Chapter 4: Secret Realm

Xi Meng kicked away the spider that was rushing towards her and looked at the purple-black spiders about the size of a human head densely covering the ground behind her. She felt goosebumps all over her body.

God knows what she hates most are these bugs, or the sound-eating spiders that are specifically designed to defeat her.

You can tell how bad a person’s luck can be by looking at her.

From the time she entered the secret realm until now, nothing has gone smoothly.

It’s a pity that she, a beautiful and elegant music cultivator, ended up having to rely on her feet to defeat the enemies.

While running away, Xi Meng used a little of her consciousness to look through her storage ring, searching for a magical instrument or talisman that she could use. However, in order to enter this secret realm, she had used a secret method to suppress her cultivation to the Foundation Building stage.

Foundation Building Stage.

Any of the remaining magic tools and talismans in her storage ring would consume all of her spiritual energy.

The only thing to be thankful for is that the jade hairpin that just exploded seriously injured the Spider King, and now those chasing her are just some small spiders in the Qi Refining Stage.

But this is also…

There are too many of them!

Xi Meng withdrew her gaze with disgust and ran forward while calling for help.

She just used her spiritual sense to sense that someone was coming towards her, and it seemed to be an acquaintance.

“Save me…”

Before Xi Meng could finish her shout, a woman in white suddenly dropped from the sky and killed the swarm of spiders behind her with one sword.

“Step aside.”

Wen Xi said as she waved her sword to clear the spiders.

“Thank you for saving me, fellow Daoist.”

Xi Meng ran swiftly behind the other person while speaking.

Seeing the people retreat, Wen Xi’s moves became fiercer and faster. Wherever the sword light swept, a large number of sound-eating spiders were turned into powder, and only a few could leave a little bit of their limbs.

The little snake wrapped around her wrist was not willing to be outdone. It opened its mouth and spat at the spiders, and immediately a group of drowned spiders appeared on the ground.

With the cooperation of one woman and one snake, in an instant, most of the spiders in front of them were gone.

The Spider King, who was far away in the cave, sensed something was wrong and immediately recalled the remaining little spiders.

Wen Xi was only trying to save people and had no intention of killing all the spiders. Seeing the spiders retreat, she put away her sword and turned back to look at the person she had just saved.

The woman stood quietly aside, her hair disheveled, covering her pretty face.

There were several cuts on the gray-blue dress, revealing the white jade-like skin underneath, with faint red marks visible. She looked both disheveled and pitiful.

Was that the case just now?

A hint of hesitation flashed across Wen Xi’s eyes.

While she was looking at Xi Meng, Xi Meng was also looking at her.

I said goodbye before, but I didn’t expect that fate would come so quickly.

“Is Daoist injured?”

Xi Meng suppressed her sigh, shook her head, and smiled softly. “No, Xi Meng thanks you for saving my life…”

“Wow!”

Before she could finish her words, she was chilled to the bone.

? !!

Xi Meng: …

Wen Xi: …

Little Snake: Cool!

“Fellow Daoist, what do you mean by this?” Xi Meng’s face was pale, and she looked weak on the surface, but she was secretly gritting her teeth in her heart.

Wen Xi lowered her eyebrows and looked at the culprit who was wrapped around her wrist quietly, then looked at the weak look on Xi Meng’s face and frowned slightly.

Although she has not signed a contract with the little snake, she was the one who brought it, so the responsibility naturally lies on her.

“Sorry, I didn’t notice it.”

Xi Meng didn’t see any regret on her face: “Did you not notice it for a moment?”

It seems that the soft approach doesn’t work; let’s change it.

Wen Xi also knew that her excuse seemed too perfunctory, so she could only change the subject: “Hey, do you have any clothes on?”

Xi Meng was about to say yes, but then realized that she only had a storage ring on her.

She was now just an ordinary inner disciple of the Demonic Sound Sect. She could not afford a storage ring, so she shook her head and said sadly, “My storage bag was just lost.”

Wen Xi didn’t think much about it and took out an extra set of robes: “I have some here.”

“Thank you, fellow Daoist.” Xi Meng smiled gratefully, took the clothes, and went to the side to change, tidying herself up at the same time.

While the other party was changing clothes, Wen Xi also began to question the little snake who caused the trouble: “Why do you bully others for no reason?”

“Hiss.” Bugs, dirty.

The little snake made a disgusted expression and opened its mouth as if spitting water.

Wen Xi thought about it and realized that there was indeed some spider mucus on the corner of the woman’s clothes, but: “That doesn’t mean you can just spit on people casually.”

“Hiss.” Okay.

