C5 Vale of Healing(1)

The sun had already reached its zenith and was beginning to descend.

Guided by the little girl, Zhong Wen made his way back to his room. Smoke was billowing from the kitchen in the western corner of the courtyard, signaling that Wang Quanxin was busy preparing dinner.

The vegetables at Whispering Blossoms were all cultivated by farmers from the valley below. They were pure, natural, and delicious. Yet, as Zhong Wen gazed at the distant smoke, he found himself without an ounce of appetite.

The reason was simple: this world lacked salt.

Instead, people favored the juice squeezed from a plant known as Holy Basil for seasoning their dishes.

Food prepared with this seasoning was aromatic, but the flavors were incredibly mild. If Zhong Wen wasn't paying close attention, he could barely detect the faintest hint of saltiness in the food.

Initially, Zhong Wen managed to accept the taste of food devoid of salt.

However, just two days later, Zhong Wen, who had once prided himself on being a connoisseur of food, looked at Wang Quanxin's meals and felt as though life had lost its savor.

Clearly, his claim to being a gourmet was somewhat exaggerated.

If he were by the sea, he would surely make some coarse salt to satisfy his craving. But Whispering Blossoms was perched high in the mountains, and he couldn't think of a solution for the moment.

"Liu Qiqi, come out and spar with me!"

Zhong Wen quickly turned his attention outside, spotting a slender figure at the courtyard entrance.

The newcomer was a young girl roughly the same age as Liu Qiqi. She was dressed in emerald green with a red cloak draped over her shoulders, her beauty striking, eyebrows slightly knitted, and her demeanor serious.

"You've already been defeated by me. Why subject yourself to further humiliation?"

At the sound of the challenge, Liu Qiqi swiftly emerged into the courtyard.

"Last time, my sword method was still unrefined, but now that I've mastered it, I'm ready to test it against your Prismatic Sword Dance!" the girl in green declared confidently.

"If you're so eager to be defeated, I'll grant your wish and best you once more!"

The two young girls engaged in combat, one wielding a longsword and the other a Willow Leaf Blade.

Although Zhong Wen found the girls' exchange somewhat odd, he was thoroughly intrigued by the spectacle of martial artists in battle.

Nearly everyone harbors the dream of becoming a martial artist.

Liu Qiqi's swordsmanship was graceful and swift, her attacks lightning-fast. Twin shadows of her longsword would occasionally flicker into existence—a signature of the 'Prismatic Sword Dance,' no doubt.

The girl clad in emerald, with a Willow Leaf Blade poised before her chest, remained cool and collected. At opportune moments, her blade would lash out, often driving Liu Qiqi back a good two meters.

Their movements produced a whooshing sound, and a single stomp could launch them three or four meters into the air. Both their strength and speed were breathtaking to Zhong Wen.

Yet, to Zhong Wen, their techniques seemed lackluster.

Having completed the entire "Solar Flare Touch," Zhong Wen found both Liu Qiqi's swordsmanship and the emerald-clad girl's sword method to be mundane. The tome, spanning several hundred pages, detailed not just the application of this arcane technique but also an array of moves and practical combat skills. He believed any example from the book far surpassed the girls' current display of skill.

However, Zhong Wen had yet to practice any spiritual power cultivation method, so despite the wealth of techniques in his mind, he lacked the strength to execute them.

Nonetheless, watching two stunning women in combat was a delight.

As the battle unfolded, Liu Qiqi slowly but surely took the lead. The girl in green was forced to retreat, her stance betraying a hint of frailty.

Then, in a moment of imbalance, the girl in green stumbled. Liu Qiqi capitalized on the opening, her wrist flicking to conjure three gleaming sword lights from her longsword. By the time her opponent regained composure, Liu Qiqi's blade hovered merely an inch from her throat.

"You've lost," Liu Qiqi declared, her voice icy as she brandished her sword.

"Have you advanced?" The girl in green gasped, her breaths quick and her chest heaving, eyes alight with a fierce reluctance to accept defeat.

"Indeed, I broke through the eighth Root Chakra last month," Liu Qiqi responded nonchalantly, though she couldn't quite mask her triumphant glow.

"No wonder your spiritual power lasts so much longer than mine," the girl in green said with a look of realization. "Today, I admit defeat. Once I've broken through to the eighth level of the Root Chakra, I'll challenge you again."

With that, she turned to leave.

"Miss Zheng, it's getting dark. It's too dangerous for a young lady to descend the mountain alone. Why don't you stay the night and leave in the morning?" Wang Quanxin suggested with concern.

