Chapter 240: Chapter 240: The Living Soil Chooses Its Master
The thing was a brownish, lumpy mass, its shape distorting and stretching as it moved. It was incredibly fast, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
Fortunately, Song Wanning had been extending her Divine Sense from the moment she entered, which allowed her to catch a trace of its path as it fled.
"Chase!"
With a sharp cry, she shot forward, her figure a blur. The very air rippled with shockwaves as she passed.
Bai Yang’s expression darkened as he gave chase at full speed. In just three breaths, his master’s figure had already vanished from sight.
He cursed inwardly, once again deeply dissatisfied with his own Cultivation.
He glanced around in frustration. Unsure of where to go, he could only try heading in the direction Song Wanning had vanished.
But as he rounded a bend, the scene suddenly opened up before him. A vast, endless grassland stretched out as far as the eye could see.
A gentle breeze swept by, causing the countless blades of wild grass to rise and fall in an orderly rhythm.
His restless heart suddenly calmed. ’Since I can’t find Master’s trail,’ he thought, ’I’ll just look around the area. I might still get a chance to run into the Xirang.’
Meanwhile, Song Wanning was pushing her speed to the limit, her body a blur of afterimages, yet she still couldn’t catch the Xirang.
This thing was even faster than the black mud. Both Arrays and Spells were too slow to catch it and had no effect whatsoever.
Her face was grim as she accelerated again and again. Finally, she even resorted to gripping a Spirit Stone in her palm to replenish her Spiritual Power.
But the Xirang was still moving at lightning speed. One moment it would burst from the ground, the next it would be bouncing through mid-air.
Its path of travel was also complex. Sometimes it would spin about, and other times it would suddenly double back on its pursuer, giving Song Wanning a massive headache.
The Golden Small Sword cursed as it helped with the chase, and even the Divine Nether Profound Fire joined in, yet they still couldn’t corner it.
"Worthy of being an Innate Spiritual Object, indeed!"
Song Wanning "praised" through gritted teeth. She had figured it out by now—the creature was just toying with her.
"Don’t panic. Slow down!"
She sent a telepathic message to her two companions and slowed her own pace, putting on an act of being exhausted and out of breath.
Her two little companions didn’t understand the reason, but they immediately complied.
Sure enough, the moment they slowed down, the Xirang’s speed also dropped considerably. It would even "glance back" at them from time to time.
Seeing her suspicion confirmed, Song Wanning slowed down even more, eventually stopping the chase altogether.
Now the Xirang grew anxious. It actually turned around and deliberately closed the distance between them, trying to bait Song Wanning into giving chase again.
Song Wanning remained motionless, hoping to lure the Xirang closer. But to her surprise, the little creature was extremely wary, always maintaining a significant distance and refusing to approach.
The moment they moved, the Xirang would immediately bolt.
When they stood still, the Xirang also stood still, observing them from a distance.
The Golden Small Sword was left speechless. "Is it playing hide-and-seek with us? Don’t tell me it was just bored and deliberately popped out to mess with us?"
The more it thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Otherwise, why would the Xirang have revealed its presence in the first place?
Hearing this, Song Wanning raised an eyebrow. She had clearly come to the same conclusion.
’Innate Spiritual Objects are truly something else,’ she thought. ’Much harder to trick than ordinary Spiritual Objects.’
But time was of the essence. Song Wanning had no choice but to resume the chase, mulling over how to capture the creature as she ran.
But the creature was simply too fast. A full day passed quickly, and the Xirang remained far out of her reach. She hadn’t even gotten close enough to touch it.
This couldn’t go on.
After some thought, Song Wanning decided she should let Bai Yang give it a try.
She immediately sent a Communication Talisman to Bai Yang. Just as she finished her message, the Xirang darted off again.
Pursing her lips, she had no choice but to follow.
Even knowing it was messing with her, she had to steel herself and keep up. After all, if she lost it now, finding it again would be incredibly difficult.
During the frantic chase, the Xirang ducked into a cave.
Song Wanning swiftly followed, simultaneously casting various Spells to block the Xirang’s path.
The Xirang nimbly hopped and skipped to dodge her attacks, then turned back to taunt her. It was infuriating to watch.
Her eyes darkened, and in her heart, she wanted nothing more than to tear the Xirang to pieces.
After a few more exchanges, Bai Yang finally arrived on his Flying Artifact.
He jumped off quickly and ran toward the cave.
As soon as he entered the cave, he saw them locked in a tense standoff.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, the Xirang let out a soft cry of surprise, its excited gaze falling upon Bai Yang.
"Human, your aura smells so nice!"
The Xirang spoke in a human voice, its words leaving Bai Yang momentarily stunned.
’Is the Xirang talking about me?’
’My aura smells nice? What aura?’
As it spoke, the Xirang transformed into the likeness of a child-like Spiritual Body. With wide eyes, it sized up Bai Yang, apparently quite curious about him.
Standing to the side, Song Wanning clenched her jaw.
’I chase it for a whole day without a peep, but the moment it sees Bai Yang, it’s ready to throw itself at him.’
She rubbed her fingertips together, her expression growing increasingly dangerous.
The Xirang seemed to sense something. It shivered violently and looked toward Song Wanning.
"Hey, you’re a really dumb human, you know that? I even had to wait for you. So stupid!"
’I finally find someone to play with, and they’re this weak. What a waste!’
The corner of Song Wanning’s mouth twitched into a cold smile.
’If I had chased it with all my might, wouldn’t that have been even more foolish?’
"Hey, human! Do you want to form a contract with me?"
The Xirang suddenly turned back to Bai Yang and asked him directly.
’Bai Yang has an aura I really like. Following him might not be so bad.’
As soon as it spoke, the temperature in the cave instantly dropped by several degrees.
Bai Yang instinctively glanced at his master, and his heart skipped a beat.
It would be a lie to say he wasn’t tempted by a treasure like the Xirang.
But his master had been the one to find its location, and he had only come to help. There was no way he could snatch her prize from under her nose.
Besides, he was currently trying to mend their relationship in any way he could. Taking the Xirang for himself was out of the question.
But he didn’t refuse immediately. Instead, he looked at his master’s ambiguous smile and pressed his lips together.
"My master has far greater talent, and she was the one who found you first..."
Bai Yang tried to persuade the Xirang.
But the Xirang was having none of it. It shot Song Wanning a disdainful look and huffed, "I don’t just form a contract with anybody. Her? She’s not worthy of being my partner!"
Innate Spiritual Objects could only form contracts of equals; they wouldn’t perish even if their host died.
Although the Xirang had been trapped in this place for a very, very long time and dreamed daily of escaping, that didn’t mean just anyone was worthy of forming a contract with it.
Bai Yang’s Cultivation was low, but he had an aura that felt familiar and comforting, making him barely acceptable in its eyes.
The other person, however, was the complete opposite. She possessed an aura that it found utterly repulsive.
Therefore, even if it meant being trapped here forever, it would never choose that woman.
