Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda.
Although Xu Mu was not a Buddhist monk, he couldn't just watch a human domain lord die before his eyes.
Furthermore, Yun Miaomiao was the Great Commander of the Northwest of the Hunter's Alliance. Although this force did not belong to the imperial court, it was quite beneficial to the common people, so he naturally couldn't stand by and do nothing.
Thus, Xu Mu, carrying Yun Miaomiao's burning jade body, walked into the depths of the rock cave.
Because of the charm poison raging within her, she had lost consciousness and could only act on instinct.
"So hot..."
Yun Miaomiao's eyes were hazy as she writhed and began to undress.
Her red lips were soft and fragrant, and her panting breath on Xu Mu's chest made his bones go limp.
"No, hold on!"
Facing such temptation, Xu Mu gritted his teeth and threw Yun Miaomiao onto the ground.
"Ah... mmph..."
She cried out in pain from the fall, muttering incoherently, like some unspeakable melody, making Xu Mu's thoughts drift to the ninth heaven. He almost couldn't resist pouncing on her and conquering her right there.
*Slap, slap, slap...*
Xu Mu pressed several acupoints in succession, dulling his five senses, and then closed his eyes.
Out of sight, out of mind. Although he still couldn't calm down, he could at least restrain himself somewhat, and his mind was no longer filled with fantasies of desire.
A moment later, Xu Mu opened his eyes. He had already decided what to do.
"Buzz!"
The innate Bagua array disk materialized beneath his feet. Golden light radiated from it, and the characters flowed and changed in myriad ways. Xu Mu carefully controlled it, moving the character 'Qian' to the bottom of his feet, and then manipulated the disk to form the four characters 'Qian Yang Jing Po' (乾阳精魄).
Next, Xu Mu brought his index and middle fingers together. A misty golden light enveloped them, and heat rose from them. The fluctuations emitted were remarkably similar to a certain unspeakable instrument on a human body.
"Forgive me!"
Xu Mu roared, and the Daoist magic at his fingertips attacked the overflowing cave.
The force was like thunder.
...
The sounds of battle from the mountain mist and rain continued to echo.
After an unknown amount of time, the sounds of combat within the cave gradually subsided, and then a weary-looking young man walked out.
As he walked, he rubbed his right arm with his left hand.
Qiongqi, who was sitting at the cave entrance to heal, or rather, to stand guard, turned its head upon hearing Xu Mu's footsteps and spoke with a face full of grievance:
"Finished?"
Xu Mu walked to Qiongqi's side and his legs gave out, wanting to lean on it. Unexpectedly, the latter suddenly jumped aside, causing him to fall hard.
"Ouch!"
"What are you doing!"
Xu Mu scraped his elbow, adding to the strain on his already tired right arm.
"Hmph!"
Qiongqi darted to the side and opened its mouth to speak:
"Dirty man, don't even think about touching me."
Xu Mu's expression was confused:
"???"
"What are you talking about!"
Xu Mu was somewhat indignant upon hearing Qiongqi call him dirty:
"I was saving someone. Yun Miaomiao is the Great Commander of the Northwest of the Hunter's Alliance. She was poisoned by charm poison, could I just stand by and watch her die!"
Qiongqi crouched down, its sharp teeth bared, also with anger on its face:
"So what? You're still dirty!"
"And don't try to pull a fast one. If she wasn't the Great Commander, you wouldn't have saved her?"
Xu Mu:
"Of course I would save her!"
Qiongqi snorted:
"Then that proves it! You were just coveting her beauty!"
"And you call yourself a brother? You were enjoying yourself while I had to stand guard for you. Three hours, do you know how I spent those three hours!"
Qiongqi roared loudly, its voice filled with grievance.
Xu Mu had told it to heal, but instead, he had chased it out of the cave and left it alone with the woman for three hours. What loyalty!
The sounds of battle were not earth-shattering, but at least he could hear them clearly from the cave entrance, which had tortured him immensely.
"If I had known this would happen, I should have just set off immediately."
"Although my condition is much better now, the internal torment of these three hours is irreversible!"
Hearing this, Xu Mu finally couldn't hold back any longer. He suddenly jumped up from the ground, pointed at Qiongqi, and yelled:
"You were just sitting there and felt tormented? Did you ever think about how I spent these three hours!"
Qiongqi roared in response:
"Nonsense, does this need asking? Just by listening to the sounds, I knew what you were doing for those three hours!"
"Bullshit!" Xu Mu's face turned ashen. He pointed to his hands, which had just been washed and whose thumbs were slightly wrinkled, and said even more aggrievedly, "It's not what you think at all."
Before Qiongqi could retort, Xu Mu raised his trembling arm and gritted his teeth:
"I used Daoist magic to gather Yang essence into my hands. I fought for a full three hours before I could barely eliminate the charm poison. Do you know how tormented I was? In the end, even closing my five senses didn't work!"
"This is the truth of the matter. What you went through sitting there is nothing!"
Xu Mu held his hand suspended in mid-air, on the verge of tears.
If Qiongqi was only tormented by the sounds, then he not only heard it but also experienced the lewd imagery and was personally involved in the battle.
