My ancestors were spiritual plant growers, so it's not surprising that I hunt demons every day,

"What, are you still waiting for me to feed you?"

Cui Ying didn't even look up, and coldly retorted.

But Changsun Yi burst into laughter through her tears and quickly took the large bowl, drinking it down her throat.

At this moment, Wang Rong also breathed a sigh of relief. She placed the bowl in Cui Ying's hands, winked, and said:

"Time is limited, so make do with what you have for today. I'll get you some pickles. You two girls, stop talking about death all the time. Talk it out, talk it out."

This last sentence was clearly not meant for her, but Cui Ying accepted the spirit potato porridge without arguing, took a small sip, and placed the bowl on the table, saying, "I will not take you as my disciple. Go back after you finish eating."

Changsun Yi's previously flushed face instantly faded. She hurriedly placed the large bowl she was holding on the table and knelt down again at Cui Ying's feet, saying:

"Sister Cui Ying, I know what I'm doing is really asking too much, but I truly have no other choice. The soil in that spirit field is harder than stone, and my mother, who has no magical powers, comes back every day with her hands and feet covered in blood."

“She works very hard every day to support us sisters. My younger sister is only six years old. I want to earn spirit stones to send her to have her spirit bones tested and to the Gongsun family’s academy to cultivate Qi. She doesn’t need to have a high level of cultivation, just enough to protect herself.”

"Hehe, you have quite a few ideas."

Cui Ying glanced at her coldly and asked:

"You said you wanted to become my disciple and practice swordsmanship and hunt demons with me, but have you ever thought about how you are the only one in your family who can cultivate? If you die with me in the Phoenix Mountains, what will happen to your mother and sister?"

"I"

Changsun Yi clearly hadn't considered this consequence. Upon hearing this, she paused slightly, then said with a hint of stubbornness:

"If I die, it is my fate, and I cannot blame anyone else. But I believe that you, Sister Cui Ying, will treat my mother and my sister well."

"Heh~"

Upon hearing this, even Cui Ying was amused and annoyed.

"From what you're saying, you're trying to cling to me. Aren't you afraid of angering me so I'll kill you and throw your mother and sister into the Phoenix Mountains to be bait for the monsters?"

"To be honest, Sister Cui Ying, I already guessed this possibility when I came here."

Upon hearing Cui Ying threaten to take her life, Changsun Yi calmed down, her small face serious as she looked up to meet Cui Ying's gaze. Suddenly, a smile bloomed on her face as she said:

"But now it seems I won my gamble."

“That’s right. If I wanted to kill you, you would have been a corpse when you appeared in front of my house in the middle of the night yesterday.”

Cui Ying's lips curled slightly, but her words remained cold and ruthless.

"whee."

After chuckling twice, Changsun Yi's eyes lit up: "Sister Cui Ying, have you agreed this time?"

Cui Ying turned around, tilted her chin towards the eaves, and said meaningfully, "Do you see this demon bear skin?"

Changsun Yi looked in the direction and immediately saw the demon bear skin not far away. It was just a beast skin without flesh or soul, but its fur was bright and its huge head hanging in the center was still lifelike. It was full of evil aura and looked quite ferocious.

Caught off guard, she felt as if she were in a vast and quiet forest, with a ferocious and bloodthirsty beast opening its bloody maw and lunging at her, forcing her to retreat repeatedly, not daring to look any longer.

But soon, she gritted her teeth, overcame her deepest fear, and forced herself to look directly into the eyes of the hideous bear's head.

"good."

In that one glance, Changsun Yi felt as if a year had passed, until a soft female voice rang in her ears, which snapped her out of her daze, her back already soaked with cold sweat.

"The food is getting cold, so eat quickly. After you're full, come with me into the Phoenix Mountains and help me with some things."

"Thank you, Sister Cui Ying."

Changsun Yi was overjoyed and kowtowed three more times.

"Hey~ Aren't you that little girl from the Changsun family? How come you're at my sister Cui Ying's house?"

