Chapter Twenty-Five: Sprout

  "Waaah~~~~ I want to eat chicken legs!"

  "Waaah~~~~ I want to eat chicken wings!"

  "Waaah~~~~ Even if you give me a chicken claw to gnaw on, it's better than being here!"

  "Master! Mistress! The medicine is so hungry! It's going to starve to death!"

  The disheveled and dirty young monk was lazily reclining on the stone couch, surrounded by a thick layer of dried yam and yellow rice husks, as well as a large pile of fruit peels and pits. With a weak and listless movement, she patted her belly, staring blankly at the large hole in the ceiling of the stone chamber, about one zhang square. She sighed and exclaimed: "So, hitting rocks is so exhausting! After exhausting myself, I get to eat this much! Ugh, I'm so hungry! The three months' worth of rations that were prepared for me, how did they all get eaten up in just a few days?"

  On the bamboo mat, what was originally a large pile of yellow rice, mountain medicine, and various fruits now only had three to five pine nuts pitifully lying there. Yaoyao looked at those few pine nuts, and the light in her eyes was green. Her body suddenly moved, she stretched out her hand towards the bamboo mat as if grabbing something, then suddenly withdrew it. She threw her head back and wailed: "There are still two months! Two months, and I'll only have these few pine nuts to eat! I'll starve to death, I'll starve to death, I'll starve to death! Little Shidi~~~~~Sister misses you~~~~~~'s roasted chicken!"

  After muttering and complaining for a long time, Yao'er weakly got up from the bed, staring blankly at a few pine nuts in a daze.

  "One, two, three..." The little medicine's small mouth opened, and a thin thread of clear saliva slowly dripped down from the corner of her mouth. She widened her eyes, looking puzzled, and asked herself: "Why do these pine nuts look just like chicken legs? Waaah, little Shidi, you scoundrel, waaah... Shijie is starving here, can't you even send some food over?"

  With both hands tightly grasping the purple jade slab that recorded the Great Luo Tian Scripture, Yao'er suddenly looked up at the sky and exclaimed: "Ahh~~~~ I'm starving to death~~~~ Can't take it anymore! Master, I've memorized everything!"

  She casually tucked the purple jade plate into her waistband, and Medicine Girl's hands merged together as she lightly chanted an incantation. A palm thunder with a radius of several meters shot towards the stone gate of the cave, accompanied by a burst of thunderous light. With a dull hum, the stone gate flashed with fragments of rainbow-colored light that effortlessly dissipated the palm thunder. The seal was activated, and a message had already been sent to Dan Fusheng, who was guarding the entrance of the cave.

  Suddenly, the three-stone gate burst open, and Dan Fusheng and seven other old Daoists walked in slowly. Dan Fusheng swept his eyes over the stone room, which was littered with fruit peels and cores, and his face twitched as he dryly asked: "Medicine child, what's the meaning of your summons? Is it that... Hehe, these snacks aren't enough?" The other old Daoists tightened their faces, putting on a dignified air, each one raising their head to stare blankly at the huge hole in the top of the stone room - how many times would they have to strike before they could break through the stone room protected by forbidden magic?

  The medicine child excitedly pounced in front of Dan Fusheng, and casually stuffed the purple jade plate into Dan Fusheng's hand. With a big laugh, he said: "Master, it's not that I'm hungry, but this Dàluó Dān Jīng, I've already memorized all of it! Hehe, now that I've memorized it, can I leave the cave? Master, I'll go find my little brother first!" Before his words had even faded away, the medicine child had already leapt out, like a monkey, grasping onto the small trees and long vines on the cliff in front of the cave, and lightly swung down.

  "Remember... did you remember?" Dan Fusheng tightly grasped the jade tablet, his mouth agape as he stared blankly at his fellow disciples who were equally stunned.

  "Did you memorize it? Impossible!" An old Daoist shouted loudly: "If it's a medicine, then in just 27 days, I'll have memorized the Great Luo Scripture! Then, aren't we all pigs?"

