Li Yan walked over slowly until he sat down on the other side of the edge of the platform like he did in the past, still about ten feet away from the girl. The girl maintained this posture and did not turn to look at Li Yan.
Only a pair of slender legs were hanging in the air, dangling slightly over the cliff, and his eyes were looking into the distance with a dazed look.
After Li Yan sat down on the edge of the platform, he lay on his back on the platform, crossed his legs and supported himself on the edge of the platform, placed his hands behind his head on the ground, and looked at the deep blue sky.
He was biting a thin bamboo leaf in his mouth and did not speak. It was a bamboo leaf he had torn off when he was feeling uneasy on the road just now.
The two of them just sat there quietly, one looking at the mountains in the distance, the other looking up at the white clouds in the sky and the occasional birds gliding by.
Here, the only sound is the rustling sound of the breeze blowing the bamboo leaves around, and the occasional bird song echoing from the sky.
After a very long time, the sun set further to the west and the evening breeze became cooler.
"You have gained a lot this time. You should have reached the tenth level of Qi Condensation. But you should be careful that your understanding and state of mind are not enough, and your foundation is not stable."
The girl was still looking forward, her long legs continuing to swing, and she spoke softly.
"Well, you should be promoted too, right?"
Li Yan looked at the horizon, where there was a patch of white clouds that looked like jagged rocks, and looked very much like a steep mountain standing in the sky in the distance.
However, these strange rocks and peaks are all light yellow in color, giving them a three-dimensional and intertwined feeling. They reflect the afterglow of the setting sun in the distance, giving the whiteness a layer of yellow glow.
On the surface, Li Yan's realm is only the eighth level of Qi Condensation, but because he has advanced too quickly in this period of time, his perception is really much worse, so there is a kind of disharmonious aura around him.
For a cultivator who is building a foundation, one can still see that the aura he exudes is somewhat incompatible with his realm.
In fact, after Zhao Min's life-and-death struggle in this secret realm, her cultivation has reached the peak of the middle stage of foundation building, and she is only half a step away from the late stage.
Now Zhao Min's aura was intermittent, and Li Yan could only vaguely sense that it was different from before. If he had reached the great perfection of the Qi Condensation Stage, with the power of the Guishui Sutra, he should be able to sense Zhao Min's true realm.
"Well, after you build your foundation, will you go home as you said before?"
Zhao Min hummed lightly, then continued to ask softly.
"I have to go back. My parents have no idea whether I am alive or dead... I haven't tasted sweet-scented osmanthus cake for a long time..."
“How old are the raw materials needed to make osmanthus cake?”
"Osmanthus cake is just a kind of food, it is not an elixir. When autumn comes every year..."
The two of them just kept talking quietly and aimlessly until the huge full moon appeared above the platform and the low chirping of insects came from the bamboo forest. Neither of them mentioned Gong Chenying, just like before...
They just chatted quietly, looking into the distance quietly, but tonight the full moon above their heads could no longer enclose their figures in the same circle, and they each occupied half of the edge of the full moon...
The full moon is like a halo, the starlight is sparse, and the empty valley seems to be asleep. Only the occasional whispers on the platform will break the chirping of insects in the dull tranquility.
At night, the bamboo shoots that had just broken through the soil outside the platform fell downwards with their roots and loose mud because they grew in the wrong place. Downwards... into the endless abyss, leaving only a pit and a few roots...
… …
In Li Yan's Xiaozhu Courtyard, all seven people from Xiaozhu Peak gathered here. Even Yun Chun came here with injuries after recuperating for half a day. At the same time, there were also two girls from Buli Peak.
When Li Yan came back, several people had already arrived at the gate of his courtyard. When Lin Daqiao saw Li Yan, she jumped over and gave him a bear hug. Li Yan also smiled knowingly.
Behind Lin Daqiao was his fifth senior brother Wen Xinliang with an evil smile on his face, Gong Chenying leaning against a black bamboo not far away, and Yun Chunqu sitting cross-legged on the ground.
