Chapter 66 It is going to find its mother now
Feng Xi did not dare to delay for too long, because being left alone within the mystic realm was far too dangerous!
She stored away the carcasses of the two horned stone-centipedes and then hurried toward the rendezvous point agreed upon with Jun Wen.
Before reaching the destination, she crossed paths with Jun Wen and Jiang Ji.
Jiang Ji still looked somewhat pale; although the toxins had not yet been completely purged, he had already recovered a portion of his physical strength and spiritual power.
Worried about Feng Xi, he had insisted on coming to look for her, leaving Jun Wen with no choice but to agree.
In truth, Jun Wen was inwardly worried about Feng Xi as well. He had even mentally prepared himself: if the Junior Sister truly perished, he would find an opportunity to kill Shen Zhilan and then commit suicide.
Of course, it would be best if the Junior Sister could survive.
Even if she lost a limb or two, or was even disfigured, it didn't matter!
As long as she kept her life, anything was fine!
If Feng Xi knew his inner thoughts, she would surely "thank" him profusely.
Seeing Feng Xi bouncing back alive and well, Jun Wen finally let out a sigh of relief.
The heavy weight in Jiang Ji's heart also lifted.
Being the exhibitionist that she was, upon seeing them, this piece of work Feng Xi actually pulled out the two horned stone-centipede carcasses and dragged one in each hand!
She swaggered toward them with an overbearing, defiant stride.
Jiang Ji: ???!!!
Jun Wen: ???!!!
Feng Xi walked right up to them and tossed the two horned stone-centipede carcasses onto the ground:
"Eldest Senior Brother, Fifth Senior Brother, you must be hungry, right? I brought back two big bugs for you! You can pan-fry them, stir-fry them, braise them, or deep-fry them!"
Jiang Ji and Jun Wen: "..."
Jiang Ji had a very composed temperament, but even he could no longer keep his composure.
"Junior Sister, th-this is... what is going on?"
Feng Xi said leisurely:
"It's nothing much. I just took them out for a few jogs.
These horned stone-centipedes probably don't exercise much on a regular basis, so in the end, they all ran out of breath and couldn't move anymore.
So I just offed two of them and brought them back!
Actually, if I wanted to, the rest wouldn't survive either, but I am a person of benevolent virtue, so I didn't exterminate them all."
Jiang Ji and Jun Wen felt she was talking utter nonsense.
The two of them inspected the carcasses of the horned stone-centipedes and discovered that the wounds were all located around the eyes and the third joint of the abdomen—the vast majority caused by fire-element spiritual power incantations... specifically, slow-cooking over a low flame.
Judging by this, they really were killed by Feng Xi.
Which was simply... absurd!
Jun Wen's acceptance threshold was somewhat higher. After all, having spent a long time hanging out with Feng Xi, he knew she possessed some rather unique methods.
Jiang Ji, on the other hand, suffered a massive psychological shock.
He had noticed earlier that although Jun Wen had not yet advanced a tier, his cultivation was considerably stronger than before.
To say the least, his running speed was much faster than before!
The Junior Sister was even more formidable!
Despite being at the Qi Refining stage and having an injured dantian, she had managed to retreat unscathed from the encirclement of multiple horned stone-centipedes and had even killed two of them.
It made his cultivation level as a mid-stage Golden Core expert look utterly useless!
Seeing that Jiang Ji still looked very pale, Feng Xi found a wind-sheltered spot and told him to sit cross-legged and regulate his breathing.
She even shoved a plateful of medicinal pills into his hands to help him replenish his physical strength and spiritual power.
There was no help for it; she didn't have that many small porcelain bottles on hand, so she just had to make do with whatever was available in the grand kitchen.
She even muttered: "Eldest Senior Brother, don't mind that it's a bit sparse. Once we return to the sect, I'll gift you a whole basin of them!"
Jiang Ji wore a look of utter bewilderment and shock!
Wait a minute?
Isn't our Heaven Profound Sect a notoriously poor sect?
People would usually guard a single Foundation Establishment Pill as if it were precious gold, dividing it into eight portions to consume—yet now, medicinal pills are being served in plates and basins?
