Chapter 135: Ink-Jade Honey

About half an hour later, by the side of a mountain spring a hundred miles west of the beehive, four figures sat on the wild grass, panting and resting.

"Why did we have to run so far? Those Ink-Jade Bees didn't chase us nearly this distance!"

Luan Shi Liangyan was drenched in a fine sweat; her cultivation realm was, after all, inferior to the others.

"We were lucky and successfully obtained the honey, but that doesn't mean no one else followed the smoke here. If they find out we were the ones who took it, they might hunt us down. Moving far away isn't to escape the Ink-Jade Bees, but other cultivators," Fang Junmei explained.

Yang Xiaoman and Luan Shi Daolang nodded in agreement.

Luan Shi Liangyan suddenly understood. It was clear that her experience in the realm of cultivation was not very extensive.

Fang Junmei walked over to the mountain spring, scooped up a handful of water to wash his face, and then asked casually, "Brother Daolang, what are the actual uses of that Ink-Jade Honey? Do tell."

Yang Xiaoman also turned her gaze toward Luan Shi Daolang.

"You two didn't even know its effects, yet you came to snatch it with us?!"

Luan Shi Daolang widened his eyes in disbelief.

Upon hearing this, Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman exchanged glances. After a brief silence, Fang Junmei said with a somewhat embarrassed expression, "...Truth be told, the two of us are hearing the name Ink-Jade Bee for the very first time..."

Hearing this, Luan Shi Daolang's face twitched with anger, and he muttered in a low voice, "You two bastards!"

Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman burst into hearty laughter.

Luan Shi Liangyan looked at the two of them and shook her small head with a smile. Perhaps this was her first time realizing that there were such interesting and straightforward people in the Daoist sects, rather than everyone being hypocritical pretenders.

After a bout of playful banter, the goods were already in their hands, and Luan Shi Daolang naturally couldn't do anything to them. Thus, Luan Shi Liangyan explained the uses of the Ink-Jade Honey.

...

"Ink-Jade Honey greatly nourishes the primordial spirit and is a top-tier treasure that even Dragon Gate cultivators desire. However, it only triggers a massive surge in spiritual awareness when used for the very first time. Given your current levels of spiritual awareness, consuming a bottle like this will cause it to surge by about threefold, though this elder sister's increase will be slightly less."

Luan Shi Liangyan spoke eloquently, her demeanor confident and composed when discussing matters of the primordial spirit, completely different from before. After speaking, she even took out a palm-sized jade bottle to gesture with.

"So powerful? Why would my increase be less?"

Yang Xiaoman clicked her tongue in amazement.

Fang Junmei listened with a secret sense of shock; think of how much cultivation time this could save!

A sharp glint flashed through his eyes as he asked another question, "Two questions. First, it seems you can see through the strength of our spiritual awareness? Second, why is it just the three of us? Are you an exception?"

Hearing these two questions, Luan Shi Daolang and his sister exchanged a glance and smiled smugly. Luan Shi Liangyan replied, "First, I can indeed see through it, but I won't tell you how. The reason my increase is smaller is because my spiritual awareness is stronger than theirs. Such heavenly spiritual treasures have weaker effects on stronger cultivators; otherwise, if those old monsters consumed them, wouldn't it go against the heavens?"

Yang Xiaoman uttered an "oh" of understanding.

"I'll answer the second question," Luan Shi Daolang said smugly. "Though my sister's cultivation realm is not high, she is a genius at cultivating the primordial spirit. Her spiritual awareness is probably stronger than the three of ours combined!"

Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman looked at Luan Shi Liangyan in astonishment; her outward appearance showed no sign of such transcendent ability.

Truly, one should not judge a book by its cover!

Luan Shi Liangyan's fair face flushed red under their gaze, and she smiled with a touch of shyness.

"That being said, wouldn't your effect be even worse than ours after consuming it?" Fang Junmei asked.

Luan Shi Liangyan nodded, a trace of depression flashing across her face.

"Aside from the first time consuming so much, is it completely useless afterward?" Yang Xiaoman asked. The forty percent share she and Fang Junmei had obtained amounted to roughly twenty times the volume of the bottle Luan Shi Liangyan had just gestured with. After using it themselves, they would still have a vast amount left.

"If the two of you don't need the remainder, our siblings would like to acquire a large quantity of it!"

Before Luan Shi Liangyan could speak, Luan Shi Daolang already said with a wicked smile, and upon finishing, he furtively and wretchedly shot a glance at Luan Shi Liangyan.

All three of them shook their heads and smiled.

Luan Shi Liangyan had clearly had enough of her brother's personality. Ignoring his look, she said, "Though it can no longer expand the primordial spirit, it can still be used as a quick recovery item when the primordial spirit is depleted. If used as an ingredient to refine primordial spirit pills, the effect is even greater. Of course, if the two of you truly have no use for it, you can also take it to the marketplace to sell. If auctioned, the price will surely astonish you."

The two of them nodded, finally fully enlightened.

Seeing his sister being so honest, Luan Shi Daolang couldn't help but let his eyebrows droop.

"Since the Ink-Jade Honey is so effective, why don't we carve out a cave dwelling nearby to consume it? It will also be convenient for seeking future opportunities afterward," Fang Junmei suggested as he walked over.

"Splendid. However, after consuming the honey, our siblings will have to bid farewell to the two of you. The opportunities that follow should naturally be sought individually," Luan Shi Daolang said, turning serious—business is business.

Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

...

The four wasted no time. Finding a secluded mountain stream nearby, they carved out simple cave dwellings and retreated inside.

Yang Xiaoman and Fang Junmei shared a chamber. Dividing the Ink-Jade Honey in half, Fang Junmei took his share and immediately consumed it.

The Ink-Jade Honey was crisp, sweet, and delicious. Once swallowed, instead of descending into the stomach, it transformed into a cool, green, qi-like presence that drilled straight toward the direction of the sea of consciousness.

Fang Junmei hurriedly opened up his sea of consciousness, and the green qi surged right in.

Within the sea of consciousness, Fang Junmei's primordial spirit naturally had not yet formed a human shape; instead, it resembled a pool of greenish, watery liquid.

Whoosh—

Once the green qi entered the sea of consciousness, it did not immediately merge with the liquid. Instead, it transformed into a gale-like entity, revolving around the pool of primordial spirit fluid.

As time passed, the green qi formed by the Ink-Jade Honey gradually melted into the primordial spirit fluid bit by bit.

With the growth of the primordial spirit fluid, its shape finally began to change. No longer a mere puddle of water, it bulged upward, as if about to condense into a solid entity.

Fang Junmei knew it was attempting to condense into a human form. Only after the primordial spirit condensed into a human shape would it truly be considered a minor accomplishment.

Unfortunately, the Ink-Jade Honey could not achieve that step just yet. After thoroughly merging into the fluid, it merely formed a small, jelly-like mass that wobbled transparently and brightly.

A feeling of comfort and power blossomed within Fang Junmei's heart.

Swish!

Fang Junmei opened his eyes. Within the dimly lit cave dwelling, two flashes of light seemed to streak across, suddenly brightening the space!

His eyes appeared brighter and deeper than before, filled with a captivating, soul-stirring radiance, and his physical eyesight seemed to have grown stronger as well.

Turning his head, he saw that Yang Xiaoman had opened her eyes before him and was looking at him with a gentle, blooming smile. Her crescent-shaped eyes rippled with watery luster, looking softer and more charming than before.

For a split second, Fang Junmei was slightly dazed by the sight.

...

When they emerged from the cave dwelling, Luan Shi Daolang and his sister had already come out, and their eyes likewise held a few more points of bright radiance.

Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman swept out their spiritual senses, which spread like poured mercury. Indeed, they discovered that both of their spiritual senses had grown two to three times stronger. That sudden feeling of expansion made them so excited that they couldn't help but clench their fists.

"Brother Junmei, Senior Sister Fang, we take our leave!"

Luan Shi Daolang let out a weird laugh, grabbed Luan Shi Liangyan, and rode the clouds away.

"Little brat, you're still using reckless addresses!" Yang Xiaoman scolded playfully.

Loud laughter drifted down from the sky.

After shaking his head with a smile, Fang Junmei and Yang Xiaoman forged ahead together.

...

In fact, according to the Daoist Priest Tianfeng's description, further ahead in this vast mountainous wilderness, there were different terrains to explore.

However, to abandon all opportunities here and rush straight there without stopping, discarding sesame seeds in the vain hope of picking up a giant watermelon at the end, was by no means a wise approach. Besides, time was still plenty, and there were bound to be "watermelons" waiting to be picked in these mountains.

Amidst the wilderness, the remnants of dilapidated walls gradually appeared. One could even spot tall, stone-statue-like figures planted at an angle into the earth, resembling a lost civilization.

Those stone statues were crude and rough, bearing no recognizable style of clothing. Yet, what was rather odd was that their faces were completely flat blocks—featureless, lacking a nose, eyes, or mouth, much like faceless beings.

"Be on guard, Junior Brother!"

After walking for a little less than half an hour, Yang Xiaoman's gaze suddenly locked, and she transmitted her voice: "Coming from behind us, a demonic cultivator has followed. He harbors ill intent, and he's also from the Luan Shi family—it seems to be Luan Shi Xing. This fellow is hot-tempered and murderous, possessing the mid-stage Dao Seed realm. He is not someone easy to deal with."

After the surge of her primordial spirit, Yang Xiaoman's spiritual awareness still remained stronger than Fang Junmei's.

Hearing this, Fang Junmei's gaze tightened, and his hand naturally gripped his sword.

The two of them would naturally not assume that all cultivators of the Luan Shi family were the same just because of the Luan Shi siblings.

...

Soon, an escaping light approached. The figure of Luan Shi Xing appeared within their line of sight. Skimming across the verdant mountain ridges, he came straight toward the two at breakneck speed.

With his unkempt long hair and gloomy gaze, he resembled a fierce wolf.

"Hand over your storage bags!"

Luan Shi Xing shouted midway. Silver-white light burst forth from his body, revealing an actual silver-white skeleton beneath his skin!

"Sword Dao into the Bones? Be careful, Junior Brother!"

Seeing this, Yang Xiaoman shouted out a warning. In truth, even without her reminder, Fang Junmei had already guessed what was going on from that silver skeleton, and his heart turned solemn.

Could he and Yang Xiaoman be a match for a mid-stage Dao Seed cultivator who had achieved Sword Dao into the Bones?

The two could certainly try to flee, but judging from the speed at which the other party had caught up, Luan Shi Xing's movement technique was superior to theirs.

This battle could not be avoided!

A sharp glint flashed through Fang Junmei's eyes as he quietly transmitted a few words to Yang Xiaoman.