Chapter 130: My Garden Doesn't Grow This Stuff
"All done," Xiao Yan said casually, clapping the dust off his hands. He turned to Xiao Yi Xian with a smile. "Let's head inside."
This guy is way too violent! Xiao Yi Xian grumbled internally, thinking, What a brute!
"Let's go," Xiao Yan said again, reaching out to take her hand.
"Hey, can't you behave?" Xiao Yi Xian struggled a little, but she couldn't free herself and was eventually pulled along by Xiao Yan.
Moments later, they entered a spacious, well lit hall.
"You can let go of me now," Xiao Yi Xian said through gritted teeth, though her voice was much softer than usual.
She couldn't bring herself to yell at him. The sheer strength and composure Xiao Yan had displayed left her too intimidated.
"Sure. What, you think I enjoy holding your hand?" Xiao Yan teased as he let go.
Xiao Yi Xian gave a cold huff, but her attention was soon drawn to the treasures in the hall.
Above them, three luminous pearls embedded in the ceiling radiated a soft glow, lighting up the otherwise dark chamber.
"Wow!" Despite her usual calm demeanor, Xiao Yi Xian couldn't hide her excitement.
"Purple Blue Leaves, White Spirit Fruit, Snow Lotus Seeds..." She listed the herbs she saw, her beautiful face lighting up with joy. These were all rare and valuable medicinal ingredients.
In one corner, a pile of gold coins formed a small mountain, likely worth tens of thousands of gold. Yet, it was the herbs that truly captivated her.
"Are these things really that impressive?" Xiao Yan asked, watching her amusedly.
"Of course they are! Aren't you supposed to be a pharmacist? Don't you understand their value?" Xiao Yi Xian snapped, rolling her eyes at him an expression she seemed to have reserved exclusively for him today.
"Exactly because I'm a pharmacist, I don't find these things impressive," Xiao Yan said, smirking.
In the Xiao Clan, herbs like these were nothing more than basic crops. To Xiao Yan, even the plants casually growing in his family's garden were more precious than these.
After a while, Xiao Yi Xian stopped marveling at the herbs and glanced at Xiao Yan shyly. "Why don't you pick something first?"
Hearing this, Xiao Yan's gaze softened, a hint of mischief flickering in his eyes.
"You love these things, don't you? Why let me go first? Don't tell me... you've fallen for me?"
"I just don't want Xiao Yan the Great Pharmacist getting angry and doing something... improper to a helpless girl like me," Xiao Yi Xian retorted, clearly unimpressed by his cheeky grin.
"Don't say that. Even if I'm happy, I might still do something improper to you," Xiao Yan quipped, his smile turning a little wicked.
Despite her annoyance, Xiao Yi Xian couldn't help but chuckle, her expression softening. "Fine. You're shameless, but at least you're generous."
"Don't forget it," Xiao Yan said with a grin, waving a hand. "Take all these treasures as a gift from me to a beautiful lady."
"Alright then," Xiao Yi Xian replied sweetly, her mood lightening further.
"Smack!" A sharp sound echoed as Xiao Yan playfully swatted her arm.
"Say something like that again, and I'll punish you on the spot," he warned, a serious look on his face.
"Jerk!" Xiao Yi Xian muttered, blushing furiously as she turned to harvest her precious herbs.
After gathering everything, Xiao Yi Xian looked back at Xiao Yan.
"Hey "
"My name's Xiao Yan," he interrupted, turning to her with a teasing smile. "What's up?"
"There's an Iceflame Spirit Grass here. You can have it," she said, pointing to a crystalline blue herb growing at the center of the flower bed.
"That's the most valuable herb here. Are you sure you want to give it to me?" Xiao Yan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"We're friends, aren't we? Besides, I wouldn't have been able to get these treasures without you," Xiao Yi Xian said sincerely.
"Friends? That's not enough. I think we'd make great lovers," Xiao Yan declared, leaning in to playfully tap her backside.
Anticipating his move, Xiao Yi Xian dodged quickly, then pouted and punched his arm lightly with her delicate fist.
"Can't you be serious for once?"
"I am serious," Xiao Yan replied, plucking the Iceflame Spirit Grass out of the soil with a casual tug.
"Can't you be gentler?" Xiao Yi Xian scolded, her heart aching at his rough treatment of the herb.
"It's just a plant. In my family, we use this stuff to brew iced tea," Xiao Yan said nonchalantly.
"Yeah, right," Xiao Yi Xian scoffed, though curiosity flickered in her eyes. "What's iced tea?"
"It's a kind of cold drink," Xiao Yan explained with a grin. "Why don't you come home with me and try it out?"
A shadow of complicated emotion flickered across Xiao Yi Xian's face, but she quickly masked it with a playful punch to his shoulder.
"Dream on, you rascal."
Xiao Yan chuckled but said no more, watching her with an amused expression as she continued rummaging through the hall for treasures.
The Iceflame Spirit Grass truly wasn't impressive to Xiao Yan. In the Xiao Clan, it was little more than a common crop. In fact, he once harvested an entire field of it to experiment with brewing his iced tea, much to the dismay of his clansmen.
He recalled how his cousin Xiao Feng's grandfather had angrily scolded him for days after discovering his farm had been stripped bare overnight.
Despite this, Xiao Yan had succeeded in creating his iced tea, which even the elders of the Xiao Clan praised.
After helping Xiao Yi Xian gather the herbs, Xiao Yan approached a skeleton clutching a key. Using it, he unlocked three chests in the hall.
The contents, however, were disappointing: all the techniques and manuals were of the Xuan rank. Xiao Yan barely spared them a glance, finding them unworthy of his time. Instead, he carefully extracted a small scroll from the skeleton's ribcage.
This scroll contained a fragment of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's map something left behind by the Purifying Lotus Demon Sage himself.
"Guess I'll take this little scroll. The rest is yours," Xiao Yan said, waving dismissively.
"Really?" Xiao Yi Xian asked, both surprised and suspicious.
"You're not plotting anything, are you?"
"Of course not. I love you too much to care about material things," Xiao Yan said with a sly grin.
"Liar," Xiao Yi Xian muttered, though her lips curved into a faint smile.
"What's on that scroll?" she asked curiously.
"It holds a great secret. But you wouldn't understand it. The only thing you should be holding onto is me," Xiao Yan teased, spreading his arms invitingly.
Xiao Yi Xian glared at him, unimpressed.
With a shrug, Xiao Yan reached into one of the unlocked chests and pulled out a multicolored scroll.
"The Seven Colored Poison Codex," he read aloud dramatically.
"Give it back!" Xiao Yi Xian's eyes widened as she lunged toward him, her white hand reaching for the scroll.
(End of Chapter)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/LightKira10