Chapter 74: If you

Shen Tang didn’t know what was wrong with herself.

Clearly, during their talk that night, she had told him, "There can be no scandals." Logically, they should have been even more careful to avoid suspicion, especially since Zhang Shaoyou and the others accompanying them weren't entirely reliable yet. In front of them, she should have been even more cautious.

Yet, because the two of them were continuing to pretend to be cripples and needed to share a carriage, they remained alone in the small space of the cabin.

That would have been fine; being alone was being alone, and it wasn't as if others hadn't seen it before.

But somehow, they had gone from sitting face-to-face to sitting side-by-side. Shen Tang thought for a long time about how that change had started, only to finally recall that she had been the one to lean over first...

The cause wasn't even Lu Xingzhou provoking her. Lu Xingzhou had been busy organizing rings the whole way, and then he even stuffed several into her hands: "These are the spoils from the secret treasury. I kept a few that are useful for myself and Anuo; the rest belong to the Profound Heaven Sect’s public treasury."

Shen Tang hadn't even thought about this batch of items; she had long since defaulted to them belonging to Lu Xingzhou... In any case, they had plenty of spoils, such as the money vault, spirit stone vault, and basic resource vault of the Incense Burning Tower, not to mention the storage rings seized from the enemy's experts. Some of the good items inside might even be stronger than the sect's collection. Shen Tang hadn't made Zhang Shaoyou and the others hand over what they had seized themselves, defaulting to the rule that whoever seized it kept it.

Following this precedent, the secret treasury that Lu Xingzhou and Anuo had secured naturally belonged to Lu Xingzhou.

Yet, Lu Xingzhou had actually turned over the majority to the public...

Shen Tang was momentarily stunned and didn't reach out to take them: "These are your and Anuo's spoils."

Lu Xingzhou laughed: "Everyone was risking their lives on the front lines; I was just responsible for picking up the scraps. These are public spoils."

Shen Tang’s gaze gradually softened like water: "Is it because of me?"

"This is as it should be. I am a member of the Profound Heaven Sect; I don't intend to view myself as separate. Theoretically, if I wanted any of these, I would still need your consent. I skipped that step and kept what I wanted—that is because of you."

Shen Tang wanted to laugh upon hearing this. So, giving things away wasn't because of personal feelings, but keeping them was.

She bit her lower lip and said in a charming voice: "Then... does that mean you want a reward again?"

Lu Xingzhou blinked, his gaze landing on her feet once more.

Shen Tang subconsciously shrank back, feeling a bit shy and annoyed: "You, is there something wrong with you..."

They were already at the point of kissing, so why were you still thinking about feet...

Is it because you like what you lack? But your legs are fine now!

Lu Xingzhou didn't know why he was particularly interested in Shen Tang’s small feet. Perhaps it was the heartbeat he felt the first time he treated her legs, or maybe it was because his name contained the character for 'boat'?

Thinking that he could demand more now, there was really no need to just tentatively touch her feet, so he said deliberately: "Then what does the Sect Master want to reward me with?"

Shen Tang half-stood, looking left and right like a thief, though the carriage curtains were drawn tightly. She quickly leaned over and launched a sneak attack on Lu Xingzhou’s face: "That’s all it’s worth..."

Just as she was about to pretend to sit back down as if nothing had happened, her hand was grabbed, and she was pulled into his arms and held tight.

"You... don't..." Shen Tang pushed him, but couldn't push him away, feeling a bit flustered: "There are so many people outside..."

Lu Xingzhou calmly inserted a set of formation flags, surrounding the small carriage: "At least this can block sound."

Shen Tang didn't even have time to refuse before her cherry lips were kissed again.

It took only a second for Shen Tang to go from struggling slightly to completely closing her eyes and enjoying it.

At this moment, Yuan Muyu was declaring her "That's impossible" manifesto.

After all, there were people outside. Even if they could block the sound, it was still too stimulating. Both of their hearts were pounding, and apart from kissing, their hands and feet were stiff, not daring to move recklessly.

When they finally separated, Shen Tang’s eyes were already misty, and she leaned weakly against his shoulder: "You really are a lecher... How did I get tricked by you..."

Lu Xingzhou held her gently, smelling the fragrance of her body so close by: "Why don't you say it was me who was tricked by the Princess..."

Shen Tang raised her voice: "How did I trick you!"

Lu Xingzhou pulled out a silk scarf with his left hand: "Starting from here."

Shen Tang stopped talking immediately, her pretty face flushed red. It was clearly just a silk scarf wrapped around herbs at the time, but now it had truly become a token of their love, and it was even being used to tease her.

But it was very likely... that this was indeed the moment that touched Lu Xingzhou’s heart. Before this, Lu Xingzhou clearly still had many calculations and exploitations; after this, there were none.

