Chapter 3 Soft Stone Eggs

Ye Xuan took the dagger cautiously and approached the stone wall, extending his hand and making an "OK" gesture.

Dongfang Yan looked at his gesture, shaking her head in confusion.

Ye Xuan felt quite speechless; it seemed that communication with the locals was indeed an art. He pointed to the cave, indicating that she could proceed.

Dongfang Yan unsheathed her sword and swiftly dashed into the cave like an arrow, tearing through the surrounding air.

After a while inside the cave, a howl echoed out, and Dongfang Yan swiftly emerged, fleeing in their direction.

From the cave emerged a creature over 2 meters long, with short limbs, triangular ears, and a body engulfed in black flames. Its eyes glowed crimson, evidently provoked by Dongfang Yan's provocations, roaring as it pursued her.

Seeing this scene, Ye Xuan thought to himself that he had never seen such a large ferret before. Without hesitation, he rushed into the cave, only to find it pitch black, cursing inwardly.

The den of the bloodfang ferret wasn't very large. After walking for about ten meters, Ye Xuan discovered a beam of light, illuminating a brown lingzhi mushroom with a triangular flat tip at one end. Ye Xuan couldn't help but feel excited; a lingzhi mushroom with a triangular glow was indeed rare.

Ye Xuan plucked the lingzhi mushroom but noticed a nest made of weeds about two meters away, behind which lay a white soft stone egg.

This puzzled Ye Xuan; ferrets were mammals, so why would they lay eggs? He picked up the soft stone egg, feeling its weight, thinking it might be a treasure. He put it in his pocket and hurried outside.

As Ye Xuan emerged from the cave, he was stunned to see the bloodfang ferret glaring at him with its crimson eyes, noticing the lingzhi mushroom in his hand. The ferret roared angrily at him.

Ye Xuan thought to himself how unreliable this situation was; the creature had returned so quickly.

Before Ye Xuan could dwell on it, the bloodfang ferret, baring its vicious teeth, lunged at him. Ye Xuan ran behind the stone wall, narrowly avoiding the creature's attack. Just then, a graceful figure wielding a sword rushed over—it was none other than Dongfang Yan, who swiftly pierced the ferret's neck with her blade.

Though severely injured, the ferret, driven by its last reserves of strength, ignored the pain in its neck and attempted to pounce on Dongfang Yan. At that moment, Ye Xuan, feeling a surge of heroism, drew the dagger Dongfang Yan had given him and stabbed the ferret's hindquarters.

The ferret let out a low growl, clearly weakened, convulsing before collapsing on the ground.

Seeing the ferret breathe its last, both Ye Xuan and Dongfang Yan breathed a sigh of relief. However, Dongfang Yan's next words left Ye Xuan dumbfounded.

"Wow, you're amazing! You actually stabbed its butt!"

Ye Xuan felt embarrassed at her straightforward remark. He explained, "I didn't stab its butt; I used your dagger to stab it."

Dongfang Yan gave him a puzzled look, thinking his explanation was essentially the same.

Ye Xuan, seeing Dongfang Yan's unchanged expression, realized he had overthought it.

Ye Xuan picked up the fallen lingzhi mushroom and handed it to Dongfang Yan. "Here, the lingzhi you wanted."

Dongfang Yan's eyes lit up with joy, her tense demeanor relaxing. Excitedly, she said, "Ye Xuan, thank you so much! Without our coordinated plan to lure it out, obtaining the lingzhi wouldn't have been so easy."

Ye Xuan thought they indeed made a good team. If Dongfang Yan had been a bit later, he might have been the one lying on the ground.

Seeing Dongfang Yan's happiness upon receiving the lingzhi, Ye Xuan said, "You know, Dongfang, you weren't quite fair. You used me as bait earlier."

Dongfang Yan chuckled coyly. "Well, how else could I have ensured a successful strike?"

Suddenly remembering something, Dongfang Yan asked, "By the way, I noticed you didn't have any spiritual energy flowing around you earlier."

Ye Xuan forced a laugh, stuttering, "Well, you see, it's because I fell off a cliff that day and woke up without even a trace of spiritual energy, let alone spiritual gates."

Hearing this, Dongfang Yan exclaimed, "What?!" Looking at Ye Xuan, who didn't seem to be lying, she began to feel some sympathy for the young man. Losing spiritual energy cultivation in this continent was quite unfortunate.

Beside the bloodfang ferret, Dongfang Yan pulled out the dagger and waved it at Ye Xuan. "Take this; without spiritual energy protection, at least you can defend yourself with it."

For Ye Xuan, it was the first time someone had given him something since he arrived in the realm. Moreover, it was a dagger for self-defense. Ye Xuan was touched to some extent; he wasn't one to be overly sentimental, but sometimes he had to seize the opportunity. He accepted the dagger and said to Dongfang Yan, "Well, then, how about your Soul-Stealing Sword? Why not give it to me too?"

After saying this, Ye Xuan pretended to reach for Dongfang Yan's Soul-Stealing Sword.

Dongfang Yan wouldn't agree so easily. "Oh, you're quite bold. Sorry, but the Soul-Stealing Sword is a second-tier artifact, my personal treasure. Without it, the bloodfang ferret might still be alive. I can't give it to you."

Ye Xuan wasn't really serious about wanting it; he was just joking with Dongfang Yan. After tidying up the battlefield, they began climbing up the steep cliff. Although Ye Xuan descended quickly, climbing back up was exhausting. By the time they reached the top, darkness had fallen.

"Ye Xuan, I'm leaving. Thank you for this time."

Dongfang Yan bid farewell to Ye Xuan and quickly disappeared into the woods.

Ye Xuan watched her disappearing figure, the fragrance lingering in the air. Holding the deadly dagger, he wondered if he would meet this young lady again.

Recalling the thrilling scene just now, Ye Xuan's heart raced. He suddenly felt excited, experiencing a kind of life he had never felt before. After all, Ye Xuan had always been fond of an adventurous lifestyle back on Earth.

He suddenly remembered the soft stone egg in his pocket and wondered what it was.