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

As the spiritual energy storm gradually subsided, Ye Shuli slowly opened her eyes, a sharp glint flashing across them.

"Phew! I've finally broken through to the mid-stage of the Spirit Master realm!" She stood up, stretched her limbs, and felt her whole body brimming with power.

Jiang Ye sheathed his sword and let out a long sigh of relief. "Congratulations, Li'er! I knew you could do it!" He looked at Ye Shuli with pride and admiration in his eyes.

"Thanks to your protection, otherwise I wouldn't have broken through so easily." Ye Shuli smiled and gave Jiang Ye a big hug.

"Hehe, it's nothing!" Jiang Ye scratched his head and smiled sheepishly.

"Alright, we're safe now. Let's quickly take stock of our spoils!" Ye Shuli eagerly opened her storage bag, ready to admire the spirit crystals they had painstakingly collected.

However, when she saw the spirit crystals in the storage bag, her smile instantly froze.

"Wait, something seems to be missing?"

Jiang Ye also came over for a look and was immediately dumbfounded.

"One, two, three... eighty??" He rubbed his eyes in disbelief, counted again, and it was still eighty.

"We clearly collected a hundred spirit crystals, so how come there are only eighty left?" Ye Shuli frowned, completely puzzled.

"Could it be... stolen?" Jiang Ye cautiously raised this guess.

"That's impossible. There are no other creatures in this valley besides blood bats, and blood bats don't steal spirit crystals." Ye Shuli refuted Jiang Ye's guess.

"Then... the spirit crystal grew legs and ran away by itself?" Jiang Ye looked bewildered.

"Stop joking! Hurry up and look for it, see if it fell into the cave." Ye Shuli rolled her eyes at Jiang Ye and started searching the cave.

Jiang Ye also joined the search team. The two turned the cave upside down, but they didn't find even a trace of spirit crystal.

"How strange! Can a spirit crystal just disappear into thin air?" Ye Shuli plopped down on the ground, feeling like her brain cells were about to be exhausted.

"Li'er, don't worry, let's think about it again. There must be something we've overlooked," Jiang Ye comforted her.

Time ticked by, and the two still hadn't found any clues.

The absence of twenty spirit crystals was like a huge mystery, shrouding their minds.

"Could it be... there really is a mole?" Ye Shuli murmured to herself, her gaze falling on Jiang Ye...

Ye Shuli took a deep breath, shaking off the chaotic, melodramatic plot from her mind.

Twenty spirit crystals is no small amount; it's enough for them to live a carefree life outside for several months!

Calm down, must calm down!

She's not the kind of naive girl who gets blinded by love!

Back in the day, she was the reincarnation of the famous detective Ke Li!

(Ahem, that's a bit of an exaggeration.)

）

"Don't panic, let me think about it carefully." Ye Shuli stroked her chin and began to analyze the situation using her modern reasoning skills.

First of all, spirit crystals cannot simply disappear into thin air, nor could they have been stolen by blood bats, since they have no interest in spirit crystals.

Secondly, there were only the two of them in the cave, so outsiders couldn't get in.

So, the question is, where did the spirit crystals go?

Ye Shuli's gaze fell on the place where the storage bag had originally been placed.

She crouched down and carefully examined the ground.

Sure enough, some small traces came into view.

"Footprints?" Jiang Ye also came over, looking bewildered.

“These are the footprints of some kind of small spirit beast, definitely not ours,” Ye Shuli said firmly, pointing to the almost imperceptible marks.

Looking at those traces that were even less noticeable than ants crawling, Jiang Ye couldn't help but marvel at Li'er's incredible observation skills!

It's practically a human scanner!

The two followed the tiny footprints all the way to an inconspicuous corner deep inside the cave.

A dark little cave appeared before them, and several furry little creatures were watching them warily, making "squeak" sounds. There were several of them...

A clever rat?

"Well, so it's you petty thieves!" Jiang Ye rolled up his sleeves, looking ready to get down to business.

"Wait!" Ye Shuli grabbed him. "Don't be impulsive. These spirit rats guarding this place mean there must be something in the cave."

Jiang Ye then noticed that there seemed to be some shiny things piled up behind the spirit rat.

He squinted and took a closer look, then gasped, "Holy crap! No way..."

A playful smile curled at the corner of Ye Shuli's lips. "Looks like we've found a home for our spirit crystals." She drew a dagger from her waist, a cold glint in her eyes. "Little rats, obediently hand over your stolen goods, or else..."

Before she could finish speaking, a deep roar came from the depths of the cave, followed by a powerful pressure that swept over her...

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of seriousness in each other's eyes.

"It seems things aren't that simple..." Ye Shuli gripped the dagger in her hand and said in a low voice.

