Chapter 136

When Su Yun woke up, he found himself lying on a stone bed.

Above him was a gray stone wall, from which hung several strings of dried herbs.

The room was filled with a strong medicinal scent, mixed with the smoke of burning wood.

He turned his head to look; Granny Meng was sitting by the fire pit, adding firewood to the flames.

The firelight shone on her wrinkled face, flickering.

"Awake?" She didn't even turn her head.

Su Yun propped himself up, his bones aching all over.

The Yao Beast's strike had injured his internal organs. Although Valley Master Su Yao's Medicinal Pill had stabilized his condition, it would take at least half a month to fully recover.

He inspected his Dantian; his Nascent Soul had dimmed significantly, and the nine-colored light around it had become thin.

"Where are they?" he asked.

Granny Meng gestured toward the next room with her chin.

"They are all sleeping next door. That Bai girl had a fever all night, but it just broke. Your subordinate who uses a sword nearly lost her arm; I applied medicine, and she will need to rest for a while. The girl who does Alchemy is fine, just exhausted from overusing her Spiritual Qi; she will be fine after a sleep."

Su Yun was silent.

The Mid Spirit Severing Stage Yao Beast was far stronger than he had anticipated.

With the power of True Monarch Bingpo and the Blood-colored Girl boosted to their limits, they had only barely managed to block one strike.

If the Yao Beast hadn't retreated on its own, all four of them would have died there.

"In all the years I have lived, this is the first time I have seen someone at the Late Nascent Soul Stage survive against a Mid Spirit Severing Stage opponent,"

Granny Meng turned her head, her cloudy eyes fixed on him. "What exactly did you use?"

Su Yun did not answer.

He leaned against the stone wall, closed his eyes, and felt the Spiritual Qi being fed back into his Dantian slowly repairing his injuries.

From Qinghe City to the border of the Northern Wasteland, then to Wangbei Ferry, the ice plains, and the Ten Thousand Year Cold Pool, the Spiritual Qi generated by the cultivation of those in Enslavement had been continuously flowing into his body.

Without this feedback, he would have died under the Yao Beast's claws long ago.

"That Yao Beast," he began, "when did it come?"

Granny Meng added a piece of firewood to the fire.

"Three years ago. It suddenly appeared near the Thunder Pool and drove away all the Yao Beasts within a thousand miles. Some say it came from deeper within the Northern Wasteland, while others say it is guarding something."

Su Yun opened his eyes. "Guarding what?"

Granny Meng shook her head. "I don't know. But it certainly isn't the sky thunder bamboo. While that item is precious, it is not enough to make a Mid Spirit Severing Stage Yao Beast guard it for three years."

Su Yun thought for a moment and did not pursue the question.

Whatever the Yao Beast was guarding had nothing to do with him.

His goal for this trip had been achieved; he had obtained the ten-thousand-year ganoderma and the sap of the sky thunder bamboo.

The remaining nine-turn dragon saliva was in the Western Regions; that was a matter for the next step.

The door was pushed open, and Valley Master Su Yao walked in.

Her face was still pale, but her spirit had improved significantly.

Seeing that Su Yun was awake, she hurried forward.

"Master, how are you feeling?"

Su Yun nodded. "I won't die."

Valley Master Su Yao took his pulse and checked his internal injuries; her expression relaxed slightly.

"The injuries have stabilized, but you must rest for half a month before moving. You cannot use Spiritual Qi during this time, or your Meridians will suffer hidden damage."

Half a month. Su Yun calculated the time and nodded in agreement.

He looked at Granny Meng. "I will trouble you for this half month."

Granny Meng waved her hand. "The ten-thousand-year ganoderma you gave is enough for me to retire on. A half-month stay is nothing."

In the days that followed, Su Yun recuperated in Granny Meng's apothecary.

Fairy Jianyun's arm was severely injured; the Yao Beast's cold poison had invaded her bone marrow, and it took several types of medicine for Granny Meng to force the poison out.

Bai Shuang had a fever for a day and a night, but it finally broke on the second day, and she was able to get out of bed and walk around.

Valley Master Su Yao recovered the fastest; by the third day, she began helping Granny Meng organize the medicine cabinets.

Su Yun lay on the stone bed every day, doing nothing.

Inside his Dantian, the feedback of Spiritual Qi was slowly repairing his broken Meridians and shattered bones.

That Spiritual Qi gathered from the Southern Region and the Central Region, crossing mountains and rivers to finally converge into his Dantian.

He could feel that Zhao Lanxin was cultivating, Zhou Ruoyun was cultivating, Liu Wugou was cultivating, Zi Ling was cultivating, and those thousands of people in Enslavement were all cultivating.

The Spiritual Qi contributed by each of them was very weak, but when gathered together, it was an endless river.

