"Your Highness, I am here on the Country Lord's orders. If I go back like that, it will be hard for me to explain it to him!
"Recently, the enemy countries have been making trouble for us. Our Country Lord is worried that they might assassinate you. Your Highness, please allow me to accompany you on this expedition. Once you get back to the Immortal Du Sect, I will go back."
Youqin Xuanya frowned slightly. There was a hint of frustration on her normally emotionless face.
Yuan Qing spoke up to persuade her. "Junior Sister Xuanya, we are going to the North Continent. That's a dangerous place. With General Yuwen with us, there would be more people to look out for you."
Li Changshou suddenly said matter-of-factly, "Junior Brother Yuan Qing, did you know this general beforehand? I didn't hear the general report his name earlier."
"En, that's right." Yuan Qing glanced at Li Changshou and smiled. "Junior Sister Xuanya and I grew up together. We also joined the Immortal Du Sect together.
"This general's name is Yuwen Ling. He is Xuanya's father's most trusted general. Normally, he is in charge of guarding Xuanya's father himself. The fact that he was sent here personally shows that the situation is quite arduous."
'So the facially-paralyzed woman and the big, warm man were childhood friends…'
Li Changshou cupped his hands and said, "I spoke too much."
Yuwen Ling frowned and shouted, "Sixth Princess, Your Highness!"
Youqin Xuanya turned to look at Jiu Jiu, who was slumped by the wine gourd's mouth. There was a pleading look on her face.
"Don't get in our way, don't get in our way," Immortal Jiu Jiu lazily said as she waved her hands by the side of the gourd, "Since he is your guard, he can come with us. A burly man who has just ascended to immortality would not be able to cause much trouble in our midst, anyway.
"Hey, Hunk, sit at the back of the gourd.
"Don't make a sound afterward. It's not appropriate for me to allow you to come with us. The good thing is that the sect's rules do not prohibit our disciples' guards from following us on expeditions."
Yuwen Ling cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Immortal Elder."
Once he finished speaking, the burly man with his huge axe floated to the gourd's back. Jiu Jiu pointed, and a gap appeared in the immortal glow around the huge gourd.
While watching the situation, Li Changshou took two steps to the side expressionlessly. Then, from the side, he walked towards the front of the gourd and cupped his hands, asking, "Aunt-Master Jiu, can your disciple sit behind you?"
Jiu Jiu did not know whether to laugh or cry. "Why? You're already more than 100 years old, are you afraid of death?
"Come and sit. Your Master said you have a very cautious personality. He was right about you."
"Senior Brother Li, please sit here." Youqin Xuanya stood up willingly. She smiled at Li Changshou apologetically and moved back two steps.
"Thank you," Li Changshou replied, nodding. He did not care about the two sharp glares behind him. Instead, he sat down where Youqin Xuanya was seated earlier.
The two glares were again coming from Liu Yan'er and Wang Qi. It was obvious that they were offended by Li Changshou's 'rudeness'. They must have thought that he was not behaving as gracefully as disciples from the Immortal Du Sect were expected to.
Naturally, Li Changshou chose not to mind them.
Immortal Jiu Jiu continued to steer her wind gourd across the sky, towards the north. As if to mock Li Changshou, Liu Yan'er, and Wang Qi started a conversation with Yuwen Ling on purpose.
However, Yuwen Ling—this burly man—was quite taciturn. The conversation between the three of them was extremely awkward, and they quickly ran out of things to talk about.
Yuan Qing seemed to have had it. He took the initiative to join the conversation. Only then did the mood lighten up, and the conversation flow became smooth.
Li Changshou did not even bother turning around. He kept his right hand firmly around his sleeve and released a wisp of spiritual awareness to keep an eye on his surroundings.
Before he had decided to go to the North Continent on his own, Li Changshou had pondered about it deeply. He had taken the time to speak to a few attendants in the Hundred Mortal Hall, who he was close to, until he understood the situation. He had found out that the immortal, who would be guarding the disciples on their trip this time, would be the same one who was in charge of this trip the past few times—Immortal Jiu Jiu.
Although Jiu Jiu had been training for less than 1,000 years, her skills could not be underestimated. She also had a set of awesome mystical abilities, and a few pieces of Dharma treasures, which had been given to her by the Sect Master. It was said that her cultivation level was approaching the Heaven Immortal realm.
After ascending to immortality, cultivators normally went through the following realms in order: Essence Immortal, Perfected Immortal, Heaven Immortal, Golden Immortal, Zenith Heaven, and Boundless Chaos. This was known as the Heaven Immortal Dao.
The most important thing was that Jiu Jiu was among the few people who were acquainted with his Master.
Initially, Li Changshou had thought that few people would head to the North Continent to train. With this immortal's protection, he would be much safer than if he had gone there on his own.
However, he did not expect that he would encounter such a situation along the way.
Li Changshou stole a glance at Yuan Qing and Yuwen Ling and quietly began to ponder. He closed his eyes slowly. He was in no mood to cultivate. Instead, he remained vigilant to activate his Wind Escape.
It was a good thing that he was seated closer to Aunt-Master Jiu. He felt safer.
'Er?'
"Hehehe… I'll just have a little sip. We're still a long way from our destination. Nothing could go wrong, nothing could go wrong…"
Immortal Jiu, who was still seated at the mouth of the gourd, smiled strangely. She hugged her wine gourd filled with wine and sipped at it stealthily. Her face flushed even redder as she licked her lips, savoring the taste of the wine.