Ye Shuli isn't a love-struck fool; twenty spirit crystals are enough for her to live a carefree life outside for several months!

Back in the day, she was known as "Detective Ke Li," so how could such a small problem stump her?

She smiled slightly, revealing a mysterious smile that seemed to say, "Everything is under my control."

"Wait, let me try my unique skill first—food temptation!" Ye Shuli mysteriously took out some spiritual fruits that emitted an enticing aroma from her storage bag and placed them at the entrance of the cave.

Those originally fierce little mice immediately became unable to move their legs after smelling this fragrance.

Their little eyes were wide open, and they were practically drooling. Where was their imposing manner from just now?

"Li'er, is this... a bribe?" Jiang Ye was completely bewildered.

"Shh! This is called strategy! Do you understand?" Ye Shuli rolled her eyes at Jiang Ye, and while the spirit rats were attracted by the spirit fruit, she crouched down and quietly slipped into the cave.

Inside the cave, a pile of glittering spirit crystals sat in a corner—the very twenty they had lost!

Ye Shuli was secretly delighted: You little punks, you're still too green to fight with me!

She quickly put the spirit crystal into her storage bag, and out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly caught sight of a pile of colorful herbs next to her, emitting a rich spiritual energy.

"Wow! This is a great deal!" Ye Shuli's eyes lit up; this was an unexpected bonus!

She unceremoniously took these precious herbs as well.

"Hehe, little mice, thank you for your generous gift!" Ye Shuli thought to herself with a smug smile, then turned to leave.

Just then, she suddenly sensed a powerful surge of spiritual energy emanating from the depths of the cave, accompanied by a low roar…

Ye Shuli's heart skipped a beat: Oh no! It seems there's something even bigger in this cave!

She immediately held her breath, hid in the shadows, and dared not move.

"Li'er, how is it? Have you found the spirit crystal?" Jiang Ye's anxious voice came from outside the cave.

Just as Ye Shuli was about to speak, she suddenly saw a pair of scarlet eyes light up in the darkness...

"Jiang Ye...run!"

Ye Shuli emerged from the cave, clutching her storage bag tightly in her hand, her face slightly pale.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Ye immediately went to greet her: "Li'er, are you alright? Did you find the spirit crystal?"

Ye Shuli smiled mysteriously, shaking the storage bag in her hand, her tone tinged with a hint of smugness: "Absolutely! Don't you know who I am? I'm like Conan, there's no case I can't solve!"

Jiang Ye looked at the bulging storage bag in Ye Shuli's hand and jumped up with joy, wishing he could perform a backflip on the spot.

"Li'er, you're amazing! You're practically my goddess!" He looked at Ye Shuli with adoration, his eyes practically sparkling.

Ye Shuli was amused by his silly appearance and couldn't help but reach out and poke his forehead: "Stop talking nonsense! Hurry up and pack your things, let's go!"

The two returned to the valley and were about to take stock of their spoils when they noticed that the air around the valley was a bit strange.

"Wait, did you feel anything?" Ye Shuli stopped what she was doing and looked around warily.

Jiang Ye also noticed the abnormality. He closed his eyes and carefully sensed the fluctuations of spiritual energy around him.

"It seems... someone is coming." He opened his eyes, his tone grave.

“There’s more than one, and they’re very strong,” Ye Shuli added, her expression turning serious.

"No way, this bad luck? Is it the legendary 'villain law'? Every time we break through, trouble comes knocking?" Jiang Ye couldn't help but complain.

"Shut up! You jinx!" Ye Shuli glared at him. "Get ready for battle!"

As soon as they finished speaking, several figures emerged from the dense forest and surrounded them.

These people were dressed in uniform black outfits and wore menacing masks; they were clearly not good people.

"Who are you people?" Ye Shuli asked coldly.

The leader let out a sinister laugh: "Hehehe, who we are is not important, what's important is... the spirit crystals and herbs on you, we'll gladly accept them!"

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of seriousness in each other's eyes.

It seems a fierce battle is inevitable.

"Li'er, it seems we'll be fighting side by side this time!" Jiang Ye gripped his longsword tightly, a glint of excitement flashing in his eyes.

"Enough talk! Get ready to fight!" Ye Shuli drew her dagger, assumed a fighting stance, and her eyes were filled with fighting spirit.

Just as tensions were running high, a deafening roar suddenly echoed from the depths of the valley, followed by a powerful pressure sweeping in...

Ye Shuli and Jiang Ye's expressions changed drastically, and they both looked in the direction from which the sound came.

"What is that..." Jiang Ye's voice trembled slightly.

Ye Shuli took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Not good! We're surrounded..."