Chapter 138 - Eating on the Sly
Chapter 138 – Eating on the Sly
“So? Little Duo, what did you want to tell me?”
As she asked this, Xue Qilin put Phecda lying in her arms aside and propped herself up.
“Young Ancestor, weren’t you talking about Senior Disciple Sister Gong with Senior Disciple Sister Shui just now? Senior Disciple Sister Gong’s swordsmanship is excellent. The disciples of the same generation privately call her ‘Antelope with Double Swords’!”
Antelope with Double Swords, what the hell? Xue Qilin was taken aback.
“Aren’t antelopes usually docile? But when angered, they will become frightening. Senior Disciple Sister Gong’s temperament is very similar to that of an antelope!”
Thinking about it, Xue Qilin feels that using the word “antelope” to describe Gong Tianqing may be appropriate. However, she has never seen Gong Tianqing angry, so she doesn’t know what the other party looks like when angry.
Let’s call her ‘Antelope with Double Swords’ next time! Xue Qilin mischievously imagined that Gong Tianqing would want to find a hole in the ground to hide.
“Mhm, almost done.”
Qian Duoduo nodded in satisfaction while stirring the meat soup in the wok.
Ready to eat? Xue Qilin crawled to the large wok above the campfire and looked inside.
The meat is tossing in the light yellow soup, the carrots cut to the right size exude a tantalizing aroma.
Forefinger jerking [1], the lass scooped out a piece of carrot with her slander fingers and threw it into her mouth, not fearing the boiling heat.
“Hey, not bad!”
As she said this, she put a properly cooked piece of meat into her mouth.
“It has a nice aroma and flavor!”
Xue Qilin nodded solemnly, then extended her hand again.
Upon seeing this, Shui Yun’er spoke with a helpless smile, “Young Teacher, it’s a bad habit to eat on the sly… Older Sister Qi hasn’t returned yet.”
“Who knows when the meeting is over? In any case, I’m hungry!”
Now that Qi Qiqi is away, Xue Qilin plays the rogue unconsciously again. She picked up a wooden spoon set aside, scooped out a spoonful of soup, and moved the spoon towards her mouth.
But then someone seized her wooden spoon.
“Hey! Who dares to grab my spoon! Give it back!”
“Who? It is I, Qi Qiqi!”
Hearing the familiar voice, Xue Qilin shivered.
Then someone grabbed her by the nape and picked her up.
“I’m working hard, yet you’re here eating on the sly?”
Qi Qiqi turned Xue Qilin to make her face herself.
“I don’t recall keeping a Qilin [2] that eats on the sly!”
Looking at the slightly angry, pretty face before her eyes, Xue Qilin issued two hollow laughs.
“This is a misunderstanding… a misunderstanding I tell you. I just wanted to taste it!”
“Taste it?” Qi Qiqi snorted, “I think you should have eaten your fill, right? There will be no dinner for you!”
“You can’t do this!” Xue Qilin wept with a sorrowful expression, “Let’s talk it over!”
“I heard that Qilins are herbivores! Go eat some grass!”
Not bothering with Xue Qilin, Qi Qiqi threw her out of the tent.
Xue Qilin rolled twice on the ground, then jumped up quickly and rushed back to the tent. She doesn’t want to be seen being thrown out. After all, it’s really humiliating.
“Little Seven, you’re not giving me any face!”
Furious, Xue Qilin wanted to find out Qi Qiqi’s justification. Consequently, Qi Qiqi just turned around and glared at her, making her deflate like a balloon, silent.
“Don’t bother me, so annoying!”
Qi Qiqi sat down beside Shui Yun’er, frustrated.
What’s wrong? Xue Qilin blinked.
“Senior Sister Qi, what happened?”
“What else could have happened? Vajrayana people want to go to the best location.”
Playing with her hair, Xia Xue, who returned to the tent one step behind Qi Qiqi, said in a strange voice.
In order to avoid the overlap of trial by fire sites of each sect, every time before Martial Demon Realm Trial by Fire takes place, the representatives of each sect need to hold a meeting to divide the locations available for the trial by fire.
Qi Qiqi returned from such a meeting just now.
She originally vowed that she would grab the best area, but now it seems that she failed.
“Senior Disciple Sister Xia, you’re still making snide remarks?”
Qi Qiqi threw Xia Xue a helpless glance, then sighed. Xia Xue just shrugged.
“What’s going on?”
Although Xue Qilin is not an observant person, but since Qi Qiqi’s display of emotions is straightforward, she naturally can see that Qi Qiqi is really distressed.
