18 A Lotus Flower

Yun Shu couldn't turn around, so he could only bear the silence and wait.

"It is easy to find a stick to beat a dog," said Su Lingwen. "I was too young at that time. What could I even do?"

As Yun Shu expected, she was framed by someone.

Sending a kid to the Valley of Crime and punishing her by two hundred years in confinement was basically giving her a death sentence.

However, Su Lingwen still survived.

"Then your legs…" asked Yun Shu carefully.

"The same reason," said Su Lingwen without much emotion in her voice.

"That's extremely vicious! Who did it?" Yun Shu asked, frowning.

This time, Su Lingwen didn't answer his question directly. Instead, she dodged the topic and asked Yun Shu, "How did you make such progress within a month?"

Yun Shu realized that Su Lingwen didn't want to talk about it, so he respected her privacy. "Although I was grounded for a month, I wasn't slacking at all! Also, I found some really good things by accident."

"What things?" asked Su Lingwen.

Yun Shu beamed, pulled out two top ginseng from his cosmic bag, and threw them at Su Lingwen, who was in the water. "See it for yourself!"

Su Lingwen took a quick glance at the vegetables floating in the water. "Just some turnips."

Yun Shu laughed amusedly at her response that was just like his. "Take a closer look!"

Su Lingwen reached out her hand and grabbed the 'turnips'. The next instant, a loud exclamation sounded.

"This is… supreme-grade ginseng!? Where did you find it?" Her voice was even slightly trembling.

"A friend gave them to me!" Yun Shu answered ambiguously. The world behind that stone gate was so strange, he didn't have a clue himself.

"Take them back! You'll be in trouble again if someone sees them!"

"It's okay. You take them."

Su Lingwen was surprised at his casual remark. She didn't know much about precious herbs, but she knew how valuable supreme-grade ginseng was.

The Elders in the sect probably didn't have one. Even if they did, they would definitely regard it as the most precious item in their collection.

But now, Yun Shu was giving two to her!

"I can't accept it. They're too valuable." Su Lingwen hurriedly shook her head.

Yun Shu smiled, his attitude lax. "Don't worry, and just take them. I've got plenty!"

Then he pulled out another two supreme-grade ginseng from his bag and threw them into the air to show Su Lingwen.

She couldn't believe her eyes; he had four supreme-grade ginseng! Maybe even more!

She couldn't help wondering what kind of powerful friend Yun Shu had!

"Well… Then I'll just keep them for you temporarily. Ask me anytime you need them!" said Su Lingwen.

Yun Shu smiled. "No problem!"

Su Lingwen had finished her bath by now, feeling relaxed.

"I'm done. Take me back."

"No problem!" Yun Shu turned around.

And then, he was totally stunned by what he saw.

The young lady was like a lotus flower blossoming beside the water.

She had bright eyes and pearl-white teeth. She was so gorgeous that Yun Shu almost felt it was a dream.

"Excuse me, who are you…?" Yun Shu asked unbelievably.

"Why are you talking nonsense? I'm Su Lingwen!" said the girl, annoyed.

Yun Shu confirmed her voice, finally finding a piece of evidence to prove it was really her. The astonishment had made him stand still for a while. He snapped back to his senses, walked over to her, and pointed at her reflection in the water. "Take a look at yourself. Can you tell it's the same person?"

Su Lingwen did as Yun Shu said and also felt amazed. She hadn't seen herself like this for too long.

"I almost forgot how I look…" She said so in a flat tone, but Yun Shu could sense the sorrow hidden within.

"No worries! From now on, you just doll up. No one can give you a hard time anymore because I'll beat them for you!" Yun Shu declared while smiling.

Su Lingwen's face flushed at his ambiguous words. She was not used to this feeling at all, so she pretended to be cold. "Don't be glib! It's time for us to go back to the steles. You've already wasted a month!"

"As you command." Yun Shu carried her on his back and walked back to the square.

That feeling of warmth in Su Lingwen's heart was so unfamiliar, yet nice. She unconsciously leaned her face against Yun Shu's back, and at last, a proper young lady's smile appeared on her face.

When they came back to the steles, it was almost noon.

Su Lingwen said to Yun Shu, "It's time for you to go back now."

Yun Shu knew how terrible the killing wind was. With some hesitation, he asked, "Maybe you should go back with me?"

Su Lingwen shook her head. "There's no need. I'm not afraid of the wind."

"Seriously?" Yun Shu was shocked.

The killing wind was extremely powerful. If he was caught up in the currents, it would be impossible for him to survive. Yun Shu wondered how powerful Su Lingwen was to be so uncaring towards the most potent threat here.

"I have a special technique. After you make further progress, I'll teach you!" said Su Lingwen.

Yun Shu nodded and left the square. However, this time, he didn't go back to his stone shelter. Instead, he went deeper into the Valley of Crime.

There was a relatively large number of disciples who were sent here as punishment, and most of them didn't have a stone shelter like Yun Shu.

Those without high enough cultivation level to face the killing wind would gather together and find a natural shelter from the wind. Therefore, small groups were formed in the valley.

Today, Yun Shu's destination was one such shelter; it was a cave and was easy to spot.

Before Yun Shu entered the cave, a young man stopped him. "Stop! Who are you?" The young man was still a teenager like Yun Shu. However, the look on his face was rather mean.