Seeing her delicate and dripping-with-charm appearance, Lu Xingzhou’s index finger twitched, and he kissed her again.

In the heat of the moment, they forgot even more that there were people outside. Lu Xingzhou’s hand began to explore her soft body almost unconsciously.

Shen Tang was startled, nervously pressing down on his palm, and quickly glanced outside.

Just then, a north wind blew, the window curtain rolled up slightly, revealing a gap, and Dugu Qingli’s sidelong glance flashed by.

That look was simply... indescribable... Shen Tang felt her whole body burning up, as if she were about to explode.

"Cough." Lu Xingzhou was also a bit embarrassed and carefully moved his hand away.

Shen Tang slapped his hand hatefully: "Giving an inch and wanting a mile, giving an inch and wanting a mile! You stinking lecher!"

Lu Xingzhou kept a straight face and said nothing.

After slapping him for a while, Shen Tang finally leaned back into his shoulder and said faintly: "Regardless of whether it's the occasion... I can't respond to you. Xingzhou, do you feel it's unfair?"

Lu Xingzhou hadn't thought about that and shook his head: "What are you thinking about?"

"No, I thought of it when I saw Qingli..." Shen Tang hesitated for a moment before whispering: "You like Qingli, don't you..."

Lu Xingzhou widened his eyes: "What do you want to say?"

Shen Tang bit her lower lip, wanting to say something but unable to for a long time.

Lu Xingzhou was so clever that he understood her meaning instantly, his expression becoming incredibly strange.

Does she mean she doesn't mind if I seduce the little white-haired girl, and is even intending to encourage it?

So, is this the biggest benefit of transmigrating to ancient times? For the first nineteen years, I only experienced the bad parts; are the good parts finally coming now?

If one thinks carefully, Shen Tang’s idea might not be purely an expression of generosity; perhaps there was a hint of political consideration. Qingli is a direct descendant of a Holy Land, if...

She didn't know if Shen Tang herself had thought that far, but seeing Lu Xingzhou’s strange expression, she also felt that her way of stating this was too much, and she stammered, unable to speak.

Finally, she sat up straight indignantly: "Anyway, Qingli would never look for a man, so it's useless no matter how much you like her! If you're so capable, go for it. I’d like to see if she can still maintain that ice-block face."

Lu Xingzhou twitched his mouth and finally said: "What you need to consider now is how to keep her here, not these irrelevant things—if you still want to keep her."

Shen Tang froze and fell silent.

Dugu Qingli had already expressed her desire to leave many times before. She didn't know if it had anything to do with the accidental intimacy in the secret realm... In any case, it was because the battle of the Incense Burning Tower was imminent, and they needed her powerful combat strength and Holy Land background, that she had said a bunch of crooked logic about cultivation breakthroughs to keep her.

Dugu Qingli wasn't a fool. Now that the battle of the Incense Burning Tower was over, in the short term, there was truly nothing that could threaten Shen Tang’s safety. She would propose leaving again at any time. What reason could she use to keep her this time?

Should she really ask her to have a romance to temper her heart?

If she dared to say that directly, the little white-haired girl might dare to draw her sword and slash at her.

Besides, keeping someone like this all the time, isn't it a bit too selfish... Dugu Qingli is an unparalleled swordswoman seeking the Dao of Immortality and the Dao of the Sword; why keep dragging her to stay here?

…………

The group returned to Mount Danxia. Carrying the prestige of destroying the sect, Shen Tang had a lot of sect affairs to handle, so Lu Xingzhou didn't go up the mountain and returned to the small cabin he had built by the pool behind the Huo residence.

Dugu Qingli pushed Shen Tang with an expressionless face, while Shen Tang looked straight ahead at the mountain path. Shen Tang even specifically sent Zhang Shaoyou and the others up the mountain first, appearing as if she had something to say to Dugu Qingli, but the two remained silent until they were halfway up the mountain without speaking.

Finally, it was Dugu Qingli who broke the silence: "You sent them away; what do you want to say to me?"

"Cough." Shen Tang said: "How much... did you see just now?"

"I saw something that even animals wouldn't do."

Shen Tang: "?"

Dugu Qingli said: "In all the animals I've seen since I was young, there has never been such a strange performance between male and female. Isn't other people's saliva disgusting?"

"We didn't use our tongues... wait, no... that's not it..." Shen Tang was so angry she became incoherent: "This is a kiss, human men and women all do it!"

"Is that so?" Dugu Qingli said lightly, looking as if she didn't believe it no matter what Shen Tang said.

You guys even wanted to use your tongues... tsk.

Shen Tang was so angry her teeth itched. The little bit of shame and embarrassment she had felt had long since flown away. She said hatefully: "Sooner or later, you will know whether that is disgusting or not... when that time comes, don't beg for it yourself!"

