Chapter 1291: You’re Dead if You Turn Around!
Chapter 1291: You’re Dead if You Turn Around!
Normally, jumping into a hot spring while experiencing extreme cold would be extremely harmful to their bodies. At the moment, however, that was the least of their worries. Cultivators’ bodies were powerful, so they were supposed to be able to withstand the shock of switching between extreme temperatures.
After she jumped into the hot spring,Yan Xuehen felt rich natural ki within. She thought, As expected, any hot spring that could exist in the Great Snowy Mountain would be exceptional. Soaking in here for a long time might even improve our constitution directly.
Of course, that wasn’t her priority at the moment. She continued to use her hands to scoop water over Zu An’s body. When she saw that the thin layer of ice around his body showed signs of melting, she immediately felt happier.
At first, she had been worried that the snow lady’s cold poison would be too powerful and that an ordinary hot spring might not be of much help. Naturally, however, this world was miraculous, and all things had something that counteracted them. Even though the terrifying snow lady existed, so did such a magical hot spring.
Yan Xuehen noticed that, apart from the ice around Zu An’s body melting, even the wounds all over him were starting to heal. Even though both processes happened extremely slowly, that was at least a good sign.
However, she was worried that his clothes would be a barrier to the hot spring’s warmth, keeping it from removing the cold poison. After some hesitation, she helped him undo his clothes, her fingers trembling. At first she had hoped Zu An would wake up earlier; now, however, she was worried that he might wake up too soon, leaving her unable to explain her actions properly.
Soon afterward, Yan Xuehen had completely removed Zu An’s clothes and tossed them aside. Her normally ice-cold skin was bright red as she thought, If this guy were awake, he might say something along the lines of how I saw him naked again, and so I got a better deal or something.
The corners of Yan Xuehen’s lips curled up into a pretty arc when she thought about all of the different things that had happened between the two of them.
After she calmed herself a bit again, however, she noticed that her body was sticky and extremely uncomfortable. Being in a hot spring with all of her clothes on didn’t feel all that great, as expected.
She herself had been tormented badly by the cold too, and her lips were a bit pale. Thus, she thought about soaking in the hot spring for a bit to completely remove the cold poison within her. Otherwise, as she was an ice element cultivator to begin with, and she was severely injured at that, she was highly susceptible to it. If the terrifying cold poison took root within her body, it was possible for her to never be able to recover her grandmaster rank cultivation.
But taking off my clothes in front of Zu An…
She hesitated. She considered going to a different pool to soak in, but Zu An was unconscious at the moment. Without her support, he might fall in and drown.
“This guy really is going to be the end of me…” Yan Xuehen muttered with a sigh. In the end, she couldn't bring herself to leave.
She immersed herself as deeply into the hot springs as possible, and only kept her head above the water. Then, with some rustling and a few ripples on the water’s surface, she tossed her clammy, wet dress ashore. She gave Zu An a worried look. Only when she saw that he still showed no signs of waking up did she sigh in relief.
However, she immediately scolded herself inwardly. Why am I acting like this? The most important thing right now is his safety. In this kind of situation, so what if he sees me? Either way, he’s already seen everything he shouldn’t see…
Yan Xuehen swam over to Zu An’s side and touched his skin. She couldn’t help but frown. Why is his body still so cold?
She set her previous worries aside and gently embraced him from behind, using her body’s temperature to provide him with warmth. One hand pressed against his chest, while the other hand rested on his dantian. She used her skills to help him eliminate the cold poison.
Previously, her efforts to help Zu An remove the cold poison had been ineffective for two reasons. One of them was the fact that she was seriously injured and unable to use ki how she wished, and the other was that she herself had been affected by the same cold. When her ki entered his body, even before it could help him with the cold poison in his body, it had become affected by the very same poison. That was why the remaining ki hadn’t been of much help at all. Now, however, with the assistance of the hot spring’s heat, she no longer had such difficulties. She could feel at ease while helping him remove the cold.
Zu An had cultivated the Unshakable Daoist Manual too, making it easier for Yan Xuehen to control his ki. A loop formed between the two of them, cycling the heat and natural ki from the hot spring into their bodies to eliminate the cold poison.
Strictly speaking, such an action was already tantamount to a daoist dual cultivation technique. Such methods required both parties to completely lower their guard, as well as exposing their own vitals for the other party to control, letting ki flow in and out at will. That made it so that there would be almost no secrets left between them at all. As such, for the most part, only the most intimate daoist partners would do such a thing.
