A magical journey of a sharp-tongued woman and a goofy man

The eerie laughter still echoed in the valley, like a broken tape on a low-quality tape recorder, making one's head ache.

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye stood back to back, as if facing a formidable enemy.

The surrounding air seemed to freeze, and the spiritual energy was suppressed by an invisible hand, flowing extremely slowly.

The atmosphere was so oppressive it was suffocating; it felt even more nerve-wracking than a final exam.

"What kind of place is this? The spiritual energy is as scarce as my wallet." Jiang Ye couldn't help but complain, trying to mobilize his spiritual energy, but found it as difficult as squeezing toothpaste. "Is this place a spiritual energy desert? Does that mean my breakthrough is going to be ruined?"

As the chilling laughter rang out, black mist began to rise around them, like the dry ice effect in a stage play, except that this "dry ice" carried a corrosive power that made people very uncomfortable.

The black mist slowly approached them, like a ferocious beast ready to devour its prey.

"This thing doesn't look very friendly..." Jiang Ye swallowed and tried to dispel the black mist.

He formed a hand seal and mobilized the little spiritual power he had left. A faint light flashed, but it was like a mud ox sinking into the sea, having no effect on the black mist.

Worse still, he discovered that his spiritual energy was being consumed more than twice as fast as usual, like a phone with its battery draining rapidly when it had a hotspot.

"No, this black mist seems to specifically suppress spiritual power!" Jiang Ye's expression changed, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

This is no joke; if their spiritual energy is exhausted, they will become lambs to the slaughter.

Ye Shuli frowned; she had also sensed that something was wrong.

This black mist not only suppressed spiritual power, but also carried a strange corrosive quality, causing her to feel waves of unease.

She quickly pulled a specially made dagger from her storage bag—a dagger she had crafted using modern knowledge, and it was incredibly sharp.

"Save your spiritual energy, don't waste it." Ye Shuli said in a deep voice, with a hint of anxiety in her tone.

Jiang Ye also realized the seriousness of the situation. He withdrew his spiritual power, gripped the long sword in his hand tightly, and stared warily at the surrounding black mist.

The black fog grew thicker and thicker, almost completely enveloping them, reducing visibility to less than a meter.

Ye Shuli felt a stinging sensation on her skin, as if she were being pricked by countless tiny needles.

"This fog is poisonous!" Jiang Ye exclaimed. He felt his breathing becoming difficult and his head spinning.

Just then, Ye Shuli's eyes suddenly lit up, as if she had thought of something...

"Wait, this feeling..."

"Wait, this feeling..." Ye Shuli gasped sharply, this smell...

Why is it so familiar?

Like...

Rotten eggs?

No, it seems to have a sulfurous smell mixed in.

and many more!

Hydrogen sulfide!

A sudden realization struck Ye Shuli: wasn't this the kind of toxic gas she had learned about in modern chemistry?

Could this black mist be some kind of mutated hydrogen sulfide?

Thinking of this, Ye Shuli immediately recalled her modern chemical knowledge: the nemesis of hydrogen sulfide...

correct!

Some metal oxides can react with it!

She looked around, her gaze settling on an inconspicuous gray plant in the valley.

"Jiang Ye, hurry! Pull up all those gray weeds, the more the better!"

Although Jiang Ye was completely confused, he did as instructed without hesitation.

Like a diligent little bee, he flitted through the black fog, quickly collecting a large pile of gray plants.

"Light the fire! Burn them!" Ye Shuli urged.

Jiang Ye took out a tinderbox and lit the pile of gray plants.

Thick smoke billowed out, carrying a pungent odor, yet miraculously dispelled the surrounding black fog!

As if encountering some natural enemy, the black fog receded like a tide, revealing the original valley scenery.

"Wow! That's amazing!" Jiang Ye's eyes widened in disbelief.

This effect is even more immediate than taking a laxative!

"Basic stuff, nothing fancy, it's all the charm of chemistry." Ye Shuli proudly raised her chin, but inwardly she breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, modern knowledge also applies to this fantasy world.

Jiang Ye looked at Ye Shuli with eyes full of admiration. This girl is truly a treasure!

"Shuli, you're truly my lucky star! From now on, I'll cling to you and never let go!"

Ye Shuli rolled her eyes at him: "Stop talking nonsense! Hurry up and sit down to meditate and cultivate. Although the spiritual energy here is suppressed, it's still better than nothing."

The two sat cross-legged and began to absorb the sparse spiritual energy around them.

As the black mist dissipated, the oppressive feeling gradually lessened, and spiritual energy began to slowly flow into their bodies.

Jiang Ye felt the spiritual power within his body growing stronger little by little, and he was only one step away from breaking through to the mid-stage of the Spirit Realm.

Just then, he felt a powerful force surging up from underground...

"Shu Li..." Jiang Ye was about to speak when he noticed that Ye Shu Li had also opened her eyes, which were filled with shock.

A powerful surge of spiritual energy emanated from the depths of the earth, causing the valley floor to tremble violently, like a cell phone on vibrate mode, buzzing loudly.

Immediately afterwards, a huge spirit crystal burst forth from the ground, emitting a dazzling light, like a giant luminous pearl, illuminating the entire valley.

"Holy crap! What is this thing? It even has its own background music!" Jiang Ye exclaimed, startled by the sudden turn of events.

The spiritual energy emanating from this spirit crystal was so dense it was suffocating, even more than all the spiritual energy he had absorbed before combined!

