest of the group came to their senses and started for the base of the hill.
Suddenly, the whole earth started to tremble without warning. The built-up snow on the mountaintop began to tumble down like foam, blocking out the heavenly light.
"Damn, it’s an avalanche, everyone run!"
Ye Yiyi’s beautiful face turned pale as she shouted at her companions. No reminders were needed; the Ye Family guards scattered, dropping their herbs onto the ground.
The herbalist, carried by the guard leader Ye Qi, was at the rear of the group due to his position. As the cloud of snow threatened to engulf them, Ye Yiyi, driven by instinct, rushed towards them.
A hand pulled her back. Shi Xiaole dragged Ye Yiyi down the hill, as she screamed, "No!", buried under the deafening avalanche.
Ye Yiyi felt a tremor in her heart as she watched the guards being buried. Yet, she was unaware of the precariousness of her own situation.
Shi Xiaole was indeed fast, but the problem was that the opposite mountain was also undergoing an avalanche, sandwiching them from both sides. If he were alone, Shi Xiaole was confident of escaping with a twenty percent chance, but with Ye Yiyi, their chance was next to none.
Suppressing the instinct to abandon Ye Yiyi, Shi Xiaole mustered all his strength and flew towards the sky.
Boom!
The earth-shattering roar escalated, the force of the avalanche intensifying, thrusting Shi Xiaole and Ye Yiyi deep underground.
All was silent.
The hill’s opening, resembling a torn mouth, expanded over ten times, revealing a long, deep abyss that even the avalanche could not fill.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.
Several shrouded figures, alarmed by the commotion, descended upon the abyss’s outer edge, gazing in uncertainty at the chasm below.
"This abyss must have existed before, and it only appeared after the surface was shaken open, revealing its true form," a scholarly-looking man observed, (remaining silent)
As more people arrived, several adventurous martial artists approached the abyss in small groups, cautiously.
"Ah!"
After a long wait, terror-stricken screams echoed from below, causing several on the verge of descending to halt.
"Ghost, there’s a ghost."
The three men who had descended hastily fled with blood-stained bodies and disheveled hair, as if they had witnessed something horrifying. Gripping their companion’s hand, they quickly fled the scene.
After they had withdrawn a certain distance and were about to breathe a sigh of relief, the scholarly man blocked their path, saying with a smile, "Hand it over."
"What do you mean, sir?"
The men’s faces changed, and one of their companions frowned.
"Your performance was commendable, but you couldn’t fool me."
The scholarly man reached out his hand.
The companion exerted his internal energy, warning, "Don’t talk nonsense, sir. If you don’t move, I won’t be courteous."
Before he could complete his sentence, a huge palm shadow struck them. With a thud, all the companions rolled on the ground, spewing fresh blood. They stared at the scholarly man in dread.
A third-rank Xuan Qi expert!
"Trying to deceive me, the Spicy Scholar? You’re too naive."
The Spicy Scholar searched their bodies and found several rare herbs. After delivering another palm and thereby ending their lives, he returned to the abyss and, disregarding the surprised looks of others, jumped in.
He knew the secret of the abyss wouldn’t remain hidden. It was better to take the initiative - after all, very few could trouble Spicy Scholar after he had rampaged in the Silver Water Region for so many years.
Within the abyss.
Shi Xiaole gradually woke up.
Shortly after the avalanche, he noticed the hill splitting open. So, at the last moment, he had grabbed Ye Yiyi and jumped into the abyss, effectively saving both their lives.
"So cold."
The chill constantly invaded from all sides. Shi Xiaole noticed that it was several times colder here than outside, to the point that you could condense droplets of water with a single breath.
He accelerated his Brahma-I Unity to maximum speed, finally offering some relief. Immediately, he channeled his power into Ye Yiyi, whose body was nearly frozen stiff, saving her life just in time.
"Thank you."
Upon awakening, Ye Yiyi’s voice trembled.
This was the third time he had saved her life. Without him, she would’ve been buried in the snow, forgotten like the rest of the Ye Family. A new wave of sadness washed over her as she thought of her tragically deceased family members.
Shi Xiaole observed his surroundings. Upon closer inspection, he found a prime medicinal herb growing in a corner not too far away. He picked it up effortlessly.
"Young Master, the cold here is unusually intense, making it an ideal environment for certain medicinal herbs to thrive,"
Ye Yiyi was also visibly astonished.
There were many passages inside this abyss. As they twisted and turned, Shi Xiaole noticed that whenever Ye Yiyi led the way, she was always able to locate various medicinal herbs. Yet, when he led, they only found some occasionally.
All of a sudden, a brilliant radiance burst forth up ahead while enchanting waves of fragrance diffused throughout the area.
