Chapter 128

【Physique】: 1602 Qi-Blood (+)

Additionally, with the Thunder Unyielding Body breaking through to the fourth level, Xu Jingming's Qi-Blood also increased by about 150 points.

At this moment, he felt better than ever before.

He even had the confidence to engage a fourth-grade ferocious beast in direct combat without relying on the Heavenly Thunder Art!

In contrast, Song Qiuyun had stayed awake all night guarding.

Having endured another life-or-death crisis, her spirit was stretched to its limit, and now she was utterly exhausted.

"You should get some sleep first."

According to the original plan, Xu Jingming was supposed to part ways with Song Qiuyun today and enter the Demon Cavern's central region alone.

But given Song Qiuyun's current terrible condition, he obviously couldn't abandon her.

He would at least wait until her condition recovered before making further plans.

"Then let's go to that cave you mentioned earlier."

Having passed the crisis, Song Qiuyun felt she could fall asleep at any moment, yet she still forced herself to speak.

"The cave is at least half an hour away—just sleep right here."

"Don't worry, with me here, no ferocious beast can disturb you."

Crackling—

Xu Jingming waved his hand, and the Purple Thunder Divine Lightning surged forth.

It completely obliterated the surrounding ferocious beast corpses and the five fallen bodies of the Xueyue Sect disciples.

The entire lakeside instantly became much cleaner...

"Alright then."

Song Qiuyun naturally trusted Xu Jingming's strength and nodded slightly.

The grass by the lake was very soft, so she didn't take out a blanket from her space ring.

She simply lay gently on the grass, facing the warm, gentle sunlight, and fell into a deep sleep.

Xu Jingming, meanwhile, held his spear and silently guarded beside her.

"Grand Master, the Divine Blood Locator on Master Zhou's hand has suddenly lost its signal."

"Something may have happened—should we reassign personnel to recover the Divine Blood?"

Shun'an Supply Base,

inside a secluded villa.

A man in a black robe reported to a man in a gray robe seated inside the villa.

"This Divine Blood emerged at the outer edge of the Demon Cavern. Zhou Qiang is a fourth-grade adept, accompanied by five third-grade adepts."

"Only human adepts could have defeated them—not ferocious beasts..."

The gray-robed man mused, "No need to assign personnel. By the time you arrive, the Divine Blood has likely already been swallowed by some other ferocious beast."

Under normal circumstances, they would never have let such an emerging Divine Blood slip away.

But in one month, the Tianming Sect will make a major move—now is not the time to draw too much attention.

"Understood." The black-robed man bowed respectfully and withdrew.

Time slowly passed; the morning sun gradually climbed to its zenith.

It was late autumn, and the noon sunlight was not scorching, but warmly comforting.

The sunlight spilled down, as if draping the entire mountain range and forest of the Demon Cavern in a thin golden gauze.

The clear lake water shimmered brilliantly under the sun's rays.

Song Qiuyun, lying on the grass, resembled a sleeping beauty, her long black hair scattered across the ground, peaceful and beautiful.

"Mmm~"

With a soft murmur, Song Qiuyun's long, thick eyelashes fluttered slightly.

Her large eyes slowly opened, still clouded with the drowsy haze of sleep.

She sat up instinctively from the grass, lazily stretched her arms, and gradually became fully awake.

Seeing no familiar tall figure beside her, she instantly grew alarmed.

She quickly looked around and spotted Xu Jingming by the lake.

He stood beside a small fire, with several sticks threaded with chunks of meat resting over it.

The meat had clearly been roasting for some time, now golden-brown.

The dripping fat made the fire beneath burn even more vigorously.

At this moment, Xu Jingming was enthusiastically sprinkling seasonings from several bottles evenly onto the meat.

The aroma of roasted meat mingled with the scent of seasonings reached her, and Song Qiuyun, already somewhat hungry, involuntarily swallowed.

"You woke up just in time—come, have some food."

Xu Jingming noticed Song Qiuyun's awakening and smiled as he invited her.

"I didn't know you were such a food connoisseur."

Song Qiuyun rose from the grass and walked gracefully over to the fire.

Gazing at the meat roasting over the flames, exuding an irresistible fragrance, she couldn't help but praise it.

Don't think roasting meat is simple.

Most people, when roasting meat outdoors for the first time, easily end up with undercooked or burnt meat.

But Xu Jingming's roasted meat was completely different—it looked incredibly appetizing.

"Practice makes perfect. By the time this study trip ends, you'll probably be able to roast meat just as well."

Here, this one's done—take it.

Each branch was skewered with large, plentiful chunks of meat—ordinary girls couldn't possibly finish a single branch.

Xu Jingming, who had eaten with Song Qiuyun multiple times, also knew her appetite was huge.

So he casually pulled down one branch heavy with meat and handed it to Song Qiuyun.

"Thank you."

At this moment, Song Qiuyun no longer cared for ladylike decorum; she let the roasted meat cool slightly, then took a big bite.

The rich aroma filled her mouth, prompting an involuntary sigh of satisfaction:

"Mmm! So delicious! Jingming, you really should open a barbecue restaurant!"

"Sure, once the ferocious beasts are gone from Blue Star, I'll open a barbecue restaurant and retire."

"Fine, I'll invest in you."

"The Young Lady of the Song family investing in me? You'd end up opening chain stores all across Blue Star."

"......"

The two chatted and laughed, quickly finishing all the roasted meat.

But most of it ended up in Xu Jingming's stomach.

"Jingming, before we leave, can I take a bath?"

Looking at the pond water, now clear again after the blood had been fully absorbed, Song Qiuyun asked hopefully.

"Of course you can—it won't take long."

Xu Jingming didn't refuse; he nodded with a smile. "After you finish, I'll clean up a bit too."

He rarely bathed in the Wild Zone, but during the time he'd been sealed inside that blood-red cocoon,

he'd essentially been soaked in blood—though the blood had long since been fully absorbed by him.

Still, traces of bloody stench clung to his skin.

"Alright, I'll go first."

Song Qiuyun smiled sweetly and walked to the pond's edge.

Dawnlight burst from her slender body, forming a golden aura around her.

The next moment,

her graceful figure vanished within the golden shield.

Inside the golden shield, once she confirmed no view of the outside remained possible,

Song Qiuyun slowly peeled off her battle armor, revealing a flawless, perfectly proportioned, ivory-white body.

Her delicate toes gently touched the pond water—it wasn't cold as expected, but warm from the sunlight.

With no further hesitation, she submerged herself completely.

"Splish-splash~~"

Song Qiuyun swam in the pond, making soft ripples,

occasionally revealing glimpses of her alluring form—though the golden shield sealed them tightly, allowing not a single hint to escape.

Half an hour later, the golden shield flickered faintly.

Then it dissolved into specks of light particles, vanishing into the air.

Not far away, Xu Jingming instinctively looked over and saw Song Qiuyun's graceful figure stepping out.

Perhaps because she'd just bathed, she wasn't wearing her battle armor; her black hair hung loosely down her back.

She wore only a simple, loose, ultra-short pair of shorts, her long, Bai Xi legs perfectly exposed to the air.

On top, she wore a plain white short-sleeved shirt—but perhaps because the water hadn't been fully dried,

the shirt clung tightly to her body, slightly translucent.

Under the sunlight, her full, curvaceous silhouette was unmistakable.

And faintly, even the subtle protrusions could be glimpsed...