"What? Another container?"
Ren Yuanhao's mind buzzed. He knew his Mermaid's Tear had taken a great deal of effort and luck to acquire from the mysterious shop. While a million wasn't a small sum (the thought of this number immediately brought back the dread of frantic debt repayment), if he could really get a container for Earth attribute true qi, then a million would be an incredible bargain!
"I'm sorry, that was just a guess. Of course, you'll have to conduct the experiment yourself." Ren Yuanhao's voice from the dark side became increasingly low. "Alright, that's all I can say. I need to sleep. Good luck to you."
"Hey, this is too unfair! Hey!"
No matter how much Ren Yuanhao shouted, the other self vanished as if it were a hallucination.
His hands cradled the yellowish egg. The more he looked at it, the more unremarkable it seemed, nothing like a 'container'. And thinking about Earth's dominance over Water, he was even less inclined to act.
"Little thing, you're worth a million. For you, I'm drowning in debt." Ren Yuanhao carefully placed it down, then picked up the unreadable ancient Five Elements text. He suddenly felt that devouring the Earth attribute container would be more interesting.
He placed the unremarkable little thing on his crossed legs, closed his eyes to rest, and the cultivation principles of Earth attribute true qi described in the ancient Five Elements text immediately appeared in his mind.
"Earth Qi, thick virtue carries all things, and is the most inclusive of the Five Qi. Earth Qi is vast and broad, honest to the point of being foolish. Earth Qi is also the Qi of the Great Earth, so when cultivating, one must be single-minded and without any thought of shortcuts. Earth Qi is the easiest to cultivate, yet the most difficult to advance in. The restlessness of the human heart often causes one to withdraw upon reaching a state of enlightenment and openness, hence the saying that Earth Qi is both the most difficult and the easiest."
Ren Yuanhao seemed to gain some understanding and immersed himself in a deeper level of contemplation, striving for enlightenment. He was oblivious to the passage of time.
...
It was close to evening the next day when sounds like coiled serpents slithering were heard outside the merchant's residence, which resembled a mortuary.
The setting sun bathed the layered forests in color. The desert oasis only revealed its most beautiful aspect at this time.
The broad leaves of the broad-leaved forest swayed with the hot wind. Unknown birds drank water from where the underground river seeped out, chirping. Suddenly, the rustling sound of flapping wings was heard again. Light and shadow shifted and drifted with the fluttering leaves. The thin leaves were illuminated by the light curtain, turning a light jade color. Small insects became more active as the weather cooled, occasionally emitting rustling chirps.
Everything should have been peaceful, but that rustling sound was too jarring. If someone were nearby at this moment, they would surely see a blood-soaked body moving with extreme difficulty on the ground.
With every step forward, she left a faint bloodstain on the ground. The bloodstains stretched into the distance, as poignant as the clouds and rosy glow at the horizon.
It was a 'cloud and rosy glow' woven with the price of death.
Her silver hair clung to her cheeks, and her night-blooming outfit was full of holes and tears. Her pupils were fixed on the dilapidated gate of her own home. She crawled forward, not slowing down, but rather becoming faster.
In one hand, she clutched a notched short knife, and in the other, a sturdy bag. As she crawled, she used the knife for leverage, keeping her other hand from touching the ground, as if afraid of injuring the contents of the bag.
She crawled nearly a kilometer in this strange posture, all to save the life of the man inside the residence.
No matter how far, she would grit her teeth and persevere.
Just like that man had said with firm resolve to protect her and her people.
"Ren, Ren Yuanhao, I'm back. Don't you dare die~"
She leaned against the huge fallen stone statue outside the gate and slowly stood up. Everything she saw was the bloody color of the setting sun. She knew that as soon as this thing entered Ren Yuanhao's belly, he would be saved!
Thinking of this, she became more and more excited. Perhaps it was this irrepressible excitement that made her strides increasingly large. After two or three minutes, she finally 'safely' returned to Ren Yuanhao's side.
"I, I'm back."
Zi Yuan, ignoring her wounds, first washed the precious fruit she had painstakingly retrieved from the bag and fed them into Ren Yuanhao's mouth, one after another.
...
After an unknown amount of time, Zi Yuan was awakened by the wind blowing through the hall. The trees rustled in the forest, and the temperature dropped sharply. Her face was very grim. She still held a fruit in her hand, thinking that perhaps she was too tired and had fallen asleep while feeding him.
She reached out and touched Ren Yuanhao's skin, feeling that his skin temperature had indeed decreased. She thought that the fruit she picked was effective and a faint smile appeared on her face.
"Ren Yuanhao, don't worry. Eat a few more fruits tomorrow, and you'll be as lively as before. But~"
As Zi Yuan thought of the day after tomorrow, when the Wu Mu family patriarch would be getting married, a trace of sorrow flashed across her face.
"Ren Yuanhao, I heard the Wu Mu patriarch already has six wives, and I will be the seventh. That's unimaginable in your inland areas, isn't it?"
Zi Yuan stopped speaking, sat down cross-legged, and began to heal her wounds with her remaining true qi. Before she knew it, the sky had become bright.
Perhaps it was because of the wizard's miraculous medicine, but after a night of treatment, Zi Yuan showed no signs of poisoning. Apart from the exhaustion caused by severe blood loss, she was not in too bad a condition.
Of course, those shocking wounds would likely leave permanent scars on her body.
Meanwhile, the unconscious Ren Yuanhao was calmly meditating in a hallucination where he was confined with another version of himself. He was completely unaware that his dantian was being repaired bit by bit, and even his fire attribute true qi had become more comfortable and obedient.
"Hmph, in terms of perseverance and foolishness, I'm no match for you." Ren Yuanhao from the dark side, at some unknown time, had developed a sense of recognition for that simple-minded self. And only he could see that the yellowish egg that Ren Yuanhao had placed on his lap had transformed from its egg shape into a bead as clear and translucent as a living thing.
Suddenly, Ren Yuanhao from the dark side frowned and sternly said, "Don't interrupt. This kid has entered deep meditation, which is greatly beneficial for him to absorb that thing. You should go wherever you belong. If you dare to intrude upon my territory again, don't blame me for being rude."
This statement was clearly directed at the system lady who had just woken up. In his domain, without his consent, even the system could hardly break in.