Li Yan came back alone. When he saw the bright moon rising in the east, Li Yan stood up from the platform, dusted off his body, glanced at Zhao Min who had no intention of getting up, and spoke.
"I'm going back."
"Um!"
Zhao Min still did not turn her head, but just looked at the rising full moon carefully, as if she wanted to see clearly everything within the bright yellow light. She hummed softly and stopped talking.
Li Yan glanced at the girl in the moonlight and walked away. But as his footsteps gradually faded away on the bamboo forest path, the girl trembled slightly and whispered.
"Sixth Senior Sister, why do I feel a little lost?"
The full moon, the platform, the girl, the hazy endless night, and a line of undulating green mountains in the distance.
Zhao Min was the last one to arrive. She had changed into a white dress that was whiter than snow. She came gracefully, still looking cold. The moonlight shone through the gaps between the mottled bamboo leaves and fell on her jade-like cheeks, making her look more peaceful and fair.
With her entry, it seemed as if Li Yan's bamboo courtyard was filled with the coolness of an autumn night, causing Lin Daqiao and others who were chatting to shut up, and the entire bamboo courtyard suddenly became quiet.
Zhao Min was as calm, cold, and taciturn as usual, and she walked slowly towards them.
But this look seemed a little different to Li Changting and Li Wuyi, who were familiar with her. For a moment, they couldn't tell what was different.
In the silence, Zhao Min, like a white cloud with a halo under the moonlight, floated to Gong Chenying's side, sat next to her on the stone bench, then looked at Li Changting and opened her red lips.
"Where's the wine?"
Following Zhao Min's request for wine, the courtyard suddenly became lively. Li Changting smiled and placed six celadon jars like a magic trick. Then, with a wave of her jade hand, small wine bowls appeared on the stone table.
Miao Wangqing smiled gently with his eyes flickering, and took out plates of delicacies from his storage bag, filling the stone table in an instant.
Some of them were actually the meat of rare monsters that were rarely seen in the Ten Thousand Mountains. Suddenly, the bamboo courtyard was filled with fragrance and colorful light, which made everyone's appetite grow. Wei Chituo and Lin Daqiao's eyes sparkled.
Miao Wangqing glanced at Li Changting with a smug look in his eyes, and then glanced at Li Wuyi, who was a little dazed at this time, staring at the row of celadon jars. Suddenly, Li Wuyi coughed dryly.
"Oh, I still have two jars of pear blossom wine given by our master. I have always been very fond of it, so I will use this wine to accompany you. Junior sister Li's wine is too strong, and I am not good at drinking. Junior brothers and sisters should drink more, ah, hahaha..."
As soon as Li Wuyi finished speaking, a black wine jar appeared in his hand. Without waiting for others to speak, he waved his hand and broke the mud seal on it. In the surprised eyes of everyone, he poured a bowl of wine in front of himself and placed the jar of wine under his stone bench.
Then, he seemed to hold it between his feet intentionally or unintentionally, as if he was afraid that someone else would snatch it away.
Wei Chituo couldn't help but curl his lips when he saw this, and picked up a celadon jar.
"Then drink!"
He couldn't wait to break the mud seal and pour it directly into the bowl.
Li Changting on the side looked at Li Wuyi with a half-smile. Li Wuyi felt uneasy when he was looked at. Just as he was about to speak, he felt a blur in front of his eyes, and the pear blossom wine that he had just poured in front of him was taken away by someone.
He couldn't help but get furious that someone was snatching food from him, the top foundation-building expert in Xiaozhu Peak. He was about to yell at him, but when he looked up, he was stunned.
Li Yan held the pear blossom wine in his hand and said with a smile.
"I am young and not good at drinking, let alone strong liquor. First of all, I would like to thank Senior Sister Li and Fourth Sister for their hospitality. I would also like to thank all the senior brothers and sisters for taking care of me over the years. Let me drink first as a token of my respect!"
He spoke these words very fluently, and while Li Wuyi was stunned, he had already picked up the wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp, and even drank the bottom of the bowl. There was really not a drop left, and he was truly moved.
Upon seeing this, the others broke the mud seal and poured in the wine. For a moment, the strong aroma of wine filled the whole courtyard, making people take a few deep breaths. The wine urge had already been aroused.
