Chapter 58: One Less Hair

In the stillness of the forest, the large herb gathering team moved quietly with a soft tread. All the guards scanned the shadowy areas between the trees with vigilant eyes. Their hands firmly gripped the weapons at their waists, ready to deal with any sudden situation.

The mercenaries who truly dared to escort the herb gathering team were not just those younglings who had been dazzled by the beauty of the Little Fairy Doctor. Most of them were seasoned veterans who had roamed the Magic Beast Mountain Range for many years and possessed an essential understanding and camaraderie. They could read signals of danger or safety in each other's eyes with a simple exchange of glances.

Xiao Yan trudged along with the Heavy Xuan Ruler on his back. The unimaginable weight of the ruler, combined with its special ability to seal Dou Qi made even he, who had reached the Dou Master realm, laboriously move with every step. Although his breathing was not extremely fast, it was audibly labored.

Wiping the sweat from his face, he turned around and glanced at Little Fairy Doctor standing in the center of the team. The team's route was entirely up to her.

Herb gathering teams did not require many people; what they needed was knowledge and a keen eye.

Little Fairy Doctor resembled a fragile beauty as she gently wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. Her cheeks were slightly flushed and her breathing was slightly labored, a sight that could easily evoke a sense of protective fondness from those around her.

After exchanging a few words with her, a young man in the guard squad flashed a faint smile and waved his hand as he shouted, "Attention, men of the Wolf Head! We are about to enter the Magic Beast Mountain Range. Let's not screw this up!"

"Understood, Young Leader!"

Xiao Yan glanced at the young man known as Young Leader and noticed the wolf head badges hanging from the chests of some guards. This badge was precisely the emblem of the Wolf Head Mercenary Company, one of the three major mercenary companies in Qingshan Town.

He knew from the mouths of the other mercenaries around him that the young leader of the Wolf Head Mercenary Company, Mu Li, had been pursuing Little Fairy Doctor for a long time. Especially recently, his efforts had become more aggressive; wherever Little Fairy Doctor appeared, he would be sure to follow.

"Damn it, he's just relying on the fact that his father is the leader of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group. Does he really think that's enough to win Little Fairy Doctor's heart?"

"Exactly, Little Fairy Doctor would never fall for such a regular guy."

Xiao Yan heard the sour remarks from some of the mercenaries. He merely glanced at them, showing little interest in the relationship between the young man and Little Fairy Doctor.

The outskirts of the Magic Beast Mountain Range were relatively calm, as it was predominantly inhabited by Rank 1 magical beasts. Aside from occasional issues with groups of these magical beasts, most situations didn't even require Xiao Yan to act.

A blind-to-danger magical beast lunged at Xiao Yan with a roar. In a fluid motion, he sidestepped and then spun around to deliver a powerful kick that sent the Serpent-Tailed Leopard flying.

Watching as the beast slinked away after its unsuccessful attack, Xiao Yan had no intention of pursuing it. Had he wanted to, he could have used the Octane Blast to crush the magical beast with that very kick.

"Little brother, that was impressive. You dodged the attack and even kicked the magical beast away!"

"Tsk tsk, so strong at such a young age. What will become of him?"

"Ha ha, this little guy must be the youngest 2-star Dou Practitioner in the team, right? His strength is truly as rumored."

Even Little Fairy Doctor cast a curious look his way. It was impressive for someone so young to dodge an attack from a Rank 1 magical beast and even counterattack. Many 2-star Dou Practitioners might have panicked and gotten injured by the magical beast.

A glimmer of hostility flickered in Mu Li's eyes when he noticed Little Fairy Doctor's curious expression.

Xiao Yan simply nodded with a faint smile in the face of these looks of admiration, jealousy, and curiosity. He had heard such praise too many times before; it was nothing new to him.

Without any pretense or smugness, he simply continued to follow the team as they quietly made their way to the herb gathering area.

