At this point, hearing what Xia Ruxi had said, Pei Yuanxiu began assigning tasks: “Yuan Zhang, you and Xiao Liang go gather some dry firewood—better make it a bit more, since we’ll need to keep a fire going tonight anyway.
“Zhongqing, you and Muxi go fetch some water from the nearby stream. I’ll take care of that deer, and Yingying, come over and look after Zhiyan.” Upon hearing their captain’s orders, the team members tacitly began carrying out their duties without a single voice of objection.
Seeing that everyone had gone off to work, Chen Yingying skipped over and sat down beside Gao Zhiyan’s bed.
“Sister Zhiyan, don’t rush ahead all by yourself like that next time. Wait for us! Otherwise, everyone gets so worried whenever you get hurt.” Hearing Chen Yingying’s caring words, Gao Zhiyan smiled. “Alright, alright, I promise our little Ying, I won’t do it next time.”
Having heard the answer she wanted, Chen Yingying beamed with joy.
Watching their interaction, Xia Ruxi suddenly found herself missing her close friends back in the Immortal Cultivation Realm, wondering how they were doing.
Yet she wasn’t one for sentimental melancholy. She only thought to herself: If they knew I’d ended up in this different world with my spiritual power entirely gone and my spiritual mansion shattered, goodness knows how they’d laugh at me. Not to mention, just thinking about it reminds me of that immortal fruit wine brewed by Qiu Er—the taste is unforgettable once you’ve had it.
Gao Zhiyan and Chen Yingying looked over at Xia Ruxi. Seeing that she was lost in thought, they didn’t speak up to disturb her.
By the time Xia Ruxi snapped out of her daydreams, she found two pairs of uniquely gorgeous eyes staring right at her, smiling silently.
It gave Xia Ruxi a slight case of goosebumps.
“If my two pretty fairy maidens have something to say, just spit it out. You shouldn’t just keep staring like that—the pressure on me is huge,” Xia Ruxi joked with a forced smile.
Gao Zhiyan and Chen Yingying exchanged a glance, silently communicating their thoughts, before Gao Zhiyan asked, “Little Sister Ruxi, are you a fairy from heaven? Otherwise, how else could you have healed both me and Pei Yuanxiu in an instant?”
Chen Yingying nodded frantically as well, the miraculous scene of Gao Zhiyan lying on the bed still fresh in her mind.
Xia Ruxi was left between laughter and tears, wondering how she could possibly answer their question.
Before Xia Ruxi could speak, the others who had gone out for water, firewood, and venison all returned.
Stepping closer and sensing Xia Ruxi’s awkward spot, Pei Yuanxiu spoke up: “Ruxi, come help me roast the meat. I’m still relishing the grilled fish we had last night.”
Hearing Pei Yuanxiu’s words as if granted a pardon, Xia Ruxi quickly stood up, walked over to him, and took the butchered venison that he had already sectioned and skewered onto sticks.
She called out, “Pei Yuanxiu, come start the fire for me, and make sure it’s big.” “Alright, I’m coming right over.” Having clearly never seen Pei Yuanxiu obey a girl’s instructions like this before, everyone looked at Xia Ruxi with astonishment.
Peng Liang, with his uncontrollable mouth, blurted out what everyone was thinking: “Captain, were you possessed by something? Back then, if we asked you to start a fire, you wouldn’t even pay us any mind, and you’d say things like ‘you’re bothering me with such trivial matters’.”
Pei Yuanxiu turned around and shot Peng Liang a sharp, piercing glare. Peng Liang instantly fell silent, making a gesture as if zipping his mouth shut.
Xia Ruxi was clearly somewhat distracted, still trying to figure out how to answer Gao Zhiyan’s question, and thus had no time to mind Peng Liang’s remarks.
Seeing that Xia Ruxi hadn’t paid attention to Peng Liang, Pei Yuanxiu breathed a sigh of relief.
Even he didn’t know why he felt relieved—as if he were afraid someone might discover the secrets hidden deep in his heart.
When Xia Ruxi finished roasting the venison and invited everyone over to eat, as they sat gathered around the campfire, everyone except Pei Yuanxiu cast their gazes unanimously toward Xia Ruxi.
Most of the six pairs of eyes were filled with anticipation and curiosity, except for Xiao Zhongqing, whose gaze carried a hint of probing, as though he were trying to gauge whether this person posed a threat to the team’s safety.
