Chapter 7 Cooperation

As the voice faded,

Ran Qingmo stared at the handsome and serious face of the man before her, unable to gauge from her eyes what she was contemplating at this moment.

Xu Yuan didn't rush her, quietly waiting for her response.

No one wants to die, and he was no exception.

The original Third Young Master's family might have held sway over the entire Dayan, but they could not quench a near thirst from afar.

In his current isolated plight, Xu Yuan could only rely on Ran Qingmo, the very person who had kidnapped him.

Everyone else wanted to kill him, but she had only kidnapped him.

After the death of the Yanling Python, blood gushed out like lava, scorching hot, casting waves of mist in the cold winter rain and isolating the desolation outside the cave.

In the silence,

"Alright, speak,"

said Ran Qingmo in a light voice that slowly rose in the quiet cave.

Xu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.

He was genuinely afraid that at this time, she would deal him another blow.

Choosing his words carefully, Xu Yuan looked at her and said softly,

"Mr. Ran, what I have to say is simple, for the sake of my life, and your life, we'd better cooperate."

Ran Qingmo quietly watched him, waiting for what he would say next.

Seeing this, Xu Yuan continued in a gentle and careful tone:

"I know that it might seem presumptuous to say this given my current status as a prisoner, but as you saw just now, Mr. Ran, if you hadn't taken action, I would already be dead."

He paused for a moment, the corners of Xu Yuan's mouth lifting into a self-mocking smile:

"I know that because of my father, many people in this world want me dead, but I don't believe that a Demonic Beast living in the Wanxing Mountain Range would be influenced by him."

As he said this, Xu Yuan looked into Ran Qingmo's eyes:

"Yet that python wanted to kill me. The Yanling Python, which is extremely afraid of death, still desperately wanted to kill me even after you had pierced its vital spot."

"Mr. Ran, don't you find this very strange?"

The soft sound of continuous rain gently entered, leaving the cave in engulfed in silence.

Ran Qingmo's clear eyes flickered slightly, and she nodded softly.

Xu Yuan took a deep breath:

"Someone wants me to die on the way after being captured by you."

"If I die here, my father will assume you killed me."

He paused,

Xu Yuan stated each word deliberately:

"You will die too."

The woman before him dressed always in black, with a disposition as calm as water, was indeed very strong.

But the world was not without others who were also strong. Capturing Xu Changtian and causing his death would mark the beginning of her own demise.

In the Cangyuan Chronicles, Xu Yuan actually quite liked the character of Ran Qingmo.

She was, in effect, a semi-heroine. The reason she was only semi is that she always died before developing affections with the player, even before her veil was removed, hastening to her death.

Among the twenty-five endings in the Cangyuan Chronicles, there was only one official easter egg where Ran Qingmo flees overseas, but the prerequisite for achieving this easter egg was for the player to cheat.

To max out attributes and forcibly defeat a BOSS that was impossible for players to beat at that time, was the only way to save her.

Xu Yuan had once thought this easter egg was interesting.

The fate of the character changed based on the player's choice, but this change was limited unless you cheated.

But now, suddenly, he felt that she and his current self were, in a sense, both sleeping dragons and young phoenixes—twenty-five deaths across twenty-five timelines.

Ran Qingmo did not speak, and the eyes that showed no fluctuation in emotion.

She was not at all swayed by the death threat Xu Yuan had spoken.

Xu Yuan realized that this angle might not work on a woman like Ran Qingmo, took a deep breath, and then said:

"Mr. Ran, you kidnapped me for the forty thousand disciples of Sword Sect, right?"

Ran Qingmo's eyes flickered slightly, and the warm air in the cave seemed to drop a little.

Realizing this, Xu Yuan continued to speak softly:

"You don't need to look at me like that. I won't ask about your source of information, and you should not probe how this good-for-nothing learned of it. We are in the same boat now; delving deeper serves no purpose."

Ran Qingmo's eyes relaxed for a moment.

Xu Yuan glanced at the python's corpse outside the cave and said calmly:

"Although I still don't agree with your judgment that capturing me would threaten my father, I think even if you wanted to use me as a bargaining chip, you couldn't possibly do so with a corpse, right?"

