For a brief moment, Meng Qi felt a sense of daze as Yun Qingyan tightly gripped her hand and took her running. They had taken a considerable distance before she could even process what was happening. Subconsciously, she looked down at her wrist, where she could feel the man’s slender fingers, warm and strong, soothing her palm. The previously silent forest seemed to have changed somehow — at least she could hear her own increasingly rapid heartbeat in her ears.
“Sovereign Qingyan…” Meng Qi opened her mouth and murmured. The person should be able to hear her voice, just like she heard his just now.
Yun Qingyan turned his head and gave her a faint smile. His expression was gentle and relaxed, appearing to be in a very good mood.
Meng Qi’s face became hot all of a sudden. Even though they were still in the Starfallen Sea, in this eerie and unpredictable forest on top of that, it seemed that all her nervousness had evaporated in an instant. With Yun Qingyan by her side, by being with him, there was nothing to be afraid of.
Yun Qingyan gradually slowed down his pace. The forest remained dimly lit. They had covered a long distance, yet they were still far from the clearing where Pei Mufeng and Lu Qingran were waiting.
Meng Qi’s hazy mind finally started to regain clarity. She looked around and turned to Yun Qingyan, who was walking slowly, asking, “Sovereign Qingyan, how did you come here?”
Yun Qingyan smiled at her, but remained silent. He continued to hold Meng Qi’s hand as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The two of them walked hand in hand, side by side, slowly traversing through the forest. Meng Qi had a momentary daze, as if they were not in the Starfallen Sea, but in a beautiful garden with the chirping of birds and pleasant scenery, leisurely strolling along.
“The person who spoke to me just now…” They had walked quite a distance before Meng Qi murmured again, “Was it really Senior Lin Yan?”
She was a little confused. What’s going on here?
Why did she meet Senior Lin Yan?
“Mm.” Yun Qingyan casually nodded. He suddenly raised his finger, and a gust of wind shot up, causing two leaves to float and land in his palm, which he then handed to Meng Qi.
Meng Qi spread her hand and caught the leaves. She lowered her head to look at her palm. They were two small leaves, emerald-like in color. They were heart-shaped, slightly thick, and in the center of the leaves, there was a tiny, crimson drop-like mark that resembled a raindrop, looking quite eerie.
“This is…” Meng Qi furrowed her brows and quickly turned her memory. “Ah!” she couldn’t help but exclaim, suddenly remembering, “Luoxin Tree!”
Meng Qi held the two small leaves in her hand and leaned closer to smell them. A faint and refreshing fragrance wafted towards her, reminiscent of the delicate scent of a water town during a rainy day, with a hint of bamboo leaves. It smelled really good. Most importantly, this fragrance had no aggressiveness to it; it instinctively made people relax.
Meng Qi couldn’t believe her eyes. “Is it really a Luoxin Tree?!” she exclaimed in disbelief. “I’ve only read about this in books. They say it can be used to create the most potent hallucinogen in the world, completely colorless and odorless. Inhaling it would make people completely unaware of their surroundings. I always thought it was just a myth, never imagining that the Luoxin Tree actually exists.” Meng Qi looked up at the trees around her and wondered, “Are all of these trees Luoxin Tree?”
Yun Qingyan didn’t answer her. He let go of Meng Qi’s hand and stood with his hands behind his back. As if imitating her, he tilted his head and looked at the trees that had been growing for who knew how many thousands, or even tens of thousands, of years. “Perhaps,” he said in a faint tone, sounding somewhat melancholic.
Meng Qi surveyed her surroundings, her heart stirred slightly, “According to the legend, the Luoxin Tree only grows in places where powerful beings have perished. However, not every place where a powerful being has fallen will possess the Luoxin Tree, unless…” She hesitated, contemplating her words. “Unless the fallen powerful being had lingering regrets.”
This was the extent of the record about the Luoxin Tree that Meng Qi read in the book.
“Hmm.” Yun Qingyan looked back at her, as if a little surprised, “And then what?”
Meng Qi shook her head, “There are countless medical cultivators in Three Thousand Worlds, yet I’ve never come across any records that spoke about someone who has seen a Luoxin Tree in person. Until today, no one even knows whether this thing really exists. According to the books I’ve read, we can extract the essence of the Luoxin Tree by drying its leaves, ground them finely, and scatter the resulting powder in the wind. Anyone who inhales it will completely lose their sanity, oblivious to pain and death, either remaining conscious or trapped in a dreamlike state. This thing is said to be the most potent and incurable drug in the world.”
She looked at the two leaves in her hand, feeling a slight tremor in her heart.
If it weren’t for the eerie nature of this forest, she would have been tempted to find out if the legends were true.
Meng Qi forcibly suppressed her curiosity as she continued, “I heard Senior Lin Yan’s voice just now. Sovereign Qingyan, did you hear it too?”
Yun Qingyan shook his head: “Not yet.”
“Perhaps it’s because I have the Five Spirit Cauldron and Senior Lin Yan’s medical notes,” Meng Qi said. She didn’t hide anything from Yun Qingyan. He had been following her in the form of a small white tiger all along, witnessing everything that happened in the Grand Tournament’s barrier. There was nothing to conceal from him.
“The one that I encountered in the Apricot Forest’s barrier is the will of Senior Lin Yan that she deliberately left there, but here’s probably…” Meng Qi thought about the legend about the Luoxin Tree. Her lips moved slightly, unable to finish her sentence.
If the legend of the Luoxin Tree was true, then this might be the place where Lin Yan, the legendary medical cultivator from the bygone golden era, finally met her ends.
If the legends she read in the books were true… did it mean that the benevolent and compassionate genius like Senior Lin Yan still had a strong lingering regret, something she couldn’t let go of even in her last moments?
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