The girl in green glanced at the setting sun and then at Liu Qiqi, clearly torn.

"Why not stay? We can have another match tonight," Liu Qiqi offered.

The girl in green nodded in agreement.

"Now that we have a guest, let's dine in the great hall. Call Miss Liu and Xiaodie; it's been ages since we all shared a meal," Wang Quanxin said, her fondness for company evident.

"Wang Quanxin, don't forget to invite Zhong Wen," Lin Xiaodie chimed in.

Wang Quanxin hesitated, exchanging a knowing look with Liu Qiqi. Xiaodie had been delivering meals to Zhong Wen for the last couple of days. Since Wang Quanxin had never met him before, she had no preconceived notions about him. Whispering Blossoms had always been a sanctuary for women, and now Lin Xiaodie was proposing to include a man in their dinner, leaving Wang Quanxin unsure whether to consent.

Zhong Wen, harboring an old soul, immediately sensed Wang Quanxin's dilemma. He was about to politely decline when Liu Qiqi surprisingly agreed.

"Young Master Zhong, would you join us for dinner tonight?" Wang Quanxin asked, her demeanor warming.

Zhong Wen smiled and nodded, harboring no ill feelings toward Wang Quanxin's initial hesitation.

After all, they weren't related. Whispering Blossoms had saved his life and provided for him these past few days; their kindness was already more than he could ask for.

Meanwhile, the girl in green caught sight of Zhong Wen, her expression one of astonishment. She hurried over to Liu Qiqi and whispered urgently, seemingly curious as to why there was a man in Whispering Blossoms.

The two conversed for a while, and the girl in green began to regard Zhong Wen with a touch of sympathy in her gaze.

"I don't need your pity!"

Zhong Wen seethed internally, feeling quite embarrassed.

Dinner was its usual bland affair. With a sense of resignation, Zhong Wen glanced at the beauties and took a bite of his food, relying on visual delights to compensate for the lack of flavor.

At the table, Liu Qiqi and the girl in green were deep in conversation, and even the usually reserved Yin Ning'er occasionally chimed in. Lin Xiaodie was a chatterbox who never seemed to run out of things to say.

It was clear that despite the girl in green often challenging Liu Qiqi, they had a strong bond. They were, in fact, best friends.

As the sole male presence, Zhong Wen was at a loss for words. He could only nibble on the unappetizing meal and quietly appreciate the company of the ladies, gleaning information from their conversation to enhance his understanding of this world.

The girl in green was Zheng Yueting, the daughter of Zheng Gongming, the master of the Order of the Gold Blade.

If he were to ride a One-horned Horse at full speed from the village at the mountain's base, it would take roughly two hours to reach Krokridge. The Order of the Gold Blade was the cultivator sect nearest to Whispering Blossoms. In this world with its limited transportation, they surely interacted frequently.

Following an impromptu sparring session, Zheng Yueting came to see Liu Qiqi as her lifelong adversary. Whenever she advanced in her practice, she sought out Liu Qiqi for a challenge. Over time, their rivalry blossomed into friendship, and in her heart, Zheng Yueting cherished their bond.

"Young Master Zhong, you're eating so little. Don't you care for these dishes?" Wang Quanxin, noticing Zhong Wen being left out, kindly initiated a conversation with him.

"The food is quite good, actually. It's just that I'm still recovering from a severe injury, and my appetite hasn't fully returned," Zhong Wen explained. "Wang Quanxin, how far is the nearest ocean from Whispering Blossoms?"

"Young Master Zhong, we are situated atop a mountain," Wang Quanxin replied, looking at him as if he were a simpleton. "Moreover, Wild South is inland, and we are at least a thousand miles from the nearest sea."

Zhong Wen took a bite of the radish with a look of frustration.

"Zhong Wen, is there really a Ruyi Stick in the sea?" The little girl, recalling the tale from Journey to the West upon overhearing their conversation about the ocean, ran up to Zhong Wen and tugged at his clothes, her eyes wide with curiosity.

"I'm not sure about a dragon palace, but I've heard that the sea is home to many wondrous creatures." Zhong Wen lifted the little girl onto his lap and tenderly patted her head. "There are fierce sharks with incredibly keen senses of smell; they can detect injured people and animals from kilometers away. Their teeth are razor-sharp, capable of crushing anything. And there's the whale, as long as nine meters, with an eye larger than your whole body, and it can spout water jets over ten meters high."

The little girl gasped, her imagination running wild with the vivid images he described.