Chapter 334 - Still a Mortal

Being slightly calmer thanks to Yu Jin's promise that there might be a way to leave this secret realm somewhere Jing Yi followed him. It didn't seem like it would be so easy though.

The secret realm indeed didn't look much different from the Leyuan region outside as if it was just a copy of it in another dimension: A chain of mountains meandered through the middle while lakes and groves occupied the sides in varying distances. It was quite beautiful and the spiritual energy was obviously much richer than in the Yun Zou Sect. Jing Yi had only ever felt such pure energy when he was traveling with Qiu Ling.

This place … was probably really suited to cultivation, he determined. It was a pity that the state of his mind wasn't or he might have used his time here to cultivate a bit and surprise Qiu Ling when they came back.

But even though he had calmed down a bit his thoughts were still circling around his fiance. He definitely wouldn't be calm enough to concentrate on cultivating. And even if he was, his aptitude was low anyway. Most likely he wouldn't be able to even reach the third stage when they spent ten years in here. After all, reaching the third stage was said to be the first bottleneck in cultivation. The probability of him ever passing this point were exceedingly low.

Jing Yi shook his head. There was no use thinking about that. He had to concentrate on the task at hand. He hurried to catch up with Yu Jin. "Senior Martial Brother Yu, where are we going?"

Leng Jin Yu pointed at the mountain chain in front of them. "This secret realm was once created by an expert. It is expected that he lived here for a while or maybe even spent a long time here. Most likely, he built some kind of dwelling for himself and even though it was his dimension if another expert somehow managed to enter, he certainly wouldn't have wanted that person to give him a nasty surprise. Thus, I surmise that his dwelling should be in a safe spot. The mountains should be the best place for that."

"So we have to go up there?" Jing Yi looked up at the peaks towering above them. Never mind checking all of them, how were they even supposed to climb one of them? "Will this really be alright?"

Leng Jin Yu looked up at the peaks, too. He also didn't know where that expert's dwelling might be but it wasn't like they didn't have time to check slowly. "Mn."

"That … will probably take really long." Jing Yi couldn't help but become downcast. When Yu Jin said that there might be a way out of this secret realm he had felt hopeful but seeing this chain of mountains now … He had probably expected too much.

The two of them walked on in silence but soon enough this solemn quietness was disturbed by a sound. Leng Jin Yu turned back just to find Jing Yi's face flushed. He turned back around and sighed.

Right, he had completely forgotten that Jing Yi was still mortal. The second stage wasn't enough to say you were on the path to immortality. Only starting from the third stage onward would you slowly turn immortal.

"Let's find you something to eat."

Jing Yi's cheeks flushed even more when he heard Yu Jin say so. He hurriedly pressed a hand against his stomach and shook his head. "It's alright. We should just continue on. I … I can hold on." He had to. After all, Qiu Ling was still waiting for him out there. Having to take a break and eat after just such a short amount of time, he couldn't do that.

Leng Jin Yu stopped walking and turned around again. "I understand that you want to find a way to return soon but just look at the mountains. Do you think we'll find that way soon? You won't be able to hold on if you don't eat until then. So let's search for something now when we know that there are groves around. Who knows how the situation on the mountains will be?" He certainly didn't want to let the Son of Heaven starve in his company. That would really be too much. Although … wouldn't that also be a trial of poverty?

Jing Yi hurriedly nodded. Thinking like that Yu Jin was also right. He hadn't thought about it enough. Thankfully he hadn't been thrown into this secret realm all alone. Without senior martial brother Yu, he really wouldn't have known what to do. He wouldn't even have thought of searching the mountain range. The only thing he would have been able to do was to wait until Qiu Ling found a way to open the array again.

Ah, he really was hopeless … As long as nobody else was around he really couldn't do anything. He was probably quite the burden to Qiu Ling.

Jing Yi's thoughts went back to his fiance and he couldn't help but smile. Even if he was a burden, Qiu Ling would probably carry it with joy. He was just like that.

Leng Jin Yu and Jing Yi arrived at the edge of a grove. The trees stood quite far apart, allowing the sunlight to reach the ground. The warm rays had led to a variety of different plants growing there. Just here at the edge, they could count at least twenty different plants.

Leng Jin Yu turned to Jing Yi and slightly furrowed his brows. "I don't know that much about spiritual herbs." He had studied them but only in regards to their effects and he had never considered whether they could be consumed by lower leveled cultivators.

Jing Yi's eyes lit up. "That's not a problem, Senior Martial Brother! Actually, while Qiu Ling and I were in the Hei Dian Sect I learned a bit about alchemy. It's not much but I should be able to recognize a few herbs."

Leng Jin Yu nodded. "Then you go and look for them. I'll wait here." He sat down and started to cultivate or, well, at least it looked like that to Jing Yi. In fact, his thoughts drifted back to the Yun Zou Sect.

Since leaving he hadn't seen any of those images he thought to be memories of his past life. So, it seemed they were really tied to the sect somehow.