However, under the mottled shadows of the bamboo, several people did not pay attention to the color of the wine. Wei Chituo, Lin Daqiao and Wen Xinliang had already picked it up impatiently and drank it in one gulp without leaving even a drop.
Since Zhao Min sat next to him, Gong Chenying's body seemed to be even more tense. He picked up the wine bowl, glanced at it, and frowned. He saw that Zhao Min was like Wei Chituo and the others. They didn't even look at the wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp.
Gong Chenying paused for a moment, then drank it all in one gulp without hesitation. As soon as the wine entered his stomach, it was like a line of fire rising from his lower abdomen, and in an instant his whole body seemed to be burning.
The medicinal power that she had suppressed seemed to be ignited, and was about to flow through her body like a wave. This startled Gong Chenying, and she hurriedly summoned all her magic power to press hard on her dantian, finally blocking the raging tide that seemed to be about to burst the dam, and her face flushed.
She couldn't help but say this in her heart.
"What a powerful wine. I've heard that Senior Sister Li's Gu wine is a unique one. If I practice it now, it will definitely be twice as effective with half the effort."
But this was just her thought at the moment. The effect of the alcohol was suppressed in her body, and after being catalyzed later, it had a complementary effect with the remaining medicinal power.
Yun Chunqu also drank it all in one gulp, his eyes suddenly lit up and he shouted.
“Good wine!”
Then he poured himself another bowl, and this time without waiting for the others, he drank it all in one gulp. Then he threw the bowl away, and without eating a single bite of food, he actually sat cross-legged on the ground in meditation. In an instant, white mist rose from his body, and he was using the wine to heal his wounds.
Li Wuyi glanced at those people with admiration in his eyes. After glaring at Li Yan, he reached out to take out the pear blossom wine under the stone bench. Unexpectedly, he felt a burst of fragrance in his nose, and a jade hand reached out and snatched the jar of pear blossom wine.
Li Wuyi was very powerful. Just as he was about to use his strength to shake off the hand, he heard a charming laugh in his ear.
"Brother Wuyi, take it back and try. Believe it or not, from tomorrow on, I will come to your Xiaozhu Peak every day."
Li Wuyi's hands trembled suddenly, and an embarrassed smile appeared on his face. He dared not to exert any strength.
Then, a few inches away from his face, Li Changting's beautiful face appeared, smiling as she held the jar of pear blossom wine.
"Junior Sister Li, I really can't drink strong alcohol."
A smile was forced on Li Wuyi's handsome face.
"Humph, today it's not up to you."
He left the pavilion with a snort.
At this moment, a trembling voice sounded from the side with a cry of surprise.
"Ah, what's in this... what's in this wine?"
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw it was Miao Wangqing. She was holding a wine bowl and staring into the bowl with a look of fear in her eyes.
When everyone heard this, except Li Wuyi, Li Yan, Zhao Min, and Gong Chenying, the rest were stunned and looked into the second bowl of wine that had just been poured. With the eyesight of cultivators, they could see it very clearly as long as they wanted.
Just this one look made Lin Daqiao jump up from the stone table.
"Oh my god, it's a poisonous insect!"
Lin Daqiao screamed in surprise.
Wei Chituo and Wen Xinliang were also shocked. Their hands holding the wine bowls trembled and they almost dropped the bowls on the ground. They couldn't help but look at Li Changting.
Fortunately, Yun Chunqu had entered a state of meditation to heal his wounds, and was the calmest person.
It can be said that poisonous insects are not unfamiliar to the monks of the Wuliang Sect, and they even feel somewhat familiar with them. However, this is only true for the monks of the Buli Peak. For the monks of the other peaks, they are still very wary of them in their hearts.
Especially swallowing it raw like this was beyond their psychological endurance, but fortunately, they were all monks of the Wuliang Sect after all, and were familiar with poisonous insects, so they did not lose their composure in fear.
Even with Miao Wangqing's weak character, after seeing it, she still held the bowl and did not throw it away, which was very rare.