For a moment, Xia Ruxi didn’t know where to begin. Having lived for hundreds of years, she had traveled across vast rivers and mountains and witnessed countless extraordinary people and strange phenomena; yet faced with this bizarre situation, she hardly knew how to phrase her words.
Pei Yuanxiu had been keeping a close eye on Xia Ruxi’s expression, fearing she might feel embarrassed or find it difficult to explain her circumstances.
Thus, he spoke up: “Everyone shouldn’t pry too much into Ruxi’s origins. All I can tell you is that she doesn’t belong to this world. As for how or why she came here, that’s her privacy, and she’s under no obligation to tell us. Ruxi, may I tell them about the halo around Zhiyan and that cluster of light?”
Grateful for Pei Yuanxiu’s rescue, and intending all along to take Gao Zhiyan on as a disciple for her sect—especially since spreading the influence of her Daoist tradition meant she didn’t need to keep things overly hidden—Xia Ruxi nodded toward Pei Yuanxiu.
Seeing Xia Ruxi’s nod, Pei Yuanxiu began recounting everything Xia Ruxi had told him about cultivation to his teammates in detail.
Pei Yuanxiu’s words left his teammates clicking their tongues in wonder, prompting Yuan Zhang to exclaim, “Truly, the world is so vast that nothing is too strange!”
While they listened to Pei Yuanxiu’s account, Xia Ruxi observed each person’s expression, muttering to herself: If my spiritual pet could be summoned, Chi Die could directly tell me what they’re thinking without me having to guess.
From the perspective of a centuries-old “old monster,” Xia Ruxi figured these people posed no real threat to her, and her intuition told her they were trustworthy.
Making up her mind, Xia Ruxi prepared to explain her origins to them. “Ahem~ I can tell you my background. After all, I’ll need to rely on friends here, and I’m indeed unfamiliar with this world. So as an exchange for me telling you, you must also let me live with you in this world for a while.”
Pei Yuanxiu thought to herself: This was originally supposed to be the second thing I promised her; she probably just wants to gauge my teammates’ opinions.
Seeing that their captain had no objections, the others raised no complaints.
At that moment, Xiao Zhongqing spoke up coldly, “You can stay with us, but I don’t want you doing anything to harm our team. Even if the Captain vouches for you, I’ll do everything in my power to drive you out.”
Dissatisfied, Gao Zhiyan stood up and retorted, “Little Zongzi, what are you talking about? Ruxi saved both me and Pei Yuanxiu; she would certainly never harm us!”
Seeing that the two were about to argue, Peng Liang and the other three grew anxious, yet didn’t know how to intervene.
With an unconcerned expression, Xia Ruxi replied, “No problem, I accept your terms!”
With a clear conscience, Xia Ruxi wasn’t the least bit intimidated by Xiao Zhongqing’s minor threats made in the name of team security.
Pei Yuanxiu frowned. Though he disagreed with what Xiao Zhongqing had said, he didn’t voice any rebuttal either—deep down, after all, he simply couldn’t imagine Xia Ruxi doing anything to endanger the team.
“Then I’ll continue. I come from an immortal cultivation world. Where I’m from, most people are capable of practicing cultivation; I won’t go into detail about cultivation aptitudes and initiation methods. Unforgivably mediocre as I am, I possess a tiny bit of talent, having muddled through for several centuries with a so-so level of cultivation.
“An accident happened when I was undergoing the heavenly tribulation just as I was about to ascend to the higher realm: I was struck down here by the final bolt of heavenly lightning. I have no way of returning for the time being, so I plan to take things as they come and establish and propagate my sect here.”
The more she spoke, the more animated Xia Ruxi became, her face glowing with a passion that contrasted with her usual cold demeanor, her bright eyes shining with confidence.
“Pardon me, I got a bit carried away. That’s pretty much my background. However, when I was struck over here, my spiritual power was completely wiped out and my spiritual mansion shattered, so you can forget about asking me to display any cultivation techniques. At best, I’m just an ordinary person with somewhat superior physical fitness compared to you all.” At this point, a hint of bitterness flickered at the corner of Xia Ruxi’s mouth.
Pei Yuanxiu hadn’t expected her condition to be so dire, and anxiety inevitably welled up inside him.
None of the people present had expected Xia Ruxi’s experiences to be so winding and torturous, and even Xiao Zhongqing’s expressionless face rarely betrayed a trace of guilt.