Qi Qiqi sighed again and pulled out a map from her sleeve.
“Here…”
Qi Qiqi unfolded the map and circled a certain area on the map. Xue Qilin looked closer and found that it is a plain far away from Mirror Moon Lake called Dragon Guard Plain.
“Is there something wrong here?”
“It’s a large plain! Moreover, based on past experiences, there are several kinds of martial demons leaving here. Although there is quite a number of martial demons here, but they are dispersed. It is a good place for a trial by fire. Besides, if anything goes wrong, you can escape to the forest.”
Oh, so what? … Xue Qilin asked thusly.
“Originally, I and the other three sects were fighting for this place, but then Vajrayana’s ‘Asura’er’ came in and said ‘I want it’ and took it!”
Xue Qilin didn’t ask Qi Qiqi why she didn’t refuse. After all, Jia Lan is a Grandmaster. Who dares to say “no” in front of her? What’s more, Jia Lan is temperamental, a sugar-coated poison.
“Well, it doesn’t matter if you lose the best location, isn’t there still the next best location?”
Xue Qilin spoke comfortingly and stroked Qi Qiqi’s head.
However, Qi Qiqi’s face turned red for some reason, as if she’s suffocating. Although Qi Qiqi’s fuming looks cute, but Xue Qilin couldn’t drum up the courage to poke her cheeks. Because she has already crushed the log she is sitting on due to anger.
What happened? Xue Qilin cast Xia Xue a questioning look.
“Hey, what else can it be? We drew the short straw!”
Xia Xue spread her hands unconcernedly. But Xue Qilin inexplicably feels as if there is a trace of guilt in her eyes.
Does she feel partly responsible?
“So where were we assigned in the end?”
“Here!”
Qi Qiqi angrily circled an area on the map.
“Here…”
The area Qi Qiqi circled is located southwest of the camp. It can be seen from the map that it is a dense forest area. Besides, there are two irregular stripes adjacent to each other near the camp.
It is a ravine.
This means that when going to and fro the trial by fire area, Merak Temple’s people need to bypass the ravine or find a way to cross it.
Of course, it is not difficult for Xue Qilin, who can walk on air, to cross the ravine.
The problem is that most of Merak Temple’s people do not have the ability to cross the ravine. However, transporting people one by one is seriously inefficient, and it may be even more time-consuming than bypassing the ravine.
No matter what, every time you go to and fro the assigned trial by fire area and this camp, you have to waste a lot of time.
Xue Qilin contemplated for a while and then suggested: “We can relocate our camp to there!”
Qi Qiqi and Xia Xue exchanged a look. The expression on their faces seem to say “how come I haven’t thought of it!”.
When she noticed Xue Qilin straighten her back and assume a smug expression, Qi Qiqi said angrily, “Look at how smug you look! I’m ashamed for you!”
“What! Will it kill you to praise me?”
“Yes, yes, yer, our Young Ancestor is the best.”
Qi Qiqi employed Xue Qilin’s usual perfunctory tone and dismissed Xue Qilin impatiently.
“Let’s set off tomorrow morning. Although it’ll be a bit tough, but in order to shift our camp, we will get up early tomorrow, tear down the camp, and pack up everything… Qian Duoduo, notify the other temple-mates afterward.”
No one has any objections. Only Xue Qilin is musing dejectedly that her sleep time will be reduced again.
“… The following is just my selfish request.”
Qi Qiqi suddenly stood up and bowed with a sincere look on her face.
The people in the camp momentarily could not react when they witnessed Qi Qiqi’s unexpected and abrupt display.
“If possible, please do not harm the life of the martial demon during the trial by fire.”
Her tone is that of pleading.
Why is she lowering herself to this extent? Xue Qilin feels that Qi Qiqi must not want to see martial demons being hurt.
Since this is the case, then why is she leading Merak Temple to participate in Martial Demon Realm Trial by Fire?
The answer is simple.
Because since she is the temple’s master, her life belongs to Merak Temple.
She can’t ignore the interests of the temple due to her own selfish desire.
Therefore, she asked not to harm martial demons. She didn’t order it.
Isn’t it tiring to live like this? Xue Qilin feels sad for Qi Qiqi.
“Fool.”
Light as a feather, Xia Xue’s faint sigh flew into Xue Qilin’s ears.
She’s really foolish… Xue Qilin mused.
[1] – forefinger jerking
[2] – Qilin is also the name of a mythological beast