  "Absolutely impossible!" Another old Daoist roared in anger: "The Great Luo Dan Jing contains all things, including various dan houses, spiritual secrets, hand seals, and techniques, as well as the experiences of our top-level dan dao predecessors. How can it be memorized in just 27 days? This is unreasonable, absolutely unreasonable! Hmmph, we must bring the girl back and let her contemplate for two more months before she's ready!" The old Daoist's eyes rolled wildly, his brain churning with obviously bad intentions.

  Many of the older generation echoed their views, in short, they believed that it was impossible for someone to be so clever as to digest the entire Da Luo Dan Jing within a mere twenty-seven days. Therefore, for the sake of these masters' dignity, Yao'er had to continue staying in the cave to study the Da Luo Dan Jing and not waste three months' time, otherwise, it would be absolutely impossible for Yao'er to come out.

  Dan Fusheng's face twitched again, and he glared at several of his fellow disciples with a sideways glance. "Tell Danxia that!" he shouted angrily. He casually handed the jade tablet to one of his senior brothers, shook out his sleeves, and beckoned over a cloud of mist, which he stepped onto and floated away.

  "What's the relationship between Danxia and you?" Several old Daoists looked at each other, then suddenly burst out laughing: "Our Da Luo Dan Dao has a talented young master like you, it's really a blessing for our sect!"

  "Little brother~~~~~ Little brother~~~~~ I'm going to kill you, big sister!" Yao'er rushed along the road, swallowing her saliva and using her movement technique to sprint towards Lin Xiang's residence in Maple Forest. Along the way, countless disciples of the Da Luo Dan Dao saw a girl with clothes stained with various fruit juices, looking like a beggar, with disheveled hair and a dirty face, her eyes glowing with an eerie green light that inspired fear, muttering to herself as she sprinted forward in a straight line.

  Huichun Valley has the protection of the Hushan Great Array, and outsiders are extremely difficult to enter. However, when a group of senior disciples from the Daluodan sect saw Yaoyao rushing forward in a frantic state, they didn't intend to stop her. Everyone still thought that this was another disciple brought back by some senior master or uncle from outside. This kind of thing happens every few years, and the elderly masters of the Daluodan sect have soft hearts. Whenever they go out on a journey, they always bring back some astonishing people, so these mountain patrol disciples are already used to it.

  She ran all the way to the outside of Lin Xiang's residence in Fenglin, and even with her deep cultivation, she was a bit out of breath. She pressed her hands against her growling stomach and started shouting: "Little brother, little brother! Sister is hungry, hurry up, what's good to eat? Hmm, is that a flying sword?"

  A red light burst out of the maple forest, shooting up to a height of over a hundred feet before making a 90-degree turn and shooting back down to the ground with a loud "whoosh" sound. The dull thud sent shockwaves through the earth, causing it to tremble slightly. Yao'er's curiosity got the better of her as she rushed towards where the sword light had fallen, arriving at the depths of the maple forest in just a few strides. There, she saw Lin Xiao, covered from head to toe in mud, crawling out of a human-shaped hole in the ground, muttering and cursing under his breath. He stumbled forward a few steps before plopping down on the ground, panting heavily.

  "Little brother!" Yao'er excitedly jumped onto Lin Xiao's back and started scratching and hitting his head wildly.

  Lin Xiao Meng didn't even have time to react before Medicine's hands were all over him, and he instinctively raised the Red Dragon Sword in his hand to strike the person behind him. Fortunately, he recognized Medicine's voice, and just as the sword was about to swing out a foot or so, it suddenly stopped. A wave of stinging pain on his scalp made Lin Xiao Meng drop his sword and clutch at his head with both hands, begging: "Medicine, stop scratching wildly! You're only good at messing up my hair, but you never help me retie my hair knot!"

  "Huh?" Medicine Girl quickly messed up Lin Xiao's hair to the same extent as hers, and suddenly heard Lin Xiao's complaint. She puffed out her chest and climbed down from Lin Xiao's back, sitting tightly next to him on the ground, and asked in annoyance: "Are you saying that Medicine Girl is useless?"