The little snake lowered its head and reluctantly agreed.

Wen Xi patted its head to comfort it, and someone behind her said, “Fellow Daoist, I’m fine now.”

Wen Xi turned around.

The appearance of the woman in front of her was not stunning, but she was pretty. However, her face was covered by her hair and dark clothes, so it was difficult to see anything.

Now that she was wearing the white dress that Wen Xi had given her, she looked even more ethereal, especially when those two dark and lively eyes moved around. Wen Xi felt as if she had seen them somewhere before.

Wen Xi was inexplicably concerned and asked, “Have I met Daoist before?”

Xi Meng’s heart skipped a beat when she heard this, and she almost thought that the other party had seen through her disguise.

Then she thought that she was using the sect’s unique secret technique this time, and the other party’s eyes didn’t seem to recognize her, so she felt relieved.

Xi Meng neither admitted nor denied: “Of course I recognize people like you. But I wonder if Xi Meng, an ordinary person, is lucky enough to catch your eye?”

Wen Xi asked, “Your name is Xi Meng?”

Xi Meng nodded.

Wen Xi searched her mind and after confirming that she had no impression of the name, she was no longer interested.

Considering the other party’s situation, she asked, “Which sect are you from? Have you contacted your companions before? Do you know where they are? I’ll take you there.”

Xi Meng hesitated for a moment after hearing this and then whispered, “I am… a disciple of the Demonic Sound Sect.”

After saying this, she paused for a moment. Seeing that Wen Xi showed no signs of abnormality, she bit her lip and continued, “I don’t have a high position in the sect, and I don’t have many friends. In my current state, even if I meet a fellow sect member, I’m afraid I will…”

After listening to her, Wen Xi looked at her a few times and saw that she was weak and her storage bag was lost. It was indeed dangerous in this secret realm. After thinking for a while, she took out an extra storage bag, some talismans and pills, and two magic tools and handed them to her.

“Take these for your own protection.”

Xi Meng refused: “No, Daoist friend, you saved my life. Xi Meng is already grateful; how can I ask for your things again?”

“Take it.” Wen Xi simply stuffed it into her hand. “Be careful in the future.”

Xi Meng realized something was wrong when she heard her words and quickly grabbed her hand: “Daoist friend?”

Wen Xi frowned slightly and took a step back without leaving a trace: “Anything else?”

Xi Meng saw her expression and knew that it would be impossible to get her to speak, so she could only take the initiative to ask: “Can I go with you?”

“No.” Wen Xi refused.

“Daoist friend.” Xi Meng’s face turned pale upon hearing this; she lowered her head and said in a miserable tone, “Did I overstep my bounds?”

Wen Xi had decided to leave, but for some reason, when she saw those familiar eyes filled with sadness, her heart ached as well.

Before she could figure it out, she heard the other party continue in that miserable tone: “Daoist friend, don’t worry about me. Before entering the secret realm, I knew that my strength was low, and I didn’t plan to get out alive. Now I am lucky to be able to live a little longer. How can I ask for more…”

Wen Xi felt unhappy when she heard her self-destructive words. She felt helpless towards Wen Xue and her master even though they were just strangers.

“I’m going to the Quicksand Region. Will you follow me if you’d like?”

Xi Meng stopped playing the victim immediately after hearing this and looked at Wen Xi with bright eyes: “I will follow you, Daoist friend.”

Wen Xi’s eyes trembled slightly, and she vaguely felt that she seemed to have been deceived, but she always kept her word. Since she had already agreed to let the other party follow her, she would not regret it.

“Let’s go.”

“Wait.” Xi Meng pulled her sleeve.

Wen Xi glanced at the cuff that she was holding: “What’s the matter?”

Xi Meng pretended not to notice her disdain, blinked her eyes, and acted pitiful: “I can’t fly a sword; can you lead me? It doesn’t matter if you don’t want to; I will try my best to run faster to catch up with you. If I am unlucky and provoke some monster, if you feel sorry for me, please help me…”

“Come up.”

Xi Meng’s sad expression faded, and she jumped onto the iron sword: “I heard that you are kind-hearted.”

The flying sword had just risen into the air when it suddenly stopped.

“Let go,” Wen Xi said coldly.

Xi Meng was extremely thick-skinned, shrinking her neck and pretending to be innocent: “Daoist friend, I am afraid of heights.”

Wen Xi: …

She felt as if she had saved the wrong person.

She silently cast a protective shield around the flying sword, and then without saying a word, a square cloth fell on Xi Meng’s head, just covering her eyes.

“Daoist friend?”

