Chapter 274: Xuanwu?

Chapter 274: Xuanwu?

Though they spoke of healing, this time neither side circulated true qi between them.

Before this moment, every intimacy between them could be dismissed with excuses like "when fighting side by side, one need not be bound by trivial formalities," "it's just healing, why overthink it," or "a small reward for him"—all manner of convenient steps down from the ledge.

They were comrades, they were like sister and brother... in short, not lovers.

But at this moment, Yue Hongling did not want to deceive herself, and Zhao Changhe felt the same.

In this instant, when he had first openly confessed "I like you," and then bowed his head to kiss her, and she was willing to accept it, both of their hearts were filled with a solemnity and seriousness befitting a pledge of love.

Like was like, a pledge was a pledge—some things could not be tainted by pragmatism.

Zhao Changhe had never been able to tell whether his special fondness for Yue Hongling came from seeing the jianghu of his heart in her, or from liking her as a person.

But at this moment, he felt no need to distinguish.

Because the jianghu in everyone's heart was different... When others saw Yue Hongling, they might not see her as the embodiment of the beauty of the jianghu; Qiao Er only found her an eyesore and a threat.

Only when one shared the same ideals would her every action perfectly align with one's own aesthetic, and only then would one feel that the beauty of the jianghu was fully embodied in her.

And so the heart stirred.

Then what difference did it make whether he liked the jianghu or liked her? They had always been one and the same.

That glance that moved his heart, from then until now, had finally brought her into his arms.

And was Yue Hongling's heart any different? She had never imagined that the youth she had casually saved while passing by Zhao Village would so perfectly match her own temperament and preferences, as if she had met another self—like a traveler trudging through the desert who had found a companion to walk with, hand in hand, and the wandering heart of many years finally found its resting place here.

I see the green mountains so charming, and I imagine the mountains see me the same.

After a long moment, their lips parted.

Yue Hongling gently pushed against his chest and said in a low voice, "Alright, let's get to business."

Zhao Changhe was reluctant to let go, but he knew this was not the time for indulgence. He asked, "Did you stay at Luan Stone Mountain because you discovered something?"

Yue Hongling said, "I did sense a very strange aura, extremely faint, flickering in and out. When I tried to focus on it, I couldn't pinpoint it, and I suspected it might be an illusion. I was a bit stubborn and wanted to observe more... Later, my supplies ran out, so I wandered around the edge of Huangsha Market to see if I could find an opportunity, and that's when I saw the Qiao family's caravan..."

"Seeing a caravan from the Central Plains there, you got angry right away, didn't you?"

Yue Hongling laughed. "Anyway, I ran into that yellow-faced fellow, and I thought he'd be perfect for helping me search around here—he's got a good head on his shoulders."

Zhao Changhe grinned. "So you'd give yourself to this fellow to kiss?"

"Look at you." Yue Hongling scolded playfully. "Besides all that nonsense you just spouted, what else do you have in mind? Spit it out."

Zhao Changhe gently touched her lips, still rosy from the kiss, and said with a smile, "Since there's water, there must be moisture."

Yue Hongling's brows shot up.

"I'm talking about that Luan Stone Mountain over there. Where did your mind go?"

Yue Hongling: "..."

Zhao Changhe continued, "Yuan Sanniang is most likely one of Ying Wu's people. Their organization's main goal is to search for lost secret realms scattered everywhere. Huangsha Market formed around a small lake—a lake appearing in the desert is abrupt, and combined with the faint aura they might have sensed nearby, it's only natural for Ying Wu to send someone to stay and study it. But they might have been led astray from the key point. Actually, lakes in the desert aren't that rare—like Crescent... uh, anyway, similar natural environments do exist, just the result of changes over time. It doesn't necessarily mean there's a secret realm."

Yue Hongling asked suspiciously, "How do you know Sanniang is one of his people? Are you that familiar with her?"

