Gu Changhuai originally thought that after obtaining the ice core, they would go meet up with the training team. He didn't expect that Rong Ye's "Let's go," meant treating the crisis-filled inner layer realm like an uninhabited land for a leisurely stroll.
Silence all around, only the soft rustling of wind through the trees.
After slaughtering the ice jiao, Rong Ye's aura still carried the ice jiao's bloody scent. The ice jiao's status in the inner layer realm should be quite high, so along the way, no blind demon beasts attacked. In other words, they were currently very safe.
After walking for a while, Gu Changhuai still didn't know where Rong Ye was going. Concerned about Hua Mei's movements on the other side, his gaze swept across the dense forest roadside as he casually asked: "Immortal Lord, where are we going?"
He asked, but didn't expect Rong Ye to answer.
While speaking, he sensed a subtle presence. He slightly raised his head, his gaze stopping on a crow perched in the tree branches. Gu Changhuai's brows imperceptibly narrowed. His fingers lightly waved beneath his sleeve, and the crow's pupils flashed with red light before its entire body suddenly dispersed like mist.
Rong Ye's clear, low voice sounded from ahead: "To find Timeless Profound Stamen."
Not expecting to get a response, Gu Changhuai was somewhat surprised and glanced at Rong Ye. And Timeless Profound Stamen... he pondered for a while.
He remembered now—wasn't Timeless Profound Stamen one of the medicinal materials Qing Lian Immortal Lord gave to the male protagonist to repair his spiritual roots in the original novel? Though it's a flower, the stamen looks like several clustered worms.
"..." Gu Changhuai was disgusted.
He hated worms.
However, since it concerned the male protagonist, Gu Changhuai's mind became active as he probed: "Has the Immortal Lord taken on a disciple?"
Sensing the scrutinizing gaze sweep over him, Gu Changhuai then heard Rong Ye's tone indifferently ask in return: "Do you want to take me as your master?"
Gu Changhuai: "..."
This question stumped him. If he said yes, it wouldn't be sincere. If he said no—just ask, who in the cultivation world could refuse the cultivation world's number one person who would eventually ascend?
If he weren't from the Demon Realm, he'd at least try to cling to the male protagonist's golden finger's thigh.
His thoughts changed in an instant. He was still thinking about what to say to avoid revealing any flaws when his abdomen suddenly throbbed like a drum, sharp pain spreading through all his limbs. Although the pain passed in a flash, Gu Changhuai's complexion instantly turned pale as paper.
He covered his lower abdomen and endured for a while before struggling to smile at Rong Ye. "Immortal Lord, I'm afraid I ate something bad. Please wait for me a moment. I'll go and come right back."
Rong Ye stood beneath the tree, looking down at him with lowered eyes, making it impossible for Gu Changhuai to discern the emotion on his face.
At this moment, Gu Changhuai didn't know that his entire aura seemed drained, like someone who'd been ill for a long time—lifeless and deathly. His cherry-colored thin lips pressed together in a forced smile, the small beauty mark at the corner of his eye seeming to glow brilliantly. That bullied appearance... was pitiful to the extreme.
At the same time, Rong Ye was also thinking.
Just who, right in front of him, had bullied this not-so-smart shadow demon.
...
After a long while.
Gu Changhuai finally heard Rong Ye give a low "Mm," along with an indifferent reminder: "Come back soon."
Having obtained permission, Gu Changhuai hurriedly turned and left, not noticing the gaze from behind following him like a shadow stuck to his back.
______
By the stream.
Gu Changhuai vigorously washed his face. Being tormented by the worm was unbearable—wanting to vomit but unable to. The feeling of clear water sweeping across his cheeks finally made him feel much better.
He braced his hands on the shore, his gaze fixed on the stream. "What are the Demon Venerable's instructions?"
The cold crow's figure suddenly appeared on the opposite bank, its eyeballs blood-red, its voice hoarse and unpleasant: "The Demon Venerable orders you to act as soon as possible within three days. The Demon Venerable has no shadow demon as slow and dawdling as you."