  Lin Xiao's heart skipped a beat as he recalled the numerous tragic events of the past two years, and his face suddenly broke into a flattering smile: "What is Sister Shifu saying? Who dares to say that Medicine Shifu is useless? Even Brother Shidi can't forgive him! Hmm, aren't you in seclusion studying the Great Luo Dan Jing? How did you come out so early?" As he asked this, Lin Xiao and Medicine's faces simultaneously wore an extremely mysterious smile. Lin Xiao stared blankly at Medicine, and Medicine also stared blankly at Lin Xiao, when suddenly they both burst into loud laughter!

  "Haha, haha! Medicine is so clever and quick-witted, just comprehending the Great Luo Dan Jing, how much effort does it take?" Medicine laughed with her head thrown back, carefully sizing up Lin Xiao's body for a few moments, before suddenly exclaiming: "Ah! Just a few days without seeing you, little brother, how did you turn pale? Hmm, your appearance is also somewhat different! Your aura has also become much fainter... How strange, it smells like the scent of a newborn monkey on the mountain? Strange, what's wrong with you?"

  Others only noticed that Lin Xiao's skin had turned white and his appearance was slightly different after forming the golden elixir, but few people could notice that the aura on his body had also changed. Perhaps only Ya'er did. Only Ya'er, whose spirit was as clear as a spring, and who was very close to Lin Xiao, noticed that Lin Xiao's aura had become similar to that of a newborn baby.

  Just as Lin Xiao was about to explain the strange encounters he had experienced in recent days, Yao'er suddenly burst into tears and grabbed Lin Xiao's Taoist robe, her eyes wide open as she wailed loudly: "Waaah! Sister is dead! How can you wear a apricot-yellow Taoist robe?! Waaah! My cultivation is higher than yours, but I'm only wearing a green robe now!"

  She grasped the apricot-yellow Taoist robe on Lin Xiao's body, gritted her teeth and glared at him for a moment. Suddenly, she used his robe to fiercely wipe her face, stubbornly wiping all the dust onto it. Only then did she laugh with great joy. She forcefully patted Lin Xiao's head and loudly asked: "Little Shidi, quickly confess! How did you deceive those elders and get your hands on this apricot-yellow robe?"

  "Huh? What's going on?" Lin Xiao furrowed his brow, helplessly looking at Yao, and in a low, depressed tone, recounted the things that had been happening to him recently.

  "Ah?" Yao'er was stunned, foolish, and numb. Her smiling face turned bright red with anger. She suddenly stretched out her hands and grabbed Lin Xiao's cheeks, twisting them violently: "Little Shidi! Lin Xiao! You got first place in the Tongmen Grand Competition, that's already enough, but you actually dared to form a Golden Elixir! Heaven! Master said I have hope of forming a Golden Elixir at the age of 50, and already praised me as a rare genius. You, you, you're not even that old yet?! Shijie, shijie, shijie, I won't live!"

  Lin Xiao's face twisted in a scowl, but his body, tempered by the heavenly fire, didn't care about the force exerted by Yao'er's hand. However, Lin Xiao deliberately made a wincing expression to please Yao'er, and from his pursed lips came continuous pleas for mercy.

  She suddenly became excited again, let go of Lin Xiao's face and laughed with her hands and feet: "So to say, little Shizhi has also formed a golden elixir, it can be considered a true master! Ah, those things that wanted to eat before but couldn't catch, now little Shizhi can help medicine get food."

  The little tongue kept licking his lips, and Yao'er said with great interest: "Hei Yu Niao, Bi Guang Lei Ge, Da Feng Ying, hmm, roasting them would be delicious."

