Free Web NovelChapter 376: Chapter 376: Xixi, Gets Shy
A green glow streamed continuously from Qiao Xixi’s body. She snapped her eyes open, feeling a power coalescing in her palm.
"Wind."
The green orbs of light linked together in the air, forming an ever-widening circle and stirring up a wind.
At first, it was just a gentle, barely-there breeze. But as the orbs of light wove together faster and faster, the wind picked up speed.
Qiao Xixi silently chanted the incantation, feeling the wind rush over every inch of her body. In that moment, she felt as if she had become one with the wind.
"Great wind, arise!"
WHOOSH—
In an instant, a gale began to rage. Yet, with her eyes wide open, Qiao Xixi could clearly see everything outside the storm of wind—something she had never been able to do before.
’Seeing things from within a gale... Is this a new skill I gained after leveling up?’
"Wind, stop."
The gale that had been howling a second ago fell silent in the next instant.
Qiao Xixi looked at her hands, overjoyed. Elated, she picked up the scroll and continued to study.
「Thousands of miles away, in a palace that seemed to float amongst the clouds.」
Yun Ji, clad entirely in white feathers, sat cross-legged beneath a towering ancient tree. Specks of golden light filtered through the dense branches, dappling his feathers and refracting into a multicolored iridescence.
A sudden breeze brushed past him, dislodging a leaf that fluttered gently to the ground.
He opened his eyes and extended a hand, catching the leaf as it fell.
A beastman in a black feathered robe walked under the tree and bowed respectfully to Yun Ji.
"Holy Priest, the Beast King has sent someone to inquire about the preparations for the Scorching Sun Ritual."
Yun Ji gazed at the leaf in his palm, already half-withered and yellow. "Isn’t there still some time before the Scorching Sun Ritual?" he said calmly. "There’s no need for any preparations yet."
The beastman frowned slightly. "The Beast King’s message is that it hasn’t rained in Beast King City for a very long time. He hopes the Holy Priest can hold the grand ceremony as soon as possible to beseech the Beast God for rain."
Yun Ji abruptly clenched his fist, crushing the leaf as he stood. "And the rain we beg for—will it come without a price?"
The beastman glanced at Yun Ji before quickly lowering his head again. "The Beast King says that to show his piety for this ritual, he has already sent word for all the City Lords of the Beast Cities and the Clan Leaders of all medium to large tribes to travel to Beast King City and attend."
Yun Ji’s cool, detached expression faltered as he frowned. "The messages have already been sent?"
"Yes. The messengers are on their way."
Yun Ji’s expression faltered. "Never mind. Go and make the preparations."
"Yes."
After the beastman left, Yun Ji opened his palm, staring at the withered yellow leaf. ’It’s only the Scorching Season, yet the leaves are already dying. Is that truly the only way left?’
With a flick of his long, pale fingers, the leaf instantly turned to ash.
...
At the break of dawn, the beastmen of the Black Panther Tribe’s Hunting Team returned with their quarry. Just as they reached the entrance, they saw a group of bedraggled beastmen being stopped outside the tribe’s gates.
"We’re from the Forest Wood Tribe! We’ve traveled a very, very long way to get here. Please, ask your Clan Leader to let us take shelter in your tribe."
"We’re from the Yellow Fox Tribe! We’re also willing to pledge our allegiance to a large tribe. We have males who have awakened their beast souls. Please, let us stay too!"
Feiyan made his way through the crowd and approached the guard to ask what was going on.
"What? Beastmen from three different tribes arrived all at once?"
"Yes, Lord Feiyan. I’ve already asked. They all said their former lands became uninhabitable, so they were forced to migrate."
Feiyan scanned the crowd. ’This is too many people. The Black Panther Tribe has the space, but taking in so many outsiders at once could easily cause internal instability. We have to consider this carefully.’
"Keep them here for now. I’m going to discuss this with the Clan Leader."
Lately, Qiao Xixi had hardly left her room except to eat, bathe, or use the restroom.
To others, it looked like she was just sleeping, but only Jin Ling and his companions knew she was actually training.
Qiao Xixi had just woken up when she heard a familiar set of footsteps outside.
As expected, the door opened a moment later and Jin Ling walked in, carrying a basin of warm water.
"You’re awake, Xixi."
Qiao Xixi couldn’t help but smile at his perfect timing. "How did you know I’d wake up right now?"
"You have for the past couple of days."
Jin Ling took a warm animal-hide cloth and began to wash her face. Qiao Xixi quietly let him tend to her until she was fully dressed.
"What about Sunxiao and the others? Are they still training in the mountains?"
Jin Ling nodded. They were all eager to head to the Watchtower to rescue them, but as Huang Yue had said, the disparity in their strengths was too great. Rushing in recklessly would be suicide. It was better to focus on improving their own abilities as much as possible first.
They had already timed how long it took Qiao Yi to reach the mountain on the other side. If nothing else, they had to at least be able to match Qiao Yi’s speed.
In a battle, victory came down to either overwhelming your opponent with power or outmaneuvering them with speed. You had to have at least one.
That’s why Sunxiao and the others were training their speed in shifts.
"Mhm, they won’t be back until tonight."
Qiao Xixi had been training nonstop as well, so every time she woke up, she felt utterly exhausted, none of the refreshed energy that comes from a full night’s sleep.
’This level-up was seriously draining.’
Seeing how listless she was, Jin Ling didn’t let her go outside. He was just about to go get her food when Kunlin came in, carrying a tray of hot dishes.
The moment Qiao Xixi smelled the fragrant food, her stomach growled. She realized she hadn’t eaten for an entire day and night.
"I reheated it for you. Eat up." Kunlin placed the dishes on the table.
Jin Ling’s eyes flashed as he shot Kunlin a cool glance.
As if he hadn’t noticed the look, Kunlin turned without a backward glance and went to wait outside the room.
Qiao Xixi was about to pick up her chopsticks, but Jin Ling beat her to it. She looked up at him, puzzled.
"What is it?"
With a gentle expression, Jin Ling sat down beside her, picked up a piece of meat from the bowl, and blew on it to cool it down.
"I’ll feed you."
Qiao Xixi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "Jin Ling, I’m not An’an. It’s not like I can’t feed myself."
Jin Ling only smiled and didn’t hand her the chopsticks. "You’re too tired. Just open your mouth."
’Alright, alright. Who was she to refuse personal service from her mate?’ Besides, she really was exhausted. She leaned back into Jin Ling’s arms, letting him feed her one bite at a time.
Kunlin stood outside the door, his face an icy mask as he listened to the sounds from within. But a closer look would have revealed a trace of dejection in the depths of his cold eyes, a sadness even he himself hadn’t noticed.
Only when the sounds in the room died down did his tense expression soften slightly.
Sensing the other male approaching from behind, Kunlin’s icy demeanor instantly returned.
The bowl and chopsticks were held out to him. Jin Ling’s smile was as gentle as ever. "Thanks for your help. After you take these down, don’t come back up for a bit. Xixi... gets shy."
With that, he turned, went back inside, and closed the door.