"Are you teaching me how to do my job?" Gu Changhuai casually sat down on the ground, sizing up the crow for a while before sneering coldly. "Why make things difficult for a colleague? I already told you where to wait on the side, but you insisted on having the worm torment me for what?"
The red glow in the cold crow's eyeballs seemed to intensify, its hoarse voice becoming sinister: "How dare you speak to me like this..." Before it could finish, a pebble struck its head.
Gu Changhuai's bold action left the cold crow frozen in disbelief, its voice immediately choking off as it stared straight at Gu Changhuai.
Gu Changhuai ground his teeth with resentment: "Ugly crow. I even dare to hit you!" As he spoke, he threw another pebble. One hit and the cold crow dispersed, black mist suddenly scattering.
"..." Gu Changhuai felt awkward: "...No way."
The cold crow's name was quite famous in the Demon Realm—not because it was particularly formidable, but because it could appear anywhere to transmit the Demon Venerable's orders to demon clan members.
Just like that, one hit and it dispersed?
...
The cold crow inexplicably dispersed and didn't gather back for a long time. Did this count as harming a colleague?
Gu Changhuai walked back worriedly. Moreover, the Demon Venerable wanted him to act within three days. How to act appropriately was a problem. His gaze swept around the surroundings. The dense forest of the inner layer realm, along with the constantly lurking dangerous atmosphere, were all excellent cover.
Gu Changhuai leaped onto a tree, using the lush branches and leaves for concealment. He saw Rong Ye's figure still waiting beneath that tree from before, back perfectly turned.
Perfect timing, perfect location, perfect conditions—wasn't now the best opportunity? With a flash of inspiration, he pulled out three sleeve arrows.
"Swoosh! Swoosh swoosh!"
The sleeve arrows were filled with demonic presence, flying out one after another, breaking through the air.
Gu Changhuai's smile widened. He couldn't beat him in direct combat, but backstabbing was his specialty. Who knew that halfway through their flight, a blinding gust of sinister wind came from somewhere.
Blown by the wind, Gu Changhuai instinctively rubbed his eyes. When he looked up again, he saw the three sleeve arrows that should have been attacking Rong Ye had been forcibly blown by the wind to turn around, instead stabbing back in his direction.
Damn it!
Gu Changhuai's smile instantly vanished.
The three sleeve arrows were filled with demonic energy. If he scattered them, it would definitely alert Rong Ye. He could only dodge. The demonic energy on the sleeve arrows wasn't to be trifled with. As they brushed past him, they stirred up a blast of air that directly sent him flying from the tree.
Gu Changhuai didn't dare make a sound as he fell straight down, hurting for quite a while before struggling to get up.
This assassination attempt ended in failure.
Following the principle of resting where you fall, Gu Changhuai temporarily stopped his plans, emerged from the dense forest, and said: "Immortal Lord, I'm back."
Rong Ye beneath the tree turned his head. Gu Changhuai seemed to see a trace of a smile that hadn't yet faded at the corner of his lips, as if he was in quite a good mood.
Smiling?
Gu Changhuai suspected he'd seen wrong. Blinking to look more carefully, he immediately met Rong Ye's unfathomably deep eyes, his expression also completely calm.
Not smiling. Indeed, he'd seen wrong.
Sensing Rong Ye's scrutiny, Gu Changhuai considered for a moment and said with a normal expression: "The riverside was too slippery. I accidentally fell."
Using this to explain his disheveled hair, the scattered dead leaves stuck all over him, and the spots of dust on his clothes. After a pause, he added another sentence, "It hurt a lot." His tone emphasized this to show that this trip hadn't been easy for him.
Fortunately, Rong Ye didn't ask more questions, only said ambiguously: "Be more careful next time."
Gu Changhuai: "..."
Gu Changhuai: "Next time I won't walk by the river."
Just wait, next time I'll use poison!
Author's Note (Not TL):
Learn from mistakes, learn from mistakes, learn from mistakes, learn from mistakes
Smiles don't disappear, they just transfer [to someone else]