"..." Was this how women got at certain times?

Zhao Changhe chose not to answer and continued, "On the other hand, the place where you stayed, Luan Stone Mountain, had a small amount of water seeping out, which at least indicates there's groundwater that has already reached the surface. But if it were truly groundwater seeping to the surface, the vegetation there would be too sparse. That felt strange."

Yue Hongling brightened. "That's exactly why I stayed there to observe—I found it odd too!"

Zhao Changhe pointed at the lake before them. "If I'm not mistaken, that's the exit. The spatial membrane already has extremely fine cracks, allowing the water here to seep out slowly, and that's also the source of the faint, elusive aura. But precisely because it's only this kind of fine seepage, not true groundwater, the vegetation is sparse. That explains it."

Yue Hongling's eyes sparkled as she looked at him. She truly felt this fellow was indeed very clever.

Although knowing where they would end up after leaving didn't do much for their current situation, it had to be said that it gave them a much clearer picture. The vague sense of confusion that had lingered before was now completely gone.

Yue Hongling felt her energy fully restored, her drive renewed.

Without another word, she turned and strode briskly back to the pile of rocks. "Since both are related to stone, let me study whether this rock pile where we spent the night also has some formation. You rest for now."

Zhao Changhe turned to watch her go and suddenly noticed that her usual high ponytail had long since come undone. At this moment, her long hair flowed freely, her white clothes were like snow—from the back alone, no one would recognize her as Yue Hongling.

It was as if a subtle change had taken place in this female knight.

But she was still herself, still so decisive and free-spirited. A pledge was a pledge; after the kiss, she got to work without any lingering sentiment.

Zhao Changhe's mood lightened along with hers. He stretched his arms, feeling the injury under his ribs, and then plunged headfirst into the water.

What did it matter that he needed to recover his cultivation to hold his breath for long? He didn't even know how deep this lake was. He'd dive as far as he could and see what he could find.

This space had no sun, no moon, no wind—it was like a completely static realm. Someone might even believe it was the "Vacuum Homeland," but Zhao Changhe knew it had nothing to do with that. It was just a sealed-off dimension that defied common sense and couldn't be judged by ordinary logic.

If there was a treasure, it was most likely at the bottom of the lake. The Wang family's sea mud was also found at the bottom of the sea. These two might have been connected in the previous era, scattered far apart when the dimension shattered. There was no telling why one was a lake and the other a sea, but it was certain that both were aquatic in origin.

The sea mud itself probably had nothing to do with the so-called sea clans; it was just born at the bottom of the sea and likely occupied by them. The small amount that leaked out and was obtained by the Wang family was probably intentional, deliberately mixed with the aura of the sea clan to subtly infiltrate the Wang family members. The Wang family themselves still didn't know this, and Zhao Changhe wasn't about to help them uncover the truth—they could live or die as they pleased.

But here, since it was sealed off, there was no problem of sea clan infiltration. This was a true heavenly treasure.

There must be a treasure below. Zhao Changhe was certain of that.

As he dove deeper and deeper, he suddenly noticed something.

The island above was not a floating island. He had already descended quite deep, and he could still see the underwater part of the island beside him, as if it had no end.

This was a mountain at the bottom of the lake, and the part below was all one piece.

Moreover, the deeper he went, the larger the mountain body became. The further down he went, the more he found that the mountain was actually below him. In his mind, he could picture a huge arch shape, a low-lying mountain.

Zhao Changhe thought again of the Luan Stone Mountain from before—also a low-lying shape resembling a turtle, complete with a tail.

Everything pointed to the image of a turtle. Even here.

If these places were the image of a turtle, then what about the long, winding mountain range? Was it the image of a snake?

A turtle and a snake intertwined—the water of the north.

What was that? That was Xuanwu!

Was this place related to Xuanwu?

Was that why the Xuanwu branch of the Four Symbols Sect had long been stationed in the northern frontier?