On the eighth day, Su Yun was able to get out of bed and walk around.

He walked out of the apothecary and stood on the bank of Wangbei Ferry, looking at the gray, misty Yao Beast forest on the other side of the Cold Ice River.

The river water remained turbid, with white foam churning on the surface, and the cold wind blowing from the north was bone-chilling.

Bai Shuang walked to his side.

She was wearing a clean white dress that Granny Meng had found for her.

Her face was still pale, but much better than when she had first been rescued.

"Master," she said softly, "are you returning to the Central Region?"

Su Yun nodded.

Bai Shuang lowered her head. "May I follow you? I have no family left, and my companions were all killed by the Yao Beast. I do not know where to go."

Su Yun looked at her. "What is your cultivation level?"

Bai Shuang said, "I am at the Early Nascent Soul Stage. I have been gathering herbs in the Northern Wasteland for over a decade and am quite familiar with its terrain."

Early Nascent Soul Stage, a guide for the Northern Wasteland. Su Yun thought for a moment and nodded. "Follow me then."

Bai Shuang looked up, her eyes slightly red. "Thank you, Master."

Seven more days passed, and Su Yun's injuries finally recovered.

His broken bones had healed, his Meridians were repaired, and the Nascent Soul in his Dantian lit up once again.

Although he had not fully returned to his Peak state, he could already use Spiritual Qi.

Fairy Jianyun's arm was mostly healed, though she could not yet engage in intense combat.

Valley Master Su Yao and Bai Shuang had fully recovered.

Before they left, Granny Meng called Su Yun into the room.

She rummaged through a cabinet, pulled out a beast-skin map, and spread it on the table.

"This is a map of the entire Northern Wasteland that I have accumulated over decades."

She pointed with her rough finger at the markings on the map. "The Thunder Pool is here, the Ten Thousand Year Cold Pool is here; you have already been to those places."

"Go west, cross this mountain range, and you will reach the Western Regions. Go north, and you will enter the depths of the Northern Wasteland, where there are Late Huashen Stage Yao Beasts and even more terrifying things. I have never been there, and I don't want you to go either."

Su Yun looked at the map, memorizing the route.

The map was marked in great detail; where there were Yao Beasts, where there were Spirit Medicine, and where the forbidden zones were, all were clear at a glance.

The value of this map was no less than that of a ten-thousand-year ganoderma.

"Thank you." He put the map away.

Granny Meng waved her hand. "Go, go. I am used to being alone; with you gone, I can finally have a peaceful sleep."

Su Yun walked to the door and looked back at her.

The old woman had sat back down by the fire pit, adding firewood; her hunched figure swayed in the firelight.

"Granny Meng," he began.

The old woman didn't turn her head. "What else?"

Su Yun said, "If one day you don't want to stay in the Northern Wasteland, go to Qinghe City in the Central Region. Mention my name."

The old woman was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled. "I've stayed in this godforsaken place for decades; I have no desire to leave. But I appreciate your gesture."

Su Yun turned and walked out of the apothecary.

The four of them left Wangbei Ferry and walked back along the path they had come.

When passing through the Yao Beast forest, those Yao Beasts watched them from afar; not a single one dared to approach.

When passing through that long, narrow valley, the wind still wailed as if someone were crying.

After walking for three days, they finally exited the mountain range at the border of the Northern Wasteland.

Standing on the mountaintop, Su Yun looked back.

The Northern Wasteland was still an endless expanse of gray and white; there was no color between heaven and earth, only cold and desolation.

He turned around and flew south. The three people behind him followed closely.

After flying for seven days, the outline of the Central Region appeared in his field of vision.

The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi became dense, the mountains and rivers gained color, and the trees began to turn green.

The further south they flew, the warmer the weather became, and the air carried the scent of earth and flowers.

On the evening of the tenth day, the walls of Qinghe City appeared on the horizon.

The city gate was crowded with people.

When Su Yun landed, Zhao Lanxin was the first to rush up and throw herself into his arms.

She buried her face in his chest, her shoulders shaking, but she did not cry out.

Su Yun held her and patted her back gently.

Zhou Ruoyun also ran over, pulling on his sleeve, tears dropping down.

Liu Wugou stood in the crowd, her eyes red, yet she was smiling.

Elder Han Yue stood at the very back, her expression calm, but her eyes never left him.

Su Yun looked at these familiar faces, and his heart suddenly felt very calm.

The Northern Wasteland was cold, and the Yao Beast was terrifying, but this was his home.

He walked into the city, followed by those who had been waiting for his return.

The sunset dyed the entire city golden-red.

The new path was still very long.

The Western Regions, Dragon Abyss, nine-turn dragon saliva, Soul Transformation Stage Pill, passing the Divine Tribulation.

But that was a matter for the future.

Tonight, he just wanted to have a good sleep.