Dugu Qingli’s tone was pitiful: "No wonder practicing the sword requires a mind free of distracting thoughts. This is why people must cultivate; I have finally realized it. As for some techniques... sigh."

Shen Tang opened her mouth, then opened it again, only to find that she had lost the function of language and had no idea how to respond to this.

She now extremely regretted sending others away to talk about private matters with this person. She had originally wanted to get a few words of encouragement and blessings, but now this best-friendship was gone!

In fact, she didn't know that Dugu Qingli’s state of mind wasn't as indifferent and detached as it looked on the surface. The little white-haired girl didn't know what that strange feeling in her heart was when she caught a glimpse of them; apart from making a few sarcastic remarks, she seemed to have nothing else to say.

After the sarcasm, seeing Shen Tang so angry she couldn't speak, she felt inexplicably refreshed.

Then she said leisurely: "You are going to hold a sect meeting, so I won't participate. I am going to travel and train now; you shouldn't have anything to stop me with, right?"

Shen Tang still said the same thing: "Then go ask Lu Xingzhou."

Dugu Qingli still didn't know what her leaving had to do with your man, but strangely, she also felt that it was appropriate to tell Lu Xingzhou.

After sending Shen Tang to the main hall, Dugu Qingli drifted away, heading straight for the back mountain of the Huo residence.

This back mountain might have had a name in the early years, but having been enclosed by the Huo family as their back mountain for decades, its early name was no longer known. Now, Lu Xingzhou had given the mountain a name himself, calling it Mount Lingquan, corresponding to the spiritual spring on this mountain.

When Lu Xingzhou returned, he sat by the pool and took out the herbs and fruits he had obtained from the secret treasury to study them.

He felt that his leg recovery was still a bit slow. Walking was no problem, but whenever he wanted to exert force, he always felt something was missing. In this battle, he hadn't been able to use the information gap that his legs were healed to slap faces, only swinging at a small leader, which was quite regrettable... Although he didn't have any need for single combat, he had always been a strategist and assistant, but a strategist who didn't want to stand up and slap people in the face wasn't a good alchemist.

The Incense Burning Tower was an alchemy sect after all, and the herbs that could be specially collected in the secret treasury were clearly heavenly treasures, extraordinary. He wanted to see if they were beneficial to the recovery of his legs and could speed it up.

As a result, upon study, he was a bit surprised.

He didn't recognize the name of this herb, but he could analyze that it was a very terrifying poison, not for alchemy.

He could keep it first; it might be useful in the future.

The fruit is indeed a good thing; it invigorates one's own Qi and blood and bestows the power of a dragon and elephant. For a Wu Xiu, especially those who temper their bodies, it is an excellent treasure.

It’s just that it doesn't quite mesh with the likes of little Bai Mao, who is a sword cultivator, or with his own cultivation method, which harmonizes yin and yang. It is most suitable for A-Nuo; she is unreasonable and only wants energy. Though she looks like a small ball, she is surprisingly strong, so this suits her quite well.

Next is Shen Tang. Her fierce and overbearing Imperial Extreme World-Startling Scripture has a certain compatibility with this, but it needs to be tempered with other things; otherwise, it would be hilarious if she ate her way into becoming "Muscle Tang."

Since we are considering tempering, Lu Xingzhou himself and Dugu Qingli could also consider using it. By using different medicinal ratios, one can highlight the effects in different directions. Then, if there is any left over, we can arrange a little for the new body cultivator, Zhao Guishan; his path is also quite suitable.

However, given Lu Xingzhou's current alchemy level, it is best to wait until he levels up before refining it; otherwise, it would be a bit of a waste of natural resources.

No wonder the Incense Burning Tower kept these medicinal materials separately without refining them. They weren't suitable for their alchemist sect, and they didn't know who to refine them for, so they just stored them away. But that’s actually quite stupid. Things like this could create several Wu Xiu in different directions; why hide them away...

When Dugu Qingli arrived, Lu Xingzhou was just tying up the fruit and soaking it in the spiritual spring. Dugu Qingli curiously poked her head in to look: "What is this?"

"Oh, it increases Qi, blood, and strength. I'll use it to refine elixirs for everyone to temper their bodies later. You also need to temper your tendons and bones, so you can use it too."

"Me?" Dugu Qingli was silent for a moment: "You are so smart, you should know I came to say goodbye. Why are you still considering me? As long as you all can use it, that's enough."

At this moment, Dugu Qingli suddenly knew why she hadn't been able to truly leave despite trying several times.

Because for more than ten years, she had trekked alone on the glaciers, never having cooperated with others to face danger, and even less had anyone considered "you can use this" after obtaining something.

Yet in these two months of life, she had seen and experienced this at every moment, including now.

Lu Xingzhou finally turned to look at her and smiled slightly: "Wait a moment, A-Nuo is studying something in the room. I think you will definitely be very interested."

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PS: Another 4k, asking for monthly tickets~