Li Changshou was rendered speechless.
Indeed, he should find a reason to leave the team and advance on his own.
His Master was his priority.
…
Half a day passed, and he still hadn't spoken.
The sun was setting in the west as if fighting with the stars in the sky.
Seated on the wine gourd, which measured more than 100 feet, surrounded by a mild immortal glow, and smelling the alcohol in the air, Li Changshou held up a bamboo slip and read quietly.
The others, including Yuwen Ling, who was seated right at the back, were already cultivating.
Jiu Jiu's eyes were half-open. She lay down at the front of the wine gourd, allowing the wind to mess up her short hair. Indeed, she looked very different from most other immortals. However, one could also say that she looked full of character.
Li Changshou quietly appreciated the Dao technique recorded on the slip, imagining how the Dao technique would work. However, he never retracted his spiritual awareness. He remained on the lookout for any danger within 100 feet of himself.
This was because he had intentionally gone through cautious training before. For him, this was not much of a burden.
A wine gourd suddenly appeared in front of his eyes. Li Changshou shook his head with a somber expression and said, "Thank you, Aunt-Master. Your disciple does not take kindly to wine."
"Boring," Jiu Jiu replied, rolling her eyes. She jumped up from the 'stopper' of the wine gourd and sat at the edges of the wine gourd's mouth. Gently, she swung the cleanest part of her body—her slender legs.
She burped, and then asked seemingly subconsciously, "Changshou, your Master is going to ascend to immortality soon, right?"
"The tribulation should be about three to five years away," replied Li Changshou while setting his book down on his legs. He turned his attention to Aunt-Master Jiu in front of him.
Jiu Jiu was actually one of the few people who would go to the Little Qiong Peak after Li Changshou joined the sect about 100 years ago.
"Ai." Jiu Jiu sighed. She turned her back to Li Changshou and began to educate him in a deliberately aged tone.
"We got along quite well back then. Your Master is pitiful. His potential was not bad, but after he was injured, his Dao base suffered. Until now, he is having difficulty making up for it.
"Changshou, don't despise your Master just because he hasn't ascended to immortality yet. His understanding of the Immortal Du Sect's Dao techniques is not worse than any 1,000-year-old immortal…"
"What are you talking about, Aunt-Master?" Li Changshou smiled slightly, causing his eyes to narrow as well. Extremely few people, apart from his Master and Junior Sister, had ever seen this expression on his face.
Li Changshou said, "My Master has always been giving his best to teach my Junior Sister and I. To me, Master is like my parent."
"Speaking of which, what is up with your cultivation level? It's been so many years, but you're still at the Ninth Stage of Soul Formation. You can't even break through the Void Return realm?"
Jiu Jiu turned around to stare at the Little Qiong Peak. "When your Aunt-Master joined the sect, I heard people say that your Little Qiong Peak was filled with bad luck. It looks like that's quite true.
"Show me your hand. I will see your potential. I remember your potential being quite good when you joined the sect, right? Don't tell me that foolish Master of yours really messed you up!?"
Li Changshou immediately frowned. 'Aunt-Master Jiu has good intentions, but…'
If she came into contact with Li Changshou's body and inspected it, given her formidable skills as a Perfected Immortal, she would surely be able to tell Li Changshou's true cultivation level despite his use of Dharma spells to hide it!
Jiu Jiu was already reaching out towards Li Changshou with her alcohol-scented right hand. He subconsciously rubbed his bottom and smiled shyly. "Aunt-Master, men, and women should not get too close. I'm afraid it's inappropriate."
"Men and women should not get too close? Who said that? I've never heard that!"
Jiu Jiu immediately cast Li Changshou a look of contempt. "The cultivators in my generation chase freedom. We want to live our lives freely. Why should you care about the customs and rules of the world?!
"Hurry, show me your hand!
"Has something gone wrong with your cultivation? I remember that your potential was quite good."
"Aunt-Master, that's inappropriate! Your disciple found out a few years ago that I will convulse all over whenever I come into contact with females!"
Li Changshou stood up suddenly and turned away. Two images emerged from his body as he quickly and smoothly appeared again behind Youqin Xuanya, smiling bitterly at Jiu Jiu.
Jiu Jiu blinked, suddenly realizing something.
'The footwork that this fella used as he moved his body…'
"Dragon Swimming Across Clouds? That's not bad, brat. You've learned such difficult footwork?" Jiu Jiu's expression became strange. "Your Master said that you were only interested in escape techniques. You haven't been spending the past hundred years on this, have you?!"
"Your disciple has always been working hard on cultivating. I have never been re— What!?"
He felt a soft touch.
Li Changshou looked down and saw fair, slender fingers gently stroking his inner thigh. A few black lines immediately appeared on his forehead.
He traced the slender fingers with his eyes, down to a smooth, fair arm, which resembled an exquisite statue made out of Mutton Fat white jade. He continued to trace the arm and saw a fiery-red shoulder strap, collar, and finally a slightly-tilted, slightly-curious, charming face.
Youqin Xuanya!
'Found out a few years ago that I will convulse all over whenever I come into contact with females!'
The corners of Li Changshou's mouth kept twitching wildly, but he made a decision a split second later.
This was one ruthless person. He had no regard for his outer-appearance now. His entire body began to tremble, and he gritted his teeth as he caused his own muscles to twist and turn. His face was contorted with pain, and his eyes rolled back as white foam began to form in his mouth.
D*mn it! Youqin Xuanya, aren't you an ice mountain?! Wretch!