Chapter 26: There Is Something Good Underwater

Su Yunyue had never encountered such a situation before. Pale and incoherent with fear, she stammered, "Sister, Your Highness, what... what should we do?"

"Elder Hong and the others must be monitoring our situation; they will surely come to rescue us!" Su Yunqi said with a furrowed brow. Looking at the pack of wolves before them, she knew that fleeing was no longer an option. The wolves were swift, and the strength of the alpha was not to be underestimated; a reckless retreat would only lead them into greater danger.

The only course of action was to hold them off and wait for the elders.

Xiao Jinghuai shared this sentiment. From the moment the wolves appeared, he had been observing them. Seeing that they were merely circling with predatory intent and had yet to attack, he realized they were likely probing their defenses, waiting for them to show a vulnerability before striking.

Thus, running now would be tantamount to suicide. He supported Su Yunqi's idea: "Yes, I think she is right. Let's hold our ground for now!"

Everyone nodded in agreement. Su Yunyue, trembling with fear, ducked behind Su Yunqi and Xiao Jinghuai, whispering shakily, "If I had known, we should have let Su Yunqing stay with the group; she could have at least served as a distraction."

Xiao Jinghuai’s eyes turned icy. "Are you blaming me?"

"No, no," she bit her lip and said cautiously, terrified that if she angered him, he would abandon her.

Xiao Jinghuai’s expression softened slightly, and he turned to the group. "Focus on the enemy in front of us!"

At that moment, the alpha wolf let out a piercing howl: "Awoo!"

The pack surged forward, seemingly satisfied with their observation and ready to strike.

Xiao Jinghuai prepared himself with grim focus. Meanwhile, watching from the shadows, Su Yunqing had no intention of helping; in fact, she wished they would all perish there.

At that moment, Little Mist, who had been quietly grooming its feathers on her shoulder, suddenly looked toward a specific direction and gently tapped her face with its wing.

"What is it?" Su Yunqing immediately turned her full attention to the creature, her expression earnest.

Little Mist pointed to her left, then flapped its wings, signaling for her to follow.

Su Yunqing immediately took hold of it, her gaze gentle. "Don't rush, I'll go with you."

She hurried off. As for Xiao Jinghuai and his group, they were trapped for the moment; with so many wolves, they could not possibly kill them all in a short time without the help of the elders.

She followed the direction Little Mist indicated and soon arrived at a waterfall, where the rushing water crashed against the rocks below with a melodic sound.

Before she could react, Little Mist dove headfirst into the pool beneath the waterfall. She tried to stop it, but it was already submerged.

Just as she frowned and prepared to step into the water to fish Little Mist out, she heard Little Cloud’s voice: "Master, please let me out."

"Later. I need to get Little Mist out of the water first." Considering Little Cloud’s delicate constitution, she felt it best to keep it away from the cold water.

"Master," Little Cloud’s voice came again, "did it go in on its own?"

"Yes. Do you know something?" she asked, a sudden realization dawning on her.

"Yes. Master, you don't need to worry. Since it went in, it must have sensed some treasure. It wouldn't risk its life, so you can just wait on the shore." Little Cloud was honest; there was nothing to hide from its master.

"Alright." Since it said so, she was no longer in a hurry and released Little Cloud.

She noticed that Little Cloud’s spirit seemed much improved compared to before; it no longer looked like it was on the verge of death and possessed a hint of vitality.

"Master! There is something good down there!" As soon as Little Cloud emerged, it stared intently at the pool. It understood why Little Mist had been so eager to jump in—there was a treasure hidden within.

Su Yunqing understood why Little Mist had been so excited. Seeing Little Cloud’s yearning expression, she realized the treasure must be highly beneficial for spirit beasts.

"Little Cloud, why don't you stay in the spirit contract space? I'll go down and take a look; if there is enough, I’ll bring some back for you."

"Splash!" At that moment, bubbles rose to the surface, and a bird’s head appeared. It struggled clumsily to move toward the shore.

Seeing it struggling, she immediately used her spiritual energy to support it. Once it reached the bank, she saw it was dragging a box.

Little Mist excitedly opened the box, grabbed a glowing spirit herb with its beak, and swallowed it in a few gulps.

Little Cloud watched with undisguised envy, which made Su Yunqing even more curious. "Little Cloud, what is it eating?"

"Master, that is a 'Soul-Condensing Herb,' something that helps us advance!" It sounded truly regretful. Why hadn't it been outside? If it had, it would have fought for that herb!

After consuming the herb, Little Mist collapsed, its aura chaotic and fluctuating.

Su Yunqing dared not leave it lying there, so she retrieved it into the spirit contract space. She then looked at the remaining items in the box: a small booklet and a white jade pendant.

She tucked them away, intending to deal with them once Little Mist woke up, but then noticed the ripples in the water becoming violent. She quickly stepped back with Little Cloud, her body tensed in defense.

Suddenly, a pitch-black head broke the surface. It scanned the box at her feet, then fixed its gaze on her, radiating fury.

It lashed out with its massive, dark tail. Su Yunqing reacted quickly to dodge, but the creature was too large; the edge of the tail still struck her. The force slammed her against the rocky wall nearby, her back crashing into the embedded stones. She winced in pain.

Even Little Cloud was thrown from her arms by the shockwave, but it adjusted mid-air and landed gracefully. Seeing Su Yunqing injured, its eyes turned cold as it glared at the creature in the water.

Little Cloud began to channel its spiritual energy and asked, "Master, can you still hold on?"

"I can." She would not die here. She straightened her posture, enduring the pain.