"We're rich! This is a huge windfall!" Jiang Ye rubbed his hands excitedly, ready to rush up and absorb this windfall, but Ye Shuli grabbed him.

"Don't be impulsive!" Ye Shuli frowned, feeling that things weren't so simple.

"The appearance of this spirit crystal is too sudden; be careful, it might be a trap!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a transparent barrier suddenly appeared around the spirit crystal, like an inverted bowl, firmly encasing the spirit crystal within it.

Strange runes flickered on the barrier, emitting a powerful repulsive force that prevented the spiritual energy of the spirit crystal from leaking out.

"Holy crap! There's a protective shield? This is outrageous!" Jiang Ye couldn't help but complain. It felt like finally defeating a boss in a game, only to find out that the boss had activated an invincible cheat—it was incredibly frustrating.

Ye Shuli carefully observed the runes on the barrier, her mind racing as she tried to find a way to break it.

"These runes... are somewhat similar to ancient formations, but also different..."

"Stop thinking, just charge in!" Jiang Ye was an impatient man and couldn't wait any longer. He swung his longsword and slashed fiercely at the barrier.

With a crisp clang, Jiang Ye's longsword bounced back, but the barrier remained unmoved.

"Holy crap! This thing is pretty hard!" Jiang Ye rubbed his wrist, feeling a numbness in his hand.

Ye Shuli rolled her eyes at him: "Do you think this is like chopping vegetables? Use your brain! This barrier definitely has weak points!"

Ye Shuli took out her charcoal pencil and notebook and began to draw on them, muttering to herself, "Based on the arrangement of the runes and the direction of energy flow, the weak point should be..." She calculated quickly, as if she were solving a complex math problem.

"Found it!" Ye Shuli pointed to an inconspicuous little dot on the barrier. "Right here!"

Without saying a word, Jiang Ye gathered all his spiritual power and thrust it fiercely towards that point!

With a crisp "crack!", a crack appeared on the barrier. Then, the crack spread rapidly, and the entire barrier shattered!

The spiritual power of the spirit crystal surged out like a flood bursting its banks!

Jiang Ye and Ye Shuli immediately sat down cross-legged, greedily absorbing the pure spiritual energy.

"Awesome!" Jiang Ye couldn't help but groan, feeling his body filled with power, as if he were about to ascend to immortality.

Ye Shuli also felt her spiritual power rapidly increasing, and she was getting closer and closer to breaking through to the mid-stage of the Spirit Venerable realm.

Just then, a cold voice echoed from the depths of the valley: "Who dares to disturb my peaceful cultivation?"

Jiang Ye and Ye Shuli exchanged a glance, a sense of foreboding rising in their hearts at the same time...

The spiritual energy within Jiang Ye surged and roared, like the Yellow River bursting its banks, unstoppable.

With a "boom," he felt a barrier within his body break through, and he felt refreshed, as if his Ren and Du meridians had been opened, and his whole body was full of power.

"Wuhu! Take off!" he shouted excitedly. This feeling was even better than winning five million!

Ye Shuli also felt the thrill of the breakthrough. The spiritual energy flowed through her body, cleansing her meridians and making her feel extremely comfortable.

She slowly opened her eyes, which shone brightly like two shining stars.

"Finally broke through to the mid-stage of Spirit Venerable! It wasn't easy!" she exclaimed. The feeling was like finally having a bowel movement after being constipated for three days—she felt refreshed and invigorated!

Jiang Ye excitedly picked up Ye Shuli and spun her around several times.

"Shuli, we did it! We're both at the mid-stage of the Spirit Realm!" He was as excited as a child, eager to announce it to the world.

Ye Shuli was so dizzy from being spun around that she couldn't help but punch him.

"Put me down! I'm dizzy!"

Jiang Ye quickly put her down, scratched his head, and chuckled.

"Sorry, I'm so excited."

The two smiled at each other, both seeing joy and satisfaction in each other's eyes.

Although the valley was fraught with danger, it also brought them great rewards.

However, just as the two were immersed in the joy of their breakthrough, an unexpected change occurred!

The spiritual energy around them suddenly became chaotic, like a herd of wild horses running amok.

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye both sensed something was wrong, and their expressions instantly turned serious.

"What's going on?" Jiang Ye looked around warily, sensing a dangerous atmosphere in the air.

Ye Shuli frowned as she sensed a powerful fluctuation of spiritual energy rapidly approaching from afar.

"It seems like we're being watched."

As soon as he finished speaking, a dark cloud suddenly appeared in the distance, dark and heavy, like the end of the world, making people feel suffocated.

The dark clouds arrived too quickly and too strangely, as if some terrifying being was lurking within them.

A powerful sense of oppression emanated from the dark clouds, making it difficult for Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye to breathe.

They exchanged a glance and both saw deep unease in each other's eyes.

"What...what is this thing?" Jiang Ye swallowed hard, his voice trembling slightly.

This feeling was even more terrifying than when he first encountered Ye Shuli's sharp tongue!

Ye Shuli's expression was solemn as she gripped the dagger tightly in her hand and said in a deep voice, "Prepare for battle!"

"Shuli..." Jiang Ye was about to say something when he suddenly felt a powerful force lock onto him, rendering him unable to move.

He looked at Ye Shuli in horror, only to find that she, too, was bound by an invisible force.

The dark clouds rolled in rapidly, like a gigantic monster opening its blood-red maw to devour them...

“This time… we’ve really messed up…” Ye Shuli managed to utter a few words with difficulty.