Morality and desire constantly assaulted his heart. Several times, he wanted to put down his hands and fight with a real weapon, charging into battle.
But in the end, he forced himself to hold back.
As a result, he still felt a throbbing ache below.
Hearing Xu Mu's words, Qiongqi was extremely shocked.
How was this possible? Could such a thing actually happen?
"You really..."
"Really!"
Xu Mu pointed to the bloodshot eyes, which were clearly from suppressed vitality.
Qiongqi's expression shifted from fierce to shocked, then to strange, and finally, it couldn't help but burst into laughter:
"Ah hahahahahaha..."
"Brother, good brother, I never thought you'd be in this situation!"
Xu Mu was already tired of the laughter, as Charles had been laughing in his mind for several hours.
"Laugh again, and you'll never eat my roasted meat again!"
Qiongqi rolled on the ground, its claws flailing randomly:
"Hahahaha..."
"I... I don't want to laugh, but I can't stop, hahaha..."
Xu Mu covered his face with both hands, his forehead covered in dark lines, and squatted on the ground in despair.
He had truly fallen today, his reputation in ruins.
"If you dare to go out and spread this around, I'll skin you alive!"
Suddenly, Xu Mu said fiercely to Qiongqi, who then stopped laughing.
Qiongqi took a few quick breaths, calmed down slightly, and then spoke in a comforting tone:
"Don't worry, don't worry."
"We're brothers. I won't tell anyone your secret of impotence."
Xu Mu was both ashamed and angry:
"Don't be so sarcastic!"
"I'm not impotent, I'm just a gentleman who doesn't take advantage of others. I'm a real man!"
Qiongqi nodded, its face serious:
"Yes, you are a real man. But in terms of being a man, you're clearly not acting like one."
"You!"
Xu Mu understood perfectly what Qiongqi meant, but he couldn't refute it. He finally gave up and stopped arguing.
He simply sighed to the sky:
"Alas, it's not entirely your fault. If I saw someone breaking the charm poison in this way, I would laugh too."
"Who would have thought of such a method? In a way, I'm also a genius in the medical arts."
Hearing this, Qiongqi, realizing the difficulty involved, couldn't help but say with admiration:
"Indeed, anyone else facing this situation would have probably sacrificed themselves for righteousness. How could they come up with such a bizarre idea like you."
"And even if others thought of this method, they wouldn't be able to practice it."
"It's just that I wonder if this woman will think you molested her after she wakes up. She's a domain lord of the fifth stage. If she seeks revenge on you, it won't be worth it."
Hearing this, Xu Mu shook his head with great confidence. Just as he was about to speak, a rustling sound of footsteps came from the cave.
Then, a familiar voice emerged from within:
"Why would I seek revenge? I'm too grateful to Young Master Xu to do that."
Qiongqi turned its head and saw a tall woman slowly emerging from the rock cave. Half of her slender legs were exposed, and she seemed to be in pain as she walked, her legs pressed together shyly. Her shoulder-length black hair was disheveled, and a touch of blush still lingered on her fair, almond-shaped face.
Her eyes were full of allure, and her robes were terribly wrinkled.
Upon seeing the person who had arrived, Xu Mu's face immediately turned crimson.
Although he and Yun Miaomiao had been "frank" with each other and had a "battle," that was in the dark cave.
Now, although it wasn't broad daylight, it was certainly much brighter than in the cave. And most importantly, the moment Xu Mu thought of what had just happened, certain parts of him became hard. Coincidentally, Yun Miaomiao glanced that way, her eyes seemingly filled with... resentment?
"I was just joking. I don't know anything."
Qiongqi, knowing the delicate situation, didn't want to get involved. It immediately turned its back, not wanting to disturb their interaction.
Xu Mu awkwardly scratched his head:
"Yun... Commander, you're awake."
He had originally intended to cover up his embarrassment, but as soon as he spoke, Xu Mu regretted it.
Because Yun Miaomiao had already woken up an hour ago.
The situation at that time was very awkward. Xu Mu couldn't help but cover his face.
He had been in the heat of battle when he suddenly encountered strong resistance. He opened his eyes and met Yun Miaomiao's gaze.
As soon as he stopped, wanting to explain something, Yun Miaomiao closed her eyes, both shy and indignant. Because she had also realized the situation, Xu Mu could only grit his teeth and fight again.
And it was in this conscious state that they fought for an hour until the charm poison was completely removed, and only then did Xu Mu come out.
"Can you... put that hand down."
Yun Miaomiao's chest heaved. Every time she saw Xu Mu's hand now, she would think of the battle they had just had, and her wound would involuntarily start to ache.
"Of course."
Xu Mu also realized and quickly lowered the hand covering his face.
After that, he stood there blankly, nervous and unsure of what to do.
Qiongqi also stood with its back turned, not speaking, its mind racing with thoughts.
Yun Miaomiao lowered her head slightly, occasionally glancing at Xu Mu, her legs trembling slightly, also silent.
It was only Xu Mu who couldn't stand the awkward atmosphere and spoke:
"How about... we go inside and sit for a while?"
...