  Lin Xiao's face turned black as he stared at Yao Er, who was excitedly talking about the three strange birds. His body couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine. The three birds that Yao Er mentioned were all extremely powerful and had strength comparable to that of a Golden Dan period cultivator. They also possessed exceptional flying skills, making it difficult for even a Golden Dan period cultivator to catch up to them with their flying swords. And as for Lin Xiao, who had just fallen off his flying sword, he was no match for these birds at all. To put it bluntly, among the entire Da Luo Dan Dao's elder generation, there were only a handful of people who could wield their swords and catch up to these three strange birds.

  The little girl didn't care what Lin Xiao was thinking, she just said excitedly: "And the white fish in the cold pool on the back mountain, um, I've wanted to eat them for over a decade, but unfortunately, I've never been able to catch them. Um, little brother~~~~" The little girl's face moved closer to Lin Xiao's, her big eyes sparkling with water, looking pitiful and cute.

  Lin Xiao's temper was very good, and he also loved to indulge in medicine, so naturally he wouldn't go against Medicine's thoughts on these matters. Even if he knew that the back mountain cold pool wasn't a particularly auspicious place, Lin Xiao could only force a smile, nodding repeatedly in agreement. He promised Medicine that in the future, he would help her roast black jade carvings, roast green light pigeon, and roast large wind eagles, then simmer white fish soup to drink.

  The little medicine was very satisfied, patted Lin Xiao's head and fondled his ears. Lin Xiao's words really made her very happy. She suddenly felt that it would be great if Lin Xiao became a Jindan stage expert! Having a Jindan stage follower is a unique thing among the thousands of disciples of Daluo Dan Dao, how prestigious is that?

  With a twisted head, looking at Lin Xiao's handsome and extraordinary face, Yao'er's complexion suddenly turned gloomy. She viciously waited for Lin Xiao, fiercely twisting his ear 180 degrees. Lin Xiao let out a strange cry, turning his head away, feeling as if his ears were almost twisted off by Yao'er. He loudly exclaimed: "Yao'er, what have I done again?"

  "Yao'er scolded fiercely: 'The fruit of Zi Ye Lan, you must help Hua Shijie harvest it well this time. Hmm, the beauty pill is done, give me a share!'"

  Lin Xiao's body hair all stood up, he stared at Yao'er in shock and dismay, unable to understand why Yao'er was also interested in the Nourishing Beauty Pill. Nowadays, it was just Danxia who cherished that Zi Ye Lan so much, if another Yao'er were added, if Lin Xiao made another mistake when harvesting the Zi Ye Lan fruit next time... Lin Xiao didn't dare imagine his own consequences!

  The medicine child's heart, which was originally spotless and free of dust, suddenly had a hint of shadow. "Little Shidi has already formed the Golden Elixir, he will maintain his current appearance for at least 500 years! Wuu, Master Sister said that women age quickly... Medicine Child won't be able to form the Golden Elixir until she's 50? Then, wouldn't she look just like Master Sister now? Wuu, Medicine Child wants to eat Beauty Pills!"

  For the first time, Yao'er realized one of the emotions that humans should have: joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, worry, thinking, and sadness. It was as if a sudden axe had split the chaotic space, and a ray of spiritual light had illuminated Yao'er's heart. Her heart, which had been dormant for twenty years, already showed signs of intellectual awakening. This cannot be said to be anything but Lin Xiao's credit.

  Once her spiritual wisdom is opened, the extraordinary innate talent of the medicine girl will be fully activated, and at that time, her cultivation progress will surely be a thousand miles a day. Lin Xiao is afraid that he won't even come close to hers.

  What Dan Fusheng said was that Yaoni might have the possibility of forming a Golden Elixir at the age of fifty, but it's only because Yaoni's spiritual intelligence has not been opened yet, and she can't exert her profound and extremely deep foundation. As long as Yaoni's spiritual intelligence is opened, no one can predict what achievements she will make. Even in today's cultivation world where spiritual energy is becoming increasingly scarce, Yaoni's cultivation progress may still create a record in the cultivation world.

  Lin Xiao stared blankly at Yao'er, and Yao'er also stared blankly at Lin Xiao.