"......"

Ran Qingmo was silent for two seconds, then her crisp voice came from beneath the veil covering her face:

"But you don't have 'qi'."

Xu Yuan was startled upon hearing this, pondered for a moment, and then understood her meaning.

In this extraordinary world, not having qi is just like being an ordinary person.

And to a cultivator of Ran Qingmo's caliber, ordinary people were almost indistinguishable from ants.

If there truly were a third-party power bold enough to make a move on Xu Yuan in her presence, then their strength surely wouldn't be weak.

Once she and the adversary engaged in combat, the mere aftershocks would be enough to kill Xu Yuan a hundred times over.

She was already tasked with protecting Xu Yuan; cooperation was thus completely unnecessary.

Xu Yuan himself had no intentions of getting involved in the fight. With a smile, he simply asked in a low voice,

"Do you have a map of the Wanxing Mountain Range?"

Ran Qingmo blinked, turned, and dug through the bags at the back of the cave, emerging with a sheepskin scroll which she handed to Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan sat down cross-legged beside the campfire and unrolled the sheepskin, scanning the map by the flickering firelight.

The moment he saw the map, Xu Yuan let out a slight sigh of relief.

Though there were some differences in detail, this map was largely consistent with that of the Wanxing Mountain Range in the Cangyuan Chronicles game.

After a pause,

Xu Yuan gestured to Ran Qingmo, beckoning her to sit down as well,

"As long as you can confirm our location, I can provide a place to hide."

Ran Qingmo slowly lifted her black skirt and sat down beside Xu Yuan; however, her eyes bore a look of wariness towards him.

Xu Yuan also noticed the inappropriateness in his words.

Though she might act a bit dull, Ran Qingmo wasn't foolish.

Looking down at the map and considering his words carefully, Xu Yuan casually said,

"I know there must be people from my father's side searching for me in the Wanxing Mountain Range right now, but you don't need to worry too much.

"I can't contact them, and in front of a cultivator like you, everything I do is transparent. You don't have to worry about me making marks.

"On the contrary, if you keep dragging me around the Wanxing Mountain Range, we are very likely to be discovered."

While speaking,

Xu Yuan looked sideways into her serene eyes, his voice still somewhat hoarse,

"You can conceal your qi, but I can't."

Like many other extraordinary worlds, cultivators here could use their qi to locate people.

Ran Qingmo thought for a long while, then finally nodded lightly and said earnestly,

"I will keep an eye on you."

Xu Yuan gave a slight smile,

"As you wish."

Having said that,

Xu Yuan turned his attention back to the unfolded map, speaking softly,

"When I was a child, my father brought me and my two brothers to the Wanxing Mountain Range. He has a cave dwelling here with many resources for cultivation, enough for the two of us to live for a very long time."

These words were fabricated by Xu Yuan; his so-called father knew nothing of this treasure trove, but that didn't hinder Xu Yuan from pinning this on him.

After all, it was unlikely Ran Qingmo could confront him directly about it.

Upon hearing this, Ran Qingmo's eyebrow slightly furrowed, her voice cold, "Your father also knows of it?"

Xu Yuan had prepared for this, and replied nonchalantly,

"My father is needed in the Imperial Capital now and can't come to find me personally. His subordinates aren't likely to know about it. And even if they knew of the cave dwelling, Miss Ran, how likely do you think they are to look for me there?"

"...." Ran Qingmo was silent.

Xu Yuan tapped lightly on the sheepskin scroll,

"Alright, point out where we are, and then let's hurry on our way."

At his words, Ran Qingmo nodded slightly, her beautiful eyes looking downward.

But after staring at the map for a long time, she hesitantly extended a slender finger and tapped lightly.

Xu Yuan saw this, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Quite close.

Before he could rejoice,

the next moment,

he watched as the delicate finger moved again, tapping another spot.

Then three more places, then a fourth....

"...."

Xu Yuan fell silent, looked up, but held back his words.

In the flickering firelight, amidst the silent exchange of looks,

Ran Qingmo averted her gaze and murmured softly,

"I... I don't know."