"The fragrance of an orchid... This seems to be the scent of a Jade Heart Orchid,"
At Ye Yiyi’s words, like the crash of thunder in his ears, Shi Xiaole pulled her by the waist and dashed forward without a second thought. As they drew closer, sure enough, they saw a sky-blue flower quietly blooming amongst some crevices in the rock.
The flower had five petals, with a pistil in the center glowing like white jade, tender and dazzlingly beautiful.
Shi Xiaole’s days of worrying suddenly vanished into thin air as he plucked the Jade Heart Orchid in excitement, fighting the urge to roar with joy.
With this, his aunt would no longer be disabled.
It was the first time Ye Yiyi had seen such joy on the young man’s face, and her heart quickened at his touch. Of course, she knew that Shi Xiaole didn’t intentionally take advantage of her. Without his internal power, she would’ve frozen to death very quickly.
"Boy, hand over what you have obediently to avoid unnecessary suffering."
A gentle footstep could be heard.
The visitor was a scholar, none other than the Spicy Scholar. He too had noticed the light radiating from the Jade Heart Orchid, only a step later than Shi Xiaole.
Yet, in his eyes, it did not matter whether he was late of early, as he – in his mind – was inevitably going to own it.
His gaze fell upon Ye Yiyi, and a hint of desire flashed through his eyes. What a pure and beautiful woman she is.
"What if I don’t surrender it?"
Shi Xiaole said calmly, clutching the Jade Heart Orchid in one hand.
"Oh? This generation’s youth is growing bolder by the day. Even Spicy Scholar doesn’t scare them anymore."
Upon hearing this, Shi Xiaole remained unresponsive. However, Ye Yiyi trembled.
As a resident of Silver Water Region, who hasn’t heard of the infamous Spicy Scholar? Famous for his cunning and deceit, his Xuan Qi level had reached the third tier, making him one of the rare masters within Silver Water Region.
"Young Master, please, don’t worry about me, run,"
Ye Yiyi conveyed nervously, and in a low voice.
"Run? Neither of you will escape."
Extending his palm, he struck forward, transforming into an enormous shadow spanning three hectares. The Spicy Scholar seemed to already picture Shi Xiaole’s imminent defeat.
"Vortex of Wind".
Retreating with Ye Yiyi, Shi Xiaole swung his sword. The green vortex of wind, along with the polar wind from within the abyss, fiercely collided with the enormous palm shadow.
In the sound of crackling, the palm shadow shattered the Sword Qi and, with its momentum unfazed, continued its trajectory towards them.
This exchange made Shi Xiaole realize that the Spicy Scholar’s strength surpassed that of the effeminate man he’d killed earlier. Luckily, he hadn’t planned on fighting directly. After one sword swing, he exploited the splattering rocks to escape into one of the passages, taking Ye Yiyi with him.
"Crafty boy!"
The Scholar hadn’t expected Shi Xiaole to withstand his attack and survive. Lamenting his previous underestimation of the young man’s abilities, he promptly engaged his Flying Skill and pursued.
In terms of Flying Skill, Shi Xiaole had the upper hand. However, the scholar’s Internal Power was stronger. As both strengths offset one another and given that Shi Xiaole was also carrying Ye Yiyi, the scholar managed to close the gap unknowingly.
"Let’s see how you’ll escape now, Mixed Element Hand!"
The Scholar’s right hand swelled as he struck forward. The cave wall several feet away exploded instantly, countless large and small boulders falling down, continuously obstructing Shi Xiaole’s path.
With Ye Yiyi in tow, Shi Xiaole couldn’t give his all and was gradually beaten into a corner, using the long-ranged sword technique Vortex of Wind to resist the onslaught. Many people from the Martial World were attracted by their battle, but upon recognizing the Scholar’s posture, they stealthily made themselves scarce.
"Damn it."
Shi Xiaole’s eyebrows knit.
From the passage ahead, an unhurried middle-aged man in a red robe, sword in hand, strolled out. He hurled a sword at Shi Xiaole with a smile. The sword gleamed intensely red, splitting the rocks in its path into two. The keen edge of the sword sent chills down Shi Xiaole’s spine.
Clang!
Sparks flew as Shi Xiaole was involuntarily sent flying backward.
This was a Xuan Qi layer-three swordsman with strength surpassing even that of the Spicy Scholar.
"Wei Yan, the Blood Cloaked Swordsman."
Ye Yiyi’s face turned progressively paler.
This was a notoriously ruthless individual. It was said that he once slaughtered an entire martial arts school because someone had mispronounced his name.
With the Spicy Scholar behind them and the Blood Cloaked Swordsman ahead, Ye Yiyi guiltily looked at Shi Xiaole, blaming herself for his situation.