"Brother Chaoyun, I've come to ask Sister Cuiying to be my apprentice."

"what!?"

Zhu Chaoyun, who had just entered, was startled and immediately turned to Cui Ying, asking:

"Sister Cui Ying, you've accepted her? Then wouldn't I be... wouldn't I be her?"

At this point, Zhu Chaoyun choked, wanting to speak but not daring to, his cheeks turning bright red.

"have you eaten?"

Faced with Zhu Chaoyun's impatience, Cui Ying calmly picked up the large bowl and began to drink it down, mouthful after mouthful, along with the pickled vegetables her mother had made herself.

"If you haven't eaten, sit down and eat with us."

"Oh, okay."

Zhu Chaoyun swallowed all her questions, quickly tucked the magic sword in her hand into her lower back, and obediently sat opposite Changsun Yi, drinking porridge and eating vegetables.

After breakfast, Cui Ying used her cloud-driving technique to take the two of them and Ta Xue directly to the Phoenix Mountain Range.

After passing Chiyang Valley, Cui Ying placed Changsun Yi on the hillside where she had previously peeled the Heart-Piercing Grass:

"See these intact spiritual plants? You can stay here for the rest of the time to peel them and extract their cores, then just wait for us to come back."

"Sister Cui Ying∽Me"

Seeing Cui Ying and Zhu Chaoyun turn to fly away, Changsun Yi panicked. She wanted to say something, but seeing Cui Ying's expressionless face, she nodded instead and replied:

"it is good."

“It’s not as safe here as in the village. There are monsters everywhere. If you regret it, I’ll have Zhu Chaoyun send you home immediately.”

Seeing the fear in Changsun Yi's eyes, Cui Ying sighed inwardly and offered this advice.

"Do not."

Hearing Cui Ying's unusually gentle tone, Changsun Yi glanced around, clenched her slightly pale fingers, and her gaze became even more resolute.

"I'm not going home, I'll just wait for you to come back here."

Seeing this, Cui Ying stopped talking, urged the cloud beneath her feet, and turned to fly deeper into the distance.

"Sister Cui Ying, Brother Chao Yun, you will definitely come back to find me, right?"

"We'll be back before dark, so be careful."

Cui Ying remained silent, but Zhu Chaoyun, unable to bear it any longer, called out to Changsun Yi below.

On the way to Jade Bamboo Peak, Zhu Chaoyun looked at Cui Ying several times, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating. In the end, it was Cui Ying who broke the silence first:

"What's going on with you lately?"

"What? What happened to me?"

Completely baffled, Zhu Chaoyun asked in bewilderment:

"I also want to ask you, what's the deal with Changsun Yi? Am I going to have another junior sister?"

"You dare to talk back to your master? Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning!"

Cui Ying teased him for a moment, then turned and gave him a stern look, saying:

"I was asking you, with your cultivation level, why haven't you broken through yet?"

“I’m not like you, where cultivation is as easy as drinking water, and you can break through every few days.”

Zhu Chaoyun choked, then shrank back, muttered a few words with a flushed face, and seeing Cui Ying's displeasure, straightened her expression and explained:

"I originally planned to break through in the next few days, but I just happened to be busy with other things and it got delayed."

Cui Ying nodded and said:

"There will be many things I need you to do in the future. Improve your cultivation as soon as possible. If you need any pills or elixirs, just let me know."

"it is good."

Zhu Chaoyun was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and slowly put away his carefree habit.

As usual, the two flew low on the clouds and soon arrived at the hollow where the Golden Frost Fruit was dug. Cui Ying urged the clouds beneath her feet to change direction, intending to take another path up the mountain.

She took this path to Jade Bamboo Peak in her previous life. If she's lucky today, she might just be able to dig up the medicinal herb she discovered in her previous life.

"whoosh"

Just as the two were about to head up the mountain, a black figure swiftly swept through the dense forest in the distance.