…
After a long time had passed, and their ki had cycled several times, Zu An’s body gradually stopped being so frigid and began to recover a bit of warmth. Still, Yan Xuehen didn’t dare act carelessly. She continued to guide the hot spring’s heat and natural essence into his body.
With a groan, Zu An moved a bit, then slowly woke up. He discovered that he was inside a hot spring!
His situation left him puzzled. After using Keyboard Come and suffering its backlash, he had fainted. There were many things he couldn't recall at all. He couldn't help but rejoice that he had managed to survive that situation, though. Just then, he had been a bit too greedy. He wasn’t willing to use a certain trump card and had almost kicked the bucket for it.
It was only thanks to the Last Breath Talisman and Kong Nanwu’s feather that he had been able to survive. He hadn’t expected that feather to have such miraculous effects. Next time, he definitely had to thank her properly. She had actually given him such a precious gift!
However, he suddenly realized something. Where is Yan Xuehen?
Suddenly, he felt something strange behind him. He was about to turn around to see what it was when Yan Xuehen shouted in embarrassment, “You’re dead if you turn around!”
Zu An was alarmed. At that instant, he finally understood what the poetry line ‘the water of the hot spring gently caresses her fair skin’ meant. His heart rate couldn't help but quicken. Soon, he realized that Yan Xuehen had acted to help him get rid of the cold poison. To be honest, he had never expected Yan Xuehen to use such a method to save him. Based on the way she usually acted, such a sacrifice should have been too great.
“Can you use your own cultivation to remove the cold energy inside you now?” Yan Xuehen asked. She already seemed about to let go.
Zu An wasn’t stupid; he obviously wouldn’t admit to that in such a situation. He replied, “Uh… Not yet. I can’t.”
Yan Xuehen fell silent, seemingly suspecting that he wasn’t telling the truth. However, she still didn’t let go in the end. Just like that, the two of them stuck to each other tightly.
“Where is this place?” Zu An asked. He didn’t say ‘thank you’ or anything of the sort; given the situation that would really dampen the mood.
Yan Xuehen calmed down a bit, then replied, “You fainted earlier. I noticed that your body temperature was too low, so I wanted to find a place where the wind and snow were weaker. When I came to this valley, I saw that there was a cave here, and there were hot springs inside…” She gave him a rough account of what had happened.
Zu An was surprised, wondering, “How could there be such an incredible place in the Great Snowy Mountain? Is this maybe the territory of some powerful being?”
Yan Xuehen sighed and replied, “I had those worries too, but the situation at the time gave me no choice.”
A strange silence fell. Yan Xuehen could even hear her own heartbeat. In order to ease the awkwardness, she asked, “How severe is the rebound of the skill you used? I fed you the Prime Souldew to temporarily seal up your wounds.”
Zu An was curious about the state of his injuries. When he heard that, he suddenly realized what was happening. He examined his own body, and eventually said with a frown, “Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough Prime Souldew. It can keep the injuries under control for another two hours at most. Then, the wounds will act up again.”
It was thanks to the Last Breath Talisman and the peacock feather that he had been able to neutralize a portion of the backlash. The herbs he ate had also contributed greatly. Otherwise, he might have just perished on the spot and wouldn’t even have had a chance to make use of the Prime Souldew.
“Then what can we do? Is there a way to save you?” Yan Xuehen asked nervously.
Zu An hesitated. In the end, he shook his head and said, “There isn’t.”
Yan Xuehen opened her mouth, but she didn’t say anything. She had already personally seen a certain process before, so of course she knew about ‘that’ method. He’s probably only saying that for fear of troubling me…
Zu An wasn’t willing to just resign himself to his fate. Thus, he began to treat his own injuries. Whether it was the Phoenix Nirvana Sutra or the Primordial Origin Sutra, he tried everything he had. There were still many people waiting for him to come back; he couldn't just die like that.
Yan Xuehen felt extremely embarrassed when she sensed the ki within Zu An body flow around. This guy actually lied to me and said he couldn't treat himself yet! But will it end up affecting him if I let go now?
While Yan Xuehen was feeling conflicted, Zu An suddenly coughed out a mouthful of blood. He tried to say something, but before he could, he passed out.