I've only been out on a training excursion for half a year, haven't I?
It hasn't been several millennia, right?
Seeing his look of someone who had never seen the world, Jun Wen curled his lips in disdain.
If you knew that all these medicinal pills were refined by the Junior Sister herself, and that she could even refine top-grade medicinal pills, wouldn't it scare you to death?!
Jiang Ji sat cross-legged to regulate his breathing nearby, while Feng Xi and Jun Wen took turns standing guard.
Meanwhile, several miles away, Shen Zhilan and her group saw that the horned stone-centipedes were no longer pursuing them and stopped running as well.
Shen Zhilan thought to herself that with that burden Jiang Ji dragging them down, Feng Xi and her companions had probably already been devoured by the horned stone-centipedes!
That would be for the best, sparing her the trouble of dealing with them herself!
She asked Mu Zihua: "Eldest Senior Brother, we got the Crimson Glow Fragrant Ganoderma, right?"
Mu Zihua smiled and said, "Yes, we harvested a total of six stalks. Given the rarity of this spiritual plant, it should fetch a fine price.
Junior Sister, you made the greatest contribution this time, so you shall take three of the six stalks, and the rest of us will split the remainder equally."
With that, he took out the harvested Crimson Glow Fragrant Ganoderma.
Shen Zhilan smiled: "Eldest Senior Brother, you're being too polite. Let's just split them equally among everyone!"
As soon as these words left her mouth, both Mu Zihua and the others were delighted.
The Third Senior Brother, Mo Xiuyuan, praised Shen Zhilan endlessly for her great fortune, saying that following her always brought good luck.
The rest of the group chimed in as well.
Just at that moment, a rustling sound echoed, and the flock of horned stone-centipedes surrounded them tightly.
As it happened, when Feng Xi was walking those horned stone-centipedes, she had inadvertently circled close to where Shen Zhilan and her group were.
Feng Xi certainly hadn't done it on purpose; she had been entirely focused on walking the bugs and hadn't paid any attention to the direction at all.
Originally, those horned stone-centipedes had wanted to return to their cave, but upon catching the fragrance of the Crimson Glow Fragrant Ganoderma, they tracked the scent all the way over.
Upon closer inspection, the clothes worn by Shen Zhilan and the others matched the description given by Feng Xi, and they instantly flew into a violent rage.
Even when Shen Zhilan produced the immortal beast egg, it failed to make the horned stone-centipedes back away.
The members of the Myriad Mixed Sect were having absolute worst of luck!
Aside from Shen Zhilan, who emerged virtually unscathed, everyone else sustained injuries.
Ultimately, with no other options left, Mu Zihua had to return the six stalks of Crimson Glow Fragrant Ganoderma to the horned stone-centipedes in order to make a ragged and miserable escape.
Mo Xiuyuan and the others felt a burning sting on their faces as they ran.
For a split second, they even felt that what Feng Xi had said might actually be true: getting anywhere near Shen Zhilan brought utter misfortune!
Wasn't this a ready-made example?!
After bustling about for ages, they got absolutely jack squat and ended up covered in injuries instead!
Had they known it would come to this, they would have been better off safely gathering other spiritual plants; why bother provoking the horned stone-centipedes in the first place?!
Seeing their expressions, Shen Zhilan guessed what they were thinking and felt deeply resentful.
Feng Xi, it was all Feng Xi's fault!
If not for her, she would have already formed a bond with the little phoenix, successfully obtained the Crimson Glow Fragrant Ganoderma, and perhaps even made Jiang Ji and Qin Shifeng feel deeply indebted and grateful to her.
Feng Xi, sooner or later, I will kill you!
...
Meanwhile, out from the original location of the phoenix nirvana emerged a grayish, chubby little bird.
It darted its shifty eyes around to look everywhere, and upon confirming that there was no one around, it flapped its tiny wings and flew forward.
It had figured things out!
Feng Xi definitely wasn't its birth mother!
She was its... godmother!
That didn't conflict with its ancestral inheritance!
Therefore, it was now going to go find its mother!
To prevent that water-attribute spiritual root woman from demanding the fire marrow back from it, it had even changed its own feathers.
It really was such a clever little spirit!