  Lin Xiao's heart was filled with only a hint of sweetness and warmth. For the past few days, Yao'er had been locked in the stone chamber to comprehend the Great Luo Dan Jing, and Lin Xiao had been somewhat restless, but today his mind was finally at peace.

  The girl's heart was a complex mix of emotions, with sour, sweet, bitter and spicy flavors that she had never experienced before, because her worries about her appearance suddenly flooded her mind.

  Her little mouth pouted, the medicine hummed softly, for the first time she took the initiative to hug Lin Xiao's head and gently kissed his lips.

  It was from that thread of worry that Medicine Child first understood what 'love' meant.

  This ambiguous love intention made Yao'er's heart warm and fuzzy all over, she really liked this feeling that made her whole body feel warm and cozy and full of energy.

  In the maple forest, warm and loving feelings lingered. But this faint warmth was interrupted by Yao'er's cry of surprise.

  With a soft 'po' sound, Yao'er and Lin Xiao's lips parted. She looked at Lin Xiao with a bitter face, furrowed her brow and said: "Little Shidi, I'm so hungry! Hurry up and get me something to eat!"

  "Ah!" Lin Xiao obediently stood up, grabbed the Red Dragon Sword and was about to head towards the back mountain. But Yao'er suddenly snatched the Red Dragon Sword away, "Hehe" laughing: "Let me play with it! Hehe, flying sword! Master said that once I break through the 11th layer of the Five Elements Spirit Technique, he'll give me a flying sword! Alas, you're only at the 10th layer, still have to wait. Flying sword, flying sword! You're so beautiful, why not leave Little Shidi and follow Yao'er instead!"

  Lin Xiao rolled his eyes, shook his head, lightly pinched a divine movement incantation, and his body transformed into a wisp of green smoke that swept towards the back mountain.

  Yaoyao stared blankly at Lin Xiao's receding back, then suddenly jumped up: "Dummy, Yaoyao wants to go with you too! Are you still planning on roasting mountain chicken in Maple Forest? Wow, he runs really fast!"

  The little head drooped down, Yao'er took a deep breath, and also pinched a divine movement seal. With a speed of less than two-tenths of Lin Xiao's, he brought up a faint residual shadow and chased after him tightly.

  "Dong~ Dong~ Dong~"!

  The golden bell on the Ling Xiao Hall's Dan Qi platform rang out again, pausing briefly after every three rings, then ringing three more times, repeating this process nine times. This was the summons to gather all Golden Elixir stage and above disciples within the Da Luo Immortal Sect!

  Lin Xiao was not familiar with the summoning signal, and after hearing the bell sound, he continued to rush towards the back mountain for over ten miles before suddenly realizing: "Ah, this is the summoning signal!" Until now, Lin Xiao still didn't have the awareness of being a Golden Dan stage disciple.

  His body flipped over like a swallow, leaving a faint blue mark in the air. Lin Xiao let out a long whistle and used his divine movement technique to rush towards the Danqi Temple.

  Yaoyao stared blankly as Lin Xiang's feet didn't touch the ground, speeding by three feet off the ground. Suddenly she shouted: "Young Master, why not ride the sword instead?" She raised the Red Dragon Sword high up.

  Lin Xiao's body shook violently, almost falling to the ground. The sword had gone? He was afraid that he would become a laughing stock in front of all his fellow disciples. A Golden Elixir stage cultivator, bumping into a pillar with his sword, would be a story worth telling for hundreds of years!

  Gritting his teeth as if he hadn't heard Yao's cries, Lin Xiao shouted: "Yao, go to the back mountain and wait for me. I'll settle with Master Shibo and come right back!"

  The little girl stared blankly and muttered an "oh" as she swung the Red Dragon Sword, suddenly smiling to herself and saying: "Before, I couldn't catch those mountain chickens, but this time with this precious sword, let's see where you can escape to!" With a smile on her face, she waved the sword, bringing up a faint red glow that quickly flew towards the bamboo forest at the back of the mountain.