Junior Disciple

Chapter Twenty One

Yu Qingwei's eyes lit up as he looked at the person in his arms in surprise. Xie Wuhán coughed a few times, his face looking extremely weak.

Still, he stretched out his hand, revealing an oval-shaped flower seed in his palm, faintly glowing with spiritual light.

Yu Qingwei exchanged a glance with Xuan Min.

"You truly wish to give the Pure Soul Flower seed to Senior Xuan Min?" Glancing at Xuan Min's hesitant expression, Yu Qingwei immediately understood that the senior was embarrassed to take advantage of the situation and decided to speak on his behalf.

It was worth noting that even if the Pure Soul Flower took at least a hundred years to mature, its seed was an extremely rare and priceless treasure. Coming across it during this journey was already a great stroke of fortune, and yet Xie Wuhán was willing to give it away.

Yu Qingwei frowned slightly, worried the boy might regret it later.

Noticing Xuan Min's eager yet reserved gaze, Xie Wuhán nodded lightly without even glancing at the person behind him. He closed his eyes and curled into the young man's arms, appearing to be in great discomfort.

Yu Qingwei didn't hesitate further. He accepted the flower seed and handed it to Xuan Min. "Since that is the case, senior, please take it. This journey has not been without rewards for me—I've successfully formed my core and survived a fateful tribulation. There's no need for you to feel guilty."

Xuan Min nodded.

However, Yu Qingwei's gaze deepened. He himself didn't covet spiritual treasures, but he couldn't let Xie Wuhán give up such a valuable treasure for nothing.

He looked at the boy in his arms with a troubled expression. "But poor Wuhán has suffered significant injuries on this trip. He entered this secret realm to improve his cultivation, only to end up hurt. I'm not even sure if he'll be able to participate in the final disciple trial after we leave..."

The young man, with his warm and gentle appearance, sighed deeply.

Xuan Min: "..."

How could he not understand the young man's implication? Earlier, he had even attacked Xie Wuhán to seize the Pure Soul Flower. Now, the boy's act of voluntarily giving up the flower seed made him seem even more generous, highlighting Xuan Min's own lack of propriety.

Xuan Min quickly caught on. "Xuan Min of the Heavenly Dao Academy owes Xie Wuhán a favor. Once I break through after my seclusion, I will personally deliver a life-bound artifact in the name of the vice dean of the Heavenly Dao Academy and announce this to the cultivation world."

Yu Qingwei's eyes brightened instantly.

This was equivalent to declaring that the Heavenly Dao Academy would be Xie Wuhán's backing. With such a powerful supporter, Xie Wuhán's cultivation journey would undoubtedly be much smoother. Yu Qingwei immediately cupped his fists and said gratefully, "Thank you, senior!"

Xuan Min nodded warmly and turned into a streak of light, flying away.

Yu Qingwei carried Xie Wuhán and was about to leave as well, but the boy's pale face concerned him. When he touched him, he felt the scorching heat on his skin.

His expression immediately grew serious. Spotting an abandoned cave dwelling nearby, he entered, incinerated a white snake hiding in the snow, and placed Xie Wuhán on a stone bed.

It seemed to be a deserted cave once used by a demon cultivator. Yu Qingwei set up a barrier and then focused on checking Xie Wuhán's condition.

Xie Wuhán had originally been pretending to be gravely injured by the demon cultivator, but now he truly felt disoriented and unwell. A biting cold surged through his body. He reached for his storage pouch, and his brow furrowed tightly when he checked inside. As expected, there wasn't even a trace of the Pure Soul Flower left.

The Pure Soul Flower, being sentient, would naturally begin circulating its medicinal properties within the body once consumed. Xie Wuhán was now clearly exhibiting symptoms of having ingested an untempered Pure Soul Flower!

Xie Wuhán's expression darkened immediately.

As Yu Qingwei rummaged for medicinal pills, he turned to see the boy struggling to open his eyes. He hurriedly supported him and fed him several pills.

"Do you feel any better?" Yu Qingwei asked, his gaze filled with concern.

Xie Wuhán shook his head. The pills... were completely ineffective.

What he needed was someone with an Ice Spirit Root to neutralize the extreme cold of the medicinal properties within his body and then return it to him.

The Ice Spirit Root naturally harmonized with extreme cold energy, and once tempered, the medicinal properties could be safely absorbed by a cultivator. Xie Wuhán had intended to find a way to temper the flower's properties after leaving, but now...

A pained groan escaped his lips.

Yu Qingwei immediately leaned in, his handsome face magnified before Xie Wuhán's eyes.

Xie Wuhán's eyes narrowed, and suddenly, he grabbed Yu Qingwei's hand and placed it on his chest.

Yu Qingwei instinctively tried to pull back, but as soon as his fingertips touched the icy sensation, his eyes widened. A chilling cold was spreading from Xie Wuhán's chest to his own body. He immediately understood the reason for the boy's pained expression.

"What is this? How can there be such intense cold energy in your body?" Yu Qingwei asked.

Xie Wuhán avoided his gaze and lied, "It must have been a hidden strike from the demon cultivator's punch. I've just been feeling colder and colder ever since."

Yu Qingwei frowned deeply, not doubting him in the slightest. He grabbed Xie Wuhán's wrist and began channeling his spiritual energy to suppress the cold energy, but the boy's expression of pain only intensified.

"Senior brother... your spiritual energy has a cold attribute. It only worsens the cold energy inside me. I... I'm so cold." Xie Wuhán's lips were already deathly pale, and even curling into a ball couldn't stop his trembling.

Yu Qingwei bit his lip and abruptly stopped transmitting spiritual energy.

He could sense that the cold energy in Xie Wuhán's body wouldn't harm him. In fact, it was similar to the cold spiritual herbs he had consumed before, which could enhance his cultivation if absorbed. However... despite this, Xie Wuhán wouldn't be able to endure the cold energy as it was.

In this situation, either Xie Wuhán failed to neutralize it and froze to death, or... Yu Qingwei could use his own body to channel and temper the cold energy, then return it to the boy.

"..."