"Everyone, we are nearing the herb gathering area. Please take a moment to rest." After walking for a while, the soft, crisp voice of Little Fairy Doctor suddenly echoed through the quiet group.

All the mercenaries simultaneously halted their steps upon hearing her words and cautiously surveyed their surroundings.

After taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan sat down cross-legged, focused his mind, and began to cultivate the Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique. As he did so, his perception began to change, and his Spiritual Strength transformed into threads that began to capture the soul light particles floating in the air.

'The deeper we go, the more soul light particles there seem to be. Perhaps I could cultivate here in the Magic Beast Mountain Range to increase my Spiritual State.'

Xiao Yan realized that the more magical beasts there were, the more soul light particles appeared. These particles could very well be related to the birth of the Ten Thousand Beast Flame.

'Hmm? What is she doing going to such a place?'

After cultivating for a while, Xiao Yan frowned slightly and opened his eyes to look toward a cliff. During his cultivation, his Spiritual Strength had unexpectedly detected a figure walking down the cliff.

Xiao Yan revealed a playful smile as he thought, 'That girl isn't as innocent as she looks. There's more to this herb gathering trip than just gathering herbs, isn't there?'

He chuckled, stood up slowly, and discreetly moved away from everyone's view to slip into the dense forest toward the cliff.

Soon he reached the cliff and crouched down at its edge, looking with interest at the figure below. He smiled and asked, "Little Fairy Doctor, what are you doing in a place like this?"

!!!

The Little Fairy Doctor standing under the cliff was clearly startled as her body visibly trembled for a moment.

She looked up at Xiao Yan with a bit of reproach in her eyes and said, "Are you trying to scare me to death? What if I had fallen!"

She then pointed to a nearby pale flower harboring crimson fruits, partially hidden, from which a faint medicinal fragrance wafted.

"This is the White Orchid Fruit, a high-grade medicinal herb worth four thousand gold coins."

Xiao Yan blinked his big eyes in an innocent manner and said, "Oh, is that so? Do you need any help?"

Little Fairy Doctor gently plucked the White Orchid Fruit and placed it in her medicine bag. Then, raising her hand as delicate as jade, she asked, "Mm... Could you give me a hand?"

Xiao Yan gave a slight smile and reached out to grasp her delicate hand, feeling a warm softness transfer to the palm of his hand. With a gentle pull, he lifted her up onto the cliff in a smooth motion.

"Thank you."

After her feet gently touched the ground, Little Fairy Doctor whispered a thank you and quickly withdrew her hand from his grip. A flush of shy redness spread across her cheeks, seemingly embarrassed by the physical contact between them.

"It's time to go back; I've been out here for a while," she said.

Xiao Yan maintained his confident smile and nodded. After Little Fairy Doctor took a step forward, he turned sideways and peered down the cliff, the spot that had just been obscured by her, wanting to see what exactly lay below.

Suddenly, Little Fairy Doctor's gaze hardened, and she quickly turned around and sprinkled a handful of white powder in his direction with her right hand.

"Trying a sneak attack, Little Fairy Doctor?" In the face of this sudden attack, Xiao Yan showed neither surprise nor panic, only a cold smile.

A black flame suddenly appeared in the air, sucking in all the white powder like a miniature black hole.

!!!! Xiao Yan swiftly reached out his hand and grabbed her wrist, deftly twisting her right hand behind her back without a trace of gentleness.

"It hurts!"

"It's supposed to hurt."

Xiao Yan didn't fall for the Little Fairy Doctor's attempt to elicit sympathy. He coldly said, "If you don't want to end up as a one-armed fairy, then spill the beans and tell me what's under this cliff."

Little Fairy Doctor glared at him and said in a deep voice, "You dare? If I lose a single hair, the Thousand Medicine Pavilion and all the mercenaries will not let you go!"

Xiao Yan let out a loud laugh and very handily pulled out a strand of her hair.

"I think I really do dare."