Xi Meng reached out to tear off the cloth on her head, but was interrupted by Wen Xi.

“Stand still, don’t pull. If you move again, I’ll just walk away.”

Xi Meng knew that she had gone too far in teasing her, so she stood still quietly and didn’t dare to tease her any further.

*

After walking for half a day, they encountered several monsters on the road. Those with lower cultivation levels were all dealt with by Wen Xi, and the two more difficult ones were avoided by taking detours.

Next time they encountered monsters, Wen Xi would fight them in front.

As an “ordinary and poor disciple,” Xi Meng followed behind and picked up the spiritual plants and corpses of monsters that the other party looked down upon.

The forest became more dangerous at night, so it was not suitable to continue traveling.

Wen Xi found a cave and killed the monster inside, which became a temporary resting place for the two of them.

What Wen Xi meant by rest was meditating all night, but Xi Meng’s understanding was obviously different.

When Wen Xi’s technique was running its first small cycle, Xi Meng built a fire in the cave through her own efforts.

The firelight illuminated the dark cave, casting a shadow on Wen Xi’s beautiful face.

She opened her eyes and glanced around briefly without saying anything.

When Wen Xi’s technique was running its second small cycle, Xi Meng took out a red wind chicken that she had collected during the day from her storage bag. After processing it, she began to roast it over the fire.

When Wen Xi continued to circulate the third small cycle, she began to smell fragrance and hear Xi Meng’s mumbling voice beside her.

“Smells so good!”

“It’s time to turn over.”

“Oh, it’s hot.”

“It should be ready soon.”

…

Wen Xi stopped practicing: “What are you doing?”

“Roasted chicken.” Xi Meng sprinkled the seasoning powder and looked up at her. “Do you want to try it, Daoist friend?”

Wen Xi looked at the fat oozing out of the crispy yellow chicken skin, closed her eyes, and refused, “No need.”

Xi Meng didn’t let her go: “It’s delicious, Daoist friend. Don’t you really want to try it? Go ahead and try it.”

“No…”

Wen Xi wanted to refuse, but Xi Meng tore off a chicken leg, wrapped it in leaves, and stuffed it into her hand: “Daoist friend, please have a taste. It’s not bad. Daoist friend, you saved my life today, gave me a storage bag, and taught me to fly a sword. You have worked hard. Xi Meng is poor and has nothing to repay you. This is the only skill I can offer. Daoist friend, please reassure me and give me a taste.”

It was the first time Wen Xi met someone like Xi Meng, and she always felt helpless when meeting her.

She looked at the food in her hand in silence for a while, then looked at the other person’s expectant eyes and reluctantly lowered her head and took a bite.

As Xi Meng said, her cooking skills are indeed very good, and she controls the heat just right. The chicken skin on the outside is crispy, yellow, fragrant, and soft, and the chicken inside is tender and delicious. The plant juice sprinkled on it soaks into the chicken, giving it a light sweet and sour taste.

Xi Meng was eating on the surface, but she was actually paying attention to Wen Xi. When she saw her finish a bite, she asked hurriedly, “How is it?”

“Hmm.” Wen Xi’s expression was indifferent.

Xi Meng looked at her with a smile and said persistently, “What do you mean by ‘hmm’? Is it not delicious? Alas, it seems that my cooking skills are too poor.”

“It’s delicious.” Her heart sank slightly.

Seeing this, Xi Meng was very pleased and acted even more boldly. She even crossed the firelight and pressed her finger on Wen Xi’s forehead: “If it tastes good, why are you frowning? Are you trying to coax me?”

Wen Xi slapped her hand away, frowning even deeper: “Talk nicely, don’t make a move.”

Xi Meng got carried away for a moment and quickly made amends: “It’s my fault. I just saw you frowning and was afraid that you were just trying to coax me into saying it was delicious… Don’t be angry.”

Wen Xi hummed, accepting the explanation: “I didn’t coax you; you did a good job.”

Xi Meng smiled and said, “As long as you like it, I will cook it for you every day from now on.”

“Need not…”

Xi Meng’s mouth sank: “So you still dislike me…”

Wen Xi had a headache: “No… doing these things will delay my cultivation.”

Xi Meng said without thinking, “Don’t delay. I am very happy to make something for someone I like.”

Like, like?

A certain image suddenly flashed through Wen Xi’s mind. In the dim firelight, a beautiful woman sat next to Ji Yun and said, “I want to make something for the person I like.”

Absurd and frivolous.

Wen Xi suddenly stood up: “I’m going out to practice sword.”

Xi Meng looked at